Denver hosted the 2012 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) for 3 days last week (tickets sold out in less than an hour!) and the food, beverage and restaurant community was abuzz with excitement for the artisanal suds. On Sunday, a local supper club offered a GABF-themed beer pairing dinner that was held at one of my favorite restaurants, Mizuna. We snagged two seats for the Gypsy Kitchen dinner, excited to sample some of the beers and dine in this top Denver restaurant. Sommelier Alex Kayir selected her favorite beers from the festival, deftly walking us through each sampling and food course. I’m told the supper club is a passion project of Mizuna chef, Jon Robbins and it shows. Each course was superb with crisp, bright and beautifully contrasting flavors. I was a happy foodie! The guests seemed to be kindred spirits and we all shared in the food sensory experience – it truly was a magical evening with amazing food and people.
Sommelier Alex Kayir sharing her knowledge with guests
The kitchen, the heart of the supper club: Jon Robbins on right
Have you ever heard of a finger lime? This was the first time I had ever seen one; the tiny pearls were used to further adorn the oyster. It reminded me of tangy lime caviar – loved the texture.
Red Kuri Squash Soup paired with New Belgium La Folie, Sour Brown Ale, Fort Collins CO
Escargots en croûtes, paired with Funkwerks Saison, Belgian Ale, Fort Collins CO
Pan Seared Diver Scallops with Ginger Carrot “Risotto”, paired with Prost Weisbier, Denver CO
(Can you tell this is the course I was most looking forward to devouring? After 3 or 4 blissful bites I realized I hadn’t taken a photo – whoops. Check out that crispy sear!)
Linguine with Little Neck Clams, Spicy Tomato Buido & Linguiça, paired with Avery Kaiser, Oktoberfest Lager, Boulder CO
Roasted Australian Lamb Chop with Apricot-Almond Tagine and Cous Cous, paired with Dry Dock Apricot Blonde, Aurora CO
Spiced Pumpkin Croquembouche, paired with Upslope Brewing Pumpkin Ale, Boulder CO
(I snapped the photo before the delicious pepita brittle was sprinkled on top tableside.)
Cardamom-Chocolate Torte, paired with Shmaltz Brewing Coney Island Barrel Aged Imperial Bock, NY
And the beer pairings – all excellent!
Something always fun to share with friends and loved ones, especially at Gypsy Kitchen, or Mizuna!
Eat well and share the love!
Foodie for Two 
Hi Melissa! So great to spend last Sunday with you and see you this Sunday, as well! We would seriously love to spend more time with you and David! It almost seems like we are always in the same place at the same time (or at least on Sundays!) I will email you as well, but I’m definitely looking forward to getting together soon! I also love your blog from what I’ve seen so far! –Sam
Thanks for providing me with inspiration for my blog, Sam! You helped make the evening so memorable. It was great to see you both today at the Joy Pharmacy Chili Cook Off, thanks for steering me towards the wild boar chili – my favorite. Look forward to enjoying more meals together.
Okay here is my question, did you really eat all that food?
Ha! Absolutely. Every morsel was savored; at the end of the evening I was happily full but the portions were perfect.
We had such a lovely time meeting at Gypsy Kitchen. Great post and hope to see you soon!
Hi, Alex! It was wonderful to meet you and Halley – thanks to you both for a fun foodie evening. Love Halley’s blog too. Shall we meet up again for a December Gypsy Kitchen dinner? Cheers until next time.
Wow. I’m definitely going to get to Mizuna asap. What a fabulous blog post. I almost feel like I was there!
Thanks, Lesly! The supper club is definitely a culinary treat, and Mizuna is a dining experience. A lunch option: check out their sister restaurant, Bones, and try the pork belly dumplings – amazing! Is it a date?
It seems Denver has many yummy foodie events! Love reading about these…post more please! Let’s add Mizuna to our list for my next visit.
Now that would be fun! Add in the Denver-only Van Gogh exhibit at the DAM and it would be a great sister day. Book your tickets!