Cali or Bust – Part 2

Continuing on with my Cali beer adventures, I headed south from Santa Rosa to the little town of Petulma home of the Lagunitas Brewing Company. After Russian River I was looking even more forward to my visit to Lagunitas not to mention that the taproom came highly recommended as a ‘must visit’ by fellow beer enthusiasts.

So Lagunitas Brewing Company is pretty easy to locate; it is just east of highway 101 in an industrial-heavy area outside the downtown core. After pulling into a fairly generic row of buildings I spotted the tell-tale signs of a brewery i.e. a bunch of kegs in a fenced off area and a big bottle cap emblazoned with the Lagunitas logo. There were several buildings comprising the brewery including the brewing facility, offices and the taproom, which I learned the hard way is CLOSED on Mondays

 

 

Needless to say this put a bit of a hitch in my plans so I took a few requisite pictures of what indeed looked like a fun taproom and did a little window shopping. As it was destination San Francisco for me and hubby-to-be I opted not to camp out in the parking lot and wait for the taproom to open its’ doors. For those, like me, who have not had the pleasure of visiting Lagunitas in person this virtual tasting is for you:

 

 

Well onward and upward my beer drinking friends, my Cali beer search continues…

Cali or Bust – Part 1

I recently returned from my road trip to San Francisco and while the primary purpose of my vacation was to (finally) marry my handsome and charming boyfriend, as any self-respecting beer geek would do I also planned to fit in lots of brewery visits and craft beer sampling along the way.

California is one of those states blessed with a disproportionate number of amazing breweries and, more importantly, it is the home of my all-time favourite brewery Russian River Brewing Company located in the historic town of Santa Rosa (also the birthplace of Charles Schultz). To me, getting the chance to visit Russian River was akin to some sort of pilgrimage and needless to say my expectations were sky-high. I even wrote an open love letter to the brewery but alas they never responded.

For anyone who may have been living under a rock, in a cave, on a deserted island, Russian River Brewing Company creates some of the most memorable belgian beers (read barrel-aged sours) and IPA’s in the world. Beer for beer, Pliny the Elder, Supplication and Temptation may just form the triumvirate of just how good beer can get. The time and craft that goes into creating these beers painted a picture (in my mind) of the type of tap room and brewery that produces such wondrous libations.

So did the real live Russian River retain its’ cherished place on the pedestal when I visited? Well, no.

Granted I did visit the pub on Cinqo de Mayo, but it felt kind of like visiting Boston Pizza loud, busy, full of pretty drunk patrons, lots of crazy crap on the walls, given a blinking coaster to signal an available table. Now to be clear I am not a complete fossil who wants to sip and spit from champagne flutes whilst I sit in a cellar full of oak barrels BUT I did kind of expect an environment where people paid more attention to the beer that was served up in their pints. The wait staff did not seem keen to chat beer and while they served up flights with great presentation you were kind of left to do your own thing. At the very least I expected our server to follow-up on this massive flight to see what we liked or did not like.

Concerned that the boisterous college crowd may have coloured my first perception we returned the next day in the morning to pick up some bottles. Oddly enough it was already full of early morning drinkers and once again getting beer from the bartender was more of a chore than any sort of interaction i.e. most staff just walk by you while you try to get someone’s attention.

I am not really sure what I expected but somehow I expected more.

Baby, why are you so Sour?

Somewhat contrary to my fellow beer geeks, when I first started exploring craft beer one of the more challenging styles quickly emerged as my favourite and that style is soured beer. I  know this category of beer is not everyone’s ‘cup of tea’ and in fact many people are initially turned off by the often over-powering tartness of  a gueze or an oud bruin but if you think you are not a fan of wild ales you really do not know what you are missing.

 

Sour Beer from Cascade Barrel House

 

Sour beer is technically not a style in and of itself, rather it is a process of using bacterial infection to impart tartness while fermenting and/or beer, as such under this broad category there is a range of flavours and, well, sourness from sweet and fruity lambics, to the deep and rich sour brown ales, to the accessible Flanders red ales, to the straight lambics, which offer no apologies for their tart kick.

Historically, lambic beers (a style of beer brewed with aged hops and a high proportion of unmalted wheat) were spontaneously fermented. That is to say you basically do the opposite of everything you learned in homebrew school and intentionally infect your wort with some of the many microscopic critter floating around in the air. The different resultant bacterial infections all work to ferment the beer while it ages in wooden barrels (the wooden barrel being a natural haven for microbes). Ensuring consistency is near impossible for the sour beer brewer so the resultant batches are blended to achieve the desired tartness levels.

According to Mosher in Tasting Beer, when Lindemans expanded their brewery they took a portion of their old wall and bolted it in their new building in order to preserve their signature mix of beneficial bugs.

 

 

In modern times, the souring of beer is less by chance i.e. opening a window and hoping for the best but really not by much.

Bacterial agents like lactobacillus, brettanomyces and pediococcus are systematically introduced to the fermentation process; however, the outcome remains somewhat unpredictable and the time commitment to brew a sour beer is significant compared pretty much any other beer style think years versus months. Blending remains the most viable means to ensure the sourness of your beer is at a level that is drinkable.

 

Beet Sour Beer from Epic Ales

 

Once the sole domain of dedicated Belgian brewers devoted to the art of brewing sour beers, wild ales are carving out an impressive niche in Europe and North America. Russian River, Cascade Brewing, Jolly Pumpkin and Epic Ales are all making a name for themselves in pursuit of excellent sourness.

A little more north Oud Bruin from Yaletown Brewing Company and Driftwood’s Bird of Prey Flanders Red are showing Canadian brewers are also getting on the sour bandwagon.

 

 

Is sour beer the next big thing in the craft beer world? Well, not to self-promote (too much) I have to say I saw this one coming for quite sometime now. I even wrote a post called ‘Love is a Sour Delight’ back in February of 2011 espousing the wonder that is sour beer. If you require further confirmation, you just need walk into any decent beer store and observe the number of barrel-aged, wild and wine-blended beers now on the market.

As we move into warmer weather I urge my fellow beer geeks to crack open a bottle of sour beer on a warm summer night and tell me this isn’t one of the best affirmations they have ever had that craft beer will one day rule the world.

 

The Future of Craft Beer

As I was contemplating this post I ran through many different titles; Can there be too much Diversity? Are we fickle? Whither the craft in craft beer? Do we have too many choices? Always chasing the next big thing? The underlying theme being my general misgivings about the direction craft brewers have been taking in relation to the sheer size and diversity of their beer line-ups.

 

 

So I thought a little more about this.

 

Basically I feel like every new and established craft brewer, as of late, seems intent on creating and selling as many different beer styles as possible. Take a random sample of breweries from the Pacific Northwest and you will find many of them producing IPA’s, Pilsners, Pale Ales, Hefeweizens, Belgians, Porters, Stouts, Fruit Beers, Flavoured Ales, Reds Ales, Brown Ales, Dunkels, Sours and those are just off the top of my head AND that is not even counting variations on major styles or seasonals.

 

To be clear, I do not mean a single brewery is specializing on one or two of those styles but rather individual breweries are trying their hand at all of the styles.

 

Don’t get me wrong I am not against experimentation, I believing brewing is as much and art as it is a science and we need to push our boundaries from time to time in order to test our skills and move the craft beer culture forward.

 

But can we really move forward if everyone is trying to master everything? True quality may take lifetimes to master. Have you ever drank a trappist beer? Any idea how long they have been brewing that particular beer? Do you come across many blackberry chai Belgian Triples?

 

1201 choices

 

When I walk into a beer store and I see a thousand different craft beers to choose from I feel like the floodgates have opened and it concerns me to think that breweries, in their rush to put out a wild ale for the summer, are moving from style to style so quickly that we never really get to see them develop a signature beer or signature style that could become their hallmark.

 

Personally, I would welcome more breweries that dedicate themselves to perfecting a few styles of beer. Breweries who could rise above the masses due to the quality not volume, of beer they are producing.

Firestone Walker, My First Time

For the longest time I would pass by Firestone Walker beers without giving them serious consideration. Much like my previous misconceptions about New Belgium Brewing, I pegged Firestone Walker in that faux-craft beer category unworthy of true beer geek appreciation, it looked a little too slick and seemed a little too available to really be craft, and therefore I remained blissfully unaware of just what I was missing out on.

 

To be fair Firestone Walker is not exactly a ‘mom and pop’ micro-brewery churning out two or three beer styles in the back room of some garage (though the brewery’s early days had some semblance to this picture).

Classed as a mid-size brewery, Firestone Walker Brewing Company heralds an impressive line-up of award winning pale ales, seasonal releases, barrel aged reserve beer and anniversary releases not to mention on-site exclusives.

In fact, their success with barrel-aging recently culminated in the opening of Barrelworks described on the Firestone website as a “7,000-square-foot facility now houses all of Firestone Walker’s barrel-aged wild beers while also showcasing the brewery’s classic barrel-aged strong ales.”

 

For a barrel-aged beer lover such as myself I am really not sure why I waited so long to start exploring this brewery’s offerings. To remedy the situation I brought home a Walker’s Reserve Porter and a Parabola Imperial Stout.

 

 

Here are my thoughts on Walker’s Reserve Porter:

Walker’s Reserve pours a deep black/brown colour with good clarity and a decent amount of carbonation. There is not much in the way of head on this beer and not much head retention but that is typical for a porter. Lots of cold coffee and roasted grain notes on the nose. First couple of sips, this is a porter with a lot of oakiness, cold coffee, chocolate and a burnt sweet flavour. It is fairly light bodied and not very alcoholy. The finish is very, very dry and the bitter/burnt notes linger long after you swallow. Personally, I find this one a bit too harsh for me as I like my porters fuller bodied with a touch of sweetness; you can chalk this up partially to me being a non-coffee drinker since my better half enjoyed what I term the cold coffee qualities a bit more than I did. Overall an interesting porter that is competitively priced.

 

A Couple of Other Brewery Tidbits

Firestone Walker beers are distributed widely throughout the US but sadly not in Canada (yet), and for inquiring minds, yes, one of the breweries co-founders is indeed part of that Firestone family and no, no tires were harmed in the brewing of their beer.

The Best Beer in the World

For those who somehow missed all the buzz at the end of 2012, Westvleteren 12, a rare and much lauded Trappist beer, was released commercially for the first time in in the history of the brewery and better still, it was available in Vancouver.

 

 

Here is just some of the pre-release hype as reported by 24 hrs the favourite paper of bus riders and sky trainers alike:

 

“We had it in the past for about $25 a bottle,” said Darryl Lamb, manager of Legacy Liquor in Olympic Village. “We got it through a grey market source using gypsies to get cases and then holding auctions for them. This is the first time they’ve ever commercially sold the beer. They’re selling it now because they need money to build a new monastery. So they’re only doing this one time – a six pack with two glasses for $88.”

In order to save their home, the famous monks have been brewing an extra batch every month since 2010.

“Westvleteren is the most difficult to get of the eight Trappist breweries because they’re the smallest and they aren’t really a commercial brewery,” explained Lamb. “You can only get the beer at the monastery and you can only get one case of beer per (visit).”

 

Well that was Christmas and I was busy dutifully drinking 24 beers to create my advent calendar, not to mention it was Christmas so I was reluctant to drop 80 bucks on a six-pack, not to mention it was Christmas and I did not want to be trampled upon just to beat out other beer geeks at Brewery Creek so basically I did not get the chance to try a ‘Westie’.

 

Fortunately fate intervened when I stopped into the Big Ridge liqour store and discovered  a neat little pyramid of Westvleteren 12 stacked behind the counter, two of which still needed good homes. Taking this as a divine sign I ponied up and bought myself the six pack (seriously what self-respecting beer geek could pass up the chance to try the world’s best beer?).

 

 

The Best Beer in the World

100 on Rate Beer, 100 on Beer Advocate, a cult beer, rare, limited supplies, Trappist, international reputation …whew, that is a heck of a lot of hype to live up to. Couple this with the humble prostrations that at Westvlelevern the monks brew beer only to finance their crumbling abbey and you have got one heck of a media darling in Westvleteren 12 or the little beer that could.

 

The problem with being labelled the best is that you find yourself always having  to work that much harder because your audience immediately doubts your credibility.

 

The best? Really? The best beer? In the whole world? Really?

 

It’s kind of no-win since some will be swayed by the hype without truly forming their own opinion whilst others will do their darnedest to find any and all flaws because deep down they know you cannot be the best.

 

I think the best way to approach this beer would be through a blind taste test so unbiased drinkers can indulge minus the weight of all those preconceptions and background noise distorting what you are tasting.

 

 

Nonetheless I tried and it and for what it’s worth this is what I thought…

 

Westvlelevern 12 pours a deep reddish brown with lots of cloud and lots of carbonation. There is some cream coloured head on the initial pour but it dies off leaving some nice lacing on the glass and a light skim across the top. The nose is all-Belgian sweet, somewhat yeasty with malty overtones. First couple of sips I am surprised how effervescent this one remains giving a light bodied quality to a beer that is anything but. Rich, almost cloyingly sweet at times, dark fruity flavours and a strong alcohol taste. Kind of a treacle like quality. It comes off a bit sharp straight from the fridge but really grows on me as I keep drinking. The mouthfeel takes on a really creamy quality as you drink. On the finish you get dried fruit sweetness tempered by the big alcohol content of this beer (over 10% ABV). Overall a really beautiful Belgian Quadrupel.

 

I know, I know, but is it the best beer in the world?

 

Well this beer does really throw down the gauntlet for Belgian beers, as an example of the style it is one of the best I have ever had. Whether it is so fantastic that I would choose this beer over all other styles I have to say no.

 

There have been many times I thought I found the best beer in the world drinking Russian River Supplication for the first time, sampling Pliny the Elder on tap, my very first Lost Abbey experience with Angel’s Share, the sour goodness of Sang Noir from Cascade Brewing Barrel House, savouring The Abyss from Deschutes etc. but all these best beers were contingent on so many other factors that given a choice my ‘best beer in the world’ changes with the day, the season and my mood.

 

What I will say is Westvleteren 12 casts a long shadow…

 

Get Out of my Cellar and into my Glass

 

Anyone who has taken a look at my ‘What’s in the Fridge’ page will know that I have been aging beer pretty much since I began drinking craft beer. You also may have noticed that in previous posts I have commented on my reluctance to crack open bottles from this collection since the aged beers seem too special to drink on just any old occasion and really, if I have waited this long perhaps I should wait just a little bit longer (they might taste just a little bit better).

 

But lately I feel like the time has come to start enjoying some of my well-cared for stash and as such I am going to start a series of posts where I review aged beers and discuss the changes that have taken place, especially for those beers that I have tried when they were just young ‘uns.

 

 

Just a quick recap for those who have not read my post Maturing Beer, unlike mass market beer many styles of craft beer are brewed with the intention that they will be stored for some time before consumption. Strong beer with high ABV’s, Imperial Stouts, Barley Wines, Belgian Quads, Barrel-aged Porters, and basically any other robust style of beer can benefit from some time in the cellar. Breweries like Deschutes are even taking the initiative by posting best-after dates on their bottles. Basically the stronger your beer the longer you can age it. Also, if you are a really big beer nerd you can cellar different years of the same beer and hold a vertical tasting and actually taste the changes that are occurring.

 

Currently in my cellar (which is really my cupboard) I have:

Brooklyn Monster Ale 2007

Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn Black Ops

Driftwood Old Cellar Dweller

Driftwood Old Barrel Dweller

Driftwood Singularity 2011, 2012

Dogfish Head Forte

Deschutes Black Butte

Deschutes Collage Conflux

Deschutes The Abyss 2009, 2012

Deschutes Dissident

Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws

Rogue Old Crustacean Barley Wine

VIB Hermannator Ice Bock

VIB Hermannator Ice Bock 25th Anniversary

These are a few of my Favourite Things

Raindrops on hop bines and whiskey-casked porters

Bright copper kettles and barley wine snifters

Brown paper packages enclosing 650’s

These are a few of my favorite things

 

Cream colored hefes and crisp golden pils

Fruit beers and Belgians with sweetness and fizz

Wild yeast strains imparting most sour tings

These are a few of my favorite things

 

Fat mugs of stout with hints of molasses

Brettanomyces lingers in the bottom of glasses

Bright white head and natural water from springs

These are a few of my favorite things

 

What you may ask inspired me to butcher a Christmas classic in this way?

It was a beer description so delicious that I literally (well okay not literally but close) could not wait to crack the bottle and give it a try. Belgian quad, coffee cherries, date, Lips of Faith, 10% …beer geek overload!

 

There are times that I do my best to restrain my beer purchases, when life offers up other things for me to spend my money on (cough, cough, wedding) so I do my diligence and only buy those beers I really, REALLY have to have like Cascara Quad from Lips of Faith.

When one of these ESB’s (extra special beers) make it home with me they are place on a figurative pedestal such that when I do try them they have some mighty high expectations to live up to.

 

So how did Cascara Quad do?

Cascara pours a cloudy reddish orange with lots of creamy off-white head on the initial pour. The head dies down after a bit into a thick skim with some nice lacing. There is quite a bit of yeastiness on the nose and as it warms you get some banana-like notes from the nose. It is very smooth mouthfeel wise with a bit of body but all in all not as big as I expected from a quad. Cascara is quite sweet at the front and a little tart on the finish. There is a real smokey almost leathery flavour that comes through as you sip. If I had to describe this beer in one word I would have to say young; by this I mean it feels like I should have let this one age a bit to really bring all the flavours into a better balance. I liked this beer, I drank this beer but I just did not love it they way I had hoped…

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

St. Patrick’s Day celebrates the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick, and his arrival, along with Christianity, to Ireland and St. Patrick’s Day was made an official Christian feast day in the seventeenth century. Celebrations frequently include parades, festivals, the wearing of the green, tributes to Irish culture and Church services for the religious.

 

Where does Beer fit in?

For those that commemorate the religious aspect of the holiday, on St. Patrick’s Day Lenten restrictions are lifted so people are free to indulge (or overindulge) in feasting and drinking alcohol.

 

And why are we colouring our Beer green again?

The ‘wearing of the green’ originally referred to the act of pinning a shamrock to your clothing for the holiday. It is believed that Saint Patrick explained the Holy Trinity to people using the shamrock as an example. From this humble tradition emerged an explosion of green-hued everything to mark the day.

 

 

Don’t drink green drink red instead.

For those less than keen to add an infusion of green food colouring to their favourite brew I encourage you to think red instead as there are many great Irish Red Ales out there to help you feel a little more Irish today.

 

Beer Advocate describes Irish Red Ales as follows:

A bit sweet, with a lightly hopped tea-like flavor, and an even dextrinous body, Irish Red Ales are easy to please. Look for well-rounded and balanced flavors, and a pleasant toasted malt character in many examples. A drying finish is common.

 

Some beer choices to ponder:

3 Floyds Brian Boru Irish Brand Red Ale

Great Lakes Brewing Conway’s Irish Ale

Granville Island Brewing Irish Red

Boulevard Brewing Irish Ale

Boundary Bay Irish Red

Russell Brewing Company Luck of the Irish Red Ale

Silver City Ridgetop Red

 

Slainte!

Does this Beer make my Butt look Big?

Craft beer is the future, we all love the little guy, quality trumps quantity every time but alas there is one downside to this explosion of craft beer culture.

Much like mass market beer craft beer contains …wait for it … (insert ominous music here) calories and not just a few of them.

Beer you’re the Devil!

No one could argue that beer quality and taste has not improved immeasurably thanks to the efforts of the small scale breweries but sadly the ugly truth of the matter is our body does not discriminate when it comes to the source of our caloric intake. Our bodies cannot and do not appreciate discerning palates by magically flushing all the calories away when we reach for a Deschutes Abyss instead of a Bud Light (stupid bodies). In the end we may all have to come gut-to-gut with the dreaded beer belly.

So just how bad is our craft beer habit on our waistlines?

Oddly (or maybe not so oddly if you are the skeptical sort) the answer to this question is not readily available and in the few cases where nutrition information is  accessible it is usually in conjunction with the promotion of a ‘lite’ product or hauled out as an ambiguous justification to assure you that of course beer is good in moderation. Some articles herald the vitamin B content of beer while others suggest beer has no fat so it really can’t be that considered a poor nutritional choice.

Beer bad or beer good? Well you can convince yourself either way but the irrefutable fact remains that beer contributes to our dietary allowance and as such we must be cognizant of what (and how much) we are ingesting.

The internet tells me the most popular beers weigh in at between 140 and 180 calories per 12oz serving; in this instance most likely referring to a lager style beer with a fairly low ABV. There is no shortage of tables listing calories and carbs for various beer brands but there seems to big a rather large shortage of accurate and consistent information.

The problem is most craft beer drinkers tend to consume beers of all different styles, sizes and strengths meaning one day we may have 4.5% pale ale but the next we may imbibe in 12% barley wine. A general statement like a 12oz beer has 140 calories may be waaaayyyyy off the mark in the craft beer world affording us a distorted sense of how much we could and should drink.

If there is so much arbitrary information out there why are there no nutrition labels on beer?

Turning once again to the great-and-powerful Google I learned that in 2007 the United States decided that beer, wine and liquor would have to include the familiar nutritional labels on their packaging. A three-year window was allotted to provide businesses with time to implement the packaging changes. Well 2010 has come and gone and a quick look through my fridge reveals that my assortment of Canadian, American and UK beers are not providing us with nutritional content and the question of why not remains visibly unanswered.

It seems more than a little condescending to me that consumers cannot be trusted to continue to enjoy their favourite beers if we are presented with cold hard truth that beer, like everything else we ingest, will have an impact on our diets.

For years, the fast food industry lobbied to not provide nutritional information to customers in fear that we may learn the shocking truth that fries, soda and burgers are not the most nutritionally sound foods on the market. Well duh, people are not quite as unaware as we may appear.

Personally, I would like to know just how many calories I may be consuming if I reach for a second stout. Knowledge will not force me to shun craft beer but it will create a better informed beer drinker one who can make choices based around the other foodstuffs I consume. It will also continue the push forward for craft breweries to turn their attentions to session and lower alcohol beers that we their patrons can enjoy with more regularity without the ugly trade-off of no longer fitting on the bar stool at our favourite tap room.

*Thanks to Avery Brewing for the Mephistopheles Badge image, Irish Taxi for the image of Homer Simpson’s Beer Belly, Beeriety for the diagram and Drinking Beer fir the conceptual alcohol nutrition label.