Showing posts with label oktoberfest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oktoberfest. Show all posts

Friday, October 9, 2015

Oktoberfest Burger at Hard Rock Cafe

For the month of October, Hard Rock Cafe will be serving a special burger, the Samuel Adams Octoberfest Schnitzel Burger. This is two pieces of breaded pork schnitzel with a beer cheese sauce made with Sam Adams Octoberfest beer, smoked bacon, sauerkraut, whole grain mustard, arugula, on a Pretzel bun. The burger with a side of fries is $16.95.

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Of course, this burger is going to be paired with the Samuel Adams Octoberfest.
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Sunday, October 19, 2014

Oktoberfest at Pomona Fairplex

by: guest blogger @iam_robot

As Oktoberfest beckons, guys and gals rock their lederhosen or dirndl and beeline to Pomona for some brats, beers, and chicken dance. There we will see a traditional Oompah Band playing a selection of foot stomping, thigh slapping German folk tunes to give the festivity a true Hofbrauhaus (Munich historical beer hall) ambiance. Not your cup of tea? Fret not! There are tons of tribute bands playing the tunes of Led Zeppelin, Queen, Black Eyed Peas, and Journey (or Foreigner….aren’t they the same band?).
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Inside the pavilion is the buffet featuring traditional German fare:
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Monday, October 14, 2013

Giveaway: Oktoberfest at Fairplex in Pomona

It's Oktoberfest time and time for another giveaway! I'm a bit late to this since the Oktoberfest at Fairplex in Pomona had already started on October 10, but it's still going on until the 27th so you still have time! The events are happening Thursday-Saturday 6pm to midnight and Sundays from 12-6pm.

There will be domestic and local beers, bratwurst, burgers, pretzels, and King Taco. Various cover bands are ready to entertain you with songs from traditional German "Oom-pah" to Journey and Queen. Tickets are normally $5 each with beer and food for purchase, but you can enter this giveaway for a prize package!


The prize package includes: two admission tickets to Oktoberfest, two 16oz beers, two meal tickets, and a souvenir hat.

To enter, just leave a comment below with your contact/email info.
Get an extra entry by tweeting: "Win a prize package to #Oktoberfest @Fairplex from @gourmetpigs! http://bit.ly/1alTZ2C"

I want to give you enough time to get to Pomona, so the giveaway will end at midnight this Thursday, Oct 17!

Saturday, October 13, 2012

GIVEAWAY: Tickets and Parking to Oktoberfest at the Fairplex Pomona

October can only mean .. Oktoberfests! Beer! German sausages! There are quite a few Oktoberfests around Los Angeles, including one at the Fairplex in Pomona which takes place on Fridays to Sundays this month.


At the Fairplex Oktoberfest, there will be a German food buffet with Bratwursts (of course), Weisswurst (sweet sausage), Schweinehaxe (hock ham), Schweinebraten, and Apfelstrudel. There's an "Oom-Pah" band, games, and of course tons of German beers.

They'e offered to give away two admission tickets and a free parking pass to one of my readers (food and drink not included, sorry). 
To enter to win, just leave your name and email contact in the comments below!

You can also get extra entries by tweeting: "Enter to win tickets and parking to the Fairplex Oktoberfest via @gourmetpigs! http://bit.ly/RpDQBb"

The giveaway will end at midnight on Wednesday, October 17 so that you will have two weekends to use your tickets!


Monday, September 22, 2008

From Pils to Grut Beer, and Beyond

LearnAboutWine, an LA-based wine education company, has also been routinely hosting unique, non-wine classes/events that seemed very interesting, so I contacted Ian Blackburn (the owner) and he invited me down to their German Beer Tasting event with beer scribe Tomm Carroll on Sunday (disclaimer: I joined this event for free per Ian's invitation).

Although LearnAboutWine started out holding events at different restaurants, they have now acquired Loft218 and hosted most of their classes there, which logistically probably works a lot better for them.

Loft218 is actually a loft in industrial downtown LA. You have to buzz in to get into the building, but the setup that Ian has created was a wonderful white tablecloth setting that took me somewhat by surprise.

They had also set up a cheese and dried fruits platter that can be paired with the beers we were drinking, including some wonderful dried cherries from France, smoked gouda, and gruyere.

So. Beer. Before this, I didn't know much at all about beer. Sure I drink hefeweizen, and sure I have a few beers that I like. But my knowledge about different beers extend only to the difference between lager and ale. So after tasting these twelve german beers at this event, I came to learn more about beer than I thought there was to know.

And luckily they gave a handout of the beers with description, history, etc, and I took notes! Because after about 3 oz X 12 beers, I was definitely feeling a buzz ... Let's get on with the beers, shall we?

1. Reissdorf Kölsch
From the town of Cologne (Köln), hence the name. A very light and dry ale - a nice one to start off with.

2. Bitburger Pils
A very dry and bitter beer, IMO ... I didn't like it that much although I got used to it after a few gulps.

3. Hofbrau Original Munich Helles
First lager of the day. Bitter, but maltier than #2.

4. Bayrischer Banhof Berliner Weisse
Arguable the most interesting beer we had! Originating from Berlin, this wheat beer is surprisingly sour, due to the additional lactic fermentation (on top of yeast fermentation). A lot of people would be turned off by it and that's why it is typically served with some woodruff or red raspberry syrup. In our case, we were given some woodruff syrup ("waldmeister").

I actually liked this beer the way it is. Although sour, it had a nice crisp taste with a clean finish that is refreshing. The waldmeister does cut the sourness and adds a nice fragrance, but I think I prefer the taste of the beer itself.

5. Bayrischer Banhof Leipziger Gose
This might be my favorite beer of the day. A wheat ale made with coriander and salt, this beer reminds me of champagne. It's on the sweeter side, but a little malty and you can taste the salt in the finish.

6. Schneider Edel-weiss Hefeweizen
Let's learn some German: "Hefe"=yeast, "Weizen"=wheat.
A nice ale that is a little acidic.

7. Spaten Oktoberfestbier (Märzen)
The original Oktoberfest beer, this was named Märzenbier because it was brewed in March. Since this beer predates refrigeration and the cold temperature is necessary to brew lagers, they had to brew in the winter.
Amber-colored, medium-bodied, but crisp and a little bitter. I thought this went well with some of the smoked gouda.

8. Einbecker Mai-Ur-Bock
Named so because the last cases leave the brewery towards the end of May. A sweet, heavy, and a little malty, this pretty brown-colored beer is at the same time dry & crisp as it has a sharp, bitter finish.

9. Uerige Sticke Dusseldorfer Altbier
A very dry beer. Acidic and bitter. A pretty strong beer with ABV of 6.5%

10. Köstritzer Schwarzbier
This is a dark lager beer that has a roasty, coffee-like aroma, but is surprisingly light and acidic with a dry finish. Because of this, it is aptly known as "the black beer with the blonde soul."
Because of the slight chocolaty flavor, this beer paired very well with the dried cherries!

11. 13th Century Grut Beer
A wheat ale made with ginger, caraway, rosemary, anise, and other spices. It has a nice, strong, "spice" aroma and doesn't taste at all bitter. One of my faves of the day.

12. Aecht Schlekerla Rauchbier
My very first smoked beer. Unpasteurized and made entirely from smoked malt, this beer has a very strong smoked nose. Take a whiff and you'd think you were smelling smoked jerky. It has a lo~ng malty finish, and (as you can imagine) paired well with the smoked cheeses.
I definitely would not drink this on a casual basis. Might be nice for a bbq party though.

Although the class is not cheap ($50 if you register in advance), I thought that it would be worth it, since it isn't just about drinking the 12 beers and eating cheeses, but also the information you get out of it. Not sure if it is worth $75 though, so please do register in advance.

It was a very informative class where I got to try not only beers I've never had before, but beers I never even knew existed.
We also learned a lot about the histories of German beers and of the different types of beer. We all had a great time (the alcohol helps, I'm sure). We also got a souvenir glass :)

Ian has set up an enjoyable class setting and also a series of great classes!
I'm really looking forward to the Port, Chocolate, and Cheese class in December (I hope it won't sell out after telling you guys this ...)!

He has also started a more comprehensive, perhaps more geared towards trade professionals, credentialing program, that he calls the LAW school (and you take the BAR exam at the end -- cute).

LearnAboutWine is definitely a source of great events in Los Angeles, on top of a resource of wine knowledge. I hope to see it maintain and expand its unique series of classes! I've also heard great things about Ian's knowledge on wine and so will probably drop by for a wine (perhaps wine & chocolate? :) ) class.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Another Sunday Offering

Another event to keep in mind for this Sunday (especially if you like beer!) is LearnAboutWine's German Beer Tasting.

This Sunday (Sept 21), 3-5.30 PM.

LOFT218
530 Molino St
Los Angeles, California 90013


You will be tasting the following beers:
Altbier
Berliner Weisse
Bock
Dortmunder Export
Gose
Hefeweizen
Kellerbier
Kölsch
Maibock
Märzen (the original Oktoberfestbier)
Munich Helles
Pilsner
Schwarzbier
Rauchbier
Roggenbier
Zwickelbier

That's a lot!!
You will learn about these beers from "beer scribe" Tomm Carroll, who has written for LA Times, among others.

This class costs $75. There's an advance special price of $50 (may be too late now ...) or if you become a member of LearnAboutWine, then the event is $40.

This will be my first LearnAboutWine event, so I will definitely report back after Sunday!

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