Local Sips

Dallas brewery expands into white-hot hard seltzer market

Dallas' Deep Ellum Brewing Company has been turning out innovative brews since 2011, when it became the city's first craft brewery. It has since expanded with an off-site small-batch brewery and taproom in Fort Worth called the Funkytown Fermatorium.

When it comes to what Dallas (and beyond) is drinking, DEBC has been bold, fearless, and unapologetic from the start.

Now it's made the leap into hard seltzer, the most popular drink of the moment, with the release of Blind Lemon. Like everything Deep Ellum Brewing does, it's made to stand out — and here's how:

The story behind the name
The moniker is in tribute to blues legend "Blind Lemon" Jefferson, who began his career in the 1920s playing guitar and singing on the streets of Deep Ellum neighborhood. He went on to become one of the biggest-selling down-home blues artists in American history. He was known for his unusual vocal range and loud volume, and in homage to the original Blind Lemon, this hard seltzer bubbles over loudly with lemony flavor.

Natural ingredients
It starts with natural lemon flavors, then continues with only one gram of carbs and zero grams of sugar per 12 ounce serving. Oh, and it's only 100 calories, with 5 percent alcohol by volume.

How it's made
Crafted with a process similar to DEBC's other brands, Blind Lemon makes use of cane sugar instead of the usual malted barley that is in a typical beer. When yeast is added, the result is an unusually spritzy and light brew, great on its own or even better as a cocktail base.

Drink up, do good
DEBC has partnered with many amazing local organizations including Foundation45, Deep Ellum Community Association, Deep Ellum Foundation, and Paws in the City, to name a few. Now you can feel even better about supporting this Texas brand.

How to get it
Blind Lemon is available both on draft and in 12-pack cans. While you're at it, be sure to load up on Dallas Blonde, Deep Ellum IPA, the Mexican-style lager Neato Bandito, and Easy Peasy, a session IPA brewed with lemon and tangerine peel.

Deep Ellum Brewing Company now has hard seltzer: Blind Lemon.

Deep Ellum Brewing Blind Lemon hard seltzer

Photo by Ashley Gongora

Deep Ellum Brewing Company now has hard seltzer: Blind Lemon.

breweries promoted cocktails craft-beer drinks deep-ellum

This week in gluttony

Giant Panda Fest leads 7 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

pandafests.com

Launched in 2024, Panda Fest is one of the largest outdoor Asian food and culture festivals in the US.

A multi-day traveling outdoor Asian food festival will stop in Dallas for three days of cuisine and culture, and that's not the only food fest on this week's list. The 16th annual Chefs for Farmers arrives this weekend, as does Frisco's Diwali celebration. Indoors, there is a Silver Oak wine dinner at a popular pizzeria and a champagne sip-and-shop to kick off the holiday season.

Wednesday, November 4

Zoli's x Silver Oak Wine Dinner
The Addison outlet of Zoli’s pizzeria will get fancy for this five-course wine pairing dinner featuring the revered Silver Oak Cellars. The menu includes East Coast oysters paired with bubbly, fall-inspired burrata with Sauvignon Blanc, charred radicchio salad with pinot noir, cacio e pepe with Cabernet, braised short rib and polenta with a red blend, and a pear-honey tart with a special Silver Oak barrel-aged bourbon. Tickets are $155 and the dinner begins at 6 pm.

Thursday, November 5

Taste of HALL
HALL Wines will hold its 30th anniversary celebration at its HALL Park Hotel in Frisco. The event will feature rare library vintages of its flagship Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon along with a highly anticipated 2023 release. The reception-style event includes food and wine tasting stations, live entertainment, and chances to win prizes including dining gift cards and overnight accommodations. Tickets are $150 and the event will take place in the seventh floor ballroom from 6-9 pm.

Friday, November 6

Panda Fest
One of the biggest outdoor Asian food festivals is bringing more than 60 Asian street food vendors to Dallas, along with live performances and panda decor and memorabilia at every turn (including a 15-foot inflatable panda). General admission tickets start at $14 for the three-day festival, which takes place at Carpenter Park Friday from 4-10 pm, Saturday from 10 am-10 pm, and Sunday from 10 am-8 pm.

Saturday, November 7

A Modern Holiday Tea at Mirador
The downtown Dallas rooftop dining destination will launch its holiday tea service this Saturday with seasonally inspired menu specialties, including chai-spiced scones, black pepper macaron with shallot marmalade and foie gras mousse, and cranberry orange choux with orange namelaka (a creamy mousse) and thyme. The $98 ticket includes a glass of bubbly, and add-ons like caviar service and martini flights are available. Seatings are available from 10:30 am-2 pm.

Moët Hennessy, Veuve Clicquot, and Dom Pérignon Holiday Event at Central Market
Central Market Dallas Midway will host this champagne sip-and-shop to kick of the holiday season. Enjoy festive hors d'oeuvres — like mini champagne chicken and waffles with hot honey — along with personalized gifting opportunities, complimentary gift wrapping, and one-day-only savings of up to 20 percent off. Tickets are $25 and the event will run from 12-3 pm.

Chefs for Farmers
The 16th annual two-day tasting festival takes place at Old City Park featuring bites and beverages from more than 80 Dallas-area chefs. Roman Murphy of Shinsei, Scott Ruwart of Delilah, Rhonda McCullar of Uchi, and Reilly Brown of Frenchie are just a few to expect. General admission tickets are $145, and the event will run from 3-6 pm both Saturday and Sunday. (Chefs will vary by day.) A portion of each ticket will go to The Seed Project Foundation.

Sunday, November 8

Diwali Night at The Mango Yard
Frisco’s vibrant dining destination for Indian cuisine will celebrate Diwali — a festival of lights — with a special menu, cocktails, and live entertainment. Featured a la carte menu items will include chili butter naan with paneer in a rich onion-tomato gravy; gongura pulao, an aromatic rice dish; and saffron makhan malai, a milk-foam dessert. Pair with a Mumbai Mule cocktail infused with saffron, coriander, cumin, and saffron while enjoying performances by Dallas-based Bollywood musicians, Band Tatva. Seating times available from 5-8:30 pm.

panda fest wine dinner food and wine champagne hall wines holiday tea chefs for farmers diwali the mango yard food events