Colombia en DC: A Visit to Elcielo in Union Market

While my blog tends to focus on beverages, every so often I like to talk about a restaurant experience as a whole. Recently I had the chance to visit Elcielo, a new South American concept restaurant by Juan Manuel Barrientos, and I'd like to share my observations. Juanma, as he is known, is an accomplished chef, business leader, and entrepreneur who's managed and opened almost a dozen restaurants across the world. Elcielo is actually part of a small chain, with two locations in Colombia, one in Miami and the newest in Washington. Elcielo earned one MICHELIN star in 2021, and in this year's rankings, retained that star. 

Union Market, with humble beginnings, seems to be the newest place for high-end concepts, and so it's no surprise Juanma chose to open his latest iteration of Elcielo here. Warehouse districts, as Union Market is/was, provide wide open spaces for restauranteurs to truly craft to their liking — Elcielo is open and airy, with lots of natural light, blonde wood furniture, smooth lines, and gold accents. 

Above the building there are condos, and I'd need an extra zero at the end of my paycheck to consider living there. 

There are a series of small tables sprinkled throughout the dining room, however I choose to sit at the bar, front and center, to watch the magic. 

To my left, a couple around my age enjoying a romantic evening. To my right, two spirits professionals representing several families of Scotch whisky brands, chatting about fancy Ardbeg offerings. Orlando and Andres are the experts behind the bar, and Pedro is managing the house. Everyone is gracious, welcoming, and attentive.

The cocktail program is heavily influenced by Central and South American spirits, flavors, and textures: agave spirits like mezcal share a menu with herbal flavors and fruits like soursop and yuzu, alongside more familiar "tropical" flavors like coconut, tangerine, papaya, and passion fruit. Distilled spirits by the ounce are available on the menu, and scanning the bar, there's a well-curated stock which I'm sure I could try neat if I so desired. 

But this isn't the place to "do shots" - it's a place to appreciate some of the most refined mixology DC has to offer. 

Elcielo's centerpiece is the Experience menu, which is a gastronomic adventure that courses through countries, cultures, land and sea — 22 small courses in all. This menu weaves through crab empanadas, blood sausage, cocktails, squash, duck, halibut, lamb, salad, yuca, apples, rockfish, and much more. At $228, with an additional $150 wine pairing menu, this is the crown jewel of Elcielo's menu and even includes sensory experiences like, believe it or not, washing one's hands in chocolate, or eating fresh-baked bread served on a wire bonsai tree. 

If that is a bridge too far, a few of these offerings can be ordered from the bar experience: a pared-down program which costs $120 per person and includes four handcrafted cocktails (or mocktails if one prefers NA versions) a pairing with some snacks and small bites, and a dessert. 

I opted to order just one dish off the bar menu to start, and was promptly delivered this dish of yuca gnocchi:

The yuca gnocchi are served with mushrooms, honey and cilantro, and topped with foamed Appalachian cheese and queso fresco. Honestly, this is one of the best pasta dishes I have had. Honey is the dominant texture here, with the foamed cheese and natural oils delivering a mouth-coating array of flavors. I would have licked the plate if Pedro wouldn't disapprove. 

The wine list is quite respectable, with some rather high-end offerings and prices to match, and as much as I'd like a glass or three of wine, I'm sticking to cocktails.

You may recall, in the picture of the bar above, Orlando is expressing something into these little cups. This is a soursop sorbet, over which is floated Champagne, and accompanies this mistela, a little vial filled with aguardiente and passionfruit, meant to be taken on its own. It's served in a wooden bowl on a bed of coffee beans and rosemary, and accompanies my gnocchi.

I like the dichotomy here: the soursop puree is light and airy, with a hint to vegetal flavors, whereas the mistela is assertive, almost like a Colombian digestif. I would much prefer this to Underberg. The puree is almost like a dessert, and actually perfect for me as I don't eat sweets.

As this is digesting and I'm enjoying the interplay of flavors, now it's time to test the skills of Andres and Orlando, and so I order a cocktail off the menu: the "Chimberito."

The Chimberito is a cocktail made with two sugarcane spirits: aguardiente and cachaça. Although the term has been used to refer to a general class of sugarcane spirits, modern drinkers will be familiar with this beverage as something truly Colombian. DC drinkers, in particular, would be familiar with Dan Zeigler's "Chacho", a jalapeno aguardiente made locally and quite delicious.

Cachaça is likely less familiar. It's produced in Brazil, and in fact is one of the most popular alcoholic beverages there. Water-white and pungent, it's frequently used in tropical drinks and the most famous Brazilian cocktail, the Caiprinha. It's catching on here in the US and is available in unaged (prata) and aged (ouro).

So these two spirits form the base for the Chimberito, which is then built by the addition of yuzu, soursop (guanábana), and thyme, garnished with a dried lime and served over cracked ice. It's quite sublime - a little grassy, a product no doubt of the cachaça, with a dash of funk and banana creaminess that I suspect is from the soursop. The cracked ice prevents gulping, which you wouldn't want to do anyways — this is to be savored.

For my final cocktail, I ask Orlando to make me something off-the-menu. Dealer's choice, I call it. I challenge bartenders to get creative, make something fun and off the wall. This gives them a canvas to test out a new recipe, maybe. 

Orlando challenges me. What kind of spirit? What textures? What ingredients do I like? He's asking me the questions he needs to. I choose mezcal, and he goes from there.

Here's what we settled on:

• Fidencio mezcal (base spirit of the cocktail)
• Dolin blanc vermouth
• Ancho Reyes poblano liqueur
• Cappelletti Elisir Novasalus (red vermouth)
• Chile syrup
• Lemongrass
• Saline solution

I don't know why I said "we." I had no part in the creation of this masterpiece other than the choice of mezcal.

The cocktail is built then strained into a rocks glass, but not before the ice cube is briefly heated with a culinary torch. Then, a heated press is applied to the top of the ice, melting it just slightly to deboss 'elcielo' onto the top. Then, cherry juice is dripped into the letters to provide contrast. The whole cocktail is then smoked with cherry wood under a glass bulb.

The aroma is of smoke and wood, sort of like the inside of an antique dresser. Smoking cocktails is a big thing these days, and mostly serves to enhance the presentation — a common concern here. The cocktail itself, for having so many ingredients, is remarkably well-built: the root flavors of the Novasalus pairs nicely with the sweet spice of the Ancho Reyes, and the mezcal provides a salty and powerful finish. A perfect sipper as I compile my notes about the visit. 

For fun, I was given a small plate of jam to try, along with a super-secret salt and herb blend. Even something as straightforward as a plate of salt is complex, crafted, and serves a sensory purpose. It's very neat to see the craft displayed here and how great energy is expended in refining very minute parts of the menu. 

Elcielo is part of DC's newest generation of finest-dining, and I heartily recommend it. No, it's not an every day spot, but a great place for a romantic dinner or special occasion. The craft, the food, drinks, and service are well worth the price, and their MICHELIN star is well-deserved. 

SAVOR 2022, Part Deux - All The Other Great Beers of the Night!

 STANDOUTS AND CURIOSITIES

Here I'll talk about some of the night's standout beers as well as some curious, funky, weird beers that deserve a wider audience. I do commend all brewers in attendance for showing up, though, and this does not represent all of what SAVOR had to offer. 

Side Project Brewing, Maplewood, MO - "Oude Fermier"

I'm a sucker for Flemish-style ales so immediately I had to visit Side Project. Based just south of St. Louis, Missouri, Side Project has a ton of fruit beers, bieres de garde, and Flemish ales. They brought a barleywine and the "Oude Fermier", a 7.00% ABV farmhouse ale aged in Chardonnay barrels for a total of 12 months, mixing with wild Missouri yeast and bacteria before bottling. Once bottled, it was conditioned for another 6 months before release. 

Golden and hazy in the glass, I'm getting lots of delicious apple cider vinegar notes - flavor is super tangy, pungent, and dry. I love it. Some beers of this style are excessively fruity; this one has little fruit at at all and presents a strong yeasty flavor with the familiar farmhouse funkiness. a little winey, maybe, good acidity. A complex saison and fans of traditional Flemish ales will find this most pleasing. 

Odd Breed Wild Ales, Pompano Beach, FL - "Tilling Time"

Odd Breed is new this year, and being a huge fan of wild ales, I had to visit. All of their beers are fermented with a mixed culture of wild yeast and bacteria, and then aged in oak barrels. This is similar to the lambics and farmhouse-style ales of Belgium, which is a style that American producers are not attempting in any large numbers due to the time, effort, and craft such styles require. 

"Tilling Time" is a Lambic-inspired wild ale, which spent 16 months in French oak puncheons (a size of oaken barrel containing 104 gallons, or just less volume than a "butt" but more than a "hogshead." No I did not make that up.) After this, "Tilling Time" spends almost half a year in freshly-emptied Ardbeg 10-year Scotch barrels. 

And damn, can you taste that Islay character! The beer presents heavy notes of peat and earth, with some stone fruit and cantaloupe making a tiny appearance at the end. Acidity is more or less middle-of-the road, but the real star here is that peat character. Very good job on this one!

(photo credit: Kyle L. on Untappd as my photos did not come out)

Cheluna Brewing Co., Aurora, CO - "Chupa Guava"

You may recall Cheluna from my 2019 coverage...Javi and Jennifer Perez were back with their chelas sabrosas, bright colors, and elaborate labels and coasters. They're back, thankfully, and Cheluna's quality of beer, commitment to community, and vibrant colors all make this one of my favorite breweries to see. I follow them on Facebook, despite living thousands of miles away, and they have some really neat, community-driven events...lotería, dancing classes, terrarium building...all sorts of things I'd love to try. So obviously I'm super happy they're back.

Today they're pouring "Chupa Guava", a 5.50% ABV blonde ale made with guava. The name here is a play on words, referencing Mexico's mythical chupacabra. Crisp and refreshing, and the guava adds a nice tropical dash of sweetness and fruit. This is the kind of beer you can enjoy for hours, and the texture is just perfect - the guava "persists", as Javi says, and presents throughout the beer in both aroma and taste. 

My only regret is that I'm not closer to Cheluna...maybe someday soon I'll make it out to Colorado! Thanks Jennifer and Javi, as always, for everything!

Javi and I!

The Bruery, Plascentia, CA - "Portified Black Tuesday"

The Bruery is back again, bringing another rare offering from their cellar. This is the "Portified Black Tuesday", a 17.90% ABV Port barrel-aged imperial stout made with syrah must. They aged it for multiple years, blending and refining, before bottling in 2021. 

Woof, I mean, ~18% is pretty wild and I would expect nothing less. The Bruery has always brought super-heavy beers to SAVOR. 

It's served somewhat warm, which I think is a good call. Sweet and heavy, and sweeter than I typically go for. But just like a glass of port, it's a fine dram - boozy, a bit oaky, and very warming. There's no carbonation to speak of, just viscous, oily liquid, and meant to be sipped as a digestif. The food pairing here is sticky toffee pudding, which works perfectly - and in fact, I had seconds.

 These 500mL bottles go for $55 a pop, if you can find them, so definitely a rare beer.  

Fremont Brewing Co., Seattle, WA- "Ye Olde Centaur"

Fremont, my old Seattle standby. I've been to their taproom a few times and have reviewed their beers many times over the years. A solid Seattle choice, led by Sara Nelson (now on the Seattle City Council!) and husband Matt Linthicum, head brewer. Matt was here this time.

This is their "Ye Olde Centaur", a 10.00% ABV barrel-aged English-style barleywine made in memory of Matt Bonney, a bigtime Seattle beer guy who I actually met a few times at Bottlewerks. He was a lover of Scotch, cigars, beer, and whiskey, so this beer is made in his memory and honor using some of those ingredients. 

It's full of molasses, brown sugar, toffee and nougat with a hefty dose of oak, vanilla, and wood. A little "chewy", as I like to say, requiring a few moments of swishing in the mouth to fully appreciate the flavors. There's a touch of raisins there, too. 

This is the kind of beer to pour into a snifter on a fall day and watch the sun set over Mount Rainier, sipping and savoring the complex spice character that the 10yr American (Buffalo Trace) and Scottish whiskey barrels impart. Regrettably, Matt is not here to try it, but at least we can raise a glass in his memory.

Dogfish Head Brewing Co., Milton, DE - "Fermentation Engastration"

Dogfish Head is the second largest "craft" brewery in the US and responsible for hundreds of beers over the years, and founder Sam Calagione is considered one of the titans of brewing in the US. They're here with a few offerings, most interestingly the "Fermentation Engastration", a 10.00% ABV experimental ale brewed in collaboration with Gastro Obscura.

They call this the "Turducken" of beer, and I guess that makes sense: the first brewed rose sake, then into that added honey to make mead, then added apple cider from Angry Orchard to ferment that into cider, then added Muscat grape must and topped off with Belgian-style saison. And voila, it's...beer? 

Kind of an odd (tur)duck(en), if you ask me. There's an interesting nose on this one for sure, pretty muddled - full bodied, sort of like a light trippel, some stone fruit, but an odd effervescence...floral on the back end for sure, which could be the sake. 

Keenan says outstanding! I like it but would probably want to enjoy it on its own at some point, not while having other beers. 

Hi-Wire Brewing Co., Asheville, NC - "Japanese-Style Dry Rice Lager"

Hi-Wire's originally facility is next to a sake brewery, so they used koji (rice with mold spores) to make this lager. It's clean, crisp, and bone-dry, a nice everyday drinker. It's super clear, too! Sort of the lager version of Stillwater Artisanal's "Sake-style Saison." Might be a wonderful everyday drinker and highly worth trying, especially for people that like clean, almost-flavorless beer. That's not at all to say it's bad, in fact, achieving this kind of clarity is a rare feat. I'd also pair this with spicy food. 

Here's me having a chat with the brewer!

Site 1 Brewing Co., Omaha, NE - "Cerna Dira"

Site 1 came to SAVOR last time, I believe and most of their beers are retro space-themed. Here, they're serving up the "Cerna Dira", a 4.60% ABV dark lager. 

"Cerna Dira" is Czech for "black hole", and is Site 1's alternative to their regular Czech lager. I do like the dark lager style, and this one does not disappoint...it's off-dry, less malty than expected, a little roasty, but soft and easy-drinking. It's a dark lager, as opposed to a lagered stout. Does that make sense? Served with lamb and polenta, I love the combination of savory, malty, and herbs. 

Land-Grant Brewing Co, Columbus, OH -  "Macha Mochi Sour" 

Land-Grant out of Columbus was here, serving up one of the more unique beers of the night - "Macha Mochi Sour", a 4.50% ABV American sour made with vanilla, mochi powder, milk, and rice flour. 

Very interesting! A touch creamy, herbal, and soft, it's far less bitter than most macha I've had. Very peculiar, in a good way, and hard to describe. It's almost like a matcha vanilla milkshake mixed with a beer. My vote for most off-the-wall beer of the night, and something I'd like to try again in a more focused environment. Fans of sours should be cautioned that this isn't super sour.

Final Thoughts

SAVOR was pretty solid. Although the feel has changed over the last few years, I still think it's a worthwhile event. Breweries from all over the US come to this festival, and since many of those breweries do not distribute nationwide, attendees get a chance to try beers they would never be able to otherwise. 

I do have to temper my remarks with a few suggestions for improvement - I felt the layout was far too crowded and the aisles too narrow to really interact with brewers. There was a lot of line-cutting and the staff tasked with delivering food often, quite forcefully, pushed past attendees and hefted hot steaming plates far too close to guests. While some of that is unavoidable, I felt if the event was smaller (fewer brewers, larger space) that might mitigate that. A fun part of this event is spending time with brewers and learning about their products (and, as media, conducting interviews!) and small spaces don't make that super easy. 

But in any event, I had fun, Keenan had fun, and I am very thankful to be asked back. I hope that next year, some logistical changes are made, and I look forward to another successful event in 2023. 

(photo credit: the Brewer's Association)

SAVOR 2022! All-You-Can-Drink Beer Fest in the Nation's Capitol Returns (Part 1)

 SAVOR is back! I first got wind of this through the grapevine back in December, and after a few months of patiently waiting, was once again granted a media pass to cover the event. 

For those of you unfamiliar: for many years, SAVOR is a project of the Brewers Association, an early-summer gourmet food / beer pairing event held annually in Washington, DC. Hundreds of brewers from across the US travelled to our nation's capital to lobby Congress, network, and showcase their two favorite beers at this capstone event. In the past, it's been held at the National Building Museum right near Judiciary Square, and is now returning after a two-year hiatus for obvious reasons. I've been lucky to attend now four times: 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022. This year, it's held at The Anthem, DC's famed waterfront venue. 

Aside from each brewery bringing two beers they want to show off, they also have food — the Brewers Association executive chef Adam Dulye and his team creates little bites to accompany, and amplify, the beverages. I reached out to Adam about this philosophy in pairing the canapés with the beer:

"From a chef perspective it is a challenging and fun process....from the outside looking in it may come across as a bit head-scratching 'it’s beer and food is that necessary?"

Well, of course, food and booze go along well with each other, and food certainly pairs with beer! Not to mention the benefits of not drinking on an empty stomach. And so as the breweries choose which beers to bring, Chef Dulye begins to assemble a team of chefs from across the US, who send in multiple menu ideas - before the beers are chosen. Once they finalized the beer information, Chef and his team began slimming the menu down. 

"We ended up narrowing the menu down to 60ish items, and then began lining them all up to menu items. The goal is to have no menu item to the same style more than a few times, and in most cases get a few different styles in to one menu item. That way when [guests] taste the same dish with a different beer, [they] get a different reaction." 

Then, of course, they have to order all the materials and cook up thousands of little bites for the hungry patrons of SAVOR. In the past, there's been such a neat spectrum of food - meat, seafood, veggie options, chocolate cake, coconut cream...this time, they've got everything from lava cake to lobster, pit beef to tacos, burnt ends with fennel, and more. 

Like the last few times, I relied on local beer aficionado Alex's comprehensive spreadsheet, which he makes each year for the event. This spreadsheet has all the info one would need to plan one's visit - table locations, styles of beer, ABV, classification, even score on Untappd. There are too many beers for one individual to try in one night, so we need to be choosy. My method was to pick out both breweries I know and love and styles that I'm interested in - and then permitting time to explore and try new things that might be surprising. 

Accompanying me tonight is former colleague and good friend Keenan, who has been known to enjoy a beer or two now and again. We sat down before the event, went through our spreadsheets, and got our list ready. 

20 minutes in an Uber later, and here we are: zero-hour at the Anthem. 

I'm breaking my SAVOR coverage into two parts - introduction and Best in Show, and then another post about the other fun stuff I encountered. In terms of my reviews, I don't like "ranking" things but I wanted to share my personal favorites of the night and those I believe did a fantastic job. I will not be reviewing all the beers I tried, nor are they all the ones worth having - I had a lot of tasty beverages this night that I'd be happy to revisit again down the road.

Without further ado, the SAVOR 2022 champion:

BEST IN SHOW

Drekker Brewing Co. - Fargo, North Dakota

Although every brewery did something right, best in show for SAVOR 2022 goes to Mark Bjornstad and Drekker Brewing Co. out of Fargo, ND. I believe this was Drekker's first time at SAVOR, and they really knocked it out of the park. 

Founded in 2014, Drekker is located right in downtown Fargo, not too far south from North Dakota State University. I've never been, but Google Street View shows a pretty rad-looking building and a neat outdoor patio. My thought was it would be too cold to sit outside in Fargo in the winter, but looks like there are firepits. 

They've got a *gorgeous* taproom, as well, with some solid Nordic beer-hall vibes. I personally love the industrial look, and converted factories are super cool. Also, they have pinball machines.

Drekker's taproom. Epic. Photo credit: Todd Shea, 2021 (via Google)

We'll get to their appearance at SAVOR in a minute, but first a big shout out to the brewery's artwork, done by local artist Punchgut Studios. Punchgut does their beer labels, as well, and man what a cool set of stickers on those cans! I love the aesthetic. 

According to their website, and despite battle-ready, horned mascot, the they aim to "do good, give back, and unpillage" by staying active in the community. Aside from river cleanups and other events, they have donated over $80,000 to local non-profits - a good sign of community involvement, which is hallmark for many sustaining breweries.

So here's my criteria for best-in-show, and I'll explain why Drekker excelled:

1. Thoughtful, inventive, exciting beer. I don't like boring, unless you can explain what you're doing. I also prefer to see some unique and funky styles. Some breweries opt to bring basic, core beers to this event and I don't understand it.
2. Good beer. Trying and not hitting the mark is fine, but don't bring that stuff to SAVOR.
3. Attitude. Come with a smile and a sense of humor!
4. Knowledge. I love hearing about the process and procedure for each beer, so telling me "you're not sure what's in it" isn't cool. 

So on to Drekker, perched on the second level, stage left, kind of where I like to stand during Anthem performances. Clad in a tuxedo t-shirt, but regrettably not wearing a horned Viking helmet, Mark was on hand to pour his two beers of the night: 

• "Coconut Killer Secret Handshake Milkshake", a 7.00% ABV experimental IPA
• "Narfle the Garthak", a 10.00% ABV wood-aged beer

...or at least that's what the SAVOR guide said. There's always more to the story, so let's find out.

• "Coconut Killer Secret Handshake Milkshake": My research shows this is part of a wider lineup of Secret Handshake Milkshake IPAs they make. All fruit / dessert themed. I start with this one, and it's opaque in the glass with a strong orange Creamiscle vibe. Looks lactose to me. Made w Sabro hops, fresh toasted coconut, and vanilla bean, this beer is lovely! I admit I'm somewhat wary of lactose IPAs, but when done right - as this is - it's awesome. The coconut comes through, nice and bright, and the sugar they use softens up the flavors and makes it creamy. The coconut is tastes natural and not sweet, which I prefer. Finish on the beer is rather short and pretty snappy, which isn't a bad thing.

2. Narfle the Garthak - the description provided by SAVOR doesn't do this justice. It's a 10.00% ABV imperial pastry stout, aged eighteen months in Stranahan’s & Old Fitzgerald whiskey barrels, then conditioned on banana, peanut butter, cacao nibs, cinnamon, marshmallows, Graham crackers, honey, and milk sugar. Wow. This "kitchen sink" approach is a risky gamble, so let's see how they do.

Dark as the night is long, smells like banana French toast (Keenan coined that.) 

Oh man, this so wild. It's perfect. Just perfect. Silky smooth, full of natural-tasting flavors, warming, mouth-coating. Bright, milky, fresh, not too sweet, and all the flavors listed above make an appearance. It's like warm banana nut bread slathered in Nutella. I had three. Three! Keenan and I immediately started singing the praises to other attendees, and convinced a few to try these beers. The wood barrel age softens out the "base" beer pretty well, and you do get some of the vanillins in there, but the stars of the show are the banana and peanut butter. Luscious, full, velvety, and soft, and the finish lingers for a long time. Cinammon, malts, and peanuts are what I get most from the finish. 

Few beers really strike my fancy like this one does. Narfle is perhaps one of the finer stouts I have a had in a long, long time. Something to enjoy in a big snifter in front of the fire on a snowy night. Something to have on a sultry summer night at the beach, watching the waves and feeling the salt air on one's face. Something to have on a crisp autumn afternoon, listening to the wind blow dry leaves across the yard.

Sorry, this was really good.

So Drekker took best-in-show because Mark did a great job bringing two delicious, unique beers to the event, was on hand to describe them and talk about the process, and didn't rely on gimmicks or an overweighed reputation (as some brewers do) to make up for any potential shortfall. He was cool to just chill out, talk to us, and his explanations of the beer didn't seem...canned, no pun intended. Drekker seems like the kind of place I would hang out often, were I to live in Fargo. 

Fantastic job, Mark - your beers are awesome and I wish I could try the other stuff you do. With that, Drekker is king of the hill for this year's SAVOR, and stay tuned for my next post where I dive into all the other standouts, standbys, and oddities I came across.

WSET II - test taken! Now we wait.

 Well, I'd been meaning to update everyone more on my progress but it really went by quite quickly...I'd say I did about 13 hours of study time across the entire course. It was all asynchronous, which worked well for my schedule and allowed me to complete the modules and assessments at night or on weekends when I was most free. There were some tasting note activities, which I regrettably did not participate in fully. Overall I thought the program was well-laid out, a good mix of visuals, activities, animations, videos, and texts. I also thought the material was specific enough to gain a solid, deep understanding of spirits but not too specific as to lose an appreciation for the material. 

I took my remotely-invigilated test last Wednesday, and aside from one time when the stupid automatic office light turned off, everything went smoothly. There were only a handful of exam questions that I did not immediately know the answer to, but I was able to give an educated guess. I'm aiming for the award With Distinction, the highest honor, but we'll see. 

The test organizers need to send my test recording to some 3rd party company, who will review it and get the scores back. They said it could take up to 10 weeks, which is frankly ridiculous, but it is what it is. I'll keep you all posted!