Whiskey Girl's love bacon

To cap off (pop-ff, not twist-off, cummon- I have class people) what can only be described as the best weekend EVER, I accompanied Stoven to a Whiskey Dinner at Grovewood Tavern in Collinwood. As mentioned in my Argyle Winery Dinner from back in October, I'd been to Grovewood Tavern before and am very familiar with the place, so OBVIOUSLY no one had to twist my arm to get me to go. I would practically sell my firstborn child for the opportunity to dine there, so for that night Stoven was a god for inviting me.

When we got there, the crowd was small, which is understandable given the size of the tavern and the fact it was a Monday night. The Turk was working so he led us over and sat us down, were we had a glass of whiskey waiting for us (the best way to start out a night in my opinion...with a drink waiting for you). To be more precise, the drink was actually an aperitif, they called a Weeski Cocktail, which was one of my two favorite drinks for the night. Being described by David Wondriech (Esquire's chief cocktail authority) as "the French version of whiskey", it is a cocktail blend of Lillet, Contreau, orange bitters, and Irish Whiskey. Unbeknownst to me before this night, but surely obvious to me after it, was that Irish whiskey lacks the smokey character of Scotch and the piney character of American whiskey, making it perfect for blending with sweet liqueurs such as Lillet and Contreau, and a perfect introduction to a night filled with full-bodied liquor consumption.

This was followed by a salad of Mesclun greens tossed in a spicy citrus dressing with a coconut-encrusted baby banana and a seared prawn. (<-- Yes, "a". Just one. Which was weird, but okay considering we had 3 other courses following.) I found the single prawn and crusty banana a little distracting, and the fact that it was a creamy dressing sorta perplexed me, and although I'm a HUGE salad fan, I have to admit that I don't ever plan on making this again. (Sorry, not all my reviews can gush praise.) This dish's date for the night was a pour of George Dickel #12- better known as "the other Tennessee Whiskey." (Basically Jack D's nerdy cousin.) This was good, but not my favorite of the night by any means... probably due to the fact I'm not crazy about Jack in the first place, so the entire family literally "leaves a bad taste in my mouth."

Just as I was about to flag the server down and ask to trade for one of those Weeski's, he came swooping by and swept away my plate, replacing its empty space with another drink and our second course. This drink, a snifter of Wiser's Very Old Canadian Whisky,  totally compensated for the first. I think it was the complexity of it's flavors that really sold me- Vanilla bean, dried apple, golden raisin, honey, and peppercorn were all detectable and equally delectable. The malt and honey glazed chicken breast served atop barley risotto was the Wiser's beau in this pairing, and like every other chicken dish I've had here at Grovewood, is ALWAYS perfectly cooked; moist, tender, and (thank God) no pink spots. (Even when recreating these dishes, I have never had a dry or overcooked breast, thigh, or whathaveyou if following their recipe; which is a miracle for me, since I seem to have (or had) a poultry curse.) The sweetness of the maple drew out the vanilla and honey notes of the whiskey quite well, and the crispy-ness of the chicken balanced the creaminess of the risotto and the sharpness of the spirit perfectly, making this my favorite course of them all tonight.

Almost too soon (not referring to the quality of service, but rather to the time allotted to enjoy such a great course), the waiter came by yet again and in a whirlwind of pouring, cleaning and serving, I had only to blink before there was the third course sitting in front of me. This one consisted of a seared filet medallion with root vegetable chips, drizzled with a peppercorn whiskey sauce and a snifter of GDB (George Dickel Barrel Select). The most notable thing about this pair was that the color of the whiskey and the sauce were both a striking auburn red color, as were the veggie chips. The GD, in contrast to the first, was very mellow and totally unlike any JD i'd ever had, with predominant notes of sichuan pepper, leather, and allspice. I know the rep mentioned something about mint beign present, but I didn't taste any. The meal was... so so. Which is difficult for me to say, because I have a slight writer's block against bashing steak, but, I'm not going to give credit where it isn't due.My apologies to the chef, but this steak can go back to the pasture. I felt it odd to eat a sirloin alongside glorified potato chips, and the peppercorn sauce tasted more like gravy than a sauce. If I ever recreate this one, I'm gonna back off the flour a bit to keep it more like a viscous au juis.
To end the dinner, but certainly not the night, we cheered the reps while cheers-ing glasses of Celting Crossing Liquor. Let me tell you, this stuff is "stop-and-you-pinch-yourself" good. A sumptuous blend of Irish whiskey, French Congnac, and honey, it swept me off my feet and onto cloud nine- and NOT because I'd just consumed my 5th glass of whiskey (each being quite generously poured). It reminded me of a whiskey-mead blend, with the almost syrupy mouthfeel of mead cut by the bite of the whiskey. Sip this along with an apple-cinnoman creme brulee, and you're in heaven. Heaven enough for me to have eaten two desserts (<--whatever, don't judge.)

Immediately following the last spoonful of that dreaded second dessert, I was summoned up to the bar to begin the afterhours with Stoven, where we discussed philosophy, psychology, and even ancient languages. It's always nice to have those friends who are able to talk sensibly and drink at the same time, especially when they're ADD; you cover an encyclopedic amount of topics over the span of one or two hours. Better yet, is when you have those kind of convos over great beer- like Stoven's Hopslam, and my bacon beer...
Actually, let me describe this one for you, you're REALLY gonna wanna try it!
To start off, this beer is not actually called "Bacon Beer", I just aptly named it that because it smells like a mix of campfire and my dog's Beggin' Strips. It's real name is Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier, demanding as much attention as any German Führer. But don't run away from it just yet, it's really not the smelly Nazi-ale I make it out to be. It's actually one of the smoothest, creamiest ales I've ever had, most certainly replacing Left Hand's Milk Stout as my favorite creamy ale. The taste is less of campfire and more of a maple-glazed bacon fried on a CAST IRON SKILLET; the kind of drink that would pair PERFECTLY with a ham and cheese omelet with buttered toast (Judy's-style of course; a trucker diner out in the stix where Stoven, E and I used to frequent on our "late start" days at NDCL. Oh, the memories..), or a great big slab of Sweet Baby Rays BBQ baby back ribs. For my first Rauchbeir, translating literally as "smoked beer", it really opened a whole new avenue of exploration. I can't WAIT  to grab a couple bottles from Warehouse and experiment with some grub!

Stoven's Hopslam by Bell's brewery out of Kalamazoo was also fantastic. The hazy orange color of the IPA reflected the colors of both the orange and honey flavors that balanced out the piney taste of the hops. I wouldn't exactly say I was "slammed" by the hops, but I certainly wasn't slapped by it, a testiment to the drinkability of the beer.

After tasting the Hopslam, I sorta craved a spicy ale myself. The Rogue Juniper Pale Ale that I chose was a perfect choice, appealing to both my love for gin and my love for beer. "Gin?" you might ask? and the answer is "Yes, gin. Jen loves gin. Especially when it's used to make a double-dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives." But let me digress, the reason I say this beer appeals to my love for all things Sapphire is because gin, much like this ale, is made with juniper berries. Actually, it's essentially juniper-infused vodka, along with other things like orris root, licorice, angelica, coriander, cassia bark, cubeb berries,almonds, grains of paradise, and lemon peel.Overall, a very fragrant and complex-tasting beer...right up my alley. One of the beers I will definitely order again.
By the time I had finished the last drop of my Juniper Ale, Stoven convinced me that I was loooong overdue for a trip to La Cav. So we said goodbye to our new best friend (the bartender) and headed out to Coventry. Unfortunately, because it was nearing last call and both my partner in crime and I had to work in teh morning, we only had time for one drink-to split. What we settled on was...nevermind, must've had too much because I can't remember for the life of me what it was. Damn it, I hate it when that happens!