Frozen and busted pipes interrupted my recent beer drinking experience. I’ve been on the road again. Between Wednesday February 13th and 18th, I was in the San Francisco Bay area sampling the fermented wares in conjunction with judging at the Toronodo Barleywine Festival. So, if California beer and experiences don’t interest you surf to the right or left somewhere; there’s plenty of good beer information on line these days. I’ll even point you in the right direction. If you are about to embark on a vacation or business trip and want to combine it with beer, check out The Beer Mapping Project at www.beermapping.com. This incredible site takes you right down to the neighborhood level when searching for beer. Select your location from the broader perspective (Pacific Northwest, Southeast, etc) and watch while the screen is populated with an extensive list of breweries, brewpubs, alehouses, homebrew supply shops and liquor stores of merit in the area. Select one and instantly you’re drilled down to a street map with pop up windows for the various establishments nearby that feature good beer. Clicking on any balloon brings up detailed contact information and an option to print that segment of the map. In terms of setting up a beer trip, this is the single best site I’ve ever visited. I used it to explore all of San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area, and in a couple of hours was salivating over more great watering holes than my liver could tolerate in the short week I was in town.
The first couple of days were devoted to my entirely dry family on my father’s side. There are a couple of wine sippers in the bunch, but no real beer aficionados. Although I checked out a couple of places and had a few beers, it was far from ideal. It’s not that I’m met with scorn, and the remainder of my family certainly knows that I’m all about in terms of beer, but drinking alone isn’t a whole lot of fun. I understood plainly that I wasn’t visiting family for beer, so I was mentally prepared for it.
I actually had my first beer in the Anchorage International Airport. Ms. Fermento figured it was wise to carb up for the trip and Chili’s was open so we ducked in. I figured a tall boy (20 ouncer) would help me doze on the redeye flight south out of Anchorage. I was surprised to see Bass Ale on tap in addition to the ubiquitous Samuel Adams line up. The beer was served just as I suspected it would be, hypothermic cold which effectively killed the head an any flavor. It’s a good thing I’d arrived early, anticipating long security lines, and had the time to let this usually noteworthy beer thaw out some. The same balanced, slightly malt-forward beer greeted me when I finally dove into it, but I wasn’t surprised that the beer wasn’t as fresh as I’d expected. Good eye candy was provided with a crystal clear, perfect amber presentation under a minimal but lasting head that raced to the edge of the glass and hung out there for the duration of the sample.
I noted that one of the airport reader boards was positioned just outside the restaurant adjacent to where we were sitting. I watched anxious people examine the reader board. Some smiled but most gave no expression, sort of like the beer I was drinking. It was fruity up front with a slight almost mango character with some underlying medium malt character. A distinct metallic character found its way to the top as well, and I suspect this would come from typically filthy airport beer lines. The beer was slightly oxidized as well. The stuff obviously doesn’t move fast enough at Chili’s in the Anchorage International Airport to keep it fresh. I paid $7.49 for the 20 ounce glass which I consider close to highway robbery considering I could probably get a whole six pack of the stuff for that price elsewhere outside of the airport.
The next beer I had was a Heineken that was probably a year old and had probably been in the refrigerator the last time I came down, which was easily two years ago. With good intentions I’m sure my father tucked some in the refer knowing I’d want a beer when I got in. My bother and his clan showed up and wine and drinks were offered and naturally I opted for the beer. I’ll reserve comment on a beer that was obviously pretty far from what the brewer intended, even if it was a mass marketed product. Age is only so kind to beer and it’s only kind to the right types of beer and Heineken isn’t one of them.
Although we get the beer now in Alaska and although I had a sample on deck in my refrigerator to evaluate, because I saw Anchor 
Brewing Company’s Bock Beer on the shelf at a local liquor store, I figured it’d be fresher this close to the source and grabbed one. Anchor makes world class products in terms of the Anchor Porter, Anchor Stout, Liberty Ale and seasonal favorites such as Our Special Ale and Old Foghorn Barley Wine Style Ale, but I found the bock to be quirky. It was appropriately malty and somewhat sweet. A light does of earthiness wandered off the top along with hints of alcohol. The expected melanoidins from late kettle carmelization were very low. The dark malts were easily found in the aroma along with some misplaced fruitiness. The beer was a beaut in the glass, pouring clear and mahogany/copper in color. This settled under a dense, rocky, light brown head. The sip followed the smell. Hop flavor and perhaps yeast and fermentation characteristics lend an odd fruitiness to the flavor experience. A somewhat medium forward bitterness and edge tartness add more eccentricity to the beer. The dark malts hang out in the shadows on this one including chocolate, crystal, and very light roast elements. The alcohol is evident. The flavor then moves away from the initial bitterness sensation to a sweet-centered, amply carbonated, somewhat dry-finishing experience. According to the label, some wheat is used in the beer which would explain the tart contribution in the beginning of the sip. It was a decent beer, but quirky to me.
A grabbed a Mendocino Red Tail Lager as well. This is a mostly malt-forward beer with no sulfer notes that often come with lager beers. I relished in the absence of fruity esters for a change. This isn’t a hop bomb and I certainly appreciate that. Wonderful caramel-biscuit notes take the place of strong hop aromas in this beer. A clean, even mix of light malt and hop character with nice candy-like edges and a feint tart snap rounds out the flavor. Overall, it’s a very clean beer and I wish we got it here in Alaska.
I also sampled Port Brewing Company’s Shark Bite Red Ale because the Southern California brewery has such a great reputation. 
As opposed to the Mendo sample, this beer is hop forward, but with ample malt back up in this nose of this murky orange-amber beer. The somewhat citrusy hop essence in the flavor fades quickly to reveal a nice fruity essence with some interesting molasses and caramel notes. The hop flavor came across as fruity, floral and somewhat restrained. I began to get a better understanding of the California flavor profile by exploring a these couple of beers and others that followed. There are some hop bombs for sure, but the California palate seems to be a bit more balanced than it is up here where bad-ass hops seem to reign supreme (as a broad generalization). This is another reason why beer traveling is crucial and I decided then and there that I need to travel even more.
Before I left the East Bay for the city, I dined at the Walnut Creek Yacht Club with my dad and sister. This is a very highly rated restaurant and one of my favorite foods is fresh grilled swordfish, something we don’t get up here. My dad knew just where to get it. This upscale, somewhat preppy restaurant had a decent tapline which included selections from the E.J. Phair Brewing Company of Pittsburg, California. I started with the Lighthouse Lager and was genuinely impressed with this incredibly, squeaky-clean beer. Clean, light and tender grain notes massaged both the nose and palate in this pale, golden, sparkling wonder. Slight sweet notes added a nice balancing touch to this decidedly German-style beer with initial and extended bitterness that melds into the malt balance. Ample carbonation helps float the palate and adds to a nice, crisp and snappy finish. I resolved to use Public transportation to visit the brewery later in my say, but it didn’t happen. I then tried Wally’s IPA. Unfortunately, my beer was served hypothermic and I was a bit hurried to let it warm to proper temperature, but just the same poked around in it enough to determine it was no over the top hop bomb and rather a respectable English-style beer, more along the lines of an ESB or more bitter pale ale. This became an excellent compliment to the littleneck clam chowder I enjoyed as an appetizer.
Things began in earnest when I got to San Francisco proper on Friday the 18th. I checked into the Cathedral Hills Hotel on Van Ness and Geary and waited for some traveling companions to arrive that came in on a later flight. Fortunately for me, there was a large liquor chain two blocks away called Bevmo. I’m familiar with the chain having been to California many times, and I think Bevmo is short for Beverages and More. Either way, this cornucopia of fermented libations kept me plenty occupied as I explored a wall of beers, many of which I’d never seen before. I learned a long time ago not to impulse buy on a beer trip because even with the best intentions and well-seasoned liver, it’s almost impossible to drink everything and it would weigh too much to haul back home considering the shitty weight restrictions. What really chapped my ass is the fact that our own expensive Alaskan Brewing Company Products are in many venues cheaper than they are up here. What really surprised me was that Alaskan was cheaper than San Francisco’s hometown Anchor Steam Beer.
When our friends were accounted for, we set off on foot to find the new La Trappe Belgian ale bar located at the intersection of California and Greenwich streets. Over hill and dale we went, further fueling our thirst. It was worth the effort. La Trappe is situated in a historic building that’s been part of the Michael Azzilini family for well over 100 years. Michael’s grandfather bought 
the building in 1928 and although no one in the family made food there, the building’s many incantations included a number of come and gone restaurants. Azzilina studied in Belgium near Ghent and fell in love with Belgian Ale. He extensively renovated the building to install the small dining area upstairs adjacent to the kitchen and the stunning, authentically appointed Belgian bar in the basement. I’ve never been to Belgium, but traveled in San Francisco this trip with Ken Pajak of Café Amsterdam and he’s been to Belgium countless times and commented that the establishment was very authentic. I know one thing for sure: the 16 Belgian ales on tap and 150 in the bottle were authentic; just ask my liver. Exploring the broad cross-section of beer required a number of visits. San Francisco’s hills and valleys were no match for our powerful thirst and constant yearning for the ambiance of this top notch establishment.
I talked to the owner (Michael Azzalini) about his place. Interestingly enough, his grandfather cooked for the policemen in the police department kitchen over the years, but never in the building where La Trappe is located. He did, however, warehouse huge casks of wine in the basement during prohibition and not only fed, but watered the cops as well. The draft selections were astounding, and bottled beers ranged from the common to rare and ranged in price from about six bucks a bottle for the more mainstream stuff to 30 
bucks in some cases. This is 100 percent Fermento Recommended, so the next time you’re in San Francisco, pay a visit and tell Michael his new friends from Alaska said hello.
Saturday started out with judging at the Toronodo Barley Wine Festival in the Height Ashbury district. This was my second experience judging this event and it went well and smooth. Unlike our own judging events in Alaska, a seat at this event is considered an honor, so more than sixty judges and alternates were on hand to evaluate the beer. I know some of our own beers came down to compete, but in the end, Lagunitas, Stone and Firestone Walker barley wines took first, second and third place respectively. Congratulations to these winners and their awesome beers.
It was interesting to me, and perhaps my palate was off, but I had a tough time pushing three of the eight beers forward for the second round. It’s not that they were off or bad (okay, one was a total D-bomb), but they just weren’t lively and really reminiscent of barley wine. In the end, my panel only pushed two beers forward. The event is not as professionally judged as the Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine event is, but judging was sufficient, meaning I think it was fair and properly evaluated. People talking and walking in and out of the judging area and drinking beer just outside the room made the noise uproarious and made evaluating the beer challenging. I think that there were as many people tire kicking as there were judging, or perhaps the second round judges showed up early, but the place was packed. When it was all said and done, we ducked into the Toronodo, but didn’t jostle for a beer. Some people had over fifty samples lined up on their tables, committed to sampling every one on the menu. Toronodo is not a festival per-se. If you’re interested in the beers, you walk in to the bar just like you would any other day and order them. The only difference is the smaller sample size. This turns out to be quite out of control later in the day. After our brief visit, we left, but I had to return a couple of hours later at the request of my Celebrator Beer News publisher Tom Dalldorf to take pictures of the final round of judging. When that was done, we walked out and looked across the street at the Toronodo and people were out side blowing chunks in the gutter and stumbling around trying to sober up. Yeah, I know…this happens right here at home with the 20-somethings crowd at the Great Alaska Beer and Barleywine Festival, but for some reason, it’s not so in-your-face here.
After the judging, it was another march up the hill (further west on Haight) to the Magnolia (brewpub) for a couple of pints and lunch. February is strong beer month in San Francisco and the Magnolia was a participant. Although there were six huge beers on the menu, I opted for the milder Blue Bell Bitter on cask to round out my biscuits and gravy. The Magnolia is a fabulous little café at 
the top of a hill in San Francisco, surrounded by all of Haight Ashbury’s charm. I always thought I would love to live right across the street in a tall building that has bay windows looking down across the city and all of it’s sparkling lights and the hustle and bustle of the street below. I’d wander across the street for coffee in the morning and a couple of pints in the afternoon. After the long walk up the hill from the Toronodo, the mood was wispy and welcoming.
The weather in California is nice by default, and although the smog is oppressive, the glowing sunshine and heat were welcome on these tired Alaska bones. It was a nice enough day that my entourage thought a trip across San Francisco Bay was appropriate so we headed out on the ferry out of the Embarcadero to visit Marin Brewing Company. There are two ferries that cross the bay (probably more) but there’s the “slow speed” and the “high speed” ferries. The difference is only 15 minutes but we were on the slow speed ferry that ambled across the bay in sight of Alcatraz, Angel Island and into the Marin Headlands as we slowed down on approach. Ms. Fermento, in all of her wisdom, ran downstairs just as we were approaching land and bought us each a Lagunitas Pale Ale as we rolled by San Quentin Penitentiary. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m an asshole and I love nothing more than passing within easy sight of the prison’s exercise yard and hoisting a beer for the incarcerated and celebrating freedom. That’s cruel, but I do it every time.
Marin Brewing Company is a long mainstay for the upscale, mountain-biking and sports loving crowds of central California and the brewery’s fine beers are nice offsets to a long day of grinding the hills, sailing the bay or whatever else it is the occupies a mostly benign climate. I grew up in the area so a bit of nostalgia hit me as I settled down to an unfiltered Mt. Tam Pale Ale. The sun had 
drenched my visage on the way across and something lighter was in order although there were heavier, stronger beers in the mix. Poor planning mandated that we grabbed a quick bite and a beer and had to turn around and catch the last ferry back to ‘Frisco at 5:30 in the afternoon.
There’s something truly magnificent about approaching San Francisco on the water at sunset and watching the city’s lights sparkle on and beckon an evening’s excitement. We took the trolley to Fisherman’s Wharf but passed right on by with a raging thirst for another dose of La Trappe. We ran into friends old and new. We sauntered in before the crowd and settled up to the bar and surfed the tapline for a number of beers. I met a blogger named Chris Devlin who explained that there is an emergent set of people who come in and quickly slam very strong beers, almost like an alcoholic would duck in for a shot. He said “Strong beers have become the new shots for idiots.” Although I didn’t witness it, I could believe it. Were I to have those addictions, beer would be my poison. Next, we caught the cable car over California Street toward Van Ness and the Cathedral Hills Hotel where we were staying. Not to disclose my sillier side, but perhaps a couple of goblets of Affligem and Nostradamos influenced me, but on the downside of California Street, I spied a discarded roller chair with no back, but perfectly functioning wheels and arm supports. Why walk? I made a spectacle of myself flying down the street with wheels-a-smokin’ much to the delight of my party and certain passers-by. The only thing I was missing was a beer.
Right next to the hotel is a historic eatery-pub called Tommy’s Joynt. This sounds like a dive bar, but it’s quite the opposite. A respectable tap line greeted us along with a tantalizing all-day and all-night food counter that featured carved meats, mashed potatoes and other comfort foods about 400 notches above the late night Denny’s fare. We’d been in before, but this was the perfect venue to sit back and enjoy a fresh Anchor Brewing Company Steam Beer (among others) and a late night hot meat sandwich. Anchor just wasn’t hitting the spot, so I ventured on and managed to toss back a couple more New Belgium Brewing Company Fat Tire Ales. I always appreciate the not-so-extreme-west-coast hop forwardness in these malt prominent beers. But it’s not all about the beer. The ambiance in the 1940’s era establishment is all about beer. Forget the fine layer of dust and borderline unkempt, busy place; I got a real feel for how much San Francisco really loves beer in this place. I could easily become a barfly in 
this establishment if I lived nearby. We’d visited the Joynt frequently during our stay and I sampled Ballast Point Brewing Company’s Black Marlin Porter during one of the visits. I enjoyed the hugely fruity nose, but found a slight chlorophenolic essence in the flavor a bit distracting. This went away quick and let the light roast and black malt flavor come through with a dry, almost baker’s chocolate sensation and dry finish. The very opaque, black beer sweetened up some with warming. I’m not a big organic fan, but just because it was something different, I rodered a Bison Brewing Company (Berkeley) Organic Belgian Ale. It was pretty true to form with expected coriander and light pepper notes, but the beer was cloyingly sweet and somewhat syrupy. That’s unusual for an 8.1 percent beer that should be highly attenuated. The beer was way full in mouthfeel, but to its credit did dry out some toward the end.
Sunday was supposed to be a recovery day in preparation for the afternoon’s jaunt to the East Bay and Oakland for the Celebrator Beer News 20th Anniversary Party at the Marriot Hotel. I mathematically backed out time from the 3:00 PM VIP session that we were all enrolled in, calculated in a visit to a new Belgian bar called The Trappist and figured it was time to get on the road. I rounded everyone up and insisted that we venture downtown and work our way at least through The 21st Amendment, the counterpart in crime to the Mariposa’s Strong Ale Month. We took the cable car all the way down California Street to the Embarcadero and shopped the street vendors for a while before walking casually along the waterfront to the southeast and the Amendment. Fat chance. Not in my life. I didn’t come to San Francisco to sit in a hotel room and listen to alluring city noises and think about all of the good beer just out of reach. I got antsy and although my accomplices complained of sore feet and shin splints, I was undeterred.
Ms. Fermento and I didn’t get three blocks away from the hotel when the cell phone started ringing. First one party changed mind and begged for a wait up. Two minutes later, the other. We were one big, beer-searching happy family again with a single-livered purpose of searching out new beery horizons.
We get the 21st Amendment’s fine beers up here in cans, which is a real bonus, but traveling to the source exposed me to some big specialty beers that were out of this world. My favorite was the brewery’s special 500th beer called Hop Crisis. For one, that’s an absolutely killer name, but this Amarillo bomb (A-Bomb) weighs in at 11.8 percent and packs 100+ grapefruit-y IBU’s. This was an 
amazingly balanced beer for as big as it was. This is one I wish they’d consistently repeat, package and get to us up here. I also enjoyed the 21st Amendment’s Beer Hunter Dark Belgian Strong Ale, a 9.4 percent knee-knocker. This was a bit one dimensional, but still packed a good flavor punch. The beer commemorates the life of The Beer Hunter, Michael Jackson who died last August. And, no, if you’re new to the beer game, we’re not talking about the white-gloved pop singer with a penchant for kids. Michael Jackson was a large, portly man that devoted the majority of his life to researching beer and providing us with an understanding of styles and a fluent vocabulary to describe what we experienced. I also tried the Hendrick’s Russian Espresso Imperial Stout. This was another noteworthy beer although it came across slightly acrid to me due to the slightly unwieldy hop/malt combination. It could have been my palate that was still reeling from that killer IPA.
Another reason for my foray south was to attend the Celebrator Beer News 20th Anniversary Party. I write for this outstanding rag and wouldn’t miss the big event that was held at the Marriott in Oakland. We planed our trans-bay excursion to include a visit to the new Trappist Belgian ale bar that was just around the corner from the Marriot. This killer establishment somewhat mirrors the La Trappe in San Francisco, but on a slightly smaller scale. The venue is situated in a skinny brick building in the historic part of Oakland. I used to tramp around this part of town when it was seedy, run down and in fact dangerous for a young Caucasian packing a $2,000 medium format camera and tripod photographing the faded painted signs on brick buildings. I survived unscathed 30 years ago and have this hankering to pull up some of those images today to compare to the restored section of town. I digress.
The Trappist is a worthy destination, but plan to go in the “off hours” (during the business week and day) because the place was packed to capacity during our visit. We enjoyed a few beers and marched up the street to the Pacific Coast Brewing Company. I enjoyed a very impressive Imperial Stout at this establishment but endured some shitty customer service which can flaw even the most pristine beer.
I got entirely out of control at the Celebrator party. The mood was very festive and the beers from over 20 different breweries slid down with too much ease. I hate to admit over-consuming, but sometimes it goes with the territory, and I was definitely all over the map THAT night. I hardly remember the ride back across the bay on BART, but I was definitely reminded of it the next day by my tight little circle of beers. I’m proud to say that at least I didn’t experience the Technicolor yawn and blow groceries like the clowns at the Toronodo. Let’s see…I was reminded that I fell out of my seat and into someone’s lap, that I groped someone else thinking it was Ms. Fermento sitting next to me (no residual slap marks) and that I felt really sorry for a homeless guy sleeping in a doorway and woke him up to give him some money. It was probably a good thing I didn’t find a roller chair that night. I got back to the hotel and augured in hard.
I didn’t drink any beer on the way back to Anchorage. Airlines and airports simply piss me off to no end and I’d already paid my obligatory $7.49 for 20 ounces of stale beer on my way down and didn’t feel like getting ripped off again. The only thing I regret about the trip was not making a final stop at Bevmo for some canned beer to bring back. Maybe I will the next time I’m in San Francisco because there will be a next time, and that next time will probably be next year at about the same time. Did I pollute that sentence enough? And, unfortunately, no, Bill L; I didn’t make the trek to Anchor Brewing Company this year, it just didn’t stuff into the schedule, but I did wave to it on the way out of town while on that part of the freeway in the limo to the airport and said “Bill says hi” per your email request.
San Francisco is a mixed bag. If you decide to visit and worry about a non-beer drinking accomplice, forget about it. There’s a great mixture of beer, shopping and sights to see. I’m personally enamored of the architecture and can’t help gazing toward a blue sky with multi-colored buildings with nicely appointed bay windows and festooned entryways. What’s missing in Alaska during the 
winter is not only the sunshine, but the rich, vivid colors, and San Francisco, day our night, is a tapestry of rich visual candy both in people and place. I lived in the Bay Area for 20 years, and can’t resist a visit to the City By the Bay. This is tempered slightly by the blemishes of homeless people, litter, traffic and smog that tatter every city, but it’s hard not to feel expansive when on vacation and surfing new beer curls.
My thoughts wander to not only San Francisco, but the East Bay Area and Berkeley where I spent nights sitting in the outdoor Greek Theater listening to the sensuous, jazzy tunes of Boz Scaggs live in concert and other venues where the cool night air and smuggled beers made for a perfect world. I wanted to visit some of my favorite watering holes over there, but didn’t get to it. It’s quite easy to safely surf suds in the San Francisco Bay Area, thanks to an extensive public transportation network. In the February 21, 2008 edition of the Anchorage Press I discussed a couple of key websites, one of which is Beer by Bart (http://beerbybart.com/). BART stands for the Bay Area Rapid Transit System, which is a rail service that connects most of the major points around the San Francisco Bay Area and the website maps out how to get to most of the best breweries, brewpubs and watering holes using this system and this system in conjunction with other facets of the public transportation system. One thing is for certain, if you’re unaccustomed to driving in heavy, oppressive traffic, forget about driving in that part of California. I don’t know how people tolerate it. It’s insane. I can literally drive to my little abode in Hope (89 miles south of Anchorage) faster than I could get from one side of the Bay Area to the other on most days. The drivers are downright combative there, and although every city has it’s share of assholes (Anchorage is no exception) it just seems concentrated down there. And, that’s NOT the environment you want to combine with chasing beer. That’s simply bad juju. So, do your homework before you visit.
I got back home and relished in the chilly, but clean Alaska air for a while and wandered out to my beer refrigerator in the garage to see what I’d forgotten about during my sudsy foray to the L48.
I’m always excited when something new comes along and surprises me. Welcome Widmer Crimson Wheat. I didn’t know what to expect because a crimson wheat is outside of my dictionary of beer styles. I guessed a red wheat beer and I was correct.
The crystal clear, chestnut amber colored brew pours slightly listless in the glass and only a small ring of foam forms around the top. The beer is undoubtedly within its own style considering it’s not dark enough to be a dunkel and much too dark for a wheat. I don’t consider this a defect; it’s just interesting.
The first thing I notice is that there’s not much wheat beer character in the nose. Rather, I detect some sweet caramel notes, perhaps from additions of crystal malt and some biscuit-y notes. A slight dark wheat malt essence manifests itself with a slight tart edge in the aroma.
My sample was incredibly fresh and the yeast is instantly apparent in the initial sip. Wheat’s tartness and a light dosing of bittering hops give the brew a decided snap at the onset followed by ample amounts of crystal-borne residual sweetness. It’s primarily the tartness that belies the wheat character in the beer rather than the yeast’s contribution, but again, this doesn’t signify a defect; it’s just different. Light nutty elements emerge late in the swallow to add additional interest. The beer is decidedly malt-forward and absent is the zest I find via hops in other Widmer examples. Crimson Wheat’s body was fully medium with ample carbonation. I think there’s an attempt at some excitement and zest in this beer, but it got lost on me.
Congratulations to both Ring of Fire Meadery and Celestial Meads. Both did outstanding at this year’s International Mead Festival. Celestial Meads garnered a gold medal for their Razzery Cyser and a silver for Odin’s Gift. Ring of Fire took home a silver for their Red Currant reserve, another silver for the Tart Cherry Reserve and a bronze for Local Apple Cyser. These beers all competed against over 130 meads from around the world, so tearing up almost 4 percent of the booty is an awesome achievement.
It’s not too early to get hyped up about the Midnight Sun Brewing Company Planet Series of Beers. I’ll be revisiting this subject occasionally because there’s such a cult following for Midnight Sun’s beer series beers that I don’t want you to miss out. In previous blogs, the series was announced, but the “planetary alignment” is complete and now there are styles to go with each of the planets. These emergent collector beers are all fermented with at least one Belgian yeast, and then both bottle and keg conditioned depending on the presentation. Here’s the line up (release dates will be announced later):
Venus: A Belgian-style barley wine with dark fruit and aged in French oak cabernet sauvignon barrels
Mercury: A Belgian-style small beer
Earth: A Belgian-style chocolate milk stout (not made with chocolate milk, but rather lactose)
Mars: A Belgian-style imperial red ale
Jupiter: A Belgian-style “champagne” tripel
Saturn: A Belgian-style harvest ale
Uranus: A Belgian-style 100 brettanomyces fermented ale (horseys on Uranus? Who’d a-thunk it?)
Neptune: A Belgian-style sour dark strong ale aged in American oak whiskey barrels
Pluto: A Belgian-style golden strong ale aged in French oak chardonnay barrels (ain’t no dwarf!)
La Bodega is doing some serious community service by helping out the Great Northern Homebrew Club in their efforts to host the 2008 National Homebrew Competition in Anchorage this year. This is probably the biggest beer event to hit Alaska in history. No, it’s not a festival or drunk fest, but rather a professional judging of the nation’s top homebrwing talent. We anticipate over 500 beers to show up to be judged during the competition and beer luminaries from all over the nation will show up for the gig. The beers will be shipped here from points afar and to organize them for judging, empty six pack holders are desperately needed. If you have some laying around, take them down to La Bodega for the effort. Buy some crispy good beers while you’re at it.
Expect some beer-enhancing changes over at The Brown Jug Warehouse. Brown Jug’s got some committed people managing the beer over there and if you haven’t noticed, although it’s been quite some time, three more coolers were added to warehouse the increasing hoard of specialty imported beers from around the globe. Beer is perishable just like eggs and should be treated similarly, so refrigeration is a good thing. The Warehouse is working to get some additional racks to feature smaller, single beers so that style-curious drinkers can pull a smaller version instead of paying full boat for a mondo 750 liter or larger sample. New domestic and craft beers will also be featured. The back of the Warehouse is kind of quirky the way it’s set up, but don’t just drool at the stuff in the coolers. Turn around 180 degrees and up at least one row to check out more selections of good beer. It’s odd to me that the center aisle leads straight to the cooler (Keep OUT!) rather than some awesome display of phenomenal beer that sort of has to be “found” off to the left. Ain’t my gig, but if it were, red carpet would lead you in to the high end selections. Just the same, more, better featured beers are often a plus, and getting some single selections would be a great enhancement to the store.
New beers around town include Lagunitas Hairy Eyeball; Stone Brewing Company’s Old Guardian Barley Wine; Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot Barley Wine and their new entirely delicious ESB; Avery’s Old World Porter; North Coast Brewery’s 2008 Old Stock; Full Sail’s Slip Knot and Midnight Sun’s Rondy Brew. See what happens when I go away for a while? Maybe I should do that more often.
As a final note, I turn the big 5-0 tomorrow, February 23rd. I face the conundrum of what to do, where to go and how to celebrate. Perhaps it will be the Midnight Sun Rondy Beer release (Firkin) at Café Amsterdam. I can also enjoy Yeti Stout, MSBC Fallen Angel, and Hoegaarden Wit, new on tap there as well. Because I’m Running with the Reindeer (as Dr. Fermento) in downtown Anchorage at 3:30 on the 24th, a hangover is in order so that I don’t feel the pain of being trampled in the unlikely event that happens.
Here’s the humpy’s line up as of Tuesday the 19th
Wheats / Fruits
Celestial Rarzzery Cyser
$6.00 for 8 oz gl / $10.00 for 13 oz gl
Moose’s Tooth Wild Country Raspberry Wheat
Pyramid Apricot
Pyramid Hefeweisen
Lindemans Framboise ###
Golden Ales / Pilseners / California Common
Kodiak Island Liquid Sunshine Steam Ale *
Midnight Sun Gold Strike Kolsch
Leavenworth Friesian Pilsner
Pale Ales / E.S.B.’s (medium hop bitterness)
Alaskan Pale Ale
Moose’s Tooth Polar Pale Ale
Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale
Pike St. Pale Ale
Pyramid D.P.A.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
India Pale Ales (med - high hop bitterness)
Humpy’s Sockeye Red by Midnight Sun
Moose’s Tooth Fairweather I.P.A.
Big Sky I.P.A.
Fish Tale Organic I.P.A.
Pyramid Thunderhead I.P.A.
Stone’s Arrogant Bastard Ale
Belgian Ales
Homer Celestial Spiced Belgian Ale
Blue Moon Belgian White Ale
Rodenbach Flemish Sour Ale ###
Strong Belgian Ales (Alcohol by Volume over 7.5%
Midnight Sun Wrath Belgian Double I.P.A. ## (8.2%)
Bosteels Triple Karmeliet ### (8%)
Chimay Cing Cents Triple #### (8%)
Delirium Tremens ### (8.5%)
La Chouffe Golden Belgian Ale ### (8%)
Pater Lieven Triple ### (8%)
Unibroue Maudite ## (8%)
Brown Ales
Midnight Sun Kodiak Brown Ale
Rogue Hazelnut Brown Ale
Barley Wines
Pyramid Barley Wine #
Amber Ales / Bocks / Dopple Bocks / Scottish
Alaskan Amber Ale
Homer Red Knot Scottish
Midnight Sun Oosik Amber
Mac Tarnahan’s Scottish Ale
Spaten Optimator Doppel Bock** (7.2%)
Porters / Stouts
Alaskan Baltic Porter 2007 ed. # (9.8%)
Deschutes Black Butte Porter
Rogue Mocha Porter
Kassik’s Brew Stop Roughneck Oatmeal Stout (7.2%)
Sleeping Lady Russian Imperial Spartan Stout (7%)
Guinness Stout *
North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Stout # (9%)
Christmas / Winter Ales
Alaskan Winter Ale
Midnight Sun Cohoho Imperial I.P.A. # (8%)
Midnight Sun Rondy Brew
Elysian Bifrost
Full Sail Wreck the Halls
Gouden Carolus Noel ### (10.5%) 2006 ed
Pyramid Snowcap
Sierra Celebration
Beers N’ Cheers!
Fermz
Dr Fermento Beer Calendar
02/23/08 Café Amsterdam Rondy Brew Firkin Night 6:00 PM Pay As You Go
02/29/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Obliteration III Release 6:00 PM Free
03/28/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Mars Planet Beer Available (Imperial Red IPA)
03/04/08 Tap Root Café Flemish/Sour Beer Tasting (Date Correction) 5:30 PM $$??
03/19/08 Snow Goose Restaurant Entries for 2008 Breakup Homebrew Competition Accepted Noon $$ Per Entry
03/22/08 Snow Goose Restaurant Breakup Homebrew Competition Judging 10:30 AM Free
03/28/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Planet Beer Mars Belgian Imperial Red IPA Release 6:00 PM Free
05/03/08 Chena Pump Campground (Fbx) Zymurgist Borealis Nat. Homebrew Day/Big Beer Celeb. Noon Free
04/01/08 Maple Leaf Adventures Tall Sails and Ales Brew Cruise Launches $2,250 Per Person
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