Joe’s Place Hosting Northside Oktoberfest Post Party

September 8, 2016September 8, 2016Leave a comment

The day of September 24th can’t get here soon enough! Another year of the annual Northside Oktoberfest is nearing and after my 1st time going last year, I’ve been eagerly waiting for this day! Like last year there will be a few after parties. Joe’s Place in Iowa City has announced they will be hosting one that will start right when the festival ends at 3 p.m. According to Iowa City Downtown District Facebook page here’s what’s going to be on tap at Joe’s:

Join all the Brewery Reps for a Celebration of Beer @ Joe’s Place

o Potosi – GOP bottles

o Boulevard – Tropical Pale draft

o Founders – PC PILS

o Peace Tree – John’s Sour Wit draft

o New Belgium – Fat Tire draft

o Oskar Blues – Dales Pale draft

o Lion Bridge – Octobot 3000 draft

o Schell – Octoberfest draft

o Lagunitas – Tuberfest draft

o Front Street – Cherry Bomb Blonde draft

o Sam Adams – Octoberfest Tallboys

o Blue Moon – Belgian Wit draft

Big Grove Brewery Anniversary Project Triple IPA + Pale Ale to be Released this Friday (Sept. 2nd)

August 30, 2016August 30, 2016Leave a comment

Big news from Big Grove as they continue their busy anniversary week by releasing a triple IPA and a pale ale. Both beers will be released this Friday (Sept. 2nd) at 11 a.m. This release with the Richards being released Sunday has the makings of a Big Grove weekend! Do they allow camping on their patio? Here’s the info!

BGB 2016 Anniversary Project

This year our brewers decided to test their tolerance not only with the limits of the brew schedule but literally the alcohol level too. They set out to challenge one of the smallest brew systems in Iowa to make the biggest beer yet. At the end of 36 straight hours brewing 4 batches of beer, we present the first runnings, Plan A, and second runnings, Plan B. The project reflects the hard work and dynamic approach our brewers bring every day. Other than the power outage overnight from that monsoon of a storm, things went pretty smoothly. The first runnings, the heavy wort extracted from the mash before sparging the grain, was boiled separately before the rinsing the grain bed for the second runnings. Between the two beers over 1200 lbs. of malt was used and let’s just say we gave our local bees a lot of job security. Hops? Yes, bushels and bushels of hops.

Plan A First runnings, Triple IPA 12.5% abv

A massive malt backbone, dense and rich with candied fruit flavor. Dry hopped with Simcoe, Mosaic, Southern Cross, and Columbus to balance the caramel sweetness and add dank, herbal, pine, berry, citrus, and apricot aromatics.

Plan B Second runnings, Pale Ale 5.4%abv

The grains still had plenty to give producing a mild biscuity malt character in the body with a light oak hue. Wakatu, Columbus, and Cascade make this dry hop bright with zesty citrus aromatics. It still echoes some of its sibling’s fruit sweetness, but just a touch dryer on the finish.

Big Grove Richard the Whale and variants to be released Sunday Sept. 4 @11 a.m.

August 29, 2016August 29, 2016Leave a comment

Big Grove Brewery in Solon is celebrating their 3 year anniversary this coming Sunday and what better way to do so than release some Richard the Whale and Richard variants! Not only is Richard (barrel-aged stout aged in Heaven Hill barrels) enough to get excited for but the coffee variant will be coming back as well. And, new this year, will be “Praline’s and Richard” which will be with roasted pecans and almonds. Everyone remembers the Wayne’s World ice cream scene correct? A little help if you don’t:

So, here’s what you can get your hands on Sunday at Big Grove:

heaven hill barrels Richard the Whale barrel aged Imperial Stout
Coffee variant featuring “Worka Ethiopia” from JBC Roasters,
Pralines and Richard” with Roasted Pecans and Almonds.

Add some amazing food and life will be good Sunday! Cheers!

Barn City Brewing Coming to West Des Moines

August 28, 2016August 29, 2016Leave a comment

barn city.jpg Barn City Brewing will be coming to West Des Moines at 9500 University in West Des Moines! Pete Faber is the man behind this venture and here is more info courtesy of Pete’s Facebook account:

As most of you know, I have a strong passion, love, and respect for craft beer. It has played an important role in my life over the last few years. It has given me some very close friends, taught me a lot about community in the business place, and a belief in doing things the right way. Not to mention a few well-deserved morning headaches. This passion has brought me to the decision to open Barn City Brewing. My vision intends to bring my pride of Iowa together with my passion for craft beer, as well as forging new relationships with local brewers and farmers. In a lot of ways, this is diving into unchartered territory for me, and will be defined as a new beginning for me and I am extremely excited to see this vision come to fruition.

I cannot thank Beth and the kids enough for all of the support and willingness to relocate to Iowa to tackle all of the new changes, and to pursue my dream that is Barn City Brewing. As always, I appreciate all of my friends and all of your support throughout the years and will continue to appreciate your love and support. This one’s going to be fun and nothing like anything I have ever done before! Please follow & like the business along on my journey on social media, and I hope to have Barn City Brewing in your hands soon!

You can follow Barn City Brewing at:

Facebook – /barncitybrewing
Twitter – @barncitybrewing
Instagram – @barncitybrewing

Again, thanks for all of the support!
Cheers,
Pete

Boulevard’s 2017 Release Calendar is Out

August 26, 2016August 26, 2016Leave a comment

Firetrucker Brewery Rolling Out Cans!

August 26, 2016August 26, 2016Leave a comment

News out of Ankeny this morning as Firetrucker Brewery has announced that they will be canning their Burnout Brown. The release date will be September 27 with a pre-release party held on September 21st (Thanks Neil!). Here’s the info courtesy of their Twitter handle:

Firetrucker Brewery ‏@FiretruckerBrew 35s36 seconds ago

Get Ready for Firetrucker in Cans. Soon you will be able to have Burnout Brown at your events outdoors & in! #FTMF

Mt. Vernon Road Hy-Vee, Cedar Rapids, Hosting Kickshaw “Orb” Beer Release Fri. August 26 from 6-8!

August 18, 2016August 18, 2016Leave a comment

The following information comes courtesy of Nate Lange, Assistant Manager at Mt. Vernon Road Hy-Vee in Cedar Rapids. Be sure to check this out and this is just the beginning for Bill and Kickshaw Barrel Works!

Just a quick note to let all of our Beer Club know about a really cool upcoming event. Friday August 26^th, from 6-8 pm we will be hosting a release party for Kickshaw Barrel Works. They are releasing ORB, a golden ale aged in oak barrels. Bill Heinrich, the brewer, will be on hand to talk about the beer, answer questions and give out some tasty samples! There will be plenty of bottles available for purchase as well. We are one of only a few select places that this First release from Kickshaw will be sold. Make sure to set a reminder so you don’t miss out on this event. There is no question that Kickshaw is going to be producing some amazing brews, how awesome would it be to get a few bottles from their first ever release! So stop on in Friday August 26^th from 6-8 pm, buy some bottles, meet the brewer, enjoy some samples and snacks and be part of a great night!!

Uinta Brewing Coming to Iowa this Month!

August 10, 2016August 10, 2016Leave a comment

Rumors and speculation have have been swirling for the last couple of weeks that Uinta Brewing Company would be hitting shelves and my sources have finally been able to confirm that they will indeed be hitting our shelves, and they will be hitting them this month so be on the look out for their beer soon!

Here’s more on this brewery:

Our founder wanted to brew the country’s best beer, so he moved to the country’s least beer drinking state. He named us after a mountain range that even people here mispronounce (you-in-tuh).

We’ve been brewing and exploring since 1993, and here’s what we’ve learned: there’s no one right way to get anywhere. What you need isn’t a well-trod path, it’s a compass to trust as you cut your own. Following ours is how we ended up in Utah, and what we found here still inspires every beer we brew.

To see what beers they offer and their release schedule check out the Uinta site here.

Restaurant Review: Ramsey’s Metro Market; Marion, IA

August 9, 2016August 9, 2016Leave a comment

I had noticed quite a few check-ins on untappd coming from Ramsey’s in Marion and talking with Leisha at Benz she highly recommend I give the place a try. Located on 7th avenue amongst the quaint and unique looking strip of stores in Marion, Ramseys is definitely a hidden treasure for wine, food, and more importantly for me…..beer.

Upon entering the restaurant you can’t help but notice the
walls of the place lined with hundreds of bottles of wine. Now, I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t know shit about wine. I wish I did, but I don’t. But the amount of wine that was neatly shelved to the ceiling in this place was a pretty awesome view. According to their website they house 140 different wines, 70 bottled beers,
and 10 tap beers.

The tap lines are what I wanted to see. I customarily bellied up to the bar, was greeted with a beer and food menu and we were off.

A recent expansion has given Ramseys a perfect spot on the other side of the bar to house their 10 lines and I was really thirsting for a taste of North Coast Tart Cherry Berliner Weisse and the Funkwerks Dry-Hopped Provincial, both of which I had heard were on tap. Started with the Tart Cherry and was very happy with the choice. Good fruit, not overly sweet, add in that bit of tartness and it’s an excellent drinking companion for the summer months. Another perk of the trip was being able to sit and talk with Josh about the restaurant, other local places, and the beer they have or want to have. Excellent guy to talk the food scene and beer with!

Onto the food. Grilled cheese, salads, paninis, subs, and always a daily special which the night I was there was a smoked pork loin dish. It didn’t take me long to figure out I was going with the Italian panini. Throw some pepperoni and pastrami on any sandwich with some pepperoncinis and I’m sold. Food arrived fairly quick and I was ready for beer #2 as well. Funkwerks Dry Hopped Provincial it is. Absolutely wonderful beer! Tropic fruits with that dry hopped addition make this a beer to seek if you haven’t tried it yet! This beer with the tartness from the pepperoncinis on my sandwich made this a pleasantly surprising pairing.

I would like to think that when I go back I would try the special or something else on the menu, but the sandwich is made for me. Loved it! If you find yourself in Marion or nearby, give Ramseys Metro Market a shot, you won’t be disappointed. Check out their Facebook page for their daily specials: Ramseys

Drink This: Big Grove Brewery Raspberry Que Sera

July 28, 2016July 28, 2016Leave a comment

Man, where was this all summer? What a wonderfully refreshing brew on warm Thursday afternoon. Big Grove Brewery in Solon just possibly made the perfect summer brew. If you like white wine, margaritas, fruity beers, or just beer in general then this is one you are going to want to get your hands on.

According to Chad Young of Big Grove, 20 pounds of raspberries were added into a 7 bbl batch. This maybe one of the best noses I’ve ever gotten off of a beer and it wasn’t that fake artificial raspberry shit either, this was the real deal. The smell of fresh raspberries that you picked at your grandma’s farm when you were younger.

It hadn’t made its way to the taproom quite yet, but as soon as Otra Vez kicks it’s going to be good to go and I don’t think it will be too much longer. I posted where this beer will be tapped around the CR/IC area but I’m not sure when it will be. But check out my previous post here to see where it will be. All I know is, when Mr. Young brought me a pour, the hue and the aroma beauty were backed by a tart, fresh, and thirst-quenching berliner-weisse. It also pairs pretty well with their strawberry cheesecake with basil ice cream. Thank you Chad!

This beer is nostalgic, this beer is summer, this beer is a beer you need to drink now!