Beer Blog Discussing All Things Craft Beer

From Dogfish Head’s website, a description of their latest in the Ancient Ales series:

I’m pretty sure that I remember watching clips of that trip on the short-lived Discovery Channel show, “Brewed.” It certainly looked like an exciting and adventurous endeavor. The beer however, unlike the brewery’s Midas Touch and Pangaea (other beers in the Ancient Ale series), was not one of my favorites.

That’s not to say I didn’t like it, but given the other options in the series, I would prefer one of the other bottles. That said, for a 4.5% Wheat beer, Ta Henket is pretty damn interesting, which is ultimately what I’ve come to expect from the Delaware brewery. It’s unique flavor and sharp carbonation make for a drinking experience that few beers can provide.

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Vanberg & DeWulf have been on a roll as of late with their portfolio of imports. The two latest items are Iceland’s Lava and Italy’s Contessa Pale Ale.

From the company’s press release:

Lava Smoked Imperial Stout (9.4% ABV) from Iceland’s only craft brewery, Olvisholt Brugghus’ (Brewery). Lava earns a 99 on Ratebeer, and is a full-bodied, pitch-black beer with a dense brown head. Richly flavored with notes of dark chocolate, roasted malt and smoke, it is highly sought after by Scandinavian beer geeks. It has never before been sold in the US, but — for the first time ever — it will arrive on American shores at the end of January.

Take your tongue on a trip to the Arctic isle in the ring of fire with Lava Smoked Imperial Stout. Recommended food pairings include oysters, lobster and crayfish, smoked fish, herring.

Birra Amiata’s Contessa Italian Pale Ale has just landed! Remarkably few of the hot Italian craft beers rate five stars from Slow Food Italy, but Contessa is one of them.

We test marketed this beer with four of the most discerning publicans in Chicago – the Hopleaf, the Farmhouse, Telegraph Wine Bar, and the Publican. These establishments have very different personalities. Hopleaf is a Belgian bastion. The Farmhouse specializes in local and sustainable foods, and call every beer they carry from beyond the 200 mile radius of Chicago “imported.” Telegraph Wine Bar is a very sophisticated small plate Logan Square hot spot that only carries five beers. The Publican is one of the country’s best gastropubs. Remarkably, they all did fabulously well with Contessa. We can’t wait until we place it at the first Italian restaurant!

I’m not entirely sure how I missed posting this review, but here we are. I found this bottle of Weyerbacher Riserva (2010 vintage) at Total Wine a week or two before the turn of the New Year and, immediately upon seeing it, knew that there would be no champagne for me as I welcomed in 2012.

This American wild Ale is brewed with a healthy dose of Raspberries before being aged in oak barrels. The sour tartness that this beer carries is enormous — it took me several moments to become accustomed to it and even then, wow. Not only does this thing pack a wild, sour punch, but it’s also a hefty brew, weighing in at 11.4% ABV. It was exactly what I was looking to celebrate a darn good year with.

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Press Release:

HE’BREW BEER INTRODUCES ITS FIRST NEW YEAR-ROUND CREATION IN 4 YEARS

Just when you thought there were no more Hop-related names left to exploit: Enter the Torah!
Dry Hopped, 6.8% Alc., 65 IBUs
February – March 2012 and beyond…

New York, San Francisco, Beyond – February 14, 2012 – All ye wandering the vast Macro Beer Desert, thirst no more! Introducing Hop Manna® — the first-ever single IPA from HE’BREW Beer® and a gift from the Craft Beer Promised Land. Hop Manna® is the answer to hop heads prayers for a delicious IPA bearing floral and citrus flavors. At 65 IBUs and 6.8% ABV, Hop Manna® is crafted to provide session after session of hop nourishment from the Shmaltz Tribe to yours. Hop Manna® is now nationally available in 22 oz. bottles and a limited amount of draft at select bars.

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This Friday, February 17, 2012 will mark the fifteenth anniversary of Atlanta’s Sweetwater Brewing Company. But that’s not all. The brewery was also recently listed at the 27th largest craft brewery in the nation — the company isn’t some flash in the pan. But, that’s still not all. This is also my first time enjoying a product from the company, having received this sample (and branded snifter) from brewery.

Billed as a barleywine (with a West Coast vibe), this 10% ABV and 70 IBU anniversary brew has been classified as an American Strong Ale, as well. Which ever style realm it may reside in, 15 Years of Heady Beers is a brew that is refined, flavorful and more than suitable for such a celebration (more on that here).

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Last week, when I stated that the bottle of L’Affriolante that I was reviewing was the last from this Quebec brewery, I was wrong. This, is the last bottle of beer I have from Le Bilboquet — I think.

At any rate, MacKroken Flower is a scotch ale that weighs in at 10.8% ABV and, in addition to the oatmeal stout, was one of my favorite of the bunch that I tried. What was really interesting with this beer is not it’s peaty character or the strong malt base. It was that the beer felt and tasted more like an Old Ale. It was lacking that distinct Scotch Ale character that the style is known for.

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I can’t 100% confirm the stats show in the video below, but from what I’ve read the numbers look correct enough for me. Besides, it’s nicely illustrated and animated.

Named for the “Mardi Gras Indians” who have marched in the annual New Orleans celebration, Jockamo IPA is a brew that has a solid malt backbone and an up-front hop profile. It’s brewed with Willamette and Columbus hop varieties that give the brew a piny, earthy and spicy character without a tremendous bitter bite (even at 52 IBU, the beer is quite tame in that regard).

Even though the hops may come from the Pacific Northwest this is anything but your typical West Coast IPA. The beer is well balanced between a moderate malt sweetness and the aforementioned hops. It’s the earthy nature of this beer that helps separate it from others that may employ similar hop varieties in their recipes. It’s also the driving force that keeps this beer grounded (no pun intended) in terms of it’s overall enjoyment.

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I’ve had a few Abita brews in my time, from Turbo Dog on a balcony overlooking Bourbon Street to an Andygator in my own home. This, however, is my first time enjoying their liberally hopped Restoration Pale Ale. The result of tossing plenty of Cascade hops into the mix along with four malt varieties is a brew that is not only well balanced and refreshing, but one that also carries with it a nice bit of hoppiness to compliment the malt base.

The beer comes in at 5.1% ABV and 20 IBU — just about perfect for recovering from a long day hiking or captaining your shrimp boat. I found it more than suitable to enjoy while watching the Super Bowl.

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Press Release:

ATLANTA (Feb. 8, 2012) – This Feb. 17 will mark 15 years since SweetWater Brewing Company officially sold its first drop of beer from its original brewery on Fulton Industrial Blvd. Fast forward 15 years, and the infamous Atlanta-based brewery is listed as the 27th largest craft brewery in the nation and growing faster than ever before. Planning to blow the doors off this anniversary, the SweetWater family is brewing up something special to celebrate – a big ol’ shindig at their newly expanded brewery along with a special ale created just for the occasion.

Festivities will take place Saturday, Feb. 18 from 2 – 6 p.m. at the brewery and will feature music from the band Like a Locomotive, tours of the facility and samplings of SweetWater’s brews. The 15th anniversary bash will be the first time the public can catch a glimpse of the brewery’s new expansion space, boasting an 88,000-square-foot addition to the original facility. An unveiling of the completed expansion will follow later this year.

SweetWater went back to its roots to create the special 15th anniversary ale. Big Kahuna and Co-Founder Freddy Bensch invited back original Brewmaster and Co-Founder Kevin McNerney to help recreate a version of their original ESB recipe (this one got a big ol’ bump into barley wine status), which they appropriately titled 15 Years of Heady Beers. As if that wasn’t enough, SweetWater is even breaking into the special stash in the cellar, pouring a lip-smacking lineup of beers that have been saved for just such a fancy occasion including:

The 15th anniversary festivities don’t stop there. SweetWater is showing love to its online following as well and will be opening up the photo history books. In honor of the 15 years of crazy memories, the SweetWater team will be sharing photos from years past and encouraging fans to get involved too. Starting Feb. 8, SweetWater’s Facebook fans will have the opportunity to win VIP passes to the big anniversary bash by sharing their favorite SweetWater photo memories online. For specific contest details and to RSVP, visit the 15th anniversary event page at www.facebook.com/sweetwaterbrew.

Ask SweetWater’s founder what it means to turn 15? “The first thing that needs to be said is a keg full of thank yous to all who have played a role in floating the SweetWater boat,†said Freddy Bensch. “If there has ever been a reason that SweetWater is still here, it’s you and the fantastic community that we are a part of.â€

Update: read my review of the beer here.