Sometimes, all that will do is beer and cheese.

Yesterday Jeff informed me that a new craft beer store that we’ve been hearing about for months and anxiously awaiting the arrival of finally opened in Decatur. Field trip!

Ale Yeah! is a small specialty beer store showcasing tons of sticky Belgians, dark brews, imports, charcuterie and cheeses, and home-brewing essentials. This is no liquor store, it’s more like a fine beer boutique. I’ll do a full post on them another time because it was just too awesome. I’m so glad we live about a mile and a half from this fantastic find.

Anyway, we picked up two beers to sample and two of Ale Yeah!’s signature pint glasses and headed home to watch a movie.

I put together a plate of sliced cheese, shaved prosciutto, and whole grain mustard for us to munch on. We didn’t end up using the new pint glasses because they needed to go through the dishwasher.

Instead we filled a couple of Stella glasses with this Third Coast Old Ale by Bell’s Brewery. We both love Bell’s, everything they make is scrumptious. This one was really dark and super intensely-flavored. I tasted espresso and prunes and spices, heavy but good!

We watched a Netflix movie while assembling the goods on crackers. I get this prosciutto from our local farmer’s market, which isn’t really a farmer’s market so much as it is an international foods warehouse.

I think people pass up the prosciutto a lot because of the $18.99 a pound price tag; but here’s the secret, no one buys a pound of prosciutto! I always ask for 8 to 10 slices shaved very thin and it never comes out to more than $3.00! It’s great for making a grilled cheese sandwich fancy, and cheaper than the pre-packaged stuff you see in grocery stores which is closer to $6 and cut too thick for this delicate delight.

I like to spread a little mustard right on the cracker and top with cheese, then prosciutto. Then I hold it with two hands to bite down because the cracker always breaks into a bajillion pieces and I have to hold it together. It’s worth it though!

Eating healthy is great and all, and healthy food truly is delicious, but sometimes…… sometimes you just gotta cram your face full of cheese and liquid carbs and not let it bother you in the slightest!  I like to actually enjoy my indulgences, thank you.

What are your favorite things to stuff your face with?! 😀

December 9, 2010 Alayna Discussion 3 comments

Well, we went.

We tried really hard to have fun but several things made that pretty difficult.

For one, the number of people at the event was at the upper limit of what the space could handle.  I knew it was going to be packed and that we would have to wait in lines for beer samples, but I didn’t expect that it would be nearly impossible to stand in one spot and actually drink your beer because you were constantly being washed away by the crowds. All the pictures we have are from the first 20 minutes of being there because shortly after that it became impossible to take anymore with how many people there were.

There were very few places to sit too, so we found ourselves chugging samples quickly because without time to stop and enjoy, we were at our next sample stand in seconds.

I waited 20 minutes in line for a t-shirt to be told that they were sold out.  This was 1 and a half hours after it started; I was sure that by getting there early I wouldn’t have a problem getting a shirt.

I was disappointed in the food offerings as well.  It seemed that all the foods chosen for the event had the sole aim of keeping people heavily fed to keep them from getting too drunk.  Pizza, hot dogs, hamburgers, and BBQ sandwiches were the main choices unless you wanted to stand in line for a bag of Doritos.  I had expected there to be foods available that paired well with craft beers; like warm soft-baked pretzels with whole grain mustard, dark breads, various cheeses and cured meats, maybe even some meat or cheese filled pastries.  Instead it kind felt like a frat party catered by the local pizza joint.

The worst part was that there was nothing to learn at the event.  Very few vendors offered to tell me anything about the samples offered and once when I asked a vendor what one of their offerings was she actually said “I have no idea” and proceeded to pick up the bottle and read it to answer my question.

Even with all that, we could have just enjoyed a day of drinking beer in public if it hadn’t have been so unbearably hot out!  We had expected mid-70’s and breezy but got 80-something degrees with no air movement.  That is not the festival’s fault, of course, but still made it difficult to enjoy.

I’m really just disappointed.  Decatur is a beer connoisseur’s paradise, where every restaurant and bar offers a wide array of interesting beers from around the world with an extremely knowledgable staff to help you choose something just right for you. This event had so much potential to celebrate that, but instead just turned into an expensive and frustrating way to get drunk with strangers.

Unless the formula changes, we’re not going back next year.

October 17, 2010 Alayna Discussion 6 comments

Mmmmm….almond butter/ apple butter toast.  Double butter, oh yes.

Making sure I’m properly fed for a day of drinking in public!

We’re headed into downtown Decatur around noon for the Decatur Beer Festival so we can get our drink on all afternoon.

Very excited to try lots of new beers and learn about different breweries, sample snacks and just enjoy being out and about on a beautiful day.

Ok. Fed and happy. Time to get ready so we can head out.

See you many beers later!

October 16, 2010 Alayna Discussion 1 comment