Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
These are the beers that I wish I could taste for the first time.
I am as puzzled and curious as you are by this Stone label. Wine & tea flavors mixed up with beer? Can it work? My record with beers with wine notes is hit and miss. I have had Rogue’s Chamemellow and it was flat out delicious. It will be interesting. It worked in the collaboration saison earlier this year.
Well now you can try their ’11 special release. A Russian Imperial Stout. Here’s to hoping that it isn’t one of the alco-bombs that are so prevalent and so over-hyped.
The Ale Project of Pretty Things has a new beer, Hedgerow Bitter, described as “…our first properly-hoppy beer. We wanted a beer that was dry and bitter, and that’s what we got. 5.4% abv with all UK grown hedgerow variety hops: Pioneer, First Gold and Sovereign.”
I’ve had one Pretty Things ale and now I want more!
I love quirky ideas that grow big, and one of these is the dog friendly Lucky Labrador.
They have taken it a step further by having a IPA made with a bunch of different hop varietals and calling it MUTT. Brilliant in my book. They grow hops at a couple (maybe more now) of their locations and get more from friends of the brewery and it becomes this communal hop pickin’ party that ends up in a brilliant IPA a few months after.
Cigar City. Widely desired by 49 states which normally can’t get any of their products. They have gone and intrigued me mightily with a new version of their popular Jai Alai IPA but aged in white oak.
Here is some news for fans of special Full Sail beers. If you are one of those who base your judgement of the Hood River brewery on their regular line-up, this might be a beer that re-connects you with a historic NW brewer…
from the press release…“Full Sail Brewing will release a new beer in their Brewer’s Share line up that is sure to entice the snow gods to bless the season with plenty of powdery snow. Brewed by Full Sail Brewer Adam Bulson, “Adam’s Malty Bomb” is pray for powder porter that’s sure to make our mountain snowy white all season long.
Porters are Adam’s favorite beer after a day on the snow, and he thought releasing his own version preseason would be a good omen for a great winter. Adam’s Malty Bomb is a robust porter with a big body and lots of dark, caramel/toffee flavor, yet it won’t weigh you down like heavy snow. It’s hopped with just enough hops to balance out the malts, and finishes smooth with no sharp edges. Bomb’s away! (ABV 5.3% IBU 41)”
New Belgium and Allagash have collaborated on one beer with what appears to be wildly different main ingredients.
Check out this cool video that they put together…
Beer for a cause. I love the community work done by our brewers. If it isn’t donating for a festival to raise money it is creating whole new beers with proceeds to go to help.
Here is another one from the UK!
WW Freedom was “produced to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act on 25th March, 1807. Traditionally floor-malted Maris Otter pale ale malt, crystal malt and Kentish hops combine with Fairtrade Demerara sugar to produce a deep golden ale. It is characterised by its mellow bitterness and long hoppy finish.
A contribution from the sale of each bottle is made to Stop the Traffik. Stop The Traffik is a global coalition of organizations, communities & individuals raising awareness of people trafficking & promoting practical action through a global declaration, media, events, celebrities & projects around the world through 2006 & 2007.” www.stopthetraffik.org.uk
BFM Douze 12th Anniversary
“Jurassian Salty & Fruity Golden Ale”
from the label:“The Fleur de sel de Guerande, a noble sea salt from the Bretagne in France, is used to accentuate the flavors of this very special ale. Pair it with Green Poultry or Seafood. Sante!”
Ingredients: Swiss mountains spring water, barley malt, Cascade, Amarillo and Hallertauer hops, Fleur de Sel (sea salt 0.015%), yeast.
If you are heading to the crazy cool GABF (Great American Beer Festival) this year well then this may need to be put into the itinerary. Once you read the press release, you will want to drink the beer.
“Mutineer Magazine and New Holland Brewing Company are excited to announce the official release of their collaboration beer, Mutinous Battle Chai, on Friday, September 17th at 2pm at Falling Rock Taphouse in Denver, CO. The event will last until all the kegs are tapped. There is no admission fee and cost is per beer. 100% of the proceeds from Mutinous Battle Chai beer sales will benefit A Child’s Right, an organization dedicated to global water relief and bringing clean water to children in underdeveloped regions.
“We are really excited about our opportunity to work with New Holland Brewing, as we bring the craft beer community together to support A Child’s Right. We are very thankful to our partners in this project, New Holland Brewing Company and Falling Rock Taphouse, for making our vision a reality.” – Brian Kropf, Mutineer Magazine
Technically, Mutinous Battle Chai does not fit the guidelines of any individual style category. The base beer was brewed with both pale and rye malts, spiced with an original interpretation of the traditional chai tea spice blend, and fermented with a Belgian wit yeast strand. The base beer was primed with brown ale wort and then underwent a secondary fermentation with merlot yeast on oak. The end result is a dry, amber-colored, medium-bodied Belgian-style spiced and oaked ale unlike any craft beer brewed before.
Other beers from New Holland Brewing Company, including Golden Cap Saison, Imperial Hattter IPA, as well as Hatter Royale Hopquila, a distilled spirit that has been steeped in hops, will also be available during the release party. This is the first time that New Holland beer will make an appearance in Colorado outside of the Great American Beer Festival.
“This collaboration has been an opportunity to have fun exploring flavor, and techniques, while celebrating this exciting time in the beer industry.” — New Holland’s Beervangelist, Fred Bueltmann
For more information on the recipe and brewing process of Mutinous Battle Chai, check out Issue 13 of Mutineer Magazine, now on newsstands.”