Giants and the Freda B

Coworkers and I were lucky enough to watch a Giants game from McCovey Cove aboard the Freda B recently! I've attended so many games at AT&T park, but this was my first time in the cove! We bundled up, enjoyed some brews and waved at the ESPN cameras all evening! 

 

 

SF Cocktail Week Food Truck Event

Night two of SF Cocktail Week was held at the SoMa StrEAT Food Park. The event boasted half a dozen food trucks and four specialty cocktails. The booze ran dry about an hour earlier than expected, but Anchor Brewing Company saved the day with plenty of Anchor Steam to go around!

Favorite food truck of the night: Voodoo Van
Favorite cocktail of the night: Canned cocktails by 15 Romolo canned onsite with The Can Van
Favorite memory of the night: Bumping into Jenna, one of our favorite event organizers, while she was opening an Anchor Steam for Andrew, one of our favorites at Pixar!

SF Cocktail Week Kickoff Party

Anchor Brewers and Distillers hosted a kickoff party for SF Cocktail Week last night!

The highlight of the event for me was tasting the winning cocktail from the Beantown vs Barbary Coast at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans earlier this summer... and from the mixologist herself!

 

The Tallest Man on Earth

Last night a friend and I went to the Fox Theatre in Oakland to see The Tallest Man on Earth. As if he isn't already brilliant on his album, oh my, you should hear this man live! As it turns out, he's actually a very small man, an unassuming hipster type with knees so knobby when he dances behind his guitar he appears almost childlike. His voice is hauntingly beautiful and his musical talent extends beyond the guitar, as he performed several songs on the piano as well.

We started out our evening with dinner at Betelnut. We've both been before, but I never tire of the interesting menu and open air bar seating. There was a seasonal tomato and curry chicken dish available, that turned out to be an excellent choice. It paired well with a South African Chenin Blanc.

 

Considering that shows nearly always start late, we were surprised when a long haired man and an unassuming drummer walked out on stage at 8 on the dot. They didn't introduce themselves, they just started right into a song. Half way through the set, the singer/ guitarist said between songs, "We should get to know each other better," which I assumed meant he'd introduce the name of his band, but he didn't, he just called out his drummer and then proceeded into the next song. I was so glad when The Tallest Man on Earth took stage and thanked his opener as Strand of Oaks, because the music was so interesting I was dying to know who to search on iTunes after the show.

 

 

Gluten Free Cupcakes

I just realized I never posted about these gluten free cupcakes I made for my coworker's birthday! 

Okay, well, let me just say before you get too proud of me, that I didn't make them from scratch. I had tossed the idea around but wound up deciding that since gluten free baking requires entirely different ingredients from traditional baking, none of which were previously in my kitchen, and because I only had one evening with which to throw these together, there simply wasn't time to buy all the necessary goodies and risk the first batch not turning out. There is a wonderful little gluten free grocery store near my work where I managed to find a cake mix. I got the yellow cake mix and added some almond extract for flavor, tossed out the frosting mix that came with it and made a basic sugar frosting mix with vanilla extract. I topped off the cupcakes with fresh blueberries and refrigerated them overnight. 

To make the "Happy Birthday" banner I used a toothpick, scrapbooking paper and a gold paint pen. I used one level of a cupcake tower and paper shreds for presentation.

I'm definitely inspired to do a bit of ingredient shopping next time I can get over to that shop so I can start practicing gluten free baking from scratch.

 

Goooo Niners!

Last night was the 49ers last preseason game, and what a way head into their 2012/13 season than with a 35-3 win against the Chargers! A handful of coworkers happened to be going to the game, so we carpooled from the brewery and got two hours or so of tailgating in before the game. At Anchor we're all about our "brews and baseball" theme with the Giants, but it's about time for some brews and football!

 

 

Jamaican me Crazy!

As it turns out that saying is quite true - Jamaican me Crazy - That country did drive me crazy! Crazy happy with rum and booty shakin music, and crazy frustrated with the overwhelmingly tourist-centric culture. 

Our bunch had some very bizarre encounters and experiences during our week in Negril, but looking back on the trip all I can think about is how incredibly gorgeous my dear friend was on her big day, and how blessed she is to have a wonderful man beside her for the rest of her life. They were wed just before sunset on Seven Mile Beach. While our wedding party took photos after the ceremony, guests enjoyed a cocktail hour complete with steel drum band. And who caught the bouquet at the reception? Oh you know it! 

 

 

  

And Away We Go

Today is the big day that I've been planning for and greatly anticipating since December... I am headed to Jamaica for Erin's wedding! I can hardly believe her big day is right around the corner and am giddy with excitement to be a part of it.

I purchased a three spray tan package on Groupon for Ooh La La salon on Van Ness and used the first one a month ago before Erin's bachelorette in Vegas. I wasn't entirely thrilled with the results, but considering the discount I got by purchasing on Groupon it was acceptable. I also scheduled a tan for what should have been last night, knowing I'd want a little glow to start off my trip. Last night I got home from work, did the whole shower and scrub routine, drove all the way across the city... and the shop was closed. Oh my! I left a voicemail with the salon asking what happened, since last week I received automated confirmations via both email and voicemail. All they had to say was "Oh sorry, I didn't see it on the schedule" and offered to have me go in today instead. I was furious! I leave today! Pale, oh so pale, I leave today! No offer of compensation or discounted services in the future, just an "Oh, sorry." *Sigh*

I may not be airbrushed, but packed and prepared I am! 

Here are a few things that are easy to forget when you're going abroad:

- Let your bank know you will be out of the country 

- Find out if there are fees for using your ATM or credit card abroad

- Make sure your passport isn't within six months of expiration 

- Keep all your reservation confirmation numbers handy

- Don't assume your hotel will have a power/outlet converter. Bring one.

- And of course, leave room in your suitcase for souvenir shopping!

Ozomatli and SMOD at Stern Grove

Stern Grove Festival is celebrating its 75th season! 

Yesterday, a few coworkers and I watched SMOD and Ozomatli from our company's sponsor table. It was quite a different experience from the previous week, when the SF Ballet performed. SMOD opened the show with such energy that concert goers immediately poured down to the front of stage, jumping and clapping to the French African beats. At the end of the show, Ozomatli gave an encore from a large rock in the middle of the park. Fans swarmed around them cheering and dancing.

 

SF Ballet at Stern Grove

Stern Grove Festival is celebrating its 75th season! 

Yesterday, a girlfriend and I enjoyed the SF Ballet from my company's sponsor table. It was a perfectly overcast 65 degrees, and every inch of the park was covered with blankets and picnic baskets. The ballet was beautiful and inspirational, and the event itself a reminder of how lucky I am to live in such a wonderfully creative and diverse city.

 

Pixar

Friday afternoon a few coworkers and I were lucky enough to get a tour of the Pixar campus in Emeryville. I've always thought that it must not get any cooler than working in a brewery... until I saw the setup at Pixar.

Each department has full creative control over the theme and decor of their individual offices and common areas. I was thoroughly impressed with the creativity and quality of their work - a plane crashed in a jungle, a tree house, a dollhouse, a turn of the century saloon. Several departments had built fully functional, professional quality bars into their common areas, where they host happy hours and parties for coworkers. The campus itself boasts a soccer field, basketball and volleyball court, and a lap pool. One of the most intriguing features of the Pixar campus is the art - all drawings, paintings, stills, and clay forms from their staff, generated during the planning and production of Pixar films. Most of the art is rotated out depending on which film has most recently been released. Currently, most of the art is from Brave, which is still in theaters.