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Archives for May 2017

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ ON THE COAST OF VIRGINIA

May 31, 2017 by Tupper Leave a Comment

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ ON THE COAST OF VIRGINIA

BOD QOD -every other day

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ ON THE COAST OF VIRGINIA

4 stars excellent

Sea to Sea Lager Zwickel Lager “bi coastal brew”.   Green Flash, San Diego, Ca.    Abv  4.9  IBUs   23

green flash sea to sea logo

Craft beer fans on the East Coast greeted the avalanche of West Coast immigrant breweries with mixed feelings.   On one hand, very good beer would be available at, ultimately, a better price and presumably fresher brew dates.  On the other hand, these well-financed large craft brewers would put pressure on our local friends and neighbors.  It’s hard to predict whether choice will expand or contract, but our money’s on the latter.

The cavernous Green Flash tasting room at Virginia Beach

The cavernous Green Flash tasting room at Virginia Beach

Still, it’s hard to get upset about the availability of relatively consistently high quality beer.  These big guys got big by avoiding mistakes and making beers people would return to.

When we first visited Green Flash’s San Diego brewery in 2006, neither we nor their brewers would have put them on a likely list for Eastern expansion, but they’ve produced a huge range of very hoppy and very tasty beers that have sold well in the east.   Their purchase/merger with Alpine has given them some additional street cred and some additional top shelf beers for their portfolio.   Their Virginia Beach tasting room has a mix of Alpine and Green Flash beers from the West Coast as well as house brewed flagships from the east.   As far as we know, however, this “bi-coastal” brew is only brewed in California at the present time.

Zwickel beers were once hard to find in Germany, but there are dozens of them there now and an increasing number in the US.  They’re always unfiltered and usually lagers.   The tastes vary greatly according to the brewery’s house yeast, but most are smoothly chalky rather than the fruity funk of some unfiltered ales.  Green Flash has chosen a session lager for their zwickel-  lower in alcohol than most of the zwickels we’ve found in Germany, but nevertheless with a satisfying rich taste;  the yeast helps round out the mouthfeel and make up for the relatively low gravity.

Tasting notes:  Chalky, yeasty, and mild, but with some fruity Hallertau hops.  Even, softly sweet and clean flavors ride throughout making it an sasy drinking session beer.   Ellie found a persistent metal bitter but also noted the cleanness of the brew.  Those Hallertau hops pushed my rating higher than hers, but we both thought it was an above average lager.

Food Pairings:  This is a good warm weather beer and would be a fine addition to a summer picnic.  If you can find a beach that still allows fires, this beer would be hard to beat with stick-roasted hot dogs.   It’s got enough flavor to match an opening course of cheese and fruit, however, and would leave some liver capacity for bigger beers with the main course.   Beer Review # 0112    20170531

NEXT WE’LL FEATURE A RIDICULOUSLY GOOD STOUT FROM BROOKEVILLE BEER FARM

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Just Go

RETURN TO TRÖEGS ALWAYS SCRATCHES AN ITCH

May 29, 2017 by Tupper Leave a Comment

RETURN TO TRÖEGS ALWAYS SCRATCHES AN ITCH

 

BOD QOD -every other day

RETURN TO TRÖEGS ALWAYS SCRATCHES AN ITCH

4 stars excellent

Scratch Series #280 Single Hop Pale Ale. Tröegs, Hershey, Pa.   Abv 5.8   IBUs  66

We’ve tasted more than a thousand beers in the last year, so it would seem unlikely that we’d keep returning, at least in this blog.  But whenever we’re in the Harrisburg area we find an excuse to detour through Hershey on the way back and lose another Sunday afternoon to the Troegs brothers.  It would seem a waste not to share the triumphs here.

troeegs of Hershey, Pa.

troeegs of Hershey, Pa.

The scratch series is every brewer’s dream—the chance to brew anything you can think up using some of the best equipment and collaborating with a team of exceptional brewing professionals.  It’s not like they never miss, but the odds of running into a success are so much higher than pulling a bottle of Whatsitbrau off the shelf that we never miss the chance to see what they’re up to.

This beer is unique in our 29,000 beer data base because it features one of the latest of a seeming explosion of new hops.   This one’s new enough not to have a name yet:  HBC342.   We don’t know where or how Tröegs got it, but increasingly hop producers are slipping shipments of new hops to brewers they trust to see what they can do for them

A 21st century Hop Pocket at Troegs Brewery

A 21st century Hop Pocket at Troegs Brewery

 

 

The result here isn’t the smoothest beer we’ve had, but come on—that’s not even a goal most of the time anymore

Tasting notes:  Tartness and bitterness overlap, twist and turn, as citrus and citrus peel and muddy Tangerine frolic on a dry chalky yeast carpet.  Lasting bitter is more a peel sensation than a hop.  Not smooth and moreish but decidedly interesting.

Food Pairings:  Big fruity hops overpower a mild cheddar but an aged hard sharp cheese is a great match with the fruit supporting the biting sharpness and each get a chance to shine.

Flavor – citrus is evident, watermelon is harder to find.

Still, if someone is going to the bother of developing a new hop, someone needs to use it and this is a pretty good use of challenging hop.  Beer Review # 0111    20170529

NEXT WE’LL FEATURE A “BI-COASTAL” ZWICKEL LAGER FROM GREEN FLASH

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Beer Reviews

GO TO ITALY FOR BEER? YOU BETCHA!

May 27, 2017 by Tupper Leave a Comment

GO TO ITALY FOR BEER? YOU BETCHA!

title BoD5 -almost daily

GO TO ITALY FOR BEER? YOU BETCHA!

2 and a half

PBC  (Piccolo Birrificio Clandestino) Villa Serona, Livorno, Italy   Abv 6 

The Beer House Club is our favorite beer bar in Florence.  beer house club logo wbbg IMG_1415 There are many great beer bars in Florence, but we like the low key atmosphere, hugely knowledgeable owner-manager, and friendly international clientele.  Few of their beers were home runs, but there were no strikeouts and a good many doubles off the wall.  Next time there we’ll tuck into their extensive bottle selection but the decabar (ten taps) kept us in drafts on our last visit.

PBC  is Piccolo Birrificio Clandestino, a brew pub in Livorno, Italy.  One of the reasons Italian craft beer has soared in the last few years is that brew pubs have little difficulty distributing their excess capacity to the plethora of beer specialty bars that flower in every city of size in Italy today.   Beer House Club somehow sorts out the disasters from the winners and lets you travel the peninsula without leaving your seat.florence beer house club wbbg IMG_1425

Tasting notes:  Copper malt is almost enough to hold the big hop dose.  Full body may suggest some residual sugar, but the end is bitter and still fruity.  You would expect to find a strong pale ale like this in an American brew pub, but it would have been a shocker even a few years ago in Italy.  Ben fatto, birrerie Italiane

Food Pairings:  You have to go to Italy to drink this beer, so forget American food.  It goes wonderfully with a good simple pizza, but really, why?  If you’re lucky enough to find it at a restaurant that embraces local cuisine, try a squid ink pasta or best yet – Steak Florentine.   Beer Review # 0110    20170528

ON MONDAY WE’LL FEATURE A RETURN TO TRÖGS TO SCRATCH OUR HOPPY ITCH

Filed Under: Beer Reviews

COLUMBUS COULN’T FIND INDIA, BUT IPAs HAVE FOUND ITALY

May 13, 2017 by Tupper Leave a Comment

COLUMBUS COULN’T FIND INDIA, BUT IPAs HAVE FOUND ITALY

title BoD5 -almost dailyCOLUMBUS COULN’T FIND INDIA, BUT IPAs HAVE FOUND ITALY

we liked it - 3 stars

Fire Witch India Pale Ale, The Wall, Varese, Italy, Abv  6.5

Florence’s Beer Club House would be a destination beer bar even in Portland or San Francisco; in Florence it has a niche of its own.  Although there are the requisite double digit taps and a huge range of hard-to-find bottles, it’s the care in the selection that sets it apart.   The owner/barkeep is a beer enthusiast who is good for engaging conversations about the Italian beer scene – in exceptionally good English.beer house club logo wbbg IMG_1415

The bar is located near the river, no more than a ten minute walk from the Uffizi and even less from Santa Croce.  Unlike most of the good drinking places in Florence, it opens at noon, so when your feet wear out, it will be ready for you.

Today’s beer probably won’t be there when you get there, but you’ll surely find something like it.  IPAs have taken off throughout Europe.  They’ve been popular in Scandinavia almost as long as they have in the US, but they have exploded in Iberia and Italy in the last few years.  The Wall is typical of the craft revolution.  Located in Venegono Inferiore not far from one of the pioneering Italian craft breweries in Cumo, it’s only a few years old, but like so many new American craft breweries, their learning curve has been pretty quick.

Florence's Beer House Club offers a warm welcome and a nice range of craft beer

Florence’s Beer House Club offers a warm welcome and a nice range of craft beer

Tasting notes:  Lots of hops fill cauldrons of metal flavors, but by the end they add fruit as well as some grass and herbs.  Caramel malt seems to add to the metallic profile.  As it drinks, hops get sticky and pushe it close to a double IPA.

Food Pairings:  Big flavors.  Italian pizza or a medium rare Steak Florentine. Beer Review # 0109   20170513

NEXT WE’LL FEATURE ANOTHER BEER FROM THE BEER HOUSE CLUB

Filed Under: Beer Reviews

NUTS TO THIS BREWERY: ALMOND’22 ADDS TO ITALIAN BEER SCENE

May 6, 2017 by Tupper Leave a Comment

NUTS TO THIS BREWERY:  ALMOND’22 ADDS TO ITALIAN BEER SCENE

title BoD5 -almost daily

NUTS TO THIS BREWERY:  ALMOND’22 A PIONEER IN ITALY’S EXPLODING CRAFT BEER SCENE

we liked it - 3 stars

Irie, Almond’22, Pescara Italy,  Spiced Golden Ale 5% Abv 

                Almond’22 beers immigrate to America with some frequency.   They tend to be adventurous and expensive. We’ve had pink peppercorn and smoked ales from them in past years.   On its home field, however, the brewery offers more standard offerings and this spiced golden ale – really a Belgian-style wit—is one of them.  Beers like this are a good reason to leave the oh-so-tempting American craft brew scene and sample some of what the rest of the world is up to.

The brewery got its name from the building it occupies.  In 1922 ranks of low wage women workers toiled to peel the rich almond harvest from the surrounding area. almond rural area

The brewery’s  founders chose the name as a tip of the hat to them. While many of Italy’s cutting edge breweries are in the north, Almond’22 is located near the coast in Pescara in Abruzzo, a province stretches from the Adriatic to the Apennines in southern Italy.almond'22 Irie Irie_7298_cmyk WEBLG

Tasting notes:  The brewery calls its Irie a “chiara”, which literally means “clear.”    This most certainly not, and the term can actually refer to any light colored brew.   It’s basically a wit beer with lots of flowery and fruity tastes.  Plenty of yeast remains in the beer, which is fortunate, since this strain of yeast is a perfect match for the hop and malt flavors.   Oranges, peaches and roses all take turns in this chalky, tasty and interesting wit-like beer.  The brewer says there are flavors of rhubarb “without the characteristic sourness.”  Maybe it has; I surely wouldn’t know.

It is a good drinkable wit style beer that we tasted for an affordable $4 for a small glass at Florence’s Beer House Club.  Not exactly German Bier Garten cheap, but a good deal easier on the Visa than the large bottles that make it to America.

Food Pairings:  The brewery recommends pairing with fried fish, fried battered vegetables, Parma ham and melon, wiener schnitzel or tempura.  Our first wit beer was paired with a peanuts in a silver dish only a few miles from the Hoegaarden brewery back when it was the Hoegaarden  brewery.  We’ve dreamed of repeating it ever since. Beer Review # 0108    20170506

NEXT WE’LL STAY AT THE BEER CLUB HOUSE FOR ANOTHER RARE ITALIAN BEER, THE WALL’S FIRE WITCH

 

Filed Under: Beer Reviews

What’s New Inside

 Gold Metal Winning Tuppers’ Hop Pocket Ale Returns!

Join us at Dynasty Brewing on July 17 between 3PM and 8PM to savor the first batch of Tuppers’ Hop Pocket Ale in almost five years.  We’ll be there signing books at a huge discount and the brewery will be pouring the beer that was created to be “Hoppy enough for Bob and balanced enough for Ellie.”

It hasn’t been easy to resurrect Tuppers’ Hop Pocket Ale, winner of a gold metal at the GBBF in the ’90s when well hopped beers were rare and almost non-existent in the east.  We’ve collaborated with Dynasty’s head brewer Favio Garcia, the brewer who produced the last batch of Tuppers’ Hop Pocket at Old Dominion to reproduce an authentic version of the original.    Dynasty is in Ashburn, Virginia– almost within walking distance of the Old Dominion brewery that brewed the first batch just over 25 years ago.

NOW PLAYING: on Beer of the Day—  Some great beers in the San Francisco Bay area.  Scroll down below this entry to find the featured beer of the day.   >>>>>

Later — in July we resume some great weekend destinations for beer travelers that we’ve found researching our guide to breweries and inns of the Mid Atlantic.  Whether you’re looking for a turn of the (20th) century 100 year old quaint and slightly rickety hotel, an engaging B&B or a magnificent survivor of the great era of railroad hotels, we’ve found hem– within walking distance of a brewery.   We’ll present more previews of the book’s best here rolling up to Pennsylvania before we’re through.

 

 

 

Beer of the Day

only beer pub 27 IMG_3154

 At Pub 27 in Pompeii

Far From India: India Pale Ales in the 21st Century.

Date:  March, 2019

The Story—

The Beer—

Value —

Values:  “fair” is a good beer at an above market price, “good” is worth the money, “very good” is a bargain, and “excellent” is a steal.

In mid-March we’re taking a look at the incredible variety of IPAs.   The style is by far the biggest seller among craft beers in the US and probably in Europe as well.   Even century-old breweries in Reinheitsgebot-narrowed Germany are brewing IPAs (if the brewer calls it “ale” it doesn’t have to conform to the strict purity law).   But you have to ask these days: What is an IPA”?  We’ll take a look at almost a dozen recognized and semi-recognized styles of IPAs in the next couple of weeks.

 We’re often asked to share our tasting notes on over 33,000 beers; this blog is in answer to those requests.   Not all our notes, though.  The great beer writer Michael Jackson admirably followed the Thumper Rule, and we’ll try to do the same.  (“If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nuthin’ at all.”)   All the beers we post are from the top half of our ratings and most are from the top quarter.   Of greater value, we think, are the stories behind the beers,   and we try to give you enough about the brewery, the style and the places to find great beer to help you on your own beer journeys.   At CulturAle Press we try to write books and publish posts that will help you “Drink Well and Travel Safely.”

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