Friday, October 30, 2009

Saturday Taste 10/31/09

It's Halloween tonight and most of our Pumpkin beers have run their course. We've also tasted a fair amount of this years winter beers in weeks past so we thought we'd change course and go back to basics: three Strong Ales!

Chimay Bleue (BEL): Chimay Bleu is principally distinguished by its character of a strong beer. This is a beer whose fragrance of fresh yeast with a light, flowery rosy touch is especially pleasant. Its flavour, noticed when tasting it, only accentuates the pleasant sensations perceived in the aroma , while revealing a light but pleasant touch of roasted malt. This top fermented Trappist beer, refermented in the bottle, is not pasteurised.

Fullers 1845 (ENG): First brewed in 1995 for the 150th anniversary of the brewery. Winner of CAMRA Champion Bottle Conditioned Beer of Britain (1998-1999). Described by Roger Protz as 'a rich beer with a fruit cake aroma, spices and nutmeg from malt and hops resulting in a dry, fruity finish'. Ingredients: Pale Malt (mix of Pipkin, Maris Otter and Halcyon), crystal and amber malt. Goldings hops.

Stone 13th Anniversary (CAL): Stone 13th Anniversary Ale pours brilliant deep red with a light tan foam. Up front, the aroma is all piney, resinous and citrus hops. Upon tasting, the hops are still on the front, and they are balanced with the malty, toffee like flavors contributed from the blend of crystal and amber malts used in the brewhouse. The finish is deliciously bitter, with a touch of warmth provided by the 9.5% alcohol. Bitterness comes in at 90+ IBU.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Tuesday Taste 10/20/09

This Tuesday we are tasting three Doppelbock's, all from Germany. Bock bier was originally created in the 14th century in Einbeck with the modern version coming from Munich in the 17th century. Doppelbocks, or double bocks, are products of Bavaria and are rich in roasted malts. First produced by the monks of St. Paula, many still refer to the beer as "liquid bread" because of it's high caloric content. Classic characteristics are a creamy head that lasts, malty and toasty aroma, an abv between 6-10% and names typically ending with a "-tion". Here are the three we are tasting:

Paulaner Salvator: The Paulaner Salvator with its strong,typically malty taste is the original Paulaner. The bottom-fermented Doppelbock-Bier unites the finest hops and dark barley malt. The Paulaner monks served Salvator as a replacement for food at Lent. Their most famous brewer was Brother Barnabas, who was the head of the Paulaner monastery brewery starting from 1773. Its original recipe is today almost the same as it was in Barnabas' time. In order to protect the original recipe, Paulaner had the trade mark "Salvator" patented in 1896.

Schneider Aventinus: Dark ruby, glistening mysteriously, streaked with fine, top-fermented yeast, this beer has a compact, stable and long-lasting head. It has an intensive, typically top-fermented clove-like aroma. The palate experiences a gentle touch, on the tongue it is very full-bodied, compact and yet fresh with a hint of caramel. It finishes with a light and delicate taste of bitters leaving behind a strong, smoothly rounded, sour impression.

Ayinger Celebrator:
Celebrator has a creamy head of tight bubbles contrasting beautifully with its profound dark robe. It is full-bodied and velvety from half a year's aging. Although it is strong, it is not overpowering. There is a wonderful and complex balance between the various malts, the alcohol and the subtle hops. A complex fruitiness of roasted malt and whole hop flowers make Celebrator great as a party drink with friends and family at celebrations. Despite its richness, it has a faintly smoky dryness in the finish.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

Saturday Taste 10/17/09

It's cold and rainy outside, so I thought we'd taste 3 newly released Winter Beers today. Big and malty, these beers are sure to keep you warm throughout the long winter months. Today it's Widmer Brothers Brrr (ORE), Bateman's Rosey Nosey (ENG), and Diamond Knot's Ho Ho (WAS). What a great time to find your favorite winter warmer! Tasting is from noon to 6 and remember to bring your ID because you have to be 21 to taste!

Widmer's BRRR: Give the gift of beer! More specifically, Brrr! The Widmer Brothers have handcrafted a special ale for the holiday season: a generous red ale. Not quite excessively hopped, with candy sweetness and a velvety finish. Perfect for celebrations. Prost!

Bateman's Rosey Nosey: Bottled by Marston’s.
A complex, rich tasting beer with plenty of roast malt character and generous hop flavour.
Colour: EBC 55. Bitterness: EBU 35. Hops: Goldings, Challenger, Liberty. Malt: Maris Otter

Diamond Knot Ho Ho: A robust 'Winter Warmer' ale, ruby brown in color with a slightly sweet, fruity nose. Very hoppy yet balanced with a residual sweetness. 60 IBU's, 8.5% ABV.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Tuesday Taste 10/13/09

Happy Anniversary, Shellane! We are celebrating our 7th wedding Anniversary so we thought we'd taste some Anniversary beers. Join us today from 4:30-7:30 and try out 3 different celebration ales. Today's taste doe have a $1 fee and bring your ID because you have to be 21 to participate.

Stone 13th Anniversary Ale: Stone 13th Anniversary Ale pours brilliant deep red with a light tan foam. Up front, the aroma is all piney, resinous and citrus hops. Upon tasting, the hops are still on the front, and they are balanced with the malty, toffee like flavors contributed from the blend of crystal and amber malts used in the brewhouse. The finish is deliciously bitter, with a touch of warmth provided by the 9.5% alcohol. Bitterness comes in at 90+ IBU.

Anderson Valle 20th Anniversary Imperail IPA:
Anderson Valley Brewing Co. first opened in downtown Boonville on December 26, 1987. This was a dream come true for those wishing to savor high quality, flavorful and perfectly balanced beers. To celebrate our 20 years of continued success, we have created a unique beer. Our Imperial India Pale Ale is loaded with excessive amounts of malts and 20 separate additions of the finest Pacific Northwest hops. We hope you find it most enjoyable!

Guinness 250th Anniversary Stout:
Made with a double brew stream that combines two types of malts, ale and stout. Carbonated. Uses Guinness yeast, triple hops and roasted barley.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Dark O' the Moon Release 10.10.09

Today's release of the long awaited Dark O'the Moon Pumpkin Stout from Elysian coincides with their Great Pumpkin Beer Festival at the Capitol Hill brew pub, Saturday and Sunday. A modest fee gets you several tastes and a chance to sample 9 Elysian pumpkin ales and a slew of guest taps! Word is that a keg of Dark O' the Moon will be tapped each day so those going on Sunday have a chance at tasting the beer. Check out the event poster.

Dark O' the Moon: Spookily smooth and chocolatey, with a touch of cinnamon. Pale, Munich Cara-vienne, Cara-munich, Special B, Chocolate and Roasted malts, with roasted pumpkin seeds in the mash and pumpkin in the mash, kettle and fermenter. Bittered with Magnum and finished with Czech Saaz, with cinnamon added to the boil and in conditioning.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

No Kegs of Pliny the Elder?

Most of you have been listening to me yap about our impending liquor license change for quite some time now - no doubt it's been a struggle! We recently filed for our new license that will allow us to pour draft beer, sell growlers and full size kegs to go, and crack a beer in the store for you which means we are only 5-8 weeks away. What you may not know is that we may be getting black balled from kegs of Pliny the Elder just because we are relatively new to the scene!

Yup, that's right. Now I don't normally like to put my distributors on the spot, but I've been informed that all kegs of Pliny the Elder are spoken for as soon as they reach Seattle. After putting my indignation in check I decided the best course of action was a petition directly to the source - Russian River Brewing Co. and Click Wholesale. Starting Thursday, October 8, we will have a petition form down at the store for you to sign if you want to have your future growlers filled with one of the best double IPA's in the country. Not only that, but this will put other breweries and distributors on notice that your local bottle shop is not to be treated lightly.

How can I help? Glad you asked. You can do two things: sign the petition next time you're in the store and send a polite email to the Russian River Brewing Company (info@russianriverbrewing.com) expressing your desire to buy pints and growlers of their beer at The Beer Authority! Together we can make sure that Lake City has access to the beers it deserves!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Tuesday Taste 10/6/09

Today we are tasting three IPA's that have seemed to fall through the cracks -each of these beers is a fine example of the style yet are slow sellers so we've decided to find out why. Harmon's Point Defiance IPA rates an 89% at Ratebeer.com, Terminal Gravity a 92% and BirdgePort IPA checks in with a 90%. Stop on by from 4:30 - 7:30 today and help us solve the mystery.

Harmon Point Defiance IPA: Five types of malted barley, including a specially roasted Belgium barley. Centennial and Amarillo hops provide the big hoppy flavor. 12 pounds of Amarillo added after the fermentation for huge hop aroma.

Terminal Gravity IPA:
Pale copper in color, but big in body and flavor with a heady hop character. The IPA uses spring water and snow melt from high in the Eagle Cap Wilderness. Terminal Gravity used over 50% Marris Otter pale ale malt imported from the British Isles for a traditional British flavor. It adds several other malts from the Northwest and Europe. TG IPA has over 2 pounds of hops per barrel, finishing with British Fuggles for that classic aroma.

BridgePort IPA:
Deep golden in color, BridgePort IPA has an assertive and fragrant hop character from the two full pounds of Cascade, Chinook, Goldings, Crystal and Ahtanum hops in every barrel.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Saturday Taste 10.03.09

With the weather turning colder it's time to start looking at the roastier side of beer. Today we are tasting three Abbey style Dubbels, two from Belgian and one from California. The Abbey Dubbel, literally meaning double, was originally brewed in the Trappist Abbey of Westmalle in 1856. The abbey had brewed a light, sweet wheat beer since 1836 but the new beer was considerably stronger because they had "doubled" the grain bill. The formula became stronger again by 1926. Stop on in and get a taste of Belgiums world famous beer.

Maredsous 8: Creamy foaming dark-coloured beer with a well-balance flavour of malt and hops.

Grimbergen Dubbel:
Double has undergone two fermentations, which gives this ale a chocolatey, toffee taste with a warming brandy-like finish.

North Coast Brother Thelonious:
With the developing interest in Belgian abbey ales and the monasteries that brew them, it’s time to remind the world that here in the U.S., we have a Monk of our own. Jazz icon Thelonious Monk is the inspiration for North Coast Brewing’s new Belgian-style abbey ale called, appropriately enough, Brother Thelonious. The beer is being released in conjunction with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz (www.monkinstitute.org), and the brewery will make a contribution to the Institute for every case sold to support jazz education. Like a Belgian “Dark Strong Ale”, the beer is rich and robust with an ABV of 9%. The package is a 750 ml bottle with a traditional cork and wire finish and features a label picturing the jazz master himself.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Totally Dominating: Ninkasi's IPA Goes On Sale


Ok, so the vote was pretty close between Ninkasi's Total Domination and Port's Hop-15 but in the end Jamie Floyds flagship beer earned the top spot. Named for the Sumerian Goddess of Beer and Fermentation, Ninkasi has been producing Northwest style beers since 2006. The brewery is in Eugene, Oregon and has rapidly earned a strong following of craft brew aficionados. Check out the tasting notes below and then come on and get Dominated!

Ninkasi Total Domination: Was $4.22, Now $3.65 for 22 oz. Bomber. A true Northwest style IPA, citrus notes, floral and balanced, from ingredients regionally sourced, it is the definition of a true craft beer.

6.7% alc./vol. 65 ibus.