Beer and Saké Dinner

One of the last functions I organized as an employee of Maryland distributor Legends, Ltd. was a beer and saké dinner at Matsuri in the Federal Hill neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, in May of 2004.

Matsuri proprietor Bill Tien (r) and I co-hosted the sold-out event in the cozy restaurant's upstairs room. Bill paired the sakés and beers of Japanese brewer Kiuchi with sushi and Japanese fare. (Kiuchi beers are sold under the name Hitachino.)

I served one non-Kiuchi beer that evening: Kelpie, a Scottish beer brewed with seaweed.

Despite, or maybe, because of that unusual ingredient, Kelpie is quite tasty, and was indeed appropriate for the evening's dinner. (Here's a review of Kelpie, written by Phil Sides, who took the two photos in this post.)

The dinner finished with 'Pink Sushi' for dessert: sticky rice soaked in berries and finished with a fruit glaze.