Orchard White Clams

We might not be doing a great job at posting recipes to go with our beers (we're working on that, I promise), but Phil over at My Life as a Foodie is making up for it!  Phil featured Orchard White on his most recent episode, and used it as the base broth for cooking clams.  Now I know Orchard White goes with shellfish-- sounds good to me!  If you haven't listened to this Podcast, you really should.  It's funny, informative, and inspires me to try new recipes when I cook.  Thanks Phil!

LA Times Blog Mention

Dana Parsons, a columnist for the LA Times - Orange County edition, wrote a piece on first year law students at Chapman University School of Law, my alma mater.  Joan, my Mom-in-Law, read Dana's article and wrote to him saying I went to Chapman, started homebrewing while in law school, and recently opened a brewery.  Dana interviewed me and wrote a nice piece on an LA Times blog "Down the coast with Dana Parsons."  

Thanks for helping to spread the word, Dana!

Choosing Your Baby Shower Theme

When planning a Baby Shower, one of the first things you need to do is pick a theme. This is not only a fun and exciting part of the planning process, but also a very important decision to make. There are many factors you should consider when making this decision and take advice from mom-to-be if it’s not a surprise shower.

If you know the sex of the baby then it makes things a little easier. You could go with the traditional blue for boy and pink for girl theme. However, this pick doesn’t need to be at all redundant. Work with trendy shades of pinks and blues instead of the traditional baby blue/baby pink. Try to use contrasting colors to add a creative flare such as tiffany blue and white or hot pink with hues of orange and yellow.

Its crucial to keep the mom-to-be’s personality, style and preferences in mind. You want the chief guest to be awed and delighted as she enters her baby shower. If she is into simple pleasures, try a shapes theme. You could design your decorations with different shapes and colours. For example, choose a few shapes such as square, circle, triangle and rectangle. Incorporate them by mix and matching square and round plates, rectangular food platters and triangular table centerpieces. You can get creative and craft your own decorations which will be fun and inexpensive.

If mom-to-be likes glitz and glamour, try a Hollywood/movie themed baby shower. Complete with bling and charm, this baby shower theme is tonnes of fun and easy to plan. Start with choosing an invitation that would go with the theme such as star shape card or movie theatre stubs. Use stick-on rhinestones to decorate plate settings, favours and centerpieces. To make it even more fun, you can have a short movie of interviews with grandparents, family members and friends sharing their special thoughts with the parents-to-be. End it with a slide show of the parents’ childhood to adulthood milestones. Make your own movie booklet with casting, movie synopsis and credits. Roll out the red carpet and enjoy a premier featuring the guest of honour(s) and their adventures that lead up to the upcoming birth of the little star.

Finest Expressions

Personalized Gift Baskets

Top 10 Gift Baskets: Design Your Own Personalized Goodie Baskets!
Recipe for inexpensive baskets of treats! Personalize. Create baskets especially for loved ones. Give it your own special touch!
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Tasting Room Opening Tomorrow!

We are very excited to be opening our tasting room tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 5th) for the first time! We'll have tastings, tours, beer to go, an amazing cask blend of very special beers, and nice people around who love beer as much as you do. There are a few details that you might like to know if you're planning on swinging by.

The big one: Cash Only! We don't yet have our credit card transaction equipment, so please stop by an ATM before coming by. Sorry for the inconvenience, but we'll be able to accept credit cards soon!

Hours / Days of Tasting Room Operation:

Friday: 2 pm - 8 pm (Tour at 6 pm)
Saturday: 12 pm - 6 pm (Tour at 4 pm)
or by appointment.

We plan to be closed on holidays and may be open on alternate days in the event of a holiday, but we'll let you know as these dates come closer.

Growler Fills:

For the first few weeks, we ask you to bring your own growler! Our own growlers aren't in yet, and we don't want to deprive you of fresh Bruery draft beer at home. We have stickers made which cover all the bases (legally speaking), and while it's not pretty, you won't have to pay for a growler for the time being. Not to say you won't want a Bruery growler, they're going to be pretty cool.

To celebrate our Gold Medals at the Los Angeles International Beer Competition, Humulus Bruin and Black Orchard will be only $8 for a growler fill!

Beers Available for Growler Fills:

Orchard White: $12
Black Orchard: $12 (Current special of $8)
Humulus Bruin: $12 (Current special of $8)
Hottenroth Berliner Weisse: $12

Beer Prices @ The Bruery:

Tasting Flight: 8 tasters for $6 ($6 of tasters can be applied towards a to-go purchase on the date of tasting)
Cask Serving: $5 (.4L)
Draft Beers (Orchard White/Black Orchard/Humulus Bruin/Hottenroth Berliner Weisse): $4 (.4L)
Keep the Glass: $8

Bottles To Go:

Orchard White: $8
Black Orchard: $8
Saison Rue: $12
Trade Winds Tripel: $9.5
Batch No. 1 - Levud's: $15

Merchandise:

- T-Shirts (Black or Grey): $15 (M-2XL), $20 (3XL - 5XL)
- Ladies Bamboo T-Shirts (Blue, Green, Brown, Magenta): $20 (S-XL)
- Rastal Glassware: $5 per glass, $8 filled with draft beer

First Firkin Fridays & Our Mélange Series (Written by Tyler):

Start the first weekend of the month off right, every month, with the tapping of a new firkin (cask conditioned) at The Bruery. The first Friday of each month will commemorate the tapping of a "Bruery special" cask conditioned ale. To celebrate the opening of our tasting bar, Patrick and I created a special blend of Russian Imperial Stout and Flemish Red to kick off our Mélange Series of beers. The Mélange series (Mélange meaning blend) consists of the brewers' most prized blend and don't worry, we will be sure to keep it interesting for you! I'm really excited about this, as a brewer there is nothing more fun than sitting down with a couple of beers and creating something new, an art form in itself. Make sure you come out this weekend; this is an in-house only beer and who knows when we're going to see it again! No growler fills of cask beer, unfortunately.

We're at 715 Dunn Way in Placentia, CA, right off of the 57 Freeway at Orangethorpe. Click this link to get directions via Google Maps. Give us a call if you get lost (714-996-6258). Looking forward to seeing you this weekend!

Making Payments For Your Baby Gifts

At Finest Expressions we thrive to make your gift shopping experience fun and easy. For your convinience we have added a 'Payments' Section to our website that gives step-by-step instructions to assist you in making your online purchase smoothly.

Located on the top menu bar, the 'Payments' Section outlines important information such as where to input the recipients information, when to put in your gift card message and how to pay using any of your major credit cards or your PayPal account.

As always, if you require assistance in making your purchase, just contact us and we'll be happy to help you.

Happy Shopping!

Finest Expressions

Product Of The Month - September 2008

The stunning Froggy Deluxe Diaper Cake is September's product of the month. This spectacular themed diaper cake comes with 70 brand name diapers, bath set, toys and of course the 30" inch Froggy pillow. An adorably unique gift for an amazing price!

Contents:

• 70 Pampers Diapers – Size 1
• 2 Wash Cloths
• Froggy Bath Sponge
• Soft Rattle
• Soft Picture Frame
• Height Chart
• Bath Towel
• Froggy Pillow (30” Inches)