New England Series: Cambridge Brewing Company's "Triple Threat"

Despite being in Colorado with very limited New England craft beer to choose from, I am happy to say that the New England Series beer features lives on!

The other day at work, an email went out with the always welcomed news: "bombers ripe for the taking in the conference room." Being the intern, I try not to rush down there too fast, but I'll be damned if I am the last one. As I was turning the bottles to see what the selection was looking like, I was shocked to see a bottle with "CBC" on the top of the label. Never had I thought I would be able to be in Boulder, CO and enjoying a Cambridge Brewing Co. beer at the same time..but there it was. A cardboard-brown label with "Tripel Threat" written on a flag coming off of a blue motorcycle. I did not even have think twice before grabbing the prize.

After I poured myself a glass, I went onto Cambridge Brewing Company's website to find out the story behind Triple Threat. To my surprise, CBC is hailed as the first craft brewery to create and produce a Belgian beer in the United States (the late Michael Jackson aka The Beer Hunter is the source for this). CBC ended up winning the their first gold medal at GABF with the tripel, and this was before there was even a specific Belgian category. This was all music to my ears...

In the glass, Tripel Threat is a rich gold color with subtle haze. A thick white head forms during the pour, but dissipates quickly leaving clear evidence around the edges of the glass. A spiciness dominates the aromas, with hints of coriander and cloves, and subtle notes of citrus and sweet fruit are in the background. One taste of Tripel threat had my pallet searching and picking out different flavors. A rich, Belgian spiciness is in the forefront. The cloves and coriander from the aromas are quite apparent, as well as some of the fruit notes. A mouth-watering breadiness from the malt blends well with the spices, balancing out some of the stronger flavors from the yeast and toasted coriander.

As thrilled as I am that I managed to get this bottle in Colorado, I am just as upset that I probably won't  be enjoying a glass of this historical, well-balanced tripel anytime in the near future...well until GABF 2012!

Surly Brewing Company's "Smoke"

Dylan at GABF 2011

Two years ago, I had my first run in with a smoked beer, and I distinctly remember that strange day. My buddy Dylan, beer enthusiast, video-game assassin, and fancy carpenter, cracked open a bottle of beer and said, "Try this...It tastes like sausages." Sausages? That wasn't exactly a description that got me anxious for the first sip, but who am I to turn down a taste of a unexplored brew? I was given the glass of the dark ale...or was it a lager?...I don't remember...nonetheless, I was given the glass and immediately sensed the smokiness in the aromas. It did have a BBQ quality to it that I had never smelled on a beer, so my interest was peaked. Sure enough, the thick, smokiness filled my mouth on the first sip and a meatiness lingered through the finish. Dylan was right. It did taste like sausage, the good kind that are charred on the grill.

Fast forward to today. I now have a few smoked beers under my belt. The Stone Smoked Porter and Left Hand Smoke Jumper really got me into the style. Both examples have a lot of smokey characterstics but without an overwhelming ammount of meat, which makes it more approachable to the smoke-newbie. I also got my hands on the Rogue and Voodoo Donought's smoked collaboration (which I talk about here). The Maple Bacon Ale is delicious, but after a half pint it starts to taste like you are drinking liquid pancakes and bacon. This brings me to the beer of the day...Surly Brewing Company's "Smoke."

Surly founder and owner, Omar Ansari, started the same way most homebrewers spend their days: dreaming about opening a nano-brewery. Ansari developed a passion for fine beers early in his life, which prompted him to start homebrewing in 1994. Ansari evolved from extract to all grain brews, acquiring the endless amounts of equipment along with it, and he ended up taking over the space from the old family business to use for brewing. After completing an educational program with the American Brewers Guild, Ansari opened Surly and began selling his canned and bottled beers.

Surly's "Smoke" is a Baltic porter that lives up to its name. In the glass it pours dark, impenetrable brown, bordering on black, with a thick, mocha brown head. The smoke is the star of the aroma show, with some hints of meat. I was pleasantly surprised to be greeted with hints of chocolate and dark malt flavors up front, as opposed to being smacked in the face with smoke right away. The smoke and a bitterness appears in the middle, and last through the finish where it is joined by the slightest touch of smoked meat. The mouth feel has a creamy quality (I'm assuming from the oak-aging), which paired with the black malt and chocolate notes has taste buds begging for another sip of the smokey goodness. This is a very tasty, well balanced Baltic Porter, with its deceivingly high ABV of 8.3%!

Craft Beer Cellar: Heaven on Earth

While visiting Massachusetts in April, I was snooping around online to see if there were any decent local stores selling craft beer. There was one packy in my home town that had a decent 6 pack selection and a small shelving unit of bombers, but it still left a lot to be desired. Surprisingly, the local Whole Foods ended up having one of the better selections, but the staff wasn't very helpful and it just felt out of place. If only there was a store that carried all of the finest craft brews available in the area... I came across a store on Google and Yelp that sounded like the exact place that I, and every other beer nerd in the nation, was looking for, the Craft Beer Cellar in Belmont, Massachusetts.

From the moment I walked through the front door of the Craft Beer Cellar, I was overwhelmed. This is what I have been waiting so long to find in a retail beer store: craft beer, and only craft beer...everywhere. When you first walk into the stylish, dark-wood paneled store, you are greeted by an impressive selection of domestic craft brews at room temperature on one side and refrigerated options on the other side. Various brewery-specific stands are strategically placed on the floor showcasing special offerings from some of the greats, like Allagash, Dogfish Head, and Brooklyn. Towards the back is a most impressive selections of imports. Because my mission while home was to drink strictly New England brews, I didn't spend much time back there, which I now regret. If the selection is not enough to get you drooling, the owners encourage you to pull singles and build your own 6 pack(s) at very reasonable prices. If this store is not beer heaven on earth, then I don't know what is. In all they offer over 1,000 types of craft beer with seasonal and rare offerings rotating in when available.

Undoubtedly, the Craft Beer Cellar has the most impressive selection of craft beer I have ever seen in one place, but this was not the best part of my new favorite store. What got me driving a half hour back to Belmont for a second time was the quality of customer service I experienced during my first visit. Owner's and fellow beer nerds, Suzanne Schalow and Kate Baker, really elevated my experience at the Craft Beer Cellar from being simply a trip to buy beer into what felt more like a friendly conversation between beer enthusiasts that you might have at a pub. When I mentioned to Suzanne and Kate that I was trying to explore New England breweries while I was in town, they pointed me to a few up and coming Boston area breweries that I would have otherwise passed over. One of their suggestions, Night Shift's Trifecta, is now one of my favorite Belgian pale ales, and I only have the Craft Beer Cellar to thank for that. There is nothing more disappointing than taking a liquor store employee up and their offer for advice and being pointed to Blue Moon when you ask for a good Belgian white.

Garret Oliver showing off cans at CBC

The only downside of my visit was that I missed meeting Garret Oliver, brewmaster of Brooklyn Brewery, by an hour. He just so happened to be in town with some of Brooklyn Brewery's new canned offerings and dropped by the Craft Beer Cellar to say, "Hello." Kate and Suzanne seem very connected and respected within the craft beer industry, which makes appearances by respected members in the industry as well as brewery tasting and showcases a typical scene at their store. Their impressive tasting schedule alone will surely get you drooling.

Hopefully, the Craft Beer Cellar is a beacon of hope for the future of the retail craft beer industry. Stores like this one dedicated solely to the sale of craft beer are beginning to appear and thrive because of the increasing presence and popularity of craft beer. Though somewhat regional right now, these stores are a possible model for the future in craft beer retail by exposing consumers to a new world of beer that they might not otherwise see in a typical package store that only offers the usual macro suspects.

If you are anywhere near Boston, you owe it to yourself to stop at Craft Beer Cellar. Be sure to chat it up with Suzanne and Kate and maybe even catch one of their many tastings that they host. Support your local craft beer store!

Grimm Brothers Brewhouse: The Fearless Youth Dunkel Lager

I was rushing my way through the liquor store the other day looking for a bomber and was having quite the time making any decisions. It was one of those days where nothing was jumping out at me and I felt like I had already tried everything, although that is most definitely not the case. While perusing, I found myself in front of the Colorado-based bomber cooler and my eyes kept getting pulled towards the same bottle with a very cool, fairy tale like scene adorning the label under the name the Fearless Youth. I grabbed the 22oz bottle and saw it was a Dunkel Lager brewed by Grimm Brothers Brewhouse out of Loveland, Colorado. I have had dunkelweizens before, but never dunkel lagers, so I thought, "why not?"

In the glass, Fearless Youth pours a very deep amber color, with hints of red and brown. A creamy, off-white head sat on top and never fully dissipated. There was not an overwhelming amount of aroma, but hints of toasted malts were at the forefront with a bit of spice. A strong dark, toasted malt character dominated the flavor profile, with prominent notes of chocolate and caramel. This strong malt profile maintained through to the finish where a breadiness and a slight bitterness, though not with much hop flavors, made an appearance. The breadiness and toasted malts left a mouth watering after taste that begged for another sip.

All in all, this medium bodied lager is great option for someone looking for a refreshing and easy to drink beer, but with a bit more depth in the flavor and aroma than some of the lighter lagers. The Fearless Youth makes me eager to try Grimm Brothers' other German influenced beers when I come across them in the future. I seem to favor the ales completely and never find myself running towards lagers, but maybe this is a sign that I should try and expand my horizons a bit...

Fort Collins Craft Beer Tour

Being a (former) CU Buff, I inherited a sworn hatred for the hometown of our biggest rival, Colorado State University. Though I had never so much as driven through Fort Collins, I was certain I wasn't going to like it because it is the home of the Rams. While I still think Fort Collins doesn't hold a flame to the ultra-hip Boulder that I call my own, they do have a craft beer scene that, dare I say, rivals that of Boulder.

Nation-wide distributed craft breweries, up-and-coming micro-breweries, and local-level pubs all call Fort Collins home and create a very diverse and exciting beer culture. My friend Andrew and I knew it would be quite the feat to hit every brewery, tap house, and pub in town, so we narrowed ourselves down to a handful of spots that were most convenient for getting around.

A sneak peak at the barrel room during
the Odells brewery tour

We started our FoCo craft beer tour in the second oldest Colorado brewery (after Boulder Beer Co.), Odells Brewing Company. It was quite the happening spot, with live music set up both in and outside, a BBQ pit going, and tours running every hour. We signed up for the three o'clock tour, which left us time to have a few pints outside on the patio, watching a storm roll in from the west. I started the day off with Odells' "happy accident," Shenanigans. It is brewed with Brettanomyces, which gives it a really interesting tartness. Then I enjoyed a pint of the Hiveranno New American Wild Ale, which is brewed wild Belgian yeasts that instilled a lot of fruity flavors. Before the tour, I grabbed a Cutthroat Porter on the nitro tap, which tasted unbelievably delicious as usual, but with a more silky quality than the CO2 version. The tour was pretty standard as far as brew tours are concerned. I would say the highlight, for me at least, was getting to see the room with all the barrel aged beers. That was a site to see...

Fort Collins Brewing.
Beers are listed from L-R in post

About half a block down the road from Odells conveniently sat Fort Collins Brewery, also with a live band playing. Because the band was taking up more space than usual, the tours were cancelled, so Andrew and I decided to get a flight of the seasonal brews. I won't go into too much detail about each, since there were six, but here was the line up (most of these aren't on their website, but BeerAdvocate has most): Edgar Lager, Maibock, Woody, Double Chocolate Stout, and Incredihop. I remember the Double Chocolate Stout really sticking out as something I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a bomber of. It was really rich and actually had a thick chocolate quality to it.

Equinox Brewing

A quick ride back to Oldtown (I think?) brought us to a pub called Equinox Brewing that I came across while looking online for places to go. Again, there was more live music and an even livelier crowd. This place was packed from wall to wall, but Andrew and I managed to weasel two spots at the bar. I started with the Night Ryder dunkelweizen because I have had a recent infatuation with the dark-wheat, German brews. Next, I had a sample of the Orion red that was being served from the cask, which was one of my favorite beers of the night. Before heading out, I tried the Pazuzu Imperial Stout which did not fail to please, either.

The bar at Funkwerks tap house

Our last stop was to Funkwerks tap house, which was where I was most looking forward to going into this mini-trip. We ended up getting a flight, which was more than enough to keep us occupied. It came with a hefty portion of each of the following: White, Saison, Tropic King, Belgian Oatmeal Stout, and Dark Prophet. Getting to sample each one of their offerings in their tap house has only made me like Funkwerks even more. They are definitely a brewery to keep your eye on.

Funkwerks was our last stop. A series of unfortunate events split a phone-less Andrew and I up at the tap house. We had plans to go to the Mayor of Oldtown, which has 100 beers on tap and serves breakfast all day (sounds like heaven), but that will have to wait until next time. When I do find myself in Fort Collins next, I will definitely want to visit New Belgium since their facility is supposed to be impressive, Mayor of Oldtown for obvious reasons, and Pateros which is another local pub that was recommended by the friendly hotel guy.

All in all, I think my first experience with the FoCo craft beer scene can be chalked up to a success. Maybe I will see you soon Fort Collins...

New England Series: Long Trail Double Bag

Every since I started homebrewing, I have wanted to brew a German altbier. I came across a recipe, and it sounded like everything I was looking for in beer with its sweet malt profile and balanced, crisp bitterness. The problem with altbiers is that they require a period of fermentation at very low, lager-like temperatures, despite (usually) being brewed with ale yeast. There was no way for me to get a fermenter down to the temperatures needed, so I unfortunately was never able brew an altbier. So whenever I see a bottled altbier in the store or on tap at the pub, I never hesitate to partake to remind myself what exactly it is I am missing out on.

While at the store, I came across an altbier made by a brewery that I am no stranger to. Long Trail Brewing Company in Bridgewater Corners, Vermont is about as old as I am and have prided themselves on creating quality craft beer while keeping in account the importance of environmental sustainability. For example, they send all their spent grains from the brewing process to local dairy farms for food and use the thermal energy from steam to heat water for the next brew day, which saves a significant amount of propane.

city-data.com

Long Trail Double Bag is described as a double altbier, or strong ale, that is referred to in Germany as "stickebier," which loosely translates to "secret brew." Double Bag pours copper in color with a very slight tint of red. A very creamy head dissipated rather quickly, but left a good amount of lacing. Sweet, almost caramel-like aromas were very prominent with some hints of fruit and alcohol. The first sip was filled with lots of malt sweetness with notes of caramel and a subtle breadiness. There was also a roasty, almost chocolaty, quality present as well that gave it a bit more depth. An earthy bitterness comes through and lasts through the finish, which creates a bit of a bite with the alcohol flavors. For 7.2% ABV, this beer is very, very drinkable with its light body and a slightly dry finish keeping you wanting more.

If I Double Bag was sold in my part of Colorado, I have a feeling it would quickly become my go-to six pack. It has a wonderfully complex malt profile that is balanced perfectly with a bitterness so as to off set the sweetness a bit. This only strengthens my urge to brew an altbier. One day...

New England Series: Atlantic Brewing Company Coal Porter

There is nothing like a good porter to give you that dark beer fix without feeling completely full, like a heavier stout tends to do. I threw in a bottle of Atlantic Brewing Company's Coal Porter into my sixer-mixer (just made that up?) and I sure am glad I did.

The Bar Harbor, Maine based brewery credits itself as one of the premier breweries out of Maine. They moved their brewery a while back into a farm to give it a more "country" feel that seems to be missing from a lot of the industrial park breweries. It sounds and looks like a really great facility, which would make for a great excuse to drive to Maine sometime soon.

Coal Porter is a very dark brown, but not completely impenetrable to light, with a very creamy, mocha-colored head. Aromas rich with robust, roasty malt dominate, with a subtle sweetness similar to molasses (in a good way). The smell is an appropriate representation of the flavors to come, with very robust, dark malt profiles coming through strong up front with some sweetness in the middle and a hint of bitterness (but with no hop flavors) that dries out the finish a bit. It was also a lot smoother than I was anticipating based on the rush of bubbles in the glass. There was almost a silky quality to it despite looking as if it may have a strong carbonation bite.

I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this beer. Though it is sometimes fun to be mislead by aromas to make you surprised by the flavor of a beer, this ale smelt like it tasted which made each sip very full and complete from the scent and taste working together. I was not joking when I said this beer could get me to drive down east to Bar Harbor.