Black Oak Brewery's Nut Brown Ale with ChocoSol Traders' chocolate

On May 13th, we attended the Brewers Plate, now in its 8th year, at the Corus Quay building on Toronto’s east waterfront. The Brewers Plate is a charitable event that celebrates Ontario’s brewers and farmers. This year, it took on a rock-and-roll theme, inviting guests to wear tees of their favourite bands and concerts.

Twenty rock star chefs collaborated with twenty local breweries of beer, cider, and mead.  Together they produced gourmet food and drink pairings of which guests had unlimited samplings. One of my favourite pairings were Heirloom Toronto’s “Goat in the Wild”, which is goat cheese in a wild garlic tortellini, with Maclean’s Pale Ale. Another delicious pairing was Mill St. Brewpub’s spicy Korean duck sliders paired with Mill St.’s 100th Meridian Amber Lager.  Other memorable items of the night – Wanda’s Pie in the Sky’s nanaimo bars, and the chocolate concoction made of Black Oak Brewery’s Nut Brown Ale and chocolate from ChocoSol Traders (top image).

And what’s a rock-and-roll themed event without music? Classic rock tunes were performed live by Colwyn Llewellyn-Thomas with his new band The Worts. Guests also had the chance to participate in a silent auction, where they bid on gift baskets from their favourite breweries, a one night stay at the Marriott Hotel on Bloor, a year of beer, and many other items.

Proceeds from the Brewers Plate will benefit The Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation. Ontario’s Greenbelt is actually the world’s largest permanently protected greenbelt.  The foundation works to protect and grow the greenbelt’s farmlands, forests, and wetlands to ensure that local farmers are successful, local food production is sustainable, and local economies thrive.

For more information on the Brewers Plate, visit:
http://www.brewersplatetoronto.org
Twitter: @BrewersPlateTO #RockThePlate
Facebook: BrewersPlateToronto

Photos by John Tan

Upcoming: The 25th anniversary of Toronto Taste for Second Harvest
In Photos: Chelsea Clinton at the Einstein Legacy Awards

John Tan

John is an avid traveller, but equally loves being a tourist in his own city. With camera in hand, he enjoys discovering the sights, sounds, tastes, and everything else that Toronto has to offer. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram (@iam_johntan) to see what he's been up to lately.