Five Pale Ales Do Not a Beer Menu Make (or: Hey Tazio, What's in the Beer Meister?)

We've been lookin' at comin' up with a beer menu that isn't overwhelmed with pale ales. (This ain't balmy `ol England: This is America and we're Americans seared in the fires of Exceptionalism! We think we can do a bit better than that.)

So we're searchin' for a beer menu that even the wimpiest women (no offense meant) and stoutest men (again, no offense) could enjoy. With the parameters that there be a maximum of five beers and that all the beers be homebrewed. A menu of beers that a real beer drinker could take with them to a deserted island to live out their days with.

So to those ends we've spent many hours contemplating the problem of constructing this perfect beer menu.

And what a problem to have.

Brewing. Tasting. Tinkering.

Brewing.

Tasting.

Tasting.

Brewing. Tasting.

Let there be no mistake: Considerable thought, energy, and effort has and continues to be expended on this task.

So, as we open the door into the nether reaches of the Beer Meister today (aka the malt vault), we find, a little beauty with nary a fancy name but Espresso Stout.

She is as smooth as 16 shots of 100% Columbian brewed espresso can be--with a middling coffee flavor, hardly any hop aroma and just a wee bit of hop flavor. Slightly creamy, but she's young yet. Even S declared upon sipping (and sipping): “Smooth!”

Pssst: “Wit's up next, Tazio?” In good time all will be revealed.

Best part of every day.™

Pennsylvania Breweries 4th Edition by Lew Bryson

Chances are if you like good beer you've heard of Lew Bryson.

But what you may not have heard, especially if you're not a beer buff, is that he has a new book entitled Pennsylvania Breweries, 4th Edition.

Lew is a Pennsylvanian hailing from the southeast (Newtown) who really knows his beer. His blog Seen Through a Glass is widely read in beer and spirit circles around the world.

He has brought his knowledge of beer along with a love for travel and takes the reader on a tour of the 73 regional breweries, microbreweries, nanobreweries, and brewpubs that call Pennsylvania home.

One chapter in the book describes the history of old established breweries spread around the state--breweries like D. G. Yuengling and Son, Straub, and the Lion Brewery. Philly and Pittsburgh, rightfully so, get their own sections. Breweries no longer with us since the last edition about five years ago, also get their own thankfully short chapter.

The remainder of the book is arranged by geographic region--a few pages or four describing each brewery.

Between chapters is a brief page or two that serve to define and explain aspects of the beer surround. Like what's the difference between an ale and a lager. Or what's all the fuss about beer festivals. Or a description of the brewing process. These short essays as well as the helpful glossary at the back, make the world of beer a bit easier to quaff for the newbie.

There are up-to-date historical descriptions of the breweries and their beers and there's always an interesting story or two that aren't very well known. (I didn't know that the Lion Brewery in Wilkes-Barre brews tanks and tanks of the Malta soft drink!) The author clearly presents beer geek factoids like who owns the brewery, who's the brewmaster, what type of brewhouse is employed, its maximum annual capacity, and recent production numbers. Any student of the current state of brewing in the Commonwealth will surely find a treasure trove of good information here.

Following each brewery entry, the author presents a list of local area attractions that would be a boon for any visitor who wanted to set out an a beer adventure. These include places to stay, things to do, places to eat (with dishes that can't be missed), good local beer bars, and other attractions that could be dovetailed with a brewery visit. Contact information is presented for each place along with a sentence or two of description about what's here that would entice and/or make the visit special for the reader. (As an example, if you visit The Memphis Taproom in Philly, the author suggests to try the King Rarebit [Note to self: Try the King Rarebit the next time in Philly!]). Bold italic font is used for the place names, which is great for quickly finding what you're looking for.

This is not a book that intends to rate breweries or beers and the author says as much in the opening pages.

The author's language is colorful and the stories are informative, entertaining, and make reading this book fun. The partitioning of the book makes this a splendid travel companion when one is exploring afield for wider Pennsylvania beer experiences--you WILL be referring to it again and again as you wander the Pennsylvania road in search of a cool one. The in-between chapters and glossary are educational, especially for the newbie.

This book would be a super Christmas present for a beer drinking friend or loved one. Or a beer drinking love. You get the idea.

Certainly this book will be used a hundred years from now as a reference on the current renaissance period of brewing in Pennsylvania.

Highly recommended.

Title: Pennsylvania Breweries, 4th Edition
Author: Lew Bryson
Copyright 2010 by Stackpole Books
Format: Paperback
Pages: 304 pages
Trim Size: 6 x 9
ISBN: 978-0-8117-3641-1
Photos: 42 logos
Maps: 50 maps
Available: September-10
Publisher: Stackpole Books

N.B. Amazon claims that this book IS available in the Kindle Edition (unverified or tested) and Barnes and Noble claims it's not available in NOOKBook format.

Credit for the photo of the book's cover design at the top of this article is due to Tessa J. Sweigert. The brewery labels and logos were used by permission of breweries.

The author of this book and its publisher (and the author of this article) encourage readers to visit the breweries and sample their beers and recommend that those who consume alcoholic beverages travel with a nondrinking driver.

Downtown Bloomsburg Becoming Beer Oasis

D and I were the proverbial curious kids peeping into a construction site recently at what will soon be Marley's Brewery and Grille in Bloomsburg.

It's right next to the old Hotel Magee in a narrow storefront that was formerly Harry's.

(Do I have a story about the Hotel Magee! Involving a six year old, a grandmother, and a Greyhound bus. But that's for another time.)

From what we could see from the sidewalk, the bar is straight away running down the left wall, long, cool, and perhaps 40 feet long! An open seating area/dining room looks to fill the right-side of the place. I don't know what they'll have on draught but the photo of their fermenters on their Facebook has me dreaming that there will be some wonderful amber nectar flowing soon in the only town in Pennsylvania!

Cool logo too.

And that's not all. There's another bar across the street that just opened in the old movie theater. Sadly, don't remember the name, but they had some nice beers on draught (perhaps 12) and in bottles (about a hundred). The Mad Elf from the tap had me thinkin', but I was drivin' and opted for a lager instead. `Keep said they would be adding a few more taps so stay tuned.

Will the college kids frequent these places or will they have a more diverse clientele?

Boston Beer Company Looking Good

This just in:

Brewery stocks are in focus today after Boston Beer (SAM 95.60, +10.85) raised its forecast for its 2010 profit to $3.30 to $3.60 per share after forecasting a profit of $2.85 to $3.15 per share on November 4th. Shares of Molson Coors (TAP 50.64, +0.90) are seeing a nice bounce on the news, while Anheuser-Busch Inbev (BUD 57.36, -0.53) is trading lower.

Must be all those $20 bottles of Infinium they're sellin'!

But 95 a share, SAM looks awful pricey...

I'm just wonderin': how long is it gonna be before some other craft breweries go public?

Party Interrupted? No More!

Now here's an idea that should be more widespread: YoBeerGuys keg delivery service.

For those times when you can't be bothered (or able) to run out mid-party for more beer.

Or, if you're worried about gettin' beerjacked on the way home with your $508.00 keg of Samichlaus.

Vitals
Number of Beers: 273
Most expensive: 50L Nest White Ale ($559.00)

Downside: Keg delivery is only available in the Miami area.
Upside: Offering gift baskets and tasting crates which can be delivered anywhere in the US.

You lucky Miamian, you.

American Beauty

The beer faucet.

Oh how I love thee, let me count the pints.

You are intuitively easy to use. A gentle pull is all it takes to turn you on--and a light push staunches your pouring elixir. And anyone can learn your ways in under 10 seconds. Oh! If all the complexities of life were as easy.

You are simple but not crude. One-dimensional but not simple minded! Unassuming by nature, rarely drawing attention, and your viscera hidden, only a certainty of performance is ever bared. While what flows from you receives all the glory, it is a lack of awareness that would deny your rightful import to this world.

You display elegance in every ounce of your slender form--your curves arousing the animal spirits from within like few things can. Dimensionally graceful, perfectly proportioned, clean in design. Extraneous decoration long since cast away.

You epitomize the height of achievement in Man's evolutionary thirst for beer.

Tecate SCORE Baja 1000

Congratulations to the son and father team of Gus Vildosola Jr. and Gus Vildosola Sr., from Mexicali Mexico, for taking first overall in the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race that concluded Saturday.

The team took first overall in the SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK (Unlimited Production Trucks) category in their Ford F-150.

Go on boys. Have a Tecate. Or diez. You deserve it.

A Single Malt Exercise

Next in line is an experiment with single malt.

As in brewing, not distilling.

(Although distilling a single malt whisky like Glenmorangie is a beguiling idea.)

Specifically we're going brew a clone of Blackfoot River Brewing Company's Singlemalt IPA.

Teeming with Simcoe® and Cascade hops, stiffened by Maris Otter, using our own mountain water straight out of Glen Summit Springs, this baby looks so dang good on paper, we just had to do it.

Do or do not. There is no try. --Yoda

Best part of every day.™

Hey Tazio, What's in the Beer Meister?

D came over last night and we kegged the Racer 5 IPA® clone we brewed on Learn to Homebrew Day.

Whilst sipping the CDA that's currently in the meister.

Final gravity for the Racer 5 was right on at 1.011.

As we write this (whilst sipping the CDA that's currently in the meister), it's chilling out at 38 degrees F and being forced carbonated at 10 psi.

Stay tuned.

Retrofitting New Faucets

You know the old metric versus standard conundrum?

Liters and quarts, millimeters and sixteenths, kilograms and pounds?

We thought we had pretty much settled that one back in the `70s, but that old beast of an irritation reared its ugly head again in of all places a retrofit of Perlick® faucets to our vintage German draft tower.

As it turns out the German tower shanks are close but no cigar to mating with the Perlick 425SSTF (model 425 stainless steel tarnish free) brass faucets.

The female knurls on the shank don't align quite right with those on the faucet and the screw thread pitch on the faucet is different from that of the faucet coupling nut.

So, what we were hoping to get away with: simply replacing the coupling nut and the polished brass outside flange, has now morphed into replacing the whole shank.

Times three.

Dang!

Hey Tazio, What's in the Beer Meister?

It was a two-fer yesterday for D and D-prime during Learn to Homebrew Day: 1) brewing the Racer 5 IPA clone and 2) participating in a fermenter-to keg-transfer of the Cascadian Dark Ale.

The CDA beauty gently and successfully made the 3 foot journey from fermenter to keg and is now safe and sound, and resting comfortably in a 40 degree beer meister, atop a pillow of Amarillo and fresh Cascade flowers from D's garden, whilst absorbing 2.25 volumes of CO2 delivered at 11 psi.

More or less.

Sounds good, doesn't it?

Final gravity predicted to be 1.010 measured out at 1.011.

Tasting to ensue tomorrow after work.

Cascadian Dark Ale it is

After pondering the various facets of this beer style and the varied naming conventions in popular usage, I've come to the conclusion that calling this beer a Black I.P.A. isn't quite right. Nor is India Black Ale a fitting moniker.

Consider: this beer's origins were in the Northwestern US (debatable, I know), and not related geographically in any way with India. Hence having India in it's name is only tangentially correct. (Both styles relying on fairly heavy use of hops in their makeup.)

Further isn't there an illogic of a beer being both black (or nearly so--let's call it very Dark) and having pale (as in India Pale Ale) in it's name?

So shouldn't we just call this Cascadian Dark Ale? I'm going to.

Now that that's settled, can't we all just sit down and enjoy a CDA?

And to further the Learn to Homebrew Day experience...

Tomorrow, we'll be kegging separately, a batch of Black I.P.A.

(Or India Black Ale [IBA], or Cascadian Dark Ale [CDA]--take your pick of names. No one seems to know what to call this beer.)

Tomorrow is Learn to Homebrew Day

Here's more information.

A bomber of Bear Republic Brewing Company's mighty fine Racer 5 IPA® decimated us last year and was the piquet sauce that aroused our interest in trying to brew a clone of this wonderful beer, which we will be attempting tomorrow.

Et tu Tazio, D, J, et al will be assisting in the brewery.