wear your craft

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Brian

Joe Hall (left) and Tanner Fritz, founders of Batch Apparel

How many times have we been in a bar with friends drinking a few pints, and sometime in the conversation someone has an idea for a new business or a product that will revolutionize the world, and everyone is like, “You should totally do that!” Everyone’s excited and your imagination starts wandering to thoughts of world domination and piles of cash. But then you start going through all the logistics and details in your head and you totally psyche yourself out. Idea fizzles, nothing happens.

Well, Tanner Fritz and Joe Hall were grabbing a beer after work at Olde Mecklenburg’s tap room in Charlotte about four months ago, and the ideas were flowing like the Mecklenburger. They both love craft beer and witnessed the craft beer scene in Charlotte blow up over the past few years. “Charlotte’s craft beer scene is growing just like the rest of the Carolinas, and we both found ourselves in it saying, ‘We want to be more involved in this, how do we find a way to take our social lives and do more with it?'” Tanner explained after he introduced himself to me last week. “Neither of us were much of a homebrewer, we figured that out. But we thought there’s no greater way to identify yourself as a craft beer enthusiast than what you wear.”

Unlike most, this was one idea that did not die. About a month ago, Tanner and Joe took that initial vision and launched Batch Apparel, a line of custom designed t-shirts that center around craft beer culture. Most beer geeks have a collection of t-shirts from their favorite breweries, but no one had developed a line of apparel that could be a common symbol to unite those that love craft beer.

“From an apparel standpoint, similar to what Life is Good did for outdoor, hiking-types,” Tanner said. “We realized there really isn’t anything that is appealing to a beer fan apparel wise. We’re going after more like concepts, what it means to be a craft beer enthusiast or homebrewer, as opposed to specific breweries.”

The guys began by working with local designers, printers and brewers to create a product that was high-quality, unique and true to the craft beer spirit. Building on the premise of how each batch of crafted beer is unique in its own way, Tanner told how part of the inspiration behind Batch Apparel came to be, “We were at Olde Mecklenburg talking about this idea, and we went to order more beers, and they were out of Mecklenburger, and we were astounded they were out… We loved that concept, and if we did these shirts, it would be some sort of batch process, like a real craft beer, where you can only get it for so long and it’s kind of painful because you can’t get it anymore once it’s sold out.”

Batch #1

Just like there’s a story behind every brewery and every beer, they wanted to tell the story of how each design came about. If you check out their website, they have a page dedicated to the evolution of each design.

In addition to the line of t-shirts, Tanner and Joe also plan on drawing people in through events and activities to complete the lifestyle experience around the Batch Apparel brand. Around the time the website went live, they had their launch party at Growler’s Pourhouse. The response was great, and they had about 250 people come out to support them. “The thought is to do four to six events a year and make sure it’s pushing a brewery and it’s not just about some t-shirt,” Tanner said.

I feel as though a modeling contract is imminent.

After we chatted, Tanner sent me a “Share Your Craft” shirt. I requested a medium, and it turned out to be a good fit. Shapely, yet not too tight. It’s very comfortable, good choice of cut and material.

The inside label doesn’t tell what the fabric is, but it feels like those new-fangled half cotton/half polyester t-shirts that are super-soft and feel like they’ve already been broken in for five years when they’re straight off the rack. This shirt will become a regular in my rotation.

As I was finishing my chat with Tanner, he summed up the mission of Batch Apparel, “It’s been fun. We get to hang out with brewers and go to events. It’s been a good time.” Keep up the good fight, guys. Crank out some good designs on comfortable shirts, and good things will happen.

Oh, and if you’re reading this, go buy a shirt.

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Colorado… what now?

Posted on June 26, 2011 by Brian

The Hot Dog King comes to Ft. Collins

In 1983, my family moved from Cleveland to Denver. I was seven years old.

My parents both grew up in Cleveland. If I count correctly, at least three generations on either side preceded them in Northern Ohio, before you get back to the old country. Except for my Uncle Dave who was in the Air Force and now lives in Columbia, SC, all of my parents’ brothers and sisters still live in Ohio. Looking back, it took some guts for my parents to leave all they had known for 32 years to embark on a journey West, just the two of them and a couple young kids.

All I really remember of my first six years in Ohio was playing River Raid on the Atari with my friend Eric, getting popped on the chin by a see-saw in kindergarten, and my sister falling off our second story deck when she was two, yet somehow landing square on her back in a sandbox without getting hurt.

I was a little sad to leave my friends Eric and Jeff when my parents said we were moving to Colorado, but I think I was up for the adventure. When we flew into Colorado for the first time and I saw the mountains as we descended into Denver, I was immediately struck with awe. I was amazed at how big they were. I’d never seen anything so magnificent. Instinctively, I felt a primal fear of those jagged, snow-capped peaks, yet even at seven years old I was drawn to them.

Even though we only spent three years in Colorado, the experience had a profound effect on the rest of my life. I’m still a Broncos fan, I love going up to the mountains and I enjoy cold weather.

Turns out I have another connection to Colorado that didn’t surface until I was in my late 20s: beer. All I knew of Colorado beer as a kid was the one time we went on a tour of the Coors brewery in Golden. The only thing I recall of that tour was that it stunk to high hell in the brewery. I didn’t know what was going on, but it wasn’t natural. Maybe that’s why I ended up waiting until I was 21 to drink my first beer.

My, how Colorado beer and I have both grown.

As fortune would have it, a few weeks ago Nicole and I went on a pilgrimage to the Mecca of beer during Craft Beer Week. As our plane approached Denver, I looked over the port-side wing and felt the same nervous excitement when I saw the front range as I did when I was seven.

The plan was to spend a few days in Denver seeing the sights (read: breweries) with our good friends the Harrisons before heading out for a mountain get-away at the tail end trip. The Harrisons are beer appreciators themselves, and Alexandra was in between semesters and had ample time to serve as our beer sherpa. In fact, the first thing we did off the plane was head to a downtown King Soopers to pick up some Deschutes and Odell’s.

Being mid-May when we left South Carolina, it was in the high-80s with the ever-present humidity. As we cracked open a couple Deschutes Hop Henges and sat on the front porch at the Harrison’s near-downtown craftsman, the sun was shining and it couldn’t have been more than 70 degrees. It was a little slice of heaven.

However, after that sunny afternoon, it must have begun the rainiest week in the history of Colorado. It rained at least 6 of the next 7 days. It felt more like spring in Oregon. But we wouldn’t let it hold us down.

Nicole and Alexandra drape themselves along with the hop vines outside of Odell in Ft. Collins

We visited Great Divide, Oskar Blues, Left Hand, Avery, New Belgium and Odell over the course of four days. Each brewery and tasting room had its own character, from the tour-centric grandeur of New Belgium to the urban warehouse feel of Great Divide.

Oskar Blues tasting room, also known as the Tasty Weasel, had pinball, shuffleboard and four skeeball lanes with 200-barrel fermenters in the background. I continued my cornhole spiral at Left Hand, taking a beating at the hands of Alexandra and Emmett. Odell had a well-polished tasting bar, no doubt inspired by the friendly Ft. Collins beer arms race with New Belgium.

My favorite brewery to visit was Avery. Their tasting room has a mind-blowing 20 taps and a cask, including at least 8 beers that I had never tried. I ran the gamut on the rarities and one-offs that I could not find at home. My favorites were their sour and a bourbon barrel smoked beer. All-around it was outstanding. I always liked Avery, but after suckling on the teats of the brewery, my esteem has risen to new heights. Thank you, Adam Avery.

The wall of taps at Avery

On Wednesday of the week we loaded up a rental car and headed west on I-70. After surviving a snow-storm, we emerged on the other side of Vail in Edwards, the location of Crazy Mountain Brewing Co.

We stopped in around lunch time with a French bread loaf and salami, grabbed a couple pints of IPA and enjoyed the view of the Vail Valley. We also had the good fortune of meeting brewer and co-owner Kevin Selvey and Crazy Mountain’s agent, Jay. Jay also happens to be the inventor of the beer buckle. And yes, I will be wearing one at Brewgrass in September.

Me with Jay, the inventor of the beer buckle, at Crazy Mountain

Our final beer stop of the trip was at Revolution Brewing in Paonia. After driving through a couple of broken-down mining towns that bordered on creepy, we came into Paonia, a surprisingly quaint and active town of about 1,000 people. We learned that in town there’s a cool bar that has live music on weekends, an independent movie theater, a farm-to-table restaurant, and a brewery.

About 20 minutes from our final destination in Crawford, we rolled into Revolution weary from five hours in the car. It was about four in the afternoon and the tasting room bar, which is in an old church, was already full with about eight patrons locked in conversation. I totally expected one of those scenes where everyone goes silent and stares when the outsiders come in, but everyone kept on rolling. We were greeted with a smile from the woman behind the bar and were served a pint of Colorado Red and Miner’s Gold.

Nicole and me out in front of Revolution Brewing with brewmaster Mike.

We relaxed for a couple pints and filled a couple growlers to take on to our cabin in Crawford. After all, we couldn’t risk being snowed-in for a couple days without some local beer to stave off the cold. It was still only mid-May, after all! (We woke up Thursday morning to snow. It was May 20. Didn’t see that coming…)

After nine days in Colorado, drinking some of the best beer in the world, immersed in the most gorgeous mountain vistas, it was tempting not to get on the plane Sunday back to South Carolina. I dreaded the warm humidity hitting me like a wet blanket when I got off the plane. However, I boarded the flight, knowing there is unfinished business back home. I have debts to pay and beer to evangelize. My people are in Colorado, but I’m a missionary in South Carolina.

I now understand Grizzly Bear. I’ve been to the pinnacle and as much as I try to cling to it, it remains allusive. Yet how can I go anywhere else and be satisfied?

Colorado… what now?

The view from our cabin in Crawford. It was amazing.

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Beer Dinner at American Grocery, Featuring GBX

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Brian

American Grocery is one of my favorite restaurants in Greenville. It’s locally owned, it’s small, and they use local ingredients to make up an ever-changing menu. When I become independently wealthy, Chef Joe is the first one I’m offering a job to as my personal chef. His favorite animal is the pig. That’s all I need to see on a resume.

The “Grocery List” as it is appropriately called, includes tomatoes from Iszy’s Heirlooms, dairy from the Happy Cow Creamery, pork from Brickhouse Farms, lamb from Red Fern Farms, flour from Adluh.

Amidst this delicious backdrop, American Grocery hosted their first beer pairing dinner on Monday evening. Chef Joe teamed up with one of Greenville’s heavy hitters in the beer world, Cameron Read from the Greenville Beer Exchange, to match the perfect beer with the perfect dishes.

Here’s what they came up with:

Course 1
mussel ceviche, smoked paprika, pickled mustard seeds
Lindeman’s Geuze Cuvee Rene

Course 2
crispy smoked pork, summer bean ragout, sauce gribiche
Aecht Schlenkeria Rauchbier Urbock

Course 3
local lamb, preserved lemon gnocchi, dinosaur kale, marinated tomatoes
Westmalle Trappist Tripel

Course 4
chocolate semifreddo, coconut caramel
Weyerbacher Heresy

So, um, yeah. It lived up to the hype.

We arrived at 6:30 and were allowed to choose our seat at one of three long tables, community-style. First, a word on community-style dinners at restaurants. This is totally the way to go. The food and beers were great, and I’ll get to that in a minute, but it was the good company that made the experience a memorable one. We met a half-dozen new people, some of whom were beer vets, others just wanted to try some new things. Everyone was open-minded and we had a great time discovering, telling stories and getting to know each other.

Sure, you might sit next to some weirdos on occasion, but you just don’t have to talk to them. Odds are you’ll meet really cool people and perhaps make a new friend or two. That’s what sharing a meal is really about. More restaurants should do this.

Enough philosophy, onto the goods.

For the first course, Chef Joe was gracious enough to substitute beets in for the mussels. (The thought of eating mussels makes me want to gag. Gah!) However, my involuntary reflex caused me to miss out on a fantastic pairing, as the acidity in the ceviche would have paired perfectly with the acidic tartness of the geuze. The salad was still good, and the smoked paprika was a neat twist on the finish. I loved the geuze, but that’s a given for me these days. It was light, tart and dry, much like champagne.

It probably comes as no surprise, but the smoked pork was my favorite dish and pairing of the night. The pork was tender as can be, and the crispy breading coated the pork and gave it a subtle crunchy texture that separated it from mere barbeque pork. The choice of the smoked, dark, malty rauchbier with the smoked pork may seem like a no-brainer, and with good reason. The pork and beer pairing took each other to new heights, as soul mates who, while leading separate lives, achieved a measure of worldly success, but when together have the potential for world domination.

Moving on to course three, I was prepared for a small let-down. After all, where do you go from there? There was no such disappointment. Not when you have tender, local lamb with preserved lemon gnocchi paired with a trappist tripel from Westmalle that practically invented the style. The lemony citrus from the gnocchi, along with the vinegar spice of the marinated tomatoes and the richness of the lamb was accentuated exceptionally well with the fruity spice and intense malt backbone of the tripel. Well done.

For dessert? In normal-guy language was a chocolate brownie topped with kind-of frozen chocolate custard, coconut caramel sauce and cocoa nibs, paired with a bourbon barrel imperial stout. The use of the coconut in the dessert was genius, it totally meshed with the vanilla-coconut character from the bourbon barrel aging in the beer. A slice of nirvana.

My only suggestion for next time is to pour slightly larger samples of each beer. (Of course the lush would suggest that…) While I do understand we don’t want a bunch of drunks hitting the street, the samples were a hair on the short side, which meant that I had to ration my sips to stretch my beer through each course. Who knows, maybe that’s actually a lesson I should take home!

Overall, it was a delicious meal with thoughtfully paired beers in a welcoming atmosphere. Nicole and I had a great time, and we hope that AGR will team up with GBX to do this again.

Posted in Beer & Food, Beer events | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Sippin’ Beers on the West Side

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Brian

This past week I had the opportunity to travel to Los Angeles for work. It’s the first time I’ve ever been in the state, and considering there are over 100 breweries and brewpubs in Southern California, I felt like my head would spin off when I tried to plan my adventures after work.

While I was working the first part of the week, I was staying in Laguna Woods, about an hour south of LA. On Tuesday I was able to steal away for a post-work jaunt down to Laguna Beach for dinner at the Ocean Avenue Brewery.

Laguna Beach is a quaint little beach town, and is the only place in Southern California where the mountains go all the way to the sea. The beaches and small cliffs provide a beautiful setting. I was able to watch the sun set over the Pacific for the first time in almost four years. Ah, it’s been too long…

Sunset on Laguna Beach

After checking out some beach volleyball (players) and walking in the sand, I headed over to the brew pub. It was around 7 pm, but I was dog tired from the jet lag. It also threw me off that the Bulls-Pacers game was just finishing up. Stuff happens so early out there!

Ocean Avenue Brewery

The place was smaller than I thought it would be from the outside, with the bar on the left and a big projection TV on the right side. I got the feeling this place would be rocking during the peak of beach season, but tonight it was empty.

The dining area in Ocean Avenue Brewing

They had a good sized patio section along the sidewalk, but I decided to pull up a seat at the bar along with the other two patrons in the restaurant. As my father-in-law taught me, if you’re traveling by yourself, always sit at the bar. You’ll make some good connections that way.

I struck up a conversation with the bartender, Giovani, and ordered a sample flight of their four beers on tap. (They also had another four or five guest taps.) Of the brewery’s own beers, they had Watchtower Wheat, Red Sunshine, Ocean Pale and The Moors Scottish Ale.

Giovani told me a bit about each beer, in an awesome Italian accent, by the way. I started with the wheat, which would make a great beach beer. Light in body and flavorful, it came through with citrus and coriander.

The red was solid for a session beer. It had a nice malt flavor and dry finish. The pale ale was my least favorite, though it was decent. The Scottish was interesting. Smokey. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed an entire pint of it, as the smoke was too intense to make it a good session beer. However, the sample was tasty.

The food menu was creative and well thought-out. I ordered a pizza topped with fresh grape tomatoes, arugula, carmelized onions, garlic and shaved parmesan. It was delicious.

I wasn’t able to steal away to any more beer stops until I took my leave of Aliso Viejo and headed across town to visit for a couple days with my friends Jackie and Justin in Culver City, west of downtown LA. Justin is also a kindred craft beer spirit, and he proved to be a sage shirpa for my first foray into the SoCal beer scene.

Wally’s Wine and Spirits

Tactical Nuclear Penguin would have blown up my happy home.

I managed to leave the office early enough to avoid the worst of LA traffic, and I arrived at Jackie and Justin’s around 5 pm. Since Justin wasn’t getting home until around 7, Jackie took the opportunity to drive me over to Wally’s Wine and Spirits, a beer and wine shop a few minutes from their apartment. (They also had a separate small building dedicated to cheese. The world needs more buildings dedicated to cheese.)

Despite only having a few coolers for beer amid the wine and spirits, the selection was carefully chosen. No A-B here.

Somehow, I managed to restrain myself from buying the $100 bottle of Brewdog Tactical Nuclear Penguin, but I still came away with a good haul. Russian River Damnation and Supplication, Alesmith Old Numbskull and Odonata Saison. The 50 pound weight limit for checked baggage really puts a damper on a beer smuggler’s day.

Father’s Office

Once Justin arrived home from his hard days’ work, they took me to Father’s Office. I could only wish this were my father’s office. Nothing against my dad. He is a hard-working American.

Like most places in LA, Father’s Office has an upscale vibe, but in a way that makes you feel cooler for being there. It’s open seating, so there’s a predatory element that takes the excitement to a whole new level.

The wall of taps was impressive, and I went right in for a Deschutes Hop Henge. It had been over three years since I last tasted a Deschutes, and I felt like I was reunited with an old flame that I once shared a tryst with in Bend those many years ago.

I ponder the greatness of Pliney the Elder

After finishing the Hop Henge, Justin was able to score some seats at one of the outside patio tables. I then had the opportunity to cross one off my beer bucket list: Russian River Pliney the Elder. Yes, I’ve never had Pliney of any age. I now understand.

The food menu at Father’s Office is also on par with the quality of the beer. When he opened the place, chef Sang Yoon decided he was going to create dishes his way, so there are no substitutions. By the look of the dishes, I wouldn’t want to question his judgment.

I went with the burger, which was cooked a perfect medium rare, topped with guere, caramelized onions and arugula on a crusty baguette. We also got a basket of sweet potato fries, which were just sick. Oh, and don’t order ketchup with the fries. Just trust me.

Friday was laid back. While my hosts were working, I went for a run in Culver City Park, which put any hills in Greenville to shame. My calves are still sore. After lunch with Jackie at Native Foods Café, which was nutritious and delicious, I took a drive down to the beach in Santa Monica.

I stopped in for a beer at the Library Alehouse on Main Street. It was a neat little place and had 29 beers on tap. I chose the Firestone Velvet Merlin, a tasty oatmeal stout, roasty and chocolatey.

I stuck around long enough to watch the Broncos select Rahim Moore and Orlando Franklin back-to-back in the second round. I think Denver had a good draft, despite not taking a defensive tackle. If you want my full opinion on the draft, send me an email and I’d be happy to share.

Later Friday night, after sushi dinner, where I tried sashimi for the first time, we dropped Jackie off at LAX to catch a red eye to DC for a baptism. That is one dedicated godmother.

City Tavern

Justin and I then proceeded to the City Tavern back in Culver City. He’d never been there and wanted to check it out. It was packed when we arrived at 10 pm. There was patio seating, but was reserved for diners only before 11.

We went into the bar and ordered a couple beers. The atmosphere was lively. There was a bachelorette party and another group of guys that ordered a round of shots of brown liquor. It could have been one of those nights. The crowd seemed a little bit older, but as Justin put it, “People seem to grow up late in LA.”

The City Tavern is unique in that it is the only bar in California (or anywhere that I’m aware of) that has self-serve taps at three booths. I’m not exactly sure how it works, and I forgot to take a picture, but you have to reserve the booths and they offer three selections that aren’t available from the main bar. It’s a cool concept, though I’m not sure it would be good for my health.

Stone World Bistro and Garden

On Saturday Justin and I wanted to take a pilgrimage down to the Stone World Bistro and Garden in Escondido, about two hours south, just north of San Diego. When we first pulled up, there was a huge parking lot full of cars. I caught a glimpse of a sign that said “Trailhead,” so I figured that the brewery was next to a state park or something. Nope, that’s all for the brewery and garden.

Walking in, the place was teeming with people. It felt like bizzaro Disneyland for beer geeks. We were told it would be an hour and a half to be seated for lunch, so we took our chances with bar seating.

The dining room at Stone's World Bistro

I began by ordering an El Camino (Un)Real Black Ale, a collaboration between Stone, Firestone Walker and 21st Amendment. It was fantastic. Rich chocolate malt with a terrific bitter finish. Justin got the Bashah, a collaboration between Stone and Brewdog.

We made our way up to the balcony area overlooking the huge patio area and garden. Unfortunately, the garden was being worked on, so we couldn’t go in.

I usually prefer places that are less populated and a little more rustic, but Stone created as close to a Garden of Beer Eden as I’ve seen. The garden is like an oasis among the desert of San Diego, and the restaurant is top-notch. Since we couldn’t order lunch entrees in the bar area, we did the next best thing, soft pretzels and sausages. Not a bad consolation prize!

Our lunch of pretzels and sausage, accompanied by Oaked Arrogant Bastard and Cali-Belgique

The pretzels were soft, yet crispy and buttery on the outside. We were given four sausage links: smoked cheddar bratwurst, spicy Polish, chicken florentine and hot Italian with provolone, all served over braised cabbage. Paired with an Oaked Arrogant Bastard and a Cali-Belgique, it was a heavenly meal.

I can’t speak highly enough about the Stone beer garden. I’m still in awe. However, if you do go, be sure to make a reservation.

But wait, there’s more…

Lost Abbey

We had one more stop left in us. About five minutes down the road from Stone is Port Brewing and their sister Belgian-style brewery, Lost Abbey.

Unlike Stone, Lost Abbey is no frills. You walk into the brewery, and it’s a brewery. There’s a small bar off to the left where you can sit on kegs with bags of dextrose for cushions. Everywhere you go in the brewery, you’re surrounded by oak barrels and aging beer. It is, in a word, inspiration.

There were oak barrels around every corner in the brewery

This was probably the most fun stop of the weekend. Combining the excitement of $1 four-ounce samples with other people who were equally excited about $1 samples, the atmosphere was festive.

I was wearing my Coast Brewing t-shirt and a guy from Mt. Pleasant who was also in California for a work trip came up and introduced himself. He and his other friend who lived in San Diego were also at Brewvival in February. Yes, it is a small world.

We also met a group of four girls who were chemists in graduate school. We compared tasting notes, and I learned that one of the girls, Jenny, was from Germany and had never eaten an avocado! Imagine!

At this point, Emma the Dog saved me. After trying several samples, including 10 Commandments, Avant Garde, and Carnevale, along with Port Brewing’s Old Viscocity, Mongo IPA and Santa’s Little Helper, I was in a good place.

I could have kept drinking samples like this was Brewgrass, but we had to leave to pick up Emma from doggy day care. I’d like to send Emma a personal thanks, as she prevented me from being hungover on an airplane for eight hours the next day.

The Lost Abbey beers were great, and I still have an unopened bottle of Red Poppy waiting for me in the fridge. I’m going to wait a few weeks to open it, after I’ve come down from my California high and need a little reminder of what the beer is like on the West Side.

Posted in Beer, Beer spots, Breweries | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Trappe Door

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Brian

I wouldn’t exactly call Greenville a beer town… yet. The looming presence of Bob Jones University has kept the bible belt tight around the waist of the city for a long time. However, the growth of industry and influx of new blood has loosened that belt a notch or two in recent years.

Still only a two-brewery town, Greenville has taken a few steps closer to beerdom. Barley’s Tap Room has been a bastion of good beer for 10 years, and in the past year and a half we’ve had The Community Tap and Greenville Beer Exchange join the cause of bringing good beer to the scene.

This month, The Trappe Door opened, unlocking a gathering spot that has the same “cool” factor that the Brick Store Pub and The Thirsty Monk bring to Atlanta and Asheville. In the basement below Barley’s, it has that cozy, cellar feel that allows your imagination to teleport you 4,300 miles to Belgium.

Dimly lit, with low ceilings, big wooden doors and an amazing attention to detail create an atmosphere that feels as though they shipped a 200 year-old Belgian beer hall brick by brick to Greenville. It’s the type of place you could lose yourself in the bottom of a few pints and good conversation, and before you know it two hours have passed.

The dining room

Atmosphere is one thing, but the real question is whether it brings the goods. How’s the beer list? The baby of Barley’s owner Josh Beebe, there was little doubt that the Trappe Door’s selection would excite. 10 taps, 100+ bottles with everything from Belgian Wit to Flanders Red. As a sour beer fanatic, I was relieved to see about 20 lambics and sours on the list.

The final cherry on top is the food. There’s nothing more disappointing than boring food to accompany good beer. That is not the case here. They put a unique Belgian twist on the dishes, which include lamburger sliders with mint beet relish and goat cheese, sauteed duck breast with a cherry beer sauce, carbonades flamandes (beef stew cooked in Belgian beer), a variety of mussel pots, and yes, even Belgian waffles.

One corner features couches, a TV and faux barrels.

If I had one piece of constructive criticism, it would be that the fluorescent light from the kitchen in the back pierces the ambiance of the back three tables. I was even seated in the far corner in the back, but was facing the kitchen, and like a moth I found myself not being able to look away from the light. If they could find some way to put up a door or veil the light from the kitchen, it could save the back third of the bar.

AUTHOR’S NOTE, 6-26-2011: On a recent visit, I noticed they had turned off the moth light on the edge of the kitchen. It was much, much better.

Overall, I was very impressed with the Trappe Door in my initial visit. I felt like it brought the entire package: atmosphere, beer and food. I think it’s going to be a big step in Greenville’s continuing transformation into a beer destination. Now I don’t have to drive over an hour to get to a “cool” beer bar. I have one in my town.

The taps come from the ceiling. And sometimes, people turn into zombies.

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Fermentation Temperature Experiment

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Brian

I consider fermentation to be the final frontier of homebrewing. Ingredients are pretty easy to pick out. Then you start worrying about things like quickly cooling your wort after brewing, but a wort chiller is a quick solution.

Once you go to all-grain, it’s mash temperatures and efficiency. You can even start to control the mineral content and pH of your water. That’s manageable.

Fermentation is probably the most impactful part of the process on the final character of the beer, yet it is the one part of the process that homebrewers often have the least control over.

I wanted to do an experiment to see how much difference fermentation temperature made on the beer. So I brewed 10 gallons of pale ale and split it into two five-gallon carboys. The original gravity was 1.064. For reference, the recipe is at the bottom of the post. I used nothing but malt, hops and yeast. No other additives.

I used the same yeast in each carboy: Wyeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes. One carboy was kept out at room temperature, around 68 degrees. The other went in my homemade cooler box along with a space heater set at 80 degrees.

The difference in the fermentation itself and the finished beer was remarkable. Temperature and had a much greater impact than I would have guessed. Here is the tale of two beers separated at birth.

The 68 Degree Fermentation

Primary fermentation finished in about 6 days. The final gravity I measured was 1.010, coming in at about 7.5% ABV.

The beer is a golden yellow with a frothy white head. The aroma is heavy with clove and spice. The flavor has cloves and dark fruit, like prunes or dates. It was very unexpected from such a lightly colored beer. That’s usually something I would expect from a dubbel or a darker Belgian.

The 80 Degree Fermentation

Primary for the 80 degree finished in about 3 days. It also finished drier than the 68 degree, at 1.006. (8.1% ABV). This isn’t unexpected, as warmer temperatures give the yeast more energy to work faster and harder.

The color is about the same as the 68 degree, but the head is much creamier with finely tight bubbles. The aroma and flavor is bright, with notes of bubble gum, banana and white pepper. It has a noticeably cleaner, drier finish than the 68 degree, which makes sense since its FG was a scant 1.006.

Like a parent choosing between their children, it’s hard for me to say which beer I like better. They are both good in their own way.

I had read about the importance of fermentation temperature in the production of esters and different character in beer, but I had no idea the effect would be this pronounced. These taste like two completely different beers, not born from the same wort. This will certainly be a part of brewing that I’ll pay more attention to going forward.

Untamed Belgian Pale Ale (10 gallons)

18 lbs Belgian Pils
2 lbs Belgian caravienne
1 lb Belgian aromatic

3.0 oz French Strisselspalt 2.9% AA (60 min)
3.0 oz French Strisselspalt (20 min)
1.0 oz French Strisselspalt (0 min)
4.0 oz French Strisselspalt (dry)

Wyeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes Yeast (4 packs)

OG: 1.064

Posted in Homebrew, Recipes | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Brewvival reaffirms my faith

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Brian

Yes, that is a firkin of Foothills Sexual Chocolate. I need a cold shower.

Saturday was the second revival of Brewvival. 34 breweries bringing out their best. It remains in my top spot of favorite beer festivals. This is one of those rare festivals where a brewery needs to bring out its best, or it need not come out.

Put on by Coast Brewing Company and the Charleston Beer Exchange, this is the ultimate playground for the beer geek. However, you don’t have to know the difference between a Berliner Weisse and a Lichenhainer Weisse to enjoy yourself.

Many thanks to The Beave's dad, Curt, for transporting us. It was just like high school, except we were going to a beer festival instead of the movies.

Nicole and I were accompanied by my long-time friend, The Beave, and his new bride Meredith. Meredith is a self-proclaimed Corona Light aficionado, yet she made her way around to at least 20 breweries and enjoyed all but a handful of samples. See, there is reason to believe!

I managed to sample 35 beers, most of which I had never tried before. Despite my best efforts, there were still six or so beers that I desperately wanted to try, but didn’t get to before they ran out. So many beers, so little time (and blood alcohol capacity).

The logistics of the festival were greatly improved over last year. The wait to get in still took longer than it should have, but we got inside within 20 minutes. The food and bathroom lines were never bad. Even during the peak beer drinking time between 2 and 3, the beer lines were mostly managable. I never felt too crowded, and there was plenty of space to spread out away from the beer tents.

Lauren Salazar from New Belgium pairing her sour beers with cheese.

My favorite beer-related moment was getting to briefly chat with Lauren Salazar, the brewer of the New Belgium sour lineup, as she paired Le Terrior with a lime goat cheese. It was a delicious pairing, and really highlighted the tart, sour aspects of the beer.

Le Terrior was a nicely balanced, tasty sour, but I enjoyed the mouth puckering tart kick in the teeth from Tart Lychee even more. New Belgium’s sour beers are top notch, and while the normal lineup of beers are good, the sours are the Cadillac to their Chevy.

While there were so many delicious rare beers to be had, if I were forced to pick one as my favorite of the day, I would have to pick Heavy Seas Below Decks Barleywine on cask. It’s an English-style barleywine, so it’s not very hoppy. On cask it was amazingly smooth and malty. Maybe it also had something to do with the fact that it was my second-to-last beer of the day, but I was seriously impressed.

After two years of crushing it, Brewvival is poised to take off as word of this hidden jewel continues to spread among the beer world. At $50, the price is not cheap, but if you love beer, it’s worth every penny. I’ll certainly be here every year the good folks at Coast and the CBX keep inviting us back!

Adam Mundy from Oskar Blues and me under the big top

My Favorite Beers of the Day

  • Brooklyn Blast Double IPA – winner of best overall use of hops
  • Coast Old Nuptual Barleywine – best hoppy barleywine
  • Foothills Sexual Chocolate on cask – best stout
  • New Belgium Tart Lychee – best sour
  • Heavy Seas Below Decks Barleywine – best overall barleywine
  • Thomas Creek Up the Creek on Spanish cedar – best use of wood
  • Cigar City Oatmeal Raisin Cookie – most realistic impersonation of a cookie
  • Westbrook Uberbier #3 – best beer over 17% ABV

Beers I Will Go To My Grave Regretting Missing Out On

  • Smuttynose Breakfast Stout
  • Dogfish Head Chicory Stout randalized through Tootsie Rolls
  • Sierra Nevada/Dogfish Head barrel aged Life and Limb
  • Stillwater/Mikkeller Two Gypsies
  • Thomas Creek Banana Split Chocolate Stout over vanilla ice cream
Posted in Beer events | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Prepare Thyself For a Beer Festival

Posted on February 21, 2011 by Brian

In four and half days I will be at my personal Daytona Super World Series Cup of beer festivals. I speak of Brewvival. I was at the inaugural festival last year, and it was the most exceptional collection of rare beer that I’ve had the pleasure of sampling.

Needless to say, I’m excited about this Saturday. This year should be even better. The weather forecast looks good and the beer list already has me buzzed. It’s going to be a fantastic day.

Aside from all the rare treats that I’ll get to sample, one of the most exciting aspects of going to this year’s festival is that one of my longtime friends, The Beave, and his wife Meredith will be coming with us. This is their first-ever beer festival. I remember my first beer festival… barely…

What a first-time. This is the beer equivalent to loosing your virginity to Brooklyn Decker. I’m not sure any other festivals will ever measure up for them.

So, it got me thinking, what advice would I give first time beer festival goers? There are four key things to keep in mind in preparing to attend a festival:

1. Hydration is key, bring a hydration pack if you have one

Brewvival is a six-hour affair. These are big beers. You will get hammered much faster than you think, especially as you get caught up in the festivities. You need to make sure you’re paced and hydrated enough to make it all six hours. Don’t be that guy passed out face-down in a field.

Many of the smaller, outdoor festivals will allow you to bring in your own water bottles or hydration packs. Having plenty of water easily accessible is crucial, especially if there aren’t a lot of water stations around the festival area.

I always recommend drinking a swallow or two of water between samples. Not only does it help keep you hydrated, but it cleanses the palate, getting you ready for your next beer. Obviously, check the festival’s website or FAQ and see if there are any restrictions about what you’re allowed to bring in.

2. Pretzel necklaces are the crown jewels of beer festivals

We all know what happens when you drink beer on an empty stomach. Well, imagine drinking for six hours on an empty stomach. Bad things.

Since the dawn of agriculture and domesticated grains, man has known of the alcohol-absorbing power of bread. I don’t want to be the asshole carrying around a loaf of bread at a beer festival. Instead, wear a band of pretzels around your neck! It’s the coolest and will supply you with a steady stream of spongy carbs to keep you going all afternoon.

Pretzel necklaces are the perfect accessory for the beer connoisseur.

3. Know the lay of the land

Do a little homework before the festival. If it’s posted, check out the beer list, or at least the list of breweries that will be there. Mark the beers you want to be certain you try. Often, the rare or one-time beers will be in limited supply. You want to hit those first so you don’t miss out.

Other things to remember:

  1. Determine if food is provided or available for purchase. Pretzels only go so far. Bring some cash for a substantial meal or snack if food is not complimentary.
  2. If the festival is outside, wear sunscreen. Hungover and sunburned is not a badge of honor, it’s dumb.
  3. Wear an abnormal hat. It will make your day more fun.

4. Arrange transportation before the festival

Trust me, you’re going to be more hammered than you think. Even with small, four-ounce samples, if you try 25 beers, which is not too difficult in six hours, that’s the equivalent of eight beers. I don’t know about you, but that’s a lot for me.

It’s best to have your transportation arranged before the festival, when you are at least somewhat coherent. Do not trust yourself post-festival. Coherence will be a scarce commodity. Make sure you make it back to tell your friends about all the crazy stuff you did at the festival.

These guys didn't arrange a ride home.

Posted in Beer events, Practical Beer Tips | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

The Beer Exchange Comes to Greenville

Posted on January 31, 2011 by Brian

That's my bike.

In November 2008, Scott Shor and Rich Carley opened the Charleston Beer Exchange. It was the first of its kind in South Carolina, a retailer totally dedicated to craft beer. Two years later, the store is ranked as the #2 beer retailer in the world for 2011 according to Ratebeer.com.

That is an amazing accomplishment. Greenville shall now reap the benefits of their expertise.

On December 31, 2010, the Greenville Beer Exchange opened its doors, a mere seven hours before the dawn of 2011. “It took us longer than we thought, but we were bound and determined to open in 2010,” Rich told me while working the Greenville store earlier this month on the Monday night of the Great Snowstorm of ‘011, while most of the city was shut down. “We can’t afford not to be open.”

Co-owner Rich Carley explains how awesome this beer is to a couple customers in the "far-out beer wing." Only one of the customers is visible, but there were two. The other one was a lot smaller than the nearer guy.

That night Nicole and I stopped in after having dinner at Barley’s, which is adjacent to the GBX, a very convenient pairing for beer aficionados. We picked up 2007 and 2008 vintages of Rodenbach Oak Aged Flanders Red. Yes, they were both amazing.

Cameron fills a growler of Ommegang Zuur for me from among the 16 taps.

It’s those type of rarities that the guys at the Beer Exchange bring to the table. In addition to the extraordinary variety of bottles, they have 16 taps to fill growlers. You heard me. Sixteen.

Scott and Rich took all that they learned opening the Charleston store and put it into the Greenville location. It’s a bigger store and has more taps than Charleston. And while they aren’t doing any events yet, they do have plans to do beer tastings and rare beer events as they do in Charleston.

Rich is working the store for the next few weeks while they get everything settled. After that, they are turning the store over to Cameron Read, the general manager, and Zach Shollenberger.

While Cameron and Zach have big shoes to fill, I think they’ll be ok. After all, Cameron recommended the Rodenbach and that was a hit. He’s off to a good start in my book.

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Barleywine Weekend V

Posted on January 23, 2011 by Brian

The view from the back deck of this year's Barleywine Weekend mountain house

I love hanging around “beer people.” Not only are beer people generally laid back, friendly and helpful, they rarely settle for the status quo. Whether it’s pushing the envelope while brewing or searching for their next favorite beer, they are never content to let things get stagnant.

There is also a point in time when beer people realize that beer is not only great on it’s own, it is even better with food. I’m not talking about beer and pizza. I’m talking about a Flanders Red with a goat cheese omelet. Crazy stuff that pushes the imagination and the palette to new heights and experiences.

That brings me to Barleywine Weekend V. Over the Martin Luther King holiday weekend, Nicole and I were honored to be invited to attend a long weekend with beer-loving friends in the mountains. The tradition started five years ago when a small group of hard-core beer geeks wanted to have a weekend centered around an under-appreciated style of beer; they chose barleywine.

The general format of the weekend is this: Friday night is beer theme night (this year’s is canned beer), Saturday is food and beer pairing, and Sunday is nothing but barleywine.

I've got 99 problems, and a ditch ain't one.

The weekend started off with a dramatic flare. The owner of the house somehow forgot to let the property manager know that we were coming, so the quarter-mile long uphill driveway on the top of a mountain was not plowed and was still covered with snow and ice.

None of our cars could make it very far up the hill, so we parked at the bottom of the drive. However, after getting in touch with the property manager, he was going to come out and get some things touched up for us. So, we needed to move our cars so he could get his truck up.

Well, I had a small mishap while backing up my car, and while looking over my left shoulder to prevent sliding down a 15-foot hill, I got too close to the other side and the car slid down into a two-foot ditch.

Luckily, LeRoy, the property manager showed up about 15 minutes later and happened to have a truckload of firewood. A 65-year veteran of the mountain, he immediately set us to chopping wood, clearing the snow in front of the car, and built a small ramp for me to drive my car out of the ditch. The car only suffered some minor scratches. I am eternally grateful to LeRoy, could have been a disaster…

Once we finally got settled in, we began our canned beer tasting. 24 beers were sampled, and PBR and Natty Light were not in the mix. As a matter of fact, there was only one Oskar Blues beer in the spread, Dale’s Pale Ale.

Plating the frisee duck salad

Saturday was an incredible display of culinary ability. It was like an amateur version of Top Chef with beer pairings. Everyone brought there A-game, as there were 11 dishes in all. We started at 1 pm and finished around 11. There is nothing like eating for 10 straight hours.

With the smaller portions of each dish, I somehow managed to avoid getting full until around the 7th or 8th round. However, each dish was amazing, and I had to try each. It was a struggle toward the end, but I persevered and made it. (It took about five days for my digestive system and my weight to return to their pre-BBW status.)

I’ve included photos and a description of a few of the dishes below if you’re interested in the pairings.

On Sunday we started the day a beautiful pre-lunch mini-hike down a snowy road below the house, where an offshoot lead to a natural bridge. Upon our return we were treated to a pairing of two of soups and grilled cheese.

Later that afternoon we broke into the barleywines. We started out with five or six homebrewed barleywines, which were just as good as the commercial versions we tried afterward. We had some talented brewers in our midst.

In total, we had 24 barleywines to taste, but once we got to about 15 or 16, it became obvious that we wouldn’t make it through them all. Barleywine is rich, malty and typically over 10% ABV.

So call us pansies, but in the interest of public safety and next-day headaches, we called it at 16. Like the end of a cigar, it just wasn’t tasting good any more.

We had so much good beer, good food and silliness, but three days is about all my 34-year old body can take. I wish I could stay in the mountains forever, but it was good to get back to clean livin’ with lots of water, exercise and vegetables.

However, I’ve already started brainstorming for BWW VI. I’m not a rookie anymore, and it’s time to bring the thunder.

The Beer & Food Pairings

Dish #1: Steamed Asparagus topped with a poached egg, lemon confit hollandaise sauce, Parmesan cheese, and crumbled bacon paired with Sierra Nevada Kellerweiss (Prepared by Matt Schaefer & Christina Gonzalez's thumb)

Dish #2: Fresh baked pita, feta & chickpea salad paired with Ommegang Hennepin (Prepared by Bobby & Shelly Congdon)

Dish #3: Rye sourdough toast topped with homemade pickled apple relish and huntsman cheese Welsh rarebit paired with Founders Red Rye (Prepared by Matt Schaefer & Christina Gonzalez)

Dish #4: Roast duck on frisee salad with spiced walnuts, apple chips, goat cheese and Rodenbach vinaigrette paired with 2007 Rodenbach Oak Aged Ale (Prepared by Brian & Nicole Cendrowski)

 

Dish #5: Blue cheese on melba toast paired with Oskar Blues Ten Fidy (Prepared by McCracken)

 

Dish #6: Homemade pasta and pesto paired with Rogue Dead Guy (Prepared by Bobby and Shelly Congdon)

 

Dish #7: Apple brie quesadilla with sauted onions, brown sugar, cinnamon and thyme paired with Tripel Karmeliet (Prepared by "Burger King" Smith)

 

Dish #8: Mojo marinated pork tenderloin on a bed of collard greens with mustard bbq sauce paired with Sweetwater IPA (Prepared by Matt Schaefer & Christina Gonzalez)

Dish #9: Spicy szechuan pork stew paired with Stoudt's Gold Lager (Prepared by Ed Westbrook and Morgan seBlonka)

 

Dish #10: Baked framboise soaked brie and porter reduction paired with Ommegang Three Philosophers (Prepared by Bobby and Shelly Congdon)

 

Dish #11: Creme brulee made with Bell's Java Stout reduction paired with Bell's Java Stout (Prepared by Matt Schaefer & Christina Gonzalez)

If I had to pick a favorite, I would have to go with the mojo marinated pork tenderloin on a bed of collards. The collards cooked in stock and a ham bone all afternoon. They were incredibly tender and succulent. The moderate hop flavor and bitterness from the Sweetwater IPA provided a spicy contrast to the savory pork and collards. Great job, Matt and Christina!

Compliments to all the other chefs, as well. Each pairing was amazing, and I’m not just saying that to be nice. Beer people know their food. They go hand in hand, and these beer geeks know their palate.

Posted in Beer & Food | Tagged , | 1 Comment