Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
These are the beers that I wish I could taste for the first time.
It seemed like the collaborative brewing trend has lost some of the steam and “cool” factor lately. Thankfully this special brew is here to disprove that….
This version was brewed at Jolly Pumpkin so expect some sour or tart to it to accompany the juniper, chestnuts, sage and caraway. Sounds simialar to the Saison du Buff with the herbs.
Tomorrow, Wynkoop Brewing releases “Hickenlooper’s Inaugurale”.
This new draft-only beer commemorates Wynkoop founder John Hickenlooper being sworn in as Governor of Colorado on January 11.
The beer will be sold at Wynkoop Brewing Company until they run out, and the brew will be offered at the official inauguration dinner on January 11 at Denver’s Fillmore Auditorium. I have never heard of that happening so another first for craft beer!
The beer is a mix of brown ale and winter warmer which is appropriate for the weather in Colorado and around the country. Sounds good to me. Their should be beers for special occasions all the time.
The Full Sail Brewmaster series marches on with a great beer name for what promises to be another great addition to the legend of Full Sail, Bump in the Night.
This is in the NW style of CDA (Cascadian Dark Ale) which is a big malty and hoppy hybrid beer that has really been a hit across the nation. If it is as good as the last reserve beer, Sanctuary then it is not to be missed.
Ninkasi Brewing from Eugene, Oregon is kicking off 2011 with a new red ale.
Here is what their label tells us….”A new year a new beer! Each year, Renewale will be something new and special to enjoy while winter runs its course. For 2011, we brewed a delicious Irish-style red ale that’s smooth and refined with a hint of toasted malt and a clean finish. A great beer for a new year, cheers!”
One of the breweries that has international cred along with Mikkeller and BrewDog is the unpronouncable Nogne O, from Norway. Their most sought after brews are the Horizon series.
Dark Horizon, the 3rd edition of this epic 15.5% imperial stout.
Red Horizon, a 17% ale fermented at low temps with sake yeast. Redolent of vanilla, caramel, and toffee.
Sweet Horizon, a 14% coffee stout. Intensely sweet; don’t drink it with dessert… it IS dessert!
No it is not the latest in the George Clooney caper movies. It is a sequel of sorts or a side project for the mad brewers at BrewDog.
They have two beers ready, an IPA and a Stout. Pedestrian for people who stuff beer into taxidermy but the twist is that this is a private label type thing. These two beers will be a store exclusive. What store? Tell me if you find out.
Sierra Nevada is fast becoming the big IPA game in town and today (in limited release) comes a Beer Camp Brew sure to please the lovers of bitterness.
Here is what the brewery says about it …“A group of hop-heads and publicans challenegd our Beer Camp brewers to push the extremes of whole-cone hop brewing. The result is this: a 100 IBU, whole-cone hurrican of flavor. Simply put- Hoptimum: the biggest whole-cone IPA we have ever produced. Aggressively hopped, dry-hopped and torpedoed with our exclusive new hop varieties for ultra-intense flavors and aromas.”
I might have to buy a bottle of this to pair with my Batch 9,000 that is in my beer cellar. When I would pull them out is still in question but I think they might make a very compelling duo.
“After combing through the catalogs of many malt and hop suppliers, our brewers used over 100 different malts, grains, and other fermentables, and followed them up with a blend of 60 different hop varietals between the kettle additions and dry-hopping. The resulting beer presents a deep, chocolate brown hue and offers roasted and caramel notes from the malts mixed with an assertive hop character. Sharply bitter, the beer possesses a full mouthfeel without being heavy and will withstand aging in your cellar, if you prefer.”
Here are some excerpts from the press release about this special beer…
“Vintage 2008 was aged in oak vat number 96 at Brouwerij RODENBACH in Roeselare, Belgium for the last two years. The 750 ml bottles are cork topped and the Flanders sour ale resembles an Oloroso sherry wine with its deep red, coppery glow. Cask 96 was chosen for this year’s special Vintage because its track record in producing sour beer over the years has been superior.”
“Vintage 2008 is 7% ABV and is more mild than RODENBACH Grand Cru. Like other good sour beers, RODENBACH Vintage pairs perfectly with food because of the absence of hop bitterness. Vintage 2007 took home the Silver award in the Wood and Barrel Aged Sour category at this year’s World Beer Cup in Chicago.”
“There are only 30,000 750 ml bottles of Vintage 2008. RODENBACH is often called the missing link between beer and wine.”
Just Beer from Massachussets has a new beer perfect to lift the spririts…
The website cryptically states “loaded with chocolate malt”. Just Beer is now, officially, on the list of breweries to try.