Boulevard Comes To Community Tap

As expected, really enjoyed myself at ‪#‎thecommunitytap‬'s tasting takeover by Boulevard Brewing, Kansas City. Big turnout - guess other folks like their beer too.

Informative conversation with Boulevard rep, Michael Emrie, who clued me into why the 80-acre Hoppy Wheat is not a wheat IPA. The beer is dryhopped for aroma mostly, finishes like a good wheat should.

Some pics I took in between tastes, including one of Darby Wilcox, one of my favorite local musicians.

Michael Emrie, Mktg Rep, explained the reasoning behind the Hoppy Wheat.

 

Darby Wilcox and Michael Emrie enjoyed beer and conversation. Not sure about the photobomber.

Cheers!

Good Reading on a Snowy Night

Perfect for that snowed-in evening's reading material as you sip on your favorite brew, this beer-themed article about the increasing number of women in the brew house:

http://mountainx.com/food/ashevilles-women-in-brewing/

Cheers and stay dry.

ESB and Lamb Pairing

Excellent opportunity for beer/food pairing last night at Tupelo Honey Cafe in Greenville. Tried their new small plate menu items including Lamb Meatballs which paired very nicely with the Green Man ESB which was on tap. The roasted lamb flavor really brought the malt to the forefront in a good way. The dry, slightly sweet finish complemented the house-made tomato curry sauce and feta and basil which accompanied the lamb. Yum City!!

http://www.greenmanbrewery.com/our-beer/#beer-1366

Cleaning Beer Lines at Quest Brewing

 

Back from a very educational (and beery) morning at #QuestBrewing with Lee Brunelle, Tap Room Manager, learning to clean tap lines using a pressure pot as part of my Cicerone Certification studies. 

I helped purge the beer lines with water, then with a mild acid solution (held for twenty minutes), purge again with water, disassemble the taps (7 parts, don't lose a one!), clean and scrubb them, then reassembled and reconnected them to the tap wall. This process is repeated every two weeks so that the beer you drink there is uncontaminated in any way on its way from the keg. Obviously Don Richardson, Co-Owner and Brewmaster, and his crew take quality control seriously. Managed to squeeze in time for a couple photos, for those as fascinated with the process as I.

 

Boojum Brewing Joins Waynesville, NC, Brewing Scene

At the recent Winter Warmer beer festival in Asheville, I had the pleasure of tasting brews from new breweries and chatting with the owner/brewmasters. 
One of these was BooJum from Waynesville, so when I saw this article I read it and I think now you should too, assuming you like local success stories in the craft beer industry.

http://mountainx.com/food/beer-scout-boojum-brewing-debuting-new-pub/

Cheers!

FOMO - And What It Means

 What beers come to mind for you? I think of Highland's Cold Mountain Winter Ale. Seasonal of course, as is Mexican Wedding Cake from Westbrook.


http://allaboutbeer.com/fomo-infiltrates-beer-culture/

Asheville's Newest Brewery - One World

Saturday night, in Asheville, visited One World Brewing,10 Patton Ave, for the first time. Opens at 4 pm each day, and was packed by 4:45. In fact, we had to wait at the door for people to leave. They take the capacity limits seriously. But once inside, down two flights of stairs, the fun began. Impressive selection of beers offered, so of course we ordered a flight of six.
We had, l to r in photo, the Imperial Red IPA, 8% abv; the Vortex Coffee Stout, 6% abv; the Imperial Dark Strong, 8.5% abv; English Brown Ale, 6.2% abv; Whale of a Tale Pale, 6.2% abv; and Expedition Double IPA, 9.5% abv.
In our group, the Red IPA and the English Brown were the overall faves; we liked them all and I would have added the Expedition to the list. You can read the descriptions on their website. Great addition to the Asheville beer community and I'll be back!

 Cheers, y'all.

Valentine's Stout Suggestions

Here's one:

5.5% ABV, made with lactose (milk sugar).

I had this at our stout tasting (my kitchen and photo) so I can personally recommend it.

Burly-Barley Beer Festival Coming in March -Sierra Nevada

This is gonna be big, and I don't mean just the ABV:

http://www.brewbound.com/news/2015/arizona-governor-proclaims-fifth-annual-beer-week?utm_source=Brewbound&utm_campaign=58cb11f733-mailchimp&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6026cb3473-58cb11f733-168720889

Stout Tasting and Dinner Chez Nous

Had a great time with fellow stout-loving friends.  Kay made a Beef and Stout Pie with Sierra Nevada Stout, mostly beef chunks, mushrooms, carrots, onions and peas. And a puffed pastry crust. Yummm!!

We had three pairing categories: appetizer, dinner and dessert. Challenge was to choose

the appropriate stouts for each category.

Some photos:

One of the crowd favorites was the Westbrook (Charleston, SC) Udderly Stout. Very balanced flavors, solid mouth feel and satisfying finish.

Cheers!

Pliney the Younger Released Today!

 The annual Pliney the Younger release from Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, CA is today. The line started forming last night. It's a remarkable beer, you'll remember your first one, but I don't think I would stand in line overnight for it.
Some info from the local newspaper:



http://santarosapressdemocrat.ca.newsmemory.com/publink.php?shareid=3f5e617b4

Happy 1th Birthday to Brewery 85

Having fun with all the folks who turned out for Brewery 85's big party. Biggest crowd ever, place was hoppin' and beer was aflowin'. Congrats to all for a such a successful year.