CELEBRATE CHEESE
The seventh annual Colorado Cheese Festival is coming to Longmont on Sunday, Nov. 8 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Plaza Convention Center.
The price of admission is $35, but that covers all the cheese samples you can handle. There will be about 35 local cheese and cheese-related vendors at the festival, including Cheese Importers, Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy, Rogue Creamery, Sartori Cheese, Ugly Goat Milk Dairy and many more.
In addition to the tastings, there will be events throughout the day. At 10 a.m., and again at 1:30 p.m., The Art of Cheese and Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy will be teaching a class entitled “Goat Cheese 101: Chèvre and Beyond!” At 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., you can learn how to make mozzarella at home from the folks at Wine and Whey. There will also be a fondue class at 12:30 p.m.
The event is hosted by Fromage to Yours, and tickets are available at www.cocheesefest.com.
THANKSGIVING FOOD DRIVE
You’re likely to see a number of charitable organizations hosting food drives this year for Thanksgiving, and one of your first opportunities to donate to the needy this holiday season is at the Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Broomfield on Friday, Nov. 6, starting at 9 a.m.
The church will be collecting frozen turkeys, stuffing, sugar, flower, gravy and mashed potato mixes, and canned fruits and vegetables like yams, cranberries, corn and carrots. The church is located at 6995 W. 120 Ave. in Broomfield, and you can stop by any time after 9 a.m.
WHITE TRUFFLE AND BAROLO WINE DINNER
Frasca Food and Wine is hosting their ninth annual White Truffle and Barolo Dinners on Dec. 7 and 8 at 6:30 p.m. on each night.
According to Frasca: “Italian white truffles imported directly from Italy during peak truffle season will serve as the star of the menu, with fresh truffles being shaved tableside throughout the evening. Master Sommelier Bobby Stuckey will also be on hand working the floor alongside winemaker Gaia Gaja pairing each course with wine. Gaia, who is from Italy’s renowned Piedmont region, is the fifth generation of her family to work at the award-winning Gaja Winery.”
Guest chef Mark Ladner, chef at the acclaimed Del Posto restaurant and the 2015 James Beard Award winner for best chef in New York City, will join Frasca chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson and chef di cucina, Ian Wortham.
Now, this all comes at a price, so don’t get mad. Consider it a holiday present to yourself. Tickets are — brace yourself — $970, per person, not including tax and gratuity, and a 50 percent deposit will be required at the time of booking. Each evening will be limited to 42 guests. But it’s Frasca; it’s Del Posto; it’s truffles; and it’s Barolo. Do it.
TWISTED PINE RELEASE
Boulder’s Twisted Pine Brewing Company will release it’s annual winter brew, the Northstar Imperial Porter, at a party at the brewery on Friday, Nov. 13.
The event will be celebrated with a sixvintage vertical tasting of the Northstar the day before the party — you can purchase tickets, which are going quickly, from the brewery’s website.
The Northstar Imperial Porter, according to the brewery, is “rich and robust,” and at 9.5 percent ABV, it is “an exemplary winter warmer.” It has won a World Beer Cup, two European Beer Star awards and holds a 97 rating on RateBeer.com. It also ages well in the cellar.
