Beer: Discover Brewtopia at Central Market

For the official start of the NFL regular season (Who Dat?), Joe fixed burgers, queso and guacamole.  A quick meal so we could get down to the business of watching football. When I asked if we were having wine, he said, “This meal would be better with beer!”

Did you know that last year there were nearly 1600 breweries operating in the United States? That’s the most ever since Prohibition! When Joe first visited me in Texas (in 1999) I introduced him to his first Shiner, as well as our local microbrewery, Saint Arnold Brewing Company. Soon he was joining me in the Saint Arnold Pub Crawls and helping me collect glasses for completing the crawls! In fact, most of our “casual” glassware sports a Saint Arnold logo (we made a lot of the crawls in the past 10 years.)  Joe even brews his own beer from time to time.

Craft Brewers are good for the economy! Including brewpub serving staff, craft brewers provide an estimated 100,000 jobs in the United States. Now I’ve never been a big beer drinker, but I do like craft brews.  Although I usually “nurse” one glass of beer through an entire football game, I love to cook with it (when Joe lets me in the kitchen). And I’m always up for a beer tasting or pairing.

Lucky for me, Central Market is hosting it’s first ever “Discover Brewtopia” in celebration of all things beer.  For two weeks, beginning with a Beer Roundup on September 22, there will be beer tastings and samplings, beer pairings and cooking classes including those with Saint Arnold’s owner Brock Wagner and Jimmy Mauric, Brewmaster of Shiner Beer.  Chef Kent Rathbun of Abacus, site of our Dallas Urban Wineauxs trip last year, will also be visiting.  There’s even a Beer and Chocolate Pairing set for October 2.  Now, that’s something you don’t want to miss.

Here’s the line-up for the First Annual Discover Brewtopia Celebration:

* Sept. 22 – Beer Round Up
* Sept. 23 – The St. Arnold’s Gastro Pub Dinner: Beer Tasting and Food Pairings
* Sept. 25 – The Victory Gastro Pub Dinner: Beer Tasting and Food Pairings
* Sept. 26 – Home Brewing Workshop
* Sept. 27 – Brewtopia: From Pint to Plate with Chef Kent Rathbun
* Sept. 28 – Tailgating Pleasures with Molly Fowler, The Dining Diva
* Sept. 29 – Shiner Beer Dinner with Brewmaster Jimmy Mauric, Shiner Beer
* Sept. 30 – Beer 101
* Oct. 2 – Beer and Chocolate Pairing

We’re told there will also be Brewmaster samplings from experts like John McDonald and Jeremy Marshall throughout the two-week event. For more information visit the Central Market Cooking School website!

And stay tuned as we report on our adventures during the Brewtopia celebration!

Cheers!
The WineWonkette