H appy Thursday! It’s comforting to know that our local food community is constantly raising the bar. It isn’t always about representing those mad food skills locally, though. This week, we celebrate a cheesemonger who made quite an impression out West recently. We also remind wine lovers to get on it and secure some tickets for the Taos Winter Wine Festival (Jan. 27-31), which kicks off in Santa Fe with a special film screening at the CCA on Jan. 26. Have food news? We want it! You can send it to [email protected]. And if you want your friends to have access to the same food news you do, please send them this way.
Cheese It
Congratulations to Cheesemongers of Santa Fe cheesemonger Lilith Spencer, who fought her way to a major win at the Cheesemonger's Invitational in San Francisco recently. Billed on the invitational website as the "Fight Club Meets WrestleMania of Cheese," the event brings together cheesemongers, cheesemakers and cheese lovers for fun, fromage and fierce-yet-friendly competition. It's kid of a big deal. Go congratulate her and get some stinky cheese. Hats off, Lilith! You've done us proud!
Mountain Meritage
The Taos Winter Wine Festival (Jan. 27-31) actually "pops" off in Santa Fe with a special Jan. 26 screening of A Year in Champagne, the second in an epic trilogy of films that delves deep into specific wine regions, at CCA Cinematheque. Attending the screening will be the film's producer and consultant Martine Saunier, who also holds the honorable distinction of being the first woman to establish a wine-import business in the United States (Martine's Wines, est. 1979). Arrive thirsty. The screening is preceded by a Champagne tasting!
Victory! (at Sea)
Some Santa Fe beer lovers had a sad face for a spell when it was announced that on Jan. 30, California-based craft brewer Ballast Point would be holding a Victory at Sea Day taproom takeover—in Albuquerque, at Nob Hill Bar & Grill. Named after the brewer's titular coffee-vanilla porter, the event now has a separate Santa Fe date at the Violet Crown Cinema in the Santa Fe Railyard. Things kick off at 6 pm on Thursday, Feb. 11. Keep your eye on the link provided for updates on the event.
Dual Duels
Santa Fe-based brewers Duel Brewing opened their Downtown Albuquerque taproom recently, and it's already the talk of the town. At more than 7,000 square feet and an occupancy of 300, it's now Downtown Albuquerque's largest taproom. There are no plans for a full kitchen at the Albuquerque location (sorry, Belgian waffle lovers), but a small, charcuterie-plate-focused menu will eventually be available to complement the business's whopping 80 tap handles. Duel in Albuquerque has slated its grand opening for Jan. 29, but in the meantime, it is open for business. And don't worry, Santa Fe Duelers: The local operation is staying put, because that's where they make the beer. "Santa Fe is our home for the brewery and adjoining taproom," writes Duel owner Trent Edwards via text message. "We aren't leaving Santa Fe, and we are currently expanding brewery capacity. We brought on 60 barrels of fermentation space among other needed improvements."
Better Not Touch My Burger
In a Jan. 13 article in the Santa Fe New Mexican, reporter Staci Matlock explains a land swap between the State Land Commission and Cochiti Pueblo. Writes Matlock, "The State Land Commission has agreed to turn over the site of a historic family apple orchard, as well as 9,000 acres of state trust land surrounding it, to Cochiti Pueblo in exchange for motel property in downtown Santa Fe that the pueblo plans to purchase." That motel property includes Garrett's Desert Inn, home to Santa Fe Bite (formerly Bobcat Bite off of Old Las Vegas Highway), where one of the world's most acclaimed burgers is now served. We put a call into Santa Fe Bite, and they assure us that, until their lease is up in a couple of years, the green chile cheeseburger of our dreams is safe. Then again, leases and the Bite don't exactly have a great history. We wish them luck.
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