MNP Week 27: Buck Stardusky Steals The Show

We apologize for the lack of a Monday Night Potluck blog this week. The author's fat finger were too lazy to type after the heavy influx of potluck grub from last week's MNP. Congratulations to Buck Stardusky and his merry band of Coconut Curry Lentils which stole first place from the plethora of delicious desserts that created the sugar overload from which I am only now just crashing, and to Matt and Christine's cheesy Smoked Gouda & Pancetta Pizza (2nd place) and Jesse and Kate's Whiskey Chili (3rd place). See, that sentence was not even close to grammatically correct, this blog must end.

Shout out to all who brought delicious dishes! See you all this evening for German night! 

Don Wood - Green Chili
Maria Mattera - Maria's Not So Mexican Chicken Enchiladas
Marisa R. - Peanut Butter Block
Jesse and Kate - Whiskey Chili! (3rd Place)
Buck Stardusky - Coconut Curry Lentils (1st Place)
Katie Schroeder - Chocolate Eclair Cake
Brittany Wilson - Cookies & Cream Cookies
Heidi and James - Oreo Cheesecake
Tom Greiner - Jimmy Dean Dip
Jake Fockelman - Tipsy Mud Pie
Warren and Samantha - Collard Greens
Warren and Samantha - Jambalaya
Matt and Christine - Smoked Gouda & Pancetta Pizza (2nd Place)

The BC Patio Is Open!

Mountains. Sunshine. Wonderful, delicious, Broken Compass beer.

I know what you're thinking. That's heaven right? Nope. It's the brand new patio that's now open at Broken Compass (and probably heaven too, for most people).

That's right, you now have your long awaited chance to sip our beer in the beautiful Colorado sunshine with all the other charms you've grown to love about BC. 

This weekend will be our soft opening test run on the patio (weather allowing of course), so bear with us while we work out all of the kinks while we strive to provide you with the great service you expect. 

But for now, enjoy the outdoors and drink up!

Cheers!

MNP Week 23: Chili Blanco Takes First By A Nose

Despite a near potluck disaster that saw the tragic loss of a Crock Pot and some delightful pulled pork (prepped by Mike Cardone), Broken Compass potluckers overcame adversity to hold another delightful Monday Night Potluck.

Due to the last minute cleaning and general hectic nature of the potluck, your trusty MNP blogger was unable to sample any of the yummy treats provided by our excellent chefs. Tom Greiner's Chili Blanco took first place by a narrow five points over Heidi Ashton's Apple Crisp, while Matt Wardlaw's Smoked Salmon, Gouda and Fig Crackers reached the podium as well. The full list of dishes and cooks is below. We'll see you tonight at 7 for another potluck! (this time, no broken Crock Pots)

Bo Rocco - Trout Pate
Tom Greiner - Chili Blanco (1st Place)
Heidi Ashton - Apple Crisp (2nd Place)
Gyde (spelling? who knows) Lund - Chicken Pesto Pasta
Samantha and Warren and Chelsea - Rosemary Garlic Taters
Ashley B - Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes
Katie Schroeder - S'mores Bars
Maria Galgas - Zucchini and Onion Pie
Kirk P - Chicken and Potatoes
Christine Broyhill - Cajun Jambalaya
Matt Wardlaw - Smoked Salmon/Gouda/Fig Crackers (3rd Place)
Andrea Jordan - Pulled Pork & Citrus Slaw
Justin - Brussel Sprouts
Rachel D - Chicken Fajitas w/ Green Chilis
Team Team - Beer Cheese Soup

MNP Week 21: An Epic Pork Off

March Madness is truly upon us.

In the first Monday Night Potluck of this delightfully hectic month, Broken Compass played host to one of the best potlucks of the season to date.

A mere eight points separated the top four dishes, while 11 of the 18 finished with double digit points. The competition came down to two delicious pulled porks and one double chocolate cake, loaded with so much chocolate even your regular potluck blogger (a notorious sweet tooth) thought it was delightfully rich. 

The pork off pitted two dishes, The Dirty Duke BBQ and Pork Tacos against each other in a clash of styles. Dirty Dukes utilized a more traditional BBQ route, bolstered by the presence of Sweet Baby Ray himself to blow away palates and wow potluckers. Pork Tacos, meanwhile, brought a fresh take to pork, with a Mexican zest and delicious salsa to sprinkle on top of horribly cute mini tortillas (which had to be home made. Or at least, this blogger has never seen them in grocery stores or that's all that would be in my pantry. Stupid cute). 

When the votes were tallied, Dirty Duke came away with slight two point victory over Double Chocolate German Chocolate Cake and Pork Tacos. But upon further review, the Dirty Dukes were stripped of their first place victory due to likely voter collusion (and because the creators happened to be Monday Night Potluck emcee Daniel "Buckets" Miller-McLemore's family, who certainly don't need any more growlers). 

Anne Marie's German Chocolate Cake swooped in for the victory, while Sarah and Jack's Pork Tacos took second and claimed the Pork Off title. Seth Cohen's Coconut Porter Red Curry Chicken nailed down third place with 26 points. 

As always, we thank our amazing potluck chefs who supplied the grub for the evening. You rock.

Beth Groundwater - Kitchen Sink Slaw
Carolyn Magsson - Aussie Chicken And Rice
Chris Miller-McLemore - The Dirty Duke BBQ (1st Place/Disqualified)
Chantal and BIll Kirkhoff - Veggie Ranch Tortilla Pinwheels
Dave and Judy Sutton - Southwest Ranch Chicken & Bacon Salad
Bridget Cavanaugh - Pizza!!!
Loren Richardson - Spaghetti Pie
Sarah and Jack - Pork Tacos (3rd/2nd Place)
Katie Schroeder - Nutter Butter Butterfinger Cheesecake Bars
Tom Greiner - South O' Border Bean Dip
Seth Cohen - Coconut Porter Red Curry Chicken (4th/3rd Place)
Maria - Salad w/ Fennel Shaved Parm & Almonds
Vicki - Philly Chicken Cheese Dip
Amanda - DONUTS!
D... - Tortillas
Anne Marie - Double Chocolate German Chocolate Cake (2nd/1st Place)
Chris - (unreadable by this author)
Else - Scones

MNP Week 20: Leap Day Potluckin

The Leap Day edition of Monday Night Potluck did not fail to live up to its much-hyped billing. 

In a meat and sweets filled affair, meats carried the day, as all three podium finishers narrowly beat out a plethora of scrumptious desserts on night that happens just once every four years. 

One of the most parity-filled potlucks of the season ended with a three point spread separating the winners. Carolina BBQ Sliders, Stuffed Meatball Parmesan and Ham With Spiced Bourbon Cherry Glaze all duked it out for the top spot, each throwing haymakers into the late rounds. BBQ Sliders classic Carolina sauce brought a refreshing twist on the typical tomato based sauces Monday Night Potluck usually sees, and gave it an early advantage.

Not to be denied, Ham and Meatballs fought tooth and nail to hang with BBQ Sliders. Meatballs' chemistry with its delicious cheese stuffing (because really, when is meat and cheese not the right thing to eat. The answer is never. It's always the right thing to eat) caused problems defensively for the rest of the potluck's dishes, while Ham's delicious Bourbon Cherry Glaze made taste buds too drunk to care about what else they were eating. 

In the end though, BBQ Sliders' depth proved to be too much as it eked out a 26-24-23 victory over Meatballs (2nd) and Ham (3rd). It was a meat off for the ages. 

Honorable mentions go out to all the delicious desserts that finished off the meal for the bloated and delighted potluckers. 

Barnhart - Carolina BBQ Sliders (1st Place)
Dever - Southern Pimento Cheese
Cassels - Vegetable Salad
Chris Hershey - Crazin Pesto
Katie Schroeder - Raspberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies
Angelina - Blueberry Peach Dump Cake
Kelsey Miller - Spinach Artichoke Dip
Tom Greiner - Thai Chicken Pizza
Nate Murphy - Cake With Fancy Label
Tommy Peters - Baked Green Chile Mac N Cheese
Mike Spies - Ham w/ Spiced Bourbon Cherry Glaze (3rd Place)
Jen and Kim - Decadent Peanut Butter Bars
Samantha and Warren - PB&J French Toast Bites
Rick - Stuffed Meatball Parmesan (2nd Place)
Arkady - Crack & Cheese
Calhoun - BBQ Slider

MNP Week 17: A Slow Cooking Affair

When a serious group of crockpots get together, a delicious potluck is on hand.

That was the case at this week's Monday Night Potluck, which featured a whopping eight slow cooking dishes, nearly half of the 17 dishes supplied on the evening. In the end, both crockpot and non-crock dishes became champions on this potluck evening, with Claudia Olea's Creole Chili and Dirty Rice claiming a victory in the Cajun category while JT and Lucy Beth's Mini King Cake Rollups took first in the general potluck. 

King Cake Rollups stole the narrow victory from Tomato Pie, which also managed to podium over many delightful slow cooked foods, while a certain Mystery Guest took third with Creole Greek Okra. 

But on Mardi Gras week, nothing could dim the Cajunness of Creole Chili and Dirty Rice, which combined the scrumptious heartiness of a chili with the spicy zestiness of Cajun cooking to run away from the rest of the Louisiana-based dishes. 

Join us next week for our Valentine's/President's Day themed potluck this coming Monday! And as always, here's our awesome chefs from this past MNP: 

Jackie and Kim and Sam and Justin and Matt - The Best King Super Cookies Ever
Trish Streicher - Mac & Cheese
Megan Matza - Goat Cheese Bruschetta
Greta Shackelford - Spinach Salad
Chelsea Vendegna - Veggie Enchilads
JT and Lucy Beth - Mini King Cake Rollups (1st Place)
JT and Lucy Beth - Cranberry Orange Bundtcake
Super Bowl Leftovers - Pizza Dip
Russ Schissler - Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
Richard and Jess - Tomato Pie (2nd Place)
Kate, Jessie, Kathy - Hotter Than Yo Mama's Hummus
Mike Spies - Chicken Marsala
Claudia Olea - Creole Chili and Dirty Rice (Cajun Champion)
Mystery Regular - Creole Greek Okra (3rd Place)
J. Haggerty - Gumbo
Seth Cohen - Turkey Meatballs w/ Chocolate Coffee Stout Mushroom Bacon Cream Sauce
Jamie Machowicz - Cheese Dip and Pretzel Chip Cookies
 

MNP Week 16: Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes A Delight, Champion

In a shock to absolutely nobody, Maria Galgas's Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes won a commanding victory at last week's Monday Night Potluck. 

An MNP juggernaut, Maria's desserts are renowned across the potluck land for their deliciousness, so when competitors saw her name on the same line as "Cheesecakes" and "Peanut Butter" and "Mini", it was nearly a foregone conclusion. 

With second place up for grabs, however, the remaining dishes held an admirable battle. Sara's Baby Pot Pies clawed their way to the podium, outlasting Mama's Pot Pie in a hearty, chicken-centric pot pie battle, claiming second place with 20 points. Kim and Jen's Salad de Potluck was a late arrival, meanwhile, but managed to secure enough votes for third place while presenting eaters with a different tasty surprise in every bite (seriously, I still have no idea what combinations of foods and flavors were in that salad). 

Delicious as always, and make sure to join us tonight (Feb. 8) for our Cajun themed potluck and to meet our new head brewer, Jason Wiedmaier! (http://www.brokencompassbrewing.com/blog/2016/2/5/meet-our-new-brewer-on-monday-night-potluck)

Loren - Chillin Chilladas
Cliff - Mama Pot Pie
Sara - Baby Pot Pies (2nd Place)
Sarah/Jack - Lil' Smokeys
Samantha and Warren - Mom's Coleslaw
Maria - Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes (1st Place)
Tarek/DBallz - Ballz's Beans
Kim and Jen - Salad de Potluck (3rd Place)

Meet Our New Brewer On Monday Night Potluck

As of this past Monday, we're thrilled to welcome Jason Wiedmaier to the Broken Compass family. 

Jason will be working with Ford (also a Jason, we now have two Jasons! Fromhere on out assume we'll refer to Ford as Ford and Wiedmaier as Jason) as head brewer as we continue to grow and expand the Broken Compass brand and collection of brews. It's a perfect fit for the brewery, as Ford and Jason already have experience working together from Ford's time assisting at Lone Tree Brewing in the Denver area (not to mention the balance Wiedmaier's well-groomed beard provides to Ford's gargantuan equivalent).

We'll be having a meet and greet with our awesome new head brewer this coming Monday during our weekly Monday Night Potluck (which is also Cajun themed, so whip up your best Louisiana based dishes!).

Jason opened Lone Tree in 2011 and served as head brewer and co-owner there for five years, during which time Lone Tree developed a passionate following in the south Denver area. Jason's passion for the craft has always been apparent in his homebrewing and work at Lone Tree, and his excitement only continues to grow as he works his way into Broken Compass's day to day operations.

"I would say first and foremost is the vibe," Jason said of his opportunity to work with Broken Compass. "The overall vibe, the employees the customers, the energy it's got. And then the creativity comes with that."

With a family background full of bakers and chefs, Jason brings a unique perspective to brewing. He's most excited about bringing a series of lagers (for which Lone Tree won a silver medal at the 2015 Great American Beer Fest) to the Compass, including an Oktoberfest and an India Pale Lager, but also loves taking baked recipes and turning them into ingredients in beer.

"That's where the Banana Cream Pie Belgian Tripel idea comes from. I've got maybe 30 of those," he said.

Jason's passion for teaching (he spent 12 years in Aurora public schools) is another major asset to Broken Compass, as he will eventually head up the soon to begin homebrewer's club. 

The team at Broken Compass is beyond ecstatic (seriously, see the picture above) to have Jason working with us and we hope you'll take the chance to come meet the newest member of our team this Monday night!