February 2013 Events

THREE SUNDAYS IN FEBRUARY, THREE AWESOME EVENTS WITH SOME OF OUR FAVORITE WINE & BEER PRODUCERS

February is shaping up to be a crazy month for us here at St. Vincent, beginning with the arrival of a boatload of Italian vintners for the release of Slow Food’s “Slow Wine Guide” at the Terra Gallery in SF. I can’t wait to see a bunch of old friends and couldn’t resist having some of them in our place for a pig roast and Italian wine tasting on Sunday, February 3 (see details below).

And then there’s SF Beer Week from February 8-15 (which is more than a week, but whatever), which has in-house Cicerone Sayre Piotrkowski all sorts of keyed-up – like a kid on Christmas Eve, if Christmas Eve was many weeks long…

We’ve got two fantastic beer dinners planned, with brews curated by Sayre and menus from Chef Bill Niles. Amazing flavors (and, I must add, amazing VALUE) await. Call us at 415-285-1200 to reserve your spot for one, or all.

My Best,

David Lynch

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 3

“FESTA ITALIANA”: PIG ROAST FEATURING WINES FROM AR.PE.PE & MONTERAPONI

1 pm-4 pm, $55/person at the door

****NOTE AMENDED TIME — WITH THE SF 49ERS IN THE SUPERBOWL THIS EVENT HAS BEEN MOVED UP!!! COME JOIN US FOR THE BEST PRE-GAME SHOW YOU COULD ASK FOR****

Come over for a casual afternoon/evening of porchetta sandwiches and other snacks from Bill Niles & crew, complimented by reference-point wines from Italy’s Valtellina and Chianti Classico wine zones.

From the Valtellina – the rock-strewn, steeply terraced vineyard land hugging Italy’s border with Switzerland – we’ll welcome Isabella Pelizzatti Perego of the famed AR.PE.PE winery. Founded by Isabella’s father, Arturo Pelizzatti Perego, in the early eighties, AR.PE.PE is known for pure, earth-driven expressions of Nebbiolo from Valtellina “cru” vineyards such as Sassella, Inferno and Grumello – vineyards in which Nebbiolo (here called Chiavennasca) roots in steep, rocky terraces on the north banks of the Adda River. This is Alpine viticulture, well north of Nebbiolo’s more famous homes in Barbaresco and Barolo, and the wines of AR.PE.PE. are lean, stony, perfumed reflections of this stunningly unique terroir. We’ll have an assortment of AR.PE.PE. bottlings on hand for sampling, with Isabella and friends on hand to answer questions and eat some pork.

 

And from Chianti in Tuscany, Michele Braganti will be in the house to showcase the stellar Sangioveses he turns out at the picturesque MONTERAPONI estate in the village of Radda. His are some of the highest-altitude vineyards in the Chianti Classico, tumbling down around a beautiful former borgo (medieval village), and the wines of Monteraponi perfectly capture the nerve and smoky savor of Sangiovese. This is some of the purest, most aromatically complex Chianti you’ll ever taste, period.

Your $55 at the door gets you food and lots of different wines, presented in a “walk-around,” come-and-go-as-you-please format. We’ll be sure to have some older vintages from both producers on hand as well, so get down hereon Sunday the 3rd – Bill just ordered the pigs!

 

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 10

SF BEER WEEK DINNER #1: “POINTS SOUTH” FEATURING CRAFTSMAN BREWING CO. (PASADENA, CA) AND SANTE ADAIRIUS RUSTIC  ALES (CAPITOLA, CA)

$85/person for a four-course dinner and beers paired by Certified Cicerone Sayre Piotrkowski (surely one of the best, if not THE best, value during SF Beer Week).

5:30 pm-10 pm

For San Francisco Beer Week 2013 St. Vincent has chosen to host two dinners, each one featuring two breweries.  We are calling this two-part series “From The Seed To The Kernel” (beer’s answer to “from the root to the fruit”).  Each dinner will match one of our favorite veteran brewers with a brewery that has opened up shop in the past year.   There is something about pairing the mastery of a brewery like Craftsman with the unstrung enthusiastic spirit surrounding a budding brewery like Sante Adairius that appeals to us.  The idea is to highlight the best of what our brewery-direct draft beer program has brought to St. Vincent.   A combination of well-established brewers who have made a point of maintaining a proprietary stake in every aspect of their operation, and creative entrepreneurial newcomers who have no choice but to do so.  Both dinners will be hosted by our in-house Certified Cicerone, Sayre Piotrkowski, who eater.com calls “one of the country’s top beer sommeliers.”

About Craftsman Brewing Company: Mark Jilg, founder and brewmaster of Pasadena’s Craftsman Brewery, has been producing some of the most extraordinary beers in the state for almost 18 years.  Today his eclectic line includes a uniquely polished selection of  “sour” beers, the only domestic Hefeweizen we have ever carried, and an impressive diversity of seasonal ales - all handmade, unpasteurized, and definitively Californian.

Tim Clifford and Adair Paterno opened Sante Adairius Rustic Ales in Capitola, CA earlier this year.   Shortly thereafter the brewery’s blended black sour ale “Love’s Armor” took home the first prize at The Bistro’s Barrel-Aged Beer Festival, beating out a roster of entries from area’s most respected breweries.  St. Vincent was honored to be the first account in the Bay Area for this innovative and exciting brewery.  We have no doubt that Sante Adairius is poised to be a major name in the Bay Area beer scene for years to come. 

 

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 17

SF BEER WEEK DINNER #2: “POINTS NORTH” FEATURING MARIN BREWING CO. (LARKSPUR, CA) AND HENHOUSE BREWING ( PETALUMA, CA)

$85/person for a four-course meal with beers paired by Certified Cicerone Sayre Piotrkowski

5:30 pm-10 pm

As with our Craftsman/Sante Adairius dinner on Feb. 10, expect delicious food from Chef Bill Niles, with expertly paired beers from two spectacular local brewers – including many exclusives that you won’t get to try anywhere else during beer week!!

About Marin Brewing Company:  Founded in 1989 Marin Brewing Company is one of the Bay Area’s most decorated and consistent operations.  Winning its first GABF medal that very year and its most recent in 2011, Marin has remained a model of consistency amongst one of the country’s most exciting craft brewing communities.   Brewmaster Arne Johnson has been at the helm since 1995 displaying a master-brewer’s touch across a catalog that boast everything from massive West Coast IPA’s to delicately balanced Belgian ales. 

Longtime buddies Collin McDonnell and Shane Goepel opened HenHouse Brewing Company this past February with a raucous party at TAPS beer bar in their hometown of Petaluma, CA.   The brewery’s quirky three-beer catalog consists of a remarkably tasteful Saison with black pepper, an 11% ABV Belgian Golden Ale that boasts a wine-like impact and complexity, and our favorite, a precocious Oyster Stout designed to “smell like an ocean breeze.”  In-spite of their neophyte status, HenHouse brews have become extremely sought-after in the restaurant world.  Their Saison can already been found on the list at The French Laundry. St. Vincent is the only SF restaurant to have HenHouse beers on tap!

 

***

CALL US TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT FOR ONE OR MORE OF THESE GREAT EVENTS: 415-285-1200