Our SAVOR 2017 Gameplan

Derek and I are getting giddy over the approaching SAVOR 2017 (An American Craft Beer & Food Experience) happening June 2nd and 3rd at the National Building Museum in D.C. We’re going to be attending the June 3rd (Sat Evening) session. Let us know if you’ll be there. We’d love to say, “hello!”

What’s SAVOR? At SAVOR, 86 small and independent breweries from around the country showcase 172 beers, each one thoughtfully paired with artisanal food samplings.

SAVOR is hosted by the Brewers Association and is celebrating it’s 10th year. We think 2017 might be the best one yet from what we’ve seen advertisted so far! I mean It’s pretty hard to top SAVOR 2016 but the beer and food pairing menu that just came out is looking ridiculously stellar.

We had a pretty good strategy in place last year when we attended with Sonora Bostian-Posner, a colleague of mine from StoutsandStilettos.com. (Read about our 2016 SAVOR experience) Even though we planned ahead to make the most out of our sampling experience, it all was a bit overwhelming. But in a good way. So many beers – so little time. The time flew right by. Could also be because I couldn’t stop chatting with all of the Who’s Who in American Craft Beer that attend the fest: brewery owners, brewers and beer reps. Mostly because I like to share my crushes that I have on their beers. It’s also a good opportunity to pick their brains about new things they’re working on. Not to mention all of the craft beer writers and podcasters that show up. It’s a great networking opportunity. I could literally spend 10 hours at this event chatting, eating and drinking!

PARTICIPATING BREWERIES

Every year the list of participating breweries changes. There are some familiar faces who are SAVOR constants (ie. Supporting Sponsors like Dogfish Head, Allagash, etc) but the rest of the list is fresh and new. And, they’re from all across the country. Many of which we won’t likely visit any time soon since they’re so far away. Below are the breweries that Derek and I are looking forward to talking with over some delicious brews. We choose these breweries for a variety of reasons like: we’ve heard great things about them, never tried them but sound hella interesting, those breweries that are bringing their A game, and those that are brewing something special just for SAVOR.

Derek’s Must Try List:

Adroit Theory Brewing

Bluejacket

DC Brau Brewing

Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery

Lord Hobo Brewing Company

Maui Brewing Company

Perennial Artisan Ales

Butcher and the Brewer

Right Proper Brewing Company

Wolf’s Ridge Brewing

Chelsie’s Must Try List:

Alesong Brewing & Blending

Aspen Brewing Company

Band of Bohemia

Country Boy Brewing Company

Crux Fermentation Project

Dialogue Brewing

Perennial Artisan Ales

Propolis Brewing

Right Proper Brewing Company

Saint James Brewery

The Lost Abbey

Toolbox Brewing Company

Two Roads Brewing Company

We’ll of course be planning to try All The Beers – as much as we can and will hit up breweries not on our top picks list. Currently, I have 95 beers on my Want to Sample list. Yikes! I’ll never get to them all but will try as many as possible because #BeerCurious.

> View All Participating Breweries

PAIRINGS THAT SOUND DELICIOUS

Right off the bat, I’m giving a big shout out to the folks who created the food menu. Lots more vegetarian, seafood & poultry options to enjoy this year. And, they all sound killer. Here are some of the pairings I’m looking forward to:

Arcadia Brewing Co’s Mango Surprise IPA paired with green coconut curry papaya salad with thai basil

Aspen Brewing Co’s Cloud 9 Saison paired with duck sausage with fig, sage and parsley & celery salad

Band of Bohemia’s Lime Leaf Lemongrass Jasmine Wheat paired with morel mushrooms with english peas and scapes

Dialogue Brewing’s Scarlet Beh Gose paired with raw oysters from Choptank Oyster Company

Hopworks Urban Brewery’s Long Root Pale Ale paired with oil-poached halibut with fennel, green olives and lemon

Perennial Artisan Ales’ Working Title Belgian Pale Ale paired with everything bagel topped with smoked bluefish and cream cheese

Propolis Brewing’s Beltane Brett Beer paired with seared scallops with celery root puree and brown butter

My list is much longer than this. But will have to widdle it down. Only 3.5 hours to cram in all of this goodness.

> View All Food & Beer Pairings

PRO-TIP: The food served is bite-size portions. Do not expect small plate quantities like you would get at a restaurant. In fact, I’ll be carbing up some prior to the event. I find that I forget to eat when hunting down beer samples. It’s important to get some food in your belly before beer festing. Plus, the food samples go quick.

COLLABORATION BEER

Hardywood Park Craft Brewery in Virginia and New Belgium Brewing Company in Colorado will join forces to create a beer exclusively for SAVOR attendees.

SAVOR X is a robust Baltic porter brewed with Virginia-sourced hops and Colorado-sourced cocoa husks.

Aromatics: Dark fruit, caramel, light coffee and milk chocolate

Dark fruit, caramel, light coffee and milk chocolate Tasting notes: Rich, creamy, roasted malt; caramel; dark chocolate; rounded bitterness

Rich, creamy, roasted malt; caramel; dark chocolate; rounded bitterness Appearance: Black with red hue

Black with red hue ABV: 10%

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with Peter Bouckaert and New Belgium Brewing on this beer for the 10th anniversary of SAVOR,” said Patrick Murtaugh, master brewer and co-founder of Hardywood. “SAVOR X is a 10% ABV Baltic Porter with pleasant notes of roasted malt and caramel. The addition of cocoa husks from Nuance Chocolate in Fort Collins provides a distinct milk chocolate finish.”

Each SAVOR attendee will receive a bottle of this special beer as an exit gift. Sweet!!!

SPECIALTY STATIONS

This year’s specialty stations feature outstanding new vendors that will be paired with breweries on the second-floor balcony of the National Building Museum. This year’s producers include:

Nathan Miller Chocolate , which will make and procure all chocolate selections;

, which will make and procure all chocolate selections; Nathan Anda and Red Apron Butcher , which will provide a charcuterie station;

, which will provide a charcuterie station; American Cheese Society , which will coordinate an artisan cheese station;

, which will coordinate an artisan cheese station; Chop Tank , which will host the ever-popular oyster bar;

, which will host the ever-popular oyster bar; Monterey Fish Market, which will supply a sustainable raw bar.

Hopefully the additional stations and variety of offerings will alleviate folks having to stand in line for 20 minutes to get a few bites of artisanal cheese or a fresh shucked oyster as what happened during past years.

TICKET GIVEAWAY ALERT

For our beer friends in and around D.C., the Brewers Association has informed us that from May 15-19, 2017, five pairs of SAVOR tickets (Premier Beer & Food Pairing Event) will be hidden in three locations around D.C., each holding a connection to the event’s 10 year anniversary.