Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
I know that craft beer world may not need another charity beer right at the second. Especially here in Los Angeles, where there are quite a few wildfire charity beers out and about (that y’all should be getting).
But…. I would like to see a few Jimmy Carter beers like this one from Wallenpaupack Brewing in Pennsylvania. “Jimmy” beer, in the American pale lager style. A callback to his brothers infamous “Billy” beer.
You can read a bit more about it HERE.
Since the Great American Beer Festival kicks off, well, today. I have to reach back to a 2023 winner first. So we head to Puttsburgh and any one of the three locations for Cinderlands.
They won Gold in the Experimental Category for their Hill & Hollow- Cayuga. A “Golden saison fermented with our house mix culture of farm house yeast and Brettanomyces in an American oak foeder. Pressed down for 4 weeks on pressed Cayuga wine grapes.”
So whether you go to the Warehouse, Wexford or the Long Story Short sandwich shop, here are some ideas for a taster tray…
Lil’ Cinder Lime Light Lager – 4.2% – “Classic American light lager brewed with real lime and flaked maize.”
Black and Yellow Yinzerade – 5.0% – “Hard lemonade-inspired sour beer brewed with blackberries, black currants, and lemons.”
One Way Out – 6.3% – “Hazy IPA brewed with Nelson Sauvin, Nelson Sauvin SubZero Hop Kief, Citra, and Citra Cryo.”
Hill & Hollow Chambourcin – 7.4% – “Amber rye saison fermented with our house mixed culture yeast. Punched down on local Chambourcin red wine grapes.”
Our last Pennsylvania stop in our Seen Through a Glass podcast tour is New Trail Brewing Co. in Williamsport.
Let’s get a taster flight going….
Crisp Lager – “Crisp Lager is handmade for easy drinking using only 4 craft ingredients. We only use the finest malts, American Noble hops, Pennsylvania mountain water, and lager yeast in perfect balance for a brilliant golden beer that’s full-flavored, refreshing, and above all, Crisp Lager.”
Lazy River Dry-Hopped Pils – “Lazy River Pils is brewed as a traditional German Pilsner, then dry-hopped with hand-selected Citra hops from the Pacific Northwest. We started with German Pilsner and German Munich malts for a highly crisp and refreshing, light and flavorful Pilsner. Our Citra then adds bright orange citrus aroma that will be essential to your adventures.”
S.O.B. Hill IPA – “S.O.B. Hill is named in honor of The Hyner View Trail Challenge. We’ve been sponsoring this 50 kilometer trail race since we opened, and the course culminates with the final rise – S.O.B. Hill. This American IPA is clear, floral, fruity and slightly bitter.”
Double Broken Heels DIPA – “Double Broken Heels is our Hazy IPA, Broken Heels, with more malt and hops to make it a Hazy Double IPA. Brewed with oats and hopped with a mix of our favorite American hops including Citra & Mosaic.”
The second PA stop is one that Lew Bryson talked about on his podcast Seen Through a Glass when he was covering the town of Mansfield. It is Yorkholo Brewing.
Here are three beers that have been done in the past to give you an idea of their beer range…
Honey Lemon Saison – “Brewed with floor malted German pilsen, oats & spelt. Mildly hopped with cluster & cascade in the kettle with some bittering orange peel”
Mosaic Hopped IPL – “Brewed with a blend of German floor malted pilsen, vienna, flaked corn & rye. Kettle hopped with mosaic. Dry hopped during primary & secondary with mosaic. layered for 6 weeks. Incredibly crisp & refreshing with notes of citrus, lime, tropical fruit, pine & fresh cut grass.”
Pink Guava Fruit Smoothie IPA – the fourth version of a smoothie IPA, “The notes are incredibly interesting with flavors of starburst, strawberry & watermelon jolly rancher.”
I am an avid listener to Lew Bryson’s Seen Through a Glass podcast and he has traveled to many a brewery in Pennsylvania. Enough to probably so three months or more of e-tours. We will curate it down to three for August though.
Starting in Enola with Pizza Boy Brewing which was super high on the listener requested list.
Normally, I would create a taster flight but as you can see from a recent tap list, that would be real hard….
If push came to shove, my first choices would be the Old Denim Cream Ale, the Sunny Side Up Bourbon barrel-aged coffee stout and the and the Frozen Eyelets Hazy with coconut.
There was a lot going on in July out in the wide world, August promises no respite for that. But in BSP World, there is a lot of fun, including….
~ e-visits to (3) new breweries in Pennsylvania from listening to Lew Bryson’s Seen Through a Glass podcast
~ special featured reviews of beers from Lagunitas, remember them?
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads You Like it Darker by Stephen King
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to The Ringer-Verse for Deadpool and Wolverine
~ Sports & A Beer returns with Hard Knocks
~ New Beer Releases and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.
Seen Through a Glass is hosted by bourbon and beer writer Lew Bryson who many already know and may have heard on other podcasts. Now he has his own show….
…and I think it is really good. It takes a small section of Pennsylvania and blows it up for everyone listening to hear. Plus you have to love Bryson’s big laugh that drops quite frequently during each show. It has a bit of that Rick Steves travel feel to it.
Los Angeles does not get much Penn beer especially not the small producers that Lew has talked about so far but a good substitute would be find your nearest food cart hub like Steelcraft here in Los Angeles so that you can have a food and beer experience since Bryson weaves food into each episode. Plus those trips will get you back into travel mode.
90 IBUs!
According to the back of the can, Sly Fox has made “well over” 40 pales and IPAs using different hop combinations and varietals and Odyssey is the capstone to that project. An 8.4% ABV Imperial IPA.
It pours a dark orange color with fast swirling bubbles that quickly recede along with the head. I get a strong dried orange smell alongside some dankness.
It does taste Imperial. The slightly metallic bitterness is sharp at first then really sticks to the roof of the mouth. And it stays there. There is a touch of spice (maybe pepper) in the mix but that dried fruit aroma is mirrored in the taste too. Along with a tiny hint of lemon.
This is certainly one of the happier East Coast IPAs that I have encountered.
You may have noticed this line / brand of historical books in bookstores. They usually document local history. This Yuengling book is the first that I have seen devoted to a brewery.
Firstly, this is a picture book. Lots of great photographs and ad reproductions. Not a history per se. I was most struck by the roadside billboards. Both the early ones and then more current ones where their signage is next to that of the “national” brands.
You also get a little history of the clan behind the beer. Though I could have used more backstory in that department.
Other additions that would have proved useful to me would have been a timeline of the brewery and a floor plan. Maybe comparing different iterations of the brewery layout through the years.
Minor quibbles aside, if you like beer history and rooting for an underdog then this book is for you.
D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc., is on sale for $21.99 from Arcadia Publishing and is available at local retailers, online or through Arcadia Publishing HERE.
Since Santa shares this holiday with a certain other fellow, he might want to stop and raise a glass in Bethlehem. Pennsylvania of course and the Bethlehem Brew Works home of Rude Elf’s Reserve.
The story behind this beer is quite fascinating. Check it out HERE
Here’s to a merry and beer filled Christmas and let’s hope Santa Claus (Kris Kringle, Sinter Klass, St. Nick) has a fun and safe journey around the world!