Vincenzo's Beer DinnerDecember 21, 2005On the drive up to Vincenzo's Coffee House I kept asking myself, "What is Vincenzo's Coffee House and what could it possibly offer for the craft beer lover?" After all, Kokomo, Indiana isn't exactly craft beer central (No offense to all you Kokomoans). I also wondered why this beer dinner, and the one in January, was sold out, with indications that the following two (one being "Beer and Chocolate") would sell out as well. Vincenzo's, Vincenzo's, what art thou? WHERE ART THOU? Mapquest won't pinpoint 113 East Sycamore so I had to go with my gut... drive "head first" into Kokomo and hope for the best. After a couple of left and right turns and I wound up at what seemed to be a downtown area (not the congestion of Rt 31). No litter. No boarded up windows. Looked good! I Found Sycamore and a small sign indicating that I had arrived at my destination. Now to go inside and find out what this was all about...
I entered the coffee shop and found it was quite cavernous. From the entrance i couldn't even tell that a beer dinner was in the works. After working my way to the back I could see a large dining area and took a seat. That's Michael Schembre (above), lecturing on the pairing of 5 courses with at least twice as many beer tastings. Foccacia pizza with Bell's wheat beer. But not just one Bell's wheat, FOUR Bell's wheat beers... the "2," "4," "6," "8," and the "Love," a wheat barley wine at 13% ABV, all now available locally in Indianapolis. Each of the Bell's wheats in the series contains up to 2 more strains of yeast from the previous. From the 2 to the Love, we sampled beers of increasing complexity, body, and alcohol content. All on the first course. What a great way to start a beer dinner off!
"May I take your coffee order? A beer, perhaps!" Next on the menu was a spring mix salad with what else.... more beer. This time it was Cranberry Ephemere, a seasonal wheat from Unibroue Brewing in Quebec. Michael created the salad dressing by reducing this delicious brew. Luckily there is pleanty left to sample. The corn chowder came loaded with Indiana corn and a touch of Rogue Chipotle Ale. This beer has a hefty hot pepper aftertaste, so drink with care. The ginger salmon with soy butter sauce came next with asparagus and Duvel beer....
Finally, a pinapple cream tart was served appropriately with Piraat from Van Steenberge Brewing in Belgium. A heavy beer with a spicy aroma and sweet taste. So do you think Vincenzo's Coffee is worth a visit? If not, Great job Vincenzo's and thanks for the beer dinner! I'll be back. More information about Vincenzo's beer dinners might be found here. |
|
check out what's on the beer menu on the right! At what other coffee house can you order an Avery's Russian Imperial Stout with 11% ABV??? Probably not many. Very few... NONE. Vincenzo's is large, comfortable, unpretentious, and obviously historic. A great place to stop when passing through Kokomo. Just remember to get off of Rt. 31 when your thirst calls.