Twisted Hippo - Saint Auggie's Day Feast

I had been to Twisted Hippo before and really liked it, so was excited to go to their St. Auggie's Day Feast.  Why would a brewery be celebrating the feat day of a Catholic Saint?  There are actually several reasons.  First, St. Augustine of Hippo is actually the patron saint of brewers.  Second, the mascot of Twisted Hippo, Pinky, is essentially a hippo, and third, Head Brewer and owner Karl Rutherford shares his birthday with the feast day of St.  Augustine.  The space is colorful and a little weird and we were seated at a couple of communal tables at the back of the main dining room.  That was decorated with a center planter full of tropical fruit.  There was a portable tap an infusion device set off to the side, which gave us the idea that they were going to do something special.  Things started out with Karl and his wife and partner, Marilee, telling the story of Twisted Hippo.  It started with Karl as a toddler running away on a pink plastic hippo, which became Pinky, next door to his grandmothers house.  It was here wear they also explained the connection to St. Augustine or St. Auggie.

 

We started out with a beer made for the feast, Ol' St. Auggie's Hoppy Farmhouse Ale with 3 variants: Hibiscus, which was very floral and surprisingly bitter, Mallorca Melon, which was very sweet, and Hop Infused, which was hoppy.  Of the four, I think that I preferred the Hibiscus variant.  Paired with the beer we were served Crispy Pig Ear Salad with Mixed and Microgreens, Green Olives, Crispy Pig Ears, and Hibiscus Ol' St. Auggie's Dressing.  This was served family-style and it was huge.  The greens were very fresh and the olives provided some saltiness.  The crispy pig ears were more tender than I would have expected.  There is a lot of cartilage in a pigs ear and they are frequently used as a dog's chew toy, so I would have it expected it to be leathery.  They were crunchy and chewy and had a nice pork flavor, but they were very edible and good.  

For our next course we were served an Okra Tagine with Okra, Tomatoes, Chermoula, Crispy Fried Onions, with a Crispy Baguette on the side.  Paired with this we had Wit Ever Man!  Belgian Wit.  Also served family-style and also huge, the tagine was another vegetarian dish originating in Morocco, which is important because St. Augustine was from North Africa.  Hippo was the ancient name of the Algerian City of Annaba.  This was a little spicy and very flavorful and despit the fact that there was a ton, I would have eaten more.

Our North African glutton fest continued with Beef Meatballs in a North African Tomato Sauce with Saffron Cous Cous and Cilantro Pesto served on the side.  This was paired with Ballooner Weisse Berliner Weisse.  This was also very tasty and flavorful, though with the saffron, it stained my beard.  With the amount of food we were being served, I was also getting kind of full.

Realistically, the last course could have been the main course, but the food kept on coming.  Our next course was another family-style feast in two parts.  We started out with Stoemp, a very rich, Belgian version of Mashed Potatoes combined with other root vegetables.  This version combined Mashed Potatoes with Leeks, Carrots, and Cabbage.  The stoemp was the side dish for the Braised Lamb Shanks braised with Pinky Toe Table Stout, Red Wine, and Herbs.  Paired with the Stoemp and the lamb shanks was the Chubby Monk Belgian Stout.  It was all good and very filling, but I had to limit my lamb intake if I was going to get to dessert.  The stoemp, though, I may have to make myself.

With many beer dinners, the heaviest beer is saved for last, and in many cases, that would be the stout.  As I noted, the stout was actually served with the main entree, so they came back a little and went with Run-AMZ Double Dry Hopped IPA.  This was served with a crazy Pavlova.  A Pavlova is a Meringue Dessert topped in Whipped Cream and topped with fruit.  It's like a neater version of an Eton Mess.  With this Pavlova, it had the typical Meringue and Whipped Cream and was topped with Figs, Spiced Mango Jam, Fresh Papaya, and Pomegranate, and garnished with fresh Mint.  While I was very full, by this point, I really enjoyed it.  I like both the beer and food at Twisted Hippo, whether it's on the regular menu or if it's part of a special dinner.  I will definitely return for some good food and drink, but I will especially return for a special dinner.