Kentucky Derby Beers

Well, mint julep season officially starts this weekend when the Kentucky Derby kicks off this year's Triple Crown. I love an ice cold mint julep on a hot day; in fact, I enjoyed one yesterday evening when, post sunset, it was still over 80 degrees outside. But, sometimes drinking bourbon all day, especially in the heat, doesn't work out too well. Instead, why not enjoy a slightly lower in alcohol but still boozy, bourbon inspired beer?

Like the herbal, refreshing tang from the mint? Check out these barrel aged hop bombs:

Terrapin Oak Aged Big Hoppy Monster - you probably won't have luck with this one unless you live in the Southeast

Stone Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale

Dogfish Head Burton Baton

Like your bourbon sans mint and sugar? Check out these dark and smokey brews:

Anything from Schlenkerla

Captain Lawrence Smoke from the Oak

Allagash Odyssey

Who drinks bourbon anymore? I want rye. Check these out:

Two Brothers Cane and Ebel

Terrapin Rye

Sixpoint Righteous Rye

So drink these in place of a mint julep this weekend or do what I'm going to do, chase my juleps with pints of Righteous Rye.

Cantillon

At Beer Table last week, a patron turned to me and said, "this place really defies your notions about what beer is - and I love it."

We were in the middle of a Cantillon tasting and I couldn't agree with him more. 

Cantillon, in Brussels, is operated by the same family that founded it in 1900 and everything is brewed pretty much in the same way. The brewery actually doubles as the Brussels Museum of Gueze and is charged with preserving traditional brewing techniques and equipment. 

Check out their informative website for a detailed description of the brewing process and beer styles.

The short version, or at least the main factor behind the unique taste of Cantillon beers, is their fermentation process. No yeast is added, open vats are used to cool the beer and wild yeasts and bacteria make their way into the wort as it cools. Spontaneous secondary fermentations happen in oak barrels from natural yeasts on the fruits added or from yeast in the young lambics that are blended in. Each batch is a little different and has to be blended with others to get a consistent product. All Cantillon beers have funky, barnyard aromas with yogurty, citrusy, sometimes vinegary flavors. 

Now that description may not sound appetizing, but give these beers a try. They are extremely refreshing, perfect in lieu of wine at the dinner table and a true artisan product that may not be around forever.

My favorites of the night:

The Vignerrone - brewed with muscat grapes from Overijse. Apparently, raspberries and cherries were the only fruits traditionally used in Lambics from Brussels. In Overijse, brewers there used locally grown muscat grapes. When the last brewer there went out of business, Cantillon starting buying muscate grapes and making Vignerrone. It has the characteristic sour funk but is tempered by the grapes and oak, coming off more robust than the gueze, kriek or lambic. It had a really viscous texture and little carbonation, making for a weird drinking experience.

The Bruoscella 1900 Grand Cru - aged for three years in oak barrels, this beer is closer to sherry than beer but a sherry on the verge of becoming vinegar. It was extraordinarily complex, especially at room temperature which is how the brewers requested all of their beers be served, but thoroughly enjoyable. Would go great with a funky blue cheese.

Hopefully these beers start becoming more widely available in the US. You can find them at some specialty stores but I don't come across them too often.

Beer Updates

Another cask festival this weekend, put on by Alex Hall, at the Brazen Head.

Great NY Times article on American pilsner.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Blind Tiger has a pretty awesome list for tomorrow night if you are willing to brave the crowds.

Duvel Green
Maredsous Blonde
Maredsous Brune
Maredsous Triple
La Chouffe
Mc Chouffe
Houblon Chouffe
Ommegang Rouge
Ommegang Witte
Ommegang Hennepin
Ommegang Rare Vos
Ommegang Three Philosophers
Ommegang Abbey
Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence
Ommegang Biere de Mars in 25oz Bottles

A Typical Friday Night

From left to right and in order of consumption (the order might be a little off towards the end):

Rare Vos - Ommegang

Nugget Nectar - Troegs
Cuvee Rene - Lindemans

Avec Les Bons Vocux - Brasserie DuPont

Vigneronne - Cantillon

Abbot 12 - St. Bernardus

Moinette - Brasserie DuPont

Local 2 - Brooklyn

Piraat - Van Steenberge

Tripel Reserve - Allagash

Unearthly IPA - Southern Tier

Hercules Double IPA - Great Divide

Curieux - Allagash

Red Eye Coffee Porter - Two Brothers

Hop Juice - Two Brothers

Palo Santo Marron - Dogfish Head

Black Ops - Brooklyn

Bourbon County Stout - Goose Island

Don't try this unless you assemble a team of professional, albeit geeky, beer drinkers. For those of you that were there, remark on your favorites in the comments.

And for your viewing pleasure:

Big Breweries

In my last post, I mentioned Michelob's new dunkleweizen and a commenter brought up an interesting point:

"Has anybody tried any of the "michelob" family beers? I want to dislike them, but also dont want to waste money or drinking time being proven right. Is if fair to just cross off all these beers without even trying them?"

Now, I haven't tried any of the new Michelob "craft" beers but I've had the Bud American Ale, which was a decent beer. These breweries have resources in the way of R&D, quality control, procurement, market research, technology and equipment that small breweries can only dream of. So, it only makes sense that, when they try to produce a decent beer, they succeed. That being said, the Bud American Ale was good, but it wasn't great. And, I doubt any of the Michelob brews will compare to a true artisan product.

Beer aficionados aren't going to put down their bourbon barrel aged Dogfish 120 minute IPA for a dry-hopped American pale ale from Michelob, so I'm not too worried about losing this crowd to the big breweries. The casual craft beer drinker, who occasionally grabs a six pack of his local brew in between cases of his normal mass produced beer, is the consumer small breweries are in danger of losing to the big breweries.

This is where you come in. Have a friend that is just getting into good beer? Give them a Bud or Michelob craft brew, it's a good way to ease them from drinking swill into something with flavor. If they like it, switch them over to the really good stuff. These are good gateway beers and hopefully they will wake up people who have been drinking yellow fizzy water their whole life and inspire them to seek out better beer. It's up to the enlightened to steer them towards the true craft products.

So, to finally answer the commentator's question, I would not waste your time or money drinking stuff from the big breweries. Use your money to support your favorite local breweries, many of which operate on a shoestring budget. But, don't write them off, let the big breweries and their million dollar ad campaigns educate the general consumer about good beer and then build off of that. 

Take a blue moon drinker and introduce them to Ommegang Witte or Southampton Double White, convert a Budweiser American Ale drinker into a Brooklyn Pennant drinker, swap out your friend's Michelob dunkleweizen for an Erdinger and know that you are doing your part in supporting the craft beer community.

Ramped Up

Well ramp season is underway and the annual blog posts on these little delicacies can be found here, here and here. I was able to pick up a few bunches at the Union Square farmer's market this morning. The question is, not how to cook this member of the allium family - it's what to drink with it?

You wouldn't be wrong reaching for an American pale ale or IPA; the earthy spice from the hops would match well, but why not grab something with a little more complexity to celebrate the arrival of Spring and its bounty?

Cooking those ramps in butter and mixing in with scrambled eggs or pasta? Go for a dunkleweizen, a nice German dark wheat beer. Perfect with almost any meal, breakfast especially. This style has a tropical fruit/banana aroma with a little caramel sweetness and a nice clove, smokey spice from the yeast.

Erdinger is my favorite brand. Weihenstephan and Paulaner also put out good versions. Michelob has a widely available version, haven't tried that yet, but I'm interested to know if it's any good.

Plan on pan-roasting or grilling your ramps? Then you should probably put the dunkleweiss down and reach for the stronger Belgian Tripel which has even more yeasty complexity. This style is loaded with spicy phenols and fruity esters, finishing sweet with just a little alcohol warmth.

Chimay White is a classic version of this beer. The other Abbeys all put out great versions. Unibroue's La Fin Du Monde will also do the trick, as will the Allagash Tripel or its bourbon aged buddy, Curieux.

Enjoy and let me know what other pairings work.

Good Beer Seal

The owners of dba, Jimmy's No.43 and the Burp Castle have teamed up and designed a "good beer" sticker that will signify bars offering good beer selection and service. Check out the corresponding website, which lists the bars and upcoming beer-centric events.

Yacht Club

Looks like it's open for real this weekend, check it out here.

DB Good Beer

Can't wait for this to open.

Brewers Association Press Release

Brewers Association Releases Top 50 Breweries List

Boulder, Colorado • April 13, 2009 – Brewers Association, which represents the majority of brewing companies in the U.S., announced the annual list of top 50 brewing companies.  Released are lists for both Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies¹ of small and independent craft brewers (see Craft Brewing Statistics) plus a Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies list. Rankings are based on sales volume in 2008.

"In 2007, 35 of the top 50 brewing companies were small and independent craft brewers. In 2008 there were 37," states Paul Gatza, Director of the Brewers Association. "Craft brewers continue to have success and generate excitement behind the flavorful beer movement, but not without recent challenges including price increases for raw materials and supplies, as well as access to market issues."

Changes from last year's list include breweries moving up or down in the rankings based on volume sales. There was one new entrant into the Top 50 Craft list, The Saint Louis Brewery, and two craft brewers have claimed spots in the Top 50 Overall list—Big Sky Brewing Co. and Mac & Jack's Brewery. Consolidation of MillerCoors, last year's number 2 and 3 brewers, opened up a slot, and the merger of Widmer Brothers and Redhook into the company now named Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc. opened up another slot filled by emerging small and independent craft brewers.

A more extensive analysis of statistics on the craft beer segment in 2008 will be released April 22 during the Craft Brewers Conference in Boston, Massachusetts. The Association's full 2008 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will publish in the May/June issue of The New Brewer on May 19.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume 
(Based on 2008 sales)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
2	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
3	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
4	Spoetzl Brewery	Shiner	TX
5	Pyramid Breweries Inc.	Seattle	WA
6	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
7	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
8	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
9	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
10	Magic Hat Brewing Co.	Burlington	VT
11	Alaskan Brewing Co.	Juneau	AK
12	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
13	Bell's Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
14	Kona Brewing Co.	Kailua-Kona	HI
15	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
16	Shipyard Brewing Co.	Portland	ME
17	Summit Brewing Co.	Saint Paul	MN
18	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
19	Abita Brewing Co.	Abita Springs	LA
20	The Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
21	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
22	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
23	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
24	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
25	Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co.	Newport	OR
26	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
27	The Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
28	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
29	SweetWater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
30	Flying Dog Brewing Co.	Frederick	MD
31	BJ's Restaurant & Brewery	Huntington Beach	CA
32	Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants	Louisville	CO
33	BridgePort Brewing Co.	Portland	OR
34	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
35	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
36	Mac and Jack's Brewery	Redmond	WA
37	Big Sky Brewing Co.	Missoula	MT
38	Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants	Chattanooga	TN
39	Karl Strauss Brewing Co.	San Diego	CA
40	Breckenridge Brewery	Denver	CO
41	Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe	Eureka	CA
42	Otter Creek Brewing Co.	Middlebury	VT
43	Utah Brewers Cooperative	Salt Lake City	UT
44	North Coast Brewing Co.	Fort Bragg	CA
45	Blue Point Brewing Co.	Patchogue	NY
46	Boulder Beer Co.	Boulder	CO
47	Pete's Brewing Co.	San Antonio	TX
48	McMenamins Breweries	Portland	OR
49	Anderson Valley Brewing Co.	Boonville	CA
50	The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc.	St Louis	MO

 

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume 
(Based on 2008 sales)

Rank	Brewing Company	City	State
1	Anheuser-Busch InBev	St. Louis	MO
2	MillerCoors Brewing Co.	Chicago	IL
3	Pabst Brewing Co.	Woodridge	IL
4	Boston Beer Co.	Boston	MA
5	D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc.	Pottsville	PA
6	Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.	Chico	CA
7	Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc.	Woodinville	WA
8	New Belgium Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
9	High Falls Brewing Co.	Rochester	NY
10	Spoetzl Brewery	Shiner	TX
11	Pyramid Breweries Inc.	Seattle	WA
12	Deschutes Brewery	Bend	OR
13	Iron City Brewing Co.	Pittsburgh	PA
14	Minhas Craft Brewery	Monroe	WI
15	Matt Brewing Co.	Utica	NY
16	Boulevard Brewing Co.	Kansas City	MO
17	Full Sail Brewing Co.	Hood River	OR
18	Magic Hat Brewing Co.	Burlington	VT
19	Alaskan Brewing Co.	Juneau	AK
20	Harpoon Brewery	Boston	MA
21	Bell's Brewery, Inc.	Galesburg	MI
22	Goose Island Beer Co.	Chicago	IL
23	Kona Brewery LLC	Kailua-Kona	HI
24	Anchor Brewing Co.	San Francisco	CA
25	August Schell Brewing Co.	New Ulm	MN
26	Shipyard Brewing	Portland	ME
27	Summit Brewing Co.	Saint Paul	MN
28	Stone Brewing Co.	Escondido	CA
29	Mendocino Brewing Co.	Ukiah	CA
30	Abita Brewing Co., L.L.C.	Abita Springs	LA
31	The Brooklyn Brewery	Brooklyn	NY
32	New Glarus Brewing Co.	New Glarus	WI
33	Dogfish Head Craft Brewery	Milton	DE
34	Long Trail Brewing Co.	Bridgewater Corners	VT
35	Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.	San Jose	CA
36	Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co.	Newport	OR
37	Great Lakes Brewing Co.	Cleveland	OH
38	The Lagunitas Brewing Co.	Petaluma	CA
39	Firestone Walker Brewing Co.	Paso Robles	CA
40	SweetWater Brewing Co.	Atlanta	GA
41	Flying Dog Brewing Co.	Frederick	MD
42	BJ's Restaurant & Brewery	Huntington Beach	CA
43	Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants	Louisville	CO
44	BridgePort Brewing Co.	Portland	OR
45	Odell Brewing Co.	Fort Collins	CO
46	Victory Brewing Co.	Downingtown	PA
47	Straub Brewery	Saint Marys	PA
48	Cold Spring Brewing Co.	Cold Spring	MN
49	Mac and Jack's Brewery	Redmond	WA
50	Big Sky Brewing Co.	Missoula	MT

For additional statistics, see Craft Brewing Statistics.

¹The definition of a craft brewer as stated by the Brewers Association: An American craft brewer is small, independent, and traditional. Small: Annual production of beer less than 2 million barrels. Beer production is attributed to a brewer according to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for purposes of this definition. Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer. Traditional: A brewer who has either an all malt flagship (the beer which represents the greatest volume among that brewer's brands) or has at least 50% of its volume in either all malt beers or in beers which use adjuncts to enhance rather than lighten flavor.

##

Based in Boulder, Colorado, USA, the Brewers Association (BA) is the not-for-profit trade and education association for small and independent American brewers, their craft beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. Visit the Web site,www.beertown.org, to learn more. The association’s activities include events and publishing: World Beer Cup®; Great American Beer Festival^sm; Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America®; National Homebrewers Conference; National Homebrew Competition; SAVOR: An American Craft Beer and Food Experience; American Craft Beer Week; Zymurgy magazine; The New Brewer magazine; and books on beer and brewing. The Brewers Association has an additional membership division of 17,000+ homebrewers: American Homebrewers Association.

Good Weather and Bad

The picture is of a Gaffel Kolsch enjoyed in the back garden of 4th Ave Pub, a great beer to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon with. Summer and the requisite barbecues and beer festivals that come with it can't be too far away...

Kolsch is a style confined to breweries of Cologne, Germany and similar to the Altbier of Dusseldorf, is top fermented. The similarities end there with Kolsch being brewed with paler malts and softer water. I enjoy both quite a bit, Kolsch finishes a little snappier and has a slightly more pronounced hop profile.

Maybe I'll get into the rivalry between the two towns over these beers in a later post. 

Saturday was not Kolsch weather. So, drenched and tired from a 10K race in Central Park, we dried out and recovered at the Chelsea Brewery. Beer ambassador Ian Phillips put on a phenomenal tour and most importantly provided the tour group with a few free pitchers of beer. It's easy to forget about the tucked away in Chelsea Piers, Chelsea Brewery. But you shouldn't, the beer is good, the space is nice and it's the only brewery left in Manhattan, so support it.

Monday Night Events

Some cool Monday evening happenings at Beer Table from their weekly email:

Grasshoppers,

We've been brewing up a series of Monday evening events for your Beer Tabling pleasure. The fruits of our finagling are listed below. If you're interested in joining in, please call or e-mail ASAP to make a reservation.

1. Monday, April 13th
Steve Hindy will discuss the history of the Brooklyn Brewery while we taste various delicious Brooklyn beers paired with some Beer Table snacks and delectable cheeses.
7-8:30 PM, $35

2. Monday, April 27th
Mateo Kehler from Jasper Hill Farm will present his cheeses, and we'll sip some delicious beeriness with each one.
7-8:30 PM, $35

3. Monday, May 11th
Scott Vaccaro will tell the story of the Captain Lawrence Brewing Company. We'll taste a number of different beers alongside a few Beer Table treats.
7-8:30 PM, $35

4. Monday, May 18th
Shane Welch from Sixpoint Craft Ales will discuss fermentation as it relates to kombucha, beer, vinegar, etc. Please join us for an unusual evening of tasting.
7-8:30 PM, $35

5. Monday, June 8th
Mathew Polacheck will join us to tell the story of the Schmaltz Brewing Company and to taste various beers and snacks.
7-8:30 PM, $35

Lectio Divinia

Lectio Divinia is latin for divine reading. And, according to my source for all things latin and divine, wikipedia,"represents a traditional Christian practice of prayer and scriptural reading intended to engender commune with the Triune God and to increase knowledge of God's Word."

Achieving oneness with the Holy Trinity is quite the task to place on any beer, much less one brewed merely in the style of the Trappist monks and not within a holy monastery by Trappist monks. But, who am I to worry about such semantics and since when can you not find God through intoxicating substances.

Alas, greater truth I did not find in this brew (maybe I need to drink more of it) from St. Somewhere Brewing in Tarpon Springs, FL, but it's still a fantastic beer to experience. Listed as a strong Belgian pale ale on Beer Advocate, I place it more in the style of a Belgian Dubbel. It pours russet brown and has the hallmark caramel and fruit aromas of a Dubbel. Whatever yeast they use replicates the complexities and spice of some of the better Abbey ales and provides notes of honey, raisin and caramel in the taste with a dry, refreshing finish. This is a great beer to enjoy with a hearty meal or in lieu of a post-prandial port.

Another great showing from this obscure Florida brewery. I can't wait for their Pays du Soleil, that is brewed with palmetto berries and hibiscuis flowers, scheduled for a fall release.

I found a bottle at Bierkraft. I'm sure you can grab one there or at any well stocked beer store.

Lambic

Great article in the WSJ on lambic, check it out here.

Chelsea, Gowanus

I added a link to the Chelsea Brewing site, under my blog list, which has a blog loaded up with all sorts of great beer information. It also has pictures from the cask festival held a few weekends ago. Thanks to Ian for leaving the link in the comments section.

Have a great weekend. Hopefully the weather is nice so Brooklynites can enjoy the Yacht Club. It's finally that time of year again.

Ommegang

Tickets for Ommegang go on sale today at noon. Read about last year's festival here. Their website has ordering info. Tickets sell out fast, so if you want to go, don't hesitate.