Warm light illuminated long picnic tables, murals decorated the walls, bustling patrons bantered across the room and the smell of delectable pies wafted throughout the taproom at Lamplighter Brewing Co. as guests celebrated March 14, or Pi Day, with a Great Brewery Bake Off.
Inspired by ”The Great British Bake Off,” a show in which passionate bakers compete to become the United Kingdom’s best amateur baker, Lamplighter established an annual pie baking competition last year. This year, nine amateur bakers presented pie samples to an audience and a panel of three judges.
“People shocked me with their talent; I feel like I never know really what to expect,” said Hunter Coury, Lamplighter’s assistant general manager. “People are really creative, and what people brought in tasted really good.”
Each baking participant spent days practicing baking pies, prepping around 100 total pie samples for the event. The event began around 7 p.m. with audience participants trying pie samples and mingling around the room.
Some featured pies included vegan whoopie pie, lemon blackberry tart and pandan cream pies. There were two winners overall — an audience favorite and a judges’ favorite. Audience participants were able to vote via a QR code placed around the room, which directed them to a Google Form. The judges were presented with the pies and picked their favorite after trying all the samples and discussing them.
Tickets cost $14 and all proceeds went to Enroot, an immigration youth program focused on mentorship and fostering community.
“When they contacted us for this event and to receive proceeds from the tickets, I was like, ‘Of course,’” said Molly McCafferty, Enroot’s director of volunteer and community engagement. “They said I can be as engaged or out of it as I pleased and was welcome to be a judge.”
McCafferty considered herself to be the least qualified judge, claiming that she would find all the pies delicious before taste-testing them. The remaining panel consisted of bakers and ice cream connoisseurs Nancy Zhou, owner of Silver Whisk Bake Shop, and Grant Burley, the Honeycomb Creamery community engagement manager.
Among alcoholic drinks, delicious pies and favorable company, the winners were soon announced. The audience’s favorite was the miniature key lime pies baked by Lauren Marinoff, an associate principal at the non-profit Education Resource Strategies. The judges chose baking hobbyist Francesca Loomis’ apple pie-inspired cupcakes.
“I have a baking and cooking blog for fun,” Loomis said. “I wasn’t expecting my name being called, so I’m very happy.”
The event concluded with cheery demeanors and competition winners receiving a free beer coupon for their excellent and tasty pies.
“I think it just shows that the things we do here are creating an impact,” Coury said. “We as a community are as driven as possible, and I hope people feel that impact.”
