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Crow Peak Brewing

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We use the power of a beer map to focus on a South Dakota brewpub, Crow Peak!

LOOKOUT LAGER: This straw colored, medium-bodied lager is dominated by a dry maltiness. Hop bitterness is very low, however, a mild note of hops lingers on the tongue.

SPEARBEER: This is a light copper-colored English style Pale Ale with a malty character and just a hint of fruitiness balanced by medium hop bitterness. The ale finishes with a pleasant hop flavor and aroma.

11th HOUR IPA: Hop aroma and flavor dominate this IPA. However, the malt character of this deep amber colored ale nicely balances the hop component thus avoiding a harsh bitterness. A truly quaffable beverage!

BEAR BUTTE BROWN: This deep brown colored ale has a strong malt character with a hint of roasted barley. There is a slightly detectable hop bitterness, but no hop flavor or aroma.

PILE O’ DIRT PORTER: Named for the ridiculous 4 foot dirt pile we had to put our brewery on to get us out of the FEMA-designated 100 year floodplain (no-one can remember this part of Spearfish ever flooding). This robust porter is black in color, is medium-bodied and has a rich, roasted malt flavor ending with a pleasing hop flavor and mild hop bitterness.

I always get a brewery history lesson from the names, so I would sample the Pile ‘O’ Dirt first because of the floodplain reference.

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Hitachino Nest – Nipponia

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Let’s talk more Japanese beer!
Even they are getting on the locavore bandwagon!
“Kiuchi Brewery succeeded in reproducing ‘Kaneko Golden,’ the first beer malt in Japan. This Nipponia is brewed using only this malt.

We use ‘Sorachi Ace’ as the hop, one which was once breeding in Hookaido and now is cultivated in Washington D.C.

The color Nipponia is gold, worthy of the name, and the flavour is like a lemon produced by Sorachi Ace.”

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Baird Brewery

Now this is a brewery that I need to sample from. Baird is a Japanese brewery that has some really unusual ingredients in their beers. Yuzu in particular goes great with spicy saison in my mind.

For instance:
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Temple Garden Yuzu Ale
“The spicy aroma and tart flavor of Japanese yuzu fruit, picked at a local temple garden, define this other-worldly brew. A luscious kiss of malt sweetness serves as a wonderful balance to the citric tang. This inspired ale surely is proof of the existence of a higher being.”
ABV 5.5%
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Shizuoka Summer Mikan Ale
“Brewed with fresh Shizuoka summer mikans (natsumikans) and citrusy American hops, this original ale is aromatic, effervescent, dryly acidic and unabashedly refreshing.”
ABV 5.5%

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Session # 39 coming soon

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Mario Rubio is hosting the May edition and here is the topic….
“The Session is collaboration of beer writers from around the world working on a common topic on the First Friday of the month. The Hop Press is a collaboration of writers from around the world working on a common site. As host of The Session for May, I thought it was only appropriate for the Hop Press to be a place for a gathering of posts about collaborations.

Feel free to have fun with the topic. Drink a collaborative beer. Who’s brewed some of your favorite collaborations? Who have been some of your favorite collaborators? Who would you like to see in a future collaboration?

As the topic is collaborations, working with each other is encouraged. Look forward to seeing what everyone comes up with.”

I already have some embryonic ideas for this one, do you?

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Wild Rice

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The citra hop has worked it’s way to the east coast. I have had only a few rice forward brews and none have blown me away or shown something unique. Maybe this will prove different.

Take a read… “we’ve brewed this beer with wild rice. We also used brown and white rice, as well as two malts.

Rice helps the beer ferment dry to better showcase the five different hops we’ve added. Lots and lots of them. We then dry-hopped this Double IPA with even more-generous additions of Chinook and Citra hops to create a nose that hints at tangerine, mango, papaya and pine.”

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(sorta) new from Karl Strauss

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It’s good to see Karl Strauss back in the game rather than resting on their laurels and it’s good to see a pale ale!

“Karl Strauss Brewing Company is releasing the next installment of their seasonal program, Pintail Pale Ale. The company has brewed Pintail Pale Ale for over nine years, however, this is the first time it will be available in bottles.

Pintail is a classic American Pale Ale, loaded with pine and citrus flavors from a blend of Newport and Cascade hops. After fermentation, Pintail is dry-hopped with a pound of Amarillo hops per barrel, for a distinct grapefruit aroma and flavor. The vibrant hoppiness of the beer is balanced by a blend of Carapils and caramel malts, creating a firm backbone to support the lingering, dry finish. Brewer Paul Segura says, “We’ve got a lot of hop heads who love this beer for its intense grapefruit flavors.”

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Porterhouse Brewery

To Ireland we fly to talk about the Porterhouse Brewery. Ireland and Scotland have fallen behind Wales in craft beer but with BrewDog and Porterhouse, maybe the tide is turning.

Here are two of the beers that piqued my curiousity…
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“A classic full bodied continental style pilsner with an ample balance of lip smacking Hersbrucker hops. A soft, quality hop flavour with the matching subtly of fine malt and sweetness.”
Oyster-stout
“Brewed with fresh oyster. A smooth drinking aromatic stout with a discernible but unidentifiable aromatic aspect. Not suitable for vegetarians.”

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yet ANOTHER Stone 3 Way

Stone has teamed with two brewers from around the country. AGAIN!
This time Victory from Pennsylvania and the esteemed Dogfish Head from Delaware to create a saison. A Buff saison. Each back label has a different spin from each of the three different brewers. Collect them all!
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