Indeed Brewing Sweet Yamma Jamma

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on December 6th, 2012

Autumn has come and brought with it plenty of seasonal brews we all love and look forward to each year. The fresh hopped ales, Oktoberfests, and pumpkin ales all come out this time of year. Indeed Brewing is the newest production brewery with taproom in the Twin Cities. They’re offering unique brews and their autumn brews are no different. Plenty of breweries have a pumpkin beer out right now but how about a sweet potato brew? Indeed Brewing Sweet Yamma Jamma has similarities to a pumpkin beer but is made with sweet potatoes.

Yamma Jamma is much like a pumpkin brew but with a lighter flavor and less spice than your typical pumpkin brew. Its nice and drinkable in a way most pumpkin beers aren’t with their big doses of spice. You can enjoy a couple pints of Yamma Jamma without overwhelming yourself.

Available on tap at bars around the Twin Cities, seek out this one while it’s available. It’s also on tap in taproom at Indeed Brewing and be sure to see if they have it on nitro pour while you’re in there. Great local beer is best enjoyed as close to the source as possible and in the brewery’s own taproom is about as fresh as you can get.

Cask Bourbon Barrel Vanilla Surly Darkness

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on November 14th, 2012

For those that love a good Russian imperial stout, there is no finer time than that this is upon us.  All the imperial stouts seem to come out with the cold weather and hope to warm drinkers nicely.  In Minnesota, there is no more sought after imperial stout than Surly Darkness.  With it’s annual bottle release at Darkness Day, kegs also begin to appear at local bars around the Twin Cities.  From time to time a special cask makes an appearance too.  This cask is one of only 4 made and was filled with Surly Darkness aged in Woodford Reserve barrels then aged on fresh vanilla beans in the cask.  Amazing combo.

The Darkness was pulled from the tanks back in October and into the Woodford Reserver barrel it went.  The brew spent several weeks in the barrels before being transferred into a cask with the fresh vanilla beans to condition a bit longer.  The resulting flavors were fantastic.  The aging time in the barrel added a nice bourbon note without being overpowering and the vanilla was light but came through nicely.

The cask was tapped at 5pm at a local bar and it was nice to see that word of it’s tapping didn’t hit sites like BeerAdvocate and RateBeer.  Because of this, the tapping wasn’t packed wall to wall with tickers and people that only stop into a bar when they have something special on.  Instead the regular crowd was able to enjoy this fine brew without having to be pushed and shoved to get a glass.  While special events are fun at times, it’s nice to see those that regularly patronize a bar be able to get their hands on something special rather than those that will only stop in when there is a special tapping.  There were only about 10 people drinking this special cask (including 4 Surly employees) in the hour and a half I was at the bar so it was easy to enjoy a couple glasses at an unhurried pace.  No 30 minute waits in long lines while a frazzled bar staff run around attempting to quell a crazy crowd as is common at some of these special beer tapping events.  The fact that it was tapped during 1/2 price Minnesota beer nice didn’t hurt either.

Surly Darkness is a special seasonal that many look forward to each year.  Those that didn’t get a chance to checkout this cask aren’t out of luck yet.  With 3 more casks going out to bars at some point in the future, there is sure to be another chance to enjoy this beer.  But like the standard Darkness, it will go quickly so be sure to be there plenty early to get a seat.

Town Hall Brewery Publican Porter

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on November 9th, 2012

Anniversary Week at Town Hall Brewery brings a new beer tapping each night. This nights brew was the Publican Porter. The Publican Porter is special as it is the first beer formulated and brewed by Town Hall Brewery owner, Pete Rifakes. It’s strange but true that in 15 years in business, Pete hasn’t brewed more (as I’m sure many of us would be all over the chance to brew our own beer at our own establishment). Then again maybe it’s best that he leaves things to the pros as the breweries multiple GABF medals can attest (that isn’t to say that this brew wasn’t a tasty one, it really is).

This brew has a nice medium body with a bit full aroma and flavor. Nice light chocolate and slight coffee roast. Easy drinking enough that I was able to put several away from following Saturday during Free Beer Hour.

The Anniversary Week beers are going quick. Publican Porter is still on but you’ll have to hurry if you want to enjoy a pint or two of Pete’s porter. Get into Town Hall Brewery as soon as you can. Checkout the other Anniversary Week brews if they’re still on tap too.

Town Hall Brewery Mango Mama

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on October 26th, 2012

Anniversary Week is here at Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery.  This year Pete and the crew celebrate 15 years of great beer, great food, and great people down on Seven Corners.  To kick off Anniversary Week, Town Hall tapped a full batch of Mango Mama.  While Mango Mama makes an appearance from time to time throughout the year, it’s normally made a single keg at a time rather than an entire batch of this tasty brew.

To make Mango Mama, Town Hall starts with their most popular brew, the Masala Mama IPA, and adds fresh mangos.  Wonderful fresh mango aroma mixes with the citrus notes in the IPA and the flavor gets the same treatment.    While at times the addition of the large quantity of mangos used in the full batch of this brew has caused pH issues, it seems Mike got everything under control with this latest batch and it’s awesome.  In addition to being on tap, some lucky folks stopped in on Sunday the 14th to purchase a ticket for a growler of Mango Mama released on Monday.  The tickets went quick with a number of people lined up before the brewpub opened at 11am on Sunday.  I was lucky enough to get the last ticket that day around 7pm.

While it isn’t the type of big brew that will keep you warm with the current weather turning cold and winter coming soon, it is a great one to enjoy with your eyes closed imagining that you’re somewhere more tropical.  While the batch size may be much increased from normal, it doesn’t mean this brew will last.  Get into Town Hall Brewery to have a glass or two and help celebrate 15 wonderful years of greatness.

Surly Brewing Darkness Vertical

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on October 24th, 2012

With the growth of beer cellaring, craft beer collectors have enjoyed putting together vertical tastings of beer.  Verticals are simply a collection of several vintages of the same beer.  This Surly Brewing Darkness vertical is assembled from bottles going back to the start.  The recipe has been tweaked each year as head brewer Todd Haug zeros in on just what he wants Darkness to be.  Those that have been lucky enough to have Darkness every year all have their favorite vintages.  The number of bottles produced each year has increased but so has demand.

Seeing the progression in the labels over the years, Darkness definitely has one of the best series of beer labels around.  A framed and signed copy of the 2008 Darkness label hangs over my desk in my home office.  Offering different artists the chance to make the labels each year has produced different styles of design with a common theme.

Darkness Day is coming up this weekend, Oct 27th 2012, with craft beer fans from all around the country coming into town to party at the brewery, purchase bottles, and enjoy a great day of great beer and friends.  Looking back, it’s crazy how it’s grown from just a bit over 200 of us freezing on a December day in Minnesota back in 2007.  And the growler release back in 2006 didn’t even fill the 30 growler spots until a minute or two before the doors opened on a couple of the Saturdays back then.  Now people camp out at the brewery the night before to get a bottle (not that they have to).  Pretty cool to see the growth in a local brewery in just a couple years time.

Stone Brewing Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on October 19th, 2012

Stone Brewing is known for their overhopped brews.  Their anniversary beers always seem to be hop bombs and this Stone Brewing Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA is no different.  Created as a homage to the almighty hop, Stone cranked up the alcohol in their Ruination IPA from 7.7% ABV to 10.8% and used twice as much hops – 5lbs of hops per barrel including a pound each of Citra and Centennial in the dry hopping.

Filled with a big beautiful citrus aroma, this is one of those brews you can spend quite some time sniffing before ever taking a sip.  Plenty of lemon and grapefruit to enjoy.  Taking a taste, it’s much the same.  Big citrus hops with a nice bitterness in the aftertaste.  The malt definitely takes a backseat here with just enough to support the huge hop bill.

As with most DIPAs, this is one to drink when it’s as fresh as possible.  For the short time it was available, it seems most snatched this brew up with a quickness.  Like many of the other Stone brews, we can hope they release the homebrew recipe for this one in time.  I’m sure it’s a beer that many would like to brew themselves.  Find a bottle if you still can and enjoy it soon.

Barley John’s TNT Imperial IPA On Nitro

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on October 17th, 2012

When most of us think about imperial IPAs, we think of tons of hops making for big aromas and flavors.  What we don’t normally think about is how it’s served.  For the most part, these beers are generally served up carbonated with C02 like most brews.  Barley John’s TNT Imperial IPA is served up on nitro instead.  Opting for nitrogen rather than mixed gas allows some of the hops to really shine through and gives the beer a creamy mouthfeel.

TNT Imperial IPA offers up sweet and toasted bread notes with a rich malty body up front but it’s all about hops here.  The nitro shows a nice hop bitterness with plenty of citrus and pine to go around.  This brew weighs in with 118IBUs but the nitro does a nice job of softening that blow and really rounding out the flavors to make it easy drinking.  Barley John’s TNT Imperial IPA packs the hoppy explosion of a case high explosives.

With cooler weather on the way and the hops about to be picked, you should really stop into Barley John’s for some great food and awesome brew soon.  Sit outside on a cool night enjoying a couple beers on their great patio while we watch the leaves change color and bid farewell to summer in Minnesota for the season.  Be sure to checkout the other seasonal brews they have on offering as they’re changing fast these days.  Say hi if you see me there enjoying a brew or two too.

Great Divide Brewing Yeti Imperial Stout

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on October 10th, 2012

With the cool weather coming, it’s time to look towards the bigger brews that’ll keep you warm through the winter freeze.  Imperial stouts fit that bill perfectly.  Lots of big names hit the market along with the colder weather but there are also plenty of fantastic year-round, highly available, imperial stouts to satisfy that craving any time.  Great Divide Brewing Yeti Imperial Stout is a wonderful brew that can stand up there with the big guys and warm the palate and body any time of year.

Big roasty malt flavor with plenty of rich caramel and toffee in both the aroma and flavor.  A good sized dose of hop character thanks to plenty of American hops.  This brew weights in with a hefty 75IBUs and the alcohol warms at 9.5% ABV.

In recent years Great Divide has begun offering Yeti and other big brews in smaller format 12oz bottles to complement the 22oz bombers that have long been available.  The smaller format means you don’t have to spend an entire night drinking a single beer or get a friend to help you finish a bottle off.  It also makes it easier to cellar.  Now you can have several bottles put away to try at different times rather than just a single 22oz bottle thats one and done.

Great Divide Brewing Yeti Imperial Stout is a great brew that can compete with the big name imperial stouts but doesn’t have the super-limited availability or require a trip across country (or a ball busting trade) to acquire.  It doesn’t break the bank either with a 4-pack being available for around $10.  While people go crazy for those limited release beers, they often forget that wonderful beers like Yeti are right up there with them and can be had any time of the year.  Like those limited release beers, Yeti is wonderful fresh but also ages wonderfully in the cellar for a year or two.

Next time you’re in the liquor store looking for something to enjoy on a nice night around the house, don’t pass up the year-round greats we often glance over in favor of seasonal brews.  Grab a Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout and enjoy a great imperial stout that doesn’t require you to empty your entire wallet or wait in line for hours at some far flung brewery out of state.

Barley John’s Burger

Posted by Beer Blogger | Food Pictures | Posted on September 27th, 2012

Barley John’s offers plenty of awesome house-brewed beers to fill your belly but that’s not all they have to offer.  The food at Barley John’s is equally killer.  Food always makes beer better right?  The Barley John’s Burger is just what you need for a night of great friends and great beer.

Barley John’s starts with a 1/2lb of Black Angus burger and tops it with organic greens and tomato on their freshly baked bun.  Then it’s up to you to customize your burger with stuff like onions, cheese, peppers, roasted garlic, applewood smoked bacon, and more.  They also offer Thousand Hills Cattle Co. grass fed beef.  Served up with pub fries and a couple pints of brew, this is a tasty meal that I find myself going back to often when I visit the pub.

The specials change daily with lots of sweet offerings like ostrich and amazing steaks but the old faithfuls like the Barley John’s Burger will always continue to satisfy too.  Isn’t it time you dropped back into Barley John’s for a great meal with awesome brews while enjoying the weather on their patio?  It’s only been a couple weeks for me and I know I’m long overdue for a return before all the leaves are off the trees and we have to break out the winter gear for the season.

Brau Brothers Brewing Hopsession Super Pale Ale

Posted by Beer Blogger | Beer Pictures | Posted on September 27th, 2012

So many of us love hoppy brews.  The problem becomes enjoying a number of them without wrecking our palate.  While many hop bombs offer up big IBUs and alcohol percentages, some wonderful session beers offer the hop kick we’re looking for without the huge alcohol that would prevent most from enjoying more than a few.  Brau Brothers Brewing Hopsession Super Pale Ale is a wonderful hoppy session ale that can be enjoyed bottle after bottle.

Session beers offer the flavor and aroma we’re looking for along with a lighter alcohol content allowing the imbiber to enjoy a number of brews in a drinking session.  Weighing in at 4.2% with 30 IBUs, Hopsession Super Pale Ale was designed to offer all the flavor and aroma of an IPA without the exaggerated alcohol content.  Brau Brothers added plenty of late-addition hops that impart a great blend of citrus, pineapple, pine, and a touch of mango in the aroma.  Theres a light residual sweetness along with plenty of great hop character in each sip.

Session beers are just starting to become more prominent in American beer culture.  They’re great beers that can be enjoyed again and again in a night without the painful side effects in the morning.  Grab yourself a 6-pack or two of Hopsession and have your own drinking session without wrecking your palate or falling down drunk.