Winter Fancy Food Show 2012
What is RateBeer doing at a Fancy Food Show? I asked myself this when applying for press credentials. The truth is that craft beer is “fancy food” and it’s important to reinforce our position in the culinary world by showing interest in the industry as a whole. Plus, beer has food value, while most food has little to no beer value.
I showed up to this three day event on Day 2 at around noon. I had been told that the event was huge and the website’s information only verified that, but I had no idea what I was in for. One of the largest convention centers in the world, the Fancy Food Show fills Moscone North and South, providing space for well over 1,000 exhibitors looking to find new retailers, distributors, importers and exporters.
Wandering the floor, I found many products that beer lovers would enjoy, as well as the occasional beer. Sanders chocolate was displaying their Chocolate Stout, brewed by Detroit Brewing Company. Leinekugel shared a space with Sartori Cheese and provided beer and cheese samples. Also in the cheese section, Cypress Grove featured a display case full of beer and their cheeses, supporting my opinion that Humboldt Fog is possibly the best beer-friendly cheese in the world. Tumalo Farm of Oregon also featured Pondhopper, a cheese made with hops and pale ale.
Slideshow of the Winter Fancy Food Show 2012
But the real beer news of the event was the Brewer’s Association’s booth hidden in the far back of the South Hall. A handful of breweries poured samples as part of the BA’s Export program. The booth was incredibly popular, with the late crowd really surging as long days came to an end.
Highlights of the selection included Allagash’s Curieux, a special bottle of Rasputin XIV, Bitter American’s return to San Francisco and Elysian’s first release of their Twelve Beers of the Apocalypse. All around the beer selection was impressive, with assertive, full flavored beers leading the way.
At the end of the day, it was a positive day for RateBeer and the beer community in general at the Fancy Food Show. As it was an industry event, business was discussed and hopefully we can bring the fruits of these labors to RateBeer lovers down the road. Stay tuned for future announcements and news regarding RateBeer and our plans throughout the Bay Area and beyond in 2012.
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[...] meeting with Moonlight brewer Brian Hunt during the Fancy Food Show weekend, the Lieu sisters got to work on developing a chocolate that featured the regional favorite [...]