A Foolish Wit- Pipeworks

The Big Guy and I had the opportunity to do a little tailgating this past weekend. We brought a variety of craft beers and home brew to share and admittedly to try for the first time. One of those beers was A Foolish Wit by Pipeworks Brewing.

I should preface this by saying, I like Witbiers. I'm not drawn to hoppy brews, so I enjoy seeing what else is out there, and really witbiers are right up my alley.

Having said that, this was a nice easy drinking beer. It was pretty much right in line with what I'm looking for while tailgating.

The beer poured out slightly darker than the light golden color you'd expect to see with a witbier, but it had the characteristic thick, creamy head.

There was a nice citrus flavor right away. The flavor coupled with the very cold temperature of the beer was actually pretty refreshing. There was a lot of carbonation in this bottle which added to a slightly effervescent feel while drinking it. The flavor had a hint of spice along the way, but nothing that felt really hoppy-bitter or got in the way of the citrus. There was a slight sourness, but just at the very end. It had a very smooth mouth-feel.

Overall I gave this one a 3.5.

The Big Guy: I also liked it! I'm not always a huge fan of witbiers, they're flavor is often lighter than I enjoy. This wit beer had plenty of flavor packed in a nice light and crisp beer. The citrus flavor was awesome, light sweet and refreshing, which made it a unique wit. This was a great tailgate beer, and I wish we had popped it open a few months ago when it was a little warmer

I give it a surprised 4

The Scene: Brew Dog

Brew Dog is to punk rock, what Three Floyds is to heavy metal. It's like one of those SAT questions you had to do in your prep class back in the day. Brew Dog is one of best known microbreweries in the UK and they distribute here in the US if you're lucky enough to find it in stock. They are based out of Scotland and have 13 brewpubs in the UK. It's really a neat idea that no one around here seams to have duplicated. I was shocked when Triton opened up a brewpub in Broadripple.

In Edinburgh, Brew Dog is tucked down a little side street with some great looking, artist-painted graffiti on the side of the building. Walking in reminded me a lot of Three Floyds only it was all punk rock graffiti and natural wood. The bar wasn't huge but it was very open and had plenty of seating.

The Little Lady and I picked a table and sat down. I went up and talked to the bartender (in the UK, always go up the bar when ordering at pubs). They had seven beers on tap, so I got us each a flight of four and then we filled in the last slot with one of their guest taps. I've had a few of their beers in the past, and they do a really solid job.

 

My favorite of the flight was a barrel aged weizenbock called Abstrackt AB:14 from their Abstrackt series

 

The second best brew was Hello, My Name is Mette Marit, and Imperial IPA from their Hello My Name Is series.

Along with the flights, we ordered some bottles of their Paradox. Paradox is their big Russian Imperial Stout, and they had a few different variants. We had the scotch whiskey barrel aged and the rum barrel aged versions. Paradox was good, not quite KBS good, but the different barrel aged options made them pretty fun. They were both delicious, but I was really impressed with the rum barrel aged version. It was neat to see a different barrel used to age the beer.

For food we got their cheese board. The only food options were that and some really fun pizzas. The cheeses and meats on the board were amazing! The big flavors of the artisinal cheeses really paired well with some of the great in your face beers by these guys.

Pumpkin Beer

My mom always told me to eat my vegetables, I just never thought they would taste so good in my beer. There are so many pumpkin beers out there right now that we figured we should do some in depth research and help you, our loyal followers, find the best of the best for your holiday season.

We decided to take thirteen pumpkin beers and a special surprise beer and do a blind taste test. We don't mess around with a blind taste test, we go all out and blindfold everyone who's drinking. Now this means you can't really judge the color or the head retention or lacing or anything visual; it forces you to focus on flavor. Next time we probably won't do so many because my taste buds were blown out!

When we rate for this, we do it on a 1-10 scale, so we can divide in half for our standard five point rating. The judging can be tough when we go this many beers in a row. You can see the scores on the white board below right.

We tried:

Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale, Jack-o by Curious Traveler, Jaques, Warlock by Southern Tier, Flat Jack by Flat 12, Schlafly Pumpkin Ale, Stella poured into a pumpkin, Hampton Pumpkin, Smashed by Shipyard, Spooky Tooth by Fat Heads, Pumpking by Southern Tier, Imperial Pumpkin Ale by Weyerbacher Brewing Co., Frogs Hallow by Hoppin Frog, Pumpkinstein by the Empty Can (homebrew).

It was a shit-ton of beer. Most of them were pretty good. The homebrew was a year old and would've been better fresh. The Stella poured into the pumpkin for a few hours was, as you might expect, less than awesome. I probably should have toasted the pumpkin or something. It mostly just tasted like cheap beer mixed with grass.

When I'm looking for a good pumpkin beer, I'm looking for one that has a great base beer with tasty pumpkin and pie spices. I love something that takes me back to being a kid and smelling pumpkin pie in the oven. I want a big, sweet, malt character and I really don't want a lot of hop bitterness.

My 3 favorites were:

Schlafly Pumpkin Ale

Spooky Tooth by Fat Heads

Flat Jack by Flat 12

I've been drinking so much Schlafly it would have shocked me if this didn't make my top three. It's soooo good. I picked up three six packs this year and have been pacing myself so I don't drink them all in one sitting. For me it hits all the critical flavors that a pumpkin beer should have. It's sweet but not too sweet. It's got awesome fall and pumpkin flavors that blend perfectly with the caramely, almost Oktoberfest-like, malt base. The pumpkin is mixed well with a lot of clove and just enough cinnamon and spice. I give it a solid 4 and I'll be first in line every year when this stuff comes out!

El Duque:
I realized now why I don't get super hyped about pumpkin beers.  Most of them are either mediocre or down right terrible.  There are so many flavors trying to be balanced out in a pumpkin brew that it is almost impossible to make this beer actually taste like it is beer and not some sweet, over-spiced mess.  I'll make my top 3 easy:

Schlafly Pumpkin Ale
Every other pumpkin beer
Your Mother

The silliness of the blind taste test and the social aspect of the taste test made the beers a little more tolerable for me, especially the skunked Stella soaked in a pumpkin.  I think pumpkin style ales have gone the way of American seasonal gimmicks like Oktoberfest, Irish Stouts, and "Summer Ales."  Some breweries (like Schlafly) will take on these dumb seasonals and knock them out of the park and make them tolerable, but most seem to let their beer be as interesting as doing punkin art in 3rd grade art class.

O-Dawg:
I tend to enjoy pumpkin beer as a seasonal treat each year.  Slogging through 14 rounds of them is not something I want to attempt again, especially when we had a few grenades thrown in for fun (shakes fist).  Loved the blind taste off because preconceived notions were tossed out.  I thought Southern Tier would make a better showing. We tried those early in the rounds and they didn't stand up to the competition well.  Top 3:

Weyerbacher Brewing Co.
Schlafly
Fat Heads

I think my pallet started to blow after the 10th.  El Duque started talking about Bazooka Joe and it was all down hill from there...  We really need to mic these up in the future.

The Little Lady:
I really enjoy pumpkin beers. They tend to be closer to the styles I gravitate towards. They're malty, roasty, and some have a nice spice profile that really feels like fall to me. If you look at the picture of the scoreboard you can see that my scores really didn't vary much from one beer to the next. That's mostly indicative of a general enjoyment, and waiting for something to really stand out from the crowd. Nothing really jumped out at me, but I still enjoyed the taste test. My top 3:

Kentucky Pumpkin Barrel Ale
Flat Jack by Flat 12
Warlock by Southern Tier

Pilsner Urquell Tankovna

I know what some of you are thinking, you've had Pilsner Urquell before and while it wasn't bad it wasn't your favorite. That was definitely my take, but I was always interested in trying it closer to the source. I had the opportunity to do just that while the Big Guy and I were in London. I was definitely not disappointed.

We took an afternoon and went out to the White Horse pub in Parson's Green. (If you're ever in London, it's a straight shot from the Underground station to the Pub.) The Big Guy had heard from some of his Instagram connections that it has one of the best craft beer selections in London. Between the castles and the museums we knew we'd find some time to make a visit.

True to what we expected, there was a good selection. I tried a few ciders which had quickly become my go-to for the vacation, and was looking for a recommendation for something else to try. This pub is the only location I've ever been to that has Pilsner Urquell on tanks, Pilsner Urquell Tankovna. The tanks are a completely different sort of flavor, one that far surpasses any other variety of Pilsner Urquell that I've ever had.

The tanks are delivered to the White Horse direct from the brewery in Pilsen and dispensed from specially installed, authentic Czech tanks. The beer is unpasteurized which also lends a unique quality to the experience, and the tanks make it more authentic to the way the beer would be enjoyed in the Czech Republic.

There was a strong fresh baked bread flavor, with a full and smooth mouth feel. There was a minimal amount of bitterness and a finish that was more like a sour than what I've come to expect from a bottled pilsner in the US. The color was rich and golden and there was a small amount of head that left a nice lacing across the glass.

It was totally different, and absolutely worth the try. I would recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity to try a pilsner this way. I gave the regular Pilsner Urquell a 3 (which was a bit generous), but I gave the Tankovna a 4. 

Not for all the beer in England

If you follow me on Instagram or Untappd you may have noticed that the Little Lady and I just got back from London and Edinburgh in the UK. There was a lot of sightseeing and touristy stuff, but even with a busy vacation schedule we managed to squeeze in a beer or two.

First off, cask beer was everywhere! I mean everywhere! I'm pretty sure that gas stations had cask lines. Every single pub or eatery we went to had at least a few beers on cask right next to their normal taps. Secondly, they do not mess around when it comes to cider. There are tons of variety and they are excellent. The ciders are mostly poured over ice to make sure you drink them super cold. According to one of my bartenders, standard beer in the UK is served between 50 and 60 degrees depending on the style of beer. A lot of this comes from history and what they were forced to do. They also believe a proper pour should only have between 1/4 inch of head and 1/2inchof head. For the most part in the US we are looking for at least an inch.

The pubs were all beautiful with awesome looking old wood bars.On the other hand most of the beer in the pubs was just OK. Almost everything in your average pub was done with a very traditional mindset. Now, I'm not bashing traditional beers. Traditions are traditions because people liked them, but with the American craft beer movement we have gotten really used to some outside of the box flavors and different elements in the beer being turned up to eleven. There was almost none of this in the first few places we visited. Luckily I went out to Instagram and a buddy recommended the White Horse.

The White Horse reminded me of Twenty Tap in Broadripple only with a big time UK flavor. They had over a dozen beers on cask alone, and all of them were made by local microbreweries in the area. Alongside the casks they had plenty of force carbonated options and bottles. They had a great selection of Founders and Ale Smith which I thought was awesome. The bar had all of the old world charm that we found throughout the UK in the pubs and ale houses, but with some really inventive and creative beers.

Favorite beers in London were:
KeTo Reporter by Birra del Borgo Porter brewed with tobacco, crazy cool brew
Rekorderlig Ciders by Abro Bryggeri
All of the Aspall Ciders
Pilsner Urquell Tankovna (Unfiltered) by Plzensky Prazdoj

When we went to Scotland either the beer improved or I'd gotten better at finding it. We found a couple bottle shops (liquor stores) that had an awesome selection, but the crème de la crème was hitting the Brew Dog Brew Pub (look for a post to follow about Brew Dog). The pubs were pretty much the same old thing that we had seen in London. Some solid cask ales, but most of them were basic Bitters and really mild IPAs. The hops were very UK and the malts were very strong. We were told at one bar that beers from Scottland have less hops than other beers in the UK because the plant doesn't grow in their climate and the Scottish people have never liked giving England their money. Based on what we drank this held pretty true, as long as you don't count in Brew Dog.

Favorite beers in Scotland were:
Fyne and Wild Cool as a Cucumber by Fyne Ales
Paradox Isle of Arran by Brew Dog
Abstrakt AB:14 by Brew Dog
Good Times by Williams Brothers Brewing Co.

All in I was not really that impressed with the craft beer scene in London. Don't get me wrong, there are good beers there to be found. Here in Indy if you go to a restaurant and pay more than 20 bucks for an entrée you are probably going to get at least a few different local beers. In London, not so much. We went to different a lot of nice places and a lot of dives and when you were looking through the beer selection you found a lot of the same stuff. If not the exact same brewery and beer name, the same styles. The UK's love of tradition makes so much of their stuff taste pretty similar. Now when we did find a good craft beer bar, the beer was amazing. I would put it up against most breweries here in the states without question, and it was on cask which was a fun plus for me. I think we're starting to get some really good mainstream traction with our scene here in Indy, and it seemed like London and Edinburgh are just a little bit behind in the mainstream areas. That being said, the casks were awesome and the cider was amazing. Makes me want to start looking for more craft cider around home.

Cheers!

Beer Gear: Chillsner

Two events happened to me earlier this week: I celebrated my first anniversary with my lovely wife, and one of my good friends brought some awesome beer back with him from a vacation in California. You're probably wondering what those two things have in common. Allow me to explain.

I give you the Chillsner by Corkcicle.  Cue the boys in Marketing!

"Presenting the one and only in-bottle, drink-through beer chiller: Chillsner by Corkcicle. Just freeze, insert into any bottled beer and never suffer through another warm brew. Respect the beer. Chillsner is perfect for parties, tailgating and pretty much any occasion where beloved beers are enjoyed." - Corkcicle.com

After cleaning and freezing the Chillsner, and removing my chilled beer from the fridge I was ready to begin a particularly fun beer experiment!  

Note: I chose to bend the rules.  I swapped out the typical 12 oz. bottle you are supposed to use with the Chillsner and subbed in my usual craft bomber.  Since it is a nice hoppy Sculpin IPA from Ballast Point Brewing I chose to pour it into proper IPA glassware.  

Craft Beer Drinking Warning: Take a few sips to allow volumetric room for the beer to displace around the chilling device and still stay contained in the bottle.  If you do not heed this Craft Beer Drinking Warning you will displace beer all over your bottle, hand, table, carpet, floor, etc.  You've been warned!

 "Cool to the last sip"

Results:
After letting the bomber sit out for two hours before the first pour and waiting an additional hour before the second pour...  I can already hear you screaming at me through the computer/mobile phone screen...  #BeerScience  I can say that this little experiment with my new Chillsner went swimmingly!

My Sculpin IPA was kept chilled to the perfect temperature throughout my drinking experience!

An added bonus for those IPA drinkers out there is the mouthpiece of the chilling device.  Due to its construction it adds additional agitation to the beer when pouring into your glassware (or your face). Great little bonus to enhance your tasty IPA's aroma/flavor!

I am looking forward to using my Chillsner at the next Colts game I am watching/tailgating for! Only this time I'll use as directed... and maybe read the directions...  Oh, who am I kidding!


**A big heartfelt Thank You again to my lovely wife for getting me this great Beer Gear!  Happy 1 Year Anniversary #MSN!  Here's to many more! <3 U

Royal Brat

So my two favorite breweries decided to get together and do a collaboration. Three Floyd's came down to Indy during Gencon and got together with Sun King for an English Style Bitter. Since I just got back from the UK, the land of the bitters, I figured I should do a review.

Royal Brat is sold in 4 packs of 16 ounce cans. It's 4.7% ABV and 55 IBUs. It was released the weekend of the CANvitational.

It pours out a nice dark golden color. It smells like English hops and biscuit malts with a hint of caramel. The head is light cream colored and really dissipates quickly, much like UK Bitters. It leaves a nice bit of lacing at the top.

I have a new found appreciation for this beer after running around the UK last week. The beer in the UK is great, but it's all very traditional. Royal Brat has some seriously traditional flavors, but where most of the bitters I had in London left it as is, this one ratchets it all up a bit. The flavors are bolder and more in your face and that's no easy feat with a 4.7 ABV beer. The hop character is very smooth but has a nice bitter back end that sits in the back of your throat after you swallow. With a very light and bready malt character, the hops really have an oppertunity to shine.

I've seen a lot of mixed reviews about this one online. I think people were expecting a really big beer from a creative duo like Sun King and FFF, but this one is relaxed and nuanced. Also, remember its basically a session beer, and the lower alcohol beers tend to have much lighter malt flavor.

Haters gonna hate, but I think its a solid 3.5

O-Dawg:  Some of us didn't get a chance to refine our pallets on UK bitters... From an "unrefined" pallet used to all that is American I dug the hell out of Royal Brat!  Crazy drinkable!  Paired with enough hops and malt to keep me interested in a long drinking session.  The low ABV's will help you out when having to drive  call a cab to get home after that long drinking session. An astonished 3.5!

Kickstarter: Books & Brews

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/booksnbrews/books-and-brews

Books & Brews is the Indianapolis area's first combination used bookstore and nanobrewery. We are a family-owned, family-first business and want to invest locally in everything we do from the ingredients in our beer to the food we serve. Our vision is not only to offer local products at reasonable prices, but also to provide community-based events and a comfortable environment to allow people to unplug from the digital age and plug back into each other.

Books & Brews is a new brewery (and bookstore) that will be opening in the Fishers area, and they are currently running a KickStarter to help with their startup costs.  There are a variety of pledge levels; the lower ones get you Books & Brews branded swag (growlers, mugs, T-shirts, etc.), while the highest levels are for your own home bar or keezer.  There are also pledge levels to sponsor your own barstool, table, or bookshelf, with your name etched on them.

Books & Brews will brew on a three 55-gallon pot brewing system that will net approximately one barrel of beer per batch. Keeping with the literary theme of the business, all of Books & Brews' beers will be named after classic literary works, characters or authors, such as Alice’s Adventures in Witbier, The Canterbury Tales Pale Ale, Charlie and the Chocolate Stout, and Clifford the Big Red Ale.

They have signed a lease at 9402 Uptown Drive Suite 1400, and are planning to open in January or February.  Check them out!

View Larger Map

Date Night: Triton's 2yr Anniversary & Hop Your Face Fest

Date night.  I know what you're asking yourself: how did I convince my wife to go to not one, but TWO beer festivals back to back this past Saturday, October 8th, 2013.  I think she was in a good mood due to just starting her vacation, or it may have been the promise of New Day Meadery drinking treats that finally did it.  I like to think she loves me that much!  First stop, Triton's 2nd Year Anniversary!

Yes, Joe was there too.  He is everywhere when there is beer involved.  Thanks again Dain & Mikey! 

Triton Brewery turned 2 years old this past Saturday.  What better way to do it than to have The Weirdy Cats over to play some live music, and have events for all ages throughout the day!  Slap Shot challenge with BIG E FOOT w/ the Indianapolis Ice, face panting, and live Irish Step Dancing.  Triton even had the brewery open to hang out in and take impromptu tours.  No cover charge, just great limited release beers on tap every hour.

Speaking of limited release beers.  They had a little bit of everything for anyone's taste.
Highlights being:

Sour Bin Oak Aged Sin Bin:  I loved it, my wife who isn't even a beer drinker loved it.  Need I say more?! 

Gingerbread Brown:  A great brown that has been demanded by the #TritonArmy to be bottled ever since it reared it's experimental head last year.  Guess what? Now it has!  Go grab a 4-pack!

Batch #1:  Best beer they had on tap hands down.  It has only graced the Indianapolis market two times before: once at the Microbrewers Festival earlier this year (Brewer Jon wants his keg back if you know where it went...) and the other being last years anniversary party.  It has been aging in barrels for 25 months.  I got to talk with Brewer Jon for a hot minute about it and he said it just keeps getting better and better the more it sits...  in Evil dark corners at the brewery and all!

Dain's Special:  I am not one to blend beers on my own.  This concoction was birthed late in the evening when I asked what Dain (one of the assistant brewers) had for me.  Mad Scientist thoughts ensued.  Oh you know... Let me take both the Sour Sin Bin and Batch #1 50/50.  It was just great!   

 Next Stop, Hop Your Face Fest at Fountain Square Brewing!

Hop Your Face Fest came about to celebrate the release of the same self titled DIPA by Fountain Square Brewing (FSB).  Just like Triton, this is the second year that FSB has done this fest.  The fun twist of the fest is to try a glass of some of their experimental hops and tell them what you thought.  Nothing like paying to be a guinea pig!  $7 cover charge for the great line up of bands and access to local craft vendors.  Did I mention that New Day Meadery was on site as well?!  Whoever thought of that needs a raise...  Seriously... My wife loves them!

FSB had the foresight to put up some (not a lot) of tents to help stave off the rain that was scheduled throughout the day.  Honestly the rain was a fun bit of chaos that spiced up the event for me!  Nothing like sitting through a rain storm drinking great and experimental IPA's listening to some awesome music!  Brought me back to my college days.

The Hybrid Hop Experiment was just great for a hop head like me!  The serial numbers at the top of the list are the crazy classified hops they used.  The bottom two are know hop brands in the industry.  My favorites were the Apollo and 06300.  

As I stated earlier, having New Day Meadery at the event was great!  My lovely wife got snookered on that while I got all the Hop Your Face and experimental IPA's I could want!  I wish every weekend had this many beer fests.

Best. Date Night. Period

Cooking Under the Influence: Stout and Molasses Chipotle Chili

As the weather gets a little cooler, we get into my favorite time of year. I love the colors on the trees, cozy sweaters, and football- oh, how I love football. Along with all of that, I start to really use my slow cooker a lot, and there are few things I like more than working on perfecting my chili.

There are a ton of chili recipes out there, and more than a few of them involve beer. I found a recipe that I liked, and then changed a few ingredients around. This particular recipe is a little different than most of what's out there, but that's part of what made it fun to try.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion (Vidalia), diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 lbs ground turkey (I wound up using closer to 3, which worked out just fine)
1 can, 28 oz, crushed tomatoes
1 package, 10 oz, frozen corn
1 can, 15 oz, kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup dark beer (I used an imperial stout, I used the whole thing to compensate for the added turkey)
1/3 cup molasses
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons chipotle-style hot sauce
1-2 tablespoons flour

Directions

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion; cook and stir 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir one minute.
2. Add turkey to skillet; cook and stir until no longer pink. Drain fat.
3. Add remaining ingredients, stirring until mixed. Transfer to slow cooker. Cover; cook on low 8-10 hours.

In hindsight, I could have done a little less of the hot sauce, but that's just because I'm not a huge fan of very spicy food. The Big Guy liked it, though, and probably would have added more hot sauce from the beginning.

I served it with some shredded cheese and sour cream, but you can use your favorite chili fixins. That's right- fixins. I will say, this is not a light chili. It's really filling and has some big flavors. I'm glad that the recipe called for ground turkey because I almost think it'd be too much with ground beef. Having said that, I was a big fan of the chipotle flavors mixing with the molasses and the stout flavors.

If you're looking for a chili recipe with great flavors that's just a little different, this one won't disappoint!

Beer Gear: Craft Gear

So Craftgeer has some of the coolest designs for the true craft beer geek. They are taking our passion and making a lifestyle brand out of it. I have one of their logos as my phone background for a while now, and I decided to pony up and order some glassware.

Ordering was easy, figuring out what I was going to buy was the tough part. I have so many brewery shirts at this point my wife told me to stick to the glassware. I narrowed it down to two, the snifter and their mason glass. Both are totally bad ass.

It took a little bit longer than a week from when I ordered to when I recieved my merch, which is really impressive for a smaller company. The product was well wrapped and protected (in my day job I'm an industrial packaging sales rep, so I know my bubble wrap). The thing that really hit me was the hand written note included. They were actually thanking me for ordering their sweet ass glass. There aren't a lot of companies with this kind of class anymore. I am totally in awe of these guys and can't wait to drink some awesome brews out of their snifters.

Check out the true beer lifestyle http://www.craftgeer.com/

CANvitational

This past weekend we went to the CANvitational hosted by sun King on Georgia Street in downtown Indianapolis. Last week I got to sit down and talk with Clay from Sun King and learn a little bit about the event, so we had a pretty good idea of what was going to be going on. The weather was absolutely perfect, and the crowd was awesome.

In addition to the breweries represented, there were awesome food trucks (shout out to Taco Lassi and Mac Genie). Even the DJ spinning tunes was pretty solid.

There were a lot of breweries that don't distribute to Indiana, so it was great to see them. I'm sure if you follow someone who was there on Untappd, you saw just how much there was to try. It was kind of crazy seeing all the check-ins. You've already seen Owen's shout out to Tallgrass, and I would definitely echo that sentiment. Velvet Rooster was amazing, and I may have scored a can or two to take home. Revolution from Chicago was there, and the Oktoberfest was outstanding. I went back to their spot to try something else and they'd run out of samples. A little disappointing, but kind of awesome for them. Plus I know we'll go back next time we're in Chicago.

The highlight of the show for me was definitely the Coconut Porter aged in bourbon barrels from Great Crescent. They're an Indiana brewery, though not totally local, so I'm sensing a Pilgrimage sometime soon. We've added several other breweries to that list as well: Half Acre, Morgan Street, and West Sixth are just a few.

We couldn't have had a better day for the event. It was sunny, it was warm, and everyone was in a great mood. I'm sure the beer helped with that last part a little bit. All in, this was a great event and I'm definitely interested in going again next year!

The Big Guy: Damn that was fun! I've had to do a ton of trading just to get a few beers from some of the awesome breweries that came to CANvitational. This was a much easier way to get the brews with a ton less freight. It was also cool to see how many different operations are rocking the can. The beers were outstanding, and everything was served from a can. If you ever had someone who said no good beer comes from a can, you have to send them to this!

My favorite beers were:

1. Automnal Mole Stout by Ska out of Colorado
2. Coconut Porter by Great Crescent out of Indiana
3. Jai Alai IPA by Cigar City out of Florida
4. Ten Fiddy by Oskar Blues out of Colorado
5. Zombie Monkie by Tallgrass out of Kansas

All of the breweries really seemed excited to show Indy what they had to offer. They were all friendly and totally interested in getting people excited about what they brought. Each one of them took some time and talked about the different beers that they brought as well as what they do in their local markets. The coolest part for me was how genuinely interested all the brewers were about getting to know us in addition to getting us to try some of their beers. We made some friends with the guys working the show, and even got a couple full cans to take home.

#CANvitational #Volunteering

The historic start of Sun King's first annual CANvitational began this past Saturday, September 28th, 2013.  The inaugural run was a resounding success!  Thirty canning breweries up close and personal with 70 types of beers not available to the Indy market.  I heard several friends, and friends of friends, made the trek to Indy from surrounding states to check out the spread.  Let's start at the beginning. Like most events it all starts with setup and volunteers.

A lot of setup was done the day before.  Mostly tables, chairs, tents, and DJ stage.  Big thanks to all the volunteers who showed up to work like champs!  The real fun began at 8:30am the day of the event.  I would have some photos, but barriers, ice, coolers, canned beer goodness etc. don't move themselves!

Pro Tip: make sure to have your commercial drivers license when operating MACK trucks.

It was great to see Barnaby and crew out from 3Floyds rep'in their canned collaboration with Sun King.  Royal Brat is an ESB.  My first reaction to drinking it was Crazy Drinkable!  Just enough hops and malt to keep me interested.  By no means a Canoe Beer! 

The highlight of CANvitational for me was trying Tallgrass Brewing Co.'s offerings and meeting their Brewmaster, Andrew Hood.  Their lineup was four of their seven year-round brews: Ethos, 8-Bit, Velvet Rooster and Buffalo Sweat.  We even got to taste their newly released seasonal Zombie Monkie in their snazzy textured beer cans, and some in their prototype silver cans with signs... Oh those crazy guys in R&D!  Fun Fact: Andrew came up with the recipe for Velvet Rooster after hanging out all day at a competition/festival.  Beer inspiration strikes anywhere! 

#Zomkie

Top 5 Beers of the Fest

Ethos, Tallgrass Brewing Company Manhattan, KS (4.5)

    

On the Wings of Armageddon, DC Brau Washington, DC (4.5)

Anti-Hero, Revolution Brewing Chicago, IL (4.5)

Jai Alai, Cigar City Brewing Tampa, FL (4)

He Said, 21st Amendment Brewery San Francisco, CA (4)

One Final Note:  Well worth the price of admission.  Too expensive? Come #Volunteer with Jason and I!  You may just get paid in free beer, knowledge of the industry, and meeting great new people.  Cheers!

CANvitational was great!  It married a low key "Just hanging out" vibe with a ton of great breweries! To turn it all up to eleven head brewers were on hand to talk shop and promote their beer.  Great job Clay for executing such a great idea for a festival!  I for one can't wait for next year!  

 

Big Thanks to:

All the volunteers, brewery reps, and head brewers that made it out!
Hoosier Beer Geek

Sun King Brewery 

21st Amendment Brewery San Francisco, CA

Arcadia Brewing Company Battle Creek, MI

Avery Brewing Company Boulder, CO

Baxter Brewing Co. Lewiston, ME

Blue Dog Mead Eugene, OR

Boston Beer Company Boston, MA

Brewery Vivant Grand Rapids, MI

Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn, NY

Cigar City Brewing Tampa, FL

DC Brau Washington, DC

Great Crescent Brewery Aurora, IN

Half Acre Beer Company Chicago, IL

Lexington Brewing & Distilling Lexington, KY

Marble Brewery Albuquerque, NM

Maui Brewing Lahaina, HI

Morgan Street Brewery St. Louis, MO

New Belgium Brewing Fort Collins, CO

Oskar Blues Brewery Lyons, CO

Revolution Brewing Chicago, IL

SanTan Brewing Company Chandler, AZ

Schlafly Beer St. Louis, MO

Sierra Nevada Chico, CA

Sixpoint Brewery Brooklyn, NY

Ska Brewing Durango, CO

Sockeye Brewing Boise, ID

Surly Brewing Company Minneapolis, MN

Tall Grass Brewing Company Manhattan, KS

Tin Man Brewing Co. Evansville, IN

Two Brothers Brewing Company Warrenville, IL

West 6th Brewing Company Lexington, KY