Best Brewer

StarChefs.com announces Austin (and S.A.) Best Brewer Rising Star nominees

Uncle Billy's Brew & Que, Brian Peters
Austin Beerworks, Will Golden
Black Star Co-op, Jeff Young
Freetail Brewing Co, Scott Metzger
Jester King Craft Brewery, Ron Extract
512 Brewing Company, Kevin Brand

Just one week before the Rising Stars Revue gala from StarChefs.com, the editors of the highly regarded online magazine for culinary insiders have released their six finalists for Best Brewer in Austin and San Antonio. The nominations and official announcement of the Rising Star Brewer award was to be released the night of the gala on Tuesday, February 21 at the Driskill Hotel, but the buzz around town regarding our fantastic Rising Star chefs, restaurateurs, pastry chefs, mixologists and food industry royalty has been so great, that they couldn’t resist releasing one more category for Austin and San Antonio to celebrate.

And the list of Rising Star Brewer finalists is:

Kevin Brand, 512 Brewing Company
Jeffrey Stuffings, Jester King Craft Brewery
Will Golden, Austin Beerworks
Scott Metzger, Freetail Brewing Co.
Brian Peters, Uncle Billy’s Brew & Que
Jeff Young, Black Star Co-op

This is the first year StarChefs.com has held a Rising Stars Revue for Austin and San Antonio and the sentiment from the foodie and beverage scene has been that of excitement and pride.

"The thing that jumps out at you [about this list] is that none — none — of the breweries/pubs on this list existed five years ago, and many of them aren't even two years old,” says local food and music journalist Tom Thornton who is also heavily involved in the Austin beer community. "The sea of change in Texas brewing is directly reflected here, from Jester King's careful focus on farmhouse and wild ales to Austin Beerworks' successful strategy to bring craft beer cans to Austin's bars and music venues. The recognition of three brewpubs is heartening to see as well — they're in short supply in Texas, and the list here proves there's a real love for them."

As with the other Rising Stars who will be celebrated at the awards ceremony and gala, these top brewers will be along to see who intrigued the editorial judging panel the most.

You can find out for yourself at the walk-around tasting gala where you can have the opportunity to eat your way through Austin and San Antonio’s top restaurants and sample beverage pairings by the winning sommelier and mixologist. Tickets are $85 per person; VIP tickets are $125.

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Back to the Plow

Homey Austin jam and bake shop closing and returning to farmers market

Confituras/Instagram

Confituras Little Kitchen is closing its brick-and-mortar store, but feeling optimistic about the future.

A famers market find is returning to its natural environment after six years in a brick-and-mortar location. Confituras Little Kitchen, which specializes in locally sourced preserves, is closing its jam and biscuit shop after service on Sunday, December 22. However, it will continue selling goods at the Barton Creek Farmers Market and via retailers.

Confituras announced the change in a newsletter to its customers in December. The letter called the news "bittersweet."

"Although the brick and mortar will no longer be, the good news is that this will be a fresh new start for us – we are bursting with energy and creativity at the thought of being back out in the community where it all started for confituras," it said.

The kitchen is closing because the lease is up, and the team has decided to "give up the chase." The newsletter emphasized the ups-and-downs of business over the past several years — ones that were chaotic for just about any business, let alone a small, fairly niche food operation.

"So much has happened since we decided to open a brick + mortar – a wonderful kickstarter fundraiser, THE PANDEMIC, the AFTER-EFFECTS OF THE PANDEMIC, and an ever growing city," the letter says. "We tried so very hard but never really got our footing. We know we are not alone, many small business are in the same boat. We renewed our lease during the pandemic because we were hopeful we could make it work - the changing times had other ideas."

Finally, it shared how customers could keep enjoying Confituras creations:

The Barton Creek Farmers Market is open at 2901 S. Capital of Texas Hwy. every Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm.
A list on confituras.net compiles retailers including Royal Blue Grocery, Farmhouse Delivery, and Antonelli's Cheese Shop.
Jam share and Table22 subscription customers will have more instructions coming soon about picking up their goods in January at the same space, 2129 Goodrich Ave.
Customers may also reach out to inquire about continuing to order meals directly.

The kitchen also hosted frequent events and workshops, but the letter did not address this aspect of the business.

A shorter message shared on Instagram has inspired 63 comments so far, five days later. Customers eulogized the shop for its community feel and providing a sense of regularity during the height of the pandemic thanks to weekend pick-ups.