the 941

Otter Creek Otter Mon
Jamaican Style Stout
Vermont, ABV ?

I feel compelled to experience all the goodness beer has to offer, from near ethereal to utter schlock. I tend to seek out vintage, extreme, or limited brews; the fleeting moments of beer-making. Enter the Otter Creek World Tour, a series of one time releases from Otter Creek/ Wolaver’s Brewing in Vermont.

According to Otter Creek’s website, “the brewery’s resident Otter travels the world in search of unique, interesting and unusual brewing styles. Whenever he finds something new and exciting, he teams up with Brewmaster Steve Parkes to produce Otter Creek’s interpretation of the world’s best beers” And I thought my job was cool.

Otter Creek’s Otter Mon is a colonial Jamaican delight, fermented with English ale yeast and raw cane sugar, British Goldings and new world Liberty hops, and barley roasted to Jamaican coffee-style perfection. After scouring the internet and making numerous phone calls, I still have no idea what the abv is for this beer. The flavors and sensations suggest the beer falls somewhere within the 7-8% range, but I’ve been fooled before.

Poured into a pint glass, the opaque brown body emits subtle aromas of coffee and bitter chocolate mixed with slight traces of alcohol. A crown of khaki colored head leaves impressive lacing for its diminutive size.

Initial flavors are deliciously bitter espresso with a slightly burnt, almost acidic crispness that adds a smoky tone to the drinking experience. The sugarcane presents itself as a mild boozy warmness, similar to good Jamaican rum, heating my nose, cheeks, and throat.

Since Otter Mon is brewed with cane sugar, I expected a slick, tongue coating mouthfeel, something like a black patent malt cough syrup. To my delightful surprise, the body was rather light, with very little carbonation. It reminds me of those weekend occasions when I put a little splash of dark liquor in my coffee instead of milk and sugar. Cheers!

-Bethany Sherwin

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Ok y’all, I know that Christmas is over, but there’s still time to eke out a little holiday spirit. After running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to finish our pre- and post-holiday activities, you probably don’t want to spend 4 1/2 hours baking these sugar cookies. But surely you have an extra two minutes to make these cute little Marshmallow Snowmen? Do this with your kids as you pack away the decorations until next year, as a final, tasty, easy hurrah to send off the season. I bet you will get a smile outta someone!

Read on for instructions. (more…)

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Occasionally, you’ll find sweetbreads - the thymus gland of a cow or pig - on menus around town, but that’s rare. As for intestine, liver, kidney, lung, tripe, or, heaven forfend, scrotum, there’s not much to be available outside a couple of nefarious taco stands. You want to be green and sustainable? Eat the whole animal, and patronize chefs who will give you those extra cuts that make it possible.

(Photo courtesy of Addictive Picasso/flickr.)

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Yeah, I know, the trend of cutesy crazy food made by mad scientist chefs is slowly fading across the world, but that just makes the timing perfect for Sarasota restaurateurs to pick it up. Imagine menus printed on edible paper, beet balloons created with liquid nitrogen, and all sorts of odd liquids turned into solids at the whim of the chef. We don’t need El Bulli, we just need someone to start playing with their food.

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A few years ago, we flirted with Ethiopian cuisine when Betel Tafesse owned Fly Bar. She then cooked a couple of specialty nights at Metro, before it closed, too. Now, this quintessential homey cuisine marked by tart injera flatbread and comforting stews is nowhere to be found. Sarasota diners aren’t renowned for their adventurous palates, but surely there’s enough interest in Ethiopian for a single spot to start slinging some doro wat and lamb tibs.

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I love a Vienna beef link as much as the next red-blooded American, but can’t a few entrepreneurial innovators open a stand that serves something a tad more interesting? On every Parisian street, you can find sandwiches made on incredible baguettes. In Berlin, it’s doner stuffed into grilled Turkish bread. You can sample dim sum on the streets of Hong Kong or grab a handful of waffles in Belgium. We have hot dogs and stale chips.

(Photo courtesy Alex Kehr/flickr.)

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Really folks, WTF? Even though our relatively close compatriots in Miami and Tampa have a vibrant culture of Cuban cuisine, Sarasota has managed to lose all our specialists in the art of the pressed sandwich or ropa vieja. (Adios, El Habanero.) We may not have a big population of Cuban exiles in this area, but that’s no excuse for neglecting Florida’s nearest international neighbor.

(Photo courtesy of elvissa/flickr.)

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You can head over to Geiers for some Sarasota-made sausages, but where are the chefs that specialize in the stuff? If you live in San Francisco, you can have incredible homemade salumi and dried links of porcine goodness delivered right to your door. I’d be content to find a single restaurant in the area that manages to put out a selection of sliced meats they cared enough about to make in-house.

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Nationally, chefs are obsessed with the humble pig, which happens to be the most versatile and tasty animal we consume. Except around here. If I have to endure another lackluster entrŽe of tenderloin when there are hundreds of other parts and preparations available to local chefs, I may just stay home and eat pork rinds. Start with the belly, maybe, and then we can slowly work our way up to our very own 14-course, snout-to-tail meals.

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Stick your nose up at ramen? Maybe, until you’ve had traditional ramen served in an incredible, meaty broth made by a master of the noodly arts. Restaurants featuring homemade noodles dot New York City, and most also serve up sublime dumplings that draw on Japanese, Chinese and Korean cuisines. Stand at a counter and slurp your selection down, then be on your way in minutes. It could be your new fast food.

(Photo by Angela N./Flickr)

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