Review: Nicholson's Tavern and Pub

My sister's birthday found us at Nicholson's, in the theater district of downtown Cincy. Nicholson's is a Scottish pub, owned by Tavern Restaurant Group, the same folks who run The Pub, in Beavercreek. The bar caters to the theater crowd, which translates into mediocre service until curtain call, then an empty pub after that.

TRG pubs tend to be big on theme, which comes across a little Disney. However, redeeming is that TRG pubs seem to have exclusive deals with BrewDog, the Dogfish Head of Scotland. Although initially disappointed at the lack of a cask ale, turns out there were bottles of Bashah (the Stone and BrewDog collaboration.) And a little persistance turned up a hidden stash--snifters of Paradox Springbank and Paradox Smokehead. Both were incredible--and progressingly nicely from the Basha to the Smokehead. The Smokehead epitomizes the mix of a peaty single malt and a huge Russian Imperial stout.

If you hit Nicholson's, either pre-order (they'll have your drink waiting and you'll have your meal and check before the show starts) or go after the theater rush. Skip the menu and push for the BrewDog, except maybe to nightcap with one of the 20+ single malts available.

Technorati Tags: BrewDog, Nicholson's, Paradox, Smokehead, Springbank, Bashah, Stone, collaboration, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew

Belgian Beer Review 3: Dupont Foret

Dinner with friends and beer folk led to some Belgian tastings. Trip to Whole Paycheck earlier in the day yielded this Dupont offering, an organic and greenly-produced saison. Hadn't seen it before and was seduced by the label art. Dupont is traditionally solid and I thought it would pair well with the kielbasa stew on the menu.

Brewery: Brasserie Dupont
Brewery Location: Belgium
Beer: Foret (as of this posting, no page specifically for this beer)
BJCP Style: 16C. Saison
Serving: Bottle

Appearance: straw yellow with big fluffy white head; huge head

Smell: immediately hit with skunk and funk. The curse of the green bottle plus the underlying saison funk means this beer smells an awful lot like Heine (both arse and green-bottled swill)

Taste: slightly skunked, some farmhouse funk, golden in flavor. The skunk is less pronounced in the taste, which settles into a likable saison--refreshing, herbal and earthy, with some mild Brett

Mouthfeel: carbonation upfront, smooth and refreshing

Drinkability: A shame that this is skunked because this could be a really enjoyable beer--refreshing and easy to put this away. Drawn in by the organic labelling but wish that Whole Foods took better care of their beers. At nearly $10 a bottle, one expects better. And Dupont, green bottles? Really?

Technorati Tags: Dupont, Saison, Foret, Whole Foods, skunked beer, Belgians, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew

Belgian Beer Review 2: Buffalo Belgian Stout

We rented a cabin in SE Ohio this weekend (near Hocking Hills) to celebrate my wife's step-mother's milestone birthday. Great fun with the kids and extended family, including lots of sledding, hiking, and drinking beer around the fireplace. Most of the weekend I drank Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, but had brought a bottle of Buffalo to warm us up post sledding.

Brewery: Brouwerij Van Bossche
Brewery Location: Belgium
Beer: Buffalo Belgian Stout [Google translation]
BJCP Style: 16E. Belgian Specialty Ale
Serving: Bottle

Appearance: black, turns tawny when held to the light; small tight tan head--very nice presentation

Smell: not heavily aromatic, but hints of spices from the yeast--cloves, citrus; more roasted malt as it warms

Taste: The beer in incredibly smooth, and the flavor really opens up as the beer warms, with clove, subtle chocolate malt, ripe pit fruits (cherry, prune), and hints of vanilla

Mouthfeel: light, smooth, prickly carbonation

Drinkability: This beer is highly drinkable. The flavors are subtle and nuanced. Best to drink this one over time--letting it warm and open up, so that the true flavors really come out. Especially good advice since the beer is 9% abv, with no alcohol bite to it, which might lead one to drink this faster than one should. I like this beer as an occasional beer--this is the second time I've tried it (see notes from a tasting at Jungle Jim's a few years back). Doesn't knock ones socks off, but remains complexly understated, which was perfect for an afternoon of warming up around the fire.

Technorati Tags:Belgians, Buffalo Belgian Stout, Belgian Specialty Ale, Brouwerij Van Bossche, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew

Events: Trolley Stop Beer Tasting tonight

For those of you in the Dayton, OH area tonight, Mike Schwartz, owner of Belmont Party Supply and Miami Valley BrewTensils, is hosting a mother of a beer tasting tonight at the Trolley Stop. Full details can be found on the Belmont Party Supply site, but below is the beer list to whet your palate:

• Flying Dog Raging Bitch
• Bell's Hop Slam
• Alesmith Old Numbskull
• Founders Breakfast Stout
• Jolly Pumpkin La Roja
• Heavy Seas Below Decks
• Bruery Orchard White
• Old Speckled Hen
• Rogue Chatoe Rogue Black Lager
  

Brewing: Belgian Dubbel

Trying my hand at my second Belgian style. I've brewed several Belgian Wits, which my wife tends to like a lot, but haven't explored beyond that style, until now. My brother had given me a gift cert for Homebrew.com a while back, so I redeemed it for their Belgian Dubbel extract kit. I haven't brewed from a kit in a really long time, and couldn't resist tinkering with the recipe somewhat. However, I restrained myself to just adding a bit more DME. Here's the recipe

Year of the Belgians: Dubbel

.25 lbs.	Belgian Special B
.25 lbs.	Weyermann Carapils®/Carafoam®
6.75 lbs.	Dry Extra Light Extract
.5 lbs.	Candi Sugar Clear
.25 lbs.	Candi Sugar Dark
1.5 oz.	East Kent Goldings (Whole, 4 %AA) boiled 47 min.
1 oz.	Hallertau (Whole, 3 %AA) boiled 12 min.
1 oz.	Styrian Goldings (Whole, 2 %AA) boiled 2 min.
1 ea.	Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss)
Yeast :	White Labs WLP570 Belgian Golden Ale

Originally, I had planned to harvest yeast from a bottle of Duvel I received for Christmas, staying up late one night last week to do so. However, after about 48 hours, it was clear the harvesting wasn't going to happen--with no activity in the Erlenmeyer flask. So, I trucked it to my homebrew store, bought a vial of White Labs WLP570, and created a small starter about 24 hours before I brewed. Not enough to get a huge influx of more yeast cells, but enough to wake them up and give them a head start.

Brewing went well, helped along by Nathan and Jonathan. It was bitterly cold, and we brewed in my garage. The propane burner produced enough heat to make it bearable, but the hose partially froze when we tried to use the wort chiller, and once we turned off the propane, our toes started to suffer from the cold. The only real glitch was that the stupid cork was evidently just a shade too small for the opening, and so now I have a cork floating in the carboy with the beer and had to steal another cork from another carboy I had sitting around. Hopefully it won't affect the beer and I can figure a way to get it out of the carboy, since that bottle is one of my favorites.

Glad I kick-started the yeast. Four hours later, I had about 3-4 inches of foam, and by this morning, the yeast had clearly peaked. Ferm temp will be a bit of a challenge. Usually, in the winter, I have a struggle to keep beers warm enough, but with this super active yeast, I have already had the opposite problem, having to bring the temp down about 5 degrees.

Am on the fence about bottling or kegging this beer, but figure I have a couple of weeks to decide. It will sit in the carboy, in the closet, for at least 2 weeks, before I have a chance to move it to secondary.

Technorati Tags:Belgian dubbel, Year of the Belgians, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew

Belgian Beer Review 1: Avec les bons Vœux de la brasserie Dupont

I thought I'd ring in 2010, my year of Belgian Exploration, with a bona fide Belgian Holiday beer, one that even the name suggests holiday greetings (translated as "With the best wishes of the brewery Dupont"). Thanks to Jay over at Hedonist Beer Jive for drawing my attention to this brew.

Brewery: Brasserie Dupont
Brewery Location: Belgium
Beer: Avec les bons Voeux de la brasserie Dupont
BJCP Style: 16C. Saison
Serving: Bottle

Appearance: Golden straw colored, with tiny carbonation bubbles

Smell: Sweet, like a golden ale. Some funk hidden deep in the back end; low hops, some wit-beer like spices

Taste: Definitely of Belgian origin, with the distinct phenolics of Belgian yeast. Although technically a Saison, this amped up version (9.5%) is really more reminiscent of golden ale than Saison. Very few hops, and not a huge malt flavor, something more delicate, sweeter, with subtle spiciness and light fall fruits, like apples and pears.

Mouthfeel: Bursting with effervescent carbonation, sweet upfront but quick into dry on the swallow.

Drinkability: This was a great beer to start the new year with. Complex, strong, but surprisingly easy to drink. I expected more funk, but the funk was subdued under some strong sweet flavors. I shared the 750ml bottle with my father-in-law, but had the lion's share and could have easily had more, had the beer's ABV not been so potent. Nothing that knocked my socks off, but a solid, easy drinking Belgian with a lot of kick.

Technorati Tags: Saison, brasserie Dupont, Avec les bons Vœux, Belgian beers, Belgian, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew

2010: Year of the Belgians

I originally started this blog for two primary purposes: to learn more about blogging, and as an avenue for my personal explorations into craft beer. Early on, I reigned in my focus, with my sites set on learning more about the local brewing community. In that time, I've tried some fantastic mid-western beers, traveled to 6 or 7 of the premier breweries in the 4 states region, and blogged about (most) of it along the way. At this point, I have a pretty good sense of what the region has to offer, and have found quite a few solid resources (see links to the left) regarding brewery maps, tasting calendars, and local beer guilds.

Now, in the same spirit of exploration, I'm turning my focus to another beer subgroup, Belgian beers. The holy grail of beer exploration, and the original extreme beers, Belgians range from Trappist dubbels and tripels to lambics and gueze to some of the newer styles who are challenging what it means to be Belgian. This beer subgroup is a complete world all its own.

In a trip to my local beer store, Belmont Party Supply, I discovered that they carry about 75 different Belgian beers (the top shelf of one long aisle and half of the second shelf). They probably have about that many Belgian-inspired beers as well. My goal for this year is a simple one--to work through those two shelves, researching and sampling as many of those Belgians as I can, logging about it here. In addition, focusing my homebrewing efforts, which have picked up in the last 6 months, on brewing these interesting beers, so that I can explore from a foundational level.

I'll still continue my exploration of mid-western beers as well, but over the coming months, look for new content, with a focus on Belgian beers, as I work to understand this complicated, challenging brewing class.

Technorati Tags:Belgians, Belgian beers, Belmont Party Supply, beer, craft beer, brewing, homebrew