A day before the two-year anniversary of my last post, I have decided to resume posting. During the hiatus, I landed a new job and my wife and I had our third child (and first daughter). But I haven't given up my love of beer, just lost the time to write about it. Now that things are settling in, it's time to start writing again.
Some quick notes of local or personal interest:
- The 11th annual Dayton Alefest took place in Carillon Park last weekend. I have attended for the last 6 years (since we moved back to Ohio) and this was BY FAR the best weather--dry, sunny, and in the mid-70s. Attendance continues to grow each year. This year there were more draft beers than I recall in the past, most which were conveniently clustered in one area. Some whispers about Cavalier's lack of participation, which meant no Dogfish Head (no Randall) or Stone. That was disappointing, but I still imbibed a lot of interesting beers including Bell's Third Coast Old Ale and Goose Island Night Stalker, both on tap.
- Speaking of Bell's, the family and I took our annual summer vacation to western Michigan, this time to Ludington. We stopped at Bell's Eccentric Cafe for lunch, where I tried their Wild One, a delicious sour ale. Most of the family turned up their noses at it, but I thought it was incredibly third quenching and paired well with my burger.
- While in Ludington, we hit Jamesport Brewing. I was disappointed that they were out of their IPA, but thier dry stout made up for it. And, the burger was one of the best I've had in a long, long time. The group consensus was the beer was B+ good, but the food was a solid A.
- Finally had a chance to brew again (it had been nearly as long ago that I brewed as when I last posted). I was shooting for a twist on a British bitter. A session beer (only 3.6% ABV), but using late addition Centennial hops rather than a traditional British hop. The brew was an experiment to see if I could brew outside, with the boys (age 5 and 3) and keep them entertained while still producing a solid brew. Call it Daddy multi-tasking. I put it into the keg today and was impressed thus far. Will let it carbonate naturally, they chill and serve next week.
- Joined the Passport club at The Pub last night. Only 52 beers left to try before I get $4 pints for life. Last night, the cask was BrewDog Paradox Smokehead, with a really nice Scotch peatiness. Body was a bit thin, but the smokiness made up for it.
That's all for today. I'm shooting for updates at least weekly, although I have a backlog of items to notes this month.
Technorati Tags: AleFest, Bell's, Eccentric Cafe, Wild One, Third Coast Ale, Goose Island, Night Stalker, Cavalier, Ludington, Jamesport Brewing, The Pub, Passport club, BrewDog, Paradox, Smokehead, brewing, homebrewing, beer
The first Friday of each month marks The Session, a chance for beer bloggers to unite and share a pint. Veteran beverage reporter Rick Lyke has graciously agreed to host this month's tasting at his blog Lyke 2 Drink. This month's theme is The Brew Zoo. Rick explains:
The Brew Zoo is the topic selected for The Session #7. The basic rule is that either the brewery or the beer must have a real live creature in its name. We will also allow beers with prominent animal label art (think Geary's Ale from Maine and its Lobster) to be added to the Brew Zoo.
After I read this, I realized that nearly every other beer had some sort of animal connection. What was I to do? As I was heading home from an appointment this afternoon, the answer came to me. I drove past Bee Gee's Mini Mart, known to have some rare beers that you can't find in other local stores. Rumor had it that they still had some of the Stone Vertical Epic 03.03.03 and 04.04.04 (gargoyles count, right?). Turns out they didn't, but they did have Rogue's Old Crustacean, vintage 2002. This was too good a find to pass up, so I picked up a few bottles and steered home.
Inspired by its name, this beer conjures nautical adventures. When it sets sail from its home port, it is an intensely hoppy beer. This vintage sits at 120 IBU, and even 5 years later, the hops bellow out like a ship full of drunken sailors, pillaging the senses. But it's also a huge beer, cresting at about 11.5% ABV. As a result, it's a hugely malty beer. Swimming beneath the hoppy chorus is a leviathan of licorice, caramel, plum, and port flavors, poised like an overgrown lobster to rise up from the depths and destroy the noisy drunkards. This will be an epic battle worthy of Melville and Verne, one that I'll gladly be following (from the shore, of course).
Technorati Tags: beer, brewing, craft brew, homebrewing, The Session, Rick Lyke, The Brew Zoo, Bee Gee's Mini Mart, Stone Vertical Epic, Rogue, Old Crustacean, barleywine, Melville, Verne, drunken sailors, crustacean
The brewing (and drinking) community is planning a national toast on September 30th to remember beverage literati Michael Jackson, who died last week. Details, as well as many links to remembrances of Jackson, can be found on the Beer Hunter website.
Sad news for beer lovers today. Patriarch and brew luminary Michael Jackson died yesterday. Forever known as "No, not that Michael Jackson," Jackson was a world-renowned beer hunter with a huge influence over today's upsurge in craft beer appreciation.Below are a few links to other blog posts about his death. (If you only click one of the links, check out the last one. Lew Bryson has a nicely done tribute.)A Good Beer BlogAppellation BeerBrookston Beer BulletinSeen Through a GlassUpdate: Another link, this time with a full article:BellaOnline
It's time once again for the Dayton AleFest. It's next Saturday, August 25th at Carillon Historic Park in Kettering, OH. This'll be my fourth year. We always have a great time--there are nearly 300 beers from about 50 breweries. Tix are $30 in advance (see Belmont Party Supply, Arrow Wine, The Little Store, Boston's Bistro), and $35 at the door. Best bet is to get your tix in advance--there's always a long line and you risk them being sold out if you wait until the day of.Check the local bars (particularly Tank's and Boston's) for pre-parties and mass transit. I will warn you--be sure you've got a designated driver well in advance--the small samples go down quickly and easily and you'll be in no shape to drive.Here's hoping it doesn't rain again (we're 2 for 3 on thunderstorms since I've been attending). Check this site after the event--I'll do my best to take note. (Here are my notes from last year.)
Technorati Tags: beer, brewing, craft beer, AleFest, Dayton, Joe Waizmann, beer tasting, beer culture, events, Tank's, Boston's, Arrow Wine, The Little Store
Earlier this month, my wife and I, along with our boys, spent about 8 days in Michigan--the Midwest's Beer Mecca. We started the trip in Ann Arbor, where her sister was getting married in the historic Michigan Theater. While most of that portion of the trip was devoted to the wedding, we were able to snag some good beer and take a few trips to the local brew pubs. And the best part about being in Michigan was that virtually every bar or restaurant we went to served great, local beer on tap. In fact, the wedding itself featured Bell's Oberon on tap. Below are a few of the beer notables from Ann Arbor.
Super Liquor IVNot much of a name, but a great selection! We were lucky enough to stay right down the road from this craft brew haven. The selection rivaled my local, Belmont Party Supply, which is quite a feat. The best part was the access to the myriad beers I couldn't get in Ohio. After long deliberation, I choose Dark Horse Brewing's Crooked Tree IPA, a solidly-built IPA with strong pine hop flavors.Arbor Brewing CompanyFriday night, Grandma watched the boys while G and I headed out to this staple brewery. The place was packed, but I think most of the folks there were somehow related to the wedding. I bounced around from relative to relative, trading tastes for the various beers. There were two cask ales on tap--an IPA and a porter, and both were excellent. I also tried the Dark Corner 2007 and the Big Ben House Mild. The Dark Corner was a huge, high-gravity beer, while the mild is something I could have ordered again and again. My wife gave her thumbs up to both the Bavarian Bliss Hefe Weizen and the Brasserie Greff Blonde.
Grizzly Peak Brewing CompanyWe hung around in Ann Arbor for an extra day after the wedding to check out the town. For dinner, we hit Grizzly Peak, the other local brewpub. GP has a real Colorado feel. I had a grade chicken cherry salad, paired with their Cascade Ale, which happened to be cask conditioned. And I rounded the meal off with their Bear Paw Porter. Both beers were very well-done, although it's the porter that I can still conjure the taste of weeks later.
After Ann Arbor, we headed west to Grand Haven. Look for details about our trip to Bell's and New Holland, coming soon in part 2.
Technorati Tags: beer, brewing, craft beer, Michigan, Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor, Dark Horse Brewing, Crooked Tree IPA, Super Liquor IV, Arbor Brewing, Dark Corner 2007, Big Ben House Mild, Bavarian Bliss Hefe Weizen, Brasserie Greff Blonde, Grizzly Peak, Cascade Ale, Bear Paw Porter, Bell's, Oberon, New Holland
Deschutes Black Butte Porter is the fourth beer I sampled from my West Coast exchange with Jay at Hedonist Beer Jive. (I have made notes on the Lost Coast Great White--I just have to get around to typing them up.) Forgive the terrible photo. My wife has the camera, so I had to use my phone. Never preferred, although it's far better than I had expected.
I first heard of Deschutes the year my oldest son was born. We were visiting friends in Seattle and one of them talked a lot about Deschutes and Pyramid. Unfortunately, I tried so many beers on that trip that I have no idea which, if any, Deschutes I tried. Glad then that Jay sent along two samples (the next review will be for the Mirror Pond Pale Ale).
A quick jump over to the brewery's website reveals two things about this beer. First, it's Deschutes' flagship beers. Second, this beer has won a LOT of awards. The site also reveals a potential contradiction. Most of the awards are for Brown Porters. However, this particular beer is an exemplar in the BJCP list for a Robust Porter. What gives?
Brewery: Deschutes Brewery, Inc.
Brewery Location: Bend, Oregon
Beer: Black Butte Porter
BJCP Style: 12B. Robust Porter
Serving: BottleAppearance: Black, with a thick vanilla-colored head. Light does not pass through easily, and there is little apparent carbonation, aside from the head.
Smell: The nose isn't huge on this beer, as I might have expected. I pick up some faint presence of black liquorice and some roasted notes. Would have expected coffee or chocolate, but don't pick up much. Perhaps some warming vanilla.
Taste: Deep and dark; lots of roasted flavor, with some chocolate and coffee rounding it out. The chocolate and crystal malts are evident, as is some residual sweetness. The beer ranks at 30 IBUs, but the hops subside to the darker malt flavors. Some diacetyl slickness mid to swallow.
Mouthfeel: Not as full as I would have expected--it's surprisingly easy to drink. Good thing, too, since I'm drinking this in the middle of July and it's about 85 degrees outside. Almost a tad on the watery side, but the beer comes across more as refreshing than weak.
Drinkability: I think it must be the roasty, black malt flavors that push the BJCP to classify this beer as a Robust Porter. However, in other regards, it's a lot lighter and smoother on the palate than other Robust Porters I've tried. It actually reminds me of a tasty Schwartzbeer I had recently. My overall impression is that it is heavy on the roasted flavors, a little light on the chocolate notes that I usually prefer in a porter, yet I'd still recommend it to friends. And better yet, I'd still seek it out. Porter is one of my favorite styles, so it'd be interesting to line this up against Great Lakes' Edmund Fitzgerald, Bell's Porter, and Sierra Nevada's Porter to see where in that line it fits.
Technorati Tags: beer, brewing, craft beer, Deschutes, Black Butte Porter, porter, BJCP, Beer Judge Certification Program, Robust Porter, brown porter, Oregon, West Coast beers, Hedonist Beer Jive, Great Lakes, Edmund Fitzgerald, Bell's, Sierra Nevada, review, tasting note
