(Portland, OR) – Fresh hop beer season is almost here.
Not one, not two, but three fresh hop beers from super regional breweries were approved this week. Fresh hop beers are a welcome addition to what is a fall season already jam-packed with traditional seasonals like pumpkin ales and Oktoberfest beers. Expect to start seeing them roll out early-mid September as some brewers are reporting having harvested their hops already.
Beer descriptions…
Deschutes Fresh Hop Mirror Pond Pale Ale
This noble, fresh hop version of our classic American Pale Ale arose from a single plot of heirloom Cascade hops, revived by our brewers from the original rootstock developed at Oregon State University, grown by Goshie Farms in Oregon. This very limited release is just for you. (Bond Street Series / 22 oz).
New Belgium Fresh Hop IPA
Fresh picking for some lip lickings, this beauty of a beer boasts a fresh crop of Cascade, Centennial and Amarillo hops. We’re talking from vine to brew within 24 hours fresh. Citrusy, soft fruit tones. Fresh hop IPA. (Lips of Faith Series / 22 oz).
Sierra Nevada Homegrown Ale
Here in the sun-drenched fields of California’s North Valley, the black soil is rich with promise. In winter, rows of barley seed are laid in the freshly tilled dirt. In spring, trellises are set for hops. From our fields comes a remarkable homegrown ale, made with organic wet hops and barley grown at our brewery here in Chico and one of the few estate-made ales produced anywhere in the world!
This Estate Ale is rish with the flavors of the valley – featuring hops with earthy, grapefruit-like flavors and layered spicy aromas and barley with mild sweetness and smooth, toasted flavors. Together, these crops grow alongside the brewery to make a truly unique brew. (2011 edition / 750ml).
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(Brooklyn, NY) – Two new beers coming out of Brooklyn Brewery…
Both in 750s. Beer descriptions:
Brooklyn The Companion
Produced in conjunction with The Oxford Companion to Beer and brewed by Garrett Oliver (Editor-in-Chief), Horst Dornbusch (Associate Editor) and Thomas Kraus-Weyermann (writer and master maltster), The Companion is a “wheat wine ale” made with 55% new wheat floor malts from Weyermann Maltings.
Brooklyn BAM Boozle
No, we are not foolin’ around. We have brewed a unique new beer commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Brooklyn Academy of Music. BAM, the oldest performing arts center in the country, started attracting audiences to Brooklyn before the Brooklyn Bridge was even open. Such historic figures as Frederick Douglass, Mark Twain, P.T. Barnum, and Sarah Bernhardt have all appeared on its stages. Today, BAM has established itself as the preeminent home for adventurous artists, audiences, and ideas…from around the globe and around the block. As a devout supporter and patron of BAM, I applaud theat kind of commitment. The Brooklyn Brewery will donate a portion of the proceeds to BAM from each case sold. Please join us in toasting BAM, a special treasure and a true Brooklyn original. – Steve Hindy, Co-founder and President
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Special Edition: Allies Win the War! by 21st Amendment Brewery and Ninkasi Brewing: Among the coolest labels that I have ever seen though I can’t tell what the actual beer name is.
Label copy…”In a surprising turn of events, rival superpowers have joined forces to bring a beer of might to the world. According to top-secret documents, recently unclassified, brewmasters for 21st Amendment in California and Ninkasi in Oregon began their brewing careers together many years ago.
Leaders from the two breweries reunited recently at a secret camp in the Sierras to devise their master plan. ‘We are more alike than we are different,’ said 21st Amendment’s Shaun O’Sullivan. ‘We must united in our common cause,’ added Ninkasi’s Jamie Floyd. The resulting collaboration, an ale brewed with California dates, an aggresive arsenal of all-Northwest hops and an unmistakable aroma of victory, deals a unified blow to unoriginal beers around the world.”
To be distributed through 21st Amendment’s network. More info at BSJ.
New Belgium Prickly Passion Saison: Label copy…”Peter [Bouckaert, Brewmaster] picked a prickly pear and paired it with a passion fruit. ‘Perfect! Pitch it in!’ he proclaimed. Now we have this pleasing prickly passion saison brewed with fruit juices and french saison yeast to our brewmaster’s picking.”
Fort Collins The Incredible Hop Imperial Belgian-Style IPA
Deschutes Horse Ridge IPA
Black Husky Three Scrutineers
Tallgrass Velvet Rooster Belgian-style Tripel
Choc Beer Winter Stout
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
Cigar City Sugar Plum: “Cigar City Brewing’s official celebration of Christmas. A rich-bodied brown ale forms the stage for holiday flavors which dance a festive ballet highlighted by pirouetting leaps of Christmas inspired spices. Cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, rose hips and chamomile compliment the subtle chocolate and light coffee notes of the malt and the addition of roasted carob and chicory complete the performance. Brewed once a year to celebrate the Christmas season. Pair with fresh cracked nuts, fruit cake and share with friends and family.”
Piwo Grodziski by Dr. Fritz Briem: Grodziskie or Gratzer is a Sour Smoked Wheat Ale that was brewed in the 1900x in East Prussian and dates back to as as the 15th century. It was named after the Polish town of Grodzisk Wielkopolski or Gratz in German. Our historic version is brewed according to the German Purity Law with air-dried barley malt and beech smoked wheat malt and hopped with Perle and Saaz. A sour mash is created using the old and forgotten technique called “Digerieren.” Finally a three month aging and maturation process creates a complex sour, smoky and heavily hopped wheat ale.
Others…
Mons Abbey Blonde by Belgh Brasse
Mons Abbey Dubbel
Atwater Grand Circus IPA
Highland Cold Mountain Winter Ale (new label) Little Mountain Irish Red Shock Top Wheat (16 oz)
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
(Lewiston, ME) – Baxter Brewing Company of Lewiston, Maine, providers of Pamola Xtra Pale Ale and Stowaway IPA, and the first brewery in New England to package all its beer in kegs and cans, shipped the first truckload of its beer out-of-state today.
“Our beer has been available on Amtrak’s Downeaster train for some time, now,” said brewery founder and president, Luke Livingston, “but this is the first full shipment to leave Maine.” Until a recently completed increase in production capacity, Baxter had been barely able to meet demand in Maine, where it has been described as among the fastest growing craft beers ever introduced in the state.
As part of a new alliance between Baxter Brewing Co. and Burke and Merrimack Valley Distributors, of Randolph and Danvers respectively, Baxter’s beers will soon be available throughout the Boston area and North Shore of Massachusetts (with distributing throughout the remainder of Massachusetts slated for early 2012).
Located in a renovated corner of Lewiston’s historic Bates Mill, Baxter is the first new manufacturer in that space in more than 100 years. Other shipments from the mill included textiles used to outfit General Grant’s Grand Army of the Potomac, as well as the world-renowned Bates bedspreads.
Baxter shipped its first beer in January of this year and the brewery itself has become a destination for visitors to Maine, attracting fans from 44 states and more than a dozen foreign countries for tours and tastings. Many of those guests have been asking when the beer would be available closer to home.
“We had been shipping the equivalent of about 4,500 cases a month,” Livingston said, “and demand, just here in Maine, has been growing well beyond that. In fact, we’ve just learned that in addition to our existing strong network of hundreds of retailers, bars and restaurants statewide, some 70 Rite Aid stores have been authorized to stock our beer beginning this fall. But,” Livingston added, “our new capacity will enable us to meet the demand here at home, and begin shipping to Boston. We are also on-track to introduce a third variety of beer, coming this fall.”
While the list of locations where Baxter beer will be available in the Boston area is still being assembled by the distributors, Livingston explained that “Our Website includes a button labeled Can Finder that lists retail and on-premise locations by zip code and town. We’ll be adding the Massachusetts locations as soon as they are established. Or, even better, our friends in Massachusetts can simply ask for Baxter anyplace great beer is sold or served!”
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Maple Bacon Porter: To be released in 750s. Made with maple syrup, apple-smoked bacon and vanilla beans. One thing that we’ve learned about maple bacon beers is that they are either a home run swing or bad miss. Goose Island Maple Bacon Stout apparently didn’t turn out that great while Funky Buddha Maple Bacon Porter has been one of the buzz beers of 2011.
Mother’s Foggy Notion Barleywine: Not quite English. Not quite American. Foggy Noggin is a big ole, 100% Ozarks-born barleywine ale. Boatloads of malt give this full-bodied beauty a deep-copper color and light brown sugar flavor. Six months of aging nurtures hints of oak and stone fruit, making Foggy Notion perfect for sharing or sipping alone.
Hopworks Bike Beer Kolsch Style Ale: Marking this fall’s bike events.
Others…
New Belgium Lips of Faith Ken’s Ale
De Molen Rook an Vuur Smoked Ale with Chili Peppers
Widmer Brothers Rosehipster
Mons Abbey Witte by Belgh Brasse Brewery
Ranger Creek Gulf Coast Imperial IPA
Golden Road Point the Way IPA
Viven Ale by Brouwerij van Viven
Viven Imperial IPA by Brouwerij van Viven
Cuee du Flor Ambree by Brasserie Artisanale du Flo
Hopdraeck by Brouwerij Troch
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
Goose Island Bramble Rye Bourbon County Brand Stout: Stout aged in rye whiskey barrels with raspberries and blackberries. A keg label approval also came in for Cherry barrels as well though that has already been released at one point per RateBeer. Though the RateBeer one has cacao nibs and this other version doesn’t. It is difficult to tell whether the brewery is just getting label approval as a technicality or if they are actually going to release more of it. Email sent out to brewery…
UPDATE: From an Eater interview with then-Brewmaster, Greg Hall, back when the brewery was sold, “We have another Bourbon County Stout variation: Bramble Rye. It’s made with blackberies and aged in rye barrels; I think they’re from Heaven Hill. And we have a barrel-aged barley wine calling King Henry. My daughter Sofie got her beer when she turned 10 and my son Henry gets his beer when he turns 10 in May. We’ll have the beer toward the end of the year, so it’ll be more of a Christmas present for him.”
Others…
Red Brick Smoked Vanilla Gorilla: aged in oak barrels with vanilla beans Weyerbacher Sierra
Cutters Empire Imperial Stout
Cutters Monon Wheat
Blue Hills Dunkelweizen
The Hideout Purple Gang American Pilsner
Prism ChemoSabe
City Steam Blonde on Blonde
Pennsylvania Harvest Rye PA
Little Mountain Santa’s Sleigh
Little Mountain Rampant Lion
Little Mountain No. 6
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
(Tampa, FL) – Despite Cigar City‘s latest attempt to make drinkers go blind, I’ve done the legwork and transcribed the entire label for you. Enjoy.
This beer will be available on draft in addition to 750s (as seen here).
Auld Alliance Scotch Ale label copy:
Dunedin Brewery is Florida’s oldest Craft Brewery. Cigar City Brewing is one of the youngest. In fact CCB’s founder got his start int he craft beer business as a sales rep for Dunedin brewery.
Started in 1996 in the Scottish Heritage town of Dunedin, GL, Founder Michael Bryant and his staff at Dunedin Brewery displayed a tenacity that resulted in a staying power many breweries opened in the 90s were unable to match. It also resulted in a lot of really good local beer! 15 years of it in fact.
OVer the years, Dunedin has had a major impact on the Florida beer scene and served as an inspiration for those that followed it. In its role as Elder Statesman, Dunedin has both inspired and provided a model and it is in that spirit of cooperation and guidance that we present Auld Alliance.
Auld Alliance (vielle Alliance) was the alliance of kingdoms between Scotland and France from 1295 and 1560 which profoundly shaped the legal, military, cultural and even culinary makeup of both countries. It also provides a good historical analogy for the spirit of cooperation possessed by so many who work to create hand-crafted beer.
Auld Alliance is a Scotch Ale reflecting the Scottish contribution to the Alliance fermented with a Saison yeast strain thats origin is traced back to France.
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat Ale: Production of Goose Island at one of Anheuser-Busch’s facilities is one step closer to fruition with this keg label approval.
Samuel Adams The Vixen Chocolate Chili Bock: Ale brewed with cinnamon and with spices and cocoa nibs added / 8.5% ABV
Samuel Adams Third Voyage Double IPA
Cigar City Auld Alliance Scotch Ale
Epic Barrel Aged IPA
East End Old Nebby Stock Ale
Chi-Town Lake Shore Lager
Sprecher Rock the Green Special Amber Vienna Style Lager
Kissmeyer PilNZer Dry Hopped Pilsner (Imported by Shelton Brothers)
High and Mighty Fumata Nera Smoked Black Rye Beer
High and Mighty Fumata Bianca Smoked White Rye Beer
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
(Houston, TX) – Saint Arnold Brewing Company (www.saintarnold.com), the oldest craft brewery in Texas, today announced it will delay the release of its newest beer, Santo. The scheduled release date was September 1, 2011. Below is a statement from Brock Wagner, Saint Arnold Founder/Brewer:
We regret to announce that we are delaying the release of our newest beer, Santo. After brewing a 10 gallon test brew several months ago that we were enthusiastic about, we scaled up the recipe and recently brewed our standard 3,700 gallon batch. In fact, we have three such batches in the fermenters right now. After filtering a batch this week and getting it ready for packaging we tasted it. It was good, but it was missing that spark that separates a good beer from a great beer. So we are dumping the over 11,000 gallons of beer we have in the tanks.
We are brewing another batch tomorrow with a series of recipe tweaks. We will taste this in two to three weeks. If we are excited about the results, we will release it then (or more likely, about three weeks later so we can brew some additional batches). If we again do not believe it is a world class beer, we’ll continue tweaking. We apologize for this issue. We would rather experience the embarrassment of delaying the release than release something that isn’t the best beer we can brew.
The company has not set a new release date for Santo, but the earliest a full release could occur would be sometime in October 2011.
About Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Saint Arnold Brewing’s ten brews are made and sold by the company’s staff of 35 dedicated employees. The brewery was listed by USA Today as one of the “10 great places to see what’s brewing in beer,” and Smart Meetings magazine named it among the “Top 5 breweries to host an event.” Saint Arnold is located at 2000 Lyons Avenue and its brewery tour and tasting is offered every weekday at 3:00 P.M. and Saturdays starting at 11 A.M. For more information on Saint Arnold’s five year-round and five seasonal beers as well as root beer, log on to www.saintarnold.com.
[Disclaimer: Beernews.org is a leader in craft beer news and is the original source of this article. If you would like to check out more, please visit the original site. Thanks!]
