Jim is a lightweight and other musings - Brew-Ha-Ha 2007

So I found myself at Brew-Ha-Ha, messenger bag filled with the proper beer review supplies - notebook, pen, copy of INtake to impress the ladies... well, the copy of INtake belonged to Chris, but I could sense his motives.

As we worked our way through the 15 or so booths, I decided that instead of writing down everything, I'd just wait for something to jump out and grab my taste buds, and that would be the beer I reviewed. Near the end of the day nothing had stood out, and the only thing I had written down was "Jim is a lightweight".

That's why I wouldn't let you see the notebook, Jim. And I'm only teasing.

Gina and I had the pleasure of bringing out a couple of my non-beer geek friends, and it was interesting to see their reactions to the samples - it wasn't too long ago that I puckered up when tasting an IPA or based my beer choices on their resemblance to something Miller brewed. As the day went on, our guests found a few things they liked; so perhaps a door was opened.

Another thing worth noting was that the last thing I tried was Barley Island's Bourbon Barrel Stout - a beer I gave a 3 mug review back in April - and found it to have more appeal this time. I guess that it proves that you should give everything a second chance, because I'd give the Stout a higher rating now, perhaps somewhere between 3.5 mugs and 4 mugs. I was also pleased with the samples I had from Clipper City's stable of beers, though I couldn't tell you why.

I'd say a brew festival isn't really the best place to review beer - everything sort of blurs together after a little while. But that's not to say it's a lost cause. In fact, I think it's a great experience, and a great way to get to know styles of beer. For the uninitiated, it's a chance to sample a little bit of everything and find a path to work your way down. For the beer geek, it's a good excuse to expand your knowledge of the varieties from familiar breweries. And if nothing else, it's a great excuse to get a little drunk. And there's certainly nothing wrong with that.

KOTBR Review #16: Barley Island's Bourbon Barrel Beers

Normally, the Knights of the Beer Roundtable are able to agree on a beer for reviewing and then drink it together at the same time. Our night at Barley Island was a bit looser. We all drank several of the beers they have on tap, plus a couple that weren't. In the end, we came to a general consensus to review the two Bourbon Barrel beers that we sample, the Oatmeal Stout and the IPA. This review resulted in some of the widest ranges of beer ratings. Here are the Knights' ratings and postings, beginning with the Bourbon Barrel IPA:

Mike starts us off on way he gave it a 2.5 mug rating...

I am not a drinker of hard liquor, so neither bourbon beer was particularly suited to my tastes...If you had blindfolded me and placed the glass in front of me I never would have suspected I was smelling beer...A sip of the IPA really brought out the bourbon, with a slightly flowery, hoppy note mixed in. It really tasted very similar to the way it smelled.

Jason follows by giving the IPA a knockout 3.5 mug rating...

[It is] an IPA that is heavy in bourbon aroma and strong on alcohol flavor. It's an incredible one-two punch. POW! Strong bourbon bite comes from the left. BAM! The IPA hoppiness punch comes in from the right. If you are a gluten for punishment (I am), this beer is right up your alley.

And here is what the Knights said with the more popular Bourbon Barrel Oatmeal Stout:

Mike again starts, this time giving the beer 3 mugs...

I felt like the bourbon worked better in the stout...it made me think of film noir, cigarette smoke, and contemplative depression. But in a good, sort of romantic way.

Jason riffs on the stout, giving it a 4.5 mug rating

...the Stout takes on my favorite characteristic of bourbon: the caramelized malt flavor and aroma. The beer's aroma had a subtle hint of bourbon and the malty goodness that you appreciate in a stout is emphasized even more with the added bourbon component.

Chris finishes the geeky review by concurring with Jason and giving the Stout a 4.5 ...

...it was better the warmer it got...this is a really good beer, especially if you still have a stomach of steel and can take bourbon...

Can you guess who the Hoosier Bourbon Geeks are? Find out by checking out the individual reviews...

Get me stranded on Barley Island!

Three of the KOTBR, along with Mike's groupie Gina, Nick, the Bartender of Deano's, and Kord, a tailgating buddy, trekked north to Hamilton County - Noblesville, to be exact - for the latest Roundtable review to check out Barley Island. We got stood up by Bob & Mark at Indiana Beer, but we thought we had a sufficient number of beer geeks to give a good review.

Owner Jeff Eaton had promised us a tour of the brewery, and we promised to drink lots of his beer. I delved in right away, finally getting to try the Black Majic Java Stout on draft. I've been a fan of the award-winning brew in the bottle, but hadn't had the pleasure of tasting it fresh. And it was worth the wait! Many of you may know that this beer took the Silver Medal at the 2006 Great American Beer Festival for Coffee-flavored beer. It's a wonderfully malty beer, with a strong coffee and chocolate nose.

Jeff came over to have a beer and talk about their business with us for a while, too. I'm always curious about where all the beers are being distributed, how far their reach is. Jeff told me they're all over Indiana now, everywhere in Illinois but Chicago (only a matter of time), and their newest market, Minnesota (primarily the Twin Cities). Last year they brewed about 660 barrels, and with their new equipment, they're now on pace to double that amount this year.

We then turned back to the beers in front of us. First up was the Bourbon Barrel Aged Oatmeal Stout, only available in 22oz. bottles. Of course, it was better the warmer it got. The nose was heavy bourbon, with hints of chocolate. The bourbon mixed well with the malts to smooth it out. It had a slightly chewy mouthfeel, medium-bodied, I would say. There was a bit of a bourbon aftertaste, but it wasn't heavy or overwhelming. This is a really good beer, especially if you still have a stomach of steel and can take bourbon (I don't). I have to give this 4.5 mugs. It's a unique, but very satisfying taste.

Next up in this double review was Jeff's their Spring/Summer seasonal offering, the Sheet Metal Blonde, the Barley Island attempt at the classic Belgian Whitbier. And a very accurate attempt it is. It has a heavy clove nose, with a slight hint of citrus. Now I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the whitbier, in general, so I'm not the best person to review this type of beer fairly. The batch also still wasn't completed, and was missing carbonation. For those two reasons, I'm not going to offer a mug review on the Sheet Metal.

After we downed a lot of Jeff's beer, he took us to the backroom to begin the brewery tour. Like Mike, I didn't really understand much of what was going on, but I know there were shiny tanks with beer in them! The malt room smelled absolutely delicious (no surprise there). I could have camped out there. They recently purchased a good deal of new equipment from a brewery in Las Vegas (can't remember which one) that had expanded and over-bought. This is allowing them to up their brewing capacity.

I did have one very interesting experience. I got to eat an actual hop, before it was put into the beer. Jeff showed us the hope pellets they used for brewing, and we decided to have a taste. Obviously, it was very bitter, and it left a bad aftertaste that wasn't going away, and as well as a grimy feel on your tongue. Not being a huge hop head like some of my fellow Knights, I needed to get some water to wash that down before I could move on to another Black Majic to finish the evening off.

Many thanks to Jeff and his crew for the great service, wonderful hospitality, and willingness to take some time out of his night to chat with us and show us around the place.

John Lee Hooker would dig these beers

While drinking the two Bourbon barrel-aged beers that Barley Island's Jeff Eaton provided us, I couldn't help but think of the song "One Bourbon, One Scotch, and One Beer". Now many folks will probably think of George Thoroughgood when I mention this song, though I should point out that it was written by the late, great blues man John Lee Hooker and he first recorded it in 1966.

Mr. Hooker was a man of great taste and knew that these three drinks complimented each other well. So it only makes sense that some beers will taste really good with a bourbon hit to it. And I think it is important to understand why.

What is bourbon? It is an American whiskey whose grains consist of mostly corn but also includes a combination of wheat, rye, and malted barley, distilled in water, and aged in charred oak barrels. And I should point out that I am a fan of bourbon. Actually, I'm a Hoosier Bourbon Geek. Sounds like a great name for a new blog...

So let's look at the two beers that we sampled. One was their Brass Knuckles Oatmeal Stout, which is heavy on the malts, and the other is their Barfly India Pale Ale, which is heavy on the hops. Just from the simple description of one beer was malty, the other hoppy, you should be able to determine which beer should match better with bourbon.

The Bourbon Stout was incredible. They take a used Buffalo Trace bourbon barrel and pour their stout in. The stout soaks up some of the residual flavors and aromas of the bourbon. When finished, the Stout takes on my favorite characteristic of bourbon: the caramelized malt flavor and aroma. The beer's aroma had a subtle hint of bourbon and the malty goodness that you appreciate in a stout is emphasized even more with the added bourbon component.

The Bourbon IPA was a first for me. Jeff pointed out that they used bourbon barrels that have already had beer in it for their Bourbon IPA. To put it crudely, IPA gets the Stouts sloppy seconds. I think the IPA in all its hoppiness is able to pull out all the residual bitters and alcohol from the barrel. It results in an IPA that is heavy in bourbon aroma and strong on alcohol flavor. It's an incredible one-two punch. POW! Strong bourbon bite comes from the left. BAM! The IPA hoppiness punch comes in from the right. If you are a gluten for punishment (I am), this beer is right up your alley.

I enjoyed both beers. The Bourbon Stout would pair well with a prime rib dinner. The Bourbon IPA would pair well with spicy Indian, Thai, or Tex-Mex cuisine. Both have their place; both I would drink again in a heart beat.

I'm giving 4.5 mugs to the Bourbon Stout. Everything about it was wonderful for me: the aroma, the dark pour, the thick head, the creamy mouthfeel, the slight dry aftertaste, the tasty malty wonderfulness. I'll be purchasing some 22 ounce bottles from Barley Island soon.

I'm giving the Bourbon IPA a 3.5 mug rating. It's a beer that I have to be in the mood for. The aroma is overwhelmingly bourbon, the pour was light, the head thin, and the mouthfeel crisp. It has a bite. A double bite. It's like the clash of the titans in my mouth, but in a good way.

I want to thank Jeff for meeting with us, talking to us, and taking us on the brewery tour. And kudos to him for turning his home brewing passion into a vocation.

Bourbon Barrel Bewailment

During last evening's session, Chris (or was it Jason?) make a point of explaining to our host (Barley Island owner Jeff Eaton) that we were beer geeks, not beer snobs. I think the point was to let Jeff know that we might be in over our heads on the beer talk. Once the brewery tour started, I might as well have been a passenger on the beer Titanic.

But that doesn't mean I couldn't appreciate the effort involved in bringing Barley Island's brews to your local liquor store. The amount of repetitive labor involved in packaging just a six pack had me thinking back to my days interning for the Department of Defense, where I once spent a week formatting diskettes - the IT department equivalent of peeling potatoes.

Every bottle of Barley Island beer that leaves their facility is individually loaded into a machine, where the beer label is affixed. Every cardboard six pack container is hand folded. The bottling process is just as intensive; bottles are loaded into a wooden hopper by hand, and then fed into a machine that fills the bottles and affixes the bottle cap.

Of course I haven't even mentioned the brewing process, because the steps involved are lost on me. But our tour was amazingly informative, and I now understand why the folks at BeerAdvocate.com included respecting brewers as a important step in reviewing beer.

I might as well get to the actual beer. Over the course of the evening I sampled five of Barley Island's products - The Dirty Helen Brown Ale, the Bourbon IPA, the Bourbon Barrel-Aged Oatmel Stout, an unfinished batch of the Sheet Metal Blonde, and the award winning Black Majic Java Stout.

I am not a drinker of hard liquor, so neither bourbon beer was particularly suited to my tastes. Both the IPA and the Stout had a strong nose of Bourbon, though the odor was a bit more prevalent in the Stout. If you had blindfolded me and placed the glass in front of me I never would have suspected I was smelling beer.

The IPA had a pumpkin colored cloudy appearance with very little head, while the Stout was a dark, flat brown, and looked almost like a glass of Coca-Cola. A sip of the IPA really brought out the bourbon, with a slightly flowery, hoppy note mixed in. It really tasted very similar to the way it smelled.

I felt like the bourbon worked better in the stout, where it wasn't overpowering and mixed well with the taste of coffee. It was a light and smooth beer, but not something you'd want to drink fast. Oddly enough, it made me think of film noir, cigarette smoke, and contemplative depression. But in a good, sort of romantic way.

Neither bourbon beer really suited my pallet, to be honest, but that isn't to say that I'm not a fan of Barley Island's work; Their Java Stout is right up my alley. And if you're a fan of Bourbon, I'm sure both of these beers are well worth your attention.

So there's a little bit of regret when I write that I'd give the Bourbon IPA (a qualified, but honest) 2.5 mugs, and the Bourbon Stout (a qualified, honest) 3 mugs.

I'd like to thank Jeff Eaton and the staff at Barley Island for their hospitality and time, and I hope to visit again soon.