The Hot 25 of 2013 PART 1!

January 13, 20146 Comments

Deviating a bit from my last posts as the best “new” beers of the year, I’m going back to a topic that usually gets a lot of great beer talk going throughout the Eastern Iowa beer lovers: The Best Beers of 2013!

Now, all of these beers have to have been available for purchase at any Eastern Iowa beers stores, brewpubs, or breweries. There are a few that stayed on from last year and some brand new ones this year. Overall, it was a really great year for beer in Eastern Iowa and the future continues to look promising. These are all beers I’ve TRIED this year, I have some that are still in the cellar that haven’t been cracked, so I might have left some off. Feel free to email me your list of the best in Eastern Iowa or your state this year! I’ll do this in 5 installments, so without further ado…….

**Big Grove Brewery Good Day to DIPA**
My favorite release so far from the folks in Solon, IA. A wonderfully balanced double IPA that gives you the citrus, reisonous pine, and the balance of the malts that we seek in our double IPAs. If you haven’t visited this place, the beer is excellent and food is just as good. A must visit location if you are in the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City area. A dynamite combo is this double IPA with their Korean Chicken wings. My mouth is watering!

RATEBEER: N/A
BEERADVOCATE: N/A

**Toppling Goliath Mornin’ Delight**
I’m not sure if I’ve wrote about a beer as much as I have about Mornin’ Delight. The original release garnered a bit of publicity, but it has blown up into much more since that wonderful Saturday morning in Decorah. This and the Kentucky Brunch release might highlight my favorite beer moments of 2013! The trade demand out there is incredibly high for this brew so if you still have a bottle of the greatness, count yourself lucky!

From the brewery:

Brewer’s Choice, debuted at Great Taste of the Midwest 2011. A Russian Imperial Stout. Breakfast of champions, just add pancakes. Made with real maple syrup and a super secret brewers’ ingredient.

RATEBEER: 100/100
BEERADVOCATE: 100/100

**Founders Backwoods Bastard**
When I think of the fall/winter season this is the first beer that pops into my head. One of the first real “big beers” to hit the chilly months and it is the perfect accompaniment to a chilly autumn or brutally cold winter day. Didn’t finish your case of this? No worries, it ages pretty damn nice as well. From the brewery:

Big and delicious for your ’perty mouth. Expect lovely, warm smells of single malt scotch, oaky bourbon barrels, smoke, sweet caramel and roasted malts. A bit of earthy spice and a scintilla of dark cherries. It’s a kick-back sipper made to excite the palate.
RATEBEER: 100/100
BEERADVOCATE: 96/100

**Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout**
As much as I try not to support Anheiuser Busch, I just can’t ignore this brew. It really is that damn good and the variants I’ve had are also excellent. I was fortunate enough to be in East Dubuque, IL area during the release and walked right in to get my allotment. If you haven’t visited Family Beer and Liquor the management there are some of the nicest, most helpful people around. Black Friday will never be the same! From the brewery:

“I really wanted to do something special for our 1000th batch at the original brewpub. Goose Island could have thrown a party. But we did something better. We brewed a beer. A really big batch of stout-so big the malt was coming out of the top of the mash tun. After fermentation we brought in some bourbon barrels to age the stout. One hundred and fifty days later, Bourbon County Stout was born-A liquid as dark and dense as a black hole with a thick foam the color of bourbon barrels. The nose is a mix of charred oak, vanilla,carmel and smoke. One sip has more flavor than your average case of beer. It overpowers anything in the room. People have even said that it’s a great cigar beer, but I haven’t yet tried a cigar that would stand up to it.” Brewmaster Greg Hall;
RATEBEER: 100/100
BEERADVOCATE: 100/100

**Stone Enjoy By….**
For my last beer on this installment I go with one of my all-time favorites. Say what you will about Stone, they turn out some fantastic beers and this one is my favorite. A brewery that isn’t scared to push the envelope and give us beer drinkers a unique experience which we enjoy 9/10, hits a major home run every time with this brew! And the good news? We should be seeing more of this on our shelves next week! From the brewery:

You have in your hands a devastatingly fresh double IPA. While freshness is a key component of many beers- especially big, citrusy, floral IPAs- we’ve taken it further, a lot further, in this IPA. You see, we specifically brewed it NOT to last. We’ve not only gone to extensive lengths to ensure that you’re getting this beer in your hands within an extraordinarily short window, we made sure that the Enjoy By date isn’t randomly etched in tiny text somewhere on the bottle, to be overlooked by all but the most attentive of retailers and beer fans. Instead, we’ve sent a clear message with the name of the beer itself that there is no better time than right now to enjoy this IPA.

RATEBEER: 100/100
BEERADVOCATE: 96/100

There’s part 1 of “THE LIST”, stay tuned to more in the next few weeks! Don’t agree or do agree? I would love to hear your thoughts, unless you’re an uppity prick, then nevermind!

Here’s Who’s Coming to Coralville Brrr Fest!!!!

January 10, 20142 Comments

The following list was just released for this who want to know who will be at Brrr Fest this year; looking at the list, should be a another great year!

Participating Breweries:

515 Brewing Company

August Schell Brewing Co

Backpocket Brewing

Baraboo

Bell’s Brewery

Bent River Brewing Co

Big Grove Brewery

Blue Cat Brew Pub

Boulevard Brewing

Broad Street Brewing Co

Chefs In Black (CIB)

Confluence Brewing

Court Avenue Brewing Co

Empyrean Brewing Co

Exile Brewing Co

Founders Brewing Co

Goose Island

Granite City

Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales

Kalona Brewing

Keg Creek Brewing Co

Lost Duck Brewery

Madhouse Brewing Co

Mason City Brewery

Millstream Brewing Co

Nebraska Brewing Co

New Belgium Brewing

O’Fallon Brewery

Peace Tree Brewing Co

Potosi Brewing Co

Raccoon River Brewing Co

Schlafly

Sprecher Brewery

Steven’s Point Brewery

Summit Brewing Co

Sutliff Cider

Tallgrass Brewing Co

Twisted Vine Brewery

Van Houzen Brewing Co

West O Beer

Worth Brewing Co

Cedar Ridge Winery

Boulevard Rye and Rye and Chocolate Ale returning

January 8, 2014Leave a comment

Boulevard Brewing company will be releasing two beers for their Smokestack Series in the next coming months. The first one is their Rye on Rye, here’s more on that beer from the brewery:

Why Rye? A fair question, given this assertively flavored grain is more often associated with whiskey than with beer. Even in that arena, it has largely been eclipsed by corn and barley, the sources of bourbon and scotch, respectively. But when we procured some seasoned rye whiskey barrels from our friends at Templeton Rye, we asked ourselves, “Why not?” Why not brew a rich, tawny rye ale, then mellow it in the warmth of charred oak rye whiskey casks? Thus, Rye-on-Rye: a marriage of very similar, yet very different embodiments of this unique, distinctive grain. Two kinds of malted rye provide a spicy sweetness, giving way to notes of caramelized wood and the citrusy tang of Perle, Magnum and Saphir hops before easing into a dry, lingering finish. Rye-on-Rye’s body and character make it the equal to any sort of hearty stew or aged cheese. At the risk of seeming redundant, might we suggest pairing it with a classic pastrami-on rye? A rye beer with a hint of rye whiskey aroma, alongside a rye bread sandwich. Why not?

RATEBEER: 99
BEERADVO: 94

The second release after a two-year hiatus is their Chocolate Ale, which will follow the Rye on Rye. Here’s more from the brewery:

One of the brightest stars in a city filled with culinary treasures, Christopher Elbow has been hand-crafting masterpieces in chocolate for more than ten years. In that time the reputation of his artistic delicacies has spread around the globe. Elbow’s sweets are distinguished by their use of unusual and sometimes surprising flavors and ingredients; in that adventurous spirit we joined forces to bring you a very special Chocolate Ale. Chocolate Ale is full of surprises, beginning with a glowing amber hue. The aroma is given over to earthy, fruity cocoa, with just a hint of hops. Smooth layers of dark chocolate intertwine with threads of caramel, vanilla, and nutty malt as the flavor warms and rounds to a bittersweet finish.

RATEBEER: 95
BEERADVO: 85

Shmaltz Brewing Enters Iowa

January 7, 2014Leave a comment

Just received a text from my buddy the Beer Counselor, letting me know that Benz Beverage Depot has just received a shipment of beer from Shmaltz brewing.

Here is what they have in stock:

Genesis
Messiah
Bittersweet Lenny’s RIPA
Hop Manna
Death of a Contract Brewer

Peace Tree Hop Sutra Returns

January 6, 2014Leave a comment

The following is courtesy of beerpulse.com and Peace Tree brewing’s website:

(Knoxville, IA) – Peace Tree Brewing announced this week the upcoming return of Hop Sutra Double IPA and more. Check out the latest via the company’s email newsletter…

—

We’re currently (pronounced, “anxiously”) awaiting the arrival of our very first centrifuge. A centrifuge is a large piece of equipment that separates solid matter from the beer by spinning as it’s being transferred from the fermenter to the bright tank. This piece of equipment should help us increase our production capacity through higher yields and shorter conditioning periods. Also, the centrifuge should help with product quality and shelf life, so we can give you the freshest beer possible.
______

Thank you for all of your support throughout the release of our Templeton Red! We’ve bottled two batches of it already and it’s been selling out quickly across the state!

Our third and final batch of the season will be making its way into bottles – and finally to out-of-state accounts later this month.

We’ve already started filling fresh Templeton Rye barrels, so you can plan to see it again next winter!
______

For those of you hop-huggers out there, Hop Sutra – our Double IPA – has been brewed and is scheduled to make a long-awaited return to store shelves by January 20th.

For those who haven’t tried it, this Double India Pale Ale is brewed with over 1-1/2 times the barley and 2-1/2 times the hops of our Hop Wrangler for a bold flavor and aroma and an ABV of 9%. It’s a favorite amongst the Peace Tree crew, and we hope you’ll feel the same!

HOP SUTRA
RATEBEER – 96
BEERADVOCATE – 88

Hopslam Rollout News; Oskar Blues distributions news (not good)

January 3, 2014January 3, 2014Leave a comment

Eastern Iowa, we are not too far away from Hopslam! releases! Here’s the latest from Bell’s and Reds Alehouse. The following comes from Bells Brewery blog.

Hopslam will start shipping to areas in Michigan the week of Jan. 6. It will begin shipping to Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Missouri, Ohio and Arizona the week of Jan. 13. It will then start shipping to Florida, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington DC, Kentucky and Pennsylvania the week of Jan. 20.

Wanting to hit a Hopslam! party? Here’s what Reds Alehouse in North Liberty has in store! (Credit @chinslovesiowa for the pic. Or visit Flannigans in Coralville.

In other Eastern Iowa beer news. Another big time brewery’s first quarter release has somehow left Iowa on their distribution map, but hopefully this is one we see sooner than later because they are pumping out some of the best beers around. Here’s more from Oskar Blues:

Oskar Blues Brewery has announced a handful of new market launches right out of the gate for 2014. First quarter new markets include a re-introduction to Idaho (Craig Stein Beverage), Minnesota (Original Gravity group of distributors), Kansas, Nevada and Delaware, along with increased distribution in southern Alabama.

This announcement follows a 37 percent (32,000 bbls) increase in 2013 while adding Michigan and Indiana. Oskar Blues also filled distribution voids in Central California, Eastern North Carolina and the balance of Tennessee and Kentucky in late summer of 2013.

Oskar Blues Brewery packaged 59,000 bbls in 2011 and doubled that production, reaching over 119,000 bbls in 2013. That growth has been fueled by the addition of the second Tasty Weasel Taproom and Brevard, NC, brewery, which began brewing in December 2012. The Oskar Blues Brevard Brewery shipped more than 46,000 bbls in their first year of operation as East Coast distribution grew throughout the year.

In addition to capacity increases, Oskar Blues added key player Lou Romano as National Sales Director in October and promoted Chris Russell to Business Development Director, in preparation for 2014. These two industry veterans lead a staunch group of regional managers and a sales force that has grown to over 45 strong.

Best “New” Beer of the Year: Fruit Beer

December 29, 20133 Comments

I sort of fell behind on this endeavor so you can expect a more updates in the next few days. For today’s entry, we are looking at some fruit beers. A style that some love and some hate, but a style that has started taking off. Looking through my list, I had many more of these this year than I originally thought. Finalists for this years best “New” fruit beer where:
*New Glarus Strawberry Rhubarb
*Founders Rubeaus
*Hoppin’ Frog Turbo Shandy
*New Glarus Apple Ale

I had my first New Glarus Apple Ale last weekend and really thought it was delicious, but it’s going to come in 2nd to another New Glarus brew. This years best “New” fruit beer is……………

New Glarus Serendipity

Serendipity has a beautiful ruby-red pour with a nice off-white head. Cherry aromas dominate but hints of apple also come through. The flavor is remarkable. The sweetness from the apples combined with the tartness of the cherries and cranberries make this accident very forgivable. Here’s more from New Glarus on this brew:

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!

**If this is a brew much too sweet for you, I recommend mixing it with an imperial stout for nice fruity touch! **

2013 New Fruit Beer of the Year: New Glarus Serendipity
ABV: 5.1%
Ratebeer: 100
Beeradvocate: 96

Smoked Porter Joins Founders Backstage Series in February

December 26, 2013Leave a comment

Just saw the following post on beerpulse.com.

(Grand Rapids, MI) – Founders Brewing Co. will introduce Smoked Porter, brewed with a combination of beech wood–smoked barley and oak-smoked wheat malt along with a generous helping of chocolate malt, on shelves and draft lines beginning in February 2014. Like all Founders’ Backstage Series beers, Smoked Porter will be sold in 750mL bottles, with a suggested retail price to be determined.

“This is a style of beer that we’ve discussed brewing for a decade,” said Co-Founder and Vice President of Brand & Education Dave Engbers. “We weren’t able to fit it into our production schedule for years. Now, with our pilot system, our brewers have room for greater experimentation and aggressive recipe formulation. Brewing beers like this was the idea behind launching our Backstage Series and was a driving force in our investment in a pilot system this past summer.”

The brewery’s taproom in Grand Rapids, Michigan, also recently announced the addition of a draft line dedicated to their pilot system, only pouring those small batch experimental beers. A recent offering showcased the brewery’s first lager in twelve years.

Founders’ Backstage Series is made up of boundary-pushing, experimental beers. The intent of the series is to take the diehard Founders fan experience to a wider audience—though all of the beers are still released in limited batches. Since its introduction in the summer of 2011, Founders’ Backstage Series beers have quickly become some of the most sought-after releases in the industry.

Limited bottles of Founders Smoked Porter will only be available in Michigan; draft will be available in most markets across the brewery’s distribution footprint. The beer will be released in February, with exact timing dependent on distributor shipments. Bottles will be released in the brewery’s taproom at a to-be-determined date. It will not be a pre-ticketed release. Look for at least two more Backstage Series releases from Founders in 2014.

Best “New” Brew of the Year: Porter

December 23, 20133 Comments

Moving along with the list of best “new” brews we come to porters. With all the imperials, doubles, barrel-aged greatness that is going on basic styles such porters and stouts are getting lost in the shuffle and beer lovers need to know that there are some really terrific beers in these styles. For Eastern Iowans, we have Deschutes Black Butte Porter, Founders Porter, Stone Suede and now Millstream releasing a very good baltic porter, our shelves in the area have a really nice selection.

Millstream’s Blizen Baltic Porter would have been my winner, until I went up to Madison, WI last weekend. I walked into the Steve’s Liquor (one of my favorite beer shops!) and saw a display of 3 Floyds Alpha Klaus. I’ve never had Alpha Klaus before but have heard many rave reviews from fellow brew enthusiasts, in particular, my friend the Beer Counselor. So, I grab a few bottles, waiting for a nice snowy night to crack one open.

Once again, 3 Floyds has terrific bottle artwork and even if I hadn’t known what is was initially, the labeling would have drawn me to it anyway.

Alpha Klaus is Alpha King’s cousin. A big American X-mas Porter brewed with English chocolate malt and Mexican sugar and of course tons of strange American hops! Cheers.

Another 3 Floyds winner, and I’m not trying to mark out for them too much, (although it’s hard not too) it just goes to show that they are one of the best breweries in America. A trip to 3F’s on December 27 is coming up. Thinking of renting a U-haul to get all the beer back!

2013 New Imperial IPA of the Year: Three Floyds Alpha Klaus
ABV: 7.5%
Ratebeer: 100
Beeradvocate: 93

Update on Left Hand Brewing Coming to Iowa

December 18, 2013Leave a comment

Awhile back I reported talk of a few breweries coming to Iowa and then all the talk kind of fell flat for whatever reason. However, I did just receive the following correspondence from Left Handing Brewing after me asking if they have any news of possibly distributing to Iowa in the future. Here’s the quick but exciting response”

Plan is sometime 1st quarter 2014. Not sure exact date yet.