Anyone who attended last year’s Heritage BBQ by Cochon 555 at the Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis will remember it as one of the top local culinary events of the year. St. Louis was again selected as one of five stops on this year's Heritage BBQ tour (the other cities are Chicago, Louisville, Austin, and Washington, DC).
And this year, there’s more to see, more to eat, and more to drink.
In 2008, Brady Lowe created Cochon 555 - 5 chefs, 5 pigs, 5 winemakers -- a traveling culinary competition and tasting event designed to raise awareness about heritage pork breeds and to promote responsible family farming. In addition to his flagship series of events, the Cochon brand now offers a variety of different events across the country: Heritage BBQ, Heritage Fire, EPIC Cochon, All-Star Cochon and Cochon Island.
Created in 2012, Heritage BBQ is the first national BBQ event dedicated to supporting heritage breed pigs. Lowe explained its mission this way:
“My goal is to create team building events that showcase the growth potential of BBQ restaurants buying whole heritage pigs from family farms. The process and judging format is my best approach at whole animal utilization, whereas we do not create a burden on small farmers to hold a surplus unwanted animal parts during any part of our competition,” says Lowe. “The events are hyper-local and they create word-of-mouth marketing for family farms. It’s an honor to have a national spotlight right and develop a message with a deeper meaning, far beyond competition BBQ…this event series is unlike any BBQ event you know...”
Needless to say, locally-focused, sustainably-minded chefs jump at the chance to participate. This year’s competing St. Louis chefs include:
- Gian Nicola Colucci of Cielo Restaurant & Bar
- Jenny Cleveland & Eric Heath of Cleveland-Heath
- Patrick Connolly of Basso
- Josh Galliano of The Libertine
- Lou Rook of Annie Gunn's
Just like last year, each chef will be given a 200-pound heritage breed pig to create six dishes. A panel of 20 respected judges will then cast their vote for St. Louis’ “BBQ King or Queen.”
New this year, Heritage BBQ will debut “BBQ TRADITIONS,” a series of pop-up stations where chefs serve one dish that best exemplifies a culinary tradition and BBQ culture from around the world. This year’s chefs and BBQ styles are below:
- Kevin Nashan of Sidney Street Cafe / The Peacemaker (last year’s BBQ King) - Korean BBQ
- Anthony Devoti of Five Bistro - Santa Maria-style BBQ
- Qui Tran of Mai Lee - Nướng from Vietnam
- Nick Martinkovic of Blood & Sand - Char Siu from China
- Chris Bolyard of Bolyard’s Meat & Provisions / Jason Tilford of Mission Taco Joint – Barbacoa
- Kevin Willmann of Farmhaus - Creekstone Beef Brisket BBQ-Style
And there’s more:
- A Pop-Up Butcher Shop from Andrew Jennrich of Truffles Butchery
- BBQ'd and raw Rappahannock River Oysters from Ben Edison of DeMun Oyster Bar
- An artisan cheese and charcuterie bar from Salume Beddu and Parker’s Table
- A pre-awards “Ice Cream Social” from James Beard Award Winner, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams
And beverage…there will be beverage:
- A special “Summer Citrus” cocktail from Four Roses Bourbon
- A “Perfect Manhattan” Bourbon Bar to celebrate National Bourbon Month, featuring Eagle Rare, Buffalo Trace, Breckenridge Bourbon, Templeton Rye, Four Roses, The Glenrothes, and Luxardo
- A portfolio tasting of Crispin Ciders, wines, and a Mezcal Bar featuring Fidencio and Mezcales de Leyenda
- A special “Cochon Toddy” from Sump Coffee
In addition, guests will enjoy a “Welcome Ribs & Whiskey Reception” provided by Berkwood Berkshire Farms, Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon, and Pappy’s Smokehouse.
Tickets are $100, $200 for VIP. The VIP ticket includes 60-minute early access to all food (special, limited dishes) and a chance to mingle with chefs, judges, and media. Both ticket prices are all-inclusive of food and beverage.
Buy tickets here.
Heritage BBQ by Cochon 555
999 N. Second
Sunday, Sept. 14, 2014
4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
One bit of advice from a past attendee: don’t eat breakfast or lunch that day.
