Thursday, November 28, 2013

Giving Thanks

It's Thanksgiving today... What do families do before gorging themselves on turkey with all the trimmings?  They give thanks.We here at the Beer Barons wanted to make sure we took time out of our busy posting schedule to share what we're thankful for in our world, beyond just the craft beer we usually discuss.

O-Dawg: I am giving thanks for having the best wife, friends & family.  2013 has been a somewhat awkward and challenging year for me.  Through all of the tribulation my lovely wife has been my rock, my friends have kept me sane and my family has had my back on future job prospects. I love you all and hope nothing but the best for everyone this Thanksgiving Day!  Stay safe  and keep warm!

The Big Guy: Its been said that Indy doesn't have much of a craftbeer scene, but I'm thankful for the awesome craft beer scene we have. Here in Indy we are blessed with awesome brewers, great bar tenders and enthusiastic fans. The group is small enough that you can get to know just about everyone, but big enough that we have some exciting things happening. This is an awesome place and time to be when it comes to craft beer! Ohh yeah, and thanks for YEAST! Without it beer would kinda suck.

The Little Lady: There's a lot to be thankful for, so I'll try to keep my list focused. Friends and family are always at the top of that list, especially everyone who's been involved in the blog this year. We couldn't do it without everyone willing to go to events with us, put up with us taking pictures of beer and making tasting notes to use later, and share their opinions as we come up with ideas. We could drink alone, but it's much better to have people sharing in the adventure with us!

The BrewniBomber: First I'll say ditto to what The Big Guy said, because we really are in a "sweet spot"- lots of cool things going on, improvements being made, etc., but it's not overwhelming nor are the people in the scene greedy. I'm very thankful for the creative and kind people I've met working in the industry and for the awesome friends I've met that are always willing to share good times and the awesome beers they have; it's really nice not having to go to events alone!

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Sun King Brewery King's Reserve Afternoon Delight Review







A yes the Sun King King's Reserve Series; I kind of have a love-hate relationship with these beers. Why? Well let's start with the bad. 
Hate- In my opinion the releases are expensive ($6- $25 per 16oz can) and the beers don't always justify the price. They can also be very hard to acquire as they're brewery or event only releases that are packaged in limited quantities. Meaning that unless you're on top of the release you'll miss out.
 
Love- Yes, I think there have been a couple duds, but by and large the releases are high-quality, fun, and tasty beers. Maybe more importantly, some of those "hate" items are also good signs that Indy does have a growing craft beer scene. 1) A local brewer is packaging and releasing a limited one-off beer (presumably) on a semi-regular basis. 2) That release disappears within hours of its availability. 3) Those releases are highly sought after outside of Indiana. (Just yesterday I got a request from a California stranger for Pappy Van Muckle).
In general the King's Reserve concept and beers are great. I think the series will continue to improve as Sun King rolls out more offerings on a regular basis. Huh? Oh right I'm supposed to be doing a beer review here. 

The latest release in the KR series was their GABF Gold Winner, Afternoon Delight- a Bourbon Barrel Aged Dopplebock (SK's Dominator Dopplebock to be exact) clocking in at 8%.

Now I'm not the biggest fan of dopplebocks, but I ran down there and bought some before heading off to Tomlinson Tap Room, Flat 12, and La Margarita for some beer adventures with friends (The Big Guy remembers this day fondly, well, some of it). 


The pour from the 16oz can yields a dark reddish-brown liquid with a 2-finger beige head that clings to the edges in wispy threads throughout consumption. The smell is all bourbon barrels and sweetness, with notes of vanilla, oak, grain alcohol, caramel, and dark sugars. I hope you like bourbon, because up front the taste is all bourbon. Again, there are bourbon notes of vanilla, oak, toffee, and grain spirits. With the swallow things change a bit as caramel, dark fruits, spicy hops show up, but at the end the booze comes back into play. As bourbon barrel beers go this is a bit thin, but keep in mind that this is a dopplebock (a strong German lager) and not your run-of-the-mill barrel aged imperial stout. Not a lot of carbonation, but what's there is a bit fizzy. Finishes dry and warming, but after awhile leaves a sticky residue. 


This is essentially a bourbon bomb, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're a bourbon fan like myself. You get all those wonderful confectioner's notes you get with some bourbons, but with a nice mellow and malty finish. Again, this is one of those beers that can be hard to rate because you can't exactly go to your local liquor outpost and pick it up… but if you know someone who has a can of this… do what you have to get it from them 4.5/5

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

BREWniversity: BJCP Style Series

This is the first post in a series that we're starting in the BREWniversity section of the blog. The Big Guy and I are about to take an exam that will (hopefully) result in the two of us becoming certified judges for brewing competitions. I say hopefully, because there's a lot to learn. I'm a little nervous about the exam itself, but I'm also looking forward to the practice. And there will be plenty of practice.


We're taking the BJCP, or Beer Judge Certification Program, exam. Some of the things we need to know are the features that make each style distinct. We also have to know the common sources of off-flavors and how to correct them, but it's the first part that we're going to focus on here.

I'll be honest and say that writing this series is definitely self-serving because it's going to help me learn and remember the small details about each, but I'm also hoping that it will be interesting.

One of the biggest things that makes this type of experience different from what I do on Untappd is that in an official judging scenario, it doesn't matter if I like the beer. It only matters if the beer is a good example of the style. The opposite is also true- a beer can taste great but be a bad example of the intended style.

So over the next several BREWniversity posts, we'll explore the unique qualities of the different beer styles, and review some good examples of each one. As you can see in the picture above, it's going to take some time to go through all of the styles, but it's a commitment I'm willing to make. You can also see that things are tabbed and color-coded. I managed to make drinking beer nerdy. The Big Guy wasn't surprised.

If you're interested in learning more about the BJCP, take a look at their website at http://www.bjcp.org.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Bourbon Barrel Aged Coconut Porter

Congratulations to Great Crescent Brewing Company in Aurora IN. They turned five years old last week and threw one heck of a party at their brewery in Southern IN. We haven't really highlighted Great Crescent here before, but its not because their beer isn't good, its because they're so close to Cinci its hard to get to them on a regular basis and they don't distribute much in the Indy metro area, because they go through Starlight distribution. They are little bit easier to find down in Bloomington at the main Big Red.

One of my friends, Parker, had been looking for the Bourbon Barrel Coconut Porter since they brought some to the CANvitational. Since I was driving into Cinci for work, I decided to take a few minutes and stop by the brewery to see what I could get. There were three cases left, and I took half of them to bring back to Indy folks.

The standard coconut porter is 5.6% abv, but this bourbon barrel aged version has been jacked up. It comes in at about 9.5% abv with a big imperial porter flavor. It pours out dark as motor oil with a nice short sticky tan head. It smell like roasty, vanilla, oak and just a bit of nice toasted coconuts.

The flavor is super sweet and malty upfront. This could be a dessert all by itself, and that's totally what I'm looking for in this kind of a beer. My favorite part of this beer is how the coconut is perfectly balanced. It's nothing overpowering or fake tasting but its definitely there adding a nice roasted note to a great porter. One of the biggest problems I had with the Stone Coconut IPA was the lack of coconut flavor. The coconut in this beer delivers a nice light nuttiness that really hits the spot. It blends perfectly with the big bitter chocolaty notes of the beer. It reminds me of a bitter sweet almond joy.

This guy was pretty hard to get but well worth the effort. Great beer, and I give it a solid 4

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Daredevil Lift Off Can Release and Review

I was first introduced to Daredevil Brewing about 10 months ago while visiting TwentyTap with a friend. I had never heard of them, but with acool name and a penchant for IPAs, I ordered their Lift Off IPA. Off the bat I fell in love and my first thoughts were: "Who are these guys and when will they package this beer??"

Daredevil Brewing is a "local" brewery founded by 2 award winning brewers, Bill Ballinger and Michael Pearson, and craft beer enthusiast Shane Pearson (Shane and Michael are twins so beware!). They brewed their first batch of beer in December of last year at their Shelbyville, Indiana location and since have brewed a handful of beers:
  • Lift Off West Coast India Pale Ale
  • Muse Belgian Golden Ale
  • Rip Cord Double IPA
  • Vacation Kolsch
  • Carnival Saison
Generally speaking Daredevil likes to have Lift Off always available with a different "seasonal" rotating through.

In previous conversations with the guys at Daredevil, I always asked what a lot of people asked: "When are you going to bottle Lift Off?" and they would patiently reply with "We're hoping early 2014", which is why I was pleasantly surprised by their announcement of a November 2013 can release.

The guys did a great job with the release on many levels. First, they constantly kept people informed via social media about the timing and locations of their newly released cans making it easy to track down Lift Off- assuming the store still had some!  Secondly, the packaging is awesome; I love the 4-packs, the 16oz cans, and I've always been a huge fan of their branding, which the can artwork does justice to.

Lastly, the #HandsOnOurCans contest is a cool idea and has generated a lot of fun and creative pictures (including some of my own) from Lift Off drinkers. 

So let's talk about what's in those sleek looking cans!

The color is right on with what you'd expect from a "West Coast"-style IPA: bright copper liquid with a finger of off-white head. It smells of the classic American hop aromas of grapefruit, pine, and caramel. The taste gives grapefruit and pine up front, with some breadiness and caramel mixed in before finishing pleasantly bitter. The mouthfeel is middling with decent carbonation, and a crisp finish. 

It's well balanced and hits the right notes, but I would like to see just a bit more hop flavor and bitterness if it's going to be called a west coast-style IPA. It's also a little bit thicker than a traditional IPA in my opinion, but the 7.2% ABV provides some explanation for that- some increased carbonation might help here.

I have to admit I'm nitpicking, because I think this is a very solid IPA and one of the best local IPAs available in cans (or bottles). The fact that this will be a regular staple in my fridge says something: 4/5


The Big Guy: I'm a huge fan of what the guys at Daredevil are doing. They've taken their time on one beer to make sure everything is perfect before bringing it to market. There are such large differences between beer on draft and in cans and how it presents to the consumer. Its very cool that Michael and the guys over there are taking that into consideration. That being said this is an awesome West Coast style IPA. Its clean and crisp with awesome hop notes. I give it a 3.5

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

BREWniversity: The Proper Pour

There are a ton of ways to pour a beer. I've been pouring down the side of a glass for years, trying to mitigate the amount of head produced.

With a domestic lager, like a High Life, this is often needed because there is a ton of head produced in those mass produced brews and honestly there isn't a ton of aroma coming off the beer. What I've come to find out though, is I was really wrong.


This is how you pour a beer the right way to release as much of the aroma and flavor as possible from the carbonation.

By the end of your pour you'll have a thick strong head that will give you awesome lacing and release a ton of great aromas.

First off, do not pour down the side of the glass. We aren't frat boys. Instead pour directly down the center of the glass. You want the head to rise up to the top of the glass.

Once it hits the top, let it dissipate down to about one inch tall. Notice the size of the bubbles at the top of the glass; they're much larger than the bubbles at the bottom of the glass by the beer.

While the larger bubbles at the top begin to pop the aroma of the beer releases into the air and a good glass will catch some of it. This is totally great for IPAs and other super aromatic brews.

Again, pour the beer directly down the center of the glass again. The larger bubbles push down on the smaller bubbles and compact them. This makes the head thicker and heartier. The more small bubbles you have, the better the overall lacing is as you drink the brew.
Allow the head to build up, and then sit while it dissipates down to an inch tall. Repeat this over and over until you're beer is full with a nice one inch of thick tight bubble fluffy head.

Yes this does take a long ass time. Yes this is probably a giant pain in the ass, but it helps. You'll notice that there are larger bubbles at the top of line of head, and smaller bubbles towards the bottom.

By pouring the beer this way we're trying to make it so there are as many little bubbles as possible, while eliminating the big bubbles. The little bubbles give you a fluffy dense head that leaves great lacing. As the larger bubbles pop aroma is released, so when you bend down to drink it hits you full in the nose.

*Remember before pouring let your beer sit standing up for about an hour for the floaties and yeast to settle. Also, leave the yeast and floaties in the bottom of the bottle or can depending on style. Most ale's you want to leave about a quarter to a half inch of beer left over in the bottom of the bottle.

Go get your drink on! Cheers

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Cooking Under the Influence: Old Fezziwig Marinated Pork Chops

This recipe is a variation on one that I found on the Sam Adams website. (The original recipe is online here if you're interested.) I have to say that this marinade was delicious. I expected it to be kind of tasty, but this far exceeded my expectations.


Ingredients
6 ounces (3/4 cup) Old Fezziwig Ale
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pork chops


Directions
In a mixing bowl, stir together the ale, soy sauce, honey, rosemary, ginger and cinnamon. Coat the pork chops in the marinade.

I chose to coat the pork chops and then place them in a plastic bag. I poured the remaining marinade into the bag with the pork and letting them sit in the fridge overnight. That gave the marinade time to really soak into the chops.

After letting the marinade soak in, I preheated the oven to 350F, and prepared to bake the chops. The ones I got were relatively thin, and boneless. I was able to bake them for 25 minutes, but you may need to adjust the timing accordingly to best cook your chops.


I wanted the chops to be the star of the dish, so I added some steamed broccoli and some Rice-A-Roni to the plate to finish out the meal. It's definitely a recipe I'll be using again!

Monday, November 18, 2013

Upland Brewing Co. Strawberry Lambic


Within the craft beer community, locally and nationwide, Upland and its head brewer Caleb Staton, have been getting recognition for their growing sour program. With each release the number of people trying to obtain one of these rare bottles increases dramatically, leading to some gaming of the release system that Upland currently employs. Upland chooses, for better or worse, to use a lottery system where the person picking up their single bottle* need only show a drivers license with the winner's name on it- this means anyone (this means you lambic lovers in Alaska!) with an ID and a photocopier could win and receive their bottle provided they could a) go to one of the Upland taprooms or b) find some generous soul to pick-up and ship the bottle to the them (aka muling). At times this tends to cause a lot of grumbling among the Indiana craft beer fans who happen to lose the lottery, but I digress.

*Single bottle? Ha, their were stories of people picking up 40+ bottles at a time for "friends and family"... because who's grandma doesn't love tums-inducing liquified sweet tarts in a bottle?

Mmmm pink dregs!
Now that all the frenzy of the Upland Sour lottery/muling/pick-up has subsided, it's time to actually enjoy these beers! And enjoy them now you should! In talking to people close to Caleb, he has brewed these beers in a way that they are intended to Drink Fresh. Okay… seriously on to the beer. So what do we have exactly? According to the bottle: "Upland Lambics are fermented by wild yeast and aged in oak casks for a year… we then add whole strawberries from Huber Orchard in Starlight, Indiana…" 
I've heard stories of gushers on this release (be patient and properly chill your beer people), but nothing like that here as the cork comes off with a satisfying pop. It pours a murky, nearly opaque, pink with tinges of orange around the edges. Some light pink head with a vigorous pour (picture shows the last of the bottle and has some dregs), and forgiving the murkiness this is a very pretty looking beer. Aroma is very bright and fruity as one would expect, with notes of wild strawberries, lemon, green apple, and some general funkiness. The flavor mimics the nose, but the funk and strawberries takeover with additional notes of lacto and oak, before finishing with some sharp (but not unpleasant) acetic acid on the tip of the tongue. The mouthfeel starts off light and full of prickly carbonation, but the beer gets fuller because it's so damn sour that you're mouth starts producing a bunch of saliva. Once you get past the swallow the beer finishes dry.

Upland takes great pride in its sour program and this is a fine example. Imagine a strawberry sweet tart without all the artificial crap and that's a good place to start describing this beer. Very sour, but you still get the strawberries and some oakiness from those casks. It's difficult to rate beers like this in a vacuum because of the cost and effort involved to obtain, but I would still give this a solid 3.5/5 

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Gatorade? More Like Gator-Ale

In the summer, the yearly discussion (which for the Barons means lots of yelling and guttural yaups) comes up around which beer is the best after mowing the lawn, or at a BBQ, or at the race, or whatever hot and sweaty bullshit we have to deal with outside in a swampy Indiana summer.  It always comes down to quaffability, overall feeling of well being, and then taste.

How does this apply to November?

Now the devout body shapers start ramping up their cardio to fight the winter bulk, or the little man syndrome weight lifter planning to embrace his winter bear fat and try and inflate like an anemic balloon.  For the rare few for whom body maintenance AND beer loving come together, a study came out earlier this year from a Spanish University which showed that compared to water, your better choice for a post workout quencher should be beer.

That's right.  SCIENCE.  The Church of Fact said, "Whenst thou hast thy sweaty balls, drinketh the malted grain."

Before you start hauling a six pack to your gym and the trainers have an intervention for you, lets look a little more specifically how beer (and its alcohol content) affects your body post workout.

First, the study from Granada University said that the carbonation of the beer helps quench the thirst and its carb content helps replace the lost calories from the work the body just put in, since in a 30 minute workout, your body can produce enough heat to brew three cups of coffee.  The results said that beer was "slightly better than water" so take that for what it is: you don't have to feel bad for cracking open a beer after a run, but it's not a single cure all.

Secondly, people always talk about the "beer belly" and that beer is bad for fat loss, which is only kind of true.  Beer has such a low carb count it's a 0 on the glycemic index, so the only detriment to fat loss is if you haven't taken its calories into your planned allotment.  Crush two Guinness and you have the caloric content of a Big Mac, so be prepared when the porters, stouts and malty beers start dominating your frigid summer.

Lastly, if you are like me and are currently bulking up on muscle, alcohol is a bummer.  It significantly slows down protein synthesis and muscle growth, so if you're weightlifting, be more aware of the timing of your brews.

As to what kind of beer to drink, it's simple.  Your favorite frat basement tasting light beer, or if you can't sacrifice your palate or aren't a product of their broke ass roots like me and always have a fridge full of cheap beer, go for a high taste session-able IPA, or other hoppy incarnation, just stay away from those malty treats.

Also, please don't put beer in Gatorade bottles.  People will think you are on too much Meth.  Or that you are drinking your own pee like Tom Crean.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Glassware Collecting





This is my first post to the Indiana Beer Barons blog, so I thought it would be a good introduction if my first post focused on something that I'm very passionate about… 

Just when you thought beer geeks couldn’t get any geekier, there’s a new niche beer geek. We’re the guys you see at brewery anniversary parties looking for the special glassware to commemorate the event, or seeking out the Three Floyd’s merchandise tent among all the beer whale carnage for the annual Three Floyd’s/Intelligentsia taster glass. We’re the glassware geeks.

So where did we come from? I’m sure there’s always been a few of us around, but as the scene has exploded and new breweries open every day, there’s been a proliferation of brewery glassware and naturally an increase in collectors. Certain breweries produce a vast variety of glassware, such as Stone Brewing Company who as of this post had 18 different glasses in their online store and at their last anniversary party produced no less than 4 different glasses just for that event.

Unlike beer, breweries can ship you their glassware directly if they’re willing to (not all are for various reasons) and in some cases it’s as simple as visiting their online store. Also, breweries like New Belgium, Samuel Adams, and Terrapin commonly give away glasses at events. The abundance of available glasses makes it seem like an easy item to collect, but that’s not always the case.

First, beer glasses aren’t as widely distributed as beer and are generally only available at the brewery, sometimes at liquor stores, or at specific events. Secondly, certain glasses are only made in very limited numbers. For example a new brewery out of Oregon only made 71 of their tulip glasses available, and a very popular Oregon brewery made 500 glasses available for their most recent anniversary party.

Glasses like the Cantillon Iris wine glass, Left Hand Brewing “Wake Up Dead” snifter (I get unsolicited offers for mine all the time), Pretty Things “Our Finest Regards” wine glass, and several Three Floyd’s glasses are what we call glasswhales; the rarest of the rare. These glasses are rarely seen and usually cause a frenzy when they are offered up for trade, and their owners can demand a lot in return. The extreme rarity and/or demand for certain glasses has spawned a burgeoning glassware trading community somewhat similar to the beer trading community.

Just like with beer, people mule, hoard, and ransom glasses and unfortunately as the scene grows we get more and more people doing the latter. Trading glasses can also be more difficult than trading beer; because the community is newer and smaller, consensus values on rare glasses and trading protocols haven’t been firmly established. It can get complicated too when there are multiple versions of a glass and there’s not a common lexicon among traders or no fancy beer label to simply reference. This has bitten me before when I expected a certain Russian River “-tion” glass to arrive in a trade, but got the wrong glass because the trader incorrectly identified the glass he sent me.

That said, I have found the glassware trading community to be very generous and very welcoming to newcomers.

I’ve shown my collection of glasses (pictured below) to many people and among the many compliments and exclamations of “my significant other would kill me!” I frequently get asked: “Why do you have so many glasses?” While I can only truly answer for myself, I have several reasons that I believe reflect other collectors’ thoughts as well.

First, some of us are just habitual collectors; whether it was baseball cards, action figures, dolls, or probably what a lot of you reading this now collect, beer, there’s always some focus that provides the “thrill of the chase.” Secondly, there’s something that just feels right about having the matching glass to go with the beer and so this means you need a lot of glassware! Lastly, and probably most important for me, there are memories attached to the majority of my glassware- when the beer is gone the glass remains!

You’re probably wondering “Who is this guy? How do I know he has street cred?” well in my collection I have over 250 pieces of glassware…  It’s gotten to the point where I’ve had to institute 2 rules (there are occasional exceptions made): 1) I’m not allowed to have glassware from a brewery that I have not visited or have at least had beer from; 2) No more shaker pints! It’s the standard conical glass you see everywhere- I hate those things and I don’t buy them anymore, but I’ll talk more about that in another post probably.

I’m assuming that everyone reading this is excited to go out and collect glassware now! Since I mostly focus on collecting non-shaker pints, there’s not a lot that I’ve purchased around Indy recently, but here is a quick rundown of what I think the better local and easily obtainable glasses are:

-Upland Brewing Co. Snifter (taprooms)
-Sun King Can Glass (taproom)
-Bier Brewery Snifter (taproom)
-Daredevil Imperial pint and tulip (Daredevil’s online shop)
-New Day Snifter (Taproom; for the mead fans out there)
-Most of the other breweries will have some type of shaker pint to purchase.


So the next time you see that crazy guy at Three Floyd’s Dark Lord Day (because there’s only one right?) looking for that year’s special event glass, point him in the right direction and think about getting one for yourself, because it won’t come cheap when you want the proper glassware for your Dark Lord.

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

BREWniversity: Cask Ale


When I said that I was going to the UK on vacation, everyone told me that all I'd be drinking was warm flat beer. True enough, most of the beer we drank was in fact warmer than beer in America and it was also less carbonated, but this is all on purpose. This is because most of the beer served in the UK is not on standard draft, but its on cask. Here in America we haven't embraced the concept of cask ale also known as real ale (check out the UBC in Carmel, IN if you want an awesome example), but in the UK it's pretty much expected.

Cask Ale is beer that's fermented in a ferkin or cask and then served out of the same container instead of a keg. These casks aren't pressurized or force-carbonated by CO2 or nitro, and they don't have CO2 to push the beer through the lines. They rely on the natural fermentation of left over yeast during secondary fermentation to provide carbonation and a gravity fed pump system to "pull" the beer out of the casks. While the brew is served, the yeast slowly starts to fall to the bottom of the cask and become inactive. This means the beer has a shelf life, so cask beer should always be fresh. Every pub that we went into for lunch or dinner had a set of pulls for cask ale, right alongside their normal tap lines.

Beer is supposed to be served between 50 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit in the UK. This is because cask beers were originally just stored underneath the bar in a cellar type basement. There was no refrigeration, so the beer just stayed as cold as the area where it was stored and the overall temperature depended a little bit on the season. Now it's become the standard for most cask conditioned ales here and in the UK.

The lack of carbonation is also intentional, but it's not really a lack of carbonation. The carbonation comes from the natural fermentation of the beer just like it does in bottle conditioned beers or home brews. This makes it a much softer carbonation, instead of the having the harsh carbon-dioxide that most American beers on tap have. It makes the beer less filling and leaves you less gassy. In the UK, beer is expected to have between 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch of head on top of the beer. This is much lower then the level we've come to expect here in the states, especially if you're looking at some of the macro lagers that we see. Big head tends to release a ton of aroma, the smaller lighter head forces the beer's flavor to shine through.


When I got back I had to ask Cameron Fila, the head brewery at the Union Brewing Company, why they chose to do cask ale, since we don't see it very often. He said

"My wife and I took a trip to the UK and I fell in love with the beer. 
I found that cask ale really was alive. The hops were more distinguishable, yet subdued by the creamy malt backbone. To me, cask ale was what craft brewing was really about, letting the brewer's hand and the premium ingredients shine through. 
I came home, and knew this was the direction I wanted to go in. In many ways, it puts a lot of pressure on us in the brew house. You can hide and mask imperfections in an overly carbonated beer chilled down to the point of freezing your taste buds off, but you really have to nail a cask ale"

It's interesting from a quality stand point. I wasn't a huge fan of a lot of the beers that we had while running around your basic pubs in London, but the ones that were good were spectacular. Cameron's comments made me realize that me being disappointed was probably because of how much harder it is to mask a mediocre beer when its served at the proper temperature and there isn't much carbonation. I have been a fan of the UBC since they opened, but after touring the UK for a while, I have a new-found respect for what they do. Making such a delicious product while adhering to a very outside of the box set of style guidelines makes what they do all that much more impressive.

On top of needing an expertly crafted beer, your bar also needs to maintain high standards with the casks themselves. Casks don't last as long as kegs do because they are living beers. They have to have CO2 lightly blanket the top (but again not forcing it into the keg) to keep it fresh as long as a possible. Because the yeast is still alive the brew will continue to evolve, so a bar tender has to be careful and make sure it always tastes great. Also, without the carbonation any grime or lack of cleaning will be more noticeable.

If you've never tried a cask beer, get out to the UBC in Carmel, because they've made maintenance of their system just as important as brewing quality beer. It's the best place in central Indiana to make sure your first experience is a good one.

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Movember

It’s Movember and I'll be growing a moustache to raise funds and awareness for men's health. It's going to be a hairy journey and I want you to be part of it.

Fight for your right to change the face of men’s health, enlist for Movember and JOIN MY TEAM now.

 A moustache is the mark of a man, and today it is a symbol to spark conversations about important health issues. So guys, pledge to grow a Mo today, or ladies, join the team to support my Mo.

 Find out more about why you should join me by taking a look at THE CAUSES WE ARE FIGHTING FOR

Thanks for supporting Gen Mo and helping us change the face of men's health.

United We Mo!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

The Scene: Flat as Hell


I have a confession to make.  I like pepper beers.  It all started with Hatch Blower Pepper IPA from Triton last October.  The Professor snagged a growler of it for my wedding rehearsal party.   My groomsmen appreciated the beer, I liked it so much I killed the growler...  It was a great "marriage" of green chili flavor up front while still having enough spicy kick at the end to keep my adventurous side amused.

Cut to this October 31st, 2013.  Flat 12 continued their reign as most inventive, fun, and very unique beer brewery with their Halloween event at the brewery: Flat as Hell.  This sinfully delightful event took Hello My Name is Amber (an amber beer) and flavored it nine different ways.  The run down:

9 Circles of Hell(O) My Name is Amber
Limbo:      Green Pepper                       0 Scoville
Lust:         Pablano                 1000-1500 Scoville
Gluttony:   Jalapeno              2500-10000 Scoville
Greed:      Serrano           15000 – 25000 Scoville
Anger:      Manzano                 50K/250K Scoville
Heresy:     Habanero                100/350K Scoville
Violence:   Scotch Bonnet        100/350K Scoville
Fraud:       Ghost                   350K/1MM Scoville
Treachery: Scorpion                       2MM Scoville

For a mere $12 dollars my fearless compatriots and I (just like Dante) were guided through the 9 Circles of Hell(O) My Name is Amber by Rob, Josh and Joe.  There were no poems from Virgil.  Nor were their any suffering souls... well there were some of those.


My descent into Hell(o) My Name is Amber started while watching one of my favorite Halloween movies "Hellraiser" being tossed up on the wall via projection.  Limbo was a nice way to introduce you (the drinker) into the pepper beer category.  Green pepper nose, nice amber body, and no spice to the finish.  Each level after started to ratchet up the spice in the body and finish.  Stand outs for myself were Anger and Treachery.

Anger was the first notable shift from flavor to heat.  I thought Flat 12 did a great job balancing the spicy heat with the amber qualities of the base beer.  Really well done!  The sad part was that this balance did not show up again until Treachery.  I am sure it had something to do with the Scoville's and the brewers trying to make it drinkable and not just face melting hot.  The high note from Treachery was the amount of heat that stuck around in the finish and continued to build as you sipped at the taster cup.  A great idea for a winter warmer?  I think so!

In Sum: Yes. I paid to be a guinea pig for Flat 12's pepper beer experiment. "But I got this nifty pint glass and a full pint pour of whatever I wanted!" said in a little kids high pitched voice.  I will make it a point to hit Flat 12 next Halloween for the festivities and beer.  Wonder what the Mad Fermentologists are going to cook up for next Halloween?!

Big thanks to all who follow the blog who showed up and hung out!  Other of note beers on tap for Halloween: Bloody Jack, Bloody Blonde, & Bleeding Heart.


Sources:
http://flat12.me/events/flat-as-hell-halloween-at-flat-12/
http://flat12.me/uncategorized/6502/

Monday, November 4, 2013

Fistful of Hops Fall Release

Holy shit Sun King has been canning beer non stop. According to Sun King, "Fistful of Hops is [a] quarterly series of four IPAs, each with the same malt base. We balance that base against a seasonal “fistful of hops” - each time a different variety. Our initial release contains Pacifica and Zythos hops, which provide flavors of orange, tangerine, and grapefruit." I'm assuming the October 13 is considered the initial release. According to their 2010 release they were going to be a spaghetti western motif, and this can seems to keep that theme rolling. Not sure why this series got interrupted in 2010, but I'm glad they brought it back because this was a solid IPA with some really unique flavors.

Before we get into color, aroma or flavor you are blown away by the bad ass cans! The shrink wrap technique really gives Sun King a ton of flexibility on how their cans can look. They go from matte print to vibrant glossy prints like this one and anywhere in between. The colors look better than any bottle I've ever seen and I think it makes the beers stand out on the shelves. Text is incredibly clear and readable even if my pictures aren't always the best. This stuff is a marketer's wet dream.


I didn't get it on draft but from what I heard the cans were as good if not better than the draft. It looks like the beer comes in at 6.4 abv and 73 IBUs. The brew pours out a nice golden yellow color with a thick fluffy white head. It smells like a nice bitter tropical fruit cocktail, tons of citrus fruit and a little tropical aromas. It tastes like a bitter beach vacation! The flavor is deliciously sweet up front with all the fruit flavors that you get in the aroma. It has a great juicy citrus finish with strong bitterness on the back end. Everything tasted so bright and fresh. Despite some really big in your face flavors the beer remained light and crisp and really easy drinking. This would have been a great release a little bit earlier in the year when it was warmer. It really reminded me of a hopped up version of Osiris Pale Ale, and I love Osiris. As it is, I will gladly drink the shit out of this stuff at every tailgate I go to as long as it's available.

Really well done Sun King. If each of the quarterly releases are this good, I can't wait! I give this gunslinger a rootin' tootin' 4 











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