Hoosier Beer Geek

Random Beer Roundup - The Weather Looks Great Edition

2009-07-16T22:43:00.014-04:00

Congratulations to Knights Rod and Jess on their Gold medal win from last weekends Brewers Cup. Congratulations to the rest of the homebrewers and professionals who took home medals for their beer also.

Welcome to the weekend, we hope to see you at the Microbrewer's Festival. If you go, be sure to stop by the Firkin tent near the band. At least one of us should be there at any given time. Stop by, try one of the great beers, and be sure to say hello. If you haven't had a chance to check the weather forecast for Saturday, it looks like it is going to be pretty nice. Hopefully it stays that way, but who knows?

If you have news for the next edition of the Roundup, submit it to hoosierbeergeek@gmail.com.

So, grab your Microbrewer's Festival tickets, this is the Random Beer Roundup.

Hoosier Beer Calendar
Events are subject to change

Friday, July 17th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
Brewers of Indiana Guild VIP Dinner

Friday, July 17th at Chumley's in Broad Ripple starting at 7pm:
Indy Microbrewers Fest Kick Off (details below)

Saturday, July 18th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
14th Annual Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You can purchase tickets online here.

Tuesday, July 21st at Patrick's Kitchen and Drinks in Zionsville at 6:30 pm:
Summer Beer Buffet - Six course beer dinner (details below)

Thursday, July 23rd at Deano's Vino in Fountain Square:
Beer Dinner with Upland - $30 for a four course meal with Upland beer pairings - RSVP by July 20

Various Dates and Locations in August - Scotty's Brewhouse Beer Dinners (Details below)

Saturday, August 22nd:
The Hoosier Beer Geek 3rd Anniversary Party, Sun King Brewing Co. Tickets are limited and can be purchased from Brown Paper Tickets.

Saturday, August 22nd at Crown Brewing in Crown Point:
Crown Challenge - PRO AM Brewing Competition (Details below)

Saturday, September 12th, from 7-10pm at the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend:
Zoo Brew, beer tasting event, tickets on sale August 1, $30 in advance; more info here.

Saturday, September 26th at Crown Brewing Co. in Crown Point - 2nd Annual Oktoberfest - Outdoor event, Live Music, Food, etc

What's Brewing

From our Good Friend, Ted, at Brugge in Broad Ripple/Terre Haute:

transferring Bruno today Voyageur tomorrow

*What I think Ted meant is that there is beer at Brugge and you should come and drink it.

From Matthew at Rock Bottom Brewery Downtown

On Tuesday, July 28th, we will be holding our BrewMasters Charity Golf Tournament as a fundraising event specifically for the Miracle on Washington Street. First of all, we’re looking for golfers to participate in the event! If you or anyone you know is interested in joining us for one of the best golf outings in Indianapolis, we’d love to have you! You can go to our Web site at www.rockbottom.com for more information, or download the event registration brochure at http://www.rockbottomrestaurantsinc.com/RBFoundation/1062golfbrochure.pdf.

A little about the Miracle on Washington...each year on Christmas Day, Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery in Downtown Indianapolis holds the Miracle on Washington Street, an event designed to offer more than 500 homeless and displaced guests from Indianapolis-area shelters and non-profit organizations an extraordinary dining and holiday experience. Our honored guests are provided complimentary transportation, are seated at tables dressed in white linen tablecloths and napkins, silverware and china, and enjoy a traditional holiday meal complete with all of the trimmings. We offer gifts of warm adult and children’s clothing, children's books and toys. Professional photographers are on-hand to provide family portraits and pictures with Santa, cell phones to call loved ones, and more than 100 volunteers to make sure each guest’s needs are provided for. Our event is designed to fulfill our belief that everyone deserves a Christmas to remember.

From Greg at Lafayette Brewing Co. in Lafayette:

On tap: Ouiatenon Wit; Prophet's Rock Pale Ale; East Side Bitter; Pipers' Pride Scottish Ale; Tippecanoe Common Ale; Eighty-Five; Weeping Hog IPA and Black Angus Oatmeal Stout. We also have Weeping Hog IPA available on cask.

LBC is proud to announce that our Tippecanoe Common Ale has received a medal for the third consecutive year in the Indiana State Fair Brewers Cup competition. The TCA took home the bronze medal in the amber hybrid category this year after receiving 2 consecutive golds in '07 & '08. We're quite pleased with the high level of consistency we've achieved with our best-selling beer!

Hope to see a great turn-out for the Indiana Microbrewers Festival this weekend. Look for some 10-year-old Big Boris Barleywine to make an appearance along with our Tippecanoe Common Ale; Black Angus Oatmeal Stout; Eighty-Five and a firkin of Double Dry Hopped Tippecanoe Common Ale.

From Adam at Crown Brewing in Crown Point:

ATTENTION ALL HOMEBREWERS!!!

Crown Brewing is pleased to announce that it will be having its first ever "Crown Challenge" PRO-AM .

EVENT DATE = August 22nd
BEER SUBMISSION DATE = August 19th
REGISTRATION FEE = $5.00

The competition is open to homebrews only.
No entries brewed with professional assistance, on professional equipment, or at a commercial brewery are eligible.

For all rules, regulation and to download a registration form, please visit, CrownBrewing.com

At the Bar

From Dustin at Spencers Stadium Tavern:

This year the brewers of Indiana decided to brew an Alt Beer. Come down to the Tavern and sample the beers side by side. Thursday July 23rd @ 7 PM. We are hoping to have between 6 and 8 beers to taste.

We are the FIRST place to have SUN KING Beer on Draft. We are currently featuring Sun King American Pale Ale. A nice session pale ale.

We also will be selling Sun King beer To Go in 1/2 Gallon Growlers.

New Growler $12

Refill $8

From Lauren at Scottys Brewhouse:

Scotty’s Brewhouse Beer Dinners ($25 Tickets in Advance)
• Tuesday, August 4: Downtown Indianapolis, 6 – 8pm - Sam Adams Brewing Company.
• Thursday, August 6: West Lafayette, 6 – 8pm – Bell’s Brewing Company.
• Tuesday, August 11: Muncie, 6 – 8pm – Magic Hat Brewing Company.
• Thursday, August 13: North Side Indianapolis, 6 – 8pm – Sun King Brewing Company.
• Monday, August 17: Bloomington, 6 – 8pm – New Belgium Brewing Company.
Each beer dinner includes an appetizer, entree, dessert, and of course brew! Log on to www.scottysbrewhouse.com for more information!

From Patrick at Patrick's Kitchen in Zionsville:

SUMMER BEER BUFFET TUESDAY, JULY 21 - 6:30 PM

Boom Boom Shrimp - Fried shrimp coated in a spicy sauce
-Victory Hop Devil-Menacingly delicious, with the powerful aromatic punch of whole flower American hops backed up by rich, German malts.

Beer Brats - Grilled and served with onions and peppers
-Spaten Dunkel-Easily drinkable with a pronounced malt palate.

Portly Pork Loin - Sliced pork loin in a luscious port/gorgonzola sauce
-Brooklyn Brown Ale-Complex malt flavor, fruity, smooth, and rich, with a caramel, chocolate, and coffee background.

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms - Charbroiled and served with red wine sauce
-Belhaven Scottish Ale-Its sweet ruby mix of malt and hops pampers and primes the palate, preparing you for a smooth creamy finish.

Chicken Orzo Salad - Herb-roasted chicken breast with orzo pasta, in a light olive oil-lemon dressing.
-WITTEKERKE BELGIAN WHITE ALE-Light, crisp, and refreshing, and although the hoppy bitterness is an underlying taste, it is never dominant.

BETH'S Red Velvet Cake - Rich red devil's food cake with snowy buttercream frosting.
-westmall dubble trappist ale-Deeply malty, with a subtle and dry finish that hints at tropical fruit.

From Matt & Elizabeth at Old Town Ale House in Fishers:

We've got Beer School #2 just around the corner: Thursday , July 30th at 7 p.m. This month's topic is "IPA's" $10 includes beer & appetizers. Call 841-0800 to reserve your spot.

Here's what's on draft at the Ale House this week:

Founder’s Pale Ale ……….……………. 4
Sea Dog Blueberry Ale ………………... 4
Berghoff Blond …..…………….….…….… 4
Fat Tire.............................................4
Bell’s Two Hearted ………………….……... 5
Bell’s Oberon …………………….………... 5
Three Floyds Robert The Bruce ……..….. 5
Victory Prima Pils …………....…………… 5
Two Brothers Domaine Dupage .........….. 5
Original Sin ……………...………...………. 5
Stone Smoked Porter …….……….......…. 5
Three Floyds Pride & Joy ....................... 5
Goose Island Fleur …………………….…. 5
Stone Levitation ……………….……….…. 6
Hebrew RIPA …….………………….…...... 6
Hebrew Rejewvenator ……………………. 6
Great Divide Saison …..……..….………... 6
Boulder Flashback Anniversary Ale ........ 6
Dreadnaught IPA ..……..………….…..….. 9*
Stone IRS .……………………..….……... 10*
*excluded from Tuesday & Wed. pint night special

Carry Out

From Gabe at Goose the Market in Indianapolis:

Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA (singles)
Founders Old Curmudgeon (singles avail.)
Founders Double Trouble (singles avail.)
Great Divide 15th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA
Great Divide Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout
Clipper City Heavy Seas The Big DIPA
Brasserie Dupont Moinette Blonde
Hitachino Nest Weizen
Stone 13th Anniversary
Stone Cali-Belgie
Stone Imperial Russian Stout
Stone Old Guardian Barleywine
Scaldis Refermentee

From Todd at Keg Liquors:

Great Divide Oak Aged Chocolate Yeti
Great Divide 15th Anniversary - Barrel aged Double IPA
Great Divide Double Wit
Shipyard Pugsley’s Signature Series XXXX IPA

From Kirk at Mr G's in Noblesville:

Great Divide 15th Anniversary 22 oz $8.99
Great Divide Chocolate Yeti 22 oz $10.99
Clipper City Big DIPA 22 oz $5.99

News, Reviews, and Gossip

From Mat at Cavalier Distribution:

Chumley’s 838 Broadripple Avenue - Indy Microbrewers Fest Kick Off, Friday, July 17

Last reminder about the 2nd annual night before the Micro brew fest at Chumley's Friday night 5 amazing kegs tapped each hour from 7 to 11! Many of the brewery reps for these kegs should be there as well!

7:00 Two Brothers Hop Juice
8:00 Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale
9:00 Hebrew Barrel aged RIPA
10:00 Founders Maple Mt. Brown
11:00 Left Hand Oak aged Imperial Stout

looking forward to warming everyone up for Saturday

Micro brew fest special keg tapping schedule

tapping at
3:00 *** He'brew Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA Barrel Aged 5gal keg
3:30 Great Divide 15 Ann. wood aged Dbl IPA 5 gal keg
5:30 Clipper City Big DIPA 5.2 Gal Keg ***** 5 lbs of hops per Brl - the hoppiest beer in the fest ...

3:00 *** Founders Old Curmudgeon 5 gal keg
4:00 Founders Devil Dancer 5 Gal. keg
5:00 Founders Barrel Aged Red's Rye PA5 keg
6:00 Founders KBS 5 gal keg

4:30 Two Brothers Brewing Company Oh Brother Triple 5 Keg
5:30 Two Brothers Brewing Company Cane and Eble 5 Keg

4:30 Left Hand Sawtooth Firkin *** Special tapping

*** Tapped and ready to go when gates open when they are gone they are gone

Brewery reps at the fest

Melissa Komadina, Hebrew
Dave Egbers, Founders
Mike Walters, Lefthand with the Moo Mobile
Aaron Tyrell, Stone Brewing

Be sure to stop by their tables and say hello to them.

Two Hoppiest beers at the fest

As best as I can tell the Clipper City Big DIPA (to be tapped at 5:30) at 5 pounds of hops per brl and Stone 13th Anniv Ale (on tap from the start until it is gone) at 4.5 pounds of hops per brl will be the two hoppiest beers the fest. Make sure to get a taste of both.

New in this week

A truck from Left Hand (thanks to shipping guru Eric Carter) arrived at the Cavalier warehouse today with the Sawtooth firkin for the fest as well as some goodies from Longmont, CO. New to Indiana is 6 packs of Jackmans Pale Ale and Nitro Milk Stout kegs!

Looking forward to seeing everyone at Chumley's and the Fest.

Bob O. at Indianabeer has full information for World Class Beverages' Hopapalooza line-up for the festival next weekend. The list of beers is below.

Brewery	Beer
21st Amendment	Brew Free or Die IPA
Abita Brewing	Jockamo IPA
Atwater Brewery	Salvation IPA
Avery Brewery	Hog Heaven
Avery Brewery	Maharaja
Avery Brewery	IPA
Bell's Brewery	IPA
Boulevard Brewery	Double Wide IPA
Dark Horse Brewing	Double Crooked Tree IPA
Dogfish Head Brewery	120 Minute IPA
Firestone Walker	Double Barrel Pale Ale
Firestone Walker	Union Jack
Flying Dog Brewery	Double Dog Double Pale Ale
Harpoon Brewery	IPA
Harpoon Brewery	Leviathan IPA
Hoppin' Frog Brewery	Mean Manalishi
Lagunitas Brewing	Hop Stoopid
Lost Coast Brewery	Indica IPA
Ninkasi Brewing	Total Domination IPA
Ninkasi Brewing	Believer Double Red
North Coast	Red Seal IPA
Port Brewing	Wipe Out IPA
Port Brewing	Hop 15
Rogue Brewing	Double Dead Guy
Schlafly Brewing	Export IPA
Victory Brewery	Hop Wallop

Knight Chris found talks of a new Bells DIPA - The Oracle.

11 Things A New Beer Festival Visitor Should Know

2009-07-16T10:28:00.020-04:00

Summer weekends are usually jam-packed with beer festivals across the country. This is a great way to introduce new beers and beer styles to both seasoned veterans and new craft beer drinkers. While the seasoned veterans may already know how it works, the new craft beer festival attendee may find it simply overwhelming. With experience on both sides of the tap handles, we've hopefully come up with a helpful guide for a beginner.

At these festivals it's usually really hot and you find yourself in long lines, sometimes not even being really sure what the line is for. You get up to the table and all of a sudden you need to make a decision. You've heard of the brewery, but you are not sure about the beers they offer. What beer should you pick? The simple answer is that if you are not sure, just ask.

If this is your (or your friends) first time to a beer festival, dress comfortable and arrive early. The lines to get in are usually quite long.

Here are 10 more tips that may make your first-time experience more enjoyable.

1. Do not say "Give me the lightest thing you have". This phrase is too vague to be helpful in any kind of way. Do you mean lightest in color or lightest in alcohol? If you are not clear, you may end up with a Tripel (upwards of 10% alcohol) when you really wanted a Pilsner (usually around 4-5% alcohol). If you are not sure what to get, let the server know that you are new to craft beer and are not familiar with all the styles.

2. Do not go up to a merchandise booth and ask what beers they have. Be aware of your surroundings and of where you are. If you are oblivious to the fact that there are no taps, bottles, or coolers on the table, you may want to rethink getting another beer at all.

3. If there is a long line behind you, do not stand around after your beer is poured and offer your thoughts. Get you beer and move out of the tent. Enjoy the beer with your friends out of the way of others.

4. Do not be mean to people pouring your beer. Better yet, do not be mean to anyone. There are lots of people moving around trying to get somewhere. Sometimes your server is a volunteer, sometimes it's the brewer. Some of these people work in beer for a living - try and imagine what it would be like for you to go to work and all of your co-workers were drunk.

5. Either know a little bit about beer, or be open-minded. We've heard stories or actually have seen people throwing their beer at the server because it had sediment in it. Please do not do this under any circumstance.

6. It is not a race to see how much beer you can drink. You will not be able to try everything, so take time to enjoy what you do get. Take advantage of the food offerings and drink some water once in a while. You may think that a couple hours is not enough time, but it really is.

7. Be prepared for long lines for the restrooms. The whole festival is about beverage intake, after all. Just get a beer, get in line and wait your turn. Don't cut in line, don't shout at people, and for the love of god - DO NOT TIP THE PORT-A-POTTY OVER. If you are germ-weary, bring hand sanitizer. Sometimes the paper towels/water runs out. Often the restrooms are beyond disgusting.

8. If you smoke, please do not do it inside the tents. For some people, smoke = gross = no beer enjoyment. Smoke outside, then place your butt in a proper receptacle (proper receptacle does not equal the ground).

9. Do not ask for more beer after the festival has ended. And as the old bar adage goes...You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.

10. Get a designated driver, go somewhere else and sober up, or rent a hotel. Sometimes a hotel is not an option. Anticipate for this and make necessary arrangements.

We want everyone has a safe, enjoyable experience and we would like to see you again at the next event.

KOTBR #79 - Apocalypse Cow

2009-07-15T11:59:00.000-04:00

It's not all that often that you hear about a Double IPA brewed with lactose. Clearly when we heard about this and its tapping at the Downtown Indianapolis Buffalo Wild Wings, we knew what our next roundtable would be. We made a few calls, got the band back together, and headed out for a night on the town. One problem remained: we had no idea what kind of wacky gimmick we should employ to keep this fresh and entertaining for our readers. Unfortunately, as you're about to see, we didn't have any good ideas. I now present to you the COWS OF THE APOCALYPSE.

Greetings from California! I've had this beer when I visited a little pub in Carlsbad. Now, I know that a cow in a brewpub may not be common, but we cows enjoy a libation from now and again, just like you bipeds. Besides, the farmer lets us. He tells us that it will help relax our muscles, make them more tender or something. Now if that isn't the nicest thing, no wonder we're so happy. Anyway, I chose this beer because it had an old college girlfriend of mine on the label. Ol' "One-Eyed Bessie" we called her. She wasn't a looker, but she was a nice gal. All she talked about was going into the military, and something about a red button. I don't know whatever happened to her, but drinking this beer brought back all kinds of memories of our time in college. When we went to school in Indiana, we drank loads of Gumballhead. This beer reminds me of that, but much creamier and with more alcohol. There are grapefruit and piney flavors and the mouthfeel is thick and just a touch resin-like. I hope to get back to that place soon; they have the best cheeseburger pizza! I wish I knew what was in those meatballs. They were wonderful.

Well, I have to go. The farmer is telling me I'm going to a place called processing! I wonder where that is?

Hello, I'm Vienna Schwarzencow, the bovine BGH muscle machine from Austria. I love all those BGH horomones and pumped up steroids we get to increase our milk and cheese production for the masses. Since I am extreme, I need for my beer to be extreme and out of the ordinary. I reach for FFF's, you know, since they are not normal, just like a cow that types a message onto a beer blog or a cow that can pump out 40% more milk than nature intended. I came out for the keg tapping of this DIPA that has had lactose added, and knew that I needed to try something that my udders had a part in. One of my favorite beers from FFF's is fresh Dreadnaught and this has the same flavor profile with ripe mangos, passion fruit, pine, and plenty of citrus notes. The mouthfeel is thick and full and I can really tell what that lactose has done for this beer, and there is a malty sweetness that balances out those hops. This was a real treat and udderly delicious.

Straight from the mouth of Chicago's most famous cow--

I was blamed for one of the most destructive fires in history. But history has vindicated me. Similarly, when Nick Floyd started up his Chicagoland brewery in 1996, people weren't quite sure what to expect. I'm sure many doubted that he would succeed. But history, too, has vindicated Mr. Floyd with his highly-regarded beers, so I feel that I'm a kindred spirit with him. And wouldn't you know it--he even brewed a beer with a cow on the label!

Mr. Floyd's Apocalypse Cow provides the drinker with a conflagration of flavor. An incendiary combination of caramel-like malt, citrusy hops, and lactose produce a peachy DIPA with a wonderfully creamy finish. Yes, it's a bonfire of grapefruit and sugary goodness. Mr. Floyd has lit the fuse with this beer. Mooooove over, Hopslam. You have company.

It's my fault that you're now reading reviews written by famous cows - it was my dumb idea. As it turns out, there really aren't all that many famous cows, and even if you find one, pretending to be a cow writing a beer review isn't nearly as entertaining as it might seem. So instead of that, here are some cow facts from my favorite website (Facts About Cows) that you may not know - and I'll try to tie them back to the beer.

1) Cows are referred to as the foster mothers of the human race because they produce most of the milk that people drink.

In my house, Three Floyds beers are often referred to as the Cindy Crawford's mole of the refrigerator because they're always lurking there on the bottom shelf and turning me on in a weird way that I shouldn't share with strangers on the internet.

2) Before milking machines were invented in 1894, farmers could only milk about six cows per hour. Today, farmers use machines to milk more than 100 cows per hour.

Before selling off their old filler, Three Floyds could fill just two bottles of beer per hour. Although many people think the beer's popularity contributes to the all-to-common sight of no Gumballhead on store shelves, the truth is that the old filler was the culprit. Luckily, with new machines, they are now able to fill not only their own bottles, but also the bottles of babies, milkmen, and perfumists. Stay tuned for Chanel's new Alpha Coco.

3) A cow chews her cud (regurgitated, partially digested food) for up to eight hours each day.

Some people say that Nick Floyd does the same thing with the souls of lesser brewers.

Anyway... the beer of review: Apocolypse Cow has a head like tapioca, with a nose that's like an orange-flavored Gumballhead. The first thing I noticed was the creamy texture, followed by grassy fruit and a sweet finish. The beer is bitter and slightly funky, like close to expiration date milk. There's also a bitterness there that lives right in the middle of the palate. "F*cking weird" is the last thing I wrote.

Three Floyds Apocalypse Cow
[MattR 4.55] [Mike 3.49] [Jim 4.75] [Gina 4.05] [Jess 3.2] [Chris 4.2] [Rod 3.5]
KOTBR Score - 3.96 Mugs

Chris' table before they realized we stuck them with the tab.

KOTBR #78: Lafayette, we are here!

2009-07-13T21:11:00.003-04:00

On the way up to Purdue country, I confessed my desire to ask every bartender we met about their favorite combination for a boilermaker. I mean, Purdue is home to the Boilermakers. Certainly, even the craft beer joints have been asked to make a boilermaker for some annoyingly drunk alum at some point.

What craft beer and what whiskey would go great together, I pondered. I was hoping for some wild suggestions. But of the two joints we hit, neither had been asked to make a boilermaker before. The Lafayette Brewing Company doesn't even serve whiskey at its main bar (they do on the second floor, which is set up for events, concerts, etc.).

A bit disappointing? Yes. Did it stop us from marching on? Not at all. Our first stop: Lafayette Brewing Company (622 Main Street, Lafayette, IN, http://www.lafayettebrewingco.com/), where Greg and company have been producing craft beer since 1993. This is my third trip to LBC; this is the first for Mike and Gina.

Gina commented, "I love Lafayette Brewing Company's cozy atmosphere." When we visited, the restaurant and bar were full of warm colors and wood finishes. The long bar faces an antique back bar complete with mirrors, perfect for people watching. While sitting at the bar, to your left you can watch the brewmasters perform their trade through a set of windows.

You would certainly call this a pub. It has all the feel of an English establishment, but on a larger scale. Families are served from the dining room side of LBC and the entire venue is non-smoking.

Before we talk about the beers (which is the reason we are here to begin with), I want to talk about the people. As we all know, a good bar or brewpub is more than a physical space and a collection of alcoholic beverages. It is also about people.

People behind the bar, like Kelly, who was very friendly and knowledgeable. And people at the bar, like James.

James is a well-known regular. He's Irish ex-pat who is a professor at Purdue. Mention the professor to bar staff or regulars, and they will know who you are talking about immediately. James likes his beers. And his engineering background leads him to do some things many of us don't do.

For example, he carries with him a flexible thermometer. This particular thermometer is designed to wrap around glasses and give the temperature of the contents within. It is normally used by those who enjoy wine. But he likes to use it on his pints of beer.

This particular beer (I believe it to be the "Eighty Five") comes up between 16 and 18 degrees Celsius. That's about 60 to 64 degrees Fahrenheit to you and me. Does that tell us a whole lot? Not necessarily. It's just interesting (and James likes his beer cooler than what you stereotypically expect from an Irishman).

Along with the fascinating quirks, he also was a great resource for identifying beers to try (he recommends blending the Eighty-Five and the Prophet's Rock Pale Ale...unfortunately, the latter was not on tap during our visit) and places to visit (along with Lafayette's Black Sparrow, Knickerbocker, Chumley's, and West Lafayette's Scotty's Brewhouse, he suggested we check out Preston's, which reportedly always has Bell's Two Hearted on tap...unfortunately, we did not hit all of them; a list for a future visit!).

So if you are at LBC, and you see the good professor (and you like to talk to people, like I do), be sure to strike up a conversation with James.

Okay, on to the beers...

Between the regular, seasonal, speciality, and cask conditioned beers, there were around a dozen originals to choose from. We sampled all, but elected to fully explore and review a few. Among them, LBC's most popular beer:

Tippecanoe Common Ale.

So popular, in fact, that they didn't have any on tap. But LBC is bottling two of their beers for carry out consumption. One is Black Angus Oatmeal Stout. The other, thankfully, is Tippecanoe Common Ale. There is a reason why it is so popular: it is delicious. This is one of those beers that are well balanced between hops and malts. But it isn't lacking in Amarillo hops, even in the bottle. I've had the Ale on tap before. There is an ever so slight loss in hops when bottled, but not so much that you really notice unless you are really focused. When the bottled variety eventually makes it way across the state, you will see it in frequent rotation in my beer fridge. 4.0 Mugs

Gina: Poured from the bottle, this easy drinking and exceptionally tasty beer had a nice full-bodied mouthfeel. I am glad we picked some up for home enjoyment. 3.8 Mugs

Mike: The Tippecanoe Common Ale is LBC's best selling beer, and it's easy to see why. Hints of grapefruit-like hops are nicely balanced with a tasty caramel back, giving you a hoppy yet complex and extremely sessionable red ale. We all liked this one, and luckily it's bottled, so we were able to bring some home. 4.2 Mugs

Eighty-Five

Gina: We had this both on draft and from a firkin. The draft version was a nice balance of a footy hop aroma and tasted quite malty. The firkin was a less footy version with a full body and citrusy aroma and flavor. I enjoyed both but the firkin pour was spectacular. 3.25 Mugs - draft, 3.85 Mugs - firkin

Mike: Eighty-Five is LBC's "American Ale", but I'd say it easily works as an IPA. The beer is heavily hopped with both Centennial and Cascade hops, giving it a big bitter bite and an almost syrupy hop flavor. I like a bit more malt in my beer, but this one was still enjoyable and worth revisiting. 3.3 Mugs - draft, 3.58 Mugs - firkin

Jason: After having publicly proclaimed that I did not like hoppy beers on a popular craft beer podcast almost three years ago, I've done a complete one-eighty. Or perhaps a one-eighty-five? All puns aside, I'm big on hops. And Eighty-Five doesn't disappoint. I liked this so much, I considered buying the LBC '85' hockey jersey. Anyway, the Cascade hops standout in the draft version. The grapefruit/citrus aroma stands out. We were lucky enough to be there when they brought out a firkin of Eighty-Five. It looked of orange juice, with a more concentrated citrus aroma to boot. There were more bitters, but there were also more sour flavors, which I'm not a big fan of (in three years, I suspect I'll be the biggest sour beer fan in the world). 4.15 Mugs - draft; 3.85 Mugs - firkin.

As I mentioned before, we sampled other LBC beers, but did not rate them at this time. A sinister excuse to come back up for another roundtable. But here are our notes for your consideration...

Mike:
Piper's Pride - The Piper's Pride Scottish Ale poured a woody amber color and had roasty malt elements that brought to mind smoke and oreo cookies. While that might not sound like an appetizing combination, the thinner mouthfeel meant that this was an extremely easy to drink and tasty brew.

Jason:
Piper's Pride - This beer made me think of smoke (like hickory, not cigarettes) and gingerbread cookies. The bitterness in this beer jumps up as it warms. This would be a great winter beer.

Weeping Hog IPA - On draft, this seems like a light version of an IPA. The Eighty-Five is definitely hoppier. But the cask version is very tasty. Like most places, if there is a cask conditioned version available, get it!

Dog Days - LBC's version of a summer lager, it was named for the public art display in Lafayette and West Lafayette. This has a fuller flavor and mouthfeel than you would expect from a lager. This is better than most that I have had and serves well, even at room temperature.

Gina:
Ouiatenon Wit Bier - A very nice and wheaty beer that could stand up to the hottest of summer days. We had a discussion about the name of this beer, and I asked if it had anything to do with yes and no, but wikipedia says no...the name "Ouiatenon" is a French rendering of the name in the Wea language, waayaahtanonki, meaning "place of the whirlpool".

Black Angus Oatmeal Stout - A smoky English-style stout beer with plenty of oatmeal and chocolate hints.

Weeping Hog IPA - This reminded me of a peach soaked in vodka in the best possible way. Really nice! We also tried this on cask and I believe Greg said the IPA's were made with different malts.

After LBC, we moved down the street to the Black Sparrow Pub (223 Main Street, Lafayette, IN, http://www.blacksparrowpub.com/). Bar manager John has been regularly submitting tap updates to our Random Beer Roundup, and we've been nothing but impressed. The Black Sparrow opened in 2007 and has become a favorite of beer geeks, foodies, and fans of classic cocktails. John and his bartender Brad (don't call them "mixologists"...they're bartenders) will shake up a number of quality classic cocktails. When I say classic, I mean they searched out recipes from before Prohibition. Drinks like the Aviation, the Bourbon Flip, the New York Sour, the Sparrow Sidecar, and the Tequila Swizzle. Even if you aren't ordering up one of these drinks, sit at the bar and watch them work. It is an art in itself.

The tap menu is constantly changing, as the chalkboard shows. And there is a large selection of bottled beers as well. There is some overlap between the clientele between LBC and the Black Sparrow (in fact, we bumped into John earlier at the LBC bar), but as the night goes on, the crowd changes a bit from the downtown worker and dweller crowd (like Diane, Esq.) to a younger, hipper cocktail crowd. The bar also allows smoking after 10pm.

From the eight excellent taps, we opted to review two beers. First up...

Three Floyds Munsterfest
Mike: How glad I was to see this on tap. The only problem I have with Three Floyds beers is that taking a chance on a $10+ bomber of them can be risky. Even if I'm paying $7 for a pint (and I have no idea what we paid for this one, but I'm guessing it wasn't cheap), that seems much more reasonable.

I picked up a combination of green apple and milk in the nose of this beer, elements that were echoed when taking a drink. A creamy mouthfeel, with sweet and syrupy apple cider elements... this is probably a beer better suited for cold weather. This is also pretty mild for a Floyds beer - but I'm not complaining. 3.10 Mugs

Jason: I get a sweet combination of apple flavors and aromas, making this, for me, an apple cider-flavored beer. Which is great. This is a fall or harvest season beer. It was also lacking that big, huge punch of alcohol and hops that you usually expect from Three Floyds. 3.45 Mugs

Gina: Those cocktails look like fun. I want to review a cocktail. What? We're reviewing beers? You're no fun. 3.0 Mugs

Great Divide Belgica:
Mike: Great Divide Belgica is classified as a Belgian-style IPA, and lives up to that description. The beer has a saison-like peppery start, with the trademark Belgian complexity and flowery elements. But the beer finishes not too bitter, reminding you of its IPA roots. My notes say "a tongue twister". 3.70 Mugs

Jason: This is by far an interesting hybrid beer. It is appropriately listed as Belgian first and IPA second. It was enjoyable, with tons of Belgian beer flavor and nose, but I was disappointed by a lacking in the IPA department. If they didn't call it an IPA, would I have rated it higher? Maybe. But it is worth trying anyway. 3.4 mugs

Gina: You guys suck. I want a cocktail. 3.15 mugs

LBC Tippecanoe Common Ale (bottle)
Jason 4.0 Mugs Gina 3.8 Mugs Mike 4.2 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.00 Mugs

LBC Eighty-Five (draft)
Jason 4.15 Mugs Gina 3.25 Mugs Mike 3.3 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.57 Mugs

LBC Eighty-Five (firkin)
Jason 3.85 Mugs Gina 3.85 Mugs Mike 3.58 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.76 Mugs

Three Floyd's Munsterfest (draft)
Jason 3.45 Mugs Gina 3.0 Mugs Mike 3.1 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.18 Mugs

Great Divide Belgica (draft)
Jason 3.4 Mugs Gina 3.15 Mugs Mike 3.7 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.42 Mugs

The Hoosier Beer Geek 6 Pack: Mikkel Bjergsø of Mikkeller

2009-07-12T18:15:00.000-04:00

The Hoosier Beer Geek 6 Pack is a feature where we run six questions by the folks behind the scenes at breweries to get a little more insight into what they do and like and how they got their start.

If you've been reading HBG for a while, then the following brewer needs no introduction. From our 2008 Beer of the Year, to our Craft Beer Breakfast and our Mikkeller Marathon roundtable review, we've never hidden the fact that we're huge fans of the work of Mikkel Bjergsø. It's with great pleasure we present this 6 pack interview.

1) The first thing we normally ask in these interviews is your name, age, location, and the name of the brewery you work for.

Mikkel Bjergsø, 33, Copenhagen - Denmark, Mikkeller

2) Your story is interesting in that you and your friend Kristian Klarup Keller started as bottling homebrewers, gained a reputation for doing great beer, and then the distributors started calling. Was it that simple? And how did you convince a professional brewery to let them let you use their equipment?

Yep, it's actually that simple. Having homebrewed for three years we started selling small batches of beer from my brother's shop in Copenhagen, Denmark. Suddenly these beers showed up in different parts of the world and got some great reviews on beer sites like Ratebeer and BeerAdvocate. Our small batches started selling out in a matter of hours and we thought it would be fun to get a wider distribution. Instead of following the trend in Denmark and opening our own brewery we contacted a few breweries in Denmark asking them for the possibility of renting their equipment and brewing our beer. We wanted to keep our jobs and did not want to take huge loans, as it often affects the quality of the beer you produce. If you have a 2 million dollar debt it's hard not to compromise to sell more beer. The breweries we contacted thought we were crazy, but we convinced some of them to let us use their equipment.

3) You went from homebrewer to Danish Brewery of the Year pretty much instantly, and were ranked as the 6th best brewery in the world by Ratebeer.com in the course of a year. Where does that come from? To read that--and I'm not looking to embarrass or flatter you--but you'd have to think, "Well this guy must be some sort of genius." At what point did you realize, "Maybe I really have a gift for this?"

To me it's not that hard! I started brewing beer at home as I thought something was missing in Denmark. Ten years ago we started getting a lot of new breweries here, but due to the mentioned big loans, they pretty much all brewed the same boring pale ale, pilsner, weissbier, etc., in order to sell a lot of beer. The Danish public weren't ready for out-of-this-world beer styles. I looked over to the U.S. and found breweries like Three Floyds, Stone, Alesmith, Dogfish Head, Founders, etc., and thought - beers like this are what I want to drink, and if you can't buy it, brew it yourself. I don't think I'm a genius or have a special gift for brewing--maybe I just have good taste in beer :-)

4) Did you start with the the complete joy of homebrewing like everyone else does? What's your brewing background? And when you're coming up with something now, do you still start the recipes as a homebrew?

When I stared homebrewing, I had a couple homebrew books, but I didn't use them for too long. I quickly got more interested in doing things my own way. I am a chemistry teacher at a school in Copenhagen (I still am half-time, since I love teaching and cannot let go if it) so that might have helped with the theoretical part a bit. Besides this I have no background. For the first year or so with Mikkeller, I did homebrew batches to test new recipes, but since I am getting more and more busy, I don't have time for that anymore. When creating new recipes I think about beers within a style that I like and try to take the best part from different beers. I sample a lot of different beers from all over the world to get inspired. I think this is a very important thing if you want to brew good beer. You have to know the best that is out there and try to make it even better :-)

5) In the United States, craft breweries often like to make an "us versus them" argument when talking about large breweries (like Anheuser-Busch and Miller/Coors) and themselves, basically saying that the large breweries are making bad beer, and that the smaller breweries are the "little guy" fighting a major battle. Do you see your brewery in the same sort of position? Are you fighting a "battle for better beer" against the likes of Carlsberg in Denmark?

Not fighting Carlsberg, fighting boring and uninteresting beer. Carslberg is and will always be the number one choice for 95+% people of the Danish population. I think it is sad that so many people don't know what possibilities beer has. I want to show them what hops, malts, and yeast taste like. Not to take customers away form Carlsberg, but to enlighten people in the wonderful work of craft brewing. If people enjoy one IPA for every 100 Carlsbergs, I am happy.

6) A life of traveling the world and brewing beer with the world's greatest brewers seems like a romantic dream for many of us. Is it all good times, or are there headaches (not just from the beer) that come along with that sort of lifestyle?

Traveling and meeting great people and brewers is what makes it all fun. I am in a very fortunate position that I am able to do this. Meeting my brewing idols all over the world, sharing thoughts and ideas with them, is really great. But it is also great being back home teaching and having colleagues and students that you know well and share your everyday life with. Traveling can be very lonely even though you meet a lot of people. I just got a wonderful little daughter which of course has changed things, but I will always be traveling and hopefully brew with the best brewers in the world.

Random Beer Roundup - Love to the Homebrewer Edition

2009-07-09T19:35:00.028-04:00

We had a great time last weekend in Cincinnati. Although it rained at the ballpark and the Cardinals lost, we still managed to have a good time and find good beer (Great Lakes and Flying Dog among others). We also spent some time eating, drinking, and listening to a great polka band at the Hofbrauhaus before (and after) catching the fireworks show on the Ohio River. We tried to hit up the Beer Sellar, but they had a cover charge and we thought that was dumb. We made up for it though, by picking up a couple gems at Jungle Jim's and the Party Source. I'm sure you'll be hearing about some of them later. How was your holiday weekend?

We want to wish good luck to all of the homebrewers who entered beer into this year's Brewers Cup. We are hoping for a repeat gold from Knights Rod and Jess, who won with their chili beer last year. Good luck as well to those judging the competition -- may your palates be ripe for tasting. Judging and awards for the event will happen this weekend at the State Fairgrounds. We wish everyone the very best.

So as the great Charlie Papazian would say “Relax. Don't worry. Have a homebrew.” This is the Random Beer Roundup.

Hoosier Beer Calendar
Events are subject to change

Wednesday, July 15th at Spencer's Stadium Tavern in Indianapolis at 6pm:
Brewer's Dinner - For tickets go to Chef JJ. (details below)

Friday, July 17th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
Brewers of Indiana Guild VIP Dinner

Friday, July 17th at Chumley's in Broad Ripple starting at 7pm:
Indy Microbrewers Fest Kick Off (details below)

Saturday, July 18th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
14th Annual Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You can purchase tickets online here.

Tuesday, July 21st at Patrick's Kitchen and Drinks in Zionsville at 6:30 pm:
Summer Beer Buffet - Six course beer dinner (details below)

Saturday, August 22nd:
The Hoosier Beer Geek 3rd Anniversary Party, Sun King Brewing Co. Tickets are limited and can be purchased from Brown Paper Tickets.

Saturday, September 12th, from 7-10pm at the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend:
Zoo Brew, beer tasting event, tickets on sale August 1, $30 in advance; more info here.

Saturday, September 26th at Crown Brewing Co. in Crown Point - 2nd Annual Oktoberfest - Outdoor event, Live Music, Food, etc

What's Brewing

From Charlie at Brugge in Broad Ripple/Terre Haute:

Lots of things are happening at Brugge Brasserie and with Brugge Beer. Some are a bit inconvenient and some are exciting.

First, our main boiler at the brewery in Terre Haute decided to stop boiling. Replacing it requires some underground construction work for an upgraded gas line and meter.
This means we won't have any production until the work is finished. And I wish I could give you a completion date right now, but I can't.

We still have a limited supply of Tripel de Rippel and Rubicon Red for you to enjoy at the Brasserie.
And we'll be as desperate as you for more Brugge Black, White, and Tripel, so we promise to keep you up to speed on our progress.

In the meantime, Ted is hard at work crafting a couple of summer beers in our brewery at the Brasserie.
One is called Bruno ( not to be confused with some obscure Sacha Baron Cohen film ) . It is a summer "brun" ( French Belgian for Brown ) baby Dubbel. It should be ready within 5 to 7 days.
The second is a Belgian Blonde called Voyageur (not to be confused with, oh, never mind) hopped to American standards. It sounds like the perfect "Upper Deck" session beer and will be ready to enjoy within 2 weeks.

Also, we will be taking this opportunity to feature some sensational guest beers while we await the return of your Brugge favorites. This list will change frequently, so stay tuned.
Currently, we have the following outstanding selection upstairs:

Bitburger Premium
Franziskaner Hefe Weizen
O'Hara's Celtic Stout
Three Floyds Alpha King
Cane and Ebel Red Rye

In other news, while the brewery is under repair The Vigo Brewing Group, parent of Brugge Beer, will be investigating a potential new product line, including some very robust and aggressive American beers.

I'll keep you up to date on everything as we move forward.
Thanks again for all you support and loyalty to the Brugge brand.

From Scott at Upland Brewing Co. in Bloomington:

We have finally tapped the long-awaited Double Dragonfly Imperial IPA at our tap room. Dragonfly’s bigger brother comes in around 10% ABV and is a hop head’s dream. We only made one batch so it’s only available until it lasts!

From Greg at Lafayette Brewing Co. in Lafayette:

After a short closure over the holiday weekend, LBC popped the doors back open this past Wednesday with a new menu and some stylish new bench seating in the dining room. Tasty new dishes include: Our Signature Steak; Winner Winner Chicken Dinner; True Bleu Burger; Caribbean Pork Tenderloin; Nachos Papas and much, much more! LBC will also be hosting the Caleb Klauder Country Band on Friday night. Local favorites The Woodstove Flapjacks will open the evening of old-time country and string music. On Saturday, the street in front of LBC will be closed to vehicular traffic as the season's 3rd Mosey Down Main Street takes place. Live music, street performers, crafts, belly dancers, local food vendors and more take over Main St. from 6 pm to midnight. A great place to take LBC's new 1-liter growlers for a stroll! Admission is FREE!

On tap at LBC this weekend: Ouiatenon Wit; Prophet's Rock Pale Ale; East Side Bitter; Pipers' Pride Scottish Ale; Tippecanoe Common Ale; Black Angus Oatmeal Stout; Eighty-Five; Weeping Hog IPA (draft and cask versions) and the last bit of our Dog Days Summer Lager.

From Adam at Crown Brewing in Crown Point:

7 Beers Now on Tap + a Root Beer

1) JailHouse Bock
2) Celtic Pride Irish Stout
3) Special Force Ale (IPA)
4) Wiezenheimmer
5) Wit
6) BlueBerry
7) Crown Light

August 22nd - the Crown Challenge Pro-Am - Check out the site for more info
September 25th - Crown Brewing will be featured at the Pumpkin Bash (Lake County Fairgrounds 5 - 11pm)
September 26th - 2nd Annual Oktoberfest - Outdoor event, Live Music, Food, etc (211 S East St ~ Crown Point)

At the Bar

From Dustin at Spencers Stadium Tavern:

If you haven't heard we are having another Brewer's Dinner. On July 15th @ 6 P.M. for $39 you get the chance to taste the first batches from Sun King Brewery. We will be closing the Tavern and going NON-SMOKING for the night. Only a few seats remain. For tickets go to Chef JJ.

From Amber at Scottys Brewhouse:

Scotty’s Liquor Mixer Thirst Quencher is coming Thursday, July 23rd from 6 – 9pm! This is a VIP Only event – you sign up to be a VIP for only $10 and get in FREE! Samplings of Scotty’s Cocktails, Wines and High Gravity Beers from Bell’s Brewing Company.

From Patrick at Patrick's Kitchen in Zionsville:

Please know that we just tapped Hop Wallop, Brooklyn Brewing Brown Ale, and have a keg of Coney Island Lenny's Rye IPA waiting in the wings.

In addition, our new bottles include Moylan's Double IPA (Moylander), Three Floyd's Apocalypse Cow, and we're all enjoying them very much.

Patrick's Kitchen and Drinks invites you to our Summer Beer Buffet, Tuesday, July 21 at 6:30 PM. This six course dinner will feature six beers specially paired to complement the food. Jo Vickery from World Class Beverage will be on hand to tell us all about the beers.
Tickets are $35 in advance, this includes the tax and tip. $45 at the door. Call 317-733-8755 for information and reservations, or email us at patrick@patrickskitchen.com

Carry Out

From Mike at Crown Liquors with various locations:

Crown will be receiving today, Founders Devil Dancer(allocated), Great Divide 15th BA IPA, Chocolate Yeti and Dbl. Witte as well as Heavy Seas Big DIPA. Giradin Geuze will be in next week and we still have some Stone 13th lingering.

From Todd at Keg Liquors:

Founder’s Devil Dancer - Founders most complex, most innovative, most feared and yet most revered ale produced. Massive in complexity the huge malt character balances the insane amount of alpha’s used to create this monster. More IBU’s than any brewery has documented, more than you would believe and dry-hopped for twenty-six days straight with a combination of 10 hop varieties. Dangerously drinkable and deliciously evil. We dare you to dance with the Devil. 200+ IBUs

Clipper City Heavy Seas The Big DIPA - Hopped 3 times in the brewing process, Big DIPA has an earthy hop aroma. In keeping with the Heavy Seas philosophy we’ve made a big beer with a surprising balance. The best part is that you’ll hardly notice it’s 10.6% ABV (est). The label artwork was created by Kurt Krol, one of our brewers who also helped to develop the recipe.

Southampton IPA - PAs are more highly hopped and a bit stronger than traditional pale ales. There are two distinct styles - English and American. English IPAs tend to be more subtle and a bit maltier while American IPAs have a bolder hop character. Southampton brewmaster Phil Markowski has combined the best of both styles in his IPA. He’s crafted an ale with the bold citrusy hop character of an American IPA and the maltier, more refined flavor of an English IPA. Although the defining characteristic of Southampton IPA is balance, its incredible blend of three American and two British hop varieties is sure to please any hophead! 40 IBUs.

Christian Moerlein Discovery Pack - Recently resurrected, this Cincinnati brewery was a local treasure until changing business climates forced them out of business. Now they are back. Their first available package in Indiana is a mixed 12 pack with the following: Barbarossa, a double dark lager, Over the Rhine Ale, Helles, and the Friend of an Irishman Stout. Pretty cool stuff here.

Oud Beersel Framboise - Framboise is a classic among the Belgian beers created by adding whole fresh raspberries (250 g/l)to a blend of young and old lambic. Framboise Oud Beersel is the missing link between beer and wine and is served chilled in flute glasses.

Oud Beersel Kriek - is a classic among Belgian beers. Created by adding whole fresh cherries to young lambic, which provides both seasoning and sparks another fermentation resulting in a product of great complexity. It has the acidity of champagne, the bouquet and delicate flavor of cherries, and balance of almondy dryness.

Girardin Geuze - is a lambic of exceptional excellence, the epitome of traditional gueuze, bombarding the palate with slightly lemon-grapefruit tang. Considered by many to be the finest lambic of all.

From Big Red Liquors in Bloomington:

New at Big Red Liquors:

Stone 13th Anniversary -Imperial Red Ale
Stone Cali-Belgie -IPA
New Holland Imperial Hatter IPA
New Holland Golden Cap Saison
New Holland Full Circle Kolsch
Founder's Devil Dancer -Triple IPA

As always don't forget about our FREE beer tasting every Thursday from 6-8pm at the downtown Bloomington store.

News, Reviews, and Gossip

From Mat at Cavalier Distribution:

Chumley’s 838 Broadripple Avenue - Indy Microbrewers Fest Kick Off, Friday, July 17

Starting at 7:00pm, every hour we will tap one of five kegs that have either never been seen in Indiana or might as well have never been seen in Indiana.

7:00- Two Brothers Brewing Co. Hop Juice Double IPA
8:00- Stone Brewing Co. Sublimely-Self Righteous Ale
9:00- Founder’s Brewing Co. Maple Mt. Brown Ale
10:00- Schmaltz Brewing Co. He’Brew Oak Aged Bitter Sweet Lenny’s RIPA
11:00- Left Hand Brewing Co. Oak Aged Imperial Stout

To be able to get into any of these kegs is a real treat…to be able to tap all five of them in one night in one place is certainly a rare and special opportunity if you are any kind of beer geek at all.

Also from Mat is a huge listing of the beer they will be bringing to the BIG festival next weekend with the special tappings highlighted:

Atlantic Brewing Co. Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale 4/6/12
Berghoff Blond (Artisan series) 4/6/12
Bison Brewing Organic IPA 4/6/12
Boulder Flashback Anniv. Ale 15.5 keg
Breckenridge 471 IPA 12/22
Breckenridge 471 ESB 5 gal keg
Cave Creek Chili Beer 4/6/12
Clipper City Big DIPA 5.2 Gal Keg ***** 5 lbs of hops per Brl - the hoppest beer in the fest ...
Clipper City Loose Cannon Hop3 Ale 4/6/12
Dixie Blackened Voodoo 4/6/12
Founders Centennial IPA 15.5 Keg
Founders Cerise 15.5 gal keg
Founders Devil Dancer 5 Gal. keg *** Special tapping
Founders Double Trouble 6/4/12
Founders KBS 5 gal keg *** Special tapping
Founders Old Curmudgeon 5 gal keg *** Special tapping
Founders Red's Rye 15.5 keg
Founders Barrel Aged Red's Rye PA5 keg *** Special tapping
Great Divide 15 Ann. wood aged Dbl IPA 5 gal keg *** Special tapping
Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout 15.5 gal. Keg
He'brew Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA 12/22
He'brew Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA Barrel Aged gal keg (special order) *** *** Special tapping w...
He'brew Origin Pomegranate Ale 12/22
He'brew Rejewvenator 12/22
Horse Piss Beer 6/4/12
J.K's Scrumpy Hard Cider (organic) 12/22
Lakefront Dark 4/6/12
Left Hand Haystack Wheat 15.5 gal. keg
Left Hand Imperial Stout 12/22
Left Hand JuJu Ginger Ale 15.5 keg
Left Hand Milk Stout 15.5 Keg
Left Hand Sawtooth 15.5 gal. keg
Left Hand Sawtooth Firkin *** Secial tapping
Looking Glass Mojo Risen 15.5 gal keg
Mad Anthony 'Ol Woody Pale 15.5 keg
Mad River Brewing Company Steelhead Extra Stout 4/6/12
MAD RIVER JOHN BARLEYCORN 13.2 KEG
Mendocino Blue Heron Pale 4/6/12
Michigan Brewing Celis Grand Cru 15.5 Keg
Michigan Brewing Co. Pale Ale 4/6/12
Original Sin Apple Cider 4/6/12
Pizza Beer Co. Mamma Mia Pizza Beer 24/16
Sea Dog Blue Paw Wheat Ale 4/6/12
Sergeants American Ale 4/6/12
Shipyard Pugsley's Barley Wine 12/22
Shmaltz Coney Island Albino Python 12/22
Shmaltz Coney Island Lager 12/22
Shmaltz Coney Island Sword Swallower 12/22
Southern Star Pine Belt Pale Ale 6/4/16 Cans
Sprecher Hefeweizen 6/4/16
Stone Anniversary 15.5 keg *** 13th ANNIV. ***** 4.5 lbs of hops per Brl - 2nd hoppest beer in ...
Stone Brewing Old Guardian 2007 15.5 keg **** 2007 Vintage ***
Thirsty Dog Old Leghumper 15.5 gal keg
Two Brothers Brewing Company Ebelweiss 15.5 Keg
Two Brothers Brewing Company Domaine Du Page 15.5 Keg
Two Brothers Brewing Company Oh Brother Triple 5 Keg *** Special tapping
Two Brothers Brewing Company Cane and Eble 5 Keg *** Special tapping
Warbird Brewing Gold
Warbird Brewing Red
Warbird Brewing Pale
Warbird Brewing Wheat
Warbird Brewing Irish Shantey

From Greg at Cavalier Distribution:

There is a lot of absolutely incredible beer hitting the Indiana market this week, but it's all very, very limited. If you can find some you will want to grab some asap, as these won't hang around for long:

Clipper City Big DIPA (Double IPA)
The CC Heavy Seas Big DIPA Double IPA is the first in the Heavy Seas Special Edition Series. Hopped 3 times in the brewing process, Big DIPA has an earthy hop aroma. In keeping with the Heavy Seas philosophy, Clipper City has created a big beer with surprising balance. The best part, is that you'll hardly notice it's 10.6% abv and 75+ IBU's. There is a finite amount that just landed in Indiana last weekend, so get it now while it's still available. You should start seeing it in your favorite craft/micro retailers now or very soon.

Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA
Devil Dancer is Founder's Triple IPA, which is released once a year to kick down the doors of your pallet. At 13% abv and IBU's off the scale, Devil Dancer is a beast of a beer, humbling even the biggest of hop heads. This year the Devil Dancer is as rare and hard to find as ever, even more so than this year's KBS. There is not much at all in the state, so you will need to search for it at only the very best Founders retailers. Get it now while you can, because it is guaranteed to be gone soon.

Great Divide 15th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA
Based on their most award-winning beer, Denver Pale Ale, this copper-hued treat is a celebration of everything Great Divide does best. Plenty of malty sweetness provides a backdrop for earthy, floral English and American hops, while French and American oak round off the edges and provide a touch of vanilla. Thanks to everyone who's supported Great Divide for the last 15 years - here’s to 15 more! 10.0% ABV.

Great Divide Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout
Welcome to the newest incarnation of Great Divide's revered imperial stout. The fellas at GD toned down the hops a bit to allow cocoa nibs to contribute some pleasing bitterness, while vanilla notes from the oak combine with the cocoa to create an aroma and flavor akin to a gourmet chocolate bar. A dash of cayenne keeps things lively, adding just a bit of heat to the finish. A Yeti for summer? Hell yes.

Great Divide Double Wit
Double Wit is Great Divide's more muscular take on the beloved white ales of Belgium. Unmalted wheat and Belgian malted barley give the beer a light body and straw hue, while coriander and curaçao provide the traditional notes of spice and light acidity. This cloudy, deceptively drinkable creation should be enjoyed without the addition of fruit. 8.1% ABV.

**There is a very, very limited amount of all 3 of these new wonderful Great Divide beers to hit Indiana. You will only be able to find these at craft/micro brew focused locations that have supported Great Divide for awhile. Get these while you can, because there is very little to be had and when they're gone, they're gone for the year.

Fullers London Pride Pale Ale & London Porter CANS!!
Fullers has released their incredible London Pride Pale Ale & Porter in 4pk 16oz CANS! Yes, you can finally enjoy this wonderful English Ale at the track, on the beach or on the boat as well this summer! It is the same phenomenal liquid that has made Fullers famous as one of the premier English Breweries, but in a can package. This will be a new everyday item, so grab a can of Fullers and enjoy!

De Troch Pineapple Lambic
Have you ever had a Pineapple Lambic? If not, now is the time. De Troch's Pineapple Lambic is a wonderful nectar perfect for the summer. It is full of fruit with a wonderful balance between sweet and tart. It is fantastic and unique, a must try!

Bob O. at Indianabeer has World Class Beverages' Hopapalooza line-up for the festival next weekend.
* But if you can't seem to follow a link...here is the list :)

Brewery	Beer
21st Amendment	Brew Free or Die IPA
Abita Brewing	Jockamo IPA
Atwater Brewery	Salvation IPA
Avery Brewery	Hog Heaven
Avery Brewery	Maharaja
Avery Brewery	IPA
Bell's Brewery	IPA
Boulevard Brewery	Double Wide IPA
Dark Horse Brewing	Double Crooked Tree IPA
Dogfish Head Brewery	120 Minute IPA
Firestone Walker	Double Barrel Pale Ale
Firestone Walker	Union Jack
Flying Dog Brewery	Double Dog Double Pale Ale
Harpoon Brewery	IPA
Harpoon Brewery	Leviathan IPA
Hoppin' Frog Brewery	Mean Manalishi
Lagunitas Brewing	Hop Stoopid
Lost Coast Brewery	Indica IPA
Ninkasi Brewing	Total Domination IPA
Ninkasi Brewing	Believer Double Red
North Coast	Red Seal IPA
Port Brewing	Wipe Out IPA
Port Brewing	Hop 15
Rogue Brewing	Double Dead Guy
Schlafly Brewing	Export IPA
Victory Brewery	Hop Wallop

Hoosier Beer Geek Classics: KOTBR Review #5: Brugge's The Black

2009-07-09T09:30:00.003-04:00

Our third anniversary roundtable is in the works, and we're all very excited about the event. As we prepare, we're also taking a look back to our humble beginnings. The article below was written by two of our original Knights of the Beer Roundtable, Chris M and Kelly, along with the help of longstanding Knight Jim, and originally ran on October 19, 2006.

Jim, Kelly, and I met up at Brugge Brasserie, located in Broad Ripple, for the most recent beer review. That night, we decided to try The Black. Below you will find our reviews:

Jim: This week’s meeting of the Knights of the Beer Roundtable took place at Brugge Brasserie, the Broad Ripple brewery and gastro-pub with a Belgian twist. The pub, which opened in April 2005, is owned by brewmaster Ted Miller and actor Abraham Benrubi of “ER” fame (the two were Broad Ripple High School classmates). Brugge offers handcrafted Belgian beers and Belgian style food, including crepes, steamed mussels, and Belgian sub sandwiches called mitraillettes. And then there are the fries, or “frites” as they are properly known in Belgium. Oh, the frites! The Belgians invented French fries, and the frites offered at Brugge are of the highest caliber. They are served in a paper cone along with your choice of sauces, which range from the traditional European side, mayonnaise, to roasted garlic aioli to homemade ketchup.

While the food at Brugge is excellent, we were at the pub for the beer, of course. I arrived first and had a seat in the bar. Normally, Brugge has football of the round variety (i.e., soccer) on the bar television. But on this Thursday evening, pointyball was the type of football in demand, specifically college football. So while I waited for Chris and Kelly to arrive, I went ahead and ordered my warm-up beer and settled in to watch a little of the game. I chose Brugge’s Abbey Ale on the suggestion of the bartender. The Abbey, which I have never seen on Brugge’s beer menu before, was a pleasant amber ale that was on the malty and dry side. It was an appropriately mellow prelude to the feature beer, which was pretty powerful stuff as I’ll explain here shortly.

I had drained almost half of my Abbey Ale when Chris arrived. Not much later, Kelly joined us and we got a round of the feature beer, the ominously named “The Black.” The Black is dark brown in color and has a nose with primarily chocolate, coffee, and nutty notes. The head is light brown and dense. At first sip, The Black nicely grabs a hold of your tongue with an almost perfect balance of hops and malt. There is a good hoppy bite to the ale, but it’s not overwhelming. As might be expected of a dark ale, The Black follows its coffee-like nose with a slightly coffeeish taste. It also has a bit of a sweet taste, too. The Black doesn’t approach barley wine sweetness, but it’s not too far off from what one might expect from a barley wine style ale such as Young’s Old Nick.

Brugge’s beer menu doesn’t disclose The Black’s ABV percentage, but it must be at least seven percent if not more because the ale will sneak up on you if you’re not careful. I had a fairly intense buzz going after finishing off three quarters of the glass. So if you order it, drink with care!

So to the rating – This is a four mug beer for me. I can’t give it a five mug rating because I’ve had only one perfect beer in my life (North Coast Brewery’s Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, Millenium Release) that nothing else has ever been able to measure up to. But The Black is a high quality, very drinkable ale that most beer geeks will enjoy.

Kelly: Fall is by far my favorite time of year for many reasons—not the least of which is that I typically start preferring darker, more substantial beers. (it's just hard for me to really enjoy a double black stout in the middle of a heat wave, or to relax on a balmy summer evening with a dunkelweisen!) So it's appropriate that my second meeting of the Knights of the Beer Roundtable took place on one of the first windswept, blustery, leaves-starting-to-change days of fall.

I met up with Jim and Christopher at Brugge Brasserie, a Broad Ripple stalwart that I had never visited before (okay, not true—I had frequented the place quite a bit when the bottom floor was Net Heads, but I refuse to acknowledge that geek that dwells deep within.) The décor is pretty eclectic—I was expecting it to be more upscale, but they've got big, rustic wooden tables, interesting wall art, and plenty of TVs turned to the sports of the moment (apparently, this is THE place to be if you're a soccer fan!) There was a table of extremely, uh, vibrant imbibers across the room, and ever so often, they'd break into a rousing rendition of "Ein Prosit" which made us wonder if they knew the difference between Belgium and… well… Germany.

I started off the evening with an American Wit, which was a little lighter and fruitier than I was expecting, but it was excellent—much reminiscent of a Blue Moon. The beer up for review, however, was The Black – Jim's favorite. And I can see why! At first taste, the earthy chocolate taste was a little bitter, but I took Jim's advice and let the beer sit to just colder than room temperature. What a difference! The malt and hops had a good balance, and it was actually very light on the palate (deceptively so, even.) The ABV percentage wasn't listed on the chalkboard, but I'd venture to guess this one is pretty high, as it knocked me for quite the loop. Good thing I was walking over to the Rouge for a show afterward. All in all, The Black gets the maximum amount of mugs from me, plus one extra for the fun fact below:

According to Brugge's website, The Black is brewed with a bit of poplar syrup, one of my dad's favorite fall treats. See? Even my beer gets into the fall spirit!

Chris: From the instant The Black touched my lips, I knew I had found my next 5 Mug beer. This is absolutely a perfect beer (if you like dark beers). The Black is approriately named, fore it is truly black. Completely opaque in color.

I kept getting a hickory and chocolate nose off this beer. I think I may be totally off on the hickory, but I swear I smelled it, and it smelled good.

The beer is thick, not quite chunky, but it is very full-bodied and hardy. I found it crisp to the tastebuds, particularly those in the middle of the tongue. That may be from the good carbonation in the beer.

I kept comparing this in my mind with Spaten's Optimator (see KOTBR #2). It's a very similar beer. Obviously from my review of Optimator, and now of The Black, I love dark and brooding beers. As Jim & Kelly both mentioned, the ABV wasn't listed, but I promise you it is high. I'm a beer drinker. And I'm a drinker of beers with high ABVs. And I had a pretty damn good buzz started by the time I finished my beer. This is, similar to the Optimator, one of those beers that gets better the warmer it gets. I'm guessing it isn't meant to be consumed while chilly.

Again, another perfect beer. Pure and simple - 5 mugs!

Hoosier Beer Geek Classics: The Hoosier Beer Geek 6 Pack - Nick Floyd, Three Floyds Brewing Co.

2009-07-07T07:30:00.006-04:00

As you may be aware, we're slowly creeping up on the third anniversary of the creation of this site. In those three years we've gained quite a few readers. With that in mind, we'd like to take the time to highlight some of our earlier work. The article below originally ran on August 27, 2007.

We're attempting to start a new feature where we run six (hopefully) quick questions by brewers to get a little more insight into what brewers do and like and how they got their start. We're honored to have Nick Floyd from Three Floyds Brewing Co. as our first brewer to step up to the tap.

1) Who are you and where do you work?

Nick Floyd - Presidente of Three Floyds Brewing Co.

2) What inspired you to start brewing beer? How did you get your start?

Started to homebrew after reading about at age 18-19, then when I was 21 went to brewing school at Siebel Institute Chicago IL. First brewing job was making Falstaff lager and Malta at the Florida brewery in Auburndale, FL.

3) What's your brewing mission? What are you trying to accomplish with your beer?

My mission is to try and make the best beer I can possibly make while still trying to make a living doing it at the same time, the making the living part is the hardest part.

4) Was there a beer that you benchmarked your own against? How did you know your beer was good enough to take to the general public?

At the time 3Floyds opened in 1996 we benchmarked our beer against locals Goose Island, Bells and west coast breweries Northcoast & Sierra Nevada. When we first opened I wasn't sure how the public would react, we just did it by slightly falling on our faces and then repeating that process over and over.

5) What beer are you proudest of? Which of your beers is your personal favorite? Why?

Which beer is a brewer proudest of? That’s like asking a polygamist which wife is his favorite? All the beers we currently make I think I’m proud of to different degrees.

6) Which beers outside of your own do you enjoy? What beer do you wish you came up with? Why?

Outside of my own beers I enjoy other local beers that are fresh and clean, Flossmoor Station is close to us as well as Piece in Chicago plus Lafayette, Broad Ripple & Brasserie Brugge in Indiana. The beer I wish I invented is pilsener in the mid-19th century when everyone else was in wonderment about the amazing golden beer. Why? So I could pimp it out to be the most bastardized style of beer the world over, and have it made from Harbing China to St. Louis to Siberia. ;)

Hoosier Beer Geek wishes to thank Nick for taking the time to answer our questions, and for his dedication to good beer.

BONUS FOOTAGE

The video below was created for a television show that never made it to air. It's a little bit hokey, but you might find it interesting to see how far Three Floyds has come.

Email readers click here to view the video at YouTube.

Go to the VIP Dinner, or Ted will sue you!

2009-07-04T04:00:00.001-04:00

I believe everyone is aware of the Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You and four thousand of your closest friends; four hours in a park in Broad Ripple; mad dash to drink hard to get beers that are tapped maybe once a year.

But did you know there is a dinner the night before? Limited to couple hundred people? And it includes food? You didn't? Well, let me tell you about it.

The Brewmasters' VIP Dinner is a five course dinner where each course is paired with a beer or two brewed in Indiana. And each course is done by a different chef. Details of the menu have yet to be completed, but this is what we know so far:

First course: Ceviche by Dan Orr of Bloomington's FARM Bloomington. Logically, he is working with Caleb to pair his chilled fish dish with a beer from Upland Brewery.

Second course: Charcuterie by Chris Ely of Indianapolis' Goose the Market. The assortment of cured meats will be paired with a sour beer from Brugge according the Ted Miller (who is sue happy at the moment, but that's another story).

Third course: the "Bistro" course - Regina Mahallick of Indianapolis' R Bistro will be making a grilled Indiana tomato and mushroom pizza using cheese from Trader's Point Creamery and a beer reduction sauce. Jeff Eaton at Barley Island is pairing the pizza with his Sheet Metal Blond (and perhaps another BI beer)

Fourth course: the main entree – This is still under development by Greg Hardesty, formerly of Broad Ripple's H2O Sushi and Indianapolis' Elements. He is working with John and Kevin at Broad Ripple Brew Pub and Greg at Lafayette Brewing Company to pair up a food with BRBP's Monon Porter and LBC's Tippecanoe Common Ale.

Fifth course: dessert - Albert Trevino of Rene's Bakery will be creating the dessert. He is working with Nick at Three Floyd's and Roger at New Albanian Brewing Company to create an appropriate pairing.

Dinner begins at 6pm at Optimist's Park (same location as the Festival). It is under a tent, so its rain or shine, and will be a table service meal, so no waiting in lines. There will be musical entertainment.

Tickets are $40 and are available at the Broad Ripple Brew Pub, Brugge Brasserie, or at the door. If you don't want to travel to Brugge or BRBP, but want to insure that you have a ticket, you can call either joint and order by phone or talk to your favorite local brewmaster about how to get a hold of a ticket (I know that Greg at Lafayette or Jeff at Barley Island can take your money and get you a ticket if you ask nicely).

Random Beer Roundup - the don't drink and shoot off fireworks edition

2009-07-03T09:36:00.012-04:00

Whew! The long weekend is finally here. I hope you will be spending it with good fun, friends, and of course - good beer. This holiday is one of my favorites. I love watching fireworks and the louder they are, the better. I spent every year from the time I could drive until just a few years ago on the St. Louis Riverfront watching fireworks every night of their weekend celebration. This year, we'll be celebrating in Cincinnati in true American style - at a baseball game (Go Cards!). We'll hopefully catch some fireworks, but we'll definitely be drinking good beer. Does anyone have bar, liquor store, or restaurant suggestions for good beer? What are the rest of you doing?

It looks like some breweries and brewpubs are going to be 'out of the office' for the holiday, so be sure to call ahead or check their websites if you plan to make a special trip.

If you have any news, reviews, info, etc. to share for our next Random Beer Roundup, contact us at hoosierbeergeek@gmail.com. So grab the beer and fireworks, this is the Random Beer Roundup.

Hoosier Beer Calendar
Events are subject to change

Friday, July 17th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
Brewers of Indiana Guild VIP Dinner

Saturday, July 18th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
14th Annual Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You can purchase tickets online here.

Saturday, August 22nd:
The Hoosier Beer Geek 3rd Anniversary Party, Sun King Brewing Co. Tickets are limited and can be purchased from Brown Paper Tickets.

Saturday, September 12th, from 7-10pm at the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend:
Zoo Brew, beer tasting event, tickets on sale August 1, $30 in advance; more info here.

What's Brewing

From Greg at Lafayette Brewing Co. in Lafayette:

On tap at LBC:

Ouiatenon Wit; Prophet's Rock Pale Ale; East Side Bitter; Pipers' Pride Scottish Ale; Black Angus Oatmeal Stout; Dog Days Summer Lager; Weeping Hog IPA (both draft and cask-conditioned).

We also want to reminder everyone to fill those growlers and pick up those six-packs for the holiday weekend as LBC will be closed Saturday, July 4, through Tuesday July 7. We'll re-open on Wednesday, July 8, at 11 am with a brand new menu and a few minor dining room improvements. Hope everyone has a fun and safe 4th weekend!

From Adam at Crown Brewing in Crown Point:

WeizenHammer is Back!! OPEN JULY 4th from 11 - 2pm

At the Bar

From Dustin at Spencers Stadium Tavern:

On Tap: Old Style * Pride & Joy * Hop Devil * Summer Bright * Oberon * BBC Amber * Founders Pale Ale

If you haven't heard we are having another Brewer's Dinner. On July 15th @ 6 P.M. for $39 you get the chance to taste the first batches from Sun King Brewery. We will be closing the Tavern and going NON-SMOKING for the night. Only a few seats remain. For tickets go to Chef JJ.

From Lauren at Scottys Brewhouse:

New beer menus coming July 6 at all five Scotty's Brewhouse Locations featuring...Stone Levitation, Victory Golden Monkey, Widmer Drifter Pale Ale, Fat Tire and more!

Carry Out

From Kirk at Mr. G's Liquors in Noblesville:

New this week
Stone Anniversary Ale 22 oz $7.49
Stone Cali-Belgique 22 oz $6.49
Mad River Double Dread 4 nr $11.99

From Gabe at Goose the Market in Indianapolis:

Declare your independence and pick up some brews at the Goose. Remember, we are closed on Saturday, July 4th. The following are just some highlights, among lots of other tasty beverages:
Nogne O IPA
Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier
Einbecker Premium Pils
Scaldis Refermentee
Mad River Double Dread Imperial Red
Two Brothers Hop Juice
Bison Honey Basil Ale
Brooklyn Local 1 & 2
Stone Cali-Belgique
Stone 13th Anniversary
Check out our ever-changing singles selection too.

From Todd at Keg Liquors:

Stone 13th Anniversary Ale - “Big, red, and a hop monster!” Stone 13th Anniversary Ale pours brilliant deep red with a light tan foam. Up front, the aroma is all piney, resinous and citrus hops. Upon tasting, the hops are still on the front, and they are balanced with the malty, toffee like flavors contributed from the blend of crystal and amber malts used in the brewhouse. The finish is deliciously bitter, with a touch of warmth provided by the 9.5% alcohol. Bitterness comes in at 90+ IBU.

- Stone Cali-Belgique IPA (Cali-België) - When reading the name “Stone Cali-Belgique IPA”, “Cali” hints that it is a California style IPA, and this brew has an undeniable Belgian influence, indicated by the word “Belgique” (which is how Belgium’s French-speaking population says the word “Belgian”; the Dutch speaking Belgians say “Belgie”). We carefully selected a Belgian yeast strain that illuminates a fascinating new aspect of the beer that is otherwise quite simply Stone IPA.

The result is both completely new and different, while still being recognizable as a Stone Brew – and Stone IPA in particular. Think of it as an otherwise identical twin to Stone IPA that was raised in a Belgian culture. Literally.

- Browning’s She Devil - The Louisville Original finally makes its way back in the market. This is the first batch of She Devil bottled by the “new” Browning’s Brewery. Of course its the same recipe, by the same brewer, but it’s still great to see this one back in stock.

- Victory Whirlwind Wit - A swirling dynamo of flavor, with a steady calm of satisfaction at its heart, that’s Whirlwind Witbier. Offering a tamed tempest of flavors both spicy and sublime, this softly fermented ale greets the nose and tingles the tongue. Imported Belgian yeast charges Whirlwind with an energy all its own. It is a refreshing interpretation of the classic, Belgian ‘white beer’ style.

From Anita at Great Fermentations in Indianapolis:

Great Fermentations will be closed on Saturday, July 4th to celebrate Independence Day with our families. We will be open normal hours on Friday, 11:00 to 7:00 and Sunday, 12:00 to 3:59.

Also, we will close an hour early at 5:00 on Saturday, July 18th due to our presence at the Indiana Microbrewers Festival. We do have a limited number of tickets available for sale at the shop for $30. Cash or check only please. Info

News, Reviews, and Gossip

From Mat at Cavalier Distribution:

Lots of things going on.

Sergeants American Ale:
What 4th of July celebration would be complete with out Sergeants American Ale? It is a very easy drinking beer and a great way to honor and pay tribute to all those who have server the good old USA! http://3sergeants.com/

Mendocino Red (Red Tail Ale) White (White Hawk IPA) and Blue (Blue Herron Pale Ale):
Check out the fine ales from Mendicino brewing company! The have all the colors of the stars and stripes covered! http://mendobrew.com/home.html

Stone 13 Anniversary Ale - Imperial Double Red Style:
It is in our warehouse and is making its way out to establishments that were allocated this amazing beer. Quote from stone website: "We used more pounds of hops per barrel than any beer we’ve ever made" 4.5 lbs per barrel to be exact! This is the Hoppiest beer Stone has ever brewed! WOW! FYI per the label "Do not cellar Enjoy in 2009". Get it while is lasts and drink it when it is fresh. http://www.stonebrew.com/13th/ale/

Stone Cali- Belgique - IPA:
Very limited amount of bottles in Indiana for the first time also making its way out to establishments that were allocated yet another amazing beer from Stone. This beer is Stone IPA with a Belgian yeast strain that produces a funky twist in the already superb Stone IPA. This one will be harder to find but is worth the effort. More of this beer should make its way to Indiana from time to time. It will be hit or miss as Stone brews it when the have tank space available for now. http://www.stonebrew.com/cali/index.php

Mad River Double Dread Red - Imperial Red Ale:
A very limited amount of this delectable brew is also making it s way into establishments that support Mad River. This is another limited release from the high gravity series. 8.6% ABV and it nears triple digit IBU's.

Bison Honey Basil Ale:
Infused with organic honey for its aroma and a hint of sweetness and fresh organic basil to lend a slight herbal note and basil aftertaste—a perfectly refreshing brew. A Portland, OR restaurateur shared this with the brewery: Pair this beer with pasta and marinara sauce, maybe some sautéed shrimp and the basil in the beer leaps forward on your palate. Wow! 6% Abv & 20 IBU's.

Mad River Steel Head Double IPA and Celis White are back in the warehouse after a too long extended absence.

I know this is Hoosier "Beer Geeks" But I am pleased to announce that Cavalier is also a full fledged wine distributor as well! This week we launched the Wine for Dummies Collection! We have twelve new wines to Indiana to start with and will add more as our program grows and develops. For more info on the program please check out the web site at http://karadeci.com/.

Lastly only eight people signed up at "CavalierBeerIN" to follow us on Twitter after the Random Beer Round up last week. Is that all the Hoosier Beer geeks out that that use Twitter? I think there is more of you that want to sign up to follow us on Twitter! So do not delay sign up now!

Some interesting beer articles from the week:

Time has an interesting article on breathalyzers in cars.

The LA Times writes about mmm Sour Beer.

We Throw Good Parties

2009-06-30T14:04:00.005-04:00

You are formally invited to the Hoosier Beer Geek Third Anniversary Roundtable, to be held at Sun King Brewing on Saturday, August 22nd, at 6PM. As with any HBG event, the idea is to overwhelm, and we're currently doing our best to do just that.

We've got 100+ tickets for this event, and our goal is to sell them fast. So we're making a deal - the first 100 tickets will be $30. After those tickets are gone, we'll slowly increase the price until the day of the event.

Part of the idea behind the event is to help create a little buzz for Indy's newest brewery, Sun King. But we're also working with the friends we've made over the past three years to have beer from a wide variety of brewers and distributors. We've currently got commitments from our friends at Upland, Schlafly, Cavalier Distributing, and World Class Distributing.

In addition, we'll have various food options from Chef JJ - we're thinking small tastes that will match the beer selections. Of course the food is included with your ticket.

All of this is in the works, and it's still early. We plan to make this event as good or better than any other we've thrown, and we think it's safe to say that people rarely leave a HBG event disappointed. So buy now (or soon!), and share in the excitement with us as details roll in.

To buy tickets, click here.

And thanks for your patronage.

Jason, Jim, Mike, Matt, Gina, Rod, Chris, Jess, and Matt
The Hoosier Beer Geek Knights of the Beer Roundtable

KOTBR #77 - The Socratic Beer Method

2009-06-29T18:30:00.001-04:00

For the latest roundtable, the KOTBR convened at the downtown location of Scotty's Brewhouse on a busy Thursday evening to enjoy a few pints, recession-buster style (pints on Thursdays go for $2.50). Our objective: to review a few beers well-suited to the warm weather months.

Those of you who are regular readers may know that I'm an educator by trade. Upon our arrival at Scotty's, we discovered that a number of my students were blowing off steam on Scotty's outdoor patio. A few of them even stopped by our table to say hello, while my fine colleagues did their best to embarrass me in front of them (to no avail, of course).

My students have worked very hard this past school year. Therefore, I've decided to dedicate my review to them by putting it into a format with which they're very familiar: the Socratic method, with a Paper Chase twist (imagine Professor Kingsfield's in-the-classroom style and you get the idea). So fasten your seat belts--it's required under Indiana law--and enjoy.

The students settle in their seats in a classroom, opening laptops, poised to take notes. The professor imperiously enters and strides to the lectern. He places a worn portfolio on the lectern, opens it, and locates the page he's looking for: a seating chart of the classroom. He then reaches behind the lectern and places a bottle of Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier on top of the lectern for the class to see.

PROFESSOR: Okay, class. Let's begin today's beer discussion. Rodney?
RODNEY: Yes?
Q: What can you tell us about this beer?
A: Well, it's a refreshing--
Q: No, no, no! Have you already forgotten where you're supposed to begin? Tell us what style it is.
A: Oh, um, sorry. You see, I don't like putting labels on things or placing them in categories because that's arbitrary, and the world isn't an arbitrary place, so--
Q: My word, you're as useless as usual. Have you ever met a tangent that you didn't like? Christopher, what style of beer are we looking at here?
CHRISTOPHER: A hefeweizen.
Q: Correct. Brewer?
A: Weihenstephan.
Q: Nice pronunciation.
A: Thanks. You know, I spent a semester abroad in Germany.
Q: Good lord, there's no need to be such a suck up. Just engage me in a dialogue. Understand?
A: Sure. Sorry.
Q: Apology not accepted, but we'll move on anyway. Since you're such an expert on Deustchland, tell me why the brewer is significant.
A: I think it's the oldest brewery in the world.
Q: WRONG! Michael, why is he wrong?
MICHAEL: Technically, Weihenstephan is the oldest operating brewery in the world.
Q: Precisely. Since when?
A: Historians think that the brewery dates back to the late Eighth Century, but the brewery actually obtained its license in 1040, so that is the date that is typically referred to when discussing the founding date.
Q: Excellent. Rodney, you see what happens when you stay focused? You actually give answers germane to the subject under discussion. In other words, you'd actually know that this beer has been around since before the Norman Conquest.
RODNEY: Whatever.
Q: Insolence will get you nowhere, which is where you seem to be during each class meeting. Jessica, tell us about this beer's characteristics.
JESSICA: As the benchmark beer for the style, it pours cloudy because it's unfiltered. The color is golden and the head is cream-colored with a lot of staying power.
Q: Correct. Nose?
A: Again, true to style--clove, banana, and bread notes.
Q: Precisely. Gina, what's the taste and mouthfeel?
GINA: Mouthfeel is crisp and refreshing. Taste follows suit with the nose, with emphasis on the banana and clove characteristics.
Q: Excellent. Anyone else have anything to contribute?
RODNEY: Can I say something?
PROFESSOR: If you must.
RODNEY: You know, I really don't understand vegans. I mean, what's the deal? If you're really that upset about chickens being mistreated, why not just get free-range eggs?
PROFESSOR: What in God's name does this have to do with our discussion about this beer?
RODNEY: Jess and Gina started talking about bananas, and that made me think about apes, which made me think about Jane Goodall--you know, that lady from Gorillas in the Mist--who I heard was a vegan, and so--
PROFESSOR: And so remind me never to allow you to register for any elective course that I teach in your two remaining years of school. Class dismissed.

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier
Rodney 4.25 Mugs | Jess 4.2 Mugs | Gina 4.1 Mugs | Jim 4.3 Mugs | Chris 4.3 Mugs | Mike 3.0 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.02 Mugs

I'm not going to pretend to really understand what happened in the review above. In fact, I'm still decifering many of the lessons I learned so many years ago when I was spending my 5.5 years at SIUE. But regardless of all that, the main lesson I hope I've passed on to my students (I don't have any students) is that there's more to life and knowledge than what your professors may teach you.

That's not to say that academia is a waste - in fact, I'll pass along this bit of Socratic knowledge that many of my students (I still don't have any students) are familiar with:

Click here for a YouTube video, email readers
To be honest, I don't even have any notes on this beer. I was taking pictures, and my thoughts... well, if dust in the wind was good enough for Socrates, it's good enough for me.

The other sites will tell you that Mad Anthony IPA is a slightly better than average IPA. I'll tell you that some might say it's a syrupy looking beer with a nice foamy head. Others say it's rich and finishes smooth. I'll tell you that many of the Knights are fans, and that this beer is another example of why drinking locally makes sense.

As for Scotty's - if you were been paying attention to comments on earlier posts, we'll admit that sometimes the beer prices there can be a little high. But take it from a group of people who buy a lot of beer in a lot of bars - the Thursday $2.50 pint special is worth taking advantage of. Or even abusing. We did.

Mad Anthony IPA
Chris 4.6 Mugs | Rodney 3.75 Mugs | Jim 4.0 Mugs | Jess 3.8 Mugs | Gina 3.7 Mugs | Mike 4.0 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.97 Mugs

Beer Diary - Matt R

2009-06-29T07:30:00.003-04:00

FFF/DogFish Head - PopSkull
Beer Style: Brown Ale
Cost: 12$
Available: One time release

A collaboration brew that was available for purchase on Dark Lord day this year, and I just have not gotten around to drinking one. This is a very big brown ale clocking in at 10% ABV.

This beer poured a very dark chestnut hue with a very minimal head on it. The nose is quite complex. A lot of ins, a lot of outs, a lot of what-have-you's. (Do you know the movie I was watching when I was drinking this?) I get plenty of wood (from DFH), caramel, cocoa, chocolate, and even a touch of vanilla hanging around in the background. The flavor profile matches the nose nicely with main flavors of chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, and dark fruits. The carbonation was a bit much for me and I hoped it would be a little more "chewy" on the mouthfeel. This was a big and boozy brown ale, but overall I liked the collaboration between these two brewers.

2007 Deschutes - The Abyss
Beer Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Cost: 10 - 12$
Available: Roating once a year/Winter

I had my first Abyss right after the 2006 version came out and now I am constantly trading for more of this beer, and I would say that this beer is in my top five of all time beers. I served this beer very close to cellar temperature.

This beer pours an impenetrable dark black with a fingers worth of tan head on it. The nose is a wonderful balance of roasted malt, chocolate, dark fruits, molasses, liquid smoke, a touch of the barrel aging, and spicy vanilla. The myriad of scents that float in and out are wonderful. The flavor profile delivers on the nose with the initial sip delivering loads of roasted malt, bitter chocolate, a light oak character, caramelized dark fruit, and some black licorice. The mouthfeel is thick and full but is still very silky. This beer was heavenly, and if we reviewed this beer in an actual roundtable this would get my only 5 mug rating I've ever given. I would love for anything from Deschutes to make it this far East, but I will continue to trade for this as often as I can. If you have any of the 2007 version it is drinking very fine right now.

2009 Two Brothers Hop Juice
Beer Style: Double IPA
Cost: 8 -11$
Available: June 2009 at better liquor stores in Indy

Two Brothers has a release party for this beer, and then you will find it in the stores shortly after the release party. I have enjoyed this beer for the last two years, and now let's see how this years batch stacks up.

This beer pours a glowing amber color with a thick and frothy fingers worth of bone white head on it. The nose came to life upon the pour with big scents of earthy and piney hops on the nose. There is a big toffee scent coming in as well with the citrus punch finally coming to life after the beer warmed for a little bit. The flavor starts with the initial blast of bitter hops. I get pine, ripe grapefruit, orange peel, and grassy undertones. This has a good malt backbone to back up the hops as well. The malt is slightly sweet and has a toasted caramel quality to it as well. This is a very easy to drink DIPA, and I had no problems with a bomber of it. I think the 2009 version of this beer has been my favorite thus far. If you like DIPA's this one is around town right now, and I would recommend picking up a bottle of this one as it is quite fresh and drinking nicely.

Three Floyd's - Apocalypse Cow
Beer Style: Double IPA
Cost: 10.99
Available: Limited, but it is around Indy right now

I picked this one up the day it hit Indy, but waited to drink it for some reason. I love the label art on this one. It is from Dan Grzeca. I am really curious about this beer. It is a double IPA, but they have added lactose sugar to the beer. I also like the fact that I know this beer is fresh.

This pours a rather hazy rustic orange color with a fingers worth of head that left good spotty lacing on my snifter. The citrus takes full force on the nose with plenty of orange, citrus, mango, and passion fruit. This is almost a dead ringer for dreadnaught on the nose. I can keep my nose all day in a pint of dreadnaught, so I am alright with this. The flavor profile is full again of all those citrus and tropical fruit flavors with a sizable sweetness from the caramel malt. The mouthfeel is main difference between this and dreadnaught. The mouthfeel is thick and full, and I would say one of the biggest mouthfeels in a DIPA that I've personally encountered.

You can tell this beer has most of the qualities of dreadnaught, but it has some other differences that I actually liked better than dreadnaught. The mouthfeel was something I've never encountered in a DIPA before and it was most welcomed. I can see how the malt sweetness would be a turnoff for some people, but I like the big malt sweetness balancing out the hop profile.

A keg of this will be tapped downtown at BW3's on Thursday July 2nd.

Photo Post: Phoenix Theater Brew Ha Ha

2009-06-28T01:12:00.002-04:00

Some of you were there! Some of you even bought Hoosier Beer Geek shirts! Thanks! Any favorite beers? Did you enjoy yourselves?

Random Beer Roundup - The short edition

2009-06-26T11:08:00.007-04:00

I think everyone is busy this week preparing for festivities, so the news is quite short. So we'll just get right to it, what do you say?

If you have any news, reviews, info, etc. to share for our next Random Beer Roundup, contact us at hoosierbeergeek@gmail.com. Stick your head in the cooler and cool off, this is the Random Beer Roundup.

Hoosier Beer Calendar
Events are subject to change

Saturday, June 27th on Mass Ave in Indianapolis:
Indy Brew Ha-Ha - Stop by, say 'Hi', and purchase a Hoosier Beer Geek T-Shirt

Friday, July 17th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
Brewers of Indiana Guild VIP Dinner

Saturday, July 18th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
14th Annual Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You can purchase tickets online here.

Saturday, August 22nd:
The Hoosier Beer Geek 3rd Anniversary Party, Sun King Brewing Co. Stay tuned for more details.

Saturday, September 12th, from 7-10pm at the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend:
Zoo Brew, beer tasting event, tickets on sale August 1, $30 in advance; more info here.

What's Brewing

From Mike at at Granite City in Carmel:

Granite City at 96th & Meridian is tapping it's Wag's Wheat Mon. June 29 at 5pm. This will be a year-round addition to the regular line-up. It is named after founder Steve Wagenheim who loves wheat beer. It is an American Wheat. A Mug Club Party which includes a free buffet will begin at 5 for Mug Club members and 1 guest. The restaurant will be open to the public at that time. A live band will be playing in the parking lot. Mug Club memberships are half-price on Mondays($10) and can be purchased at the door.

At the Bar

From Dustin at Spencers Stadium Tavern:

July 15th The Tavern, Sun King Brewery, Chef JJ Boston, and Goose The Market will be joining forces to blow your minds and palates. CHEF JJ will be grilling on the BIG GREEN EGG food from GOOSE THE MARKET and we will Drinking the first beers from SUN KING BREWERY. Tickets are available now from Chef JJ.

Carry Out

From Kirk at Mr. G's Liquors in Noblesville:

New this week
Breckenridge Mighty Brown 22 oz $7.99
Breckenridge Imperial Porter 22 oz $7.99
Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat 6nr $9.99
Sea Dog Blue Paw 6nr &9.99

News, Reviews, and Gossip

The folks organizing the Brewers Cup are looking for a few volunteers on Sunday to help organize submissions for next months event. Lunch and beer will be provided.

Contact Chief Steward, John Morrical at jmorrica@sbcglobal.net or 317 283-6344 to volunteer.

From Mat at Cavalier Distribution:

New in in the warehouse late Thursday (so late that none made it on trucks for Friday deliveries) the Thirsty Dog Labrador Lager. Look for it next week on shelves in places that sell better beer. This traditional German Lager is brewed with all German grain & yeast. Very drinkable. ABV=6%, IBU's=27. This thirst quencher will be available all year round and joins Old Leghumper (porter), Hoppus Maximus (amber) Siberian Night (imp stout) and Raspberry Ale in the everyday Thirsty Dog Brewing line up. Expect Barktoberfest and Pumpkin Ale (brewed with pumpkins grown locally in Northern Ohio) to be seasonal releases in bottles this fall as well. http://www.thirstydog.com/

Brew Ha Ha Line up:

Cavalier will have lots of goodies on draft at the Brew Ha Ha this year:

Founders Cherise mmmmmmm Cherries
Founders Old Curmudgeon at 4:30 - will need a golden ticket for a chance to get a sample of this beer
Mad River John Barley Corn Barley wine
Breckenridge Vanilla Porter
Dupont Moinette Blond
Dupont Moinette Bruin
St. Feuillien Triple - will tweet the time on twitter 15 min to pouring time - will also need a golden ticket for this beer
Stone Levitation - GABF Gold medal winner and new to Indiana Plenty of other surprises as well!

Be sure to stop by the Cavalier Table early to get your golden raffle ticket for a chance to sample the Founders Old Curmudgeon from a 5 gallon keg and St. Feuillien Triple form the gigantic way cool 9 liter bottle. Must be present to win!

More notable Cavalier affiliated tables will include:

Pat Helsel from Clipper City Brewing Company all the way from Baltimore MD!
Tony from Indiana's own Warbird Brewing Company
Mike Walters from Left hand Brewing Company will be pulling up in the Moo Mobile as well

Mass Ave Wine Shop - Jill will be pouring the Stone Arrogant Bastard as well as other goodies
Parti Pack - They will be pouring Founders Double Trouble and more

The Brew Ha Ha looks like the place to be on Saturday! For more updates and info from Cavalier be sure to follow us on Twitter at "CavalierBeerIN"!

Updated AGAIN: Volunteers needed Sunday

2009-06-25T15:00:00.003-04:00

Okay, so instead of the beer sorting for the Brewer's Cup occurring in Bloomington, it is being moved to Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis, 135 North College Avenue. It will still be on Sunday, June 28th. But the start time has moved back to 9am, but I'm betting they will take volunteers later in the day too.

If you are interested, please contact John Morrical at jmorrica@sbcglobal.net. This activities are usually a fun time and a great chance to meet other like minded craft beer enthusiasts.

And hopefully this will be the last change...

Re-posting: Volunteers needed this Sunday

2009-06-24T22:03:00.003-04:00

BIG CHANGE TO BREWER'S CUP INFO. SEE HBG WEBSITE FOR DETAILS.

Mr. Wizard Goes To Irvington

2009-06-24T07:00:00.006-04:00

Regular readers of this site will know that we aren't above tomfoolery. In fact, you might say that on occasion we can be downright buffoonish. I wouldn't have you believe for a second that we aren't aware that our wanton disrespect for common sense is anything more than a ploy to entertain ourselves and those reading.

Our experiments don't always start out with folly in mind - in some cases we're actually trying to prove something. But when a group of us gathers, the chance of hijinks is multiplied exponentially. It all started out like this:

Hey Jason,

I was wondering if you ever followed up on that coffee/beer infusion thing - I just read about a place doing an Oberon through blood oranges tapping and I'm thinking maybe a french press kinda thing might work... anyway... what did you do?

-Mike

* * * * *

The short of the coffee beer is I took a french press, filled it with porter, and pushed coarse ground coffee through it. Turned beer (Wabash Cannonball Porter) into better beer.

-Jason

* * * * *

I'd like to try that technique with a few other things, so if you'd like to make it into a longer experiment, let me know....

-Mike

The result? A beer and food blending experiment of what some might consider epically stupid proportions. We just thought it was fun. And in a few cases, tasty.

We plopped down on Jason's porch in Irvington and lined up the following victims:

Wabash Valley Cannonball Porter vs. Kroger Private Selection Medium Dark Roast Coffee
Upland Wheat vs. Strawberries
Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen vs. Bananas
Brugge White vs. Oranges
Brugge Black vs. Cherries
Brugge Black vs. Red Stag Whiskey
Bell's Oberon vs. Blueberries
Founders Cerise vs. Hershey's Extra Dark Chocolate
Bell's Expedition Stout vs. Bell's Double Cream Stout
Bell's Hopslam vs. Grapefruit
Erdinger Weissbier vs. Cucumber
Three Floyds Alpha Klaus vs. Whoppers Malted Milk Balls

One thing worth noting -- running beer through a French press might automatically make it worse. Every beer blend seemed to be under-carbonated - an effect that was either caused by the blending or the tools used. Since we didn't try any beer straight through the French press, we don't really know. So much for the scientific method.

The bad pairings:

Wabash Valley Cannonball Porter w/ Kroger Private Selection Medium Dark Roast Coffee - Tastes like the bottom of a day-old pot of decaf.

Jason's note: When I did this previously, I seemed to remember it tasting better. I think maybe fresher coffee would be good (this coffee was ground at least 3 months ago).

Upland Wheat w/ fresh strawberries - The most bizarre result. Smells and tastes like warm bologna. Disgusting.

Gina's note: I didn't get bologna out of the Upland Wheat/strawberry combination.

Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen w/ fresh bananas - Much worse than expected. Tastes like a banana that's been sitting on a shelf in the basement, gathering dust for a few weeks. We added fresh oranges to the mix later. No improvement. If anything, the mix tasted crappier with the oranges in it.

The "meh" pairings:

Mike's note: The Annoy Ted Division

Brugge White w/ fresh oranges - Disappointing, but not terrible. Tastes like a flat Belgian wit with a touch of orange juice.

Brugge Black w/ fresh cherries - Sort of chocolately with a little hint of cherry zip. Not great, but not bad.

Jason's note: I thought this was a winner of a combo. I suggest that Ted takes this idea and runs with it. Seriously. I also mixed the Black with a Jim Beam Black Cherry Bourbon. Better than any boilermaker I've ever had. Also, better than any Boilermaker ever to come out of Purdue (but that's not really saying much now is it?).

Bell's Oberon w/ fresh blueberries - The blueberries produce no effect. Tastes like a regular Oberon.

The good pairings:

Founders Cerise w/ Hershey's Extra Dark Chocolate - Tastes like a chocolate-covered sour cherry. And the chocolate from the bottom of the French press tasted heavenly after being steeped in the beer.

Bell's Expedition Stout/Double Cream Stout Blend - We didn't do this in a French press; we simply mixed the two beers in a pitcher for a reprise of a blend that Bell's has done at beer festivals. Brown sugar, licorice, and pecans in the nose; hoppy and sweet flavor with chocolate, vanilla, and brown sugar notes. The blend nicely subdues the licorice whomp of the Expedition Stout. I may have to make this at home.

Bell's Hopslam w/ fresh grapefruit - Tartness of the grapefruit melds well with the piney/peachy hop character. If you mixed a DIPA with a Belgian sour ale, this is what it might taste like.

Gina's note: With all of the pairings, the carbonation of the beer disappeared almost completely in some cases, so it makes sense that the higher alcohol beers, like Hopslam, were able to stand up to the additions.

The bizarrely good pairing:

Erdinger Weissbier w/ fresh cucumber - Hey, it's beer gazpacho! Think of getting a buzz from a cucumber salad; that's what you have here.

Jason's note: A week after we did this, I was at a trade show where a booth had jars of ice water for our enjoyment. One had lemons in it. One had strawberries. And one had cucumbers. I love fresh cucumbers. And the flavor that the cucumbers add to beer or water is phenomenal. Is there a cucumber soda?

The grand champion:

Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Porter w/ Whoppers malted milk balls - Lovely. Tastes like a really sweet milk stout with a hoppy bite. Fizzed up like a nitro stout when we mixed the two.

Beer sorting fun

2009-06-23T08:47:00.003-04:00

Those who homebrew probably know that the Brewer's Cup is coming up and submissions are due soon (details on their website). Those submissions will be sorted and organized in advance of the judging. And the organizers need around 20 volunteers.

The organizing work will occur on ****Sunday, June 28th****, starting at 9am, in Bloomington. I have it on good authority that food and beer will be included. If you are interested, please contact John Morrical at jmorrica@sbcglobal.net.

This activities are usually a fun time and a great chance to meet other like minded craft beer enthusiasts.

Photo Post: 30 Bell's Taps at The Beer Sellar

2009-06-22T23:06:00.005-04:00

Some of you were there! I'm assuming! Any favorites!?!?!

The Hoosier Beer Geek 6 Pack: Valgeir Valgeirsson of Ölvisholt Brugghús, Iceland

2009-06-21T18:00:00.000-04:00

In the three years that Hoosier Beer Geek has been around, we've seen the category of craft beer grow from 3.42% (2006) to 4.04% (2008) of the overall beer market in the United States. While craft beer is only 1% of the total market in Indiana, we've seen this growth echoed throughout the state.

Things could be much worse. Consider the nation of Iceland. Although roughly the size of Kentucky, Iceland has only 40% of the population of Indianapolis - tough ground for any brewery to operate in. And consider this - up until March 1st, 1989, Iceland had prohibition in place on beer over 2.25% ABV. Although the repeal of Iceland's prohibition is now celebrated with Beer Day (an unofficial holiday), things are still a bit grim for those Icelanders in search of bigger and better beer.

Baring all this in mind, those Icelander's who have made advanances into the world of craft beer should be considered heros. One such hero is Valgeir Valgeirsson.

1) Who are you and where do you work?

My name is Valgeir Valgeirsson, 28 years old and I live in Reykjavík Iceland. I am the brewer at Ölvisholt Brugghús, located on a small farm in a renovated barn.

2) Hopefully you're old enough to remember - what was it like before prohibition? Was there a pent-up demand for beer in Iceland?

I was eight when beer was allowed again so I personally did not notice any big change. But the demand was very high for beer, the last years before the ban was lifted it was common to mix together a low alcohol beer (below 2.25%) with a shot of vodka (or something worse) and this was served to people in bars as beer. The day beer was allowed, there were long queues in front of the alcohol stores and people were very excited to try the four brands of beer available.

3) Before I headed over to Iceland, I did a few searches on the internet looking for Icelandic craft beer, and seemed to find that Iceland has very little variety in its beer (I read somewhere online that Iceland was a "beer wasteland") . In my short time in Reykjavik and Akureyri I noticed that the most beer in Iceland seems to come from Egils, which seems to be part of a larger company called Olgerdin - a company that sells everything from Gatorade to Pepsi to Doritos. The beers that Olgerdin sells - either under the Egils or Tuborg brands - tend to be pale and light flavored lagers. Iceland's other large brewery seemed to be the Viking Brewery, who seem to be making the same sort of light lagers as Egils and Tuborg.

In the United States, craft breweries often like to make an "us versus them" argument when talking about large breweries (like Anheuser-Busch and Miller/Coors) and themselves - basically saying that the large breweries are making bad beer, and that the smaller breweries are the "little guy" fighting a major battle (there was even a Beer Wars movie released recently). Do you see your brewery in the same sort of position? Are you fighting a "battle for better beer" against Iceland's larger breweries?

My main battle is for awareness, getting people to understand that if they are interested there exists a wide variety of quality beers. Essentially that is of course a battle against the beers that dominate the market. But in no way am I in any kind of a struggle with the big players, actually I am in very good contact with Egils for example. As a former employee, I know people there and they have helped me out a few times.

4) A multi-part question: What is your background in beer? Where did you learn to brew? How long have you been brewing? Why did you start your own brewery?

I got interested in beer well before I was allowed to buy it, and on my 20th birthday (legal buying age in Iceland) I went to the government controlled liquor store and bought two bottles of every beer that was available in Iceland. It didn't turn out to be that many bottles and mainly of the same tasteless light lager. It was then that I decided that I wanted to do something to improve the beer culture in Iceland if only for myself to have the choice between two or three decent beers if the mood struck me.

I got my first working experience in the beer world at Egils, in quality control. After that I went to Scotland where I got a Master degree in Brewing and Distilling at Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh. After my studies I was hired by the Williams brothers at Heather Ale Brewery in Alloa, Scotland as a brewer assistant, although my main job was to run the bottling line. It was there where I got my first taste of specialty brewing. It was then in Denmark where I spent some time at Gourmet Bryggeri, which also brewed the Ölfabrikkens beers, where I truly realized that brewing has no limits except your own imagination. The Danish beer culture was going through a similar revolution as in the USA and it seemed like all the new small breweries were in a competition to brew the biggest and boldest beer possible. It was truly amazing and has influenced me a great deal. This is why in my short career of only 18 months as head brewer for Ölvisholt Brewery I have put out on the market seven types of beer, all distinctively unique to the Icelandic market.

The brewery is on a small farm where there had not been practiced any traditional agriculture for some time. There were two small barns on the farm that were not in use, so it was one evening when the farm owner and his neighbor were having a drink and discussing what these empty barns could be used for. After many drinks, one of them carelessly came up with the idea to use them as a brewery. Neither of them took the proposal seriously since neither of them had any knowledge in brewing or running a brewery whatsoever. But luckily the idea stuck back in their minds and on the 20th December 2007 the first batch of beer was brewed in the old barn at Ölvisholt farm.

5) What is your goal for your brewery? I think I read that you're already doing a little exporting - do you hope to someday distribute your beer worldwide?

At the moment we are exporting to Denmark and Sweden and very soon to Canada as well. It would be fantastic to be able to distribute to the whole world but frankly I cannot see that I will ever have the capacity to do that without having to build a whole new brewery. Our vision is mainly to be able to run a small brewery that is focused on quality and diversity in the one dimensional market in Iceland and with time be able to push up our beer culture.

6) Do you have any breweries you look up to? Are there other breweries in Iceland that we should know about? And how has your beer been received?

I admire every brewery that has the guts to take some risks in their brewing, even if the results are sometimes questionable like my Danish friend's asparagus beer.

The first Icelandic microbrewery Bruggsmiðjan Árskógsströnd, started brewing in 2006. They are not taking any big risks with their brands but they do produce quality beers which is more than most breweries in Iceland.

We started off slowly, we had no idea what to expect in the beginning, but now things are rolling rather fast and we have problems keeping up with demand. One of the biggest compliments we have received is that the companies importing our beer abroad originally came to us looking to do business after trying our beer. This means that the biggest beer exporter in Iceland is a brewery with a maximum production capacity of 300.000 liters a year, in a country where beer consumption is around 16 million liters a year.

Coming Soon to Indy (maybe): Upland Brewing Company

2009-06-19T14:50:00.005-04:00

Earlier today, jtoshua sent us the following tweet:

@hbgeek or anyone else in town know what the deal is with upland beer applying for a liquor permit for a spot at 49th and college

My response: f*ckin' sweet.

Mr. I-get-to-drink-beer-at-lunch Architect response (a.k.a. Knight Jason): Indianapolis permit search.

Turns out Upland is indeed looking to open a new space at 49th St. and College Ave. From the address -- 4842 N. College Ave -- that's the southwest corner of the intersection, a building called the Uptown Business Center. As far as I can tell, there are three retail spaces there and they're all full right now (Pawpatch, Second Chance Boutique, and 60 Minute Cleaners). The address on the Liquor License also says "Suite 2" which could mean that they're looking at the second floor. If you take a look at Google Street View you can see a fuzzy "For Rent" sign in a second floor window, so that may make sense.

We'll let you know when we know more.

UPDATE: Jason just did a drive-by -- he's a bad shot, no injuries reported -- and it looks like the Second Chance Boutique is no longer in business. Upland's orange liquor license application is in the window of that space.

Random Beer Roundup - Falling off the wagon edition

2009-06-19T08:00:00.002-04:00

Hey there, Gina here. I am going to be taking over the Roundup soon since Jason has other things to take care of. Don't worry though, he won't be hopping on the wagon.

Speaking of the wagon, one of my favorite podcasts recently talked about the old saying 'falling off the wagon' and its origin. As it turns out, the term's history has more to do with water than protest. Have a listen, it's a great show.

If you have any news, reviews, info, etc. to share for our next Random Beer Roundup, contact us at hoosierbeergeek@gmail.com. Grab a beer and watch the wagon pass by, this is the Random Beer Roundup.

Hoosier Beer Calendar
Events are subject to change

Friday, June 19th and Saturday, June 20th at Crown Brewing in Crown Point:
Summerfest: Live Music, food, bean bag tourney, bounce/jump houses and "some of the best beer money can buy."

Saturday, June 20th at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds: The Circle City Socialites take on the Stateline Derby DIVAS. The after party is at Barley Island.

Sunday, June 21 - Don't buy dad a cake, buy him beer instead for Father's Day.

Monday, June 22nd at Beer Sellar in Indianapolis:
Big Bell's Brewing tapping, a record breaking 30 different Bell's beers on tap at once:

Amber, Bell's IPA , Best Brown Ale, Cherry Ale, Cherry Stout, Double Cream Stout, Debs Red, Expedition, Golden Rye, Harry Magill's, Hell Hath No Fury..., Hopslam, Java Stout, Kalamazoo Stout, Lager, Oarsman, Oatmeal Stout, Oberon, Pale, Poolside,Porter, Raspberry Ale, Rye Stout, Smoked Stout, Third Coast Beer, Third Coast Old Ale, Two Hearted, Wedding Ale, 2006 Eccentric AleBourbon Barrel Double Cream Stout/ Expedition Stout

$15 at the door. Gets you 5 sample tickets, and a Bell's tasting notebook.

A couple of notes. Use your sample tickets wisely, some beers will not be available in a sample pour other than with a sample ticket.

The official start time is 5 pm. but doors are open at 2. Not all beers will be pouring at 2, to try to make all beers available to everyone coming out, some will not begin to flow until 5.

Saturday, June 27th on Mass Ave in Indianapolis:
Indy Brew Ha-Ha - Stop by, say 'Hi', and purchase a Hoosier Beer Geek T-Shirt!

Friday, July 17th at Optimist Park in Indianapolis:
Brewers of Indiana Guild VIP Dinner

Saturday, July 18th at Optimist Park in Indianaplis:
14th Annual Indiana Microbrewers Festival. You can purchase tickets online here.

Saturday, August 22nd:
The Hoosier Beer Geek 3rd Anniversary Party, Sun King Brewing Co. Stay tuned for more details.

Saturday, September 12th, from 7-10pm at the Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend:
Zoo Brew, beer tasting event, tickets on sale August 1, $30 in advance; more info here.

What's Brewing

From Scott at at Upland Brewing in Bloomington:

Upland bottled Nut Hugger Brown for the first time on Tuesday. This will be available soon in both bottles and draught throughout our distribution area.

Also, Rad Red Amber Ale will be hitting the shelves and bars very soon!

At the Bar

From Lauren at Scotty's Brewhouse with multiple locations:

Fat tire draught is now available at Scottys brewhouse north Indy and Scottys brewhouse Bloomington! Come in and enjoy a nice cold Colorado born brew!

From Sam at Buffalo Wild Wings Downtown:

Dogfish 120 Minute on tap starting Thursday June 25. $8 gets 8ish ounces.

Three Floyds Apocalypse Cow on tap Thursday July 2. Price for that is to be determined.

As always, we have 12-14 craft beers on tap including Stone IRS, Founders Double Trouble, and others.

From Patrick at Patrick's Kitchen in Zionsville:

Bluegrass Brewing Nut Brown Ale

From Dustin at Spencers Stadium Tavern:

July 15th The Tavern, Sun King Brewery, Chef JJ Boston, and Goose The Market will be joining forces to blow your minds and palates. CHEF JJ will be grilling on the BIG GREEN EGG food from GOOSE THE MARKET and we will Drinking the first beers from SUN KING BREWERY. Tickets are available now from Chef JJ

Carry Out

From Todd at Keg Liquors in Clarksville:

Here is some new beers from Keg Liquors in Clarksville.

A few new specialty beers are making their way into the store this week. Several of these are very rare, and very limited. Be warned they will go quickly.

- Two Brothers Hop Juice - Hop Juice is one of a series of special limited-run beers in styles that are more extreme or unusual. This one is a real hop blast, dripping with the resiny soul of fresh Northwest hops. Don’t come crying to us if it’s too much for you; this one’s for hopheads only! And get it now, cause when it’s gone, it’s gone. Boo hoo. 22.7 Plato 100.1 IBU
- Stiegl Radler - A European specialty, this is a blend of 50% Stiegl-Beer and 50% Lemon-Soda.

- Dieu du Ciel! Equinoxe du Printemps - This beer was born from the blending of two enduring traditions: Scottish brewing and Québec’s maple syrup production. It is a perfect balance between a maple beverage and beer. The taste of the maple syrup adds to the complexity of the beer, without being overpowering. The first draught fills the mouth with a taste of woody malt which is sustained by a discrete syrupy savour. The lingering aftertaste is one of warm alcohol which coats the mouth with the sweetness of maple toffee. Many maple beers have been brewed in Québec, however the ´ Équinoxe du printemps ª is the first to succeed in producing a beer that truly bears the essence of maple syrup.

- Dieu du Ciel! Rigor Mortis Abt 12 - Strong brown ale inspired by the beer brewed by Belgian Trappist monks. Very little bitterness, this beer has intense malty and sweet flavours, mixed with the taste of chocolate and caramel. It presents complex red fruit and spice flavours due to the type of yeast that is used during the brewing process. This beer is at its best only after it has aged for six months. The Rigor Mortis are complex beers designed and brewed with patience and care in the tradition of the great Belgian Abbey beers.

- Dieu du Ciel! Peche Mortel - If you love really good coffee and really good beer equally, you will be thrilled with Péché Mortel. If coffee isn’t your cup of tea, and caffeine makes you bounce off the ceiling, then just put the bottle down and find something else to drink. This beer is all about coffee. Indeed, you may have seen ‘coffee stouts’ before, but no brewer has ever married coffee and beer so naturally and seamlessly. And this isn’t just any stout, but an imperial stout, which means that it is modeled on the strong, rich, and very complex stouts that were made in England in the 19th and early 20th centuries exclusively for shipment to Russia, where they were a special favorite at the court of the Czars.

- Les Trois Mousquetaires Dopplebock - Hailing from Canada, this Doppelbock, or ‘Double Bock’ is a dark, extra full-bodied lager after the best Bavarian tradition. Such beer was created by monks for the tough fasting period of Lent. They called it ‘liquid bread’. Look for flavor notes of chocolate, candied fruit, and roasted malt.

- Nils Oscar Coffee Stout - Nils Oscar Coffee Stout is made in cooperation with the small coffee roaster Johan & Nyström. Espresso coffee brewed with excellent single estate coffee from Gatsinga Farm in Rwanda is added to each brew after fermentation. In this way, all the flavors from the coffee are extracted and make an excellent complement to the roasted chocolate flavors in the beer.

- Three Floyds Apocalypse Cow - This complex double India Pale Ale has an intense citrus and floral hop aroma balanced by a velvety malt body which has been augmented with lactose milk sugar. With this different take on an IPA we have brewed an ale that is both pleasing to drink and once again, “not normal.” 100 IBU 9.5% a.b.v.

News, Reviews, and Gossip

Mat Gerdenich says "...go to http://twitter.com/ type in "CavalierBeerIN" in the who are you looking for box and hit search to find me!".

An article in the Boston Globe about the Alstrom Brothers:
When it comes to ale, everyone cares what the Alstrom brothers think

Bob O. has more beer news including a post about Upland's 2010 Lambics

Local Jim Pavlik writes an article in the Baltimore Sun about Bob Mack's blog post and gives us a nod. Thanks Jim!

A Little Something for Your Calendar

2009-06-15T12:47:00.006-04:00

We are currently in the works of putting together our Third Anniversary Roundtable. Here's what we know:

Confirmed

1) The event will be held at Sun King Brewery (135 North College, Indianapolis) on Saturday, August 22nd at 6pm.

2) There will be beer and food at the event.

Rumors

1) Everyone will have a good time.

Our request from you

Got any suggestions? Let us know.

KOTBR #76 - Do This In Memory of Jim

2009-06-14T16:10:00.004-04:00

The original plans for Roundtable #76 - a Fountain Square pubcrawl - were set in motion by none other than our beloved Jim:

Here are my thoughts--

6:30ish - Dinner and beer @ Siam Square.

Then to the Brass Ring (which, when I last checked, had Two Hearted on tap and some other craft stuff in bottles) and then a nightcap at Deano's. Sound okay? Feel free to disagree/make other suggestions.

--Jim

It sounds like a fine idea to us, so we ran with it. And everything was going smoothly until the day before the event:

My head is so full of snot from this cold that I'm going to bail on the roundtable this evening. I can neither smell nor taste at this point. Sorry all.

--Jim

Obviously, we were heartbroken. But instead of canceling the crawl, we soldiered on, keeping Jim in our hearts. And as we worked our way through the night, it almost felt as though Jim were with us the whole way. We also learned that absence really does make the heart grow fonder. It was with these stirring feeling in our hearts that we decided that KOTBR #76 would be a tribute to Jim.

* * * * *
KOTBR Jim was born a very long time ago somewhere in Indiana. Jim was a bright student, and quickly made his way through all levels of school, eventually earning his law degree. He had a stellar record in the courtroom, which helped pave his way to a career as a professor of law at Ivy Tech.

KOTBR Jim - Ewell vs. Robinson, 1812.
Much like Jim, Avery White Rascal appears cloudy, light yellow and banana-y looking. It has a scent of oranges, peaches, and a citrus grove reminding me of the air freshener that Jim likes to use in his classroom at Ivy Tech. Like the beers Jim loves, Avery White Rascal is fizzier than expected but just a hint of creaminess on the finish. This beer is a great representation of one of Jim's favorite styles, the Belgian White Ale brewed with Spices. Much like the doughy bread that Jim likes to eat during his favorite Jewish holiday season, Christmas, it is quite yeasty and highly spiced. It's an amazingly drinkable for Avery and I give it 3.8 mugs. A great accompaniment to my Red Curry with Tofu.

Avery White Rascal
Rod: 3.75 Mugs | Jess: 3.8 Mugs | Chris: 3.8 Mugs | Gina: 2.95 Mugs | Mike: 2.99 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 3.75 Mugs

* * * * *
Although Jim loved lawyering, he felt that work alone was no way to lead a fulfilling life. With that in mind, he began the next step in his life by becoming a devout follower of Jewishness.

KOTBR Jim - Jewish Place, 1971.
Our second stop of the evening was at the Brass Ring bar to review Bell’s Two Hearted Ale. When Jim is not celebrating his Jewishness, he loves to stop in this place because it reminds him of the time he spent as a swing dancer back in the 50’s. And he loves Two Hearted because its pine and citrus aromas are reminiscent of the time he spent as a lumberjack in the Cascade Mountains. Both of these activities were a solid foundation for Jim’s time with Manchester United. 4.25 Mugs.

Bell's Two Hearted
Chris: 5.0 Mugs | Gina: 4.25 Mugs | Rodney: 4.25 Mugs | Jess: 4.6 Mugs | Mike: 3.75 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 4.38 Mugs

* * * * *
Of course no man lives a life of servitude alone, and Jim found that watching football was a suitable escape. In 2008, his acts of devotion came to the attention of Manchester United Football Club. He joined his beloved Reds for their team photo, and served as an inspiration to the club as they earned their record 11th Premiership title.

KOTBR Jim - Manchester United, 2008.
When we arrived at our final destination for the night, we had three beers to choose from - Bell's Oberon, Spaten Lager and Franziskaner Hefe Weiss. Now those of you who don't know Jim might be interested to learn that he was big into punk music in the 80s. Punk is the American form of German Synthpop (think Dieter on Sprockets) and it's Jim's favorite music. On top of that, Jim also had an opportunity to play for his favorite German football team, Manchester United. For these two reasons, I was incredibly excited to see two German beers on tap at Deano's. I went with the summery Frankziskaner Hefe Weiss, which is brewed by Spaten as well. This beer smells like a fresh baked banana cream pie with slight hints of acetone. The mouthfeel is slightly heavy for a German Hefe Weiss. Flavors of banana chips, cream, simple syrup, cinnamon and orange all round out this classic, yeasty Hefe Weiss. Come to think of it, I don't even know if Jim likes bananas, so he might not like this. But I do know that he loves German Synthpop and German football, and that's good enough for me. This is a great summer beer and I give it 4.20 mugs.

Franziskaner Weissbier
Mike: 3.64 Mugs | Gina: 3.90 Mugs | Jess: 3.90 Mugs | Rodney: 4.20 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 3.93 Mugs

* * * * *
Our palates satisfied, and our hearts filled with love, we bid each other adieu. We went home with Jim in our minds, knowing that sometimes memories are almost as good as the real thing.

Here's to you Jim - Our favorite law-professing, Jewishness-studying, swing-dancing, cascade-mountain-lumberjacking, German-football-and-dance-music-enjoying Knight of the Beer Roundtable. You're a five mugger in our hearts.