It’s Official: Deschutes coming in July

May 8, 2013May 8, 2013Leave a comment

It’s been rumored for a while and to many people this is old news, but the official release from Deschutes with the announcement that they are indeed coming to Iowa this summer has finally arrived. Here’s the official release thanks to beerpulse.com.

(Bend, OR) – Deschutes Brewery announced today that its craft beers will be available in Iowa starting in the summer of 2013. The Oregon-based brewery will be working with Johnson Brothers of Iowa, one of the largest alcoholic beverage distributors in the state. The company is known for its outstanding service, recognized in recent years as “Supplier of the Year” by the Iowa Restaurant Association and the Iowa Grocery Industry Association.

“We are thrilled to be bringing one of America’s great craft breweries into the State of Iowa,” said Lyle Stutzman, President of Johnson Brothers of Iowa. “We look forward to a long and successful partnership with Deschutes.”

Beer is slated to be available to Iowans in late July, with a formal launch planned for the fall that will include special tastings and other events in cities around the state. Initially, Deschutes Brewery will be offering Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Black Butte Porter, the nation’s number one selling craft porter, Chainbreaker White IPA, and its seasonal, Twilight Summer Ale. The beers will be available in six-packs and draft.

Early this year, Deschutes Brewery started distributing in the state of Illinois, and currently sells beer in Missouri and Minnesota. Iowa rounds out the region. Stacy Denbow, expansion manager for Deschutes Brewery, said, “After Iowa’s revised state laws, we’ve seen an impressive craft beer scene emerge that we’re excited to soon be a part of. We also really appreciated seeing the level of excitement and execution displayed by Johnson Bros.”

Deschutes Brewery added five new 1,300 barrel fermentation tanks in 2012 to increase capacity at its Oregon brewing headquarters, and plans to add five more tanks this month. When all the new tanks are online, the brewery will have the capacity to brew more than 460,000 barrels annually to fill demand in its expanding distribution footprint.

About Deschutes Brewery
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Deschutes Brewery began as a brew pub in downtown Bend, Oregon and is known for such brands as Black Butte Porter, its flagship brew and the nation’s number one selling craft porter, and the popular Mirror Pond Pale Ale. In addition to its original Bend pub, this family and employee-owned brewery opened a second pub in Portland’s Pearl District in 2008. The company’s main brewing facility is located on the banks of the Deschutes River and produces over 250,000 barrels of beer annually for distribution in 20 states and two provinces. To find out more, visitwww.DeschutesBrewery.com.

About Johnson Brothers
Starting in 1985 in the state of Iowa, Johnson Brothers is a family-owned wine, spirits, beer and non-alcoholic beverages distributor with headquarters in St Paul, Minnesota. Johnson Brothers has been providing world class service to customers throughout the United States since 1953.

It's Official: Deschutes coming in July

May 8, 2013Leave a comment

(Bend, OR) – Deschutes Brewery announced today that its craft beers will be available in Iowa starting in the summer of 2013. The Oregon-based brewery will be working with Johnson Brothers of Iowa, one of the largest alcoholic beverage distributors in the state. The company is known for its outstanding service, recognized in recent years as “Supplier of the Year” by the Iowa Restaurant Association and the Iowa Grocery Industry Association.

“We are thrilled to be bringing one of America’s great craft breweries into the State of Iowa,” said Lyle Stutzman, President of Johnson Brothers of Iowa. “We look forward to a long and successful partnership with Deschutes.”

Beer is slated to be available to Iowans in late July, with a formal launch planned for the fall that will include special tastings and other events in cities around the state. Initially, Deschutes Brewery will be offering Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Black Butte Porter, the nation’s number one selling craft porter, Chainbreaker White IPA, and its seasonal, Twilight Summer Ale. The beers will be available in six-packs and draft.

Early this year, Deschutes Brewery started distributing in the state of Illinois, and currently sells beer in Missouri and Minnesota. Iowa rounds out the region. Stacy Denbow, expansion manager for Deschutes Brewery, said, “After Iowa’s revised state laws, we’ve seen an impressive craft beer scene emerge that we’re excited to soon be a part of. We also really appreciated seeing the level of excitement and execution displayed by Johnson Bros.”

Deschutes Brewery added five new 1,300 barrel fermentation tanks in 2012 to increase capacity at its Oregon brewing headquarters, and plans to add five more tanks this month. When all the new tanks are online, the brewery will have the capacity to brew more than 460,000 barrels annually to fill demand in its expanding distribution footprint.

About Deschutes Brewery
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Deschutes Brewery began as a brew pub in downtown Bend, Oregon and is known for such brands as Black Butte Porter, its flagship brew and the nation’s number one selling craft porter, and the popular Mirror Pond Pale Ale. In addition to its original Bend pub, this family and employee-owned brewery opened a second pub in Portland’s Pearl District in 2008. The company’s main brewing facility is located on the banks of the Deschutes River and produces over 250,000 barrels of beer annually for distribution in 20 states and two provinces. To find out more, visitwww.DeschutesBrewery.com.

About Johnson Brothers
Starting in 1985 in the state of Iowa, Johnson Brothers is a family-owned wine, spirits, beer and non-alcoholic beverages distributor with headquarters in St Paul, Minnesota. Johnson Brothers has been providing world class service to customers throughout the United States since 1953.

Confluence Brewing Keg Tapping Event

April 29, 2013Leave a comment

Confluence Brewing will be holding a keg tapping for their latest beer, May day May day Maibock at the brewery May 1st, starting at 5:00! Check it out! Here’s the press release from the brewery:

MAY DAY MAY DAY…its time for yet another tapping of the GOLDEN KEG! Its time to move this crummy cold and chilly spring-time weather out of Iowa so we can enjoy our latest refreshing beer…MayDay MayDay Maibock!. The tapping will start at 6PM on May 1st!

Tickets for a $2.00 pints from the Golden Keg go on sale at 5:00
p.m. (limit one ticket per person).

After the Golden Keg “kicks”, pints of MayDay MayDay Maibock will be sold
all evening for $3.50! Also new growlers of MayDay MayDay Maibock and refills of MayDay Maibock will be $2.00 off all night!

Beer Review #102 Hoppin’ Frog Turbo Shandy

April 29, 2013Leave a comment

Finally! This past week in Eastern Iowa we were finally able to enjoy some nice spring weather. Temps hitting the high 60’s and low 70’s makes one think that the summer months and finally approaching (although snow is in the forecast for Wednesday. What the hell?). With the warmer months coming our taste for beer usually starts going for the lighter more thirst quenching styles. Many shelves have the summer beers stocked. We are burdened with the excess of Coronas, sugared up wine coolers, Shocktop’s nastiness, and the usual light fare of shit given to us by the “big 3”. The question remains, what is out there for a craft beer lover that would fall under a “summer beer” category?

A style with a lot of buzz lately has been a shandy or radler style of beer. These “styles” are usually just a lager mixed with citrus juice/soda and makes for a great refreshing beer. Leinenkugel’s is pushing their summer shandy hard, in fact, I believe I saw it on the shelves in late February, but the pledge taste it gives off makes it only a one and done. Mike’s Hard Lemonade is very successful with their products and have recently entered the world shandies.

Usually a shandy has a relatively low ABV. So if you are wanting to mix the “hardness” of a Mike’s Hard Lemonade with the drinkability of a shandy, look no further than Hoppin’ Frog’s Turbo Shandy (www.hoppinfrog.com). At 7% it easily hits the hardness that you want, but the tartness hides it deceivingly making for a very refreshing, drinkable summer brew. From the brewery:

The release of our Turbo Shandy Citrus Ale is around mid June. Born from European tradition, our Shandy is a refreshing combination of lemon and light malt flavors. Unlike traditional shandys, Turbo Shandy, revs it up a couple of notches with a high-test, full flavored approach as only Hoppin’ Frog can do.

The citrus flavor dominates the beer. I actually forgot I was drinking a beer and thought I was sipping on a glass of Squirt soda for a while. While, this a style for me is hard to down more than one, it was very tasty, but I can see that this isn’t the type of beer for the craft beer snob, but for someone who just wants to chill on the patio, let the rays soak in, and enjoy a crisp, citrusy brew.

REVIEW

Style: Fruit beer, shandy

ABV: 7%

Purchased at: Woodman’s Market; Madison, WI.

Pour: Blonde pour with a medium white head.

Aroma: Lemon fruit scent, maybe some yeast notes as well.

Flavor: The sweet lemonade is there. I described it as very close to drinking a Squirt soda.

Ratebeer.com rating: 39/100

Beeradvocate.com rating: 79/100

Overall: C+

My recommendation: A hot day, this works well. The only drawback for me, not enough beer flavor and too sweet. A good 22 oz bottle to share with somebody.

Beer Review #102 Hoppin' Frog Turbo Shandy

April 29, 2013Leave a comment

The release of our Turbo Shandy Citrus Ale is around mid June. Born from European tradition, our Shandy is a refreshing combination of lemon and light malt flavors. Unlike traditional shandys, Turbo Shandy, revs it up a couple of notches with a high-test, full flavored approach as only Hoppin’ Frog can do.

REVIEW

Style: Fruit beer, shandy

ABV: 7%

Purchased at: Woodman’s Market; Madison, WI.

Pour: Blonde pour with a medium white head.

Aroma: Lemon fruit scent, maybe some yeast notes as well.

Flavor: The sweet lemonade is there. I described it as very close to drinking a Squirt soda.

Ratebeer.com rating: 39/100

Beeradvocate.com rating: 79/100

Overall: C+

My recommendation: A hot day, this works well. The only drawback for me, not enough beer flavor and too sweet. A good 22 oz bottle to share with somebody.

Beer Trip: New Glarus, WI; New Glarus Brewery

April 22, 20134 Comments

This past weekend my wife and I were childless for a couple of days and she suggested that we should finally take a trip to New Glarus, WI to visit the brewery (www.newglarus.com). We’ve talked about this trip quite often while we drive to Madison but it finally came to fruition this weekend. The drive is very simple, a right off of 151 and 16 miles later you are in the historical town of New Glarus. As we where driving in we noticed the old brewery off to the left coming into town. It was relatively small, and this but a mental image of the new one in or around the same size. Well, I couldn’t be more wrong. As you are going out-of-town you see a sign for the new brewery and as you turn into the winding drive you are taken to a hilltop were New Glarus Brewery rests. The scene is really quite beautiful. Old stone stairs, historical swiss architecture with a modern design, and the massive layout, made it look more like a quaint hotel than an awesome brewery.

My wife and I entered through gift shop and browsed a bit before deciding to hit the tasting room. At the tasting room you have the option of buying a full 12 oz glass with a draw of beer for $6 or a tasting glass and a small draw for $3. Both great deals as you get to keep the glasses. To make things even better they were pushing their Blacktop IPA because it has recently been added to their year-round lineup. I decided going with the black top and my wife went with the Two-Women lager. After a few rounds we decided to head back through the gift shop and going through the self-guided tour of the brewery. The place is absolutely pristine. Brand new looking, very clean, clean enough to eat (or drink) off the floor. The amount of piping and amount of equipment was very impressive.

Back in the gift shop I bought another beer glass and a sweet Moon Man pale ale t-shirt. So many cool items that would a great addition for any beer lover. After we made our purchases I had to stop downstairs to buy some brew. I was scared that there wouldn’t be anything left of their Double IPA but luckily there was enough left where my decision wasn’t how many four packs but how many cases to buy. Love that stuff. Got a case of IIPA, mixed and match of the Coffee stout, Cabin Fever, and Dancing Man Wheat, a few Serendipitys, 2 4 packs of Winter Warmer and some Moon Man. A nice little haul, not all for me, sharing with the Beer Counselor.

I asked the guys working where a good place to grab a quick bite would be and they both said to try out the Glarner Stube (www.glarnerstube.com). Driving into downtown New Glarus definitely feels like you are in Switzerland. The historic layout makes this place an excellent experience and as you walk into the Glarner Stube not only get the visual appeal you get to taste it as well. Glarner Stube means “Living Room of New Glarus” and it is that cozy. All old New Glarus brewing bottles line across the top of the bar and that is the only brewery available on tap, the only problem is deciding which one to order. A went with Moon Man and my wife suggested going with some Cheese Fondue to start. A great idea! Wonderful swiss cheese with cubed, crusted bread, that paired great with the pale ale. We also split a prime rib sandwich with horseradish sauce and a side of cooked sauerkraut with an onion cream sauce. The food was great but the people working there are so pleasant it makes everything that much better.

A great trip to New Glarus. I’m hoping to makes this a destination to hit a few times a year. Highly recommend making this trek, an easy 3 hour drive to beerdom.

Beer Review #101: New Glarus Serendipity

April 11, 2013Leave a comment

Leave it to Dan Carey at New Glarus to take a bad cherry harvest, an okay apple harvest, and a great cranberry harvest, mix all those together and get a wonderful beer accident that only he can produce! Behold, Serendipity! A sour fruit beer that shows the skill of the brewmaster and also makes the beer drinker yearn for more from this great brewery (www.newglarusbrewing.com). While Spotted Cow seems to be the most recognizable of the brews that New Glarus produces, and it definitely has its place, they push out much more great beer than that. If you’ve never had their Double IPA, Raspberry Tart, Belgian Red, Black Top, Moon Man, Enigma and many more, it’s time to run up to Platteville or even head to Madison or New Glarus itself to check out more of their products.

Serendipity is considered a fruit/sour beer and you can definitely get the tartness from this brew. The flavors of all the fruits really do a number on your taste buds, and the beer pairs perfectly with brownies, chocolate cake, or even makes a great dessert on its own. You can throw this one in with the great fruit beers that are available in the U.S. From the brewery:

Happy Accident Fruit Ale Severe Drought, we shared the farmer’s horror as Wisconsin’s cherry crop failed! Dan bought what cherries he could. The apple crop fared better. Then joy! A grand Wisconsin cranberry harvest. What will Dan brew with Apples, Cranberries and Cherries? Oh my! You hold the happy accident of Wisconsin’s favorite fruit aged in oak with an almost magical wild fermentation. Serendipity is a wondrous celebration that sparkles your senses and dances across your palate. A kaleidoscope of flavors discovered by accident in a sour ale! Cheers to the unexpected. Vielen Dank!

REVIEW

Style: Fruit/Sour beer

ABV: 5.1%

Purchased at: Woodman’s Market; Madison, WI.

Pour: Off-white, reddish hue, super thick head. Gorgeous ruby pour.

Aroma: Tart cherry aroma, with a bit of apple. Not much from the cranberries.

Flavor: The brewery calls it a happy accident, and it definitely makes you happy. I get somewhat of an apple cider flavor, with cherry flavor following. The cranberries add a perfect tartness to this beer. Excellent stuff!

Ratebeer.com rating: 100/100

Beeradvocate.com rating: 96/100

Overall: A

My recommendation: Yet another must try from New Glarus. Dan Carey continues to shine as one of the best craft breweries in America.

Deschutes on the Way?!!

April 4, 2013Leave a comment

This comes from http://www.craftbeer.com and a tweet from @BeerBizdaily. Good news to say the least!

@BeerBizDaily

Harry Schuhmacher

Deschutes to enter Nebraska and Iowa this year, Ohio next year, per CBD. The march east continues.Unrelated, Asian carp enter G Lakes.

Good stuff rolling in! For more on Deschutes, including their lineup of beers, check out their website at http://www.deschutesbrewery.com/.

Beer Review #100: Surly Hell

April 2, 2013April 2, 2013Leave a comment

Like most people who have tried their beers, I have really taken a liking to Surly’s product (www.surlybrewing.com). Furious, Abrasive, Bender, and Coffee Bender are all fabulous beers that I’ve tried from them. Lately, a buddy and I have taken to ordering some beers from places like france44.com and halftimebeverage.com. France44 works out really well if you are in the mood for some Surly beers and with my buddy’s latest order he took a shot on a Surly beer neither one of us had tried yet.

I will be the first to admit that I haven’t had much experience with dortmunder or helles style beers but after trying Hell, it seems to me that Surly is doing this style justice. The name was kind of misleading to me at first; I was thinking of some sort of chipotle or pepper beer but instead, Hell is referring to the German word for light. This beer was definitely light in the pour with a golden hazy pour with a nice sized head. Very bready and yeasty in the aroma. Definitely get the pils malt with the first few drinks and the bread follows through with a hint a lemon citrus. Slight hops follow to round out this extremely drinkable offering from Surly. Maybe the perfect accompaniment to a summer BBQ? I think this would do nicely. Description from the brewery:

Finally, a Surly beer my German mother will drink. She says this one tastes like a bier from back home. Not unlike a Zwickel Bier from Germany, Hell is our filtered and fermented with lager yeast, American hops takes a back seat to the Pils malt sweetness and fresh bread aroma. The color is well… hell (Deutsch for light). It’s fiendishly drinkable, and you don’t have to sell your soul to get another.

The style of this beer isn’t one that is often talked about currently. IPAs, barrel-aged, sours, are dominating headlines with most craft beer drinkers but if you want to try different styles and try them when they are done right, I think Surly can be proud of this beer. This could also quite possibly be a great transition beer for those looking to get into the craft beer world. Rumblings of Surly wanting to expand a bit continues through the midwest and here’s hoping that they make it south to the lovely state of Iowa.

REVIEW

Style: Helles/Dortmunder

ABV:4.5%

Purchased at: France44.com

Pour: Golden straw color with a thick white head.

Aroma: Bread, yeast, light citrus.

Flavor: Lots of breadiness with lemon and bit of hops.

Ratebeer.com rating: 90/100

Beeradvocate.com rating: 88/100

Overall: B

My recommendation: A great beer for the style, extremely drinkable. Surly continues to do things and if you can get up north to Minnesota to get some, buy a bunch, or order from france44.com.

Founders Brewing All Day IPA going to Cans

March 28, 2013Leave a comment

The following is a press release from Founders brewing courtesy of www.beerpulse.com. Great news for summer BBQ’s!

(Grand Rapids, MI) – Founders Brewing Co. announced today that they plan to release their craft beer in cans for the first time in their fifteen-year history. The brewery will put its warm weather seasonal, All Day IPA, in 12 oz. cans that will be available in 12-packs across their distribution footprint this summer.

“Especially in our recreational home state of Michigan, cans are a very functional package,” said Co-Founder & CEO Mike Stevens. “It means people will be able to enjoy our beer at golf courses, marinas and while hiking or camping. And we think All Day IPA works in a can particularly well.”

The brewery did extensive research to find a canning line that delivers a sealed container meeting the same quality standard as what comes off their bottling line every day.

“For this new canning line, we turned to the same manufacturer of our bottling line, world beverage industry leader, Krones. We are 100% confident in both this line and this package,” said Vice President of Operations Brad Stevenson.

All Day IPA will be the only Founders beer in cans to start. More Founders products may make their way into cans in the future.

For information on the states in which Founders is available, as well as details on their 2013 beer lineup and release calendar, visit http://www.foundersbrewing.com.