Baron’s Best of 2015 Part 1

December 31, 2015December 31, 20156 Comments

best of.png I always enjoy looking back on a year of great beer drinking and this year was probably the best. So many great beers to choose from and what makes it even better is that there are so many great beers brewed here in Iowa that will makes this list. Don’t get me wrong, tons of good stuff on the shelves, but bringing home a growler of fresh Arms Race or Workman’s Compensation makes it that much more special to live in Eastern Iowa and have the opportunity to support our local breweries.

This year’s list will be dominated by Iowa breweries, these are all beers that were/are available for purchase in Iowa that I had for the FIRST TIME EVER in 2015. You won’t see the Bourbon county’s or the KBS, I know that they change year by year but I’m going to leave them off this list. I haven’t visited a few newer breweries in Iowa which I know I need to. Everyone has their favorites, let me know what I need to try! 30 beers on the list this year and it was difficult coming to just 30. This is Part 1 of 5, let’s roll!

*Lion Bridge Brewery GAZPROM! – a russian imperial stout aged in rye and brandy barrels that Lion Bridge gets to us in the months Iowans need to be warmed up! January and February in Iowa suck, but Lion Bridge’s release of GAZPROM! makes them a little more tolerable. Plus, the tshirt released was badass too!

*Big Grove Brewery Buster – let’s keep the Iowa breweries rolling with a triple IPA that was released last Spring. Big Grove had a dominant year with their IPA releases and their Richard the Whale releases. This triple was juicy as hell and scary drinkable. Coming in at 11.3%, this bad boy could lead to a good night’s sleep.

*Pulpit Rock Mr. Hoppy Pants – one of the newer breweries in Iowa is located across the street from Toppling Goliath in Decorah. I was lucky enough to stop in and have a pint and loved what those breweries are brewing up. Mr. Hoppy Pants is a double IPA brewed on a rotating hop schedule so this brew might change from time to time. Not sure of the hops in the draw I had but I loved it. Aromatic and crushable, visit Pulpit Rock, they are an up and comer to keep an eye on.

*Exile Raspberry Bohemian – this one might keep some talk stirred as I picked this over their Cherry Bohemian and I think many folks enjoyed the cherry more..not me. I think I just enjoy raspberry in my beer more than cherry flavor, just a personal preference and that’s why Raspberry gets my nod over Cherry. Either way, both beers were great and I would venture to say that Exile nailed it with both of them.

*Turner Alley Czech Village Pilsner – a style that’s not as “sexy” as the imperial IPAs or the barrel-aged beers of the world, but a style that seems lost in the mix is pilsners. Travis at Turner Alley has taken what some would consider a boring style and made a crisp, refreshing, balanced pilsner that I would put up against most out there. Looking forward to see what Turner Alley has in store for 2016.

*Firetrucker Black Walnut Alcova Brown Ale – another “basic” style that seems like it got lost in the shuffle of beer styles, gets amped up with the addition of 100 black walnuts. This is a beer I can drink anytime of the year and that nutty aftertastes shines through making this beer a perfect example on how to make a great brown.

**Part 2 coming soon! Iowa brewery dominant so far. Let me know your thoughts!

Baron Family Beer Festival Results, Year 9: Big Grove Reigns Supreme!

December 27, 2015December 27, 20151 Comment

photo (2).JPG Year 9 of my family’s beer festival is in the books and it was another great year of tasting some excellent brews. The cool thing about our beer festival is that there are many different palates and finding one beer that satisfies all of them can be really tough. Most of the guys prefer IPAs/Saisons/Sours and many of the ladies prefer stouts, porters, and fruit beers.

THE SCORING
Every year it’s a blind tasting. We usually try to break it up throughout the day. Along with it being blind, here’s how we score it:

Appearance /5
Aroma /5
Taste /15
Drinkability /5

So the total is out of 30 with the highest obviously being crowned the champion. Now, I’ve never won, my wife has won 3 times, my brother twice, and even my brother-in-law has a gold medal. What beer could I bring to this beer fest that everyone would enjoy? Nothing says Merry Christmas like a 12% imperial IPA, so at the very least, if I didn’t win I can drown my sorrows and get drunk. Onto the results:

8th Place – Exile Chill Clinton Double Hemp Amber – I liked the taste of this beer, I think for most, the aroma was what got this a low score which led to people automatically not enjoying it. My brother-in-laws entry.

rover truck.jpeg 7th Place – Toppling Goliath Rover Truck Stout – This is an ok stout. I didn’t score it terribly low but out of the two stouts we had this one was missing something. My sister-in-law’s entry.

6th Place – Peace Tree Blonde Fatale – I peade tree.jpeg really enjoy this beer and scored it well. I don’t think anyone really disliked it, but I don’t think anyone was in love with it either. My mom’s entry.

stone saison.jpeg 5th Place – Stone Saison – a good saison, I enjoyed it, but missing a few things for a top 3 finish. My brother’s entry.

4th Place – Backpocket Wake Up Iowa Stout – a very good showing for Backpocket with this beer. Between the 2 stouts I thought this one had more roasty malts and good coffee flavor compared to the TG stout. My dad’s entry.

nelson 3rd Place – Alpine Nelson – loved this brew! This was my 2nd place winner and it just missed out on 2nd place. Lovely addition to our ever-expanding beer options in Iowa. My wife’s entry.

2nd Place – Ballast Point Sculpin – a fresh bottle of Sculpin is tough to beat and this beer was fresh! Apparently right off the truck and into our glasses and an excellent 1st showing for Ballast Point, this was my brother’s entry and he almost won, except………….THE BARON BROUGHT HIS GAME!

photo (2).JPG 1st Place – Big Grove Brewery Trident XII – not only am I thrilled I actually won for once and I didn’t have to sit in the shadow of others for the 9th straight year but I won with an Iowa brewery and a place I pretty much visit every other day. Trident is on point. An excellent brew, and dangerously drinkable. My favorite moment is when tasting this, knowing it was mine, my brother looks down the table and mouths the words: “holy shit” Big Grove has won many awards since they’ve opened, but this has to be one of the better awards they’ve won 🙂 A lovely beer. I have pictures of my celebration but this is a PG site. A win for the Baron!

The wheels are already turning for next year’s beer fest. We’ve decided it will be an all Iowa brewery beer festival which will be great, so the question is, what should I bring next year?

Big Grove Beer Lecture Set for Dec. 4th @Cornell College; Mt. Vernon, IA

November 12, 2015Leave a comment

I just received the following info on a beer lecture that is set to happen on Dec. 4th at Cornell College in Mt. Vernon with Big Grove brewery pouring their terrific beer and also talking history of beer styles. Here’s the official release from Big Grove:

Big Grove Brewery.

Thirsty Happens.™
For Immediate Release.

Cornell College Hosts Big Grove Beer Lecture – recorded as the soberest lecture ever given in Mount Vernon.

On December 4, 2015, at 6:00pm, Cornell College in Mount Vernon will host Big Grove in its first Beer Colloquium at the Garner President’s House. We will be pouring our favorite BGB beers that night, and giving an informal talk on the history of the styles, as well as the design and goals of the individual beers.

We are giving this lecture to help raise funds for the Cornell College Department of Music and Pandemonium – a group of beer lovers, to be sure – and because we’re all too broke to otherwise contribute money to the College’s general fund. Tickets are $45 per person (limit 50), and will go on sale Friday, November 13 (that’s not ominous at all).

The beers that we will be discussing are:

BoomTown – the abbreviated history of German brewing the United States, and its influence on cream ale.

Big Grove IPA – Steele’s research on export pale ales from the 18th and 19th century, and their relation to current trends in West Coast IPA.

Arms Race Pale Ale – a brief discussion of the last 40 years of craft brewing, and the trend line of single hop pale ales and IPAs. Also a brief foray in Citra and its lineage.

Que Sera Berliner-style Weisse – technique and results of hot side acidification procedures.

TBD – we will also bring one or two special release beers to taste and discuss, depending on availability.

Discussion will be lead by Big Grove Head Brewer Bill Heinrich, with a reception after the event to question the Big Grove brewery team.

Please contact Big Grove Brewery for reservations at (319) 624-2337 or bgbsolon@gmail.com. You can also find us on Facebook (Big Grove Brewery) or Twitter (@biggrovebrewery) if that’s your preferred method of communication.

Cheers, z

The Brewery Staff
Big Grove Brewery

Official Big Grove Brewery Press Release on Citra Triad!

November 10, 2015Leave a comment

Here it is! Pretty pumped for these releases!

Big Grove Brewery. Thirsty Happens.™

For Immediate Release.

“A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”

December 15, 2015. On that date, my fellow Tree Chuggers, ask not what your Citra can do for you, but what you can do for your Citra.

As we review the year that is rapidly waning, we see all of the detritus from every batch of Arms Race that we’ve coaxed through our little facility. Hundreds of pounds of Citra were used, hundreds of hours were spent brewing. We’ve managed to fill some kegs, to slake some thirst, and to almost entirely fail to keep up with the amount of Pale Ale that people want.

Because we now know that we will never keep up with Arms Race, we’ve adapted to a new paradigm: “If you cannot sustain the volume, you may at least expand on the intensity.”

THE CITRA TRIAD

Arms Race Pale Ale – 6% ABV American Strong Pale Ale, hopped with Citra, Citra, and more Citra. It’s the aromatic hop bomb that you’ve all come to know and periodically drink when it’s available.

BGB-15 Minuteman – 9% ABV Double IPA. Well, we might as well use some more Citra to get the point across that there are hops in there. We’re going to build it the way we build our DIPAs: dry body, rich hops, and subtle alcohol.

Trident XII – 12% ABV Imperial IPA. How do you prevent the Cold War from going hot? Mutually Assured Desensitization.

RELEASE DATES

We will launch the Triad on December 15 at 3pm. The fallout will occur on December 19 at selected Big Grove accounts, when we simultaneously open the three silos to the broader public.

Dasvidanya,

The Brewery Staff
Big Grove Brewery

Big Grove Brewery Releasing “Citra Triad” Lineup of Beers!

November 10, 2015Leave a comment

Add this to another fantastic idea for Big Grove Brewery as Bill and company will be releasing a “Citra Triad” beers. It will be a 12%, 9%, and 6% Arms Race brewed simultaneously (into FV4-6) then hopped to hell. The beer checking in at 6% is the regular Arms Race, BGB-15 Minuteman will come in at 9% and Trident IIX will come in at 12%.

Beers are scheduled to be released at Big Grove Brewery on December 15th and December 19th to other accounts. Stay tuned as December just got fun at Big Grove!

What’s New, Notable, and Local?

November 9, 2015November 9, 2015Leave a comment

So many good beers are on our shelves right now it makes for a wonderful problem to have! One thing is for sure though, you never have to worry about the freshness of beer when you are buying local from our breweries in the area! Talk about good problems to have, we are pretty spoiled in having such great quality, great tasting, wonderfully brewed beer just miles away from our doorsteps. So what’s new from our local breweries? Here’s a start! (if I missed something let me know! Try to post on any Iowa breweries so feel free to contact me: benmed1515@yahoo.com)

*Big Grove Brewery – the constantly rotating lineup of beers makes for a weekly must stop for the Baron and this week the announcement that Que Amarillo is back and Que Ondo Retaca is on the line made my week! But what’s new? :

**Love Potion – a rye beer that checks in at 6.5%

Maybe the most exciting news for Big Grove right now is what we can’t drink yet! Bill, Rabbit, and Tee have been busy with some big time brews. A Lambic, more Richard, a Brett Double IPA, and Mellow Drama will be hitting lines in the future. Damn, thirsty after typing that out. Here’s the updates from Big Grove’s Facebook page:

From 11/6/15: Today we’re brewing the next batch of lambic using a traditional TURBID MASH. We’ve done the coolship thing on the last batch, and we’ve always used stale Iowa grown hops, and we’re fermenting a bunch in oak, but this giant pain in the ass mashing technique is, I believe, the next step in making real lambic. We’re also going to a 40% raw wheat grist instead of flaked wheat to try and build a more complex protein matrix.

Here’s the deal: we’re going to step the mash through a few rests, starting with the peptonisation rest at 113F, then a quick bump to 136F to extract more protein from the grain. After the first bump, we will start pulling turbid runnings off of the thing into the kettle for heating. We will hold the runnings at 176F or so to stop enzymatic conversion and leave a bunch of starches and dextrin in the liquid.

After that, it’s a sacchrification rest at 149F, more runnings to the kettle, a rest at 162F for more long chain sugars, then a mash out at 176F when we put the turbid runnings back into the mash tun.

Two hours of boiling, ambient cooling, and a pitch of some hot bugs should round things out nicely. This first batch will go into some new Opus One barrels we recently procured.

This is going to be a long damn day for two wine barrels worth of lambic somewhere down the road.

FROM: 11/5/15

Welcome, Tree Chuggers, to the great month of November! It’s a month with lots of ups and downs. I mean, we get to brew tons of Richard, Lambic, Englert Brett DIPA, and Mellow Drama Maple Imperial Porter, but you don’t get to drink those beers for quite some time. Sorry.

In the mean time, satiate your thirst with some 2015 Richard, Que Amarillo (it hit the lines last night), and Love Potion (obviously I didn’t name that one).

*Lion Bridge Brewery – I wasn’t able to get to the cask-conditioned Disaster at the Meaux w/ maple syrup tapping and I’m kicking myself for it, but more good news from Quinton and Alec at Lion Bridge is the re-release of Yard Sale! Loved this beer the first time and I’m guessing I’ll love it again. With that being said it’s hard to walk out of Lion Bridge without a coffee comp, a disaster, and one of my personal favorites a Sorachi Liberace. Here’s more on Yard Sale:

**Yard Sale – American IPA coming in at 6.4% – a must try for hopheads! Wonderfully balanced and delicious!
**Turner Alley Brewing in Cedar Rapids continues to pump out some great beers. Travis has a new brew in the works and it’s going to be Foreign Extra Stout and we should be seeing kegs of this popping up soon. Make sure to check out Turner Alleys’ other offerings, I’m digging their pils and the newly renamed Wood’s Pale Ale.

**Firetrucker Brewery – a couple of newer releases from the fine folks at Firetrucker in Ankeny. Make sure to check them out, a very cool place to visit and have a brew or 10.

*Smoking Pumpkin Porter –
ABV = 6.1%
IBU – 24
“Light up the bonfire, call your friends and enjoy this smoked pumpkin brown porter! Notes of allspice and nutmeg mingle with pecan smoke on the nose. Flavors of pumpkin and spices linger with a smokey finish. The porter base provides roasted malt flavors that tie it all together. This limited, seasonal beer is the perfect companion for a chilly fall day!”

*Acova Black Walnut Ale– their winter seasonal, Acova Black Walnut Ale is now out and is a smooth easy drinking brown ale made with local (fresh) black walnuts. This brew checks in at 6.8%.

**Third Base Brewery**- Brewer Jim Johnston has some new beers up his sleeve to be released before the end of the year at Third Base in Cedar Rapids. Here’s what he said is coming down the line soon:

I have an IPA with Citra and Mosaic coming up shortly. It currently doesn’t have a name. Our Imperial Stout this year is called “Endless Decent Into Ruin”. It is big (12%) but really smooth. To be brewed we have Coffee Cobra and an Imperial Porter. That should get us through the year.

An IPA with citra and mosaic? Yes please! And a big stout to warm us up for these chilly months!

Pullman Bar and Diner Celebrating Local Craft Beer Week

October 11, 2015Leave a comment

Pullman Bar and Diner in downtown Iowa City will be celebrating drinking local this upcoming week. Each day they will be adding two Iowa craft beers on tap as well as having representatives from each brewery talking about their beer. Here’s the official announcement from Pullman along with the beer lineup:

Just a little FYI for next week. Pullman along with some other fine establishments will be doing a local craft beer week. We will be doing a progressive tap takeover starting Monday at 3 pm. Each day we will add two new local craft beers. Matt O’Neil (local mason/artist and super talented) will be painting each brewery on our vestibule leading into the restaurant. Also, each day at 3-5 pm we will have representatives from each of these breweries here to talk about their beers. So, if you want some insight and meet the people behind the beer, here’s your chance! All of these beers will be discounted during our happy hour from 3-6 pm. Here are the beers along with schedule of who’s going to be here and when. Cheers!

Monday: Wilson’s Orchard – Hard Cider, Hoppy Hard Cider
Tuesday: Exile Brewery – Gigi (Gold Medal), Raspberry Bohemian
Wednesday: Turner Alley – Czech Pilsener, Woods Wheat
Thursday: Lion Bridge – Work Comp (Gold Medal),Sorachi Liberace (New saison)
Friday: Big Grove Brewery – Desperate Measures, and the coffee version of Richard the Whale.

Northside Oktoberfest: A Fall Spectacle

October 4, 2015October 4, 2015Leave a comment

Shamed to say that this year was my first Northside Oktoberfest, but after yesterday, I can safely say that it won’t be my last. The folks at John’s Grocery, the City of Iowa City, all of the brewers and vendors really pulled out all the stops and made yesterday’s event one to remember.

I was lucky enough to get a Brewmaster’s ticket enabling me to take part in the “Real Ale” contest. The setup to get in was wonderfully done as lines were moving at a great pace and no one had to wait too long to get in. Once you get in, the Ale tasting began! 11 breweries were a part of this contest. After tasting each beer, the ticketholders were given a wooden token to put into the basket of whom they considered having the best real ale. Some excellent submissions in this contest as folks from Kalona, Big Grove, Tallgrass, Peace Tree, Confluence and more had beers for this contest. In the end, the winner with their double dry citra-hopped Arms Race Pale Ale was Big Grove Brewery in Solon!

After the real ale contest you then get to walk up and down the streets trying and tasting tons of beer, wine, soda, ciders, etc. I was very impressed with the amount of room given to this festival and to top it off, in the middle of the festival was a huge seating area, similar to a German Beer Hall, where there was a big screen showing the Iowa v. Wisconsin game! That really helped cap a beautiful Iowa day, as being able to sit, eat, and when you wanted a brew you simply got up and hit whatever tent was calling your name. Watching the Hawks beat Wisconsin was the cherry on the top.

I can’t comment much on the food as I prepared myself for lunch at Brix Wine and Cheese Shop but it seems that most of the food that I saw looked delicious. Burgers, brats, pizza, steak sandwiches, it looked like a little bit of everything. Brix was tremendous. Some charcuterie and cheese to pair with Exile’s Raspberry Bohemian beer sure hit the spot.

So many great brews, so little time! Luckily I found a bunch that kept calling my name throughout the day. Call me a snob, put for a beer festival, I usually avoid hitting the lines where they are pouring out of cans or bottles, unless it’s something very rare to get. I usually stick with who brought some kegs in. The beers that really stood out to me were:

*Big Grove Brewery Que Sera w/ raspberries and honey. This was a blow away beer. The raspberry addition added that perfect amount of fresh fruit flavor and the honey added that sweetness to set off the tartness of this berliner weisse. I kept going back for this one and was very happy I got to try it!

*Lion Bridge Brewery Sorachi LIberace – a heavily hopped Saison using Sorachi Ace hops and once I had my nose in the glass I got a whiff of juicy fruit bubble gum and the same on the tongue followed by the dry grassiness that a saison gives. This will not be available at the brewery for another week I believe, so to be able to try it was a real treat. Another winner from the 2-time gold medalists at GABF.

*515 Brewing Reaper in the Rye – I could easily put their OJ IPA on here as well but
I’ve had that one before and wish I could have it whenever I wanted but I’ll go with their newer release. This heavily hopped cascadian dark/Black IPA was so good I had to go back for 2nds and then 3rds. The amarillo hops shine and pair nicely with the photo 5 (1) spiciness that the rye brings to the table. An excellent brew!

*Exile Raspberry Bohemian – I missed this at their tent but was informed it was on tap at Brix Wine and Cheese Shop. Luckily, I planned on getting a bite to eat at Brix so that confirmed my decision. A bit sour and tangy with the perfect amount of raspberry. This is a beer that I would love to keep stocked in my fridge. Refreshing and delicious!

*Peace Tree Sour Mash Saison – wasn’t sure what I would think of this one but I really enjoyed it. Very sour and tart but also refreshing and extremely drinkable. Between this and the No Coast citra-hopped Peace Tree really had a great day!

*Firetrucker Resuscitator Doppelbock – goes to show that almost every style of beer was well represented at this beer festival. Firetrucker showcasing a style that I usually don’t go out of my way for but after tasting theirs, I would be more than happy having this in my beer fridge arsenal on a constant basis. Excellent body, malty aroma, and the caramel and nuttiness on the flavor makes this the perfect beer for fall. Give me a slice of pumpkin pie to pair with this beer and I’m in heaven!

Lots of great bottled stuff like Goose Island Bourbon County, some great offerings from Founders, 30th Anniversary by Bells, Silva Stout from Green Flash, and quite a few things from Abu Nawas. A great event that I can’t recommend enough! Looking forward to next years already and I hope to see you there!

Big Grove Brewery Beer Dinner Course Menu release info:

September 7, 2015September 10, 20151 Comment

So far they’ve released two courses that will be available during their Sour Beer Dinner set for Monday, September 14th. The following is courtesy of Big Grove’s Facebook page. I’ll keep posting updates as they become available. My mouth is watering already:

Big Grove Sour Dinner, Course 1 (in three parts):

Welcome beer – Kroul’s Progeny (Raspberry 2013).

1. Green tomato cured scallop ceviche, textures of ripe tomato, parmesan broth.
2. Sweet corn soup, goat cheese creme fraiche, house bacon, chive.
3. Amberjack crudo with watermelon, jalapeño, olive oil, cilantro fleur de sel.

Paired with Big Grove Desperate Measures Strong Golden Sour.

September 14, Big Grove Sour Dinner, Course 2:

Drie Fonteinen Intense Red

Foie Gras terrine, cherry gelee, bourbon caviar, luxardo cherry, brown butter, hazelnut, and house-made brioche.

September 14, Big Grove Sour Dinner, Course 3:

Crooked Stave St. Bretta Pomelo

Smoked red snapper, summer squash, green grapes, toasted seeds, cucumber gazpacho anduluz.

September 14, Big Grove Sour Dinner, Course 4:

Drie Fonteinen Golden Blend

Olive oil poached halibut cheek, egg yolk pasta, roasted piquillo peppers, mussels, chorizo, preserved lemon, saffron mussel broth, oregano.

September 14, Big Grove Sour Dinner, Course 5:

Drie Fonteinen Hommage

Duo of duck; seared breast, crispy confit leg, roasted and pickled beets, ancho chile, blackberry, basil.

Big Grove Releases List of Sour Beers for Sept. 14th Beer Dinner

September 3, 20151 Comment

Wow! This sounds like it’s going to be another terrific night at Big Grove and the dinner menu hasn’t even been released! Abu Nawas is bringing some heavy-hitters go along with what Bill, Rabbit, and T are dishing out from the brewery. Here’s the release:

Sour Dinner Release