Ymm, Beer

[fuse]

I don’t recall if anyone shared this article on brut IPAs.

Still hoping to have my first someday soon.

https://beerandbrewing.com/the-birth-of-the-brut-ipa/

[fuse]

An awesome story of craft beer, small business and drinking local.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/amp...mpression=true

I’ve never had their beer, and refuse to let the Lagunitas/Heineken angle ruin what reads to me like a realization of the great American dream.

[devildeac]

Here are some beers I enjoy that I've not seen in my scan (this sucker is 847 posts long!!) of this thread:

Stone Xocoveza Imperial Stout. Taste profile: coffee, cocoa (it's a mocha stout), cinnamon. Features English Challenger and East Kent Golding Hops. Generally brewed seasonally, but I'm finding it more broadly now.

Stone Bourbon Barrel Xocoveza Imperial Stout. Much as the Stone offering above, except that it's aged in bourbon barrels and, thus, has some additional notes in the flavor profile.

Blue Mountain Dark Hollow Imperial Stout. Taste profile: vanilla and, because it's been aged in bourbon barrels, bourbon. 10% alcohol by volume; 70 IBUs. I've got nothing on how it's hopped. Available year round.

Blue Mountain Dark Hollow Reserve: Concealed Darkness. Same as the previous offering from Blue Mountain, save that it is aged twice as long and (as of my last knowledge) is available only at the brewery in Afton, Virginia, about 20 miles west of Charlottesvile, as I-64 approaches the base of the Blue Ridge. I've heard that the only bottle 1,400 cases a year.

Broolyn Local 1 Belgian strong pale ale. Taste profile: light, fruity notes with a little cloves thrown in. Long finish for a light beer. Brewed with German malts and hops and Belgian yeast. 9% alcohol by volume. The brewery claims to employ a process of 100% bottle re-fermentation, which process no longer is used much even in Europe, to deepen the beer's palate.

A lagniappe:

Before developing an interest in porters and stouts a few years back, I made a beef stew with Guinness. Since then, I've tried substituting better porters and stouts for the Guiness and found that the Stone Bourbon Barrel Xocoveza takes the stew to its best level yet. Below is the recipe if you want to give it a whirl. It's not overly complicated. In any event, I always use the carrots to make this stew but will add other veggies (wild mushrooms, new potatoes, etc.) that are in season.

Guiness Stew

2 lbs lean stewing beef

3 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons flour

salt, freshly ground pepper and cayenne

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

1 large clove garlic, crushed (optional)

2 T tomato puree, dissolved in 4 T water

1 ¼ cups Guinness

2 cups carrots, cut into chunks

sprig of thyme


(a) Trim the meat of any fat or gristle, cut into cubes of 2 inches (5cm) and toss them in a bowl with 1 tablespoon oil. Season the flour with salt, freshly ground pepper and a pinch or two of cayenne. Toss the meat in the mixture. Heat the remaining oil in a wide frying pan over a high heat. Brown the meat on all sides.

(b) Add the onions, crushed garlic and tomato puree to the pan, cover and cook gently for about 5 minutes.

(c) Transfer the contents of the pan to a casserole, and pour some of the Guinness into the frying pan. Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve the caramelized meat juices on the pan. Pour onto the meat with the remaining Guinness; add the carrots and the thyme. Stir, taste, and add a little more salt if necessary. Cover with the lid of the casserole and simmer very gently until the meat is tender - 2 to 3 hours.

(d) Scatter with lots of chopped parsley. Serve.

Beer reviews AND a beef stew recipe? Hell, yes!!

I've had the Xocoveza but never the BBA version. Great find.

I've had several Dark Hollow brews from Blue Mountain and they're also excellent brews.

I believe I've also had the Brooklyn Local 1, but, once again, it's been a while.

We greatly enjoy new posters on this thread.

PS-This sucker is sucker is not 847 posts long-we've got 847 pages now.

[devildeac]

Hey! That’s the Padres slogan. Off our block, kid.

Kind of a corollary of what Turk has posted before: "Quality is not an option."

[devildeac]

Yes. Although, in fairness, it has taken just short of 11 years for all of these posts to accumulate. And, in classic DBR fashion, I'd bet 25% of them are puns.

Are you souring on this thread now?

[devildeac]

https://coolmaterial.com/food-drink/best-beer-logos/

I beg to differ. I do like one in particular.

Having made numerous trips to Portland over the last several decades and sampled several of their brews and visited their warehouse, err, brewery, Hair of the Dog holds a special place on my palate (and in my heart).

[devildeac]

https://www.eater.com/drinks/2016/7/...lager-pale-ale

Starts out as an amusing read that transforms into a list of beers I’d like to try.

Another nice find. I'd also like to try several of those listed brews.

[devildeac]

I'll have to see if I can track some of these down and give them a whirl. Thanks.

We sometimes see Coffee is for Closers in Raleigh but I'm not sure how widely Fullsteam distributes their beers. I'll guess Boonshine is only available in western NC. Raleigh Brewing might send some of their brews to VA but I'm not going to guarantee that. We've just started seeing some Hardywood brews in the Triangle area, plus those "smuggled" in by some of our Richmond friends.

[devildeac]

I don’t recall if anyone shared this article on brut IPAs.

Still hoping to have my first someday soon.

https://beerandbrewing.com/the-birth-of-the-brut-ipa/

My "next" one will be my first one, too.

[devildeac]

An awesome story of craft beer, small business and drinking local.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/amp...mpression=true

I’ve never had their beer, and refuse to let the Lagunitas/Heineken angle ruin what reads to me like a realization of the great American dream.

Great story. Thanks for finding/sharing.

[devildeac]

Jolly Pumpkin tonight for beer and dinner. I hope you still respect me in the morning.

[luburch]

Last night in Greece. Head to Spain in the morning. Beer selection should improve a bit there

[devildeac]

Last night in Greece. Head to Spain in the morning. Beer selection should improve a bit there

Old stuff but maybe it helps you a bit:

https://www.newsobserver.com/enterta...e10029422.html

[devildeac]

Last night in Greece. Head to Spain in the morning. Beer selection should improve a bit there

I think our son and his wife visited this place while they were in Barcelona last year and thought the beer was outstanding:

https://www.blacklab.es/en

I'll confirm a bit later today.

[devildeac]

Old stuff but maybe it helps you a bit:

https://www.newsobserver.com/enterta...e10029422.html

I think our son and his wife visited this place while they were in Barcelona last year and thought the beer was outstanding:

https://www.blacklab.es/en

I'll confirm a bit later today.

It was indeed The Black Lab and he said the food was very good and their imperial stout and variants were outstanding.

[devildeac]

An attempt at reconstruction of last PM's libations:

Plans (draft)-Jolly Pumpkin Brewing (Hyde Park)

Drink local!

I finished the last 9 ounces or so from a 12 ounce snifter that our younger son-in-law didn't like.

Pour was a cloudy, orange-yellow with no head remaining. Tart/sour/fruity nose and tastes of Sour Patch Kids grapefruit and cherry candies. One of the beertenders claimed both fruits were added. I'm not so sure. There was a finishing funk to this sour fruit ale. No IBUs found but I'll guess 20 with the ABV at 6.9%. Not a bad pairing with a pepperoni and sausage pizza, followed by a mixed green salad with craisins, Feta cheese, candied walnuts and a raspberry vinaigrette dressing.

[devildeac]

Second shared beer:

Siren (draft)-North Peak Brewing Company

Drink regional (guest tap at Jolly Pumpkin from Traverse City)!

An excellent rendition of a traditional amber ale.

Our younger daughter shared some of her pint with me. Color was medium to dark amber with an earthy nose. Tastes were dark caramel, a bit of milk chocolate with some herbal, woody hops. IBUs were 25 and the ABV was 5% and made a nice pairing with the pizza and fancy salad. I'd give this a comfortable edge over Fat Tire.

[devildeac]

Bam Noire (draft)-Jolly Pumpkin Brewing

More local!

Our younger son-in-law shared some of his pint with me and it was right at home with our pizza and a salad.

This may be the first dark farmhouse ale I've ever sipped. Appearance was a slightly cloudy, medium brown with a small head. A very mild acetic nose was followed by slightly sour/tart tastes of underripe apples and pears that had been dipped in milk chocolate. No IBUs listed so I'll guess 20 and the ABV was 4.5% so we're heading backward on the "proper" ABV tasting route . Another pleasant pairing with the pizza and salad.

[devildeac]

Oro de Calabaza (draft)-Jolly Pumpkin Brewing

Still indigenous!

This strong golden ale (aka a Belgian tripel) was my favorite of the evening.

Pour was a clear, yellow-gold with a thin, lacy head. There were hints of banana, clove and white pepper on the nose. Tastes were floral, light brown sugar, orange, subtle banana, mild clove and a pinch of the pepper again. Again, no IBUs quoted so my guess is 25 with the ABV at 8%, on the low end for the style. A most pleasant finishing/sipping/dessert ale after dinner. Probably should have stopped at the cooler as we exited to peruse their bottle selections but I knew a sample of another local beer had been chilled and was waiting for our arrival "home" after dinner.

[devildeac]

Atom Smasher-Two Brothers Artisan Brewing

Still local!

Nightcap beer last PM, shared 3 ways.

A very interesting twist to a traditional Oktoberfest beer as this one is aged on oak chips.

Pour from a 12 ounce bottle was a clean/clear amber with perhaps a hint of ruby. Modest, creamy head about an inch high. Enticing toffee, coffee, milk chocolate and caramel aromas with mostly toffee and caramel tastes but with nuances of vanilla and milk chocolate, too, with an earthy/herbal finish. Someone finally listed IBUs on the label and this Märzenbier rolls in at 22.6 (really ?) and the ABV of 7.7% nudges this into the imperial Oktoberfest category. I think the only other imperial Oktoberfest I've ever sipped was Avery's The Kaiser and that is likely to have been a decade ago. I may try to talk our daughter out of their last bottle .