From Fred2Blue:
Event: Grassroots Inauguration Reception Description: Come celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama for the 44th President of the United States as we gather in Fredericksburg to celebrate all of the work grassroots supporters did to help change the course of history.
Time: Tuesday, January 20 from 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Location: Rappahannock Regional Library (Fredericksburg, VA)1201 Caroline StreetFredericksburg, VA 22401
Music: musicians scheduled to appear :
- - John Bachman, http://jonbachman.com/
- - Pete Mealey, http://www.laurieandpeter.com/
- - George Foster
- - Tres Seaver

– In addition to the musicans listed above, we will also have a new local group, the Hybrids, featuring Stephen Hu and Lowell Sale (from the Believers’), doing a rockabilly set.
Note: This is a grassroots event and attendees are asked to bring a “pot-luck” dish to share and to also bring a can of food which will be delivered to our local food bank.
Click here to sign up via my.barackobama.com … or send an email to events@virginiadem.com …. space is limited to 120 participants

The second annual SAVOR: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience will be held in Washington, DC on May 30, 2009. This interesting, if somewhat pricey, event is designed to showcase the delights of pairing beer and food. The list of participating craft breweries has been released by the Brewers Association, the sponsor of the event. There are four Virginia breweries participating this year; Capitol City, Legend, St. George, and Starr Hill. That's a big step up from last year when just one Virginia brewery (Williamsburg Alewerks) participated. I see also that my two favorite Maryland breweries, Clipper City and Flying Dog, are listed.

The complete 2009 SAVOR brewery list is here.

2009 is off to a culinary bang! The 2009 Restaurant week is just around the corner. January 22nd - 31st you can dine at a dozen downtown locations for just $10.09 at lunch and $20.09 for dinner. The menues are typically similar the restaurants normal cuisine, but often the chefs take a little extra liberty with specializing items or trying something new.

From the 2008 visitfred website:

"food enthusiasts will be able to feast on three-course prix fixe meals for a fraction of the regular price. ... Several of the city's finest restaurants will be preparing special menus to showcase their house specialties during Fredericksburg Restaurant Week.

Fredericksburg's 40-block historic district features a variety of one-of-a-kind restaurants, where you'll often find the owner/chef in the kitchen preparing your meal. The Road to Salivation is the ideal time to taste-test the tempting delights found on menus throughout the city."

The 2009 writeup sounds delicious

Delight in sheer gastronomical bliss as you sample some of Fredericksburg’s best dishes. Slow braised beef short ribs with a grapefruit and fennel slaw and fingerling potatoes. Sauté of jumbo shrimp over lobster-enriched fried polenta.
Mahi filet with herbed risotto. Belgian chocolate Profiterole with Dulce de
Leche ice cream. In Fredericksburg, the flavor is as rich as the area’s history.

For a list of restuarants, visit this link.

It's that time of year, when one of our all time favorite fundraisers - The Empty Bowl. This is an annual even to benefit the Rappahannock Council on Domestic Violence, and it's absolutely delicious. For those that have never been, I strongly suggest you consider it to warm up your winter dining experience. The event remains a lasting memory, by filling your cupboard with a one-of-a-kind hand made pottery bowl. The fun of walking in the door and getting to pick out your own unique souvenir is matched only by the next decision of which soups to sample. Local restaurants, organizations, and soup chefs from around the area bring in a wide variety of soups, chilis, gumbos to fill your stomach. But leave space for desert!

Why we love this event? The food is great, the cause is wonderful, and the take home bowls are perfect conversations starters to tell others about this great event. We have friends that use them for parties, where no two people have the same bowl (they've been to several of these). See you there!


10th Annual Empty Bowl, hosted at the Fredericksburg Elks Lodge
New Date: February 8, 2009
Tickets: $40
Available at these locations:
RCDV Outreach Office
Liberty Town Arts Workshop
Sophia Street Studios
or call Kelly Sparr at 972.8357

The Kybecca Wine Bar kicks off "Movie Night at the wine bar" tonight at 7:30pm. This new event is planned for the first Wednesday of each month. Tonight's movie is The Big Lebowski. The movie is free for patrons of the wine bar, just come in and grab a seat and order as usual. Of course, the Kybecca Wine Bar has an extensive beer list too.

The Fredericksburg Pub will open on Thursday, January 15 at 11:00am. The opening announcement states The Fredericksburg Pub will feature "85 different beers from all over the world, including a wide range of English, Scottish, and Irish draught; cask-conditioned brews, as well as domestics." My inquiry this summer asking about details on the cask-conditioned and other beer selections elicited only an old press release from the company so I can't offer more info, but we'll finally know more next week.

Blue & Gray Brewing has announced that their Valentine's Day seasonal Chocolate Raspberry Stout will be available on Friday, January 16th. The brewery's popular Minor Dementia Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout is just about gone, but more will be available in time for the annual St. Patrick's Day celebration.

Please accept my sincere appology for not publishing this post earlier. For those late revelers, looking for something to do tonight to ring in the new years, here are some of the bigger events around town.

For $8 a person, pick up your button at the visitors center (also WaWa and the libraries), and enjoy a variety of family friendly indoor activities at First Night Fredericksburg. 21 different locations from 6:30pm until Midnight host all types of events. Children under 3 are free.

For FREE (with drink and/or food), visit Kybecca for live Jazz 9:30 until Midnight.
For FREE, visit Capital Ale of Fredericksburg for live music.

For live music with a cover, The Loft (cover includes champagne toast), Yak-A-Doos , Brocks, & Fredericksburg Hospitality House are sure to have something fun.

Wow, the last weekend before Christmas. While you are out doing those last minute errands, take a break to stop in and enjoy a free tasting from your local retailer. Maybe even take home a new beer to wind down with after your chores are done.

Friday, December 19 - 4:00 - 8:00pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
French Beer Tasting:
St. Rieul Biere de Noel, Brasserie Bourguignonne Ambree and La Mouska, Brasserie Mandrin Sapin (Amber Ale made with pine needles and buds), Brasserie Mont Blanc Le Verte (Ale brewed with Genepi flowers)

December 19 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Holiday Tasting Event:
Bad Elf, Ridgeway Brewing, UK, Santa's Butt, Ridgeway Brewing, UK, Biere Au Sapin, Brasserie Mandrin, France(made with pine and spruce buds and needles)

Saturday, December 20 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
Delirium Noël, Stone Double Bastard, plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Saint Rieul De Noëll, Penn Brewing Christmas Bock, plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, December 20 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting:
Blue & Gray (Va.) Cranberry Christmas Ale, Cape Ann (Mass.) Fisherman's Navigator Doppelbock, Samuel Adams (Mass.) Chocolate Bock, R.J. Rockers (S.C.) Bell Ringer Ale, Victory (Pa.) Old Horizontal Barleywine, Schlafly (Mo.) Reserve Barrel-aged Imperial Stout

Every Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Blue & Gray Brewery, Fredericksburg
Beer samples and brewery tours

Please support the folks who bring us these events. Let them know there is an active craft beer community in the area. When you attend any of these events, tell us about it in the comments, and be sure to let the proprietor know you heard about it here.
Have something to add? Let me know, my contact information is here.

Event schedules subject to change. Call ahead before traveling.

It's the weekend! That means it's time to try out some new beers. Here are the local retailers' tasting opportunities.

Friday, December 12 - 5:00 - 8:00pm
Total Wine, Fredericksburg
Friday 5 @ 5 Beer Tasting:
Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale, Samuel Smith India Ale, Kona Pipeline Porter, Lancaster Strawberry Wheat, and Brooklyn Lager

Friday, December 12 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Beer Tasting:
Anderson Valley Winter Solstice (California), O'Hara's Irish Stout (Ireland), and Manager's Special Surprise

Saturday, December 13 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
Stone Pale Ale (San Diego), Southern Tier Choklat Imperial Chocolate Stout (New York), plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Gouden Carolus Noel (Belgium), Southern Tier Choklat Imperial Chocolate Stout (New York) , plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, December 13 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting:
R.J. Rockers (SC) First Snow Ale, Allagash (ME) Interlude, N'Ice Chouffe (Belgium), Schlafly (MO) Oak-Aged Barleywine, Blue & Gray (VA) Minor Dementia

Every Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Blue & Gray Brewery, Fredericksburg
Beer samples and brewery tours

Please support the folks who bring us these events. Let them know there is an active craft beer community in the area. When you attend any of these events, tell us about it in the comments, and be sure to let the proprietor know you heard about it here.
Have something to add? Let me know, my contact information is here.

Event schedules subject to change. Call ahead before traveling.

The FLS weekender ran an article today about the upcoming Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert coming to DC this weekend. We went with friends last year and had the best time. I'm not one for all the normal Christmas tunes, but this isn't your ordinary Christmas concert either. Please read the article here, and if you're free on Sunday, I highly recommend the show. Go dressed as you please, even though the name is Orchestra, this is a modern rock band, and jeans are perfectly ok.

It's full out shopping season, complete with traffic jams and crowded stores. Since you are out anyway, you might as well stop in one of our local retailers and try out some new beers. And pick up something to enjoy at the end of your shopping day.

Friday, December 5 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Beer Tasting:
Breckinridge Christmas Ale, Obovoid Oak Aged Oatmeal Stout, St. Peter's Organic English Ale

Friday, December 5 - 5:30 - 8:30pm
Virginia Wine Experience, Fredericksburg
Beer Tasting:
Rogue Santa's Private Reserve, Pyramid Snowcap, Hebrew Rejewvinator Harvest Ale

Saturday, December 6 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
Eggenberg Pilsner, Dogfish Head Olde School Barleywine, plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Delirium Noel, Troëgs Mad Elf, plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, December 6 - 1:00 - 4:00pm
Total Wine, Fredericksburg
Anheuser-Busch Tasting:
Red Hook Winter Hook, Winter’s Bourbon Cask Ale, Budweiser American Ale

Saturday, December 6 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting:
North Coast (CA) Red Seal Ale, Wild Goose (MD) Snow Goose Winter Ale, Scaldis (Belgium) Noel, Dogfish Head (DE) Chicory Stout, Lagunitas (CA) Ruben and the Jets, Eggenberg (Austria) Samichlaus Bier