There’s nothing quite like an ice cold beer and a delicious meal on a hot summer day. Sure, summer isn’t technically here yet, but it feels like it. So, bear with us. Local breweries San Tan, Four Peaks, and Mudshark will be teaming up with the Spotted Donkey Cantina for three nights this summer of beer paired meals. Each meal was crafted by Executive Chef, Esteban Colon. For $39 per person, you’ll receive a reception with appetizers and a three-course meal. We can’t wait.

June 5, 2013- Beer Dinner with SanTan Brewing Company

July 10, 2013 – Beer Dinner with Four Peaks Brewing Company

August 7, 2013 – Mudshark Brewery

Recently, we told you about the newest hot spot in Tempe. Salut Kitchen Bar is now open and it definitely wants your business. We figured since it’s the weekend, you’re probably looking for some stuff to do. Look no further. Here is a list of Salut’s happy hour drinks and bites. All of which you can get every day of the week from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Drink specials include:

· $1 bottles of wine (with a purchase of a bottle)

· $2 Coors Light/Bud Light

· $3 Well drinks

· $3.50 Draft wines

· $4 Craft Draft

· $5 Absinthe

· $6 Craft cocktails

Food specials include:

· $5 Apple salad

· $5 Peppy dew peppers

· $5 Hummus nachos

· $5 Caprese kabobs

· $5 Ravioli

· $5 Prosciutto Wrapped Melon

· $6 Bruschetta

· $10 chefs board

Our little brewery is growing up right before our eyes. That’s right, Four Peaks Brewery is turning 16 this year and that means we should all celebrate. Don’t worry, this will be far different from MTV’s My Super Sweet 16 garbage. On Saturday, April 20, the Four Peaks in Tempe will be having an all-day party with beer, food, and live music all from AZ. Located inside the tasting room on Wilson Street, the festivities will be going from noon to 9:00 p.m. And guess what? Admission is free. We bet we know how you’re celebrating 4/20 now.

With the gorgeous weather outside, don’t you feel bad for leaving your dog home while you enjoy a nice lunch on a patio? This Saturday, April 6, Milagro will be best the spot for you and your pup. From 11:00 am to 4:00 pm, Milagro Grill in Arcadia will be hosting the Growl on the Patio event to debut their new dog-friendly patio and their new growlers. In case you’re wondering, growlers are those big glass bottles you can bring home beer in.

You can pick up one of the half-gallon amber jugs on sale for just $8 and can fill ‘em up with your favorite beers, like Mud Shark and Four Peaks. To buy the jug and fill it up only costs $12 on Saturday. Milagro Grill will also offer $3 Mud Shark draft beer and their seasonal $6 Sonoran Hot Dog (pictured).

Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about the canines. Food samples from the boutique pet shop Noble Beast will be provided. Photos will be taken of all the dogs in attendance and posted to Milagro’s Facebook and if you’re dog gets the most likes by April 13, you’ll win a $50 gift card to the restaurant.

With the end of the second month of the year, have you been keeping up with your New Year’s resolution of living a healthy lifestyle? The Madison Improvement Club is making it easy with the launch of their new menus at the s.e.e.d café, located inside the club. At the s.e.e.d café, you’ll find only sustainable, edible, and entirely delicious food. Incorporated in all of their dishes, the café only uses local, seasonal, and truly fresh ingredients. New additions to the menu include:

Squashgetti ($10) - an oven roasted spaghetti squash served with house made marinara sauce and shaved parmigiano reggiano.

Foody’s Palette ($10) - an assortment of cheeses and meats with crackers and other fun stuff.

I Heart You flatbread ($9) - sprinkled with artichoke hearts, chicken, goat cheese and pine nuts.

Me So Corny ($9) - with roasted red pepper tapenade, campo de malteban, corn, arugula and lemon zest.

Our favorite is the Money Well Spent nightly deal. It’s a bottle of house wine and two flatbreads for just $30.

If you’re more than just a beer drinker, if you’re a beer connoisseur, listen up. With Arizona Beer Week in full swing, the Thirsty Lion Pub at Tempe Marketplace will be hosting a five-course beer pairing dinner tonight at 6:30 p.m. For $49.95, you can enjoy an appetizer, soup, salad, entree and dessert, all paired with a beer perfectly matched for the dish. The dishes include:

Bacon Wrapped BBQ Prawns paired with Papago Orange Blossom
Beer Cheese Soup paired with Grand Canyon Sunset Amber
Apple Walnut Salad paired with Crispin Hard Apple Cider
Braised Pork Tenderloin paired with New Belgium Trippel
White Chocolate Cheesecake paired with Sonoran White Chocolate Ale.

Reservations are necessary. To make one, call (480) 968-2920.

Listen up all of you beer connoisseurs, Arizona Beer Week will be hitting the Valley February 16 – 23. That is seven whole days of delicious micro, craft, some of the best beers in the world, and much more. Well, we just got news that Tempe’s World of Beer will be joining the festivities this year. In celebration of Arizona Beer Week, WoB will host four craft brewers, where you can marvel and taste the beauty that is craft beer.

Monday, February 18, 2013 at 12:00pm, featuring: Odell Brewing. Wednesday, February 20, 2013 at 12:00pm featuring: Firestone Walker with David Walker. Thursday, February 21, 2013 at 12:00pm featuring Four Peaks Tap Procurement Party. Friday, February 22, 2013 at 12:00pm featuring: Dogfish Head Brewery. 

We’ve all heard of mud runs. Obstacle courses that get you down right  dirty while promoting health and fitness. The Devil Dash is exactly that, but then some. It’s the ultimate 5k race for thrill-seeking athletes and party-goers. October 20 is the date where thousands of people will head over to Camelback Ranch to run through Purgatory (the obstacle course.)

If you’ve got it in you, you’ll be running through over three miles of challenges where after and during you can celebrate with friends and family at a day-long festival with live music, food, and beer! How will you be getting the beer? In the Beer Garden of Eden. Sounds devine.

AZ’s Devil Dash will be at the Camelback Ranch-glendale in Phoenix. Participants will be leaping through fire, crawling through mud pits, climbing cargo nets, jumping over tire mounds, and scaling the gruesome Satan’s Tower. Working through additional obstacles themed after the Seven Deadly Sins, this is a race not for your average runner.

For more information, log on their Facebook page here.

Yes, we’re jealous of this relationship too.

Apparently Brady-Siegel had the right idea after all: Beer & Donuts album circa 1987.

It hardly matters what time of year it is or how much it will cost you, beer and donut enthusiasts from far and wide are rejoicing with the recent release of pairings that will be featured at Il Vinaio for this one-of-a-kind event.

From 2 to 5 p.m. on July 28 the following featured craft beers and their accompanying house-made gourmet donuts will be available:

SanTan Mr. Pineapple hefe and Lemon Poppyseed Donut

Goose Island Matilda strong pale ale and Conch Fritter

Goose Island Pepe Nero black pepper saison and Bacon Bleu Cheese Donut

Firestone Walker Double DBA and Pecan Pie Donut

Cost is $16 and donuts are limited to the first 72 people, so quit drooling and ensure you get to partake by calling (480) 649-6476 to RSVP.

Il Vinaio | 270 West Main St. | Mesa, Ariz. | 85201

When you drive down the streets of Old Town Scottsdale – because, let’s be real here, no one is walking anywhere right now – you can see pretty much two things: restaurants and art galleries. The scene becomes quite familiar if you live in the area and it’s easy to fall into a routine of always hitting up the same spots. That’s why when any inkling of a new restaurant pops up, it’s nearly impossible not to take notice…and snoop around like a nutrient deprived Nancy Drew. We are of course talking about the upcoming opening of chef Payton Curry’s Brat Haus, and as it turns out, Old Town’s newest restaurant is not so much of a mystery. In fact, its opening on July 2nd is highly anticipated and has been covered by the likes of Chow Bella, AZ Central and EaterAZ.  »READ MORE

Sports? Father's Day? Why not celebrate with a locally brewed beer. Here are some recommendations. Photo courtesy of Yumsugar.

With the NBA Finals underway, Diamondbacks’ season in full swing and the Stanley Cup just wrapping up (great run, Coyotes) it is no surprise that we’re seeing an influx of beer news, beer consumption and beer recommendations. In order to remain relevant and keep our buzz going, here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs:

Let’s hope by now you’ve at least decided on a Father’s Day gift for dad (even if you haven’t crossed it off the shopping list yet), but for those of you procrastinators out there here are six brilliant beer suggestions based on your dad’s personality, thanks to Chow Bella.

If you’ve had your gifts for pop bought and wrapped for weeks now (and we’re boring you at this point), we turn to Mouth By Southwest for five fruit-flavored Arizona beer profiles. Don’t simply judge a beer by it’s cover fruit, be sure to try some of this frosty-cold, sweet summery bliss.

In other beer news, Mouth By Southwest is reporting that the opening of World of Beer in Tempe has been pushed back from July 2 to July 23. Construction permitting, you should be able to watch your favorite teams compete at the London 2012 Summer Olympics while sipping an international brew (since it is all about sports after all).

As we count down to the 200th anniversary of the original Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany, DLT will be offering daily deets on the various Valley beer fests. Yesterday we served up ales on rails. Today, we say why wait for October when you can celebrate Oktoberfest in September at the SanTan Brewing Company?

»READ MORE

Beer Prices Set to Spike [Fargo Forum]

Why Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh Befriended a Local Gadget Geek [Phx New Times]

Did a Man Mysteriously Fall from the Sky In New Jersey? [Gawker]

One would think that drinking on the job would pretty much be assumed a “no no” but employees for Carlsberg Beer are about to strike for the right to do just that…drink and work.    Sounds good to us.

[Wall Street Journal]