Over two days and in between summit and festival, I visited four breweries in Sacramento. One I visited twice.
Fieldwork gets my nod because of multiple reasons. I tried four different beers. All were excellent. Shower Beer being my favorite. But the Taproom offshoot of the Berkeley based brewery had style. From the logo design to the detailed menu to the taster tray, to the beer names, even the sign out front.
Toss in a super opinionated brewer who may in equal parts make you agree or disagree with him over the course of one sentence and you have the makings of a cult favorite. Plus, you can get half pours if you ask nice.
No, you don’t have to order the NE inspired beers. They have other beers with hops to occupy yourself with.
Sacramento Brewery Tour # 1 – Yolo Brewing
We head to West Sacramento and Yolo Brew for our initial State Capital brewery. And before I get into picking the beers for my initial taster tray, Yolo Brew also offers what they call a Personal Brewing Experience. You (and a group of friends) make and appointment, head to their Beer Hall, choose a beer and then the brewers will go through the steps in making craft beer. Sort of personal contract brewing. It is an idea that has popped up throughout the years but never really caught on. Maybe Yolo has cracked the code on how to do it.
Anyway, on to what I will order and be on the lookout for when I am in Sacramento…..
Bohemian Pilsner followed by their Hallertauer Lager so I can compare and contrast the two styles and pick out where they differ.
Engine #43 Pale Ale followed by the house IPA and the Lt. Dan IPA to see the curve of hops from pale to specialty IPA.
Dirty Cog Porter and Vanilla Stout which will give me the chance to check out if their strength is in darker beers or lighter.
New Portland Brewery # 3 – Scout Beer
Our last new PDX stop is at Scout Beer. Which has gone from a beer garden to two beer gardens and now their very own brewery as well.
So let’s dive into the possibilities for a taster tray (skipping the too weird for me Sour Patch Kid beer and Coco Puff beer)….
Porridge: “Oatmeal pale ale brewed with cinnamon raisins and vanilla. A drinkable, seasonal option for the fall/winter.” 5.5% ABV
Jam: “Malt-forward red ale brewed with marionberries. Refreshingly fruity and a perfect blend with our PB porter.” 5.9% ABV
Pink: “Heavily hopped IPA coming in at over 100 IBUs and mellowed subtly with fresh strawberries.” 6.1% ABV
Nori-Torious: “Classic gose salted with nori. A tart, refreshing beer with a hint of salt.” 6.2%
Immortal: “Fruit beer with 3lbs of honey in each keg. Combined with vanilla and an additional 3lbs of peaches and smoked in our own backyard.” 7.1% ABV
Sap: “Strong ale brewed with over 5lbs of maple syrup per keg, smoked oak, and finished with spruce tips.” 9.5% ABV
New Portland Brewery # 2 – Ferment
It is not new to have a main brewery in Hood River and a taproom in Portland. Full Sail trod that path first. And now a second brewery will be bi-river. (Columbia and Willamette)
Ferment comes from former head brewer at the excellent pFriem Family Brewers, Dan Peterson. The plan is to eventually brew in Hood River and operate their taproom at the new building called The Yard on 3rd and Burnside.
The brewery is aiming for a fall 2016 opening. You can read more about them and why they are so anticipated HERE.
New Portland Brewery # 1 – Ross Island Brewing
I have driven over the Ross Island Bridge many a time in my day and now there is a brewery at the end. Ross Island Brewing on SE Powell is the home of former Alameda Brewing brewmaster Carston Haney and his Ross Island Brewing.
Delays have pushed the opening back to late 2016 for the small on-site taproom. The beer line-up is not specified yet. But it will start off small and tap only.
Minnesota Brewery # 3 – Wild Mind Artisan Ales
Those in South Minneapolis will get to look through a wall-sized window and either watch the paint dry or look at the foudres where mixed-fermentation magic will be going on inside the wood. Wild Mind Artisan Ales beers will be aged for anywhere from six to 12 months.
Brewer/Founder Matt Waddell has plans to dedicate most of his 16 draft lines to the wild and farmhouse-style ales. Amping up the sour and brett as time passes and customers acclimate to the beer.
Since they literally opened a day or so ago, those fancy beers like barrel-fermented saisons won’t be at the tap room now but you will be able to try their Table Beer, Hoppy French Saison, Hoppy Rye Wild Ale among others.
All thanks to the foudres and Waddell’s “Carefully chaotic” style.
Minnesota Brewery # 2 – Utepils
Not too many soon-to-be breweries can boast of not only a backyard waterfall but also a natural springs that the brewery can use for their future beer. But what was initially Bryn Mawr Brewing and is now Utepils (ooh-ta-pils) will be rocking in the fall of this year.
If you are not a Norwegian language expert the name in short means Outside Beer but in common parlance has come to mean “the first beer enjoyed outdoors in the sunshine after a long, dark winter.” The brewery has snagged Eric Harper who has had past brewing stints at Summit Brewing and the famed New Glarus.
Since they are not open as of yet, the full beer menu has yet to be written but there are at least three to start your taster tray off with…
….a traditional hefeweizen, an altbier, and a Czech-style pilsner made using special hops from Bohemia Hop Company.
As you can see, there will be a bit of a traditional European bent to the beers to begin.
Minnesota Brewery # 1 – Venn Brewery
You may see the word Venn and think diagram but it is also Norwegian for “Friend” hence the head brewer working at another area brewery while Venn gets up and running, later this year.
When Venn Brewery does open, these are the beers I will be trying in their Minneapolis taproom:
SCHWARZBIER (BLACK LAGER) (4-5%)
“Sometimes called a “Black Pilsner,” this beer is deceivingly dark. It is nearly black in color, yet light and refreshing, and offers a mild roasty flavor with hints of bread crust. If you’ve never thought of yourself as a dark beer drinker, this is the beer that will make you think again.”
MUNICH HELLES (5%)
“Pronounced Hell-ess, this golden lager is evenly balanced between malt and hops. Easily drunk, yet plenty flavorful, it will satisfy both the craft beer connoisseur and the dedicated light lager drinker. We call it our gateway beer, because, well, taste one and see.”
CLASSIC AMERICAN PILSNER (5.5-6%)
“Light gold in color, this hop-forward lager has notes of fresh bread dough with a crisp, floral, slightly spicy finish. A throwback to the way pilsners were made pre-Prohibition, this beer takes the best American ingredients and treats them the way our German immigrant ancestors did. It’s a pilsner with the volume turned way, way up.”
SAHTI (7%)
“Venn’s take on a traditional Scandinavian farmhouse ale. Mashed with rye and oats and boiled with juniper berries, Sahti offers an earthy and complex malt profile with a bright, piney finish. We may not make it over burning wood fires in the forests of Norway during the deepest part of winter, but we do imbue this unusual brew with all the flavors of the northland for a beer that’s as captivating as it is delicious.”
BELGIAN TRIPEL (9%)
“The complex union of lemon, orange and black pepper compliment the soft and elegant malt character of this amber Belgian ale. It is very dry and carbonated, a refreshing drink for spring and early summer. If champagne died and was reborn as a beer, this is what it would come back as.”
FWIBF Brewery # 3 – Mahrs Brau
The Final stop highlighting breweries who participated in this year’s FWIBF takes us to Bamberg, Germany and the “Tradition and craftsmanship” of Mahrs Brau.
The brewery has been “family-owned and firmly rooted in the [Franconia] region since 1895.” Which of course means that they follow the traditional Reinheitsgebot in their nine Mahr’s beers.
Whomever you are, when you visit Mahr’s Bräu you can see that we weren’t established yesterday.
Here are the beers that I would drink from this brewery that was first mentioned way back in 1670 and probably had roots earlier…
Mahrs Bräu Pilsner 4.9%
“Bright, brilliant yellow: That’s how our Pilsner pours into a glass, with its fine foamy head, it’s already a visual experience. But it’s not brewed just to look at. Take a whiff, perhaps? Above all you’ll find a distinct hops aroma stands out. This comes from the refined, tailored mix of Hallertauer aromatic hops. And how does it taste? Light and dry, carried by a delicately tart bitter note, and a round and very well-balanced finish.”
Mahrs Bräu Hell (Pale Ale) 4.9%
“Straight ahead and straight on – our Helles is not a drink of many words, but rather an honest, direct beer. Dare we say, a bit philosophical? But please, we digress… A creamy head atop a golden yellow core: inside mild, fine and spicy with a hint of sweetness. Delivering a certain hops-bouquet, and a finale of malty goodness that drives you to immediately order the next “Seidla” (half-liter).”
Mahrs Bräu Weisse (Wheat/White) 4.9%
“Upper Bavaria has been known to brew the best wheat beers in the world. This has seemed to entice other Frankish breweries away from brewing a solid white. But not us! Effervescent as it pours, so powerfully beautiful and golden-yellow, followed up by a slowly cascading veil of yeast… even to the staunch wheat beer connoisseur it’s love at first sight! But don’t worry. This is purely flirtatious. As you take your first sip, you experience the sweet, wonderfully fruity, slightly banana-like taste that seems to signal the dawning of a long awaited summer. How do we do it? With a special top-fermented wheat beer yeast, lots of wheat malt, and complex in-bottle fermentation process.”
Mahrs Bräu a U 5.2%
“The “U” stands for “Ungespundet”, which means unfiltered and outrageously good. Simply pronounced, “Ahh Ooo”, like the two vowels, means you would like a U beer. No language skills required, and you finally have a great beer that doesn’t take a long time to order. What comes to your table, if one orders a U? You’ll get an extraordinary, yeast-turbid specialty beer with a full-bodied smooth-malt character. Pleasantly tart and lightly carbonated, it is a beer that goes just as well with a good meal as it does with a relaxing evening after work.”
Mahrs Bräu Bock Beer 6.8%
“Connoisseurs and friends of our Bock look forward to October every year, because everyone knows it’s the beginning of Mahr’s Bock brewing season. It’s not just the sun-soaked golden color that revives old memories of the fading summer, but also its pure, fine hoppy scent and satisfying malt flavor. The unique thing about this beer is its ambivalent character: on the one hand velvety smooth, almost viscous as it goes down; on the other hand, it is characterized by a sleek, Autumnal, hoppy flavor.”
FWIBF Brewery # 2 – Creature Comforts
Days before I left for Paso Robles, I saw the Creature Comforts logo somewhere on the interwebs either about a new beer or a new to canned beer and I made a mental note to try to try their beer at the FWIBF.
Thankfully, I got a taste of their Tropicalia IPA at the Friday night party and was smitten with it. Which is hard to do in such a crowded category. I sampled some Tritonia the next day and was impressed by that as well.
With those two on board the taster tray, here are some others to try the next time you are in Georgia.
Bibo® – Pilsner
“Bibo® (pronounced bēbō) is a true pilsner with ingredients from five different countries that has a pronounced continental hop flavor and aroma in an incredibly well-balanced package. We use an enormous amount of the classic Czech Saaz and a touch of Motueka hops from New Zealand to put a new world twist on this beautiful old world style. Motueka offers a subtle pineapple note that underlies a harmony of the traditional black pepper, herbal, and cracker grain character pilsners are famous for. Bibo® is dry, quenching, and frankly amazingly delicious.”
Cucumber and Lime Tritonia – Gose
“With a touch of coriander and sea salt, you can say this beer was Triton-born. We made a Gose and we’re calling it Tritonia. This limited release offering was made with Cucumber and Lime and is available in kegs and serving at your favorite craft beer bars now.”
Automatic – Pale Ale
“We are bringing back our seasonal American Pale Ale, Automatic! Automatic is a modern pale ale with an ABV of 5.2-¬‐percent that features a prominent hop flavor and aroma. The beer appears hazy and straw colored with densely packed and persistent white foam. A mix of Mosaic and Crystal hops are used to create a delicate balance and give the beer an aroma that features a complex array of berry, citrus, herbal and pine notes.
The name Automatic is a nod to the community in which we are located – Athens, GA. It’s a reference to the slogan of a local restaurant, Weaver D’s that inspired one of REM’s most prolific albums – Automatic for the People.”
Reclaimed Rye® – Rye Amber aged on French Oak
“A uniquely complex and flavorful amber ale. French oak and rye malt lend to a well-rounded body with delicate undertones of toasted bread, spice, and subtle vanilla. We set out to show a new light onto the amber style with this beer, and to reclaim it back from the ordinary.”
Tropicália® – American IPA
“A balanced, soft, and juicy IPA. Ripe passion fruit and citrus hop aroma lead to a full, fruit-forward hop flavor that washes over the palate, ending with subtle bitterness. Some folks say they don’t like hoppy beers, and to that we say that hops do not equal bitterness. Hops offer a whole world of flavors, not just bitterness. In Tropicália®, they exude a luscious fruit journey your palate can enjoy over and over without fatigue.”