Monday, February 19, 2024
Photos courtesy of Ana Gonzalez-White, college relations officer
The delicious duo of beer and food was explored at the first “Cooking with Class: Meet the Brew Masters” event, held recently in Le Jeune Chef Restaurant on Pennsylvania College of Technology's campus. The evening featured a reception, a tour of the college’s brewing & fermentation science lab, and a three-course dinner. The reception and dinner food was paired with beers provided by New Trail Brewing. Proceeds from the gathering are supporting the brewing & fermentation science major.
The event was the brainchild of Justin M. Ingram, associate professor of biology, who is also actively engaged in a variety of ways in the college’s brewing major. Ingram led the tour through the brewing lab, and Mike LaRosa, director of brewing operations and partner at New Trail Brewing, and Mike S. Dinan, executive chef of Le Jeune Chef, provided patrons with an overview of the beer and culinary fare.
From left: Ingram, LaRosa and Dinan celebrate a successful event.
"Our first ‘Meet the Brew Master’ was a culinary spectacle that blended exceptional cuisine from our talented professional and student chefs with a carefully curated beer tasting graciously provided by New Trail Brewing,” Ingram said. “The event allowed patrons to connect with a true industry expert, and it showcased how craft beer and food can delicately complement and even contrast each other to make a truly memorable dining experience."
The menu featured: beer cheese with bratwurst and pretzel hors d’oeuvres paired with New Trail’s Crisp Lager, an American lager; chorizo drunken mussels with Broken Heels, a hazy India pale ale; porter-braised osso buco with Moonlit, a barrel-aged imperial stout; and a chocolate tart with pretzel crust paired with Chocolate Covered Pretzel, a Baltic porter.
Ingram noted that the idea behind the event “is not to drink beer, but specifically to complement delicious food with various beer styles.” He added, “It also gives folks the opportunity to meet some very influential brewing professionals.”
LaRosa is an award-winning brewer with numerous honors, including gold medals from the Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup, and a James Beard Award nomination.
More “Meet the Brew Masters” events are expected. In the meantime, enjoy this serving of Ingram’s “Science & Brewing,” part of Penn College’s Tomorrow Makers podcast series.
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