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Belgian Ale and Food Festival

The Holy Grail of Beer Fests

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The end of July brings the annual Belgian Ale and Food Festival. Arguably the most underrated beer fest in the Miami Valley, this event brings a treasure trove of Belgian and Belgian-inspired beers to the majestic and historic Miami Valley Golf Club on July 29th from 4-7 pm.

 

The affair is intimate in scale but features a staggering 21 different beers, including Trappist ales from La Trappe and Spencer (the only U.S.-based Trappist brewery), Belgian mainstays like Rodenbach, Duvel, and Boon, and New World interpretations from Unibroue, Ommegang, and Dogfish Head. The Miami Valley shows off its Belgian-style chops, too, with beers from Fifth Street Brew Pub, Toxic Brew, Mother Stewart’s, Woodburn, and more.

 

The club’s Art Deco-style ballroom provides an ornate backdrop for the tasting, which maxes out at 200 people. The Belgian food menu, selected to pair with the beers, adds to the elegance of the room and the ales. The food is included with the ticket price and, like the beer menu, provides a sampling of the best of Belgium. Nibble on cheese and sausages, or go for something heftier like the Gratin of Brussel Sprouts, the Flemish Ragout of Rabbit, or the Belgian standard, Steamed Mussels. Satisfy your sweet tooth with Liege Waffles—pearl sugar waffle bars with fruits, flavored whipped cream, and syrup.

For the last six years, the event has raised funds for the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor, a community group dedicated to the redevelopment of the neighborhoods along Salem Avenue. The groups’ efforts have helped stabilize the area, in part through the money raised by this event. Organizer Jule Rastikis explains that, “The whole corridor is maturing–it keeps evolving.” As a result, Rastikis’ group is able to be more targeted in their efforts, this time focusing on branding of the neighborhoods. “One of the things that the event helps is that the Peace Corridor is doing a Gateway sign. It’s going to be at the corner of Salem and Riverview.” (You can see a rendering of the sign, and get tickets to the event, at www.baffdayton.com.)

 

A portion of ticket sales also help kickstart the Gem City Market, a food co-op grocery store planned for Dayton’s west side. The Gem City Market seeks to end the food desert on that side of the river and will function much like other cooperatively owned stores. It will be open to the public, but members will receive discounts. Think REI or Fifth Street Brew Pub, but with apples and oranges, not backpacks and pints—although if Rastikis has his way, a brewery won’t be far behind. “The Northwest Dayton market is an untapped resource,” he explains “There are 22,000 people in the area, so we’re trying to let beer people know–distributors, brewers, that, look, it would be pretty smart to get involved here.”

 

You can get involved by purchasing tickets at www.baffdayton.com. Tickets are $50 each ($40 for designated drivers who are eating but not drinking) Attendees can also purchase raffle tickets to win the Holy Grail of Trappist Beer—a basket stuffed Trappist beers and glassware, including the coveted Westvleteren 12.

Belgium by the Pint and Plate: The Belgian Ale and Food Festival

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IMG_0610Belgium comes to Dayton on July 30th with the 5th annual Belgian Ale and Food Festival (BAFF). Arguably one of the most underrated beer fests in the Gem City, this high-end festival pairs some of the best Belgian and Belgian-style beers in the world with quintessentially Belgian dishes in the beautiful 1920s setting of the Miami Valley Golf Club. Explore the wooden walls of the grand ballroom while quaffing a St Louis Fond Tradicion Geuze paired with Roast Lemon & Rosemary Chicken. Or, if you want something heftier, how about a St. Bernardus Barrel Aged ABT 12 with a beefy, carmalized Carbonnades Flanandes? Go classic by pairing a saison with Moules Frites, Belgian steamed mussels and fries. And sample the best local interpretations of Belgian styles with beers from Toxic, Warped Wing, 5th Street Brewpub, Eudora, Yellow Springs Brewery, and Dayton Beer Company.

Founder Jule Rastikis and Treva Jenkins

The BAFF is the brainchild of Jule Rastikis and is a fund-raiser for Salem Avenue Peace Corridor, a neighborhood non-profit with the goal of revitalizing the Salem Avenue area. Rastikis, a local entrepreneur and the president of the Peace Corridor project, is passionate about reestablishing Salem Avenue and the adjacent neighborhoods as a thriving community. In the group’s mission statement, they draw upon the United Nation’s definition of peace, calling for “a vitalization effort to intentionally cultivate our Shared Destiny of safety, prosperity, a great quality of life, and a strong spirit of community.”

 

Rastikis is a bona fide beer geek who, five years ago, realized the craft beer renaissance was leaving Dayton’s west side largely behind, despite the region’s stabilization and its nascent revitalization efforts. Rastikis wanted to share the vision of his neighborhood and was motivated by “getting people to cross the bridge.” Channeling Kevin Costner in Field Of Dreams, Rastikis explains that, “If you do the right event, people will come.” He wanted to prove that he could draw attendees from more than just the immediate area, and has been overwhelmingly successful. Attendees from each of the last four events have come from 25 different ZIP codes.

 

PicsArt_1405260176148As for why Belgian beer? “Because that’s what I like,” quips Rastikis, adding that “no one else is doing it.” His love for all things Belgique began with a Beer Bon Voyage trip through the country, where he and his wife sampled beers from monasteries and centuries-old breweries. An evangelist for the beers, Rastikis has lined up a tasting list that includes the best of Belgian styles (including Piraat, one of his favorites) and foods that accentuate the beers. Attendees can also purchase raffle tickets for the Holy Grail of Belgian beers, a beer package that includes brews from nine Trappist breweries: Spencer, Gregorgius, Achel, Chimay, Rochefort, LaTrappe, Orval, Westmalle, and Westvleteren. (The raffle includes the highly sought after and hard to obtain Westie 12). The event also offers attendees the chance to experience Rastikis’ life-changing trip for themselves—the purchase of a ticket enters the ticketholder into a drawing for a Belgian beer cruise, with airfare for two from New York, this October.

 

The event takes place Saturday, July 30th from 4-7 pm at the Miami Valley Golf Club (3311 Salem Avenue Dayton, OH 45406). The event is limited to 200 people, so get tickets early or risk the event being sold out. Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased online at www.daytonbaff.com. For more information about the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor, visit their website at www.peacecorridor.com.