DRAFT Magazine

If you’ve got a running list of things to do before you die, I’d seriously consider adding “go to a Sean Paxton beer dinner.” As part of San Francisco Beer Week Paxton worked with Firestone Walker and Toronado to put together a beer dinner that exhibited imagination and skill like few meals I’ve been privy to enjoy. I’ll admit I’m a bit bias here — after all I consider Sean a good friend and have been enjoying his work in the kitchen for several years. With that in mind I wanted to get some other opinions of Paxton and his dinners. I first called Dave “Big Daddy” Keene, owner of the world-famous Toronado and host to Sean’s most recent beer dinner. His words echoed my own: “imagination” and “his ability to infuse beer and food.” Keene went on to say how impressed he is with Paxton’s ability to wow folks who aren’t even “beer people.” He told a story of a couple who are more interested in cocktails, but are huge fans of Sean. “They came to his Belgian beer dinner [at Toronado],” Keene says. “When they heard he was doing another dinner for us, they were among the first to buy their tickets.”

There was also a gentleman named Birk who I met at the dinner. While he likes beer and food, he certainly wouldn’t put himself in the uber-beer-geek category. He wanted to do something “different” for his birthday and while having a pint at his local bar (Toronado), he found out about the dinner. He came and was utterly blown away with the food and how well each dish went with the selected beers. He told me before leaving that he would certainly do something like this again, hopefully with Paxton in the kitchen.

Let’s talk about the dinner for bit. This six-course affair had everything working: the dishes were beautiful, aromatic, flavorful, and perfectly prepared. It started light, sort of, with a warm prawn dish served with lightly dressed arugula. I’ve eaten a lot of prawns in my time and often find they can be rubbery or mushy, but these were crisp and gently spiced. The salad came with a garnish of quail eggs that the Homebrew Chef had aged in a pillow of Simcoe, Amarillo and Cascade hop cones for one week. The porous eggs allowed just a hint of hop flavors and spice to seep into the egg and led to an unbelievably good flavor. In fact, as good as the prawns were, the delicate quail eggs stole the show in this first act. Stunning really. The first course was paired with Pale 31, an assertively hopped pale ale that matched well with the arugula and eggs, which seemed to cut through the hops and made the beer wonderfully creamy.

Up next was the cheese course where Paxton put three delectable fermented dairy products on top of a sweet honey-wort sauce made of Firestone Walker wort (unfermented beer) that was shipped overnight to Sean by Matt Brynildson and then reduced to half, then combined with local Sonoma blackberry honey. The sauce was sensational, but couldn’t steal the spotlight that belonged on the reserve cheese from Point Reyes (Reserve Blue), Yellow Buck Camembert, and Cowgirl Creamery’s Red Hawk. Returning to Paxton’s imagination, the guy had the nerve to pair this dish (with home-roasted nuts and beer-soaked grapefruit) with Union Jack IPA. I was more than a little leery at this pairing, but it worked remarkably well, especially with the Camembert, which had the uncanny ability to cut through the bitter hops to create a delightful palate experience.

At this point my table started chatting. We were impressed by Sean’s ability to make each course better than the last and even more impressed with his ability to make each dish come alive with his personal tales of inspiration and the process he followed to get each plate to us. He clearly wasn’t just pairing a beer with a food item, but was focused on creating a memorable experience for each of us — even though this is a harder road to follow. The effort and thought put into every dish seemed over-the-top, even outlandish, but the results were more than appreciated. It’s safe to say Sean was doing a good job of inspiring those at the table to rethink what food and beer means.

Next up was a dish that I find nearly indescribable, Sean’s deconstructed Reuben sandwich. To begin, Sean found it appropriate to make duck pastrami (no, that’s not a typo). Seriously, duck breasts cooked to perfection with a slightly acidic, smoky taste. Then there was the fresh bread, crisp fermented cabbage, pickled mustard seeds and a topping that consisted of (I kid you not) slow-cooked duck tongues in a duck sauce! The sauce employed four pounds of duck tongues and 10 gallons of stock that was reduced to 1 gallon for the dish. I don’t know what four pounds of duck tongues looks like, but that had to be a sight to see. When Sean announced this not-on-the-menu topping I was admittedly leery, expecting the tongues to be chewy and, well, less than spectacular. I was wrong. The combination of the duck pastrami with, cabbage, bread, and duck-tongue topping created a palate experience that had people begging for more, even though we were getting quite full.

As good as the flavors were in this dish, it was around my fourth bite that I finally understood the genius of Sean Z. Paxton: he gets texture. I know photos can’t convey this, words won’t do it justice either, but along with exceptional flavors we all expected in a great dinner, Sean gave us texture in every bite. Tender meats, crisp veggies, chewy breads, creamy cheeses, and sparkling fruits all created something more than just great flavors, they provided memories. Very good memories, too.

NEXT!? Sean, are you kidding me? I’m about to waddle like that duck in his prime here…

Next Sean did something I’m sure you’ve thought of doing with a Russian River beer at home: blending it with liquid nitrogen. What’s that you say? You were going to do that last night, but you were fresh out of liquid nitrogen AND Russian River beer? OK, so none of us are likely to make this dish at home, nor will we likely see it anytime soon at any local or chain restaurant, but trust me when I tell you this rocked in every way. For starters Paxton made this himself, table-side, for everyone in attendance (a type of flair you can’t find anywhere else). On top of the excitement the presentation generated, this sorbet-type-thing was sensational and made short order of cleansing palates. Unreal.

Sean disappeared back to the kitchen, which could only mean we weren’t done.

Have you gotten the impression that every dish Sean prepared was better than the last? If not, I should just point out that was the basic sentiment felt by everyone. At this point, we wondered if Sean could actually pull out one more magic bullet. Silly us.

Our next plates arrived with something straight out of a magazine: veal cheeks braised in porter. At this point I have run out of ways to say just how good this plate really was, except to say it brought an entirely new meaning to the trope “melt in your mouth.” Because of the way Sean cooked the veal, there was simply no need for chewing; just enjoy as the savory, sweet meat fell apart in your mouth. Again, his ability to play with the textures in the dish couldn’t be overstated.

Right about now I have a bittersweet feeling. I was getting extremely full, feeling happy and satisfied, but the event was a roller coaster for the palate and I wasn’t quite ready for the ride to end. End it must, however, and for dessert Sean plated cake made with Velvet Merkin and chocolate next to two chocolates filled with Firestone Walker XII caramel (you read that right) served with THREE beers: XII, Saucer Full of Secrets, and Velvet Merkin. The dessert was lovely, the beers off the hook. Sean poured us the Saucer Full of Secrets himself, relaying the story that the beer was the original homebrew he got to brew on Firestone Walker’s big system. Again, Paxton made the meal come alive, giving us more than good tastes and a full belly.

This was a dinner that will not soon be forgotten.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out the great service and pacing the meal had. The kitchen staff was made up largely of beer bloggers and friends of the Homebrew Chef, and they kicked ass with the platings and their ability to get the food out to all of us in a timely manner. Very courteous folks poured the beers at the table, and the whole staff made each of us feel welcome and wanted. What a treat it was for everyone there.

I don’t know when or where the Homebrew Chef will pop up next — could be back in San Francisco, it may be back in Lovell, Maine, but if you ever see him coming to a town near you I suggest you save up and make a Homebrew Chef dinner something you experience first-hand. When you do, be sure to check in with us and tell us what you think of Sean Z. Paxton.

Check out more pictures at our Flickr feed!