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.

Black IPA Taste OFF!

This post picks up where I left off from my post on Danny Boy Beer Works attempt at a Black IPA or American-Style Black Ale.

Remember I was hatching that plan... you know... about having a head to head style off?  I'm not talking models and hipsters crowding around a runway, but getting a bunch of beers of a particular style, grabbing friends and seeing what beer wins the Taste off!  Enter the Italian Stallion... err Black IPAs!

The short list:
Pitch Black IPA - Widmer Brothers - Portland, OR
Sublimely Self-Righteous - Stone Brewing - Escondido, CA
The Name of Suffering - 3Floyds - Munster, IN
Notorious B.I.P.A. - People's Brewing - Lafayette, IN
King of Hop - Union Brewing Company - Carmel, IN
Nunmore - Flat 12 - Indianapolis, IN

Previous Tastings:
Black IPA - Danny Boy Beer Works - Carmel, IN
*Komodo Dragonfly - Upland Brewing Co. - Bloomington, IN

*I had Komodo fresh off tap a few hours before I had my first King of Hop a few months ago at their Carmel tap house.  I couldn't get my hands on a bottle for the taste off, but I will still rank it in the list.

Complete disclosure, I was waiting until Union Brewing Co. (UBC) had King of Hop on draft again before attempting the taste off.  For those who don't know about cask beer I will direct you towards our previous post on Union Brewing Co.  The quick and dirty is that they don't bottle and don't do cask growlers, however they now have growler-friendly versions of their beer!  Fun limitations to work around when doing a tasting! 

Cameron Fila Owner/Brewer at the UBC took it upon himself to let us host the tasting at his brewery. Not only that, he also sat in on the taste off!  I know he wanted to see where his brew stacked up with other locals and non-local breweries.  To be honest I did as well.  It was fun hearing Cameron's take on a style that really hasn't been sussed out.

After a long and arduous task of swilling beer and formulating responses/notes, find below the master list of final standings of what shook out!

Big thanks to:
Cameron - Owner/Brew Master
Tony - Celler Man
Hannah - UBC Groupie
Nick - Guilt by Association to Big Guy!
Nathan - Marketing Director/Bartender

Final Standings
1 : King of Hop - Union Brewing Company - Carmel, IN
     -Roasty coffee nose with notes of burnt carmel.  A medium to light body.  Creamy and sweet coffee roast polish.  Finishes dry with a hop nip bitter finish at the back of the pallet.  Hands down the best of the group!  The only thing that was holding it back from a perfect five was the nose.  Cameron prefers the roasty nose in this latest batch, however the Hop-Head in me sides with the floral hop nose in the previous batch paired with the body and finish in this latest iteration.  "Hail the King, BABY!"

2 : *Komodo Dragonfly - Upland Brewing Co. - Bloomington, IN
      -Very similar to the King of Hop, but missing that creaminess and great hop finish!

3 : The Name of Suffering - 3Floyds - Munster, IN
      -Hop malt nose.  Light body. Sweet and bitter. Fizzier than expected.

4 : Sublimely Self-Righteous - Stone Brewing - Escondido, CA
     -Nice toasty floral nose.  Carmel, malt and molasses notes.  Medium body. Sweet at moments.

5 : Notorious B.I.P.A. - People's Brewing - Lafayette, IN
      -Raisin malt nose, sweet.  Medium body. Notes of camel & raisins. Finishes dry & tart.

6 : Pitch Black IPA - Widmer Brothers - Portland, OR
      -Floral raisin nose, balanced hop malt body. Wet finish.

7 : Nunmore - Flat 12 - Indianapolis, IN
     -I don't think the bottle did anything to enhance this one.  Better off draft until the next batch of bottles.  Upon pouring the same as the other BIPA's this fizzed up about as bad as Oak'n Barrels Epiphany.  Other notables were the great floral nose and much lighter body.

8 : Black IPA - Danny Boy Beer Works - Carmel, IN

the Big Guy: So I dig this style of brew, but not as much as O-Dawg and for the most part I like mine a little bit sweeter. King of Hop is sweet hoppy and roasty, really everything you could ask for and a little bit more from a BIPA. My second favorite was Notorious BIP by the guys at People's. My third favorite was In the Name of Suffering by Three Floyds. Theirs was a sweeter New Orleans style brew and I totally dig it. All of these were rated at 4 for me, so it was a very close race. I have Komodo listed as a 4 on Untappd as well, but I only wanted to comment on things that we drank while doing the taste test.

Sources:
http://beerstreetjournal.com/black-ipa-no-dark-cascadian-ale-no-american-style-black-ale/
http://www.washingtonbeerblog.com/get-it-right-its-an-india-black-pale-lager-ale/
http://www.brewersassociation.org/pages/business-tools/publications/beer-style-guidelines

BREWniversity: Drink it right now!!!

Right now it seems like fresh beers are all the rage. Pliny the Elder does everything but call you a sonofabitch if you don't drink it right away. Stone, the bad boys of hops, even released a beer with an expiration date in the tittle. The first thing my buddy asked me when I got a six pack of Modus Hoperandi by Ska brewing was, "What is the brewed on date at the bottom of the can?"

What do all of these beers have in common? They are all IPA or DIPA style beers. Brewers are doing this because fresh American hops have the most kick right after the beer is brewed.

Originally hops were used for their preservative effect. People found that between a high amount of hops and a solid abv they could get beer from Europe to the New World back in the day, hence an India Pale Ale which is just a jacked up version of the original Pale Ales served in the UK. Before hops, people used a lot of different herbal ingredients to "spice" their beer, but none of them had the same preservative affect. We've come a long way since needing to have hops for transport. We've also gained a ton more varieties, strains and hop flavors. They have become part of the art of craft brewing not the function of the beer, that is unless you decide that you want to ship a cask of beer across the Atlantic Ocean by boat. Good luck...

Hops are the flowering cone off of the humulus lupulus plant, a cousin of hemp and marijuana. The cone's hold oils that when released give the bitter feeling, aroma and flavor depending on what point of the brewing process you add them into. This hop flavor is what so many craft drinkers crave. It has almost become a competition between breweries to see who can get the most hopped up beer on the market and people like O-Dawg eats that shit up. Because of people like O, we call them hopheads, the hop has become the international symbol for craft beer. Because it has become such an important ingredient, I had to figure out why everyone was preaching fresh beer when it comes to hops.

In an interview from 2010 “Tom Nielsen, Sierra Nevada’s senior research analyst focused on hop degradation, says that their research has shown that after about two and a half to three months, hop aroma in a packaged beer, derived mainly from beta acids in the hop flower, has already started to diminish significantly. It’s a sentiment backed by Patrick Langlois at Great Divide in Denver, brewers of notable hoppy beers including their Fresh Hop Pale Ale, Titan IPA, and Hercules Double IPA. “Hops tend to dissipate in three to four months, which is why that is the recommended shelf life for most of our beers.” You may not think aroma is that important, but IBUs are the scale to which hop bitterness is measured in beer. Allegedly the tongue can only taste up to 100 IBUs, any bitterness above and beyond that comes from the aroma. The aroma is also where we get most of the fresh herbal or floral appeal that comes from a great IPA.

Tom goes on about how the hoppy aroma can be hurt in transportation and distribution. As the bottle shakes in shipment the hop aroma releases but since there is a small amount of oxygen in beer bottle the aroma goes into it. Bottle caps are by no means perfect, and they do allow some seepage of aroma and O2. As the beer is handled over and over by distribution, the store and then the consumer more of that hop aroma is leached away. In fact, aroma is so important Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head recently created a glass (to the right) to accentuate the hops of an IPA. The bubbles or ridges in the bottom of the glass were designed to agitate the beer and release more of the aroma right into your nose as you drink.

I am sure you've seen the Stone Enjoy By (followed by a date here) beers on shelves and in the blogosphere. Sadly we have only gotten one of them in Indiana so far. (side note, if you want to see more awesome Enjoy By beer here tweet #enjoyby and #Indianapolis out as much as you can!) They have gone so far as to create a beer that has the expiration date listed right on the label. "While freshness is a key component of many beers - especially big, citrusy, floral IPAs - we've taken it further, a lot further, in this IPA. You see, we specifically brewed it NOT to last" Because of this, Stone decided to only release their Enjoy By series to specific markets. This allowed them to brew smaller batches and get them out to those markets quickly. Stone could have have a batch for Chicago out to the market in just a couple of days after bottling. Managing this distribution process helps combat some of the issues with transportation above. Stone has even provided the below graphic on some of their beers to make sure you know how to get the freshest beer possible.

Hops are a delicate ingredient to beer. They are damaged by exposure to sunlight (skunking affect in beer actually comes from light exposure to the hops in a brew, this is why it is also called sun struck). Brewers take great care to make sure the ingredient is added correctly, at the right time and with the perfect blend. They use the best and often freshest product they can find, so we as the consumer need to take just as good care of the beer we buy. I was talking with Cameron, the head brewer at the Union Brewing Company in Carmel, and he told me that when they did King of Hop he tried to get the fresh hops from his at home hop farm to his boil tanks in less than fifteen minutes. If he is willing to brave Carmel cops to keep his ingredients as fresh as possible the least we can do is drink it right away!

Sadly there is no hard and fast rule. Some hops will hold up better than other strains, and some beers have enough ABV and malt that the hops aren't front and center, so you can wait a bit to drink those. But the Big Guy's rule on hops is, "Buy two, drink one as soon as you can get it cold, if its beautiful fresh and hoppy, insert beer two into the fridge and drink as soon as your friends get there." 

Next time you hit the liquor store to try and find a nice hopped up brew, check the brewed on date. Maybe pass something up if it isn't quite as recent as you want, or grab one that was brewed in the last couple of months and one that has been sitting around for a while to try them side by side. If you are having trouble figuring out what beers are best to age, check out my post on cellaring your brews.

http://www.sierranevada.com/beer/specialty/northern-hemisphere-harvest
http://hookedonhops.com/tag/russian-river/
http://captainsbeerblog.com/2010/03/23/fading-hops/
http://craftbeeracademy.com/the-science-behind-hops-part-2-essential-oils/
http://www.stonebrewing.com/enjoyby/

Picadilly Circus

If you haven't been to the Union Brewing Company in Carmel lately you're missing out big time. Since opening these guys have gone from one house beer to three or four. They have a great selection of some unique bombers in their beer fridge for purchase. They have added a beautiful outdoor seating area that backs up to the Monon Trail and now they are grilling brats and burgers depending on the day.

But the real reason that you're missing out is because you are missing their awesome cask ales. The Picadilly Pale was one of my favorites, that is until they released the Picadilly Circus just recently. Picadilly Circus is an ESB done in the traditional English fashion with EKG, Challenger and Target hops. For those of you who haven't had an ESB, it's a Pale Ale somewhere between a standard pale and an IPA as far as hops go.

Picadilly Circus is just like the Picadilly Pale but they added a metric shit ton of Indiana honey. This jacked its ABV up, it had a 7.2% abv, which is totally more my speed.

The beer comes out a golden straw yellow color with that slow, foamy white head that you get from cask ales. It has a nice herbal earthy aroma and the honey fits in perfectly sweetening the smell. The ESB has tangy hops that have a nice consistant bitterness. The hops are balanced out so well by the sweetness of the extra honey and just a hint of boozy heat. It has some great notes of toffee and honey with a nice bready backbone. The cask gives it that nice silky smooth mouth feel that I love.

The Picadilly Circus is smooth and drinkable for an ESB with an amped up ABV. If you haven't checked out the UBC lately you are missing out.

I give it a 4

History on Tap

    

History on Tap, a craft beer festival held at Conner Prairie, is slightly different than the standard beer festival.  The most obvious difference is that, being held at Conner Prairie, some of the grounds of the historical park are open as part of the festival.  History on Tap also has some educational opportunities not available at all craft beer festivals.  Prairietown is open through the festival, including the Golden Eagle Inn, where they serve beers made from historical recipes.  This year they had a molasses beer, and last year they had a ginger beer (both of which I found to be quite tasty).  Tuxedo Park Brewers had a stand set up, where they were giving craft brewing demonstrations.  According to the statistics from last year's History on Tap, over one third of the guests had never been to a beer festival before, and almost half only attend one or two a year.  I don't have even anecdotal numbers for other festivals, but it seems like History on Tap caters to a slightly different audience, and seems to be good at introducing new people to craft beer.

The 1859 Balloon Voyage was also running during History on Tap.  The 1859 Balloon Voyage is the largest tethered gas passenger balloon in the world, and having a beer while 350 feet up in the air is quite an interesting experience.

Several of the breweries in attendance only brought the usual suspects, but there were some more unique brews available.  A few of the stand-outs of the festival for me:

Cucumber Kolsch - Flat 12: I wasn't really sure what to expect from it, but it ended up being probably my favorite beer of the festival.  It was very light and refreshing, with a strong cucumber aroma.  (Upon smelling the cucumber, I immediately thought of this scene from The Other Guys: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3IQNPCIZ-k)

Shelby Blue Ribbon - New Day Meadery: This was an excellent mead (like most of New Day's).

Sassy Pants Porter - Union Brewing Company: A sassafras porter that is definitely worth a drink.

The Big Guy: We had  an awesome time at this event. I have never had beer in a hot air balloon, not sure that was on my bucket list but I am pumped that I got to check it off. It was great to see the UBC brew an exclusive beer for the event, and it was cool Flat12 gave us an early premier of the cucumber kolsch that is coming to liquor stores soon. Also, the molasses beer that the folks at Conner Prairie brewed was definitely interesting, and since they gave out the recipe me and Prof, Beer are going to try and put that one together. I think the coolest part of these festivals is getting a unique experience, whether its the brews or how they are presented. This one did a good job on both accounts. Thanks to the Horizon Council for putting this good time together for us.

The Scene: Drink me I'm Irish!

In my family every holiday seems to revolve around some sort of wine, beer or alcohol. On top of that, there are many Holidays that seem to revolve around beer, Oktoberfest, Mardis Grass, and of course St. Patrick's Day. I am not Irish, but St. Patty's speaks the most to me. When else can you dress up like a deranged green midget and drink until you can't make full sentences? This year for St. Patrick's Day my wife and I packed in as much as we could.

We started our day off at the first ever Shamrock 5k in broadripple. It was great because a bunch of local breweries came out to support the cause (Upland, Sun King and Fountain Square). It was a traditional 5k run, but at every 1k you got a beer... a small beer but you could grab as many as you wanted. It was 9 am so I was getting some strange looks for taking two or three at a time. The race was great and it ended with a stop at the Broadripple Tavern for some green beer. Yes, I had green beer... it's a holiday I felt obligated.

After Broadripple we drove home for quick shower and change. Then we headed to the Union Brewing Company for their St. Patty's Day party. The bar was packed, but there were two tents out back and the party was just getting started back there. It had a great atmosphere and there was plenty of space to spread out. There was a guitar player out back in one of the tents playing some tunes. Cameron (the head brewer at UBC) released five new sweet / milk stouts with all sorts of different flavors (arranged in order of my favorite).

• Mint Everest Chocolate Mint Stout
• Carri's Car Bomb Irish Whiskey Stout
• S'Mores Graham, Chocolate and Marshmallow Stout
• Almond Joyous Coconut Almond Stout
• Olde Tyme Root Beer Stout

The UBC beers were great as always and everyone was really getting in the spirit of the holiday. There was some good Shepard's pie and corned beef and cabbage, that were catered. On top of their St. Patrick's Day specialty beers, they had their beer Miami Weiss (not exactly Irish, but one of my favorite that they do) as well as Harp, Guinness and Strongbow on tap. 

St. Patrick's Day did not disappoint this year. Everyone who put together programs did a great job. They were full of booze, fun and a few barons looking like leprechauns.   

  

Here’s to a long life and a merry one,

A quick death and an easy one,

A pretty girl and an honest one,

A cold pint-and another one!

Why Not?

I have been so happy with the Union Brewing Company moving in down the street. Having something so close to home where they really care about quality is excellent. Their Why Not? is a great example of why I've totally fallen for their stuff. It's an American Pale Ale with 6% abv and 34 IBUs, which is way lower than I expect from an APA, but works out great for someone who isn't a huge hop head. Just goes to show that an APA, IPA, and AIPA are all totally different things and you shouldn't judge a beer by it's style.

This beer came off the beer engine a mild orangish color. There was a wonderful cloud of head floating on the top of the beer. I love watching the cloudy suds slowly form when you are drinking off the cask. The lacing goes on forever when the beer comes off the cask. It had a sweet bready smell with a hint of citrus.

On the first cool taste, it is sweet and bready. There's a tangy hop vibe but nothing crazy bitter or with an unpleasant astringency. It was a big hit of caramel flavor mixed in with some tropical citrus fruits. The mix of flavors goes so well together and keeps it balanced. The beer itself has a light, light mouth feel. I have totally fallen in love with the smooth carbonation of the cask ale. All of this combines to make it a sweet, delicious easy drinking brew. There is a great balance of malt and hops. It is a sweet and tasty apa that I could totally drink every day of the week.

I give it a 4

Cannonball Doyle

Union Brewing Company's Cannonball Doyle is an Irish Dry Stout with 3.9% ABV.

Like all of Union Brewing Company's cask ales, Cannonball Doyle was dispensed by their beer engine, as opposed to a more common pressure-dispense tap.  The thick off-white head had good retention, and bubbles cascaded down the inside of the glass for a short while after being served, much like beer from a nitro tap.  The beer's color is very dark, almost black.  Cannonball Doyle has some dark chocolate notes and some coffee-like bitterness.  It has a creamy mouthfeel, with a medium to light body and fairly low carbonation.

I found Cannonball Doyle to be a good example of an Irish Dry Stout, and any fans of the style would be well-served to give it a try.  Since the Union Brewing Company makes all their beer in small batches, it might not be around too much longer; however, it will hopefully be a regular at the Union Brewing Company.

The Big Guy: I think that UBC has a bright future in Indianapolis's craft beer scene. Cannonball Doyle was a tasty, bitter, and very dry stout. It was nicely balanced with a lot of character for a session brew (anything labeled session is a beer under 4.2% abv). Often in the US we push for big, bigger, and freaking big, whether its abv, or IBUs. The guys here did a great job of producing an easy drinking beer while keeping the flavor as big as any imperial, double or barelywine out there. I give it a solid 4.

O-Dawg:
I finally got to try this on tap the weekend of July 4th, 2013.  I wasn't trying to procrastinate, I just couldn't seem to get down to the Brew Pub fast enough to get a tasty pint of this stellar brew when it was on.  The points that made this Dry Irish Stout really stand out for me was the combination of flavor, low ABV's and deceptively light body.  Great combo that pushes it up to a 4.5.  If you want to know what Cameron is brewing up at Union Brewing Company or what cask ale really is all about try this brew!!!