Archive for August, 2009

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You No Touchey

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

From Theweeklybrew

With the beer fridges stock descimated it is time to rebuild, and since I haven’t gotten my rye started that means commercial beers rather then homebrew shall stock it’s shelves. The problem is the beers I’ve stocked the fridge with so far are ones I don’t want to open for a while. Just yesterday I added an ’07 saison, another bottle of Black Butte XXI, and a bottle of Fullers Vintage Ale from ’06 that I found mixed with the ’08 series.Sometimes it’s worth digging around at the bottle store to see what you can find. All of these are beers that would benefit with further aging, and I can therefore not bring myself to open them. So while the fridge has beer once again it’s all beer I  can’t touch. This is a serious dilemma. I need something other then Anchor Steam and Deschutes Green Lakes for drinking in the evening. I also really want to crack that bloody saison! I tried another bottle of it a month ago and it was superb. I guess my problem is that many of these great beers I like are ones that taste best with some ageing, and I just can’t bring myself to open these beers anymore. It’s really getting to be a problem. Why oh why did I ever decide to start ageing my beer? Why can’t things go back to the way they were when I drank everything without even considering the benefits of ageing it?

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Once More Unto The Breach

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

from theweeklybrew

Life may get busy again soon and the blog may suffer. I hope it doesn’t, but I’m just tossing it out. Not that long ago I was scrambling to get posts up with my training schedule for what was to be my new job and picking up hours at my current one. Sadly after all the training the job ended up not paning out. It wasn’t nearly as huge of an issue for me as it was for the others involved, I had my current job still and the one I was supposed to move into paid less. Today I have an interview though at 10 am. If everything pans out with this job I will be going through much of the same training that I’ve already gone through. Exciting huh? Truth is though if everything pans out it’ll be worth it. In the meantime though I apologize if the posting starts getting sporadic.

Posted in Ramblings | 3 Comments »

Beer Guides, What’s The Point?

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

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from theweeklybrew

Ever since I started this blog I’ve noticed that all the gifts I receive are beer related. While I’m not complaining I have got some interesting stuff that I don’t really use. One of those things is a Rogue Raw Materials bottle with hops and barley in it. Now back before I started brewing something like this would’ve seemed really cool. Now that I brew though and have hops and barley in the garage the idea of a decorative bottle of them just isn’t super exciting. Interestingly non brewers seem to think it’s the coolest.

Another gift I’ve recieved that just sits there is The Beer Lover’s Rating Guide. This one I can’t understand for the life of me. Number one, it isn’t comprehensive. Number two the guys a dip. Seriously, it has no value even for a person interested in tasting new beers. At least he could’ve been more thorough on the tasting notes. But then this book would’ve had a purpose… I guess the author couldn’t have done that then. The only thing worth while are these little trivia factoids scattered randomly through the book. Even then some of these are wrong. Heck, the myth that traditional IPA’s had more alcohol and hops then other beers to survive the ship voyage to India and therefore are called India Pale Ales pops up. Alot of the trivia isn’t even general beer trivia, but instead is about breweries.

So other then a paperweight or decoration for the bookshelf has anyone found these kind of guides usefull? Does anyone really enjoy reading description after description of beer?

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Hot Town, Summer In The City

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

From theweeklybrew

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It looks like we may get halfway decent weather for Summer In The City music fest after all. With the clouds looming over the last couple days I was starting to wonder. The forecastthough is calling for partly sunny with temps in the high 70′s to low 80′s this weekend.

I’m still not sure how I feel about summer in the city. I’ve never been a huge festival goer. Also, the more I look at it the more I wonder why they bill it as a music and wine festival. Sure they have something like 21+ wine vendors, but they also have a car show (at Riverfront Park), Texas Hold ‘em tournament, sidewalk sales, and beer pong. Seriously, beer pong?? Sounds more like a carnival to me minus the rides (there will be some bouncy houses for the little ones). No fear though, I’m sure those will be listed as a feature in a couple years. Maybe it’ll look like 4th of July in Independence eventually :)

Mostly I want to go so I can spend a nice relaxing day listening to some music, maybe swing by the craft beer tent that Venti’s is helping put on. Really that’s all I see as highlights. Problem is I work Saturday and 2 out of 3 of my coworkers are both busy that day. The other just got done covering everyone’s shifts the last two days (except mine) and will be covering shifts for another one my coworkers till Wednesday plus doing their own. I feel almost mean just thinking about asking them to cover my shift Saturday.

For those going the festival, it is at the intersection of Liberty and Court. Entrance is $10 for Saturday, $7.50 for Sunday, and $15 for a 2 day pass. There is a free zone within the fest, but there are also three pavilions. These are the beer pavilion, the wine pavilion, and Hornitos Garden of Agave. Not sure if Hornitoswill be worth visiting though. For more info on what’s going on, and a list of wineries, artists, and food check out the website http://www.gosummerinthecity.info/index.htm

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Pliny At Venti’s

Sunday, August 9th, 2009

pliny

Quick thing, as of Sunday evening Pliny the Elder has been tapped at Venti’s. Pliny is an amazing beer and is worth swinging by for some. So if you live in Salem/Keizer get your butt over there. JR predicts it won’t even last till Tuesday, and I have to say he’s probably right.

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Foreign VS Domestic Festivals

Sunday, August 9th, 2009

from theweeklybrew

For those who read Beervana you may have noticed there’s a little anti Doc Wort thing going on. Jeff posted a positive article about a new festival sponsored by Rogue. The festival will supposedly feature something like 30 “indie” breweries from around Oregon, with the beers being available at the Green Dragon pre festival. Wort weighed in stating (as he usually does) that this festival idea, the beers, and Oregon centric beer festivals in general are overplayed. This sparked an anti Dr Wort tirade on Jeff’s blog.

So the question still remains, does the good Doc have a valid point?

In Oregon there really isn’t much in the way of true “indie” breweries, especially within Portland. Northwest culture is obsessed with liking things that they view as unique. It doesn’t matter if other bigger breweries make better beers, if you are small, unknown, and produce some IPA’s then you have a shot in P-Town, and Oregon in general. Dr Wort also points out that many of these small breweries produce ”the standard” set of beers (something dark, light, IPA, something old, new, borrowed, blue). Now as far as I know the list is unknown still, so how would anyone know what’s being served? They don’t. But it fits that if these breweries offer only standard styles then that’s what will be served. A good side effect if this happens is that it will allow better side by side comparison of the beers. The bad part is it lacks appeal to most beer geeks. We can get an IPA at any store around Oregon.

One thing Doc suggested is a “indie” brews from around the world fest. So now we come to the crux of the matter. What benifits are there of a foreign festival compared to a domestic one? Very little in my opinion. Many Oregon breweries experiment with styles from around the world, and manage to do it well. The problem is they tend to just be occasional one off batches that tend to be kegged, and for the most part see limited release. What I suggest is the same thing I always have. Instead of featuring commercial beers have brewers make a one off batch based on a theme. Festivals though are for the most part about featuring brewers products, not skill. This is good for brewers because it generates interest in the beers a brewery offers and creates a potential for a sales boost. The problem for me, and I think the Doc also, is that it doesn’t tell me anything about the brewer. Call me dispassionate again, but for me it isn’t about the beer. When we taste beers at Capitol Brewer meetings I’m not looking for an amazing beer, I’m looking for interesting beer with a unique spin. Something that tells me about the brewer. Not just a great example of a beer I can just pick up at the supermarket.

The problem is that there’s no real great way to bring a truly unique flair to Oregon’s festivals. It just doesn’t pencil out for breweries to put time, money, and effort into making unique one off festival beers aimed at beer geeks. Most people at Oregon festivals wouldn’t “get” a nice sour ale, let alone most Belgians or other less common (in Oregon) styles. After all, our regional beer here is the Northwest IPA. I’m sure it would be a commercial no no to hold a British ale fest in the middle of German wheat country. The Northwest sadly will continue to cater to the IPA fans and offer the “basic lineup” beers because it makes sense to, and that’s how they will succeed. As Carol Stoudt of Stoudt’s brewery supposedly once said, “it’s easier to make beer than to sell beer.”

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Posted in Ramblings, Rants | 6 Comments »

Calapooia Pub Night

Friday, August 7th, 2009

So Thursday night I found my way down to Calapooia brewery again, this time with the Salem Beer and Wine group. It was a fun night. If you make it down there I recomend you try their Ol’ Lickspiggot Barleywine. Their serving up last years vintage currently and while it could still use a little more aging it’s not half bad. As always though I enjoyed their Chili Beer. Here’s a very short video from our adventure. The faces have been removed to protect the innocent :P

Clapooia pub night from 72mm Blogs on Vimeo.

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Summer In The City

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

from theweeklybrew

JR gave me an updated taplist, I’ve posted it at the bottom

logositcJR has made sure it’s no secret that Venti’s has some Burghead Heather Ale from Roots waiting to be tapped, and I’ve made it no secret that I will visit said keg when it is tapped. However JR has informed me that Thane is holding back on tapping it. for more specifics on Venti’s involvement check out their blog.

Here’s the email I received from JR

Bad news, good news.
Venti’s Cafe, in conjunction with Maletis Beverage, Portland, is operating the Craft Beer Pavilion
during the 2009 Salem ‘Summer in the City Music & Wine Festival’.

Bad News first:

Burghead Heather Ale is not on offer at Venti’s Cafe.
Thane continues to hold the 1/6 barrel of RootsO ‘Burghead Heather Ale’ in reserve
hedging against a short fall by a beer distributor; Columbia, General, Maletis, Mountain People

Good News, at last:

Allegedly, there will be an inexhaustible supply.

Venti’s Beer Pavilion at ‘Summer in the City Music & Wine Festival’btw, the four beer taplist is

  1. Burghead Heather Ale; Roots Organic Brewing Co., Portland: nil IBUs / 5.3% ABV
  2. LSD, Lompoc Strong Draft Ale; New Old Lompoc, Portland: ~ 55 IBUs / 6.9% ABV
  3. Invasive Species IPA, Captured by Porches Brewing Co., St. Hellens, 92 IBUs / 6.3% ABV
  4. Ninkasi Tricerahops Double IPA; Ninkasi Brewing Co.; Eugene: 100 IBUs / 8.8% ABV

regards, jbx

Updated Taplist

Specifically, the beers offered at the SITC Beer Pavilion are

  1. Burghead Heather Ale; Roots Organic Brewing Co., Portland
  2. Red Emma Amber Ale, Captured by Porches Brewing Co., St. Hellens
  3. LSD, Lompoc Strong Draft Ale; New Old Lompoc, Portland
  4. Ninkasi Tricerahops Double IPA; Ninkasi Brewing Co.; Eugene

The bitterness, IBUs, and alcohol content, % ABV, of these beers are delineated below:

  1. Burghead Heather Ale: nil IBUs / 5.3% ABV
  2. Red Emma Ale: 32 IBUs / 6.1% ABV
  3. Lompoc Strong Draft: ~ 55 IBUs / 6.9% ABV
  4. Tricerahops Double IPA;100 IBUs / 8.8% ABV

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Sad Day

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

from theweeklybrew

laundrybluessadfaceI planned on doing a nice post about the craft beer tent at Summer in the City next weekend, but to be honest I don’t really feel like it today. Why? Because I just checked the beer fridge and I’m out of homebrew. In fact I’m almost out of commercial beer too. I have exactly one 12oz bottle left. Granted I have those big beautiful beers cellaring, but I can’t touch them till next year.

So how does this happen? How do I go from being at the point where I was happily giving homebrew away to having none? Well first it started with a reduction in brewing. The fridge was full, and I had cases of homebrew all over the garage. I was drinking up to a six pack of homebrew a day in an attempt to make room (got to be a problem when I got to my big IPA). There was no room for commercial beer in the fridge either so I decided to cut back. The last beer I brewed was my saison, and that is still sitting in the carboy, refusing to clear. On top of that I’ve been busy, which means I forget to buy beer during the day. Then I’d get home in the evening, open the fridge, and realize I was almost out.

So starting this month I need to start brewing more. On the list is my wine I want to brew, possibly another rye, my rose red, a heather ale, and another batch of my sour herbal red. So I have alot to brew in the next few months. Oh ya, that one commercial beer is a Full Sail ltd lager….. It sucks.

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A Summer Harvest Wine

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

from theweeklybrew

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For a while now I’ve been fascinated with the non grape/non berry wines out there. I have watched multiple videos on making nettle wine, read about pea pod, and even brewed a sparkling tomatoe wine once. But when I decided all this extra squash we have would make good alcohol my first thought wasn’t to make wine, it was to make a vegetable beer. However after some internet searching I have come to the conclusion that wine is the best way to dispose of my zuchini and crooknecks. So far I’ve developed a basic recipe/shopping list and want some input from you guys.

Things I need:

5 gal Plastic Fermenting Bucket
Campden Tablets
Pectic Enzyme
Wine Yeast
10 Oranges
7 lemons

Things I have:

Water (no brainer eh?)
15+ lbs Zuchini (Have alot of it, will get the rest from those desperate people trying to get rid of theirs)
5+ lbs Crookneck Squash
Yeast Energizer
Yeast Nutrient
Peppercorns
Chili’s
Basil
Honey (may need some more though)
Sugar (Will need about 10 lbs I believe)
Ginger (may or may not use some, haven’t decided)

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