World Cup + World Beer – THE FINAL!

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TODAY: HOLLAND V. SPAIN

Finally, the world will get a new champion of soccer!

Will Holland finally break the curse and finish off Spain?

Or will Spain continue it’s dominance of possesion and wear down the Oranje?

To finish the 2010 World Cup, we return to South Africa for our final beer from the Shongweni Brewery.
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Here is the info from the website about the Durban Pale Ale, “Durban Pale Ale was inspired by the original IPA’s produced in Britian and then shipped to India for consumption by the soldiers and bureaucrats. The IPA came via the Cape and records show that some of that beer made its way to the British serving in South Africa. With Durban then, as now, a major shipping port it is hard not to believe that barrels of IPA were happily consumed here on the East Coast so we wanted to revive an old tradition.

We only use the best malts for our Pale Ale, and in order to achieve our 5.7% ABV we need to pack the mash tun full of grains. The beer is also packed full of hops to achieve the 45 units of bitterness that we want. We use Cascade hops since they provide the bitterness we want but don’t leave any lingering harshness on the palate. The inclusion of Challenger hops provide the crisp, fruity characteristic of the beer, which is complimented by the special strain of English ale yeast that we use to ferment the beer.

In the glass the beer is a light caramel colour, with an immediate blast of rich orange on the nose, a toffee character and just a hint of spice from the cascade hops. On the palate it is medium- to full-bodied, and the initial sweetness from the sheer amount of barley in this beer is balanced with solid and tangy hops and a gentle fruitiness with a dry after-taste.

Our Durban Pale Ale is a strong beer and we have found that its character will mature over time if cellared producing a complex ale that will reward the patient drinker.”
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Vaporizer

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Double Mountain of Hood River has added Vaprorizer to its regular line-up, joining their Kölsch, India Red Ale, and Hop Lava NW IPA. Vaporizer was a seasonal last summer, and it must have passed the test to graduate a level.

It is a Pale Ale which features hops primarily of the Challenger variety, grown on a single farm in the Yakima Valley and Gambrinus malt. Brewmaster Matt Swihart and his crew dry-hop Vaporizer to amp up the hop. It is 6.0% alcohol by volume with 50 bittering units.

World Cup + World Beer – 3rd Place

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TODAY: URUGUAY V. GERMANY

The game for 3rd place. This will either be a cracker of a game because there is no pressure or all the stars will be on the bench as the rookies get a taste of World Cup action.

And it is a match for past cup winners as well!

So we head to Uruguay for the penultimate beer of the 2010 World Cup!
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And we toast the fighting spirit of the Uruguayan squad with Dorada from Mastra…”A moderately strong English Ale. The balance is almost even between malt and hops, or sometimes to the bitterness. The easy thing to drink is essential in this style. Emphasizes the use of hop bitterness, as opposed to the aggressive middle and end hopping is seen in American ales.

Oregon Craft Beer Month – Green Dragon

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Oregon is full of ideas in the beer world. Here is one that should make any home-brewer cry with joy:

“For many homebrewers it’s a dream to brew their own recipes on a large scale brewing system. Well not only do the members of the Oregon Brew Crew (OBC) have the opportunity to do just this, but the beers are sold commercially and the club is receiving some money for it.

Thanks to the OBC’s efforts, Green Dragon Bistro & Pub in Portland has grown to the 94th largest brewery in Oregon since the club began brewing there. Led by the Green Dragon Project Committee (made up of OBC members John Heasley, Todd Beach, Rich Hawthorne and Josh Blender), the OBC has been brewing at the Green Dragon for the last year and have consistently put out big new beers every couple weeks including Alpha Dragon IPA, Golden Dragon Ale and the recent 5-Point Exploding Palate Technique.

Designated as The Green Dragon Project, the joint venture between the Oregon Brew Crew and the Green Dragon Bistro & Brewpub is more than just allowing club homebrewers to brew recipes for public consumption. The emphasis of the project is aimed at the educational aspects of all-grain brewing techniques, recipe formulation, marketability, as well as quality control. Furthermore, the group is hoping that the project will help improve the link between craft breweries, their customers, and the homebrewing community.

The Green Dragon Project Committee is responsible for nominating brewers and their recipes in order to meet the goal of releasing a new beer from Green Dragon every two weeks. This means that the OBC is brewing a batch of beer two to three times a month, with one of those slots typically filled by the winner of the club’s monthly homebrew competition.”
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The Men’s Room

Elysian Brewing of Seattle had a beer named Loser that was Sub-Pop related now they have another special named after a local radio show. And it is one of the best beer names around. A little gross too but clever.
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Here is what the brewery says:
TASTING NOTESAmber in color with a light hop aroma and toasty malt finish.

MALTS
Pale, Munich, Cara-Red, C-60 and small amounts of Special B and chocolate malts

HOPS
Bittered with Chinook and finished with Cascade and an abv of 5.6%

“A portion of the net proceeds from every Mens Room Original Red sold goes to helping support the families of our military vets through the VA Puget Sound Fisher House and Ft. Lewis Fisher House.”

World Cup + World Beer – Spain

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TODAY: GERMANY V. SPAIN

At the beginning of the tournament, Spain would have been the heavy favorite in this match up. But now. All the momentum is with goal scoring Germany. So to be contrary. Here is a light beer from Spain for your pleasure.
Alhambra-Reserva-1925

“Reserved for the most demanding palate. Alhambra Reserva 1925 is a high quality beer crafted to perfection. With its deep, exquisite taste and exclusive masterpiece in bottle design. Reserva 1925: Our vast brewing experience, to enchant the beer connoisseur.”

Pour Judgement

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From Los Angeles we head cross country to Newport, Rhode Island and a little beer bar that I have heard mentioned on blogs a couple times now. Pour Judgment has a great name and a great reputation. Notably picky websites like Beer Advocate and Yelp give it super high marks so you know they must be doing something right.

If you want Northeast beers and a great burger then this is your destination. You can find it at 32 Broadway in Newport. Phone number: (401) 619-2115