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With Christmas upon us and everyone getting into the holiday spirit Tracy and I went to one of our long time favorite places for lunch, Wolf Creek. The restaurant is owned and operated by Rob and Laina McFerren. My goal for this visit was to taste the Winter Wonderland ale that is brewed on the premise by Rob at Christmas time. Wolf Creek has been in the same location since opening over 12 years ago. The service and food has always been spectacular. Rob’s skill as a brewer is fantastic and can be noted by the number of awards that he has won over the years. After tasting the Winter Wonderland ale this year I feel that it is the best I have ever had in all of my years of coming here. Previous years have all been great, don’t get me wrong, but this one was a cut above, in my opinion. The beer was dark and had flavors of chocolate, coffee, nutmeg, clove and allspice, I even detected a little orange on the nose. I need to ask if he added a little orange zest the next time I see him. What I liked best about this year’s Winter Wonderland is that it was very smooth with enough hops to balance the beer and spices that were present in the background rather than being the dominant taste. I enjoyed this fine ale with a California Cobb sandwich which is made up of a marinated chicken breast, sliced tomato, lettuce, avocado, bacon and gorgonzola cheese with a remoulade sauce on toasted wheat bread and served with their own Cajun fries. They literally add the peppers to the fries when they are making it. The pairing was perfect. I definitely plan to go back before this once a year ale is gone. Tracy, who is not a beer drinker, orders her favorite almost every time we go, Blackened Chicken Pasta, but has it served over rice instead of pasta. It comes with blackened chicken, julienned carrots and bell peppers in a creamy Cajun sauce that she says is to die for. If you would like to try the Winter Wonderland or a beer sampler of all of Rob’s beer along with their great food they are located at: 27746 N. McBean Parkway Cheers, Rusty Sly |
