How many out there have every had a beer from Anchor Steam Brewery? 

Answer: none of you.

Don't be ashamed - the shocking truth took me by surprise as well. In fact, the company was originally established as Golden City Braueri back in the mid-1800s with German-borns Ernst F. Baruth and Otto Schinkel at the helm. Around the turn of the century when a wave of xenophobia crashed over the United States, a slew of breweries began to change their names in the hopes of eschewing any association with being "foreign." Instead, they favored simple, generic terms, and many speculate that the duo of Baruth and Schinkel may have chosen "Anchor" given San Francisco's proximity to the ocean.    

But the now iconic beer of San Francisco wasn't always so glamorous, and by 1965 the entire brewery was on the verge of bankruptcy. Outdated equipment and a dirty facility led to declining quality and, in turn, a decrease in public favor. Until one day when Frederick "Fritz" Maytag III - grandson of the Maytag Dairy Farm founder Frederick (think Maytag Blue Cheese) and great-grandson of the appliance giant Maytag Corporation founder...also Frederick - attempted to save the company by purchasing 51% of Anchor in 1965 and obtaining sole ownership in 1969. 

By 1971, he was already turning the business around by bottling the once draft-only beverages, including the first barleywine (Old Foghorn - another nautical nod) in production after prohibition, the first seasonal beer (Anchor Christmas Ale), and the Liberty Ale: released 200 years to the day of Paul Revere's ride.

About that funny bottle shape: they were actually made for another company who fell out of business. The glass manufacturer had already produced the bottles and sold them to Maytag for pennies on the dollar. So that distinctive Anchor bottle wasn't actually made for them. They were just cheap.  

And what about Breckle's Brown? See that apostrophe? It must be his - who the hell was this guy anyway? 

During the Gold Rush, it was Gottlieb Breckle who started what would eventually become Anchor. When Ernst and Otto purchased it in 1896, Breckle stayed on as the first official brewmaster, and this beer is a nod to the man who truly started it all. 

But to address the question you've all been asking: from where did the term Anchor Steam come? Well, you see this shot of of the original location on Pacific Avenue?  

With no refrigeration systems in place, it was on this very rooftop where brewers at Anchor would bring vats of boiling wort to cool down enough so that yeast could be added. As a result, continuous waves of steam wafted atop the brewery, and thus the "steam beer" was born. 

Now I'm not normally into history, but the Anchor tour was enlightening, fun, and quite tasty: especially after trying eight beers at 11am on a Tuesday. But for me, food and drink is always more fascinating with a story behind it, and Anchor constantly nods to its roots. 

I wouldn't be surprised to see a Maytag beer in the near future. 

Cheers! ...and nosh on,
Josh

Back in May, Alyssa of Everyday Maven and Faith of An Edible Mosaic put together the inaugural Food Blogger Prop Swap. A simple premise: in an effort to help connect the food blogging community in a more real, interactive manner, each participant packs a box full of gently used, photogenic kitchen items and sends them along to a fellow food blogger to inspire a new post that each participant publishes on the same day. 

Now I consider this blog to be slightly more unconventional than most. With a focus on the people and experiences surrounding the food world, I rarely have the need for, "props," per se. However, I am always game for extending beyond my comfort zone and embracing a new and exciting challenge. So, I filled my USPS medium sized flat rate box with jars, bottles, linen (and a sieve for good measure) and mailed it across the country to my match: Julie of SavyEats. 

Eagerly I awaited the box from my match like a puppy by the windowsill searching longingly for my owner. What would be in there? How could I use each piece? Who was my mystery counterpart? 

Every day I anticipated the delivery, but as the days strung along, I grew increasingly weary that my match had forgotten me.

On reveal day, June 17, I had no box, and nothing about which to blog. 

A few weeks went by, and when I returned from my camping trip in southern Utah, a medium sized, flat rate box sat at my doorstep. With a glimmer of hope that my mail had just been delayed, I cautiously looked at the return address. 

The package was from Everyday Maven herself, filled to the brim with bowls, plates, and a delightful hand-written note. 

With such a sweet and unnecessary gesture, I was motivated to return the favor in kind, using each of the items at my breakfast taco brunch that very Sunday.

The two brown bowls were perfect for serving the harissa-roasted red potatoes and my roommate's "schmoo" - peppers and onions reduced down in Armstrong Brewing Company's Smoked Pale Ale.

One of the bowls also doubled as an improvised tortilla press for the fresh masa we purchased. 

Our bright red mortar was almost too perfect for our guacamole.

And what breakfast taco would be complete without eggs, nested comfortably in this ceramic dish?

Colorful toothpicks for colorful fruit, a pinch bowl for cilantro, a small dipping tray for limes and some of our own dishes made for a complete breakfast taco bar feast!

DIY tacos.

So thank you for the incredibly thoughtful prop box, Alyssa! This brunch never would have been the same without you. 

Nosh on,
Josh

The ice cream battle runs deep in San Francisco. Some swear by Bi-Rite's salted caramel; others crave Mitchell's unique ube; die-hards clamor for the eclectic flavor combinations at Humphry Slocombe; and many more marvel at the creations of Mr. and Mrs. Miscellaneous. My vote? 

I love 'em all for different reasons. 

But Smitten Ice Cream holds a special place in my heart. I think I was spoiled living in Hayes Valley, with the shop in the little red container a dangerous three blocks from my front doorstep, and surely I took it for granted as time went on and I became more of a regular than I'm proud of. The flavors were always delicious and seasonal, and the texture was inconceivably velvety - a quality unrivaled by any other in the city.  But really: how hard is it to dump out some liquid nitrogen into a base and mix?   

As it turns out, much harder than you may realize. 

There is a lot more that goes into the seemingly simple process, as was explained to me by Robyn Sue Fisher, owner and founder of Smitten, who filled me in on some of the finer points during our, "Ice Cream for Breakfast" event. 

Next comes the stage about which I knew the least (and quite frankly, still do) but the one that truly separates Smitten from the pack. Pipes don't merely funnel in a set amount of liquid nitrogen and hope for the best. Rather, patented software constantly reads the goings-on inside of the bowl and the beaters, sending feedback to the computers monitoring the system. Given a variety of factors, each batch may mix in a different manner.

As the base and beaters spin, the once liquid mixture solidifies before your eyes, and in a matter of 60 seconds...

...yields July's signature flavor: honey nectarine. With a nearly 2:1 ratio of dairy to organic Frog Hollow Farm nectarines, the fruit really shines through while maintaining an ideal level of creaminess to remind you that it is still ice cream and not a fruit pop. Top with any of Smitten's house-made toppings ranging from chocolate crispy treats to their famous pistachio brittle and prepare to be smitten. 

Despite so few ingredients, the taste is consistently bold, powerful and complex.  For every flavor, the nuances and depth are achieved because of the attention to quality of the components and control of proportions. Fruit, for example, has much more water than flavors like their fresh mint chip (infused with real, honest-to-goodness mint leaves), and as such they must adjust to allow for as much fruit as they want by altering other aspects. By not being tied down to any specific quantities, each ice cream might have a different butterfat content to maximize flavor and maintain that ultra-smooth texture every single time.    

In addition to receiving an education on just some of the science behind Smitten's magic, two more exciting pieces of news were bestowed upon me. First, seemingly eons away from her first Brrr machine, hand-welded and set atop her little red Radio Flyer wagon rolling through the streets of SF, Fisher will be opening two more locations in Rockridge and Los Altos, each with a full kitchen equipped to handle the second surprise: brioche ice cream sandwiches*.

The issue with traditional ice cream sandwiches is that the exterior cookies tend to be too crispy and the ice cream too soft, causing the innards to ooze out from all sides before your teeth get all the way through. The typical solution is to freeze the entire sandwich to prevent such a travesty, but since Smitten churns-to-order, that just isn't an option.  

Enter brioche: a logical answer to the issue at hand. The fluffy, sweet brioche envelops the star of the show, cradling it on all sides so that any excess is blocked from exiting, and any runoff simply soaks into the dough before dripping down your arms. 

Sadly for San Franciscans, the brioche ice cream sandwiches will only be available at the two new locations, but are absolutely worth the drive. And never fear about the expansion. Smitten doesn't plan on changing anything about their ice cream: four flavors a day will stay the standard with the same passion for local, organic ingredients. 

Just one more reason why I'm consistently smitten by Smitten. 

Nosh on,
Josh

*Disclaimer - The wonderful women of Smitten included a candle for my birthday. You may or may not receive one with your order. But do it anyway,