Samuel Adams Barrel Aged Beer Dinner Menu

For years wine has been the go to drink of choice when it comes to pairing with a meal. However, now we see more and more pairings with beer.

Epicurious has a FAQ sheet for how to pair beer with food. If you type "Beer Pairings" in the search on HuffingtonPost.com, you get a list complete with what beer to pair with Thanksgiving dinner, beer and cheese pairings, and even what to drink with Kentucky Fried Chicken (I don't really suggest you try this pairing, but who am I to judge if you give it a shot?)

My point is, times they are a'changing! Now more people see beer as a drink that helps accent and highlight flavors in food. We even had a very successful run of dinners at The Rookery called "Unveil The Ale". At "Unveil The Ale" we spotlighted a hard to find beer for this area and paired it with dinner and an album. We all sat around the bar and talked about beer and food. It was a lot of fun, as well as delicious, and informative.

We had been scratching our heads trying to figure out how to revive the dinner and a beer concept when we were approached by a Samuel Adams representative about helping to introduce their new Barrel Room Collection to middle Georgia. It was like lightning struck and we had our answer. Dovetail was going to host our next beer pairing dinner!

We were all excited and bubbling with ideas as we tasted the new beers. Chef Doug Sanneman was shouting out flavors and possible combinations as soon as the beer hit his tongue. We sat down and created a four course meal that starts where it all started for Samuel Adams, their Boston Lager. Then brings you up to date with the brewery by carrying you through three of the new Barrel Room Collection beers.

Dovetail is usually closed on Mondays but for something as special as this we have decided to open our doors to the very special 40 guests who will join us. That's right, this dinner is limited to the first 40 guests who make reservations.

Chef Doug Sanneman and Dovetail present:

Samuel Adams Barrel Room Collection Dinner

Course 1: Samuel Adams Boston Lager
Pear and Golden Raisin Tartar
bacon marmalade, bleu cheese mousse, shaved toasted pecans

Course 2: Samuel Adams New World Tripel
Lump Crab Salad
macerated kumquats, fennel dressing, micro mint

Course 3: Samuel Adams Stony Brook Red
Dill Crusted Lamb Rack
roasted garlic cauliflower, harissa, caramelized carrots

Course 4: Samuel Adams Thirteenth Hour
Banana Fig Goat Cheese Dumpling
banana ice cream, cardamon creme anglaise, toasted coconut

Dinner is served with a 12oz pour of each beer and is $85 per person. You must make reservations for this special event. Seating is limited to the first 40 reservations. To reserve your seat, call 478-238-4693. You must reserve your spots with a credit card number.

We are excited about this special event and look forward to reserving your spot.
See you soon.

Roger

Lima Bean Hummus Lettuce Wrap Recipe

 The Lima Bean Hummus in Dovetail's Put-Ups appetizer is a favorite. It's easy to understand why. That little southern twist of using lima beans instead of chickpeas makes it memorable and once you taste it, you're hooked. It's one of those things where you want to say, "Why didn't I think of that?!" It seems simple enough to make but the problem for most people is that they don't know how to make hummus in the first place.


As far as hummus goes, we know it tastes good, but what exactly is it? Hummus is a middle eastern dip or spread made from chickpeas. The earliest known recipe comes from 13th century Egypt.

In its most basic form the ingredients to make hummus consist of chickpeas, sesame oil, lemon and garlic. It is usually served with olive oil and a flat bread or pita.

The secret to making smooth hummus is to peel the chickpeas after cooking them. Sounds like a pain in the bones right?

Well guess what? We aren't worried about all of that because we are going to be working with lima beans!

Here's what you are going to need to make the lima bean hummus.

 Ingredients
1 cup of dried lima beans
1 Mediterranean lemon
2 garlic cloves
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Black Pepper
Lettuce leaves (Bibb or Romaine)
Sriracha chili pepper sauce

Preperation
 Soak the lima beans overnight in water.

Drain the beans and then cover in pot with fresh water. Add one teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Let the lima beans cook until the are soft.

Drain the beans and then add them to a food processor along with the juice of the lemon. We are very lucky to receive Mediteranian lemons from our friend Mrs. Charlotte Hope. She grows them in her yard. However, if you can not find a Mediterranean lemon, a regular lemon will do just fine.

Puree the beans and lemon juice while drizzling olive oil. We use Georgia Olive Farms Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This is a very pleasant tasting olive oil and you can't beat that fact that it is grown and produced right here in Georgia. Let the mixture puree until it has reached a smooth consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer hummus to a bowl, cover, and let sit in refrigerator for at least one hour.

Place lettuce leaves on plate and top leaves with a heaping portion of hummus. Chef Sanneman used a pastry decorating squeeze bag to add some design as he put the hummus on the leaf. This could be the added little presentation needed when serving these at a party.

Finally top each one with a drizzle of olive oil and Sriracha chili pepper sauce, for a little extra color and just a touch of heat.

Easy, healthy, fun to serve, and most of all delicious!

Enjoy.
Roger