BRAND STRATEGIST

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Breastfest Beer festival

13th Annual Breastfest Beer Festival @ Fort Mason
Saturday July 13th 2-6pm



It's an event at which beer pioneers and festive attendees come together to give back to the community committed to beating cancer, and I support this cause so I CRASHED it to find out what Breastfest was all about. In July 2000, the first Breastfest was held hosting 16 local breweries and now it's grown to 60 breweries, local food purveyors and Bay Area musicians who join together to help women gain access to alternative means of cancer therapy. It all began when a daughter watched her mother fight breast cancer and was shocked to find that alternative medical treatments were rarely ever covered by health care plans. The Breastfest Beer Festival was born as a way to help raise money for the Charlotte Maxwell Complementary Clinic (CMCC). The CMCC is located in Oakland and San Francisco, and is a non-profit clinic offering alternative medical treatments for low-income women diagnosed with cancer (because they're four times more likely to die from their form of cancer than those living above the federal poverty line). To level the playing field for survival, I drank beer to help fight cancer at Breastfest.

 Jeremy Kennedy, Market Manager  at St. Killian Importing
Jeremy Kennedy, Market Manager at St. Killian Importing, is bringing Crabbie's Alcoholic Ginger Beer into the U.S. because Americans love ginger (and ginger beer) and it's time that we had the chance to taste Crabbie's too as it's now the No. 1 bottled beer in the UK. It's genuine ginger beer, not beer flavored with ginger. Crabbie's (4.8% ABV) is highly carbonated with a spicy flavor that's intensely ginger; the ginger in Crabbie's is steeped for up to eight weeks to produce its deep crisp flavor of floral and honey notes. It's a unique recipe containing real ginger and a secret blend of spices that was carefully selected by Scottish merchant-adventurer John Crabbie in 1801 when he first imported ginger from the Far East, and Crabbie's still ships all the way from Asia (which probably explains the Elephant Trademark). Crabbie's suggests serving it over ice with a slice of lemon or lime, making it a solid drink for Dolores Park. Crabbie's also works well tossed into a variety of ginger beer cocktails, like the Dark and Stormy or Moscow mule. With centuries of experience behind Crabbie's, it's a uniquely refreshing beer for the ginger lovers, plus it's Gluten-Free (which is kind of a big deal right now). 

Indian Sandwiches: The works, with pita and naked
Delicious. Who was behind this taste that I single-handily voted as the best food at Breastfest? Kama Food Lab was only a couple months old in the mobile food industry and it was obvious they were off to a strong start. Let this picture speak for itself, at Kama Food Lab they don't stop working, they focus on continuously improving and let the food do the talking.
Indian Sandwiches: Juicy and spicy frittkis (fritters cooked Indian tikki style) triple layered with crunchy carrots, red onions and red cabbage tossed with a variety of chutneys and masala sauces, wrapped in a griddled pita bread -or you can order it naked (the sandwich that is) without a pita. 
The works: A healthy and flavorful combination of local grown vegetables and herbs, green beans, cauliflower, peas, mint, cilantro, potatoes, carrots & onions along with Indian cheese (paneer); smeared with green mayo and tomato garlic sauces with a dash of their homemade tamarind sauce plus cilantro mustard topping. 
Navin Poddar, Co-Founder of Kama Food Lab 
It's one of those foods that are nearly impossible to create at home, hence why their dishes are organically created in the Kama Food Lab first. The menu at Kama Food Lab takes the best parts of Indian cooking -balanced spices, strong flavors, bright colors, and interesting textures and then mixes it up with some surprising ingredients recognized in the U.S.. The concept of the food lab lies behind a culinary experience that is constantly evolving and improving like a science project in a lab. Kama Food Lab is simple but inventive; it's where fresh local produce join unusual ingredients from the Indian cuisine producing a mesh of global flavors within the traditions of India.  


Don Payne, Master Distiller (and daughter) at Cahill Winery

24 Degrees is one sneaky product. With no online presence and 24% ABV it slides it's way into restaurants that have only beer and wine licenses -because they're a distilled Chardonnay with the maximum amount of alcohol allowed. Clear and potent with a faint citrus aroma, it makes an ideal stand-in for a white tequila in margaritas. Don Payne is a Master Distiller and produces 24 Degrees at Cahill Winery in Sonoma County. He starts with 100% California Chardonnay and runs it through a traditional, artisan-quality pot still, resulting in high-proof alcohol that's blended to 48 proof -making 24 Degrees my favorite high proof "wine."

Cheers... To the brewing industry camaraderie around pushing the limits to beat cancer

CRASHED IT #73 Breastfest!