Indiana Microbrewers Festival

Every summer thousands of beer enthusiasts gather at the grounds of the Indianapolis Art Center to enjoy samples of craft beer from a variety breweries at the summer Indiana Microbrewers Festival. This festival has been going on for many years, but for me (Kevin) it was the first time I've been able to attend.  

 

I met up with Russ when I arrived and he showed me around since he was volunteering.  Our first drinking experience came at the cask tent.  Since we were there early we were able to sample many beers prior to the general admission entry time. 

General Admission entry line

In the cask tent my favorite beer that I tried was the Iechyd Da Revolution IPA with pineapple, mango, and orange.  I'm a big fan of Revolution by itself, but these additions just elevated the beer and its flavor profiles.  Would love to try a higher carbonated version, but that's what you get with cask beer.  It was delicious.  Incredibly pure.  

Cask Tent

My favorite in the cask area.  Iechyd Da Revolution with Mango, Pineapple, and Orange

Russ and Me enjoying our first beer of the day from the cask tent

I was also lucky to speak with one of the owners/brewers of Iechyd Da, Chip.  He and I spent time talking about their raspberry berliner weiss, Tata Rosa.  My complaint about that beer last year was that it wasn't funky enough and was fairly mild.  He shared that this year they had a different experience in the brewing process which resulted in a funkier version.  I sampled it and felt that it was far superior to the version brewed last year.  Interestingly he shared that they have had several complaints about the beer being "too funky" which somewhat confirmed to me that the northern Indiana region isn't quite ready for the funk.  Being from that area originally, I am sure it's only a matter of time before they catch up. Iechyd Da continues to be one of my favorite breweries in the state and might be my favorite brewpub as their food and atmosphere are top notch.  Definitely worth a road trip to Elkhart.

Tom Harvey from Iechyd Da and Kevin

We had a great time talking with breweries across the state.  We were fortunate to talk with the folks from Mashcraft, Scarlet Lane, Quaff On, Three Floyds, Upland, Sun King, Flat 12, Black Acre, and many others.  One of the highlights for me was the Flat 12 tent.  This year they placed a suggestion box in their taproom in order to get beer ideas from customers.  Back in May I suggested they brew a high ABV chocolate peanut butter stout.  They ended up taking my suggestion and using it to create the beer called Shelled.  While I wanted more peanut butter from the beer, it was still quite delicious.
They used their base Big Black Dog rye stout and aged it in whiskey barrels with peanut butter and cocoa nibs.  It was complex with lots of chocolate and barrel characteristics and a subtle peanut butter flavor which rounded out the beer nicely.  Overall Flat 12, with their variety of customer suggested beers, executed their flavors quite impressively.
 

Overall, the festival was a great success.  Mostly because I got an incredibly generous pour of Imperial Breakfast Magpie from New Day Meadery :-) 

mmmmmm....Imperial Magpie

But seriously, the volunteers, staff, and breweries were all incredibly welcoming and helpful  The venue was also fantastic.  Lots of shade, plenty of water stations, and a variety of food options including my favorite, Fat Dan's Deli.  There were a lot of beers that I thought were decent.  For me, the beers that stood out included Bare Hands Citronic Pale Ale which rivals Zombie Dust in my opinion, Iechyd Da Tata Rosa, Flat 12 Shelled, Black Acre Bourbon Vanilla One Ten, Sun King Port Barrel Wee Mac, and Mashcraft Java Deep.
 

The folks from Black Acre were ready to party!!

I am looking forward to attending the festival in the future.  I encourage people to volunteer if you are able.  You get to help out and as a result you get early entry and are able to have a bit of an easier time getting pours from brewers.  Here are some other photos from the day:
 

Everyone has to get a little early afternoon Zombie Dust

Russ and Me getting a share of a Cognac De Muerte Dark Lord from a distributor

Masses of people with beers

The Beer Barons....minus Andrew and Brie.

Beer tasting is serious business.  Here is Russ documenting his tastings.

The folks from Rhinegeist brought their Crowlers to show off the next trend in craft cans.

Russ demonstrating the importance of eating during a craft beer festival.

Sun King Grapefruit Jungle

Being fairly new to this collection of bloggers I decided that I would take a stab at writing up a review on Sun King Grapefruit Jungle.  This beer has previously been written about on this site here and here. This is one of my favorite beers from this brewery, a brewery I am often quite critical of.  The previous write-ups are an enjoyable read, and I think my sentiments are somewhat a blend of the other reviewers.  But here is my take on this annual Sun King release.

Pour:  Poured from a can into the Sun King can glass.  I know that IPA's should go in a tulip, but I can't let the can glass go unused here.  As you can see from the picture, there was a little spillage due to the can glass not providing ample space for the entire pour.  The only way I've found to get a Sun King beer into the can glass is to try and pour the beer so that there is no head...which is a shame.  *Note to Sun King...make this glass just a little bigger.  Anyway, the beer pours a nice copper/orange color and it so badly wants to have head, but the glass didn't really support that very well.

Aroma:  I can smell the beer from about 2-3 feet away.  The aroma is that pungent.  Loads of citrus.  I get mostly tangerine and grapefruit on the nose.  

Mouthfeel:  It's an IPA so I expect it to be right where it is.  It is a medium bodied beer.  It's not light or watery and it's not nearly full bodied.  The mouthfeel also provides quite a bit of sticky resin which does take its toll on the palate.

Taste:  This is where the beer gets wild.  Get it?  Wild? Jungle?  Ok, so I'm not a comedian.  Anyway. The flavor profile is very citrus forward.  Grapefruit, tangerine, and maybe a touch of that sweet and tropical passion fruit which keeps this beer from being a total bitter bomb.  The malt bill also prevents it from being out of control.  That being said, it's definitely not a balanced beer.  The hops very much overpower everything...and I love that.  There are enough sweet flavors to temper the harshness of those bittering hops.  It leaves each sip with a subtle dryness which creates the need for the next sip.  It's a hop bomb in every way.  

Overall:  This is probably my favorite Sun King beer.  It's overpriced, as are all Sun King beers, but it's still probably the best IPA in the local market.  I do wish that they would make it a year round beer, but for a variety of reasons they haven't.  Additionally, I'm not of the opinion that the beer changes from year to year.  This year's cans taste exactly how I remember the cans from 2011.  I've also had it on draft and there is no discernable difference to me draft 2014 vs. draft 2011 vs. draft 2013 (etc.).  Maybe my palate isn't as sophisticated...or maybe beer geeks just allow things to get in their heads to question consistency.  One thing Sun King does extremely well is that they produce consistent product.  This is no exception to that.  

I would give this a 4.5/5.  It's a great beer.

Surviving Dark Lord Day

This week begins just like every other week for most people. For many beer geeks, however, this week starts with more excitement than most. Dark Lord Day is Saturday. If you don't know about this, check out www.darklordday.com and catch up.

Having been to the past two Dark Lord Day events, I thought it might be good to pass along some tips for surviving the day. The boom of craft beer in the last year or two has brought a lot of new beer geeks to the scene which has increased the number of first time attendees. 

1. Arrive early. The parking situation is a concern. The sides of the streets will be lined with cars by 7:00am. If not earlier. If you don't get one of those spots, you may be forced to pay for parking in one of the surrounding lots or across the street in the park. If you plan to arrive later in the day, you may have better luck as there are people who leave early. But one of my favorite things about DLD is the bottle sharing line before the event starts. So getting there early means less stress related to parking and awesome time waiting in line. 

2. Don't be an asshole. This is probably the most important tip for the day. Be flexible, have a positive attitude, and remember that everyone is there to have a good time. Don't line cut in the bottle line once inside. If someone in line offers you a pour of Bourbon County Rare, be modest. Take a 1-2oz pour. Don't be greedy and take a 6oz pour unless you are looking to get in a fight. Which goes back to the first sentence in this rule. 

3. Take a case of water with you. Seriously everyone should bring that much water. This is a marathon. Not a sprint. Small pours and lots of water are your keys to not getting drunk early in the day and face planting in the grass. Contrary to what you might think, you do not want to get drunk at DLD. For most, this is inevitable though. So hydrate hydrate hydrate and make sure you eat a substantial breakfast and an alpha brat for lunch. Bring snacks as well. Food and water are your best friends on Saturday. 

4. Don't forget your tickets, cash, and ID. You will need all of them. Guest taps are $5-$10 during the day. Dark Lord bottles are $15. If you win the right to buy a barrel aged Dark Lord that's $50. Plan for the best because you don't want to have to deal with the ATM line. I promise. 

5. Bring a cooler or a backpack. The rules say coolers are not allowed, but if you bring a soft cooler that goes over your shoulder, you will be fine. Backpacks are definitely good to bring as well. Just don't bring one of those large coolers on wheels. They won't let that in. Also, the high temp for Saturday right now is 48, so you may not need a cooler at all. But better to have it to transport your beers for sharing. 

6. Bring beer to share and a tasting glass. People love craft beer. You don't have to bring super rare bottles to share. Bring a growler of your local favorite. Bring home brews. We all will want to try most anything craft. I also usually bring two tasting glasses. Don't stress about what to bring. Bring something you want to drink and don't mind sharing with others. 

7. Dress appropriately. It's going to be a tad chilly. Great for keeping beer cold during the day, but you will want to wear a sweatshirt or a light jacket. Also, sunscreen is a good idea if you don't plan on wearing a hat. It will be sunny and you can still get sunburned if you don't take proper precautions. Also, right now the forecast is for 0% chance of rain...which means you should definitely bring some rain gear. 

8. Bring a cloth grocery bag. When you go through the bottle line to get your dark lord bottles, they will provide you with a flimsy bomber 4 pack holder. Don't trust your bottle fate to these carriers. Put your bottles in a cloth grocery bag and immediately take them to your car. You don't want to be the guy who passes out in the grass next to your dark lord bottles because there ARE people there who will violate tip #2 and you will go home empty handed. 

9. Bottle sharing tips. Don't assume anything you see on the table is fair game for you to take a pour. Always be courteous and ask. It usually will be fair game, but asking eliminates any question. If you didn't bring it, ask. People are always nice and generous, but if you just start taking pours you are violating tip #2 and people won't enjoy being with you. Contribute to the share as well. Plan to bring bottles that you open in line before the event and in the tents during the event. Don't open all of your bottles in the line before. Also, if your bottle has a cork, bring a corkscrew. 

10. Bring toilet paper. Self explanatory. 

11. Hit up the guest taps. There is world class beer brought in from awesome breweries across the globe. Use your friends to divide and conquer. If you have 10 friends everyone buys one different pour and you share them with the group. Sharing guest taps is a lot of fun and you get to try more incredible beer.  

12. Check out the bands. I've missed this each year, and while Metal is not really my thing, I definitely want to check out some of it this year. I am dying to rage. 

I am sure there are many other things I could list but if you follow these 12 tips you should have yourself a marvelous time. Be safe, don't be afraid to call a cab, and have fun!  Be sure to check back as we will have our own Dark Lord Day story to share with you all. 

BREWniversity: How to Saber Your Beer

You read the title correctly. The first time I heard someone say that, I thought it was some stupid joke. I had no clue that sabering a beer was a thing. Apparently it is. The concept is actually kind of cool. Opening your corked bottle with a knife in one quick swipe seems like a recipe for disaster. I've seen videos of people opening bottles this way and it never seemed like something I could pull off.

At a tasting two weeks ago, our friend Parker attempted to saber a bottle and was quite unsuccessful. Granted there was a lot of pressure, and people generally seemed uncomfortable with the idea; so after a few failed swipes with a knife he aborted the mission for the night. 

Fast forward to last night. The topic came up in conversation halfway through our evening. We decided to give Parker another chance. I had a Cascade Strawberry that was nicely chilled and ready for action. I gave him a butter knife and we all went outside to the deck. 

Parker took a couple swipes and couldn't  get it done. Rob then took his turn and was also unsuccessful. My turn. My first two swipes were futile. The third one, however, resulted in a nice "pop" sound and the cork went flying into my back yard. We all erupted into cheers as the beer slightly gushed out of the bottle. It is, without a doubt, a cool party trick that was awesome to experience. 

A couple of tips if you choose to try this yourself. 

1. Be outside. You don't want this going down indoors because of various safety reasons. 

2. Use a butter knife. 

3. Find the seam of the bottle, I am told this is the weakest part of the bottle and if you strike in that area you are more likely to experience success. 

4. Be aggressive with your strike. There are a lot of fears that can go through your mind when trying to saber your beer. "Will I shatter the bottle?" "Will I slice my hand or finger?" (Etc.). These thoughts will bring that glimmer of doubt which results in hesitation. 

5. You should slide the knife up the seam and whack the bottom of the cage in one fast motion. Be sure to be holding the bottle tightly and at a 45 degree angle at least, if not higher. This allows a successful strike to send the cork flying. 

The end result is a clean break of the glass holding the cork in one piece. Completely safe to drink.

Here is a pic of the bottle I sabered.

Cheers!!

Fat Heads Hop Juju

I am a big fan of Fat Heads Brewing.  Head Hunter IPA is absolutely one of my favorite IPA's on the market.  So when I heard about Hop Juju, their double ipa, I expected great things.  I first learned of the beers greatness while watching the live stream of the Great American Beer Festival awards ceremony.  Hop Juju won the gold medal over Three Floyds Permanent Funeral.  Having had Permanent Funeral last year at Dark Lord Day and being quite impressed with it, I was eager to try Hop Juju.  So when it was bottled, I made a trade for it, and boom....here we go.

Let me preface by saying this review is a culmination of 3 separate drinking occasions.  To be perfectly honest, the first I consumed this beer I drank a different beer prior to pouring the Juju.  I was also cooking a fragrant meal for my family.  The second time drinking this I was home alone.  Nothing going on.  The third time was at a recent bottle share where I shared my last 2 bottles with drinking buddies.

The beer pours a slightly dark orange color and is crystal clear.  Poured into a tulip glass.  The first thing that goes wrong for me here is the nose.  It's weak.  I expected this beer to deliver a face smacking aroma that I would feel in my spine...it did not.  In fact, until the third time I drank it I really didn't get much out of the nose.  The taster pour I had at the bottle share provided me with light tropical fruit aromas with a touch of pine and citrus.  So it's got a lot going on, just not overpowering in any way.  Which is fine.

Taste is a really nice mix of all of those hop flavors.  Pineapple, Mango, grapefruit, and pine bitterness are all evident.  Well blended and incredibly easy to drink.  Smooth.  The mouthfeel is perfectly full as any good DIPA should be.  Has pretty strong resin to it and has that "will chip away at the enamel of your teeth" kind of quality.  Nice lacing on the glass as well.

All in all, I give it a 4/5.  I understand why it won Gold at the GABF.  It's incredibly true to style.  GABF is about the truest beers to style.  To me, Permanent Funeral is a lot more aggressive than Juju but Juju has all the elements of winner in a contest.  That being said I liked PF better.  Truth to style doesn't always mean that the beer is incredible.  There wasn't any one particular thing about Juju to me that was mind blowing or life changing...other than how true to style it is.

Additionally, just because I wouldn't put it in a top 10 of DIPA's doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it.  It's a really good beer.  In fact I recently traded for more!  Definitely worth a buy.

The Big Guy: I don't have a lot more to say that Kevin hasn't already put out there. After having Head Hunter I was not expecting the extreme resiny quality of this beer. It went far enough into the piney resiny spectrum that it could be considered dank with its big piney and earthy hop profiles. Along with all this dank goodness there was an impressive amount of tropical fruit hops to help brighten it up and a nice subtle sweet malt character. It ended with a great bitter slap in the face that really closed it out well. I thought it was well balanced and a beautiful IPA all in, but I agree with Kevin that it's a 4

Be on the look out because my local liquor store guy told me we should be expecting a limited supply of this hoppy treat to hit Indy in the next few weeks.

Fat Dan's Deli: Bringing a Little Bit of Chicago to Indy.

Nestled in the heart of South Broadripple, or "SoBro" as some might call it, you will find a variety of bars and restaurants.  There is Yats, the Cajun style eatery with sloppily delicious grub that is budget friendly.  There is also Taste Cafe for those who want a little more sophistication in their dining experience.  Friendly bars like Moe and Johnny's, where you can get endless bowls of free peanuts and the Aristocrat which features 60 taps mainly pouring craft beers.  You want upscale dining?  SoBro has it with spots like Mama Carolla's and Recess.  From Sam's Gyro's, to the Upland tasting room, the Sinking Ship, and the craft beer bar giant in this city, Twenty Tap, SoBro is one of the most established little pockets of diversity in food and beer that I love in the area.

The spot that stands out for me in SoBro is Fat Dan's Deli. Dan describes the whole thing as "Comfort Chicago street food...think ballpark and street festival-good times- cold beers, music, food."

I'll admit that growing up in Northern Indiana and being raised on Chicago sports and Chicago food has me a little biased towards this local Indy joint that focuses on a plethora of Windy City eats and craft beers.  The first time I walked into this restaurant on the northwest side of 54th and College I felt like I was at home.  

 

 

The bar/dining area is quaint, cozy, and decked out with Chicago sports memorabilia and a couple large TV's.  Dan told me its like "my basement that I've invited you to come to and hang out in. I take what I do personally, and take great pride in my food, the atmosphere we've created and our friends that enjoy our spot." During football season, this is one of the few spots in the city that exclusively shows Chicago Bears games with audio throughout the room.  Not shockingly, I can be found there most NFL Sundays.  The staff is friendly, fun, and incredibly engaging.  Dan, himself, is one of the most genuinely nice guys that I've met in the restaurant business.

 

Since this is a beer blog, let's talk about the beer at Fat Dan's.  They sport 10 draft lines and generally 2 of those are dedicated to nitro pouring.  The nitro selections for my visit were Founders Dry Hopped American Pale Ale and Lefthand Milk Stout Nitro.  There are 7 lines dedicated to a variety of local/regional/and national craft beers.  Selecting brews for a place like this can be difficult but Dan has a philosophy, "We all like beer-we feel like we know what's good and if we like it, then a lot of other people will too. We like to rotate some of the local breweries and add regional crafts that other places around town don't know about or have on tap themselves..." I've visited this place multiple times and can tell you that the variety here is good enough to usually satisfy anyone.  Featuring beers from Stone, DESTIHL, Fat Heads, Founders, Bells, Goose Island, Bier Brewery, Quaff On, and many, many more, you  are sure to find something that will be more than satisfying.  The last line, and the only constant beer always on tap, is that good old Chicago classic....Old Style. Growing up in Northern Indiana, I attended many Chicago Cubs games.  As I attended those games as an adult, one of the best experiences is drinking that Old Style in the friendly confines of Wrigley Field.  There aren't many places in Indy where I can sit and watch a Cubs game and drink an Old Style.  Being as big of a beer geek as I am, I can still tell you that I am not above an occasional Old Style for nostalgia purposes...and Fat Dan's gives me just what I need.  

My most recent visit to Fat Dan's was fueled by my craving for an Italian Beef Sandwich, and to me Dan's beef is the best in the city.  This succulent monstrosity of a sandwich is loaded with perfectly seasoned shredded beef, and topped with crisp, fresh, and spicy giardiniera.  The meat is piled into the hearty Italian roll and the whole sandwich gets briefly submerged into a vat of au jus, which I fondly call "liquid glory".  It's then wrapped in foil and presented to you on hefty parchment paper.  No plates here folks.  Simple, delicious, and satisfying.  I generally order extra peppers on mine...as should you.  Make sure you have a roll of paper towels next to you because this one can get messy.

  

The menu doesn't stop there.  The Chicago Dog, Maxwell St. Polish, the Chicago Combo are all fantastic standards.  You want burgers?  Fat Dan's has some of the best in the city.  From the mouth scorching Ghost Burger, to the NY Fatty topped with pastrami and corned beef, these burgers will satisfy the heftiest appetites.  Dan's personal favorite is the straight up Fat Burger. Get yourself a side of the best fries in the universe and this place will have you planning your next visit as you exit the building.

But that's not all.  Dan also has a variety of smoked food that is prepared in-house.  Smoked brisket, pulled pork, ribs, and my favorite...the chicken wings are just some of the things he cooks using all hickory wood for that authentic smoked flavor.  I've added pictures of their menu...you are sure to find something you will enjoy. Dan has big plans for the future, " Any future plans related to food, beer, locations...etc. I want to expand this concept to different cities around the USA and in the Caribbean. I hope to have about 7-10 shops in cities like Denver, Austin, Charlotte, Seattle & NY. I'd like a location or two in maybe The Keys and/or Mexico/Bahamas...some place like that. I didn't set out to make a million bucks with this--I set out to make people happy...I believe if you make people happy and do what you do right each and every time, the money will follow."

Most craft beer geeks in the city visit Twenty Tap with regularity.  If you have been in that area and haven't walked just a few paces north to Fat Dan's, you owe it to yourself to stroll in, belly up to the bar, and get yourself immersed in hearty cuisine and solid beer.  They are celebrating their one year anniversary on 2/18 and if I know this place, they are sure to throw one heck of a party.  And as always at Fat Dan's....hugs are free!

Thanks for reading!