Monthly Archives: February 2009

Cascade!

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This is a guest post from my good friend Max, half of our “Advisory Panel”.

Recently Al asked me recount an event for the Hop Talk readers that happened when we last got together for our annual Octoberfest. As a parent there are times your child may say or do something that makes your heart just burst with pride. This was one of my moments.

It was early Saturday morning and, as tradition dictates, we were opening our Guinness Stouts (which we have coined our “breakfast beer”) as we stood in the kitchen discussing our plans for the day. As we began to pour, my wife called to my three-year-old son who was playing in another room. “Nicholas! Do you want to see the cascade?” Conversation ceased as the cry of “oh boy the cascade!” coincided with the crashing sound of whatever toy my son had in his hand as it hit the floor. This was closely followed by him appearing in a full-out sprint, rounding the corner and jumping up onto the stool at the breakfast bar to lock eyes on the four simultaneous cascades. I’m not sure whose smile was bigger; his from enjoyment or mine from pride.

(Just in case you’re not familiar with the term “cascade”, here’s an illustration)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-X30NAc8khc

Brooklyn Brown Ale

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Brooklyn Brown AleBeer-a-Day #41

This is the start of six different offerings from Brooklyn Brewery. Brooklyn is one of my favorite brewers and several of their offerings I count among my favorite beers. The next six, though, I’ve never had before.

Nice deep brown with an off-white head. Coffee and green tea in the aroma. More coffee and some cherries in the flavor, with a good malty balance and just enough hop bitterness. I kinda like it.

Brooklyn Brown Ale


Beer: doing well in a bad economy

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National Public RadioI am a big fan of National Public Radio and love when beer appears in places I didn’t expect. Today on All Things Considered was a piece by John Burnett about the fortunes of brewers from the very small to the absolutely enormous. Specifically, that while beer isn’t recession-proof, it certainly is recession-resistant.

Brewery Business Hopping Despite Tanking Economy

“The American public is the biggest beer market in the world,” says Juan Manuel Prado, health and safety manager at the new [Grupo Modelo] brewery. “Drinking beer is part of your culture. Other products might be affected by the economy, but everything revolves around beer. When you’re sad, you have a beer; when you’re content, you have a beer.”

Worth a listen.

Samuel Adams Hallertau Imperial Pilsner

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Samuel Adams Hallertau Imperial PilsnerBeer-a-Day #40

This concludes Samuel Adams week.

This is subtitled “An Intense Hop Experience”. Since when did Boston Beer Company do hop bombs? When I spotted this at my favorite retailer I decided to do a six of Sam Adams beers.

Light yellow with haze and a prodigious white head. Lots of hop spiciness in the aroma. Light-medium body with lots of hop bite. For a hophead like me this is quite the find.


Session #25 announced: Love Lager

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The Session - Beer Blogging FridayThe Session is a monthly one-day event held by beer bloggers around the world, where they each post their thoughts on a unified theme.

That theme, for March, is Love Lager, hosted by the Beer Nut.

So for this Session, let’s get back to basics. I’m sure I’m not the only one whose early drinking career featured pale lager in abundance, so consider this a return to our roots as beer drinkers. Don’t even think about cheating the system: leave your doppelbocks and schwarzbiers out of this one: I want pilsners, light lagers, helleses and those ones that just say “beer” because, well, what else would it be?

I want to know what’s so great about them, and what’s awful. Are we talking just lawnmowers, barbecues and sun holidays here, or is there a time for some thoughtful considered sipping of a cold fizzy lager?

This episode of the Session will take place on March 6, 2009. Details here: Announcing Session #25 – Love Lager

Mr. Nut actually guest blogged for us back in September, ’07.

This topic opens up some interesting possibilities. Should I go back to the lagers that I cut my proverbial drinking teeth on, such as Miller Genuine Draft? Or should I go back further and try what The Office Beer Bar & Grill euphemistically calls “Retro Beers“, like Schlitz or PBR? Or should I stick with a craft offering, like Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Saranac Adirondack Lager, or perhaps Flying Dog Old Scratch Amber Lager?

There will also be a live “Twitter Tasting” to go along with this Session. If you have a blog, I invite you to participate, even if it’s only tenuously related to beer. First-time Session participants are especially welcome.

Samuel Adams Black Lager

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Samuel Adams Black LagerBeer-a-Day #39

The second half of Samuel Adams week continues.

This is another from the Brewmaster’s Collection.

“Black Lager”. Ooooh! Sounds spooky!

Not actually black, but a deep brown with a minimal light brown head. Very bready, with an odd kind of spiciness. Kind of like cheese, but not. Roastiness in the flavor. With the caramel and chocolate malts I’m not surprised. Pleasantly bitter. That’s worth having again.

The Session #24: Flying Dog Kerberos Tripel

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The Session - Beer Blogging FridayThis edition of The Session is sponsored by David at Musings Over a Pint.

Announcing Session #24 – A Tripel for a Two

Beer is best when it’s shared, and a strong beer is just right for sharing. Belgian Tripels are big beers with a flavor profile that is enjoyed by both experienced and new beer fans. Be it an intimate evening, or watching a ball game on TV, a Tripel is made for sipping and sharing. For Session #24 the theme is “A Tripel for Two.” What Tripel would you pick to share with that good friend, family member, or lover?

If you have a beer or beer-related blog, it’s easy to participate in The Session. Pick a Belgian-style Tripel to review. Tell us why it’s your pick to share with that special someone. Be sure to include a review of the beer so that others might be inspired to choose that beer for a special moment. Bonus points if the person with whom you are sharing the beer includes their review as well.

We have long suggested that “the best beer in the world is one shared with a friend.” Since I was making the long trek up to Ron’s for his birthday a couple weeks ago, I brought along half of a four-pack of Flying Dog Kerberos Tripel, with instructions to Ron to save them for this Session. The other two I left at home.

KerberosRecently,  we used that old-fashioned technology, the telephone, to talk about beer, family, and life, but also to discuss the beer we were both sampling. Both our wives were out for the evening and, although we keep in touch via e-mail and other technologies, it was good to have an old-fashioned vocal conversation. Ron’s my oldest friend, after all.

As for “why this tripel”, that’s pretty pedestrian. I was getting ready to take that 400-mile trip to Ron’s in upstate New York, Flying Dog is brewed local to me, and I don’t think that Ron can get it there in the Great White North. If we were going to simultaneously long-distance sample the same beer we’d have to go with something we could both get, and therefore common and written up by lots of other people, or we’d have to source the beer from the same place. Add to that: I like Flying Dog’s offerings and neither of us had ever had it. It’s also not a style I have much.

It’s lighter in color than I expected. Distinctly yellow with a chill haze. Head didn’t stick around long. Very fruity aroma; almost like a lemon Starburst but not as cloyingly sweet. Medium body with a cleaner finish than I find in most Belgian styles. I like it.

I’m also going to count this as Beer-a-Day #37.

We enjoyed our long-distance beer tasting so much that we may do it more often. I can’t guarantee that it’ll always end up as a Hop Talk article, but sharing a beer with a good friend, across a table or a telephone line, can only be a good thing.

(You can also read Ron’s review of Kerberos Tripel)

The Session #24: Kerberos Guardian of the Tripel

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The Session - Beer Blogging FridayWelcome to the Session #24 , A Tripel for a Two sponsored by David at Musings Over a Pint.

Beer is best when it’s shared, and a strong beer is just right for sharing. Belgian Tripels are big beers with a flavor profile that is enjoyed by both experienced and new beer fans. Be it an intimate evening, or watching a ball game on TV, a Tripel is made for sipping and sharing. For Session #24 the theme is “A Tripel for Two.” What Tripel would you pick to share with that good friend, family member, or lover?

If you have a beer or beer-related blog, it’s easy to participate in The Session. Pick a Belgian-style Tripel to review. Tell us why it’s your pick to share with that special someone. Be sure to include a review of the beer so that others might be inspired to choose that beer for a special moment. Bonus points if the person with whom you are sharing the beer includes their review as well.

Sitting by the fireside, the house was quiet, I had some alone time and I chose to share it with a good friend and a good beer; “because good people drink good beer.”

It is session #24 and Al and I decided to sample our tripels virtually. I picked the Flying Dog Kerberos Tripel because Al gave me two straight from the brewery’s home state of Maryland; who am I to argue?

I could smell the brew from 3 feet away as I poured it; malt, hops and that Belgian yeast. It had a thin head of white foam which disappeared quickly. The color was yellow only hinting towards gold with a chill haze.

I enjoyed carbonation level, which is not too high, just right. The hops were bright, a hint of lemon, but without a strong citrus if that is possible. It had a big taste, but not shockingly, with a surprisingly clean finish. I would describe the taste as candy & spices, but I can’t come up with anything more specific than that. It forms a strange balance of a big beer while sipping, and finishing light at the end. I like it.kerberos

While I think of Kerberos as a network authentication protocol, Flying Dog named it for the the three-headed guard dog of Hades, or in this case, it guards the beer.

“Greetings, oh god of the barstool. In your hand resides mighty Kerberos Tripel. A Belgian-style ale so cherished that its namesake, the three-headed hellhound, sentinel of the underworld guards thy bottle. So quench thy godly self. Then ask thee barmaid to retrieve ye another. For you are most powerful and this is your bounty”

The big hellhound comes in at 8.5% ABV and 26 IBUs. Not a huge beer, but plenty big.

Our virtual session went close to two hours and was the highlight of my week. This is what a session is all about. I don’t know why Al and I haven’t done this before, but I do know we will be doing it more often.

(You can also read Al’s review of Kerberos Tripel)

Samuel Adams Irish Red

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Samuel Adams Irish RedBeer-a-Day #36

Samuel Adams week continues.

This is another from the Brewmaster’s Collection.

Color is like a light mahogany with a creamy head. I’m getting a bit of pineapple from the hops, but otherwise seems to have a fairly malty character. Moderate body. A bit of burnt caramel in the flavor. It’s not awful, but I don’t know if I like it all that much.