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The Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Imperial Oatmeal Stout

Posted: June 27th, 2011, 5:08pm CEST by Matt

So this is what it says on the label:

This imperial oatmeal stout is brewed with one of the world’s most expensive coffees. Made from droppings of weasel like Civet cats the fussy southeast Asian animals only eat the best and ripest coffee berries. Enzymes in their digestive system help to break down the bean. Workers collect the bean containing droppings for Civet or Weasel coffee. The exceedingly rare civet coffee has a strong taste and an even stronger aroma.

So obviously I bought it.

Maybe I made the mistake of looking up what a Civet cat looks like just before my first sip. The nose is sharp and smoky at the same time (the beer, not the cat), and this pitch black beer pours with a thin orange head. The first impression you get is that it is a smooth imperial stout until all of a sudden you are hit by strong hickory spice. It is a sharp flavor that lasts with thick viscosity.

In the end, I didn’t really enjoy it, and didn’t even finish my pint (which has happened maybe twice in my life). The smokey, odd bitterness just took away too much of the beer and left me with a thick, sticky aftertaste I needed to wash down with—well, a different beer. I will say my buddy Chad drank the rest, saying it was okay because it was so different. If you’re looking for something different, and I mean different, this certainly is it.

Mikkeller

Victory Brew Pub on Wheels (BPOW)

Posted: June 24th, 2011, 3:14pm CEST by Al

[www.youtube.com]

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Hop Talk Podcast #6 – Dirty Blondes and Missing Dons

Posted: June 23rd, 2011, 1:29pm CEST by Al

Enclosure: [download]

In this episode we talk about

MolsonCoors goes “craft” in Canada
Economy down, alcohol sales up
Rating beer
Finding beer festivals
and, listener mail

Download it here: Hop Talk Podcast ep. 6

…or subscribe with iTunes

Show notes: Beer News

MolsonCoors has launched Six Pints Specialty Beer Co to target the “craft and specialty beer market”. Haven’t we seen this before?

In spite of the sluggish economy, alcohol sales are doing well.

Brookston Beer Bulletin

We also ran across an opinion piece from Ashley Routson, aka “The Beer Wench”, about Craft Beer and the “Restaurant Hypocrisy”.

Beer Rating – does it make sense?

We discuss the origins of the Unofficial Hop Talk Beer Rating System. Does rating beer make sense? Isn’t beer too personal to try to put an objective measure on it?

Beer 2.0

Looking for something to do this weekend, or maybe next? You owe it to yourself to check out BeerFestivals.org. It has the best and biggest listing of beer festivals I’ve ever seen.

What we drank:

Al: Spaten Optimator (review)
Ron: Adirondack Dirty Blonde
Max: Harpoon IPA

Spot a discrepancy? Something missing? Let us know. contact@hop-talk.com

Follow us on Twitter: @hoptalk and @hoptalkron

Music credits:

Background music at bar during intro:
Artist: Gnappy
Song: Best Not FUnck Around

Main intro:
Artist: A Thousand Knives of Fire
Song: She’s Yours

Outro Music:
Artist: Aphasia
Song: Metal Tank

Transition Music:
Artist: Devil In A Woodpile
Song: Beer Ticket Rag

The Secret to Growing Hops

Posted: June 18th, 2011, 10:59pm CEST by Matt

Beer bottle colosseum

Posted: June 17th, 2011, 2:39pm CEST by Al

The Telegraph Picture of the Day from May 6, 2009.

(via Brookston Beer Bulletin)

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Send a beer for Father’s Day

Posted: June 14th, 2011, 3:42pm CEST by Al

From the T.G.I. Friday’s® press release:

Facebook Fans Give the Gift of a Cold Brew with T.G.I. Friday’s® Buy Your Friend A Beer App
Custom Facebook Tab Can Treat Dad to a Cold Brew for Father’s Day
CARROLLTON, Texas, June 10, 2011 – Unofficially dubbed the “summer of beer” by Friday’s® and its Better with Brew menu, Facebook users can help their friends cool down during the hot months via the new Buy Your Friend A Beer application. And, just in time for Father’s Day, sons and daughters can finally move on from the go-to gifts of socks or a tie and buy dad a beer for his special day.

Any Facebook user 21 years and older can buy their Facebook friends up to five beers simply by “liking” the Friday’s fan page and placing an order through the custom tab. Recipients receive an electronic gift card to redeem in restaurant. The purchase price is set at $5, regardless of the recipient’s regional location, and is redeemable for any beer of choice, non-alcoholic beverage or food item at any local T.G.I. Friday’s.

…

Well, that’s nice! I mean, I’m not really a big fan of Facebook. Or T.G.I. Friday’s. And, while the sample list of craft brews they provide later on in the press release are a break from industrial-brewed American lagers, they’re not all that interesting either. And, of course, it’s a transparent attempt to get more followers on Facebook (and market to them), get more press coverage, and get a few more people in their restaurants.

On the other hand, who wouldn’t like a free beer or two? And, even better, if beer’s not your thing, you can use the $5 on a non-alcoholic beverage or a food item.

Not that there isn’t any controversy. In the USA Today article about this, the main chucklehead at the Neo-Prohibitionist Marin Institute calls it “horrifying” because it is “part of a growing trend to use Facebook and other social media to promote alcohol sales to youth.”

Oh, give me a break. As if some sixteen-year-old is actually going to be able to redeem one of these. I give the servers at T.G.I. Friday’s more credit than that.

I tell you what, though. I wasn’t planning on participating in this, but since the Marin Institute wants to tell me what beverages I, an adult, can or can’t enjoy, I’m going to send out a couple of beers to some Dads I know and maybe redeem one or two myself. If you’d like to send one to me, I’ll toast in your honor.

Wisconsin legislation to prevent craft brewers from getting into distribution

Posted: June 13th, 2011, 3:25pm CEST by Al

The news coming out of Wisconsin regarding craft beer has been a bit disconcerting lately.

The latest is an amendment to the proposed budget that, while it would allow craft brewers to sell directly to retailers, it would also prohibit them from owning beer distributors.

Microbreweries Hopping Mad Over Legislation

The proposal supported by MillerCoors and the Wisconsin Beer Distributors Association combines the brewer’s permit and wholesale and retail licenses given out by municipalities into one permit under state control.

It would ban brewers from purchasing distributors — something craft brewers say they might need later to avoid getting squeezed out of the market by large corporate brewers.

There are many reasons to hate the three-tier system, but if Anheuser-Busch can own a network of distributors, why couldn’t a consortium of craft brewers?

Tension

Posted: June 12th, 2011, 1:02am CEST by Matt

Epic Beer Commercial

Posted: June 10th, 2011, 2:59pm CEST by Al

[www.youtube.com]

(via Geeks Are Sexy)

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Hop Talk Podcast #5 – The Beer Smith Empire!

Posted: June 6th, 2011, 3:38pm CEST by Al

Enclosure: [download]

In this episode we talk to Brad Smith of BeerSmith.

Download it here: Hop Talk Podcast ep. 5

…or subscribe with iTunes

Show notes:

Brad Smith leads a small homebrewing media empire, with software, a blog, a wiki, a social news site, a podcast, and a book. He talks to us about homebrewing, the new version of BeerSmith, and snowballing projects.

BeerSmith
BeerSmith Blog
BeerSmith Podcast
Brewwiki.com (a wiki for homebrewing information)
BrewPoll.com (like Digg, but for beer and brewing news)
Home Brewing with BeerSmith (Brad’s book on homebrewing, featuring the best from the BeerSmith blog)
Brad also invented BeerXML, an implementation of XML to describe beer recipes

What we drank:

Ron: Full Sail IPA
Matt: Rogue Mocha Porter
Max: Otter Creek Alpine Black IPA
Don: Lagunitas Wilco Tango Foxtrot
Al: Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
Brad: Homebrewed Belgian Wit

Spot a discrepancy? Something missing? Let us know. contact@hop-talk.com

Follow us on Twitter: @hoptalk and @hoptalkron

Music credits:

Background music at bar during intro:
Artist: Gnappy
Song: Best Not FUnck Around

Main intro:
Artist: A Thousand Knives of Fire
Song: She’s Yours

Outro Music:
Artist: Aphasia
Song: Metal Tank

Transition Music:
Artist: Devil In A Woodpile
Song: Beer Ticket Rag

Beer party voting

Posted: June 6th, 2011, 2:24am CEST by Al

A couple of months ago, I helped my friends Chris and Ellen brew a batch of homebrew. It was a biere de garde extract recipe, with some interesting hop substitutions. Anyway, at the time, my wife decided that when it was ready we should have a “tasting” party.

Well, the party was yesterday, and it was a smashing success. To keep from drinking all the homebrew, we asked everyone to bring one or three interesting things for other people to try. My wife made a bunch of delicious crustinis and other folks brought some other finger food (including some kick-you-in-the-head truffles) but the food was to complement the beer.

As if I didn’t already make enough of a fool of myself, I was compelled to ask each and every one of my guests to sample at least five different beers and give their rating of each, on a scale from 1 to 5. I gave them a little paper ballot, referred them to the Unofficial Hop Talk Beer Rating System, and…let them go.

Much to my surprise and delight, they did it! Well, not everybody, but better than half of the adults who attended rated at least four beers, and some people sampled as many as 18. (My 2 ounce beer sampler glasses got quite a workout.) What was really cool is that everybody was more than willing to try beers they normally would pass by at the beer store. Even the hardcore Coors Light guy sampled, and rated highly, quite a number of different beers. (He still gave his beloved Coors Light a 5, though.)

To be sure, it wasn’t picture perfect. The Flying Dog Imperial IPA Simcoe was universally loved by the hopheads in the group, and universally reviled by those with much more tender palates. Some beers were sampled and rated by fewer people, which skewed the results. And, of course, some people avoided beers they new the would not like. (See the aforementioned Coors Light for one example.)

Still and all, it was a great success. Everyone said they had a great time, and that’s the whole idea, right?

Here are the very unscientific results. This is only valid for the group of people who were hanging out on my deck on June 4, 2011. (Each beer is listed with its score and the number of votes it received. As you can see, we lead off with an anomaly.)

Troegs Pale Ale (5.00) [1]
Paulaner Hefe-Weizen (3.85) [8]
Southern Tier Hop Sun (3.79) [7]
Samuel Adams Cream Stout (3.75) [6]
Tupper’s Hop Pocket (3.68) [9]
La Fin du Monde (3.61) [11]
Troegs Java Head (3.59) [8]
Magic Hat Wacko (3.50) [5]
Brooklyn Pilsner (3.46) [7]
Southern Tier Pale Ale (3.46) [9]
Flying Dog Woody Creek White (3.38) [4]
Toasty Frog (This is the homebrew Chris and Ellen made with my help, and the ostensible star of the show) (3.31) [9]
Coors Light (3.17) [3]
Franziskaner Weissbier (3.15) [5]
21st Amendment Brew Free or Die (3.00) [7]
Spaten Premium (3.00) [3]
Spaten Optimator (3.00) [2]
Dale’s Pale Ale (2.88) [6]
Flying Dog Imperial IPA Simcoe (2.85) [11]
Flying Dog Raging Bitch (2.56) [4]
Lagunitas Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ (2.50) [1]
Samuel Adams Blackberry Witbier (2.22) [9]

The Grim Brewer of Hops

Posted: June 4th, 2011, 11:44pm CEST by Matt

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Research: Guinness doesn’t travel well

Posted: June 1st, 2011, 3:37am CEST by Al

Whatever you might feel about Guinness, I’m sure you’ve heard it said that it doesn’t “travel well”. (There’s a joke floating around the intarwebz about this being said in a pub across the street from the St. James Gate brewery.)

Well, some researchers set out to see if this is actually true. Their conclusion?

Guinness tastes best close to home.

Their research is in the Journal of Food Science. From the Abstract:

This study aimed to test the much-pronounced but poorly supported theory that “Guinness does not travel well.” A total of 4 researchers from 4 different countries of origin traveled around the world for 12 mo to collect data on the enjoyment of Guinness and related factors. The main outcome was measured on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) from 0 (enjoyed it not at all) to 100 (enjoyed it very much). A total of 103 tastings were recorded (42 in Ireland, 61 elsewhere) in 71 different pubs spread over 33 cities and 14 countries. The enjoyment of Guinness consumed in Ireland was rated higher (74 mm VAS) than outside Ireland (57 mm; P < 0.001). This difference remained statistically significant after adjusting for researcher, pub ambience, Guinness appearance, and the sensory measures mouthfeel, flavor, and aftertaste. This study is the first to provide scientific evidence that Guinness does not travel well and that the enjoyment of Guinness (for our group of nonexpert tasters) was higher when in Ireland. Results, however, are subject to further verification because of limitations in the study design.

You’ll need to pay to get the whole study (or be a researcher that subscribes to the Wiley Online Library).

I’d like to volunteer to help them with that “further verification”.

(via Ars Technica)

NanoBryg rss syndication » Hop Talk » June 2011

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Hop Talk (13 unread)

The Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Imperial Oatmeal Stout

Posted: June 27th, 2011, 5:08pm CEST by Matt

Victory Brew Pub on Wheels (BPOW)

Posted: June 24th, 2011, 3:14pm CEST by Al

Hop Talk Podcast #6 – Dirty Blondes and Missing Dons

Posted: June 23rd, 2011, 1:29pm CEST by Al

Enclosure: [download]

The Secret to Growing Hops

Posted: June 18th, 2011, 10:59pm CEST by Matt

Beer bottle colosseum

Posted: June 17th, 2011, 2:39pm CEST by Al

Send a beer for Father’s Day

Posted: June 14th, 2011, 3:42pm CEST by Al

Wisconsin legislation to prevent craft brewers from getting into distribution

Posted: June 13th, 2011, 3:25pm CEST by Al

Tension

Posted: June 12th, 2011, 1:02am CEST by Matt

Epic Beer Commercial

Posted: June 10th, 2011, 2:59pm CEST by Al

Hop Talk Podcast #5 – The Beer Smith Empire!

Posted: June 6th, 2011, 3:38pm CEST by Al

Enclosure: [download]

Beer party voting

Posted: June 6th, 2011, 2:24am CEST by Al

The Grim Brewer of Hops

Posted: June 4th, 2011, 11:44pm CEST by Matt

Research: Guinness doesn’t travel well

Posted: June 1st, 2011, 3:37am CEST by Al