2008 Connecticut Craft Brewers Beer Festival

Saturday was the 14th annual Connecticut Craft Brewers Beer Festival in Naugatuck. After some overnight showers, the sun came out and provided us with a beautiful day. Although there was a threat of showers for late afternoon, they held off. Temperatures were in the mid to upper 60's.

I didn't have to deal with the food lines at all this year as I joined Bob over at Adam's house for a pre-beer fest 1/2 lb burger with a healthy covering of a onion and mushroom concoction that was delicious. Coupled with a late lunch, I was all ready to go.

We met Cooper and Chris at the beer fest and proceeded to systematically make our way through all four tents. We compared notes and made recommendations. We all have different palates: I'm the malt guy while Cooper and Adam are big on hops.

My first stop was Olde Burnside for their Ten Penny Scottish Ale, a favorite. They had Penny Weiz Scottish Wheat Ale on hand. In order to sell me on it, the guy from the brewery said that it resembled Blue Moon. The problem is, I'm not a Blue Moon fan. I considered coming back for it later but I never got around to it.

BruRm @ Bar was there with three cask conditioned ales: Damn Good Stout, Bar Pale Ale, and Reekie Tartan Scottish Ale. Last year's Raven Haired Beauty and Smoked Porter were absent unfortunately. I went with the stout. I found it too be a little too sweet with the coffee overtones a little too strong and the finish had some extra yeastiness to it. Bob got it as well and said that it was likely the cask conditioning that did it. Adam, Bob and Cooper said that the beer served at the brewfests were always better tasting than what they served at the bar.

This was the first year Butternuts Brewery was there. They served up their wares in cans. Yes, cans. Apparently people in the craft beer industry have come to the belief that canning technology is good enough now. Bob told me that Minnesota prohibits glass bottles from being used on their lakes but cans are ok (because they float better?). New England Brewery has had a measure of success selling their brews in Minnesota because they switched to cans a couple of years ago. Anyway, I tried the Porkslap Pale Ale. My first impression was "pork soda." It had a bit of a ginger ale feel to it. I can't say that's a recommendation.

I needed something malty after that so I grabbed a Gonzo Imperial Porter from Flying Dog. Others in the group went for the Double Dog IPA and gave it a thumbs up.

Chris recommended the Lobster Ale from Belfast Bay, a late addition to brewfest. It was terrible. I poured it out. That's how bad it was. I think it was some kind of American pilsner but I could be wrong.

Now I was desperately in need of a good beer to wash that swill out of my mouth. Harpoon was there. I sampled their Red Rye Ale, one of their 100 Barrel Series. It was very good, especially for Spring.

Chris wanted to make it up to me so he suggested the Old Yankee Ale from Cottrell. And he did. This was a nice crisp, hoppy beer. The website says that it's an American Amber Ale. I'd imagine that it would be good for spring and summer bbq's. They also had a bock, though I don't know the name and it's not listed on the website. My first impression was "bacon!" Bacon beer, mmmmmmm. It must've come from the smoky flavor. Curious.

I've never had any of Trout River's offerings before. Although the name is familiar, I'm not sure that it's available outside of Vermont. I'll have to keep an eye out for them. I had their Scottish Ale which was really good. Not too sweet at all. I then had their Hoppin Mad Trout, a pale ale. Despite its name, it wasn't overly hoppy at all. In fact, I'd say that it matched the style just fine.

Ipswich is another brewer that I've heard of but never had. I sampled their Summer Ale which was crisp and clean. The website says that it's an unfiltered blonde ale.

Cambridge House, a brew pub in Torrington, was there. I went with Three Steves Stout and it was good.

Hartford Better Beer Company made their first Naugatuck appearance this year. I haven't had them since the Brass City Brewfest last fall, so I picked up a glass of their Praying Mantis Porter. Still yummy.

Another last minute addition was Pennichuck Brewery. They were so last minute that their name didn't even appear in the menu that attendants receive upon entrance. Anyway, they're from New Hampshire and are just making inroads to CT and NY. I went with a dark lager named Feuerwehrmann Schwarzbier, which translates to Firefighter Black Lager. This was a very good offering. Plenty of malty goodness balanced with a lager bite.

And last, but certainly not least, Blue Point Brewing made their first visit to Naugatuck. I was hoping to clean my palate with some of their Blueberry Ale but, due to the lateness of the day, they didn't have any cold. So the rep from the company gave me a bottle to take home. Sweet! So, I settled on the Toasted Lager. This was a good choice to end the day. A good mix of hops and malt.

And there you have it. Another fine afternoon of people enjoying quality brews in a public setting free from tyranny, social conservative oppression and frat boy rowdiness. Even the police officers hired to monitor the event seemed to be having a good time. It's enough to restore one's faith in humanity, even if only for a few hours.

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The High Cost of Salt and Beer

Even infrequent readers of my blog know that I'm a beer aficionado, so when prices go up I'm going to be affected. But the rice shortage is impacting me too. Not because I'm a huge consumer of rice, but because of its impact on salt. Potassium Chloride salt to be exact.

When my house was built in the early 70's, the builder cut corners. Instead of using standard "L" grade copper pipe, he used "M" grade. The latter is suitable for closed circulating systems (heaters) but not for open systems. I have acidic water. It came up with a pH of 5.5 when I had it tested. Granted, the pH of well water is affected by various conditions, and 5.5 was probably on the extreme end. Anyway, the acidic water slowly ate away at the thinner walled pipe and led to pinhole leaks in my water lines. Fortunately, the way my house is set up, all of the leaking occurred in the garage. The acid would react with the copper pipe closest to the water source. Other than ruining insulation and sheet rock in the ceiling, we avoided any major damage.

Solution: We replaced the accessible copper pipe with flexible plastic pipe (cross-linked Polyethylene) which is unaffected by weak acids. The pH of the ground water would then be neutralized with a water softener/deionizer. Unfortunately, the water softener requires salt. Sodium Chloride is the standard, but I was concerned about introducing excess sodium into our diets so I opted for Potassium Chloride (KCl). Although at $9 for a 40lb bag it was twice the price, the relatively low consumption rate made it worth it.

But that was a few years ago.

Last month, I paid $16 for that same bag at Lowe's. I was in Agway with the kids the other day and I overheard one of the staff explaining to a customer that the price was now $24/bag. Why? China.

95% of KCl produced is used as fertilizer. It's referred to as potash (though the name is a catchall for potassium-based fertilizers). The clerk went on to say that China can't seem to get enough fertilizer for its rice crops (you remember the rice shortage, right?) and its causing a spike in demand for KCl worldwide.

Reminds me of the cement, copper, and steel shortages that were due to China's growth. Anyone seeing a pattern yet?

So, I can either pony up the money for KCl, switch to NaCl and elevate my family's blood pressure, or turn the unit off altogether and hope that my water's low pH doesn't attack the remaining copper pipe in the inaccessible parts of my house. And there's all the talk that acidic water is bad for you (though it doesn't stop people from drinking soda), but I've had a tough time finding unbiased info (most sites are trying to sell you something) on whether or not really weak acids (pH 6) are detrimental. For now, I'll spend the extra money on KCl.

Ok, now for the bad beer news. As I mentioned a couple of months ago, beer prices are going up. Well, if you drink swill, probably not so much. After all, it's so watered down that there's hardly anything in there. But if you're a craft brew drinker, you're looking at higher prices. Anyway, that article explains the situation (quadrupled hops prices! high gas prices! corn ethanol madness!) and offers tips on what you can do to "cope," including brewing your own beer (which I recommend).

Now for the good beer news (didn't want to make this all doom and gloom): the 2008 Connecticut Craft Beer Festival is Saturday, May 17th. I think I've got a 50/50 shot of making it this year. If I do, I'll be sure to report back here with my findings.

Specifically for Mike: Blue Point is now the #50 craft beer maker (in terms of volume) in the country. See this report.

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Beer In Review: Yes, More Porters

The daffodils are just beginning to poke up through the ground. I warned them that while the calendar says Spring, the forecast for the weekend weather is forecasting lows in the mid-20's. So I better finish up these porter reviews.

First up is Ithaca Beer Company's Gorges Smoked Porter. This brew has a nice dark brown body. Backlighting a pint glass will reveal some rich ruby hues. There is an ample amount of head, tan in color. It has a mild roasted malt aroma. The website claims that "The distinctive smokey character comes from the use of special beechwood smoked malt from Bamburg, Germany." Yes, it comes through and I believe that's what smooths out the otherwise robust hops (US Northern Brewer). It finishes clean. A very tasty beer. I was pleasantly surprised. 6.3% ABV.

This is a seasonal offering so it may already be off the shelf. If not, expect it to go on sale to make room for Spring.

Otter Creek already has an excellent porter so it came as a surprise to me that they were offering another one. But, as part of their World Tour of Beer series, they're offering a Baltic Porter. After drinking one of these, I can see why they brewed another porter. This is a great one.

On the pour we get ample creamy head and a roasted malt aroma. The quintessential dark brown body is a little reluctant to reveal its ruby hues to the light. Chocolate and roasted malts are plainly evident to the tongue. Surprisingly, it's not very robust at all and then a little sweetness takes over and rides your tongue to the finish.

The website admits to using "2-row, Munich, Caramel, and special German hulled barley malt, Carafa," which may have something to do with the taste. But then they go on to say, "Not only did we take extra time to brew this beer with a special 'step mash' process, it was also fermented longer, with a lager yeast." There's nothing really exotic about the "special step mash process." In essence, that's just a multi-step infusion process where the malt grains are steeped at different temperatures to let different enzymes play with the starches to get the desired sugars.

The lager yeast, now that's different. Normally one would use an ale yeast, typically London or Irish. Anyway, end result great beer.

Otter Creek is available throughout the Northeast, out to Ohio, and as far south as North Carolina. Residents of Sacramento, California and Portland, Oregon are also lucky.

Lastly, there's the DED of Winter Porter, my latest homebrew in case that isn't obvious. ;) The pour yields alot of creamy, tan head, though it does eventually settle. As I raise my glass, there's a faint vanilla bouquet. As is the style, dark brown body with a faint red hue visible if you shine a bright light on it. There's a smooth blend of malt on the tongue, with Fuggles and Kent Goldings hops waving "allo" from across the room. Vanilla and cinnamon peek out from the malt just before the finish, lending the brew a seasonal feel.

It's one of the best batches I've done and I credit the decision to go with a secondary fermentation. As a result, there's no yeast bite, which means that the added vanilla and cinnamon flavorings don't get trampled in the mix.

I'll see if I can take a picture of it and provide an estimated ABV determination later.

1. Anchor Porter
   
2. Baltic Porter
   
3. Smuttynose Robust Porter
   
4. Stovepipe Porter
   
5. Coal Porter
   
6. Road Dog Scottish Porter
   
7. Gorges Smoked Porter
   
8. Gonzo Imperial Porter
   
9. Black Bear Porter
   
10. Santa's Butt Porter
    
11. Saranac's Caramel Porter
    
12. Samuel Adams Honey Porter

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Beer In Review: Porter Season Winding Down

Winter is drawing to a close and with it ends porter season. Porters are dark, malty ales which are best suited to drinking in cold weather. While hot weather doesn't stop people from drinking them, most don't. In fact, some brewers consider their porters to be seasonal concoctions and have already ceased making them. So, it's probably a bit late in the season to be reviewing porters. [shrug] Oh well.

I finally picked up a 6 pack of Stone Coast Brewery's (or is it Sunday River Brewing?) Black Bear Porter. With a large black bear on the label, I expected this to be a fairly robust beer. I was a little disappointed by the outcome.

The pour is nice. Big frothy head and a dark brown body. The bouquet is mild though. I really don't smell much of anything. There's enough hops in it to qualify as "robust", probably Cascade. It definitely has a bite, but I'm not sure if it's bear worthy. Roasted, crystal, and chocolate malts come to play, but a little too nicely. I don't know. It just leaves me feeling like something's missing. It's good, but not great. Since there's better out there, I won't be buying any more of it.

Smuttynose's Robust Porter is nothing short of the textbook definition of the classification. It won the gold medal at the 2001 Great American Beer Festival. It's been one of my favorites and I've been wanting to review it for some time.

The aroma is all roasted malt. No light penetrates a pint glass of this stuff so you know you're dealing with some seriously high degrees Lovibond malts (Chocolate and dark crystal at the very least). Even the head has a dark tint to it. When the brew hits your tongue, the roasted malt walks in hand-in-hand with a decent amount of Cascade hops to provide some bite. There's a subtle chocolate follow up but if you blink you'll miss it. Smuttynose confesses to using Carastan malt, which I've learned is another name for English Crystal malt. I don't know what "special 'b'" is, but I suspect it's a brand of Black Patent malt, a highly roasted black malt.

5.7% ABV. Available through New England and down the East coast through Virginia. And, for some reason, Wisconsin.

The updated porter rankings:

1. Anchor Porter
   
2. Smuttynose Robust Porter
   
3. Stovepipe Porter
   
4. Coal Porter
   
5. Road Dog Scottish Porter
   
6. Gonzo Imperial Porter
   
7. Black Bear Porter
   
8. Santa's Butt Porter
   
9. Saranac's Caramel Porter
   
10. Samuel Adams Honey Porter

I'll have to pick up the Stovepipe and have a deathmatch between it and Smuttynose just to make sure that I got it right. I recently had Saranac's Caramel Porter and it reaffirmed it's place in the standings. Way too much caramel.

In other beer news, prices are going up this month (if they haven't already). Beer Guy tells me that a few brewers are passing their increased hops and malt costs along to the consumer. $1 - $3.50 a 12-pack can be expected. Saranac, which is one of the least expensive craft brewers (at least as far as CT pricing goes), is increasing their prices by a buck. Ithaca Brewing is hitting us with $3.50, which I think sends them to the $17+ range. I've got some at the house right now so it'll probably be the last. Beer Guy expects their already mediocre sales to tank. Magic Hat is also on the rise (think closer to Ithaca than Saranac).

More porter reviews to come.

Thanks to Jim and/or Paul for supplying the Smuttynose. Don't know which of you guys picked it up since you carpooled.

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Beer in Review: Cuckoo Bock

Continuing along with my newfound love of bock beer, I picked up Otter Creek's Cuckoo Bock. It's another installment of Otter Creek's World Tour through beer. This stop: Germany, for a Mai Bock, a lighter, but still potent, version of traditional bocks.

On the first pour (this is a 22 oz bottle after all), I got a clear, golden lager with a stable head. I found it to be mild in both hops and malt. A little sweet. Light bodied. It was crisp with a clean finish. It would make for a good beer to drink in Spring and I'd be willing to try it in Summer too.

Otter Creek divulged that they used "Vienna malt, pilsener malt, two types of Munich malts, and hops and yeast all the way from Germany, in an effort to make this beer as authentic as possible."

Actual alcohol content unknown, but the category runs 6.3% to 7.2%. You wouldn't know it though. I didn't get any of that extra tongue twist that I've encountered with Imperial beers.

The second pour was different than the first. This one was cloudy, and thus a little darker. My guess is that there was a bit of yeast sediment in there. Nothing any craft beer drinker can't handle. ;) Otherwise, it tasted the same.

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Corn Ethanol is Bad for Beer

I'm sitting here waiting for the wort to cool down to a reasonable temperature so that I can pour it into the carboy. The brew pot is sitting in a cold water bath with some ice thrown in for good measure. I figured that I'd kill some time.

I'm brewing a porter. It's been a bitch. I had to steep the crystal and chocolate malt grains and I haven't bought myself a lauter tun yet. I used coffee filters and my son's brand new fish net to make sure that none of the husks made it from the grist to the wort. Fortunately that stuff floats so I was able to wipe it off the sides of the brew pot. Broke my thermometer though. Had it since the Atlanta years. Fortunately that happened nowhere near the wort, which was covered anyway.

If you've ever checked out my homebrew page, tonight's batch is a variation on #15. More bittering hops. More malt. Even added cinnamon bark to the last 15 minutes of the boil to add some pizazz. I'm going to double the vanilla extract this time. I'll add that during secondary fermentation.

So why is corn ethanol bad for beer? Well if you haven't heard, farmers are abandoning hops and barley in favor of corn in order to take advantage of the demand for corn-based ethanol. This means that hops and barley prices go up. End result: Beer prices go up. And it affects us homebrewers too. At the supply store, hops prices were double and malt was up 40%. Ouch! Granted, I'm a retail user so I'm going to be paying more anyway. Breweries pay wholesale and get bulk discounts. But still, they're going to be paying more so beer drinkers are going to be paying more.

Ok the wort has cooled off and I've added it to the carboy. After topping it of with more cold water (from the water softener bypass) I get an OG that's a phenomenal 1.062! Oh shit! That's off the hook! That's, by far, the heaviest beer that I've ever tried to make. Time to pitch the yeast and put the beer (and me) to bed.

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Update: The shortage of hops is also due to bad weather. Link.

Beer in Review: Bocks Away!

I know I'm long overdue for a beer post. About 1 out of every 10 of my posts is about beer. I apologize for the slump. Between the holidays sucking up time and a post-New Year's sore throat ruining the taste of my favorite beverages, I had to put beer blogging on hold. In fact, my throat is still not 100%. So this post is working off of notes I took a while back and my memory.

As I mentioned here, I finally tried bock, and I liked it! So, I went out and bought a couple bocks. Unfortunately, I can only review one of them right now: Saranac's Black Diamond Bock.

The Matt Brewing Company continues to experiment with new beer styles in limited runs. The successful flavors get to come back as seasonals and limited releases. It's a business plan that Boston Brewery uses (much to my pleasure) and Magic Hat disdains (much to my chagrin). The Black Diamond Bock is one of those limited releases that runs during the colder months.

On the pour, the head is ok. Decent. A light brown to caramel color proclaims that its name has no relation to its appearance. The lager aroma rises to meet one's nose.

My tongue shouts, "malt!" Hops follow, but this beer remains smooth. It tastes German and sure enough, the major malt and hops ingredients are right out of Bavaria: Munich and Vienna malts coupled with the noble Hallertau hops. It all provides a reasonably strong 6.0% ABV kick.

So if you're like me and you find lagers a bit lacking, consider going darker and grab a bock. And if Saranac's Black Diamond Bock is available at your local liquor store, pick up a six pack.

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One Little Victory

Hit the liquor store today. Beer Guy spotted me and said, "I've got a surprise for you." I followed him over to the cooler and there it was Ten Penny Ale from Olde Burnside. Turns out, Old Burnside petitioned the state to drop their distributor, complaining that they weren't giving them a fair shake or promoting their brews. Amazingly enough, the state ruled in their favor.

Liquor stores open til 9 (from 8), brewpubs can sell their wares outside of their establishments, and now this. Things are looking up here in the Nutmeg state.

So the brewery found a new distributor, and a bigger one at that. Still stuck with growlers though. Definitely a brew one needs to share with friends. I should be able to do a proper review sometime in November.

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Beer In Review: Beer For Fall

I feel some political blogging coming on (with luck, it'll pass) so I thought that I'd throw off a post about beer first.

Autumn has finally joined the ranks of seasonal ales, long dominated by Summer and Winter. Most of the top craft breweries sport some kind of Oktoberfest offerings whose taste pays homage to the Bavarian festivities. Sam Adams' Octoberfest being an excellent example.

Redhook's Late Autumn Harvest Ale is their latest seasonal creation. Compared to their Summer ale, Sunrye, this is much more flavorful. An ample head arises on the pour yielding a hoppy bouquet that'll make you think of Bavaria. The brew displays a amber-caramel color (Redhook describes it as "chestnut").

Although not as hoppy as Sammy's Octoberfest, Redhook doesn't disappoint. They use a mix of Saaz (Czech Republic) and Northern Brewer (an American - English hybrid) hops to give this beer its bite and medium to full body (by my tastebuds at least). The specialty malts are what you'd expect (Crystal, Caramel, Roasted), but the addition of German Smoked Munich malt is what really gives the Late Autumn Harvest Ale more of the Oktoberfest feel. 5.7% ABV.

Beer Guy, down at the liquor store, has informed me that Winter Ales will be out next week so once those Oktoberfest ales are gone, you'll have to wait until next year. The funny thing is, it's been so warm (5-10 degrees above average), I'm just getting my tastebuds ready for Autumn beer.

Beer Guy also informed me of a bit of bad news. After trying to get the Ten Penny Ale in for weeks, he finally learned that Olde Burnside had a fight with their distributor. The latter complained that they wanted the brewery to use a more marketable container, like say 6-packs and 12-packs. The brewer uses 1/2 gallon growlers and refused to compromise. Now the distributor won't carry them. In this battle of the wills, the distributor wins as state law prevents breweries from being involved in the distribution business, and they own the Connecticut distribution rights. Bad move for Olde Burnside.

Today's other candidate is Harpoon's Brown Session Ale. As I mentioned earlier this year, I gave Harpoon a second chance after many years of avoidance and have been pleasantly surprised. Their Brown Session Ale, though not a seasonal, seems appropriate for this time of year, and lives up to its name.

The Brown Session Ale is new to Harpoon's family. On the pout, it provides an ample head over a medium brown body, as is characteristic of an American Brown Ale. The hops are mild (IBU 22) but definitely there. No idea which ones they use though, but I'd guess Cascade.

But the appeal here is the malts. Harpoon claims to use 6 different specialty malts, including a chocolate malt. But even though there's many different kinds of malt, they don't overwhelm the tongue at all. It's not heavy. The 4.3% ABV means that Harpoon didn't overload the wort with malt. It's smooth and finishes neat.

On its web page for the Brown Session Ale, Harpoon states:

While the craft beer industry has seen a growing trend in "extreme" beers, the brewers of Harpoon wanted to create something they could sit down and enjoy over an extended period of time - a session beer.

I couldn't agree more.

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2007 Brass City Brewfest

This past Saturday was the 2nd Annual Brass City Brewfest. I was worried that it was going to be a soggy affair as the remnants of Humberto swept through the area Friday night and early Saturday morning bringing much needed rain. But the sun came out around noon and we had a beautiful day, albeit on the cool side with mid-60 temps. Irregardless, it was a great day to drink beer.

Apparently there was a bigger crowd this year than last year. I wasn't sure, but everyone else I went with seemed certain. And since many of the vendors ran out of beer early, some before 4PM (the event started at 1) and almost all by the time the brewfest officially ended at 5.

My wife and I brought our Ten Penny Ale plastic glasses that we acquired earlier in the year at the Connecticut Craft Brewers Festival. It beats drinking out of those tiny cups and it means less garbage so why not? As such, we decided to start the day off right with a mug full of Ten Penny Ale from Olde Burnside. I still haven't made any progress in getting the beer guy at the liquor store I frequent to carry them. Of course it would be alot easier if they sold the stuff in something besides growlers. Until that changes, brewfests will continue to be the only time that I get to drink this excellent scottish ale. And they're quite happy to fill up a mug sporting their logo.

(UPDATE: The beer guy said that he's been trying to get the Olde Burnside brews but the distributor keeps claiming that they don't have any.)

John, a big Brooklyn Brewery fan, sampled their Brooklyner-Schneider Hopfen Weiss. It's a collaboration with a German brewer who shockingly enough was willing to try something new (Change is bad among the German brewers). It's a dry hopped wheat but it's nothing like a Hefeweizen or a Dunkelweizen. It wasn't overly hoppy. I found the citrus taste to be a bit overpowering, as if the esters got out of hand. White Ale and Belgian Ale lovers might want to check this out.

Speaking of Belgian Beer, there was a whole tent devoted to Belgian Beer. Admission to that ten was an extra $10. Not being a fan, and quite content with the selection in the four other tents and two vans, I passed. Bob and Adam went for it though. They were quite happy they did. They emerged with some green apple concoction that I have to admit was quite good.

John made one more recommendation that day and it was to check out the Polish beer. I spotted the Zwyiec Porter and went for it. Unfortunately, the dude waited on me instead of the cute blonde and he was a wise ass. "It's 9.5%. Are you sure you can handle it?" I gave him a look that said, "I've been drinking beer longer than you've been alive buddy." But all I said was, "I can handle it." Fucker gave me a meager three sips (no exaggeration). It was really good and I didn't get that imperial porter kick either. I didn't go back, though I should have.

The Single Track Copper Ale from Boulder Beer Company was good. It was a refreshing medium-bodied beer. The guy gave me enough that I could head over to the food tent for a cup of some excellent chili.

Lagunitas is an expensive brewer from California. I never buy their beer because it usually runs $10/six pack. Sierra Nevada's not much closer but even they're a buck or two cheaper. For a buck more I can usually get a 12 pack of Red Hook so why bother, right? So, I decided to try them out to see if I was missing anything. I had the Sirius Strong Cream Ale. It was ok, definitely not worth the extra money.

Rogue is a line of brews that I don't buy. I don't know why. I had their Mocha Porter and it was good and chocolatey. I need to start buying them.

Bob tried Berkshire Brewing's Coffeehouse Porter and really liked it. I asked him if it tasted like coffee and since he said it did I had to pass. Coffee makes me gag. Seriously. I get my caffeine elsewhere. So I went with their Oktoberfest. It was good.

When my wife and I lived in Norwalk, we used to go to the John Harvard's Brew House restaurant in Westport quite a bit. Alas, it closed and the closest one is in Manchester. For a chain, they make some pretty good beer. I was hoping to try their new Scotch Ale but it was all gone. I settled for the Oktoberfest but wasn't disappointed.

After one attends a few brewfests, you start seeing alot of the same brewers. I try to use these occasions to try new brews that I either don't get regularly or are just unavailable. Besides the Polish beer, this year's highlight was the Hartford Better Beer company. They were generous on the samples ("How much do you want?" "As much as you're willing to share.") so I really got a good taste. They have two brews right now: the Arch Amber Ale and the Praying Mantis Porter. The Amber Ale was a well balanced, medium-bodied ale that I could've drank all day. Well, I could've drank the Porter all day too. Smooth and rich with hints of chocolate, yet they didn't overdo the sweetness at all. I've got another brewer I need to nag the beer guy at the liquor store about.

(UPDATE: Beer guy said that he's already planning on having the Praying Mantis Porter in stock late Fall. He had the Arch Amber Ale in the store but it took 5 months to sell 3 cases. I guessed I missed it. Can't blame him for not wanting to continue carrying it. That's way too slow.)

We ended the day with a Maudite from Unibroue. This is an ale that my wife and I have enjoyed for some time. We first had it at the Vermont Brewfest many years ago (pre-kids). Unfortunately, it hadn't been sitting in the cooler long enough so it was a bit on the ambient temperature side. Still, it's a savory brew which I hope to properly review here sometime.

All in all, a very good day to be alive.

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Beer In Review: Unfiltered

After that last depressing post, it's time to do a 180 and write about something much happier: beer.

Saranac occupies the sweet spot in the price vs quality curve. At $5.99/six pack (at least here in CT), it's the best brand of brews one can find. Other high and higher quality brews typically cost more and if you try to spend less then you're running into swill territory dominated by the major brewers. It makes trying out new flavors much easier to do. So when I spotted their Pomegranate Wheat, I decided to give it a shot.

Sounds strange doesn't it. Well, I was pleasantly surprised. Unlike some fruit ales, this one isn't overdone. The pomegranate flavor is subtle and complements this brew rather than dominating it. It's a light bodied, straw colored, unfiltered wheat beer (Hefeweizen to us beer aficionados). Small head. The hops are mild while the malt is way in the background. Saranac states that they used "Columbus" hops, which is a variety I'm unfamiliar with. Smooth with a crisp finish, it makes for a great summer beer. I recently had it with barbecued salmon and it was great. Enjoyable in a glass or a bottle. 4.7% ABV.

The other Hefeweizen for today's entry is Harpoon's Raspberry Wheat. Many years ago, I had one of Harpoon's ales and I hated it. I can't remember which one it was but I avoided drinking them ever since. I finally decided to give them a second chance at this year's Connecticut Craft Brewers Beer Festival. My wife and I were both pleased with the results, so I had to buy some at the store in order to do a proper taste test.

Whereas the Pomegranate Wheat's fruit flavoring was subtle, you can smell Harpoon's raspberries right after opening the bottle. As you pour it into the glass, you'll note the foamy head over top the hazy brew. The color has a faint reddish tint (rose) to it, making it darker than Saranac's offering. Like Saranac, it's light bodied with detectable hops and the malt residing in the background. The raspberry flavor doesn't overwhelm but it definitely dominates. There's no denying its presence. It leads to a tart, slightly dry finish. Makes for a good dessert beer. Not so good with Chinese food and I'd suspect bbq would be out too. 4.8% ABV.

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DED

Brewpubs Rejoice!

Connecticut took another step in its emergence from the dark days of Prohibition. It is finally going to allow brewpubs to sell their creations outside of their premises. For 77 years, you could be a brewpub or a microbrewery, but not both. Connecticut was the last state in New England to remove this prohibition.

"This new law represents a win-win situation," said (Governor) Rell's spokesman, Adam Liegeot. "It will enable state brew pubs to expand and grow jobs, which in turn produces additional tax revenue for cities and towns. This law is the result of small business owners letting their voices be heard by the state legislature."

If this was such a no brainer, then why the fuck did it take so long to happen?

Of course, the brewpubs will still have to kiss ass to the wholesale distributors. State law prevents breweries of all kinds from selling directly to retailers. We still have to have the middlemen and thus that cost gets passed on to the consumer.

While there are only 9 brewpubs currently in CT, this change in the law could lead to growth in the local craft brew market. It opens up avenues of distribution previously unavailable. I've seen two local brewpubs (Colorado Brewery and The Flying Squire) go under because state law prevented them from expanding their revenue base. Survivors like Cambridge House and Bru Room will now have a chance to thrive.

And just maybe we'll see a brewpub return to Danbury.

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DED

The Birds and the Beers

Now, with more pictures!

Sunday was a mix of rain and clouds. Not exactly beach weather but, as we would soon learn, a sign of things to come for the days ahead. Staying indoors the whole time was a recipe for disaster. The kids would only be good for so long, as would I. So we drove to Brewster for the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History.

It's a nice little place that incorporates a library, a lecture hall, AV displays, a bird watching room, and an aquarium. They were celebrating the centennial of the birth of Rachel Carson, the mother of the environmental movement. You know her as the author of Silent Spring, the book that got the pesticide DDT banned in the US. Unfortunately, some people don't see that as a good thing.

The kids, being 5 and 1 1/2, have short attention spans. I constantly had to accelerate my viewing of the indoor exhibits. The bird watching room, with its osprey cam, wasn't active enough to hold their attention so we went downstairs to the aquarium. They loved that. It was full of crabs, turtles, fish, lobsters, and even jellyfish. There was a shallow tank where the kids could see tidal pool denizens and torment them with shrieking and splashing.

Outside, there's a trail that one can take to Cape Cod Bay. You have to cross a tidal marsh, bordered by Quivett Creek and Stony Brook, via a path constructed of two side-by-side 2x8's and a small wooden bridge constructed of the same. You can wave to the ospreys in their nest. You travel through some tall grasses and a forest of pitch pine and bear oak. Eventually you reach the shore, where tidal pools lay quietly littered with the carcasses of horseshoe and shore crabs.

As I mentioned, in the previous post, we ate at The Sea Dog, which had a great selection of beer. They had a special on Berkshire Brewery's Hefeweizen in the 22 oz bottle. Tammy's a wheat beer aficionado so she ordered it. Trying to keep the kids in line, I didn't really have a chance to look over the beer menu so I just said, "Make it two." We both thought that it was ok. It's a light bodied beer beer with a hazy straw colored look. There was a strong clove taste to it that turned me off to it. I wouldn't buy it again.

It rained on and off all day on Monday so didn't go far. After dinner, ground beer and mushrooms with pasta right here, Tammy and I took Rebecca out in the stroller for a walk. It was only lightly misting; none of us seemed to mind. We found a house for sale. We laughed when we looked up the price. Considering that it was one of the smaller homes here in the neighborhood, I can easily see the larger and nicer places going for double and triple.

Tuesday started out sunny, but the clouds rolled in as we were getting ready to head to the beach. By the time we got down to the water, the wind was so strong that I could feel my legs getting sandblasted. Not good for the little ones. So we went back to the house and the thunderstorm hit. Once it was done, we drove over to the former Coast Guard surf-rescue station just south of the Nauset Lighthouse and hit the trail through the tidal marsh and surrounding forest.

It was warm as we descended away from the station. We came up to the tidal marsh and there was a walkway constructed of that plastic decking material (the name eludes me). As the sun burned through the remnants of the storm clouds, the wind blew them across the tidal pond. The temperature immediately dropped 10 degrees! It actually felt refereshing. The rest of the hike wasn't of interest, though I spotted some yellow bird, probably a warbler, though it was flying so fast that I didn't get a good look.

While Rebecca took her nap, we set up camp on the observatory deck. With a pair of binoculars, Stokes Field Guide to Birds, and some Wachusett Blueberry Ale, we were all ready to go. The day did not disappoint. The bird feeders were the hot spot of the neighborhood. Besides the commonplace blue jay, mourning dove, and Northern Cardinal, we spotted several others that we don't get to see at home. The first surprise was the Eastern Towhee, one of many birds that we'd never seen before.

Several sparrows showed up and it was hard to tell one from the other. There were House Sparrows (which is actually in the Weaver Finch family), Song Sparrows, and Seaside Sparrows. I may be wrong on my classification of these. Perhaps there were Swamp Sparrows. There's little variation in the plumage of these guys. I'm sure veteran birdwatchers would disagree but I'm new at this.

Tammy spotted a mated pair of American Goldfinches, which are pretty birds. This was another bird that we'd never seen before. It's also known as the "wild canary" though I'm sure that was before canaries escaped captivity and actually became wild. I wonder what they'd say about the parrots that live along Connecticut's coast. Didn't hear about that one? Well, back in the 90's, rumor has it that a truck carrying parrots crashed and all the birds escaped. They've adapted to their new environment and either migrate south during the winter or have found some way to survive it. I used to live in Norwalk so I'd see them flying around all the time. I've seen their giant nests so I wouldn't be surprised if they stuck around. Those things looked well insulated.

The Wachusett Blueberry Ale is a light-bodied straw-colored ale. The blueberry flavoring doesn't overwhelm. This is a great beer for drinking during the warm weather, assuming that you don't mind fruit-flavored ales. Hops and malt are mild as is typical of the style.

I spotted a grackle for the first time. I'm pretty sure that it was a Boat-Tailed Grackle, but it might've just been a Common Grackle. The one I saw had a black head with a blue collar but Stokes says that they don't live this far north, at least not yet. The book was written in 1996 and said that it was expanding its range to the north and west so who knows.

The red plumage of a House Finch made for false Cardinal sightings. Also causing a bit of confusion were the Chickadees. I keep thinking that I'm seeing Carolina Chickadees, but they're not supposed to live this far north, at least not in the 90's. The Black-capped Chickadee is probably what I keep seeing. Or maybe a hybrid of the two. They move so fast!

We tried eating out again that night at a place that was supposed to be family friendly. I guess it was ok, though everyone else who came in afterwards was seated as far away from us as possible. One couple was next to us, but was moved within five minutes. Anyway, I had a Newport Storm: Hurricane Amber Ale, which was really good. It's a medium-bodied beer with the hops and malt balanced so that neither dominates, but the flavors come through. Alot of the ingredients are German, but it's far better than any import. 5.2% ABV. I'd definitely buy this one again and I'd certainly recommend it.

Today started out again with sunny skies, although it was a bit chilly. The clouds rolled in while Tammy was on another conference call for work. It drizzled on and off so we had to postpone the beach yet again. We went out to Marconi Station, the site of the first transatlantic wireless communication. After viewing the ravages of the sea, we hit the white cedar swamp trail. It starts out with pitch pine and bear oak, which looks alot like pin oak, and descends to a swamp filled with beautiful white cedar pine trees. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough of a breeze and the mosquitoes, who've been really loving me this year, converged on me in a swarm. I had Rebecca on my back in a backpack style carrier so I hotfooted out of there as fast as I could hike (it was uphill to get out). The skeeters didn't give up until I was back in the parking lot, a half mile later.

So why did we go to the swamp? Well, in the past, we've spotted frogs and turtles. Alex has been showing signs of a desire to explore and he wanted to see them in the wild. Unfortunately, the mosquitoes were ravenous (previous times they weren't bad at all) and we couldn't linger.

While I wrote this I drank a Smuttynose Summer Hefeweizen and lo and behold the skies cleared. It's a straw colored light bodied beer, good for summertime drinking. There's a light tangy feeling on the tongue. There's a pleasant aftertaste, which makes this ale refereshing for warm weather drinking. They used Belgian ale yeast. While it may seem odd to do that with a German style beer, I found it to be complementary. It's definitely better than the Berkshire Brewery offering. A good beer, but not a great beer. I'll probably buy it again.


Ooooh a red fox. Gotta go.

Later...

Tammy got a picture of the fox. Unfortunately, it looks like he's taking a dump.

Anyway, a couple more surprise bird sightings. One is the Townsend's Solitaire. According to Wiki, this is normally a Rocky Mountain range bird and it's absence from my Stokes "Eastern Region" guide would lend creedence to that. However, it's been spotted on Cape Cod before.

The other big surprise is that of a pair of Northern Bobwhites, a quail-like bird. It's got to be the polar opposite of House Sparrow. Quiet, slow, ground dwellers, these two were meekly pecking at the ground beneath the feeders for fallen seeds.

I think that's it. If someone else shows up, I'll be sure to share.

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DED

2007 Connecticut Craft Brewers Festival

I'm watching the Ducks and Red Wings battle it out for the Western Conference championship so now's as good a time as any to write up my review of the 2007 Connecticut Craft Brewers Festival.

After a week where we saw temperatures fifteen degress above normal, a colossal cold front blew in on Wednesday and gave us a tornado and temperatures fifteen degrees below normal. While that puts a shiver in Spring, it's damn good beer drinking weather.

The usual suspects were there. My wife and I were joined by Bob, Big Ed, Adam, and Cooper. After hitting the food tent before the lines could form, we split up and began sampling various breweries under the tents. Later on, we'd bump into one another and compare (mental) notes on what we found. Granted, our tastes in beer were diverse, but we made recommendations anyway.

Tammy and I started the day off right with Olde Burnside's Ten Penny Ale. This beer is hard for me to get as it's only available in 1/2 gallon growlers. My local liquor store is a bit hesitant in devoting so much shelf space for a relatively unknown brewery (despite in-state accolades). But Beer Guy is slowly caving. Anyway, Ten Penny Ale is a great Scotch Ale, probably the best of the line IMO. It isn't overly sweet like other scotch ales. I can drink this one all night.

Tammy suggested that I take a run over to Bru Room @ Bar (a microbrew located in a bar/nightclub in New Haven) and check out their Raven Haired Beauty. I took her up on it and got some. It was a good brown ale, but I had their Smoked Porter and thought that was better. And yes, it was definitely smokey. Unfortunately, I don't think that their beer is available anywhere except at the bar.

I don't remember the order of the breweries I sampled so I'll just start going through the list.

Lagunitas, which is made in California, typically sells for $10 a six pack in my local store. That's way too steep for me to just try at random so this was a golden opportunity for me to try them. Tammy had their Brown Shugga, a seasonal. She said that it was very strong tasting. It was good, but not great and not worth $10/six pack. I had the Censored Copper Ale and was disappointed. Definitely lacking. Needless to say, I won't be blowing my money on them any time soon.

Cooper is a big Rogue fan, another West Coast brewery (Washington) present. He's more into pilseners and lagers than I am but this time recommended their Juniper Pale Ale. I had to agree with him. The juniper berries jump out at you, though I didn't find them overwhelming. Might make for a good summer ale.

I'd seen Smuttynose's Hanami Ale in my local beer store but hadn't worked up the courage to buy it. The brewfest was my chance. Tammy and I both had it. It's made with a generous helping of cherries. We found it to be sour, very reminiscent of a lambic. It wasn't a bad beer. It was drinkable, but not something I'd buy.

What was a pleasant surprise was Harpoon's UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen. I haven't been a fan of Harpoon. Many years ago I had one of their beers and didn't like it at all. I can't remember what it was but I've avoided it ever since. Now, it looks like I'm headed back. Both Tammy and I liked it. The raspberry flavor made for an excellent complement to the hefeweizen style. While it was tart, it wasn't overly so. Made for a nice finish.

I've been meaning to pick up Stone Coast's Black Bear Porter. I had some while I was there just to remind myself.

Otter Creek was there, of course, but since I've had alot of their line, I was hoping they'd have something different. Sure enough, they had a couple of beers from their "World Tour Series." I reviewed their Otter Kilter recently and I liked it. They had their Cuckoo Bock, which was a German Mai Bock. I was surprised to find myself liking it. Can't wait for this one to appear in stores.

Another pleasant surprise was Berkshire Brewing's Shabadoo Black & Tan. I think it was Big Ed who recommended it. It was very good. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be available in the local area.

Towards the end of the session we went to Paper City Brewing. Some overexuberant guy gladly filled up our pint glasses. Tammy got the Cabot Street Summer Wheat, a Hefeweizen. Tammy said it was great. I had Riley's Stout which was excellent.

I followed this one up with a Blonde Ale from Thomas Hooker Ales. This was good too. Actually quite refreshing.

I know what you're thinking. "DED, weren't all the beers good by this point?" And the answer is, "No." My very next beer was awful. I went back to Paper City and the overexuberant guy was really pushing his neighbor's beer. He insisted it was "the best beer." His neighbor? High & Mighty. I asked the neighbor what he had, but had trouble hearing him. I tried their Beer of the Gods, a blend of Kölsch and Altbier styles, which I figured had to be good to earn that name. But it wasn't. I thought it sucked ass. I couldn't finish it, it was so bad.

I couldn't end the night on a bad note so I scrambled over to the place where I started: Olde Burnside. I grabbed a Dirty Penny, which is a 60/40 mix of Ten Penny Ale and their "signature stout." It cleansed that crappy beer taste out of my mouth and all was right again in the Beerverse.

And that's it. Next beerfest will hopefully be the Brass City Brewfest in Waterbury, which has been pushed up a month from October to September. Only four months to find a babysitter. I'd better get crackin'.

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DED

Beer In Review: The Best Brown Ale

I've been dying to write about this one since I started reviewing beer in this blog. It is, by far, the best brown ale in existence. Yes, even better than Newcastle. It even beats out the original formula for Pete's Wicked Ale, which was the beer that got me hooked on craft brewers. I'm talking about Old Brown Dog Ale from Smuttynose Brewery. I've been drinking Old Brown Dog since 1998. I can't remember if I stumbled across it on my own or if I was introduced to it from a friend, but I remember bringing it home to my soon-to-be-wife and her loving it as well.

On the pour, you get a solid head over top of a medium brown body. Sticking your nose over the glass gets you a mixed bouquet of hops and malt. All American hops are used. Cascade and Williamette, both offshoots of the British Fuggles, are grown in the Pacific Northwest. Cascade is the dominant hop, building a mild bitterness to the ale. The Williamette hops rounds off the bitterness and smooths it out. Balancing out the bitters are a solid team of barley malts: Pale Brewers, Munich, Crystal 60°L, and Chocolate. This is nothing short of delicious.

Old Brown Dog is 5.7% ABV and available throughout the northeast and as far south as Virginia. And for some reason, Wisconsin, home to the former beer capitol of the US, can get it too. Buy a 6 pack. You won't be disappointed.

Revenge of the Blithering Idiot: Since Bob's a fan of barleywine, I thought that I'd let him take a shot at the Blithering Idiot. He liked it, so it must not be as bad as I thought. I guess you have to have a taste for these things. I certainly don't.

The 2007 Connecticut Craft Brewers Festival is this Saturday. 40 breweries will be represented. And it looks like there's a 95% chance I'll be there. I'll report back here with my findings.

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DED

Beer In Review: A Scottish Otter

Otter Creek Brewery set off on a world tour of beer styles. Each of these limited edition runs is only available in 22 oz bottles. Unfortunately, I only recently learned about this beer tour so I don't know if I'll ever get a chance to try the earlier varieties. Anyway, the latest creation (#6) is the Otter Kilter, a "scottish style wee heavy ale." This is a yummy beer for malty beer lovers.

It has a rich caramel color and taste, due mostly to a Scottish barley called Golden Promise used for the malt. Apparently Scotch whiskey distillers prize it as well. Hops are kept to a minimum, as is the tradition with scotch ales. I never knew why, but apparently there's a historical precedent. You see, hops don't grow in Scotland. They only grow in South Britain. If you know the history of the British Isles, the Scots didn't get along with their southern neighbors, the Sassenachs. Who were they? Oh, "Sassenach" is Scottish for "Saxon." That should clear things up.

If your local liquor store carries Otter Creek brews, grab one of these while you can.

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The 13th Annual Connecticut Craft Brewers Beer Festival is Saturday, May 19th. Not sure yet if I'm going to be able to go, but I hope to.

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DED

Beer In Review: Wrestling Match

"Ladies and gentlemen! Tonight, Weyerbacher Brewery Wrestling Federation is proud to announce a heavyweight match between Blithering Idiot and Old Heathen."

Or something like that. Both of these high octane brews are crafted by Weyerbacher Brewery. Located in Easton, Pennsylvania, these people have been at it since 1995. A tour through their website reveals a colorful collection of labels, some of which I've seen, though I've never purchased. Weyerbacher beers are carried by stores throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, DC, Virginia, Ohio, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, Connecticut, North Carolina, and as of last week, Maine.

This round of tasting is courtesy of Jim, who might not like what I have to say.

First up is Blithering Idiot, a barleywine style ale. For those unfamiliar with barleywine, think of it as a wine made from barley instead of grapes, but still a beer. The alcohol content is similar to that of wine, and Blithering Idiot clocks in at a hefty 11.1% ABV. And at that level, you'll certainly wind up a blithering idiot if you drink too many of these.

On the pour, the imbiber is given a cloudy amber drink with plenty of head. The aroma is fruity but once it hits your mouth the esters and alcohol combine to punch your tongue with a sickening sweetness and then ends on a sour note. I have to say I despised this beverage. Normally, I like sweet. I've drank many a bottle of schnapps over the years and I prefer malty beers, which are generally sweeter, and the mixers I use to support the vodka I drink are all sweet, but this is just plain wrong.

It could be that it's because I hate wine. No seriously. I despise it. All I smell with red wines are a nasty combo of vinegar and sulfites, even the ones that get good ratings from Wine Spectator. I haven't tried to drink one in over a decade as my tongue would tear itself from my mouth and punch me in the eye. I don't hate white wines, but I certainly don't like them either.

Based on this, I'm certain that I'm a lousy judge of barleywines. But if you don't care for wine, then you probably want to steer clear of barleywines and the Blithering Idiot.

Up next is Old Heathen, an Imperial Stout. It's no slouch for alcohol either, measuring 8% ABV.

The beer oozes out of the bottle with the color of used motor oil. No joke. It's black. Even the head has a distinct black tint to it. It hits the tongue with a chocolate malt taste, with the alcohol making a pronounced appearence on the swallow. And that's it. I couldn't identify even a hint of hops. Overall, it's ok. Still not anything that I'd buy on a regular basis, but certainly drinkable, particularly in the winter.

And the winner of this very ugly match is.... Old Heathen, by decision. Certainly not a knockout.

You may be wondering, is this a case where marketing overwhelms craftmanship? I don't think so. Unlike Ridgeway Brewing, where the marketing controversy outweighed the quality of their beer portfolio, the names that Weyerbacher used aren't over the top. They seem to specialize in crafting high alcohol and complex beer, and their Winter Ale won a silver medal back in '98. It may be a while, but I'll give them another chance down the road.

Sorry, Jim.

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DED

Beer In Review: Porter Party

We finally got a measurable snow fall! After several attempts with flurries, typically dustings, sometimes 1/4 to 1/2 inch, we actually got about 2 1/2 to 3 inches. No, it's not much, but I'll take it.

The folks at the Boston Beer Company held a contest last year to let their fans choose which flavor to bring out of retirement. The Samuel Adams Honey Porter (5.45% ABV) was the winner. I looked forward to this one. Here's the description from the website:

Samuel Adams® Honey Porter is a full-flavored, full-bodied English porter with a substantial roasted malt character, offering a smooth, rounded finish. This beer is brewed with traditional English Ale hops and is dry-hopped with East Kent Goldings, known for their spicy aroma and distinctive, earthy flavor. We brew Honey Porter with Scottish heather honey which balances the spiciness of the hops.

Samuel Adams® Honey Porter is brewed with a complex blend of five varieties of malt including pale two-row Metcalfe and Harrington, Munich, Caramel and Weyermann Carafa®. This unique blend of malts imparts a full body and full flavor with substantial roasted character. The sweetness in the malt is complimented and enhanced by the unique sweetness and floral notes of the Scottish heather honey. We balanced all of that malt and honey with traditional UK hops: Fuggles and East Kent Goldings.

Sounds impressive, doesn't it? It did to me, but when I drank it, I wasn't impressed. It had more of a clove aroma to me and the mouthfeel was more like a lager than a porter. Don't get me wrong, this is still a well crafted beer but it wasn't what I was hoping for. As for the Kent Goldings and Fuggles hops, well I homebrew with the former all the time and I just used the Fuggles in Batch 15. I don't find Kent Goldings to be "spicy" at all, but the quantity I use them is probably alot lower than what Boston Beer does. And I haven't started dry hopping yet and I understand that alters the flavor quite a bit.

The other beer in this entry is the Road Dog Scottish Porter from the Flying Dog Brewery. Shortly after it's launch in 1995, the brewery was told to remove the beer from store shelves by the Colorado Liquor Board due to its slogan, "Good Beer, No Shit." Ralph Steadman came up with it. Thanks to help from the ACLU, they were able to keep the slogan on the label. Unlike Ridgeway Brewing, this is not a case where the marketing hype overshadows the beer itself.

On the pour a nice head develops on top of a solid dark beer. Although there's Black Malt and 120 Loviband Crystal Malt in here, a bright light will reveal a deep rich red color. There's also Chocolate Malt in here which you can definitely pick up, but there's a little something extra. The website says that it's (black) licorice I'm tasting and that seems right. I think that there's some of that in their Imperial Porter too. I couldn't place the mystery flavor before but that seems to be the case.

Yes, there's hops in there, but like most porters, they play second fiddle to the malt. The Flying Dog brewers inform us that they use Yakima Golding, which I think is a North American offshoot of Kent Golding but I don't know for sure, and Cascade hops, which I know for certain is an offshoot of the English Fuggles. The Cascade variety is mild hop, good for mellow bitterness in your beer. It can imbue your beer with a citrus aroma.

This is a yummy beer that has a unique taste to it. I don't know if the fact that these guys are calling it a "scottish porter" means that it's their contribution to a new class of porter because it's definitely not a brown, though it could qualify as a robust porter. It's good either way. It clocks in at 5.5% ABV.

So if I had to rank all of the porters that I've reviewed in this blog, I think that it would go like this:

1. Anchor Porter
   
2. Stovepipe Porter
   
3. Coal Porter
   
4. Road Dog Scottish Porter
   
5. Gonzo Imperial Porter
   
6. Santa's Butt Porter
   
7. Saranac's Caramel Porter
   
8. Samuel Adams Honey Porter
   

While #5 and #6 are next to each other in ranking, they're a bit of distance apart in quality. There are a couple more porters I haven't reviewed yet. One is Redhook's Blackhook Porter. I have to nag the beer guy at the liquor store to stock this one so I can pick some up. I wish that I'd reviewed Sam Adams Holiday Porter when I had the chance. That was good too. And Magic Hat's Ravell is no longer made which is a crying shame. So, I'll update this ranking system over time.

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As I mentioned on my home page, I'm going to attend the local writer's workshop again. I've got short stories to work on, and since the class starts Monday, I'm going to need all the time I can get to make the most of the class. By my posting frequency of late, you can probably tell that it's already started, but it's likely to become worse. Don't be surprised if you don't see much happening here for a while.

Until then, have a beer.
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DED

Beer In Review: Compare and Contrast

Winter finally showed up this week. The temperature dropped to seasonal averages and a few flurries actually managed to coat the ground. Not much, but it's a start. The cold air invigorates me as it enters my lungs. My stomach then demands something equally invigorating, so I satisfy it with some porter.

Now not all porters are the same. You've got two types of porters: brown and robust. Robust porters are closer in kinship to stouts than their brown porter brothers. They're very dark to the point of being opaque and hoppier than brown porters. Brown porters, while still dark, are more inclined to reveal some light through their bodies. The hops are downplayed. Brown porters are also lighter in body than their robust brethren. The alcohol content in brown porter tends to run between 4 and 6 percent while robust porter range from 5 to 7 percent.

So for this entry, I've picked two beers that are the quintessential picks of their category. The first one is Atlantic Brewing Company's Coal Porter. It's a brown porter. On the pour you'll get a good, stable head with a dark body. There's no shame in this "only" being a brown porter. While not black as coal, it takes a strong light to reveal the rich brown color. The chocolate and black malts being the culprits here. People who fear the dark, will still shudder at a pint glass of Coal Porter. Real beer drinkers will smile.

As the pint glass is raised to your lips, the chocolate and crystal malts will announce their presence to your nose. And your tongue will confirm this as chocolate and caramel flavors wash over it. Hops are mild. There's just enough of the Target and Williamette hops herein, though hop heads will undoubtedly demand more. This is a great beer that you can drink all winter. 5.8% ABV.

Representing the robust porters is Anchor Steam's Anchor Porter. On the pour a rich, stable head forms. The glass goes black as night. Only later on as the pint glass is drawn down does one see a rich ruby hue. Even the aforementioned head turns to a dark cream. Yes the chocolate and black malts are here. There was another aroma rising from the glass that I couldn't identify, though it was sweet. I checked the website and finally put a word to it: toffee. "Yes, that's it," I thought. My less than sophisticated culinary vocabulary was unable to label it without help, but toffee is definitely what it is.

No, I can't identify the hops and Anchor Steam is keeping their recipe a secret. Malts are easier to identify that hops, at least to this homebrewer. Anyway, the hops are definitely there. They make their claim on your tongue without overpowering it. So the whole blend of malt and hops, though clearly pronounced, are well balanced to give you a great robust porter. Yet another great beer that you can drink all winter long. 5.6% ABV.

My only complaint about these two beers would be the price. Each of these retails for $9/six pack here in CT. That's steep. I can brew a porter for half that price. In fact, I'm doing that right now. I still have to update my homebrew page with the particulars of my latest batch. But I'm not trying to say that the high price is all greed. While Atlantic Brewing Company (Bar Harbor, Maine) and Anchor Steam (San Francisco) will undoubtedly get their ingredients wholesale, there's shipping costs to add in, plus utilities, labor, taxes, and so on. Not to mention state regulated pricing, which I don't get since interstate trade is supposed to be regulated by the fed. Anyway, if you've ever thought of brewing your own beer, do it. After you're initial investment in the equipment, you only have to worry about your ingredients.

Ok, I'm rambling. Class dismissed. Go have a beer.

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DED

Beer In Review: Christmas Beer!

Well, 2006 is almost done. This is the time of year when people do some kind of "best of" or "top 10 stories" lists. I'm not. That would require alot of work that I have no interest in doing. I could opine about the deaths of James Brown and Gerald Ford but Mike did a good job of that already. Predictions for 2007? Nah. That's been done too. So, I'll just stick with beer.

Both of this entry's picks are from Ridgeway Brewing in Oxforshire, England. Shelton Brothers of Belchertown, Massachusettes (No, I'm not making that up) handles the importation of their brews. Ridgeway was founded by the former master brewer of Brakspear brewery, which shut its doors in 2002 after 223 years of brewing.

Ridgeway has gained a bit of notoriety for running afoul of censors here in the Northeast. Their Bad Elf line was accused of enticing kids into drinking beer. It's a lame argument which hasn't held up in court, afaik. Maine and New York have done likewise. Fortunately, Connecticut gave up on its battle last year. Yes, folks. The government is worse than your mother.

So while it's still legal, let me discuss Santa's Butt Porter. Yes, the double entendres are flowing. In beer terms, the "butt" refers to an 108 imperial gallon barrel or cask. Get it? As for the beer itself, it provides a decent head and a mild malty aroma. It has a very dark brown color and provides 6% ABV. Hops take a back seat here, but the malt isn't strong like Gonzo. This is a mild porter. It's a good beer, but it's not a great beer.
 
The other beer up for review is Lump of Coal Dark Holiday Stout. The byline boasts "Much More Than You Deserve for Xmas This Year." Ridgeway can't be accused of pulling any punches with their advertizing.

From the name, I expected this ale to be pitch black, but a little light manages to eek through shallow portions. Gonzo is darker. Don't get me wrong, it's still dark. There's ample head and a malty aroma. Hops take a back seat again as chocolate malt and a bit of smoke are the prominent flavors. I enjoyed this 8% ABV stout with, appropriately enough, the remaining petits fours that survived the in-laws Christmas night. Yummy.

Both beers come in 500 ml (about half a quart) bottles and retail in my neck of the woods for $3.50 each, iirc. That's a little steep to be enjoyed regularly, though it makes for a nice treat from time to time. I'll stick to domestic craft brews. And speaking of which, my complaint about a dearth of porters has ended. I've found a few to review for January.

Happy New Year!
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Beer In Review: March of the Imperials

Greetings from the Häagen-Dazs state! Being that Christmas will soon be here, I decided to keep things festive and happy here in the blog. So, let's let look at some beer. Better yet, we should drink some.

First up is a beer recommended to me by The Beer Guy who works at the liquor store I frequent. I don't remember him saying that this was an Imperial ale, but if one reads the fine print one finds out. Anyway, it's called Winter Storm and it's part of the Heavy Seas brand put out by Clipper City Brewery, located in Baltimore.

Technically, the Winter Storm is classified by Clipper City as a "Category 5" Ale. What does that mean? Your guess is as good as mine. It is a seasonal, but it's also an Imperial ESB that clocks in at 7.5% ABV. The website states that it has "pure hop power" and that's certainly true. It's dry hopped with Magnum, Fuggles, Cascade, Centennial and Chinook hops. Fortunately for me, it wasn't overwhelming like the 90 Minute IPA from Dogfish Head. In fact, drinking this beer reminded me of an IPA.

When you pour it in the glass you'll get a decent amount of head and a hoppy bouquet. The brewers also claim a "ruby hue" and "vivid malty flavor." I didn't get either of those. The color was dark copper and all I could taste were hops. Still, this is a good beer, especially for hops fans. I did see some yeast particles that the bottle warned about. But any drinker of homebrew knows that's nothing to be worried about.

The other beer is Gonzo Imperial Porter made by the Flying Dog Brewery out in Denver. It's intended as a tribute to Hunter S. Thompson. Yes, that Hunter S. Thompson. According to the website, he and Ralph Steadman, the artist for both HST's books and Rolling Stone articles and the brewery's labels, are kindred spirits with the brewery's founders.

The Gonzo Imperial Porter is as malty as Winter Storm is hoppy. From the moment you pour this beer into a pint glass you know you're getting gobs and gobs of malty goodness. The beer is so dark it's black, due to the black, chocolate and crystal malts. However, there were hints of a ruby glow through parts of the pint glass. Maybe a pilsner or tasting glass would reveal more. Anyway, bouquet and taste are all malt and all porter. The Millenium and Cascade hops show up just enough to let you know this isn't a malt soda. The 9.5% ABV reveals itself to you late in the taste. That's your clue that this a beer not to be trifled with. If you like porters, or just beer from the malty end of the spectrum, then I heartily recommend this one.

I'd forgotten how much I miss porters. There seems to be a dearth of them on the market these days, or at least in my travels. It seems that it's all Wheats, IPA's and PA's. It reinforces my decision that my next batch of homebrew should be a porter. But, in the meantime I'll go bug The Beer Guy to order some porters for the liquor store.

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