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Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/09/03/Day_Job'

    Day Job

    Posted: September 3rd, 2010, 8:21pm CEST by Matt

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  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/09/03/Crispin_Lansdowne'

    Crispin Lansdowne

    Posted: September 3rd, 2010, 11:57am CEST by Ron

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    I have the whole lot of Crispin’s to write about but I’m going to start with their latest release from their Artisanal Reserve series, the Lansdowne cloudy hard cider.

    This is what they are calling a Stout cider, or, Unfiltered Extra Stout Bodied Super-Premium Export Quality – a marketing phrase for sure, but yes, it is premium and stout is is quite apropo.

    Crispin crosses the best of the craft of brewing apple cider (hard cider) and the craft of brewing beer by using beer yeasts in this series of ciders. They are all natural which is something I’m becoming a bigger fan of every day. This Lansdowne is brewed with Irish stout yeast and organic molasses.

    Let’s talk about what is in this (lovely) beverage… 140 calories, no preservatives, no added sugar, no added spirits or grains for added alcohol (still 6.9% ABV), gluten free, naturally fermented with an irish ale yeast. (how great does that sound!?!)

    Let’s talk about how it tastes… I found this much like a Irish stout as it relates to the style points - very sweet but balanced with tartness from the apple. It is also strong, aka: stout. But it is all apple, and tastes like the cider I get from the farm down the road from my house in the fall but with added piquant essence.

    A full bodied, confident & imposing cider. It produces a slight hint of butterscotch, balanced by a subtle fruitiness and slightly dry crisp finish and a uniquely full & buttery mouthfeel.

    Small batch, hand crafted, super-premium hard apple cider smoothed with pure organic molasses and a kiss of organic honey for a complex, bold, heady flavor.


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A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/09/03/Pennsylvania__Flying_Mouflan__Troegs__Harrisburg'

    Pennsylvania, Flying Mouflan, Troegs, Harrisburg

    Posted: September 3rd, 2010, 2:37am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Bought this at Kappy's last week for $6.99 for the bomber. There was some statement that this beer blew away last year's Nugget Nectar in terms of hops and lavished the discerning palate with a face filling bunch of other flavours. I was sold at the $6.99 myself given the sad lack of Troegs beer in my life.

    Pretty nice stuff. It pours a swell chestnut with a mocha froth and rim. The aroma is booze, date and brown bread. A pretty thick beer on the swally with a lot of pine and white grapefruit hops going shoulder to shoulder with date, cocoa, milk chocolate, hazelnut. The brewer's notes recommend the very four months this bottle waited from production to pour. Probably could be classified as a Dauphin County Brown Double IPA. That's it. A DCBDIPA. Maybe the best I have ever had.

    BAers have the love.

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/09/02/Why_Do_Names_For_This_New_Beer_Style_Kinda_Suck_'

    Why Do Names For This New Beer Style Kinda Suck?

    Posted: September 2nd, 2010, 2:58am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Forget the question of whether styles are real and essential. Forget the question of whether beer styles have been accurately described and traced historically. The real issue is that the names of beer styles are a mess and cause consumer confusion. Andy raises the question of the name of one black hoppy brew and seeks resolution for this very good reason:

    Well, I believe that styles are important, if for no other reason than consumers can have some reasonable understanding of what they might be getting when they select a certain beer. It is in the hopes of creating some logical détente that I humbly offer the following suggestions for resolving this seemingly intractable debate.

    He then goes on to ask us to choose from a number of choices that have been bouncing around beer nerd circles like Black IPA, India Black Ale, and Cascadian Dark Ale. There is only one problem. They all suck as names. Let's be clear. They aren't related to India and they aren't pale, as Andy notes, but also no one outside of the Pacific NW actually knows what "Cascadian" really means. Plus, while the picture of me from 1992 shows I have a great long love of the Vermont Pub and Brewery and the work of the late Greg Noonan, the idea of calling it "Noonan Black Ale" suffers from the same problem, needing to know some sort of back story. Also, there is a minor sort of beer - perhaps not a style at all - that you see from time to time called Dark Ale. What's it taste like? Dark? That's like something tasting ice cold.

    We can do better. We can make sense. If the point of the name of the style is to inform let's get to the point. The beer is black and it is bitter. Keep it simple. So call it Black Bitter. I might even try the stuff if it was called a name as swell as that.¹

    ¹Plus it already comes with its own 70s rock tune for the ad campaign. Just have to change the words a bit: "Whoa-oh Black Bitter! Bam-a-lam!!!" And, yes, I want credit.

Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/09/02/Goose_Island_Summertime_Ale'

    Goose Island Summertime Ale

    Posted: September 2nd, 2010, 1:00am CEST by Ron

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    It’s hot. I like this.

    Dan points out I have the wrong style identified and he is right! (see comments) But, it doesn’t change the fact that I still like it! Alt’s are a bit darker, a bit maltier, and a bit hoppy’er. I added the true definitions below. They both are traditional German-Style beers. Goose Island suggests serving in a Kolsch style glass. 

    Alt’s  German-Style Kölsch’s are becoming a favorite of mine as just a nice, simple, beer that hits the spot anytime. I remember visiting Brewer’s Alley with Al and the gang at Octoberfest and they had the “Wedding Alt” on tap and that was the day that I remember saying to myself that I had better give these more attention when I see them. Since then, I’ve had the CTRL-ALT-DEL at Davidson Brother’s Brewery in Glens Falls, NY and now Goose Island has made a wonderful Summertine ale that is distributed to many. Try one! (Please comment on your favorite German-Style Kölsch’s OR Alt’s!)

    German-Style Kölsch/Köln-Style Kölsch
    Kölsch is warm fermented and aged at cold temperatures (German ale or alt-style beer). Kölsch is characterized by a golden to straw color and a slightly dry, subtly sweet softness on the palate, yet crisp. Good, dense head retention is desirable. A light fruitiness may be apparent, but is not necessary for this style. Caramel character should not be evident. The body is light to medium-light. This beer has low hop flavor and aroma with medium bitterness. Wheat can be used in brewing this beer. Ale yeast is used for fermentation, though lager yeast is sometimes used in the bottle or final cold conditioning process. Fruity esters should be minimally perceived, if at all. Chill haze should be absent.

    German-Style Brown Ale/Düsseldorf-Style Altbier
    Copper to brown in color, this German ale may be highly hopped and intensely bitter (although the 25 to 35 IBU range is more normal for the majority of Altbiers from Düsseldorf) and has a medium body and malty flavor. A variety of malts, including wheat, may be used. Hop character may be medium to high in the flavor and aroma. The overall impression is clean, crisp, and flavorful often with a dry finish. Fruity esters can be low to medium-low. No diacetyl or chill haze should be perceived.


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A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/09/01/Albany_Ale__When_Did_They_Stop_Using_Wheat_Malt_'

    Albany Ale: When Did They Stop Using Wheat Malt?

    Posted: September 1st, 2010, 3:48am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I came across this reference to the malting of wheat in a 1869 series of essays and reports called The Annals of Albany. Apparently one Peter Kalm, a professor from a Swedish university, visited North America from 1748 to 1750 making some sort of economic and natural resources survey. He made these notes on 15 June 1749:

    They sow wheat in the neighborhood of Albany, with great advantage. From one bushel they get twelve sometimes : if the soil be good, they get twenty bushels. If their crop amounts only to ten bushels from one, they think it very trifling. The inhabitants of the country round Albany are Dutch and Germans. The Germans live in several great villages, and sow great quantities of wheat, which is brought to Albany : and from thence they send many yachts laden with flour to New York. The wheat flour from Albany is reckoned the best in all North America, except that from Sopus or Kingston, a place between Albany and New York. All the bread in Albany is made of wheat. At New York they pay the Albany flour with several shillings more per hundred weight, than that from other places. Rye is likewise sown here, but not so generally as wheat. They do not sow much barley here, because they do not reckon the profits very great. Wheat is so plentiful that they make malt of it. In the neighborhood of New York, I saw great fields sown with barley. They do not sow more oats than are necessary for their horses.

    This passage was referenced in an earlier quotation I included in an Albany ale post back in April and cropped in June but it has me thinking. If they aren't even growing barley and are malting wheat in 1749, then it is likely the strong ale that Sir William Johnson of the Mohawk Valley, west of Albany, was drinking from 1750 maybe to his death in 1774 was a wheat beer. But by 1835, the brewers of the area responding to a set of questions posed by the New York State Senate all respond by saying that they use pure ingredients including barley malt. I don't catch any reference to wheat malt. The use of barley by this point is corroborated by this quotation from 1827.

    So - am I slowly, clumsily chasing two Albany Ales? A strong wheat ale made by the Dutch up to the latter 1700s and then a strong barley ale in the early 1800s?

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/31/Question__What_Is_Your_Best_Beer_Giveaway_'

    Question: What Is Your Best Beer Giveaway?

    Posted: August 31st, 2010, 1:52pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    I am curious about something. I don't know that I am personally all that evangelical about beer. When I have the beer I like and the people I like together it is as much about exploring or, rather, explaining my good beer obsession as it is about recruiting new members. Nope, the day I actually believe in that beer community thing is the day I find myself preparing pamphlets for a meeting: "maybe you might like to come to our rally? Here. Have some literature."

    But I do give things away. I don't seem to be able to keep a copy of Hops and Glory, for example. I think that Pete's book justifies a lot for me and neatly converts what otherwise can be considered my wee problem into something interesting, even brainy. Other than books, I seem to push Beau's Lug Tread and Pretty Things Jack D'or on people new to good beer and dubbels on the next steppers. Notice the spicy yeast, I say. The bread crustiness in the malt.

    Do you do this? Why and how? What is your favorite small gift or sharing beer? What makes it work for you?

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/31/Why_Is_The_Beer_News_So_Dull_Tonight_'

    Why Is The Beer News So Dull Tonight?

    Posted: August 31st, 2010, 3:45am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Some days the only beer news is stuff that you really don't care a bit about. Today is that sort of day. Consider these gems:

    Maybe there'll be a day soon when I will have something more than bullet points to post. Then again - maybe bullet points are the future of beer blogging.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/30/Back_From_The_Road_And_Did_I_Really_Learn_Anything_'

    Back From The Road And Did I Really Learn Anything?

    Posted: August 30th, 2010, 4:31am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I don't know if you can draw conclusions from a trip just a couple of hours and laundry loads after hitting the driveway. Especially when you haven't even pulled out the digital camera to pretty up the post or to see if there are are any ideas in the images. So far these come to what I might still call a mind even after nine days and 2500 km:

    • Kids continue to be a great reason why I don't have to pay duties on the excess beers being hauled back into Canada. Who would figure that many bottles worth that much could be described as "oh, and I have some beer, too" when asked at the border?
    • Spending some more time in Albany to research the pre-lager ale thing would be quite fine.
    • Wegmans grocery chain continues to make astounding moves into being as good as any good beer store in central New York. Huge selection. They even had Pinkus hefe. Nutty.
    • I bought a 24 dollar beer. I can't believe that I did but it is true. Won't tell you what or where but we can all blame my loading of a counter when you have 8 minutes to buy a mixed case or two.
    • Beer is a good ice breaking gift but no one really wants to talk that much about it. I don't think I go on but in most situations good beer to guys with kids hanging off them is pretty much like good jam to a kid who likes toast. Tasty or not tasty is all that matters.
    • 24 hours later, Aventinus is still striking me as great with a good steak.
    • I wonder whether the Sam Adams glass is the Segway of good beer? Works perfectly well but, upon reflection, no one seems to be following the example.

    Nothing too profound. I was, after all, not really a beer trip - though I found myself taking photos of brew pubs I didn't even enter. I will have to think a little more about what that might mean.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/29/New_York__A_Restaurant_In_Albany_With_A_Beer_List'

    New York: A Restaurant In Albany With A Beer List

    Posted: August 29th, 2010, 4:33am CEST by Alan McLeod

    OK, sure there are 700 wines at the subtitled restaurant dp, An American Brasserie - but they have Blue Point Lager, Dogfish 60 and Ommegang's Hennepin and others on tap as well as ten or twelve well selected bottles. The stash in the back of van might be better today at the end of our trip but I had an Aventinus with my NY strip loin. How many places can I do that?

    Why were we there? Well, I got tired of hitting the highway hotels on my family trips and picked the moderately priced Hampton Inn in downtown Albany. How downtown? It sits behind the 1640s First Church of Albany. Is there an older continuous congregation in North America? A Catholic institution in Quebec perhaps? Is this now a Good Ecclesiastical Blog? No.

    Anyway, the food was great and, after a surprisingly active drive through highway 2 across northern Massachusetts, taking on hairpins and deep gorges, it hit the spot. The kids were well mannered and the staff were good enough to jack up the background jazz a tad and give us a buffer of three tables or so. We do have a loud little one after all. Owner Yono Purnomo took time to say hello and was interested in the beery feedback.

    This is the sort of thing we need to encourage. Not an island but a tide. A little good beer everywhere rather than a lot of good beer in a few places. After driving down the cliff east of North Adams, good beer and fine food was just the thing. Does it matter that they didn't have twice the taps or four times the bottles?

Knut Albert's beer blog

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/27/Why_Can_t_The_Young_Just_Drink_Beer_Like_They_Oughta_'

    Why Can't The Young Just Drink Beer Like They Oughta?

    Posted: August 27th, 2010, 12:04am CEST by Alan McLeod

    An odd beer story out of Canada's province with the best track record for coming up with odd beer stories. Apparently, the young are just not drinking enough macro-bleck:

    Joel Levesque, Moosehead's vice-president, said the demographic that drinks the most beer, New Brunswickers aged 19 to 25, is shrinking and despite sunny weather, summer sales are down. He said that had sparked a fierce competition among the big brewers. "You entice people to take your brand by offering something that they can't get from their brand regularly, for example a T-shirt in the box or in this case, it's $5 coupons," he said. Levesque said there would be more discounts as major labels try to clear shelves by Labour Day.

    Interesting to note that the province's craft brewers have no such worries - not competition at all as they are selling every drop they brew. And the government booze monopoly notes that there has been no overall drop in beer sales this summer. So, does this mean that people there are content to use their market power to force decision making in the brew economy? In that respect, demanding discount coupons for industrial beer or supporting craft brewers in this sense is a similar consumer response. And remember, too, that this is a border province where people are happy to slip over to Maine or Quebec for a better beer selection.

    Isn't it the new generation of drinkers just following its own sense of good taste and good value? Wouldn't it be nice it was actually an example of the consumer getting its way even in a monopolist overly regulated marketplace?

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/26/New_Hampshire__The_Portsmouth_Brewery__Portsmouth'

    New Hampshire: The Portsmouth Brewery, Portsmouth

    Posted: August 26th, 2010, 2:55am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Happy to have gotten the chance to have supper at The Portsmouth Brewery this evening here where Maine meets New Hampshire on the Atlantic shore. It's still cloudy and damp but at least the sheets of rain from earlier in the week are gone. Piling into a pub was just the thing.

    I got the hefeweizen and a milk stout was ordered across the table. The hefe was rich and pineappled and the milk stout creamy chocolate. I had wanted to extend my relationship with the stout but the growler wasn't available. First, I was told oddly that milk stout can't handle being in a growler due to its low carbonation level. I gave my assurance that I was familiar with the style and a growler would be fine taking their caution into account. Then, coming back from checking, I was told there just weren't any growlers anyway. That made more sense.

    We had their pulled pork, a veggie burger as well as chowders and a hummus dip. All were tasty and the service was friendly and fast. Best of all, the place was full of families like us with young kids and no one batted an eye. Prices were good with meals coming in at under ten bucks and the pints costing $4.50. I am consoling myself with the Red Sox and a Port Brewing Wipe Out IPA that I picked up the other day but a growler of the milk stout would have been pretty swell back here at the hotel.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/25/Busy_days_at_%c3%86gir'

    Busy days at Ægir

    Posted: August 25th, 2010, 4:25pm CEST by knutalbert
    Lots of new stuff from the Norwegian micros now, particularly from Ægir. Seems like the contract brewing of some of their bottled beers has freed the capacity for a broader range of beers on keg and cask, which was just the intention of brewer Evan Lewis.  Currently doing the rounds is the Ægir Saison, which used [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/25/What_Beer_Goes_With_Non_Stop_Rain_'

    What Beer Goes With Non-Stop Rain?

    Posted: August 25th, 2010, 3:21pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    There are summer beers for cooling you off in the sunshine. There are Octoberfest beers. There are imperial stouts for sipping as the winter weather howls beyond the doors. But what beer to have when the holiday is awash with rain?

    I had a Mayflower porter last night which made a reasonable claim to filling that gap. No sour tang that I noticed but plenty of those dusty roasty things going on in the glass. Bought a six for $8.99 at Murphy's in Falmouth - an extraordinarily good value - and purchased within 35 miles of where it was made giving me that wholesome new age feeling of goodness that complying with 100 mile consumption edicts provide.

    The BAers give it the love it deserves... but aren't porters a bit September? I know that' next week but you want to be certain about these things, right?

Hop Talk

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/23/Domus_Birrae__Rome'

    Domus Birrae, Rome

    Posted: August 23rd, 2010, 4:55pm CEST by knutalbert
    My last post about Italy was perhaps a bit pessimistic, but I think the comments show that it is an issue worth considering. Anyway, I have positive things to report as well. On my visit to Rome last year, I had the pleasure of visiting both branches of Johnny’s Off Licence and brought home all I [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/23/Massachusetts__Kappy_s_Liquors__East_Falmouth'

    Massachusetts: Kappy's Liquors, East Falmouth

    Posted: August 23rd, 2010, 3:07pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Not a full report yet but stopped at Kappy's in East Falmouth, Cape Cod yesterday to have a look. It gets good word of mouth on the review websites like RateBeer and certain deserves the attention. I had to ask at a grocery store about the rules for beer buying in Massachusetts. Unlike New York, you can buy beer in the same place you can buy wine and spirits. Unlike Maine, there is no alcohol in corner stores, grocery stores or gas stations.

    I picked up a bottle of Pretty Things Beer + Ale Project's American Darling Batch Two, June 2010 for $7.99. The beer comes with a sub-title "Good Time Lager". I like how Pretty Things gives you lots to read and consider on their labels. A beer with a name that long deserves italics. At 7%, one of the better strong pale lagers I have had from a US craft brewer, it finishes with a big malty yeast rich statement... a statement that says "I am big and malty and yeasty rich." BAer's love it. I may have to have another while here given that this is local if by local we mean made in state.

    I also picked up a Port Brewing Wipe Out IPA, again at 7%, for $5.99 which makes me wonder where there is a margin for profit after cross continent transport from California. A finely balanced hoppy... statement that again earns BAer love.

    Directions here.

Knut Albert's beer blog

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/22/New_York__Sometimes_You_Want_To_Bring_Wine'

    New York: Sometimes You Want To Bring Wine

    Posted: August 22nd, 2010, 12:56am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Fifteen or more years ago, Ontario's wine, spirits and imported beer monopoly carried a few bottles of Millbrook for one brief shining season and it has been something of a holy grail - or maybe a lost Atlantis - for us ever since looking back on those pre-kid, pre-mortgage days. Reasonably priced regional quality red wines that needed no excuse or explanation. So it was with glee that I realized that I could manufacture a route to Cape Cod that passed near the winery. We were in and out quickly having neither tour nor tasting. Kids will not put up with that sort of thing when there is a hotel pool on offer. They join the sack of goodies for sharing along with a growler of Ontario craft beer as well as one of our Rieslings and an ice wine. In the future, cars will come with wee wine and beer cellars for such moments.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/21/Finally___Beer_s__Man_Bites_Dog__Story_'

    Finally - Beer's "Man Bites Dog" Story!

    Posted: August 21st, 2010, 3:07am CEST by Alan McLeod

    It can get a bit dreary going through the Google news items every few days looking for a story that catches the eye. There are two classes of "beer news" that depress. First, the over regulation by a small committee of a simple consumable in a small town. Second, the petty crime that involves beer. Whether they are thefts, underage parties or beatings they make for grim reading - but today beer got one back on the hooligan and the thug:

    A shopkeeper from Greater Manchester fought off armed raiders - by hurling cans of beer at them. Three masked men, armed with a gun, entered an off-licence in Lord Street, Radcliffe, at 1230 BST on Thursday. They threatened the 53-year-old shopkeeper with the gun but he threw the cans at them, a Greater Manchester Police spokesman said... Det Con Peter Graham, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "What this man did was courageous - in sharp contrast to the cowardly actions of the robbers themselves. "With no thought to his own safety he fought them off and they fled with their tails between their legs.

    Fabulous! A small victory for the righteous place of beer in a civilized world. We need fewer stories like this but, of course, a few stories like this as well.

Hop Talk

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/20/Italian_beers_%e2%80%93_basic_commodity_or_luxury_item_'

    Italian beers – basic commodity or luxury item?

    Posted: August 20th, 2010, 4:39pm CEST by knutalbert
    I promised you some reflections from Italy, didn’t I? So, there I was, in Terracina, midway between Rome and Naples, a place not picked for any beery connection. I had searched the web beforehand for Birra Artiginale and so on, without much success. I found a cafe/restaurant on Facebook which boasted of the ‘na birretta beers from [...]

Hop Talk

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/19/50_new_pale_lagers_and_a_Pepsi'

    50 new pale lagers and a Pepsi

    Posted: August 19th, 2010, 4:07pm CEST by knutalbert
    Ole Petter Wie, the manager of Carlsberg-owned Ringnes brewery, by far the biggest actor on the Norwegian beer market, has ambitions. Big ambitions. He wants the profits margins to increase from 10 per cent today to 15 per cent in a few years.  He boldly proclaims in an interview with Dagens Næringsliv (not online) that he aims to [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/19/Is_Giving_Up_Imported_Beer_A_Good_Thing_'

    Is Giving Up Imported Beer A Good Thing?

    Posted: August 19th, 2010, 2:15pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    My old desk top Dell gave up yesterday. I am a couple of days away from a vacation and I feel like doing much the same. But what about giving up imported beer not for the cause of slackerdom but for a higher cause?

    A majority of Canadians would give up imported beer or wine to reduce shipping and lessen the environmental impact of imported products, according to an Ipsos Reid poll conducted for Postmedia News. About 67 per cent of Canadians polled said they'd relinquish imported beer -- what, no Heineken? -- and 56 per cent said they'd forgo foreign wine. "That's just a testament to the good beer that we produce in Canada, and increasingly, the good wine as well," said Sean Simpson, a senior research manager at Ipsos Reid.

    While I am not the first in line for right-wing libertarian economic opinions, it seems to me to be reasonable to want to avoid the extra costs of travel, and not just the extra cash. But wouldn't it be nice if the reasons for forgoing the foreign were also based on the taste of what was in the glass? I can't imagine I am the only one who has been disappointed with the too well traveled ale. And I am not talking only of the extreme case of the beaten up beer. I recently have had a couple of beer from The Bruery from California which, though reasonably priced, I suspect had just gotten beyond their natural sphere of... influence? Maybe sphere of persuasion. I am left with a poor impression of the brewery but have to remember that the would not likely taste as they did closer to their home. And how much more the case for the green bottled, mass produced stuff.

    So while it is swell to be green in an abstract sense, isn't it just as valid or even more so to pass on bottles that have been trucked a thousand miles or more because a more local one should always be fresher?

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/18/Albany_Ale__What_Hops_Would_They_Have_Used_'

    Albany Ale: What Hops Would They Have Used?

    Posted: August 18th, 2010, 1:49am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Remember Albany ale? Last spring, I found a number of references to beer being shipped around the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland to New Orleans as well as references to it being sold in Texas and even California. Not sure what it was but there was plenty of evidence that it was something.

    The other day I found something particularly helpful. In 1835, the Senate of the State of New York received the Report of the Select Committee... on the Memorial of Sundry Inhabitants of the City of Albany, in Regard to the Manufacture of Beer. Forty pages long, the Report consists of answers by brewers given in response to six questions posed by Senators intended to discover whether the brewers of Albany were brewing impure beer. Question 3 gets to the point:

    3. Have coculus indicus, nux vomica, opium, laurel leaves, copperas, alum, sulphuric acid, salt of steel, aloes, capsicum, sulphate of iron, or copperas, or any other deleterious or poisonous drug or compound, or any or either of them, or any extract or essential property thereof, been, at any time, or in any quantity, directly or indirectly infused, mixed, put or used in beer, ale or porter, either when being manufactured or when preparing for market? If aye, at what time, in what quantities, and by whom?

    Yikes. Yiks, too. Happy to report, however, the answers were a complete and fairly convincing denial of all charges, charges no doubt trumped up by some downstate faction. But in giving that answer, the brewers, brewery owners and staff give a lot of information about what was going on with brewing in and around the Hudson Valley at that time. I will return to this text on other topics but today, I want to look at what they say about hops and where that can lead us. Here are some of the comments:

    • James D. Gardner of Vassar and Co., Poughkeepsie stated: "I do not know the cause of that flavor, which gives to some beer the taste of aloes, unless it is owing to the use of strong hops which may have become damaged by packing, before sufficiently cured, or to unskilfulness in the operator, or to both combined."
    • James Wallace of the firm of J+U Wallace, Troy, NY reported: "There is a great variety in the flavor of hops: some have a strong, others a more delicate flavor, which readily accounts for the different flavors perceptible in the ales of the same establishment."
    • Thomas Read of Thom. Read and Co., Troy NY confirms he used 2.5 to 5 pounds of hops to a barrel and that they looked for the palest bales of hops to use in their pale ale.
    What does that tell us? Well, no one describes varieties of hops even if they come in different colours, different degrees of curing and damage as well as different degrees of delicacy. We can fall into a trap thinking people in the past were not as perceptive as we are. Well, it is clear the brewers are looking for differences in hop characteristics with a professional eye but do not see varieties or breeds of hops as something available to them.

    What were these hops? It is reasonable to suggest they were New York state hops. In Volume 50 of the American Journal of Pharmacy from 1877, there is an useful article setting out the importance of hop industry in central NY in the mid-1800s. In 1860, it states, each of four countries of central NY including Otsego produced more hops than all hops produced in the USA outside of New York state. Two varieties are mentioned by the pharmacists: "large and small cluster." In another report, this time the 1860 Report of New York State Cheese Manufacturers' Association, a trip to Otsego County is describe in which the hop plantings in every village are estimated. We are told at page 150 that at Richfield, about 75 miles west of Albany two varieties were grown:

    Messrs. Allen & Hinds, the leading hop merchants of' the town, informed us that the past winter had been unfavorable to hop plantations in this section, and many yards had been badly winter-killed, more especially the older yards. There had been greater losses from this cause than in any previous year, but a considerable number of new plantations had been set, and it was believed the new yards would more than supply the place of those winter-killed. Two varieties of the hop are generally cultivated in town, the Pompey and Cluster. The Golding hop of England had been tried but did not succeed well, being liable to rust . The Pompey is a large coarse variety, a vigorous grower, but inferior to the Cluster in strength and flavor, and does not keep its color so well as the latter variety.

    While there is still a village of Pompey and even a modern day effort in the re-establishment of the central NY of the hop industry there, we are unfamiliar with that strain. We do know about Cluster, however. Cluster is still with us, often described as an old American cultivar which is, notably, a hybrid of Dutch strains and wild indigenous ones. Hmm... where did the Dutch meet the wild in the US? The Albany area, of course.

    There is more to know about Cluster and the need to more closely locate it in the early 1800s in an Albany brewer's log book but for now suffice it to say that when the brewers of Albany ale were talking about hops they were likely talking about the finest hops available locally, Cluster.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/18/Spinning_replacing_drinking_'

    Spinning replacing drinking?

    Posted: August 18th, 2010, 1:29am CEST by knutalbert
    There is no lack of articles about the decline and fall of the English pub, but there are changes in other countries, too. I have written about the positive developments in Oslo concerning the ability of craft beer, but at the same time, obviously, the volume of standard pale lager is declining. The Norwegian journalist trade [...]
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    Oslo Beer and Food Festival

    Posted: August 17th, 2010, 4:29pm CEST by knutalbert
    I assume most of my Norwegian readers know about this, but for the record: As last year, there is an open air beer festival in Oslo this week, Wednesday-Sunday. It takes place in Kubaparken, within walking distance from the city centre. A good seminar programme, put together by Gustav Jørgensen, though I find the pricing [...]

A Good Beer Blog

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    How To Improve The View Of Craft Beer #3741

    Posted: August 17th, 2010, 2:55am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Apparently, if there is a "we" acting on some sort of grand plan, the plan needs to address the workplace and workplace ethics:

    It doesn’t even matter is the boss or manager has chosen a glass of Merlot or beer, then offered it to the job-seeker or that the job-seeker shows no effect of alcohol. The negative association is so strong that, despite evidence to the contrary, there is a perception of impaired reasoning. “Prospective job candidates largely fail to anticipate the imbibing-idiot bias,” writes Rick from the University of Michigan and Schweitzer from the University of Pennsylvania. “Candidates in informal interview settings follow the boss’s lead, even when the boss chooses to consume alcohol. Our demonstration of a robust imbibing-idiot bias suggests that this form of mimicry is a mistake.” Why a mistake? “Consuming, or merely holding, an alcoholic beverage reduced perceived intelligence [even] in the absence of any actual reduction in cognitive performance,” they say.

    "Imbibing-idiot bias"? How odd. Personally, I find T-totalers a bit weak in the rafters if you get my drift. But it is not really about who is wise and who is not. It is about who has control and what delusions they are acting under.

    So, if I was a clever beer advocacy conspirator, I would get beer into the hands of the bosses (or, rather, if we are honest... middle management) to make sure that even if they were imbibing then they need to be viewing craft beer appreciation as an exception to the imbibing-idiot bias. How? A complex and overwhelming volume of knowledge making the middle manager uncomfortable, giving a clear impression that the job prospect has one up. We need scripts, people. Web pages filled with scripts for the job seeking beer fan. And then, sooner or later, we become the hiring classes. It could happen.

Knut Albert's beer blog

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    Oslo: Two new brewpubs on the same street

    Posted: August 16th, 2010, 5:23pm CEST by knutalbert
    I’ve been claiming for a long time that there is a market for at least two more brewpubs in Oslo. The current Oslo Mikrobryggeri is west of the city centre, I’d say it is more of a community pub for people who work or live in the area. It seems to be quite full every evening, the [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/16/Book_Review__Great_American_Craft_Beer__Andy_Crouch'

    Book Review: Great American Craft Beer, Andy Crouch

    Posted: August 16th, 2010, 3:09am CEST by Alan McLeod

    One of the most important things I ever learned in life was the importance of an index. Why? Well, if you are overwhelmed by information as I was in law school I learned that reading the index for each course's material (because that is what we called it: "material") was what was in the course and what was not. Andy (who I call "Andy" even though we have never met due to our rich, rewarding but inherently thin relationship in the nature of all internet relationships) flagged this about this his second book with his thoughtful post "Great American Craft Beer: What’s Included, What’s Not…" This is not a book about every US craft beer. It does not describe every beer bar. It is an effort to exemplify where US craft beer is now.

    Which beings me to a quibble. I wish it was called "Great American Craft Beer 2010" as I would like this to be an annual book. "WHAT!!!" says Andy. Exactly. A superhuman effort would be required to make such a book an annual - but it is odd that no such thing exists for a country as rich and diverse as the USA. It also contains no profiles of brewers, no real history of beer in the land and no maps. The first 45 pages include a number of brief essays on the background of beer and at the end there is a bit about enjoying beer but it is the 200 pages in the middle that are the meat of the book - reviews of specific beers.

    One might say that this is the section that will go stale the fastest but it takes a picture of where we are all now. And by "we" I mean anyone who has an interest in US craft beer at this time when there are so many false pretenders, established giants, tiny interesting voices and weird experimenters out there on the beer store shelves. This is a golden era and this book captures it. From beers as pervasive as Magic Hat #9 to rarities like Three Floyds Dark Lord of which Andy writes:

    At the far horizon of the Imperial Stout Spectrum lurks a beer whose flavor and motor oil consistency have made it perhaps the most geeked out craft beer on the planet. Three Floyds sells much coveted bottles of its near-mythical Imperial Stout on one day per year, appropriately called Dark Lord Day.

    Note: that is about half the whole entry. Andy's writing is economical, vivid and accurate. You will see that throughout the book. We can only hope that it is at least a first edition if not an annual affair.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/14/More_Travel_Advice_Needed___Any_Perry_Or_Cider_'

    More Travel Advice Needed - Any Perry Or Cider?

    Posted: August 14th, 2010, 7:57pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    The advice so far has been great. Now we are working on the route - it looks like we are heading from Binghamton NY to Cape Cod through Connecticut and Rhode Island. Looking for real makers of apple cider or pear perry. Pete got me thinking. Any ideas?

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/13/Beau_s_Thursday_Night_Tasting_In_the_Backyard'

    Beau's Thursday Night Tasting In the Backyard

    Posted: August 13th, 2010, 4:23am CEST by Alan McLeod

    A fun way to spend the evening. Beau's had their quarterly business meetings in town and they all came over for a few hours of opening bottles - including the father, son and a sizable host. We nine started well with two saisons and biere de garde: Hennepin, Jack D'or and 3 Monts. Batch 10 from Pretty Things was much better than the more recent bacth 13. Lesson: let it sit.

    Things got a little wobbly with three Quebec takes on Belgian white beer. We thought RJ's Coup de Grisou was fine and a good value beer. And Barbier from L'Ilse D'Orleans was not well understood given its level of rich maltiness. But Blanche from Charlevoix was a revelation in nasal interaction with beer. Freesia. Fabulous.

    Three more bottles were opened. Trade Winds Tripel from the Bruery was a bit muddled with a nice aroma. Too much of the malt ball for the style or maybe just our level of interest given the other choices. Next, the Poperings Hommel Ale, as always, was amazing. The greatest pale ale in the history of the planet? Could be.

    Then the taxi was called for the eight to be off. It was time. The mosquitoes had begun to bite. Just time to open a quart of Drie Fontienen's Oude Gueze, one of the few beer that could follow a Poperings. Like any divider of people, some were not with it. They got the first taxi. The rest of use stood on the driveway, waiting on the warm quiet summer night sipping. Then the taxi and then they were off and away.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/11/Dear_Craft_Brewers__Get_A_Canning_Line'

    Dear Craft Brewers: Get A Canning Line

    Posted: August 11th, 2010, 2:10pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Dear Rob Tod. I have realized that I don't think I really care about that corked 750 ml bottle after all:

    We have been doing cork-finished beers for a number of years and early on we wanted to come out with a lower-alcohol, pretty full-flavored but around 4.5%- to 5%-alcohol beer. It was called the Allagash Special. That was in a cork-finished 750 mL bottle and it didn’t sell in that package. It cost us a lot to make it and cost us a lot to package in that bottle, so we had to charge a lot for it. We got beat up for it and people didn’t buy it. I think people want higher alcohol with the bigger, cork-finished special releases. I’ll welcome it when the consumer will buy those lower alcohol, fuller-flavored beers in that package. I think it will be great.

    Why in "that package"? Look, I don't want to suggest Rob is the moving force behind corked bottles but he does give a very good quote. And he takes a question well. I was fortunate enough to catch a moment him when I popped into the Allagash retail shop last summer when I mentioned my unhappy reaction to one of the annual editions of Victor. He was patient and listened, not indicating at all that he was staring at a sunburnt Canadian beer blogger somewhat smelling of fried clams and ice cream with a child tugging at his arm who really didn't make that much sense. It was, rather, Ron Jefferies who, when he was kind enough to give me the best part of an hour at the end of a Friday, I asked about the price implications of the corked bottle. I was shocked.

    So, in telling you about the only two times I have ever talked to actual US craft brewers my point is this: the bottle may well add two bucks to the price of a beer. If the point of a session is to comfortably have more than one (or even more) why do I want to see so many dollars dedicated to filling the recycling bin? If Knut of Norway can have a cheap and cheery Rodenbach from a can, what beer shouldn't be packaged in that consumer friendly format? Even if not in a can, if you want to to sell your session beers please make them reasonably affordable to buy. Like a bottle of Allagash White or Jolly Pumpkin Bam. h/t Lew.

Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/08/11/Blaven'

    Blaven

    Posted: August 11th, 2010, 2:27am CEST by Al

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    A dear friend brought this back from her trip to the U.K. I certainly haven’t seen it in any of my local retailers. Heck, I don’t know that I’ve seen anything from Isle of Skye.

    They say:

    The strongest of the regular Skye ales, Bla Bheinn, the blue mountain, is a deep golden ale, malty and full-bodied, with a fruity, hoppy character and a delightful Fuggles hop aroma. Originally a winter ale, now available all year round due to demand.

    It pours a nice clear golden color with an off-white head a couple fingers’ thick.
    Slightly fruity aroma which reminds me of a not-quite-ripe peach. It has a big body but only about 5% ABV which is a little surprising. As it warms I’m getting a hint of vanilla.

    This is pretty good; I’m glad it made it over the Atlantic.


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A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/11/Is_A_Beer_Price_Crisis_Coming__Will_You_Notice_'

    Is A Beer Price Crisis Coming? Will You Notice?

    Posted: August 11th, 2010, 1:10am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Bad news with the impending Russian crop failure:

    It is the latest high cost of living to hit families that are reeling from the recession. Prices have already more than doubled in the past two decades, with the average cost of a pint of lager climbing from £1.08 in 1989 to £2.81 in 2009, the British Beer & Pub Association said...The price of a loaf of bread is set to increase by 10p to 129p, which would be a record, after Russia suffers from its hottest summer in a century, wiping out much of the world’s wheat harvest. There are also fears that rising prices on the wholesale energy market will push up gas prices for households, after a small supplier put up its prices by 23 per cent last week.

    Holy sign of the endtimes, Batman! While the tax issue is UK specific given their years of wanton public sector spending, something smug Canada gave up in the early 90s, that all seems pretty bad. And it may be - but have a look at the Canadian Wheat Board 2-row barley prices for the last couple of years. Prices are basically down 37% from their highs in the late winter of 2008. The market was "bleak" last year. A glut was caused. Canny Scots didn't even plant the stuff this year. And now there may be not enough to go around. Prices this week so far seem to have dropped - but who the heck can read a chart like that? Australians call even Russia's move to ban exports "The Great Grain Robbery"!

Hop Talk

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/09/Vintage_Americana'

    Vintage Americana

    Posted: August 9th, 2010, 5:54pm CEST by knutalbert
    Some splendid color photos from 1939-1943 showing the depression and preparation for war.   They were taken by photographers of the Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information and belong to the Library of Congress. There are lots more, though few of the beer related, at the Denver Post’s photo blog.

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/09/Summer_RI__MA__CT_Travel_Advice_Needed'

    Summer RI, MA, CT Travel Advice Needed

    Posted: August 9th, 2010, 3:21am CEST by Alan McLeod

    We have a ten day stretch coming up hanging out with family at Cape Cod. This means snack shacks, maybe a brewpub or two and definitely beer shopping. But this is largely unknown territory for us. We are northern New England travelers. A few years ago we tried to find Connecticut for a few days and had a horrible time of it, finding little accessible to the visitor. Surely, it was us and not the entire state. So, I need your help - where to go in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut that is:

    • family friendly,
    • includes great fried clams or hot dogs or ice cream,
    • offers me a decent chance at a great craft beer, and / or
    • will fill my trunk full of good beer to fill the stash for a long Canadian winter's sipping?

    This is vital information so please do feel free to go on and on and on. I am not sure Google maps understands my needs but I am hoping you do.

Knut Albert's beer blog

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/08/Hey__I_Can_Moderate_All_Comments_'

    Hey, I Can Moderate All Comments!

    Posted: August 8th, 2010, 12:10am CEST by Alan McLeod

    You all should be jealous.

    If I haven't told you all recently, I am eternally grateful to my former employers and clients at silverorange for letting me use and play with their technology and, I hope, act as a testing platform. Who zat? Well, I am proud to have been their lawyer over a decade ago now when they were in high school. Among many other things, they are part of that group that supports Mozilla and played a big role in the creation of the iconic Firefox logo... which I suppose is another way of saying icon.

    One of those other things they have done is create the greatest blogging system ever, the same system that this blog runs on. And I just discovered the moderate all comments button. As well as the top banner ad function. Anyone want to pay for a top banner ad? [I think if I click on this function over here my computer servers ice tea.]

    Anyway, comments are now being set as moderated for the default because I have attracted the attention of 3 smelly loser 23 year olds in Romania who are spamming the site with manually placed Viagra links. The system automatically stopped 69 comments today but two did get through. As soon as they pack it in, comments will go back to the free for all that you have come to expect.

Hop Talk

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/07/The_Swedish_beer_scene'

    The Swedish beer scene

    Posted: August 7th, 2010, 4:58am CEST by knutalbert
    I tried, in the earlier days of blogging, to do some updates on the brewery and bar scene(s) in Sweden, but I found out it is beyond my capacity. The fact that there are several dozen beer bloggers in Sweden tells a lot. A most useful site for anyone with an interest is BeerSweden, which [...]

A Good Beer Blog

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/06/Olympen__A_beer_list_to_be_proud_of'

    Olympen: A beer list to be proud of

    Posted: August 6th, 2010, 4:14pm CEST by knutalbert
    There is some healthy competition here in Oslo now. I’ve stated recently that Italy is the new California when it comes to beer. We’re not quite there, but we can soon say that Oslo is the new, well, Gothenburg. I’m off to meet a friend at Olympen this evening. Their beer list has exploded over [...]

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/06/Quebec__Joseph_Bellarmin__M_Brasserie_De_L_Ile_D_Orleans'

    Quebec: Joseph Bellarmin, M'Brasserie De L'Ile D'Orleans

    Posted: August 6th, 2010, 2:59am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I like the style of this brewery's labels and brew branding. They all have a folk arty drawing off of a local character from the past. My French is so poor that I can't tell the tale of Joe - but I do note "Houblonée a Froid" in that green circle, cold hopped. You can't really see it in the picture provided care of my dying camera. It's starting to look like art, isn't it? It's not another dead digital camera to join the pile. It's the art camera.

    This DIPA pours a deep orange amber with slow moving carbonation hinting at thickness. The head is rich creamy foam and froth. Heat, sweet herb and bready malt on the nose. In the mouth a bit of a surprise. Big but not huge. Sweet creamy with heat, grapefruit pith sweet malt and some very singular herbal notes. A bit burn at the end. Quite nutty with star anise as well. More of a semi-sub-DIPA than an IIPA. You know know what I mean?

    It gets some curious looks from RateBeerians perhaps from its sub-imperial reality but great respect from the BAers. Its a seasonal special for autumn but I am not sure that it's the autumn of 2009 or 2010. If it is a year old, it has held up very well even if that hint of star anise is not going to be everyone's favorite thing.

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/06/Oh__To_Be_In_Moscow...'

    Oh, To Be In Moscow...

    Posted: August 6th, 2010, 1:53am CEST by Alan McLeod

    ...now that the heat wave's in full bloom:

    I walked outside this morning to find a gang of bare-chested fellows, with shaved heads, sweaty snouts, and stretchmarked potbellies, sitting on the guardrail near our doorway, guzzling beer and smoking, and for good measure, belching and swearing about the heat. Any walk around town reveals similar scenes: men have at times dispensed with much of their clothing, and carrying a beer (plus lit cigarette) is now de rigueur. This is legal: there's no law banning open containers of alcohol in Russia. Except that in Russia, beer hardly qualifies as alcohol. (Unless possibly it's that 12-proof brew marked krepkoye.) Beer is more like a training beverage. But vodka is considered alcohol, and thus possesses, many would point out, curative properties for whatever ails you. So fighting noxious heat with medicinal doses of vodka makes perfect sense. And I don't mean some dainty cocktail, like, say, a vodka collins. The idea of mixing vodka with anything except more vodka is an abomination. Why dilute the healing fun?

    I don't have any real point to saving the quotation from Jeffrey Tayler's article in The Atlantic other than to note what an excellent piece of drinks writing the article represents, including its harsh observation of the stupid waste that can accompany empty boozing. In Moscow - now.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/05/Beer_souvenirs_you_didn%e2%80%99t_know_you_needed'

    Beer souvenirs you didn’t know you needed

    Posted: August 5th, 2010, 6:59pm CEST by knutalbert
    It’s kitschy souvenir time again, folks. The web shop of the Octoberfest is open. I am old-fashioned enough to prefer young ladies in dirndl, but they offer eye candy for ladies clothes for men, too. Like this lederhosen-like swimming trunks. I somehow doubt that the model in the photo consumes many Steins and sausages per day. My waistline is [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/05/California__Black_Orchard__The_Bruery__Placentia'

    California: Black Orchard, The Bruery, Placentia

    Posted: August 5th, 2010, 1:56am CEST by Alan McLeod

    A discontinued beer. Great. It's not even listed by the brewery. Never made their blog...oh, yes it did. Still, its departed. Yet there it is, cooling is the cistern. I picked this up in Ithaca because I had never seen on of their brews this far east and was please to see the price below ten bucks. No soak.

    Well, that might explain it. Fountain! Lips clamped over the 750 ml bottle mouth, we do a dance until more toweling and the glass is found. Yet spurting into my gob, there is a very pleasant dry cocoa note. Once the glass is found, it pours a very deep dark black with only a thin off white rim. Not a lot of aroma - burnt cream spice. In the mouth, a little sour, cocoa, burnt toast and, as the BAers note, orange juice. Light and watery fresh orange juice. Not thin. A bit of an odd combination as it is like the end of breakfast - juice and toast scrapings. What schwarzbier is to a certain type of lager maybe this is to a Belgian wit. That might be it.

    So, something of an experiment but not one without its charms and uses.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/04/Italy_again'

    Italy again

    Posted: August 4th, 2010, 3:34pm CEST by knutalbert
    Our vacation abroad this summer was once again in Italy – one week on the beach and three days in Rome. As I’ve told you, I don’t have much time for detailed analysis of  anything at the moment, this includes the developments on the Italian beer scene. Still – some thoughts: We stayed in Terracina, [...]

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/04/Beer_Most_Slimming_When_Not_Consumed_'

    Beer Most Slimming When Not Consumed!

    Posted: August 4th, 2010, 3:33am CEST by Alan McLeod

    This has to be up there with the "open source beer" clap trap... or maybe the "women better tasters" silliness. It seems the more people need to make a buck the greater the need to foist a 90% rubbishy idea on people. And this one is pure fool's gold:

    CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, and the Beer Academy, have today come together to highlight to UK consumers that beer, when drunk in moderation, can help you lose weight, cut alcohol consumption, and more generally, help supplement a healthy lifestyle. New research released during CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival at Earls Court, London (August 3-7) where over 500 British real ales are currently being showcased, shows that 34% of men and 29% of women incorrectly believe that beer contains more calories than other alcoholic drinks.

    There is a huge concern with the effect of beer on health. The most read post on this blog is about the calories in big bomb beers. Drinking a bomber of high alcohol beer is like chugging a mug of cake icing. Yet CAMRA knows better. It takes the lowest level of alcohol content it could suggest with a straight face (3.8%) and places it in the half pint serving so loved by Enid Sharples. Who else in their right mind stops at one half pint of a 3.8% beer? No one.

    Let's be clear. This is up there with a Bud Lite Lime Draft commercial as far as truth in advertising goes. One just has to consider the heft of those lined up at the opening of the Great British Beer Festival this morning. Curved yet not swerved. If I were to give up beer and, you know, do something with my life I would likely drop 10% of my body weight without a thought. And that would stay off diabetes, relieve stress on the joints and do any number of other good things. Same for many a beer writer and many a beer nerd. As a great mind once sang, my hips don't lie. Those thin people you see drinking a lot of beer? They do insane things like smoke or jog extra to make up for it.

    Beer is many good things but it is not all good things. Making up hooey-kablooey dingbattery like this serves no one that matters. Not the drinkers, some of whom may take the wooden nickel and put off the visit to the weight scale for another month. Or the brewers who have to fight off the stigma of being associated with transparency. Or the health professionals trying to prove that a moderate amount of drink is not a sign of the Devil. Like all such foolishness, it will make for a few passing columns in trade papers (and a few thin pay packets for the columnists) but that's about it.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/03/New_Oslo_brew_pub'

    New Oslo brew pub

    Posted: August 3rd, 2010, 4:37pm CEST by knutalbert
    The new Oslo brewpub – Schouskjelleren Mikrobryggeri – is a good example on how to use the social media to build interest months before the opening. It is not rocket science – just establish a facebook group and upload photos as the work progresses. I have mentioned this place before. It is an offshoot of [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/08/02/The_Best_Way_To_Teach_Folk_About_Good_Beer_'

    The Best Way To Teach Folk About Good Beer?

    Posted: August 2nd, 2010, 6:34pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    The backyard BBQ. It has to be. Likely because of Pete's daydreaming about his English garden, I got the urge to have a smoky BBQ yesterday. Well, it was the day before really as I had to put the ribs into an overnight soak of Sierra Nevada pale ale, a bunch of ends of BBQ sauce bottles from Dinosaur and Beale Street, onions, lemons and grapefruit juice.

    The blue box tells the tale. I picked up the Sierra Nevada when we were over in upstate NY Saturday - after sticking my nose in Maggies on the River, a newish Watertown NY beer bar with 32 taps.¹ The Sierra Nevada went for 18 bucks a 12 pack at the grocery.² Also picked up some Hennepin as well as a six of Goose Island 312. All well made, good value but approachable craft beers. Throw in some other odds and ends from the stash like travel beer from Ithaca and Quebec, samples of Granville Island's excellent Robson Street Hefeweizen and before you know it, people are sucking on ribs, chowing down on pulled pork coleslaw sandwiches, dipping everything in mop sauce and washing everything down with tasty ales. At the end when everyone is in a good frame of mind, break out some big bombs as sippers. Last night we had Southern Tier Oat, an 11% wall of dark malty goodness. All was very well.

    Lesson? You want the people you know to like craft beer? Give it away with a plate of BBQ. They'll get the point every time.

    ¹ [Ed.: Pretty respectable beer list.]
    ²[Ed.: The same beer I once saw in a Canadian beer bar for $7.99 a bottle!]

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/08/02/Own_a_piece_of_beer_blogging_history'

    Own a piece of beer blogging history

    Posted: August 2nd, 2010, 4:45pm CEST by knutalbert
    We have bought a new flat up the road, meaning we are selling the old one. This means no time for blogging, as I am busy putting things into boxes, throwing away stuff I once thought would come in useful, adding some paint here and there - you know the drill. I’ll get back to more [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/31/New_York__Zuur__Ommegang__Cooperstown'

    New York: Zuur, Ommegang, Cooperstown

    Posted: July 31st, 2010, 2:29am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I know I should have gone to the brewery. I know. I know I know. But I was on holiday and sick and I needed to save it up for the Baseball Hall of Fame because it's the year another sweet Expo enters and, well, I liked the Expos. I got the hat, OK? Let it go. Jeesh.

    Zurr doesn't even seem listed on the site for Ommegang anymore. 6% Flemish Oud Brown Ale with cherries added. The cherries do seem a wee bit of a cheat as this all seems a little tiny (tiny) bit easy yet to have a competent Goudenband clone on the loose in North America is, you know, really good. It pours active lightly reddened light chestnut with a well held beige head. Cherry vinegar on the nose. With the cherry there is balsamic, drying oak and nod to vanilla in all there in a bright acidic sip.

    Solid BAer respect.

For The Love Of Beer

  • Permalink for 'For_The_Love_Of_Beer/2010/07/31/Fant%c3%b4me_BBB_Dark_White'

    Fantôme BBB Dark White

    Posted: July 31st, 2010, 12:30am CEST by Don Thompson
    Brasserie Fantôme is located in Soy, Belgium and has been around since 1988. Dany Prignon has been creating an array of saisons since that time using a variety of ingredients...herbs, spices, whatever he can get his hands on. They even brew a saison made with dandelions picked from the grounds around the brewery. Each bottle seems to tell a different story and I was excited to crack this one....

    I always enjoy trying Dany's creations and was happy to find this one up in Milwaukee. Cork pops and pours into my Fantome glass a deep hazy brown with red accents and a creamy inch of off white head that has great staying power. Aromas of crisp earthy, bready malts along with a mellow barnyard accent. Yeast tones meet a melange of spiciness where the pepper takes the lead. Slight fruit undertones as well.



    First sip brings a cornucopia of flavors. Crisp, slightly bready malts meet a good mix of fruity flavors intermixing with the classic Fantome yeast. As it flows down the pepper kicks in and there's a slight burn on the back of the palate. Mild tartness along with a barnyard / hay accent. Lots going on here...tasty, spicy saison.



    Mouthfeel is light and arid making this incredibly drinkable. Creamy with perfect carbonation. Overall, I never quite know what to expect when I crack a Fantome beer and this was a winner for me. At 4% it's incredibly drinkable and the black pepper is well integrated and not overdone. Now it's time for me to find another bottle.

    This beer gets a rating of Great bordering on Amazing from me. Simply an awesome traditional saison.

    Follow the mysterious ghost of Fantôme by surfing over to http://www.fantome.be


Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/30/Marriage'

    Marriage

    Posted: July 30th, 2010, 3:23pm CEST by Matt

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  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/30/Beer_snobbery_saves_a_life'

    Beer snobbery saves a life

    Posted: July 30th, 2010, 4:41am CEST by Al

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    James Yeager is an American geologist who was advising the government of Afghanistan in 2007. Because of his distaste for a certain ubiquitous Mexican export—which an intruder left behind—he avoided assassination.

    he returned to his residence in Kabul to find it had been burgled. The intruder took money from a drawer and left behind a bottle of Corona beer. The Corona bottle sat on his counter for the next two weeks Yeager says, because Corona is one of his least favorite beers. He finally opened it during a going away party as the other drinks began to run low.

    “I pulled it out and when I popped it there was no fizz and the cap was loose,” says Yeager. “Because this one didn’t have fizz you wonder if it went rancid or not, and I just kind of sniffed it and I went ‘Oh, that doesn’t smell like beer.’ ”

    Yeager, a geochemist familiar with acids, realized it smelled like sulfuric acid – otherwise known as battery acid.

    So next time you reach for one of those industrial light lagers, consider if you really want it. The life you save may be your own.

    (via Boing Boing (via The Christian Science Monitor))


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A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/30/Where_Are_The_Beer_Nerds_Heading_Online_'

    Where Are The Beer Nerds Heading Online?

    Posted: July 30th, 2010, 4:14am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I like to check in on the stats once in a while to see if I can see any trends. I've been at this blogging thing for almost seven and a half years now and you would thing some of the numbers would make sense. They seldom do.

    • Contests are good for traffic, holidays are not. You are all reading this at work, aren't you? Cheater pants! Everyone of you.
    • A lot of people really want to know who many calories there are in beer.
    • Months later, I think the demise of RSBS did have a real effect on people coming here - at least directly. Other aggregators has more than taken up more than the slack but no universal beer related aggregator has really replaced it. I still feel less in the know.
    • I get the 6th most visits from India compared to any other country over the last year. Yet where are the comments? Work conditions must be tough there.

    That is all I can come up with. I still think there are twelve of you out there. Other than that, it is a mug's game. Except if you are monetizing. Monetize and the pieces all fall into place.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/29/Assassination_By_Beer_In_Afghanistan'

    Assassination By Beer In Afghanistan

    Posted: July 29th, 2010, 2:58am CEST by Alan McLeod

    The Christian Science Monitor has dug up an interesting beery angle from the whole Wikileaks controversy. Apparently, the documents which have been released include references to a pattern of the Taliban poisoning booze as a mean to assassinate key personnel. Like this:

    James Yeager, an American geologist who advised Afghanistan's Ministry of Mines, tells the Monitor he returned to his residence in Kabul to find it had been burgled. The intruder took money from a drawer and left behind a bottle of Corona beer. The Corona bottle sat on his counter for the next two weeks Yeager says, because Corona is one of his least favorite beers. He finally opened it during a going away party as the other drinks began to run low. “I pulled it out and when I popped it there was no fizz and the cap was loose,” says Yeager. “Because this one didn’t have fizz you wonder if it went rancid or not, and I just kind of sniffed it and I went ‘Oh, that doesn’t smell like beer.’ ” Yeager, a geochemist familiar with acids, realized it smelled like sulfuric acid – otherwise known as battery acid.

    What a rotten trick. What a rotten way to go. You know, it's a damn good thing the Taliban are not aware which government advisors have a taste for Cantillon Bruocsella 1900 Grand Cru. They'd be done for.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/28/_...The_Proposal_Would_Help_Tourism_To_The_Area_'

    "...The Proposal Would Help Tourism To The Area"

    Posted: July 28th, 2010, 1:46am CEST by Alan McLeod

    You know, we say a lot of good things about beer and pubs. We like to think good things, too. Think that our little hobby, our habit is not something that should be a bother to others. Sure there is plenty of evidence to the contrary but this one little tale of one little pub just sticks with me:

    My property shares a wall with the proposed beer garden. I have serious concerns about the impact it would have on my quality of life and on my property day and night, particularly at weekends when the Castle Bar's clientele is very young and rowdy. Due to the extremely close proximity of our properties, the external noise levels caused by talking/shouting/singing/arguing from increasingly intoxicated drinkers would be unbearable. Further to that, there would be the noise caused by music blaring out from the bar, and doors banging as people enter/leave the beer garden.

    In 2008, one review of the fine establishments of Banff in Scotland reported "the Castle for a fight, Aul Fife for no conversation and poor Karaoke." Wonderful. At the planning board meeting, the pub stated "the four-metre high walls around the garden would break much of the sound from customers" and "the proposal would help tourism to the area." Tourism. The sort of tourists you need to bus in and out.

    Funny no one pointed out that the 13 foot garden walls blocking the sound of tourists in fights are listed heritage 13 foot sound blocking walls.

For The Love Of Beer

  • Permalink for 'For_The_Love_Of_Beer/2010/07/27/Tyranena_La_Femme_Am%c3%a8re_Wisconsin_Belgique_Style_India_Pale_Ale'

    Tyranena La Femme Amère Wisconsin/Belgique-Style India Pale Ale

    Posted: July 27th, 2010, 10:21pm CEST by Don Thompson
    Tyranena in Lake Mills, Wisconsin has long been one of my favorite Midwest craft brewers. They have an extremely solid line up of tasty year round beers, great seasonals and always interesting one-offs via their Brewers Gone Wild! series. I used to enjoy making a road trip up to Wisconsin for their new releases, however due to the fact that they now distribute to Illinois I can fill my Tyranena craving anytime I want! This is the most recent brew in the Brewers Gone Wild Series! that I'm drinking tonight....

    Pours a copper orange color with a couple fingers of eggshell foam on top of the brew and plenty of little bubbles rising up. Aromas of spicy, earthy Belgian yeast alongside crisp malts and a fruity undertone as well. Nice dose of citric hops melds in as well. Touch of bubblegum.



    First sip brings crisp caramelized malts upfront with a big yeast kick. Spicy, earthy and a touch fruity. Citrus hops work in with some good bitterness. Flows down with a slight bubblegum / medicinal accent. Lingering yeasty aftertaste.

    Mouthfeel is fairly smooth and crisp with punchy carbonation. Pretty easy to drink but I think the yeast overtakes the hops a bit here. An interesting twist on Bitter Woman but I'll be sticking to the original version personally.


    Overall I gave this one a rating of Enjoyable. I still like the regular Bitter Woman more!

    Check out everything Tyranena by surfing on over to [www.tyranena.com]


Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/27/Serafijn'

    Serafijn

    Posted: July 27th, 2010, 1:05pm CEST by Ron

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    The other beer I received from the Rare Beers of the Month Club was the Serafijn Belgian Pale Ale. This beer was also truly rare as I learned that it is brewed in the garage of the family run brewery called Microbrouwerij Achilles in Itegem, Belgium. The family lives in the small house behind the garage where they transformed their living room into a small, quiet, cafe.

    This beer was unfiltered and it was obvious that it re-fermented in the bottle a bit more as the voluminous heads overflowed our glasses. Oh, by the way, also rare these days, I got to share this sample with Al (yes, Hop-Talk Al).

    Al first noted by the aroma that “there was a lot going on in there”. The big airy head was heavy with floral and spice. However, we noted the hoppy smells were unexpectedly American like.

    As we drank we noted that it was not as hoppy or bitter as the aroma lead us. To me, it was a fairly classic pale ale with only hints of those distinct Belgium yeasts. It had something else I couldn’t put my finger on … cheesecake? None the less, it finished slightly bittersweet and satisfying.

    We both liked it, but we also slightly disagreed with the overall rating. Al said it was not something he would have regularly, as it was not his “cup of tea.” I on the other hand thought it was a wonderful pale ale that I would prefer to have at a pub along with a good old basket of fish & chips.

    The Beer of the Month Club also tells us a little about the interesting name,

    The name Serafijn comes from the plural of Seraph, an order of angels that serve as caretakers of God’s throne. The name means “the burning ones” and it is said that such a bright light emanates from them that nothing, not even angelic beings, can look upon them.


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  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/27/Book_Review__Tasting_Beer__Randy_Mosher'

    Book Review: Tasting Beer, Randy Mosher

    Posted: July 27th, 2010, 2:39am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Tasting Beer has been on the shelves for about a year and a half but I just threw a copy into a larger order from Amazon the other day. I like it fine but it is not the book I thought I was getting. I blame the internets as I didn't have that browsing moment leaning against a books shelf half thinking about the book, half thinking about a donut I had in 1986. I thought it was going to be a book primarily about tasting beer. Where did I get that idea from?

    Around half the book is beer history along with beer styles and examples available in the US. Useful information covered elsewhere... and, again, over there, too. Often. Pages 28 to 144 or so, however, do not show up elsewhere. Pages stuffed with information on the human sensory experience, details about that weird vocabulary Stan throws around with words like "caprylic" and "trichloroanisole" as well as neato graphs on the relativity of bitterness and gravity on one hand and pressure and temperature on the other. Good data born no doubt of Mr. Mosher's background in home brewing. Quality.

    One quibble of me is that I don't like the font or the layout. I don't like double columns in a book and I really don't like semi late 1800s "Golden Age" typography. It seems like the information on the page is harder to find than necessary. I wonder what it would look like with simpler fonts?

    But that is just a quibble. This is great text for the intermediate beer fan. I think it might actually be too much for the beginner - a curse, I realize, no publisher or author wants to read. Yes, it has the obligatory forward by Sam Calagione (imagine that !) but don't hold that against the author. Buy it.

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/25/Hooray___I_Love_Being_Told_I_Am_Stupid___So_Should_You'

    Hooray - I Love Being Told I Am Stupid - So Should You

    Posted: July 25th, 2010, 3:37pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Update: To be fair, when I heard about their tattoo promotion I immediately thought "damn, you have to be at the pub on opening night...."

    Am I supposed to cheer along with the giving of the finger to 99.998% of customers for the sake of marketing? Or is this supposed to be Dada beer? Who cares. All I know is I am far less inclined to buy any BrewDog beer. Why? Because of this short sentence:

    A response to the haters.

    "Haters"? Good Lord. Are you twelve? This has to be the stupidest new usage of a word that has been imposed upon the language and there is far too much use of it in craft beer circles. It denies the right to disagree. It tells us to stop thinking and start following. You call in to question my freedom from being your sycophant, I call into question your business model.

    Not that there is anything wrong with the beer. BrewDog is quite good at making beer. As good as a lot of other great brewers. What makes it different is how it seems to be that it is brewed by pushy dullards with an over active interest in getting our money while letting us know we don't "get it." No thanks me thinks. This brewery has gotten too boring.

Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/25/Rare_Beer_%e2%80%93_Cigar_City_Brewing'

    Rare Beer – Cigar City Brewing

    Posted: July 25th, 2010, 2:56am CEST by Ron

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    I was presented with a great sample recently from the Beer of the Month Club. I had no idea that they offered something called The Rare Beer Club. I was given two bombers of beer that I had never had before and that is always a treat in itself, but the both these beers out of this world.

    The first of the two beers I tried with some close friend (and beer lovers) was the Jai Alai Cedar Aged Humidor Series India Pale Ale from Cigar City Brewing in Tampa Florida. It is a west coast style IPA aged in cedar and is a GABF Gold winner.

    This beautiful beer poured a light rusty orange-red with a big sticky head. The aromas coming off this beer were huge, both spicy and citrus. On the palette, my friends and I all immediately said “grapefruit!” As I kept drinking I also noted some sweetness behind the spice, I called it banana and butterscotch. The spice was hard to describe – maybe cedar’y.  We all thought it was a treat.

    The Rare Beer Club is a great find… Just look at what they offer on any given month. One of the things I like so much about The Beer of the Month Club is the newsletter they provide each time. It is a well written article about the beer and details about the brewer, the style… you name it.

    For instance, in this case they point out that excellent craft beer from Florida is quite rare in itself, which I never really thought about. They also mention some of the other wonderful brews at Cigar City, like their Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout which is aged with Peruvian cacao nibs, Ancho and Pasilla chilies, cinnamon , and Madagascar vanilla beans. (Yumm!)

    Cigar City obviously knows what they are doing and I love that they are out there on the fringe trying things like cedar barrels to age in. I hope you try some.

    (Serafijn review coming soon)


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  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/25/Meet_Matt'

    Meet Matt

    Posted: July 25th, 2010, 12:24am CEST by Al

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    Matt is our first new addition to the Hop Talk “family”. He’s going to be posting a weekly version of the Beef ‘n Beer comic strip and perhaps some of his own prose musings on beer.

    Matt is a married thirtysomething living in the San Francisco Bay area teaching High School English. No kids yet, but he aims to rectify that lack fairly soon.

    Like us, he “grew up” with mass-produced American light lagers. As a poor college student, quantity definitely won out over quality, so discount brands were the order of the day. But not for long.

    He now enjoys hoppy IPAs and ice-cold creamy stouts, but has a special fondness for brown ales.

    Oh, and drawing. He does that sometimes too.


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A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/24/Florida__Saison_Athene__Saint_Somewhere__Tarpon_Springs'

    Florida: Saison Athene, Saint Somewhere, Tarpon Springs

    Posted: July 24th, 2010, 3:28am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I didn't expect this to be my first Floridian beer but I guess it is. Andy Crouch in his soon to be published (review copy delivered yesterday) Great American Craft Beer calls it both "a flavor parade of spice" and a "spice bazaar" which gives me some pause. Can I handle it?

    It opens with a pop as the 2009 dated cork flies and lets loose with an appled gently funky wave of aroma. Golden ale under white froth and foam. In the mouth... it is a spice parade. Lighter bodied and crisp with curried notes of, maybe, earthy cardamom, a little white pepper and heated raw ginger. The balancing malt is that wheat cream thing that Lew mocked me mercilessly over. Tangerine juicy mid-swallow but ends with a drying brett finish. More semi-sub-tropical Orval than Oro but a solid brew.

    Great BAer respect but not quite love. I don't know why.

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/23/Shopping_At_Broue_Ha_Ha_In_Gatineau_Quebec'

    Shopping At Broue Ha Ha In Gatineau Quebec

    Posted: July 23rd, 2010, 1:34am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I regretted the drive only when the alarm went off this morning. Adding 425 km and five hours driving to the gap between supper and sleep was not maybe the most intelligent thing to do mid-week but I sure was pleased with what I found. Broue Ha Ha is the newest addition to the private beer shop scene for eastern Ontario - none of which actually exist in eastern Ontario. I got a bit lost finding the place as its about ten miles or so to the east of downtown Ottawa but on the way home realized it sits fairly handy to exit 141 on Autoroute 50. Won't make that mistake again.

    The shop sits in a new mini-mall in a residential area of town. The first thing you notice is the whole neat and tidy thing. Not quite used to the idea of such a snappy shop as craft beer places tend to be a bit of a friendly jumble. As you can see from the picture I nicked from Facebook, the small shop has a considered layout that features shelving according to styles rather than the usual geographical location of the brewers. Gilles, the owner, was tending to other shoppings in French but had no problem picking out my fundamental incapacity in that language and switched to English.

    I picked up a few new beers like the latest double IPA from Charlevoix as well as their blanche, one from Multi-Brasses of Tingwick and another from a brew pub from Shawinigan. The rest were favorites from Le Bilboquet and Les Trois Mousquetaires as well as a six of Coup de Grisou by Brasseurs RJ . Prices very competitive with Marche Omni at the western end of the City. I stopped there on the way home and found a few beer not by at Broue Ha Ha by Microbrasserie de L'Ile d"Orleans.

    Only open for a couple of months, one lone BAer gives high praise as do the three at RateBeer. More on Facebook.

For The Love Of Beer

  • Permalink for 'For_The_Love_Of_Beer/2010/07/22/Lost_Abbey___Red_Poppy___2010_Vintage'

    Lost Abbey - Red Poppy - 2010 Vintage

    Posted: July 22nd, 2010, 11:23pm CEST by Don Thompson
    Whew...it's been awhile yet again since I've posted and I'm really going to attempt to start updating this more frequently. The hectic summer and my drive to run / exercise more often have taken up a lot of my time. Today I'm posting about a great brew from The Lost Abbey that's released once a year in fairly small quantities. I've received mine via the Sinner's Club which I've taken part in for the past few years.

    Pours a deep brown color with red highlights and two fingers of bubbly khaki head on top. Aromas of dense oak and wood meet a bright sour cherry. Tart, earthy accents run throughout along with a touch of spice. Nice!



    First sip brings crispness and dry oak flavors upfront. Tannic with a solid kick of tart cherry. Spice and earthy funk but the wood has really seeped in this year. Flows down dry and puckering with lingering cherry accents.

    Crisp with solid carbonation. A good sipper and a tasty treat to savor. Oak seems more forward this year but overall it's still a tasty treat.

    Overall I gave this brew a rating of Great for me! (86/100)

    Feel free to look into all of the other brews Lost Abbey has to offer by surfing on over to www.lostabbey.com


Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/21/Oregon__Chatoe_Rogue_Single_Malt_Ale__Rogue__Newport'

    Oregon: Chatoe Rogue Single Malt Ale, Rogue, Newport

    Posted: July 21st, 2010, 4:17am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Ah, to be left with only the third best camera in the house. I hope the beer isn't third best. As you can guess, I doubt it will be. I like the idea of veracity and authenticity in ingredients. I prefer it to brewer as wizard or rock star or TV host. Hard to believe some might find brewer as TV to be a tad cheesy but there you have it. By contrast, in this case the brewery states "all Chatoe Rogue brews are all GYO Certified, First Growth, Appellation products made with hops and malt from our Department of Agriculture's Hopyard and Barley Bench." Wonderful idea.

    The beer pours a light yellow pine and generates a fine white lacy froth, foam and rim. Light floral aromas. Bright lemon grassy acidity followed by twiggy bittering moving towards a lime hoppiness. Lighter bodied than I might have expected but welcome at that minor girth. The malt is there in a supporting role, quietly biscuity. I really like this beer. Zesty.

    I find the BAers a little less excited than I am.

Hop Talk

  • Permalink for 'Hop_Talk/2010/07/20/On_the_origin_of_%e2%80%9ccraft_beer%e2%80%9d'

    On the origin of “craft beer”

    Posted: July 20th, 2010, 8:02pm CEST by Al

    ©Hop Talk - Use of this feed on other sites without express permission is prohibited

    Not the origin of craft beer itself, but the etymology of the term “craft beer”.

    Stan Hieronymous points out that Vince Cottone, way back in 1986 in his Good Beer Guide: Brewers and Pubs of the Pacific Northwest may be the original source…or not.

    “I can’t swear I was the ‘first’ to use the term, but I also don’t remember any source I borrowed it from. Possibly CAMRA used it in the UK before me, and in fact I traveled there in 1984 and ’85. If they did use it their usage was probably very casual and I don’t think they made any attempt to define it or promote it as an something like an appellation. I know of no brewing company who used it prior to my book.”

    When his book first appeared North America was home to scores of small breweries that opened only since 1980, not hundreds (or eventually more than 1,500). Consider that context. Also, that at the time Cottone wrote for many publications, both within beer trade and outside (such as theSeattle Post-Intelligencer and The Washington Post).

    This is worth a read.

    Craft beer: the 1986 definition


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Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/07/20/Strangford_Lough'

    Strangford Lough

    Posted: July 20th, 2010, 9:48am CEST by knutalbert
    This is getting back to the promotional activities of a lot of folk in the beer industry (and beyond). Hi. I have a new mystery novel, where someone is killed in a brewery. Would you like to plug it? Our brewery has a new design profile, and we have just made some lovely t-shirts. Would [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/20/Bootlegger_Sentenced_After_76_Year_Trade'

    Bootlegger Sentenced After 76 Year Trade

    Posted: July 20th, 2010, 3:08am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Good Lord. I have been writing this blog for a long time. It's over five and a half years since I wrote that post about the shutting down of the illegal bars in my old home in Canada's eastern province of Prince Edward Island. Well, apparently they didn't shut them all down as the sentencing of 85 year old Alexander (Slick) Rhynes today shows. I like his submissions to the court:

    Alexander (Slick) Rhynes told provincial court on Monday that he was "just trying to make an honest living." He was found guilty of possession of liquor for sale and selling liquor. Rhynes told the court he's been selling liquor out of his house since he was nine and he's not hurting anyone. He also said he buys liquor and beer from the liquor store and pays taxes on it, and that he also pays taxes on the income he makes.

    Therefore... Slick can make up his own laws, too! Slick seems to have forgotten the death of a man in a booze can like his which went unnoticed for sometime back in 2004. An honest living, indeed. The comments to the news item are priceless. I can't speak to the minimum fine imposed as I know the judge and like her a lot. Good hockey player. Got to watch those hockey playing judges. Just saying.

    Is this so wrong? What sentence would Slick have received in your jurisdiction?

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/19/Why_Is_It_So_Rare_That_We_Praise_The_Consumer_'

    Why Is It So Rare That We Praise The Consumer?

    Posted: July 19th, 2010, 1:51am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Consumption is a bad word even though we all do it and we all must do it. The free market is based on aggregation of single decisions into total consumer demand yet, in the world of good beer, these choices are little discussed. It is often discussed in supply side terms. I don't see it that way. I think this article in the Irish Independent.ie has it just about right:

    The country's real ale fans represent the perfect example of how greater consumer awareness can revitalise a struggling industry, say economists. Equally, the ever-growing number of microbreweries satisfying their demanding palates offers hope for the UK's small businesses. Experts at Nottingham University Business School came up with the findings after examining the history of brewing in England. They believe the industry's rebirth in the wake of the Campaign for Real Ale's founding in 1971 has implications for much of the UK economy.

    No clients? No brewery. No taste for new beer, no risk taking at the check out? No craft beer revolution. Which is why every time I hear about another allegedly rock star status brewer or one more "we are the leaders" craft brewing association video, I wonder why they forget the most important two words in the whole deal - thank you. I also wonder why good beer drinkers in North American can't get their purchasing power together and achieve the success in the marketplace that CAMRA has.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/18/Do_Olde_Geuze_And_Oysters_Go_Together_'

    Do Olde Geuze And Oysters Go Together?

    Posted: July 18th, 2010, 1:13am CEST by Alan McLeod

    I was out hunting for some Caribbean stout to go with the PEI oysters I picked up and the incredibly jambi Mike Mundell's shop this afternoon. Without success. What to do?

    I love oysters. I used to live in view of the Gulf of St. Lawrence on PEI's north shore and heading over to Carr's at Stanley Bridge for a half dozen Malpeques to suck back with my home brew. Despite the trade's odd view of what makes for a benefit, the oysters know not what is done in their name. Quietly in their rocky shells they ignore such things, preferring to be pretty damn tasty and - at a buck and change - a great value.

    So, instead of a strong sweet stout, I thought I would try them with a geuze, in the case a half bottle of Drie Fontienen's Oude Gueze, the beer I had last New Year's Eve. This one was bottled back on Friday, February 1, 2008 when I was having an Old Guardian for the twelfth edition of The Session. Let's see what happens in mid-summer two and a half years later..

    Wow. That is quite a combination. The barnyard funk of the geuze hits the oyster's wharfy skank head on in your mouth. One of my more intense taste experiences when I think of it - which is all I can do given it is happening in my mouth right now. All that is missing is an overly aged chunk of blue cheese to make this as overwhelming an experience as it could be. But the aftertaste is creamy, like two waves counteracting each other leading to calm. The oyster brings out the apple notes and places the acidity in context. I am happily reaching for the next meaty oyster.

    Success. Each assisted through the difficulties the other can pose. A vital combination.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/16/New_York__12__Ithaca_Beer_Co.__Ithaca'

    New York: 12, Ithaca Beer Co., Ithaca

    Posted: July 16th, 2010, 3:59am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Bought a couple of these at the brewery Tuesday for something between 7 or 9 bucks. I have a weakness for quads. Confessing. Even in a heat wave.

    It pours cola with a light mocha foam and rim. The nose is pumpernickel with a nice spicy thing down below, maybe cinnamon and nutmeg. In the mouth it's malty almost like a dopplebock with a cherry heart but there is also tobacco, the catch all "herbal notes" and maybe even cola - as well as a nice acidic bite weakening but not buckling the cloy. A black tea drying finish. The brewery points out how it has French Malts, German hops and Belgian yeasts - presumably in some sort of nod to the early days of WWI. I might have held out for the 17th anniversary ale but, whatever it is, I like it. It is a slightly lighter take on the style - which is saying a lot for a 10% bomb.

    Makes me want to eat beef with cherry sauce. I know that dish doesn't exist but that is what I want with this beer. BAers love it even if they confuse age with strength.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/07/15/Oslo_brewery_history'

    Oslo brewery history

    Posted: July 15th, 2010, 12:00pm CEST by knutalbert
    I had to deliver a few books at the Oslo municipal library today, and a magazine caught my eye. It is the periodical of the Oslo Municipal Archive, which has Food and drink as the theme of its latest issue. Of particular interest is an article about brewery history. Bård Alsvik chronicles the developement from the first [...]

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/14/Joe_Asks_Us_To_Consider_What_Makes_For_Success'

    Joe Asks Us To Consider What Makes For Success

    Posted: July 14th, 2010, 4:45pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Update: Troy makes a very good point in reminding me to link to "Free Our Beer", Cass Enright's blog that delves into the backwardness of Ontario's system in far more detail than I would ever have the patience to present.

    Joe makes a very good point in his latest post "Twelve-Ounce Measures of Success in America":

    ...it occurs to me that neighborhood places like this are the real front lines of craft beer. Not the geekery, not the five-course beer dinners, and not the pricey rare releases. Those would be more like the captain's quarters where all the officers are chummy and there's a fellow in the corner playing violin. To carry the metaphor entirely too far. No, the trenches are in the dives, the airport bars, and the restaurants where the wife and kids want to eat...

    I entirely agree. I have been roaming central NY for a few days now and have been offered a choice of craft beers on tap in every restaurant where we have taken the kids. The grocery store shelves have a great selection at honest prices and, if you want to hunt them out, there are specialty beer stores with stunning shelvage stockery. Although it is just over the border, it is a long way from my home and native land of Ontario where craft brewers are still working hard to get taps in bars let alone family restaurants. We don't have a culture of criticism socially so few in the media speak out or look at the bigger picture to ask aloud why we alone are so weak that we need monopolistic retailing, too much sameness in our food and drink, why we pay so much when others don't.

    What really makes this stand out is that we are surrounded by Michigan, Quebec and New York - places with plenty of robust local pride and plenty of great adventurous good beer. I think the two are related. So, as Joe asks, where is the battle for better beer won or lost in your market? For me, it is lost at the border - the one I cross monthly to stock my stash with good beer not available. But it is also lost in the conversation where complacency and homers are happy enough with putting up with what you get. It is also lost in the breweries with every new launch of another boring amber ale.

    It also seems to be the same battle that would have to be fought if you were trying to sell seafood, real BBQ or organic food. How do they fight to win? Hard work for sure but also staking a claim to be different and better not to mention telling the story the product that is fun, tasty and / or wholesome as well as home grown. I wonder if my homeland can handle such ideas. When I look at the neighbours and their sense of cultural self, I wonder if Ontarians have it in them to take on the same idea, to ask the difficult question: "why don't we deserve our own best?"

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/13/It_Was_Like_An_Attack_Of_The_Geuze_I_Tell_Ya_'

    It Was Like An Attack Of The Geuze I Tell Ya!

    Posted: July 13th, 2010, 10:36pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Panicked rushed beer shopping can be such a rush.

    I couldn't have been in Finger Lake Beverage for more than 20 minutes and the New York State treasury is $26.89 richer on its 8% sales tax because of it. It was like beer was going out of style... or maybe it was like available credit was going out of style. Or maybe it was madness. Geuze madness. I have no idea how much saison and geuze and lambic I bought but as those are styles practically verbotten to Canadians I was not going to pass up on on any that I could see.

    Prices remain very reasonable at Finger Lake Beverages, five year after I have started going there. Average price was 10 bucks for pretty fine and/or rare stuff in good condition. Most expensive bottle was a big 3 Fonteinen Oude Gueze for $18.99. I passed on the 750 ml of Schaarbeekse Kriek by them for $39.99 but only because for that price you can pick up a good selection of five half bottles of various Belgian sours. First beers by The Bruery I have seen this far east for an affordable $8.99 or so at 750 ml.

    Now I just gotta get it home. We've been on the road long enough that 48 single beer's worth is tax free but it's making sure that it stays reasonably cool on the way home. I wrap the boxes in blankets, keep the AC on high in the van and move them into the hotels. It's like having cats - except with good beer you really have a fondness for the objects of your care and attention.

Hop Talk

A Good Beer Blog

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/12/Teach_Your_Children_Well___BBQ_Version'

    Teach Your Children Well - BBQ Version

    Posted: July 12th, 2010, 3:58pm CEST by Alan McLeod

    Every holiday should include a lunch at Syracuse's Dinosaur BBQ. I had a Tres Hombre but as I I left meat (I'm embarrassed even thinking of it) I was not as hombre as I might have been. The beer is an Ape Hanger Ale that's made, I am pretty sure, by Middle Ages as a special house brew. It followed a Syracuse Pale ale that I had standing out in the street waiting for a table. You go to hell and/or prison in Canada for standing in the street having a beer waiting for your table. That was the best Mac and Cheese I ever had, by the way. The lad knew enough to not leave any.

  • Permalink for 'A_Good_Beer_Blog/2010/07/11/CNY_Beer_Shopping_Starts_Tomorrow___Suggestions_'

    CNY Beer Shopping Starts Tomorrow - Suggestions?

    Posted: July 11th, 2010, 2:43am CEST by Alan McLeod

    Crossing the border for a few days always brings with it the opportunity to buy an insane amount of beer with which to stock the stash. The stash is not exactly sad but it is not exactly bursting at the seams, either. It deserves better.

    It's been almost a year and a half since I hit the wonder that is Finger Lake Beverages and I am wondering what you would recommend. They have a great selection of Belgians, Germans and British imports as well as a whack of US craft beers but it's those special releases that are going around I will focus on. What has been good recently? What is worth passing up? We also should be stopping at Ommegang and maybe even a few craft beer joints along the way - but this is a family jaunt so it's not like I'm dragging my butt through the taverns until the wee hours. No, between stops for ice cream, baseball games and swimming holes this is about stuffing the stash. So, what does it need to be stuffed with?

    And think of me as I weep before the beer section at Wegmans... again.

Knut Albert's beer blog

  • Permalink for 'Knut_Albert_s_beer_blog/2010/07/10/Summer_sipping'

    Summer sipping

    Posted: July 10th, 2010, 4:52am CEST by knutalbert
    Sure, a crisp pilsener or a clean IPA is usually what you want when the summer really sets in. A hefeweissen, perhaps. No smoked bocks or chocolate overdosesAn alternative is to go for one of the classics. It does not come in champagne bottles like its upmarket siblings. You don’t have to go to a dingy [...]
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