FWIBF Brewery # 2 – Mountain Culture Beer Co.

The second brewery features in Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival Month is Mountain Culture Beer Co. all the way from Katoomba in New South Wales in Australia. They have some excellent beer names.

Status Quo Pale Ale – “Status Quo is a juicy New England Pale Ale. Made for hop lovers with massive late and dry hop additions, it’s full flavoured and more tropical than the Hawaiian ukulele orchestra.”

Authentic Irish Experience Micro-dosed NE IPA – “For this NEIPA, we’ve leaned on the luck of the Irish to ensure that it’s a banger. We’ve taken their lucky number 7 and applied it to the hop regime, bringing back our cult favourite hopping technique, microdosing, adding 7 different hops across 7 days. This has a created a NEIPA hazier than an Irish Winter’s day with more character than the inhabitants of The Temple Bar.”

Hollywood Hot Sauce West Coast IPA – “The pineapples, peaches and orange rind from the finest Amarillo and El Dorado hops only act to enhance any experience you pair them with. This age-old recipe, handed down through the Mountain Culture family over the years starts with a dank, resinous and yet highly drinkable body that allows the fruits to sparkle from it before rounding out in a moreish, crisp finish.”

That’s Enough Internet for Today NE IPA – “We’ve combined Cryo Ekuanot, Amarillo and Mosaic hops to create a flavour profile akin to fresh squeezed orange juice with a hint of stonefruit. The Cryo Ekuanot leaves a lingering herbal note that adds complexity and brightness making it far more sessionable than the ABV suggests. So be careful, you might find yourself mindlessly scrolling back to the fridge for another one.”

FWIBF Brewery # 1 – Panimoyhtiö Tuju

I believe that Panimoyhtiö Tuju or just Tuju for short is the first Finnish brewery at the Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival so it has to be the first brewery featured this month.

For our taster tray, let’s start with…

K A L K K A R O- an American lager

K A R I B I A N P I L A T E S – Micro NEIPA

N E S T E H U K K A – a Red IPA

then finish with the barrel-aged barleywine, Remains – “Aged for eight months in cognac barrels, this barleywine has developed a truly unique flavor, while retaining all the best elements of its natural character. “Remains” possesses rich, inviting aromas that open the olfactory portal to smooth notes of dried fruit and toffee-like sweetness, while giving way to a dry, brandy-like finish, courtesy of the barrels.”

New Oregon Brewery # 3 – Lala Brewery

Our last stop is in Boring, Oregon but their non-alcoholic beers will probably prove the opposite. LaLa Brewery is owned by Timothy Devlaeminck, a home brewer making the leap up into the N/A space.

You can read more about him where I got the lead for this HERE. But here are the possible beers, “Some of the house beers include: Red Kite, an Irish style Red ale brewed with Falconers hop blend. Super Monk, brewed with Monk Fruit to give a little sweetness and bermented with Belgian Yeast. And, Malt Root Beer, a malted root beer based off a prohibition recipe.”

New Oregon Brewery # 1 – Tiny Giants Brewing

Each year, usually in February, I pore over the anticipated brewery openings list compiled by the fine folks at The New School Beer blog. Go HERE to read the full list.

My first pick is Tiny Giants Brewing which will be heading to SE Ankeny with former Cascade and Fracture brewer Steve Beadouin in the lead. That resume is one reason why I chose it. The other is that they are using a space used by a former brewery while they search for a forever home.

Hop Culture Best of Brewery Tour # 3 – FUZE

We head to Europe, specifically the Czech Republic for FUZE. A French restaurant in Prague with a brewing operation.

We will go from light to dark starting with TransFUZE the Czech Pils then moving on to FUZEnáč 13 what they call their semi-dark lager and then finish up with InFUZE 14 their dark beer. And while there they also have beers from Brewery Zichovec to compare and contrast.

Hop Culture Best of Brewery Tour # 2 – Deep Fried Beers

I am not one for Best of the Year lists, more of a in the moment person so I am grateful for outlets like Hop Culture that go in on the whole look back at a whole year thing. You can read their list HERE and my second choice from the list is Deep Fried Beers in Athens, New York.

Not the most appetizing name for a shop known for their IPAs and rocketing up Empire State best of lists but let’s find a table to set our virtual taster down onto including…

Kilometer Long Stare – “Hazy Double IPA hopped with 8+ lbs / bbl of Citra and Galaxy.”

Built Different Batch 2 – “Hoppy Ale brewed with 8 lbs / bbl of lot selected Yakima Chief Citra, Freestyle Hops Nelson Sauvin, and HPA Galaxy.”

In Da Clurb, We All Fam – “Hazy DIPA hopped with 9+ lbs per bbl of Yakima Chief Citra, NZ Hops NZ Cascade, and Freestyle Hops Nelson Sauvin.”

Hop Culture Best of Brewery Tour # 1 – Outskirts Brewing

I am not one for Best of the Year lists, more of a in the moment person so I am grateful for outlets like Hop Culture that go in on the whole look back at a whole year thing. You can read their list HERE but first a visit to the Yakima Valley and one of the breweries on the list, The Outskirts Brewing Co.

We start the flight off with an award winning pale ale….

Canyon Crusher Pale Ale – “Light, crisp American pale with notes of Citrus and tropical fruit cup. Too aromatic to be a traditional pale, but too crushable to be a traditional IPA. Hits right in the middle in the perfect way. This recipe won 1st place pale at the 2023 Fresh Hop Ale Fest and People’s Choice at Public House Pre-Harvest Party.”

Barn Raiser NW IPA – “Our flagship IPA. Big notes of Pine, Citrus and Dank (cannabis). Great beer for the IPA fan. Still very clean, but with the extra kick an IPA drinker is looking for.”

My Oh My IPA – “We hit a home run with this one, just in time for baseball season. Go M’s! A clean and clear IPA with huge aromatic notes of berry, pineapple and tropical fruit. Medium body, with a sweet  (but not malty) backbone and low bitterness.”

Craft Beer & Brewing Best – The Big Friendly

The final brewery tour of 2024 takes us to Oklahoma and The Big Friendly brewery. They were honored for their Vanilla Oil Boom, a big imperial stout.

Time to check out a few other of their beers…

Peace Piece – “West Coast IPA made with Simcoe & Mosaic.”

Joe’s Balaton Cherry Preserves – “Made with Balaton Cherries from Michigan.”

Old Growth – “This dark lager offers a beautiful balance of flavors you’d want as we come into the fall. Light nuttiness, hints of bakers chocolate and fresh baked bread round out the flavor profile.”

Space is the Place – “A Barrel Fermented Brett Saison that has a mellow funk & complex fruit sapidity on the palate. Effervescent and delightful flavors of dried apricot & sand plum with hints of white wine grapes, agave & figs.”

Craft Beer & Brewing Best – Ladd & Lass Brewing

Located in the University District of Seattle, Ladd & Lass Brewing was founded by wife and husband team of Jessie Quan and Nick Ladd ( hence the spelling in the name).

They were mentioned in the magazine for their Zoospaloos, a Czech- style dark lager.

Thankful for UDFBWest Coast IPA – “Brimming with some of our favorite New Zealand hops, Thankful for UDFB is a hearty celebration of the University District Food Bank and all they do for our community. Featuring Cryo Nelson Sauvin and Freestyle Peacharine, this IPA is a veritable cornucopia of ripe stone fruit, white wine grapes, and a beguiling piney note—all complemented by a pleasing bitterness and lightly bready maltiness.”

Olympic PeaksNW IPA – “Our winter IPA is a garnet-hued celebration of the NW IPAs of yore. Expect a balanced beer showcasing hop aromas of grapefruit and piney resin set against a toasty malt backbone and crisp bitterness.”

A Minor AwardWinter Warmer – “At L&L, we have a nostalgic soft spot for the malty, heavily-hopped winter warmers of the early aughts. Harkening back to the seasonal warm fuzzies, A Minor Award is a holiday carol of nutty bread, deep caramel, and luscious toffee paired with a pleasing bitterness and citrus and pine aromatics.”

Deprived of LightImperial Stout – “This gnarly imperial stout may be deprived of light, but it still radiates with intense flavors of cacao, coconut, and vanilla. We took our decadent imperial stout and confectionized™ it—blasting your palate with a depth of flavor that saturates your taste buds while still managing to finish short of typical pastry stout cloyingness.”

Craft Beer & Brewing Best – Black Lung Brewing

Black Lung Brewing in Round Lake Beach, Illinois is our first stop from the Best Beers as tabulated by Craft Beer & Brewing magazine.

The beer they were recognized for is Left Fork a Kentucky Common Ale. I was surprised by that too.

But let’s create a taster tray with a few other of their beers that caught my eye…

Pancho & Lefty Mexican Lager – “Adjunct international lager with Pilsner grains, flaked Maize and noble Saaz Hops! A wonderful, dry beer that is delightful all year round.”

Mind of Peace Saison – “Strumming series saison infused with Sage, Green Tea, Mint and Rosemary mash water. Then Double Dry Hopped with Hallertau Blanc and Fuggle hops.”

Curb Check Carrot IPA – “Curb Check is a 7.0% hazy ipa with cascade, mosaic, and galaxy hops. Along with puréed carrots, spices Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans and Malto-dextrin sugar. All coming together to create a uniquely spiced beer for the holidays!”

Tame the Chaos DIPA – “Citra and Mosaic hops give
you that dank, yet punchy aroma, paired with a sharp bitterness and balanced malt backbone! This is our first journey into the west coast style, double ipa. We brewed it to remind us of a
simpler time. We hope you find comfort in the raised bitterness and enormous hops aromatics!”