Headed down to GA last weekend, combining family events with visits to new breweries, in this case, all a half hour north of Atlanta: Burnt Hickory, Red Hare and Jekyll. I was familiar with Red Hare and Jekyll's beers, Burnt Hickory was completely new. Makes for a very fun day. Each has an interesting story, perhaps the one from Burnt the one most unusual.
http://www.redharebrewing.com/
Most beer lovers know Red Hare from Gangway IPA, sort of their signature beer, but happily I was able to experience some of their other offerings. Their SPF 50/50 is a new favorite, basically a Gangway with graperfruit soda added, making it officially a radler. [Editors note: The story of radler's origin goes something like this: Innkeeper Franz Kugler in the small German town of Deisenhofen created a bike trail which in 1922 was overrun with "12,000 cyclists" and when his beer began to run low, decided to use some excess lemon soda in a 50/50 blend and, voila, the radler was born.]
This grapefruit soda addition works very well with the citrusy hops used in Gangway and as an experiment, I added some additional Gangway to my glass which kept the sparkling, grapefruit flavor but reduced the sweetness a tad. You can easily make up your own combination, I'm sure Red Hare won't mind. I really liked the brewing facility, in between a warehouse and an industrial vibe, lots of reclaimed wood around and more than one pouring stations, which worked out well the day I was there as a band was playing to a large, enthusiastic crowd. Due to weird GA liquor laws, you pay for a glass and tasting comes with it. The tour is very educational and worth the half hour or so it takes.
On a beautiful June day in 1922, a reported “13,000 cyclists” crashed
Kugler’s party. Fast running out of beer, he blended it 50/50 with a
lemon soda he could never seem to get rid of, and the rest is history. -
See more at:
http://americancraftbeer.com/item/what-the-hell-is-a-radler.html#sthash.l8InlFBo.dpuf
On a beautiful June day in 1922, a reported “13,000 cyclists” crashed
Kugler’s party. Fast running out of beer, he blended it 50/50 with a
lemon soda he could never seem to get rid of, and the rest is history. -
See more at:
http://americancraftbeer.com/item/what-the-hell-is-a-radler.html#sthash.l8InlFBo.dpuf
http://jekyllbrewing.com/home/
So, Jekyll, home of Hop Dang Diggity IPA, another one of my favorites, a jewel in the town of Alpharetta, which also has a smaller brewery, Hop Alley, but more about that later. On this, also my first ever visit, I happily discovered another IPA, a newer one called Fixin' To. And since I brough home a crowler of it, I'm fixin' to enjoy it again. It's a session IPA, 4.9% abv, 48 IBUs, with Equinox hops, which is also a new hop varietal for me.
Nearby in the thriving community of Kennesaw (?), found a nano-brewery called
Burnt Hickory. Little hard to see from the street so look carefully for signs.
The story is that owner Scott Hedeen financed the brewery's startup
by selling a portion of his huge record collection, some of which can be
seen and heard here.
On a beautiful June day in 1922, a reported “13,000 cyclists” crashed
Kugler’s party. Fast running out of beer, he blended it 50/50 with a
lemon soda he could never seem to get rid of, and the rest is history. -
See more at:
http://americancraftbeer.com/item/what-the-hell-is-a-radler.html#sthash.l8InlFBo.dpuf
Lots of interesting vinyl for sale, saw a couple that I remembered from back in the day.
Looking at the beer menu as a reminder of what was on tap that day.
I liked Cannon Fodder, it's grapefruit and lemon flavors really came through, although the abv surprised me, it seemed far less. The others we tried are equally good but most have that high abv thing going, so small samples were the rule of the day. Worthwhile visiting next time you find yourself in Kennesaw, GA.
And if your travels take you near Alpharetta, not so far away, a good place for beer and food pairings is the
Hop Alley Brew Pub.
http://www.hopalleybrew.com/
