Random Beer Roundup - Early Edition

It's been a little crazy this week so I thought I'd put this together a day early...

Bars/Breweries/Brewpubs/Restaurants:

Andrew at the Brass Monkey Brewing Company in historic downtown Kokomo drops us a line:

Flagship beers we always try to have on:

White Flag Belgian Wit

See No Evil American IPA

Green Tea Pale Ale

Tenacious Apple Tripel

Silver Back Stout

Double Down Brown

Rotating High Gravity Beers (we always try to have at least one of these on):

Speak No Evil Belgian IPA (on now)

Hear No Evil Imperial IPA (on now)

Ill Intent Imperial Stout

Belligerent Barleywine (Coming late fall)

Upcoming seasonals:

October-Horseman's Reserve Imperial Pumpkin Ale

Nov&Dec-Congregation Holiday Ale

One & Done line (One beer, one batch, one chance)

Current-Double Hopped Double Down

Upcoming-Swampwater Dunkleweizen, Blue Lou Blueberry Ale, Conspirator Belgian Blonde, 9th Wonder Dry Hopped Porter

Since batch sizes are only 10 gallons the selection can vary greatly from day to day. In addition We also have 20 other craft beers on tap that are constantly rotating.

Mike at J. Gumbo's checks in:

Here's our latest:

Draft:

Leffe Blonde

Dogfish Head 60 Min. IPA is finally back

Bottles:

Stone Vertical Epic '08

Stone Russian Imperial Stout '08

Stone Double Bastard '07

Stone Old Guardian '04

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot '00 & '03

Dogfish Head Worldwide Stout '02 (this is the one that is 23.4% ABV)

Our crawfish boil this Sat. has been canceled due to the hurricane. We'll send out an announcement for the next one. It depends on the status of our farmer on the bayou.

Thanks, Mike

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Homebrew/Beer Travel/BJCP/Hammerdancing:

Uber-Beer Geek Ron Smith with a list of things to know:

There are still seats remaining for next week’s start of the Thursday night Beer MBA class series (Sept 11, 18 & 25, 6:30 - 9:30), but I need to hear from you very soon. Please let me know asap if you will be attending (see all details below).

Also, let me know if you are interested in any of the following:

--- INDY OKTOBERFEST – No need to let me know about this one, but just as a reminder, this weekend is the last weekend for the annual Indy Oktoberfest. It has been moved to the state fairgrounds this year and is bigger and better than ever. It is open from 4:00 – Midnight on both Friday and Saturday. There is a lot of great German food, music, dancing, and of course, Beer! There is also a full carnival with rides and traditional fair food, there is a rock and roll music tent, and more. I have a booth there, so stop by to say hello. More details are at www.IndyOktoberfest.com.

--- HOMEBREWING – If you brew or are interested in starting, let me know and consider joining the club I’ve been active in for almost 20 years, the Foam Blowers of Indiana (FBI). Visit www.FoamBlowers.com for an application, links to our Yahoo Group site and more info about the club and our meetings. We just nailed down our calendar for the upcoming year (Sept to Aug) and our meetings are starting very soon.

--- BJCP STUDY GROUP (Beer Judge Certification Program) – This study group is much more intense, technical and serious than the Beer MBA classes and is designed for people wanting to become beer judges. This will mark the 4th year for this study group. The dates are not set, but it will probably start in late January 09 (and run through Feb, with the Exam in early March). I’m doing something a little different this year. Instead of 11 weeknight sessions, it will be conducted in 3 or 4 long Saturday sessions. This will give people from outside the Indianapolis area, as well as people that can’t meet on weeknights, a good opportunity to receive this education. If you are interested in this, I can send you an outline to start studying, plus you should strongly consider taking the Beer MBA classes as well. They would be a great way to get started.

--- BELGIUM BEER TRIP – I’m coordinating a trip next summer (09) to Belgium to visit many of the famous cities and breweries. This will also include a side trip to Germany to visit Cologne (Kolsch) and Dusseldorf (Altbier). The likely dates are in the range of July 16 – 29 or so. There will be a group of us from Indiana going. It will be a well coordinated beer-focused trip, but there will also be plenty of time to see the sights, and do your own thing. If you are interested, let me know.

That’s all for now. Please sign up for the Beer MBA classes today. They start next week and with all the people I spoke to at the Oktoberfest, they could fill up quickly.

Thanks,

Ron Smith
- National Ranked BJCP Beer Judge
- Certified Beer Server
- National Award Winning Homebrewer
- Beer and Brewing Educator
- RonSmith@MarketWiseSolutions.com
- Ph: 317-873-6976, ext 1

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Elsewhere in beer in Indianapolis and beyond:

Upland's Lambics are now available for reservation - I've heard nothing but good things about last year's run of lambic. This year they've added a bunch of new flavors - cherry, peach, and kiwi - which join a repeat of last year's varieties - strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, and blueberry. $15 per bottle.

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Interested in having your events, taps, or new beer inventory listed on Hoosier Beer Geek? It won't cost you anything. Drop us a line at hoosierbeergeek@gmail.com.

Learn More About Beer In One Sitting Than We've Learned In Two Years

Ron Smith is a lot like us. He loves beer. And he likes to share his love. But unlike us, when he starts talking about beer, he really knows what he's talking about. Check out Ron's beer resume:

- National Ranked BJCP Beer Judge
- Certified Beer Server
- National Award Winning Homebrewer
- Beer and Brewing Educator
- All-around Good Guy (I added that one)

That's why we're happy to pass on the word that Ron is teaching a few classes - the Beer MBA (Master of Beer Appreciation) in the upcoming weeks in the tasting room at the Payless Liquors near I-69 and 96th Street (on Indy's NE corner).

More from Ron:

As many of you that know me already know, I’m what they call a Beer Geek. Everyone needs a hobby and mine is making, sampling, judging and appreciating great beer. I have been leading a technical brewing and beer styles education course once per year for the last several years for people wanting to take the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) exam to become ranked beer judges, but many non-brewers have asked me about doing some type of fun, less technical beer education class for people like them. So… That’s what I did. I developed a Master of Beer Appreciation (MBA) course that consists of 3 classes. You can learn more about the details of this course and learn how to sign up at www.BeerMBA.com.

This is truly a unique series of classes. They are designed to be fun and entertaining, but also very educational. You can take a single class (class 1 is a pre-requisite for the other 2), but I think you will find it most rewarding to take all three (plus, you receive a completed MBA certificate if you take all 3 classes and who doesn’t want that to hang on their wall J). You will learn about the origins, history, and uniqueness of all the major beer styles of the world (more than 75 of them), and get to sample most of them as well (we will sample over 50 of them). Classes are 3-hours long to spread out the samples and cover all the material (it may seem long, but time flies when you are having fun… and you will be having fun). In addition, I will present several off-flavor / flavor demos to help you identify some of the most common problems and flavors found in beer. I have discovered that people can appreciate more of the world’s beer styles than they ever imagined simply by learning about them and tasting them in the right environment.

Wine drinkers will also find these classes fascinating as they come to learn more about “vintage” beers, strong Belgian beers, wild-fermented beers, and more. Many of these unique fermented beverages rival wine in their overall flavor and complexity (and even cost).

These classes are more for the general public with an interest in the world’s great beers, but even knowledgeable brewers and beer connoisseurs will find them worthwhile. So, regardless of your knowledge level, please feel free to join us.

Classes are held in the tasting room at the Payless Liquors near I-69 and 96th Street on the NE corner of Indianapolis and they cost only $40 per class if you pay for all 3 classes at one time (or at least commit to all 3 classes – you can put your credit card on file, then pay for each class as it is attended – this helps spread out the cost for some people). This is a great value, as this is more of a labor of love for me, rather than a true money-making endeavor. The class size is limited, and there will be hundreds of dollars worth of beer sampled (plus some possible food samples paired with certain beers) and I cover the cost of cups, bread, handouts, etc. The course is designed for people to feel like they not only got a great education and had a lot of fun, but also received a great value. Also, even though I will spread out the beer samples to avoid overindulgence, designated drivers are always encouraged. Since the education is what is being paid for, designated drivers may not participate in the class in any way, but there is an area where they can comfortably sit and wait (or arrange to be dropped off and picked up).

The class dates and planned styles for each class are listed below.

Class Dates:
--- Thursday, Sept 11, 6:30 – 9:30 pm
--- Thursday, Sept 18, 6:30 – 9:30 pm
--- Thursday, Sept 25, 6:30 – 9:30 pm

--- OR ---

--- Saturday, Oct 11, 3:30 – 6:30 pm
--- Saturday, Oct 18, 3:30 – 6:30 pm
--- Saturday, Oct 25, 3:30 – 6:30 pm

Class 1 Beer Styles (Q17)
- Czech Pilsner
- American Pale Ale
- American India Pale Ale (IPA)
- American Wheat
- German Hefeweizen / Weiss
- Belgian / French Saison Ale
- Belgian Tripel Strong Ale
- Flanders Red Belgian Sour Ale
- English Ale / Extra Special Bitter (ESB)
- Scottish Export 80 Ale
- English Northern Brown Ale
- Munich Dunkel Lager
- American Robust Porter
- Irish Dry Stout
- German Doppelbock
- English Strong Barleywine
- Smoke-Flavored Beer

Class 2 Beer Styles (Q18)
- English Ale / Ordinary Bitter
- German Sour / Berliner Weisse
- German Dunkelweizen
- German Oktoberfest
- American Steam Beer
- American Amber / Red Ale
- European Dortmunder Export
- English India Pale Ale (IPA)
- German Schwarzbier
- London Brown Porter
- Sweet / Milk / Cream Stout
- Foreign Extra Strong Stout
- European Helles / Pale Bock
- Belgian Blond Strong Ale
- Belgian Dark Strong Ale
- Scottish Strong / Wee Heavy
- American Strong Barleywine
- German Smoked Rauchbier

Class 3 Beer Styles (Q17)
- Munich Helles Lager
- Belgian White / Witbier
- European / Vienna Amber
- German Kolsch
- English Ale / Best Bitter
- German Dusseldorf Altbier
- American Brown Ale
- American Strong Stout
- American Imperial IPA
- Belgian Farmhouse Sour Ale / Gueuze
- Belgian Sour / Fruit Lambic
- Belgian Dubbel Strong Ale
- German Weizenbock
- Russian / Baltic Strong Porter
- English Old Ale / Strong Ale
- German Eisbock (ice bier)
- Wood / Bourbon Barrel-Aged

Phew! That's a lot to cover!

For those of you interested, the sign-up page is here.