Get boozy and foodie at Tiki Oasis with these cool symposiums

Informative, colorful and delicious mixology and cuisine symposiums to be held at Tiki Oasis 10 Extravagana in San Diego, CA August 2010.

Tiki Oasis 10 Extravaganza
August 19-22 2010
San Diego, CA

Event website:
www.tikioasis.com
Ticket information
www.tikioasis.com/tickets

The 10 year anniversary of Tiki Oasis features among its three days of non-stop day and night events, several symposiums covering a wide range of flavorful and visually appealing presentations with mixology and cuisine specialists, Martin Cate of Smugglers Cove, Chef Kelley Hawks of Tiki Go Go Personal Chef Service and  Suzanne Long from Forbidden Island. Eager and enthusiastic Tiki Oasis attendees plan all year to learn the ins-and-outs of food and drink from experts from these always festive and spirited event symposiums.

The Persuasive Power of Punch featuring Martin Cate
Join Smuggler’s Cove owner Martin Cate on an epic journey of high seas adventure through the history of punch.  Travel through the centuries as punch sails from India to Britain to Colonial America and beyond.  Discover the varied traditions of cultures around the world all united by the communal experience of shared spirits, and how the godfathers of the tiki bar movement joined these customs to bring us the Scorpion Bowl, Volcano Bowl, and more.  Learn great tips for making the perfect punch to entertain guests at your next Luau, and join together as Martin and symposium attendees create a hands-on communal punch like no other.  Don’t miss this once in a lifetime experience! Punch Symposium co-sponsors: Rhum J. M, Coruba, Zaya and Trader Tiki’s Exotic Syrups.

3:30 PM – 5:00 PM, Saturday August 21st
Location: Grand Hanalei Ballroom
Price: $35.00

Rum & Chocolate, A Match Made in Heaven featuring Martin Cate
Experience a marriage made in the tropics. Sugar Cane and Cacao Beans thrive in the same growing regions of the world- taste beautiful premium chocolates paired with a wide variety of superb rums. Learn how to match different styles of rums with chocolate for a decadent taste sensation. Rum & Chocolate co-sponsors: Appleton, Rhum Clement and Zaya.

3:30 PM – 5:00 PM, Friday August 20th
Location: Grand Hanalei Ballroom
PRICE: $25.00

Martin Cate bio

Martin Cate is a San Francisco Bay Area based rum and exotic cocktail expert. In Fall 2009, he opened Smuggler’s Cove San Francisco, a bar designed to celebrate the incredible diversity and versatility of the world’s most exciting spirit: Rum. Smuggler’s Cove offers a whole new approach to rum by featuring a vast array of traditional Caribbean drinks, classic libations of Prohibition-Era Havana, and famous exotic cocktails from legendary tiki bars- all under one roof. He was previously the co-creator, designer, and chief mixologist for Forbidden Island Tiki Lounge in Alameda, CA. Named by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of six Bay Area bartenders “essential in defining cocktail culture here and across the country,” Martin and his original cocktails have been featured in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Magazine, Imbibe, Sunset, Food & Wine, 7×7, Details, San Francisco Chronicle, USA Today, Today Show, and more. Martin trained as a bartender at Trader Vic’s flagship San Francisco location and is a member of the United States Bartenders Guild. He is also a passionate rum collector, having been to over a dozen distilleries in six countries. He is a tasting judge for international rum competitions, and has led seminars at Bourbon and Branch’s Beverage Academy, Tales of the Cocktail, and Tiki Oasis. More information about Smuggler’s Cove can be found  www.smugglerscovesf.com

Aloha Cuisine by Tiki Go Go Chef Service
Chef Kelley Hawks of Tiki Go Go Personal Chef Service pulls it all together; the drinks, the food, the music, and the carefully crafted chaos of the tropical décor. Tiki Go Go has the secret recipe to create an irresistible mélange of tropical ambiance, relaxed sophistication, and over-the-top fun. Whether you plan to throw a blowout tiki party for a crowd or just a fun tropical inspired gathering with a few friends, you’ll learn dozens of tips and ideas for inexpensive, easy tiki decorating and entertaining. Learn “How To” decorating projects that will give the most impact at your next party.

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM, Friday August 20th
Location: Grand Hanalei Ballroom
PRICE: $5.00

Tiki Go Go Chef Service Symposium
With a focus on cooking & creating special party foods,  attendees of Tiki Go Go’s Chef Service Symposium will learn how to  make Tiki Go Go hors d’oeuvres & appetizers such as Tropical Fruit Jasmine Risotto Spring rolls served with a vanilla mango dipping sauce and a Green Papaya Salad.  There will be lots of great tasting samples for everyone to enjoy along the way, as Chef Kelley Hawks highlights Aloha Cuisine – food made from the heart and served with unique style. Tiki Go Go cuisine utilizes fresh ingredients with tropical inspiration, along with traditional flavors used in unexpected ways.

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM, Saturday August 21st
Location: Grand Hanalei Ballroom
PRICE: $25.00

Chef Kelley Hawks bio

A graduate of the United States Personal Chef Institute, Chef Kelley Hawks infuses the aloha spirit and health conscious cuisine into every meal, presented with her own unique vision of California Tiki.  For over ten years, Chef/Owner Kelley Hawks, of Tiki Go Go Personal Chef Service in San Francisco has been creating great tasting food for all kinds of different clients from corporate lunches, weddings, family gatherings to the weekly In-House customized dinners. Chef Hawks wants to capture people’s imagination to transport them into the tropics, one meal at a time. Her fun tropical themed catering company Tiki Go Go offers more than just awesome food with all the many vintage Hawaiian Platters, Tiki Gods and Polynesian collectibles. www.tikigogo.com

Cocktail Garnish Class with Suzanne Long
A great tasting cocktail isn’t finished until it is presented beautifully, and the correct garnish not only makes a drink look appetizing, but also adds to its aroma and taste.  Join Master Mixologist Suzanne Long of Forbidden Island as she shares professional bartender tricks on how to cut, peel and design cocktail garnishes that will make your cocktail look fantastic.  A professional tool kit is included in the symposium price. Be the envy of your friends in room parties all weekend long with that fabulously garnished cocktail!

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM, Saturday August 21th
Location: Grand Pacific
PRICE: $25.00

Suzanne Long bio

Suzanne Long has been working in industry for over 15 years and spent time in Boston, Massachusetts running the cocktail consulting business Hawai’i Calls, which specialized in creating custom cocktails to pair with new menus in many restaurants, for private elite parties, and the like. With her innovative spin on mixology and her penchant for pairing drinking with games, Suzanne created and continues to run the Black Orchid Club, a multi-level card and location based game which features custom created new cocktails weekly, custom cocktail syrups, collectible cards, riddles, and prizes for clever imbibers. She is also the force behind Black Orchid Sessions, a unique cocktail experience available nowhere else in the world – custom libations created on the spot at your request, using all premium spirits and fresh juices.  Suzanne recently spoke at CocktailCamp in Portland Oregon, and has been mentioned in the Oregonian, the San Francisco Chronicle,  and Mutineer Magazine, amongst others.  She also writes a blog about her adventures as head mixologist and manager at FI, called “Shakin’ Rum and Pineapples – Tales from Behind the Bamboo Stick at Forbidden Island.”  Swing by and check her out at www.rumnpineapple.blogspot.com.