HBG Classics | Mr. Wizard Goes to Irvington

This post from Serious Eats recently came to our attention. Putting beer in a French press? Sounds like a great idea. Back in June 2009, we did some of our own experimenting with a French press and had a great time doing it. We thought you'd enjoy seeing the results of our experimentation. So courtesy of the Wayback Machine, here's our write-up of what happened when we tried combining beer and other stuff in a French press--


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

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

Hey Jason,

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

-Mike

* * * * *

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

-Jason

* * * * *

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

-Mike

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

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

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

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


The bad pairings:







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

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


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

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


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

The "meh" pairings:

Mike's note: The Annoy Ted Division


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


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

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


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

The good pairings:


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

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


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

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

The bizarrely good pairing:


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

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

The grand champion:


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

Hoosier Beer Geek Classics - KOTBR #6: Bell's Hopslam Ale

One of the more common requests we get from our readers is that we give more advance warning when new and limited beer are about to hit store shelves. In many cases, you know when we do (in the Random Beer Roundup), but in the case of this year's Hopslam release, it's through twitter where we're hearing that today is the day. Not all local liquor stores will have the beer - depending on delivery schedules it could arrive as late as next Wednesday - but here's a little advance warning, with the rerunning of KOTBR #6, from way back in November of 2006.

A word of warning for those who don't know - Deano's is no longer open.


On Thursday, the Knights of the Beer Roundtable convened at what has become one of my very favorite new haunts - Deano's Vino Restaurant & Wine Bar, located by the fountain in Fountain Square. For you Naptown Old Skoolers, Deano's is located in the same building that once housed Theater on the Square, and later, Santorini's (before they moved into the larger building further down Prospect Street). The original Deano's Vino was located just the next block south on Virginia Avenue in the old Murphy's building, but now the wine shop is located on Mass Ave. The restaurant & wine bar is a collaboration between Deano (Dean Wilson) and his good friend Chef James Bryant (Jody). For those of you who may be leary about checking out a "wine bar", this place is far from pretentious & haughty. In fact, Deano supports Indiana wine & beer makers, recognizing that not all the good stuff has to come from California. While it is obviously known for it's wine selection, let me tell you, this place has a kick-ass beer selection. I find all of my very favorite beers on their menu, and that covers everything from micros to imports. I can go on about Deano's all night, so obviously, I highly recommend this spot, but I should save some of my raves for my part of the beer review. Let me focus on our choice of beer.

Fellow Knight of the Beer Roundtable, Jim, oberved that we overwhelmingly choose dark beers to rate here on HBG. So he suggested we try something a little different. Furthermore, said Jim, none of us are big fans of really "hoppy" beers, so we probably underrate them, and to compensate, we should choose a really "hoppy" beer and give it a fair rating. In fact, we decided to turn this into a very "hoppy" night, choosing hops for warm-ups and for our beer of rating. After asking for a suggestion, Nick, the Sam Malone of Deano's (pictured on left, with Laura and Deano), recommended we try Bell's newest single batch release that just hit stores last Friday, the Hopslam Ale (also known as the "Bitch Slap Ale", but that's a different story).

Bell's tagline for the Hopslam, an Imperial IPA, is "A biting, bitter, tongue bruiser of an ale. With a name like Hopslam, what did you expect?". With an ABV of 9.3%, you damn well better believe it's a "bruiser", and not just of the tongue! Needless to say, all of us were slammed by the hops.

JASON: (special note* Jason mentions to us the other night that he thinks we should do our reviews in haikus. He's the only one to produce. I hereby challenge him to do ever review for the rest of the year in a haiku!)

So four days later,
my head finally clears up.
Time for beer review.

Beer was named Hopslam.
Should be called Kick in the Nuts
Due to intense brew.

Color was copper.
Head started thick, then thinned out.
Lace was slight but there.

Fruitty scents up front.
Pepper and alcohol next.
Complex but pleasing.

Taste was well balanced.
Hoppy but smooth with slight burn;
Made tongue jump with joy.

Has creamy body.
It is not a chewy beer
Nor is it too thin.

Surprised by this beer.
Double IPA is not
Usual first choice.

But Hopslam is cool,
Made hop fan of this malt guy
With one side effect.

High alcohol with
High drinkability means
Slight brain damage here.

Too much Hopslam means
Four days (and counting) of me
Speaking in Haiku.

Despite annoyance,
I give Hopslam five mugs and
Half of my brain cells.

JIM: The beer menu at Deano’s contains Benjamin Franklin’s famous quote about fine malt beverages: “Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” This may be true about all other beers. But when it comes to Bell’s Hopslam Ale, God didn’t just want us to be happy; the Almighty wanted us to be wildly jubilant.

Hopslam is an IPA. For the uninitiated, hops are a type of flower that is added to beer during the brewing process. The hops give beer the floral, citrusy aroma and the sort of bitter “bite” that hits your tongue when you drink it. They’re also used as a preservative to keep beer from getting sour or “skunked.” “IPA” stands for a variety of beer known as India pale ale. India pale ale is a heavily hopped style of beer that British brewers developed in the 1700’s to thwart the spoilage of the beer on long ocean voyages to places such as—you guessed it—India. IPA’s tend to be high in alcohol content and very bitter in taste.

In the past, I wouldn’t have gone for a heavily hopped beer like Hopslam. The bitterness used to get to me, so I would gravitate toward dark, malty beers, which tend to have little bitterness. But lately, I’ve been trying to diversify my beer sampling and have put a hold on malty beers in favor of hoppy beers. In that process, I’ve managed to become attached to Three Floyds’ Pride and Joy, which is a nice, dry ale with a citrusy nose and finish.

So when I arrived at Deano’s, what did I warm up with? A Pride and Joy, which turned out to be the perfect prelude to the Hopslam because the two beers are made from roughly the same mold. However, the Hopslam is much more complex and, at 9.3% alcohol by volume, much more powerful than Pride and Joy.

Nick brought out snifters for the Hopslam, which was appropriate for a beer of this potency because it’s meant to be sipped, not chugged. The nose on the Hopslam was a hybrid of citrus and peaches. In fact, the peach aroma was prevalent. Imagine the richest peach cobbler that you’ve ever had and you get the idea of the aroma. Upon my first sip, I was very surprised to find that, while hoppy, Hopslam was not overwhelming. The heavy hops were nicely balanced with a pleasant sweetness, which seemed to take the edge off of the bitterness that most hoppy beers provide. As might be expected, the flavor was rich in peach and citrus notes. After my second sip, I knew I was in love with this beer. I proclaimed to Chris that this was the best beer we had reviewed—even better than my previous favorite, Brugge Brasserie’s The Black.

A word about the buzz (I can’t go without discussing the buzz)—this is a take-it-slow beer. If you go too quickly with the Hopslam, you could find yourself to be “one hurtin’ tater” as my kinfolk like to say. But if you take your time, Hopslam will put a wide grin on your face and a cheerful mood in your heart. Whether it was the people that we met at Deano’s, the fine hospitality shown by the restaurant’s staff, or the beer itself, I can easily say that this was the best time that we’ve had reviewing a beer so far.

My rating: Five mugs. Yes, I said it – five mugs. This is only the second perfect beer that I’ve ever had (the first being North Coast’s Old Rasputin Imperial Stout). I’m happy that I can now consider two beers to be perfect instead of just one.

CHRIS: The label of Bell's new beer Hopslam shows three giant hops crushing a dude like the house falling on the Wicked Witch. Ladies and gentlemen, this label is a forshadowing of things to come for you if you drink this beer. In perfect French, it will tap a keg of whupass on you! And it did it to me. And I'm a big boy. Hopslam has an ABV of 9.3%, and I think Larry Bell may be fibbing about that just a little bit - I think it's a little higher.

Now, let it be said that I'm not a true fan of very hopped up beers. Not that I think they're bad, but I'm just the kind of guy that likes my beers tall, dark, and malty. So I was very leary to try a beer proclaimed as "Hopslam". But Jim is talking us into being diverse in our reviews, so I played along. And I'm glad I did. This is really a good beer.

It has a very rusted look to it - what I jokingly call "lite" beers. But that's where its "lite" ended. As for the nose, I may as well have stuck my sniffer straight up the ass of a Georgia Peach. I think the nose is extremely peachy, almost to a fault - again, not something I'm fond of. But when I took my first sip (because you only sip beers that are 9.3%), my fears and insecurities melted away because the flavors are so well-balanced. The aroma of the peach blends together with the strong hoppiness in a way that takes the punch in the nose away. However, it does still leave a prevalent peach after-taste.

Obviously, with a beer so rich in hops, the beer is a little bitter, and it definitely has a bite. But it's not overwhelming. It's well-carbonated, but not overly done. It's smooth, yet very distinct. And it has a nice moist, medium-bodied taste.

I give this beer 4 Mugs. While I'm working on it, I still can't get over my bias for the dark & malty. But really the only detractor for me with this beer was so many peaches. I think it's definitely a 5 Mugger for any hopheads out there. But 4 Mugs may just be the highest I can ever give really hoppy beers.

As for a word on Deano's, I can't say enough. As someone who spent some time growing up in Fountain Square back in the early 90s, I'm so pleased an establishment like this is located in the heart of Fountain Square, and leading the efforts in its renaissance. The atmosphere is fantastic, the staff are super-friendly and very knowledgeable, the beer list is out of this world, and the food is pretty damn good, too. If you haven't been there yet, I say this is THE essential new restaurant/bar in the 317 to check out. I can promise that many more reviews from the KOTBR will come to you from Deano's.

HBG Classics: KOTBR #114 - Underground Sensation: Apple Buzz at Oaken Barrel

This coming Monday (10/10/11, doors 10AM) marks the annual release of Oaken Barrel's very popular Apple Buzz. We were amazed to see how much of the stuff moved through OB's doors when we stopped in last year for the release). To give those interested a heads up, here's a rerun of KOTBR #114, our review of the special release from the southside brewery.

Limited release beers are big business - the lines and events surrounding Pliny the Younger, Dark Lord, Kate the Great, Black Tuesday, and Darkness can serve as proof. But one highly anticipated limited release that flies under the bigger craft beer community radar is Oaken Barrel's Apple Buzz - a beer + honey + cider creation that brings a thirsty audience to Greenwood's award winning brewery.

Looking for proof of that demand? The Monday release saw 133 cases of the stuff move through Oaken Barrel's doors - selling out supply for the day and surprising even the brewers themselves. Luckily, a second batch was awaiting bottling, and was made available Tuesday at noon. It sold out Tuesday.

All told, 60 barrels (at rough estimates around 1200 6 packs) of Apple Buzz we sold to the general public in two days. Proof of demand could be found everywhere in the restaurant, where folks of all shapes, sizes, and (legal) ages could be seen carrying whole cases out the door with them.

The (can we call this a) beer(?) itself is a strange beast - cloudy beyond cloudy, with a nose that gives away no clues as to what's to come. The front is fizzy, followed by light, never cloying apple flavor and just a hint of honey. The beer finishes with a lively but not overwhelmingly fizzy flourish and begs for another sip. This isn't a cider - or at least it isn't one you've had before. I'd gladly drink more than two. 3.99 Mugs.


When I heard about Apple Buzz last year and how quickly it sold out, I was incredibly skeptical. How could cider be so popular? So this year, Jess convinced me that we should go down on release day and try it. Much to our dismay, it turned out that this year's Apple Buzz was so popular, 6-packs sold out in roughly 7 hours. Luckily, Oaken Barrel bottled the rest of it and I was able to pick up some on Tuesday (TFN3!). We were, however, able to drink Apple Buzz on tap. I must say, it is not at all what I expected. This beer is less apple cider and more honey apple lambic. Granny Smith and cider apples fill up the yeasty body of this beer, along with cider-like notes of cinnamon and cloves. Honey provides an interesting twist on the sweetness, and an overall lemon-like tartness creates a relatively dry finish. If sour apple hefeweizen was a style for beer, this would be it. I think Oaken Barrel is on to something here. 3.5 mugs.


This is the first year I have made it to try the Apple Buzz and I am glad I did. We were always too late for the releases in the last few years so I was happy to hear about the upped production this time around and that we'd be able to at least try it on tap. It is a fantastic mix of tart apple and fizzy, sweet honey. The nose was bright and funky and the only thing I could equate it to was how a field smells after a rainstorm. I am well aware that sounds wackadoo, but that is just what I kept thinking whenever I smelled it. It is very refreshing and scary drinkable for the higher alcohol content. 3.96 Mugs.


Apple Buzz first gets to our table in a conglomerate of glasses and looks like unfiltered cider from the pumpkin patch. There's a yeasty, champagne funk in the nose with just a little fizz tickling your nose. It pours with a slight head and leads you to a nice yeasty apple flavor with a slight honey sweetness. This cider honey conglomeration is not sweet, very tangy and just a bit tart without being mouth puckering. It's not at all what you're expecting from a cider ale and leaves you refreshed and wanting more. 3.9 mugs.

Oaken Barrel Apple Buzz
Jess: 3.9 Mugs | Rodney: 3.5 Mugs | Gina: 3.96 Mugs | Mike: 3.99 Mugs
KOTBR Score: 3.83 Mugs

HBG Classics: KOTBR #92 - Knights of the Thanksgiving Table 2

One of the things we're very thankful here at Hoosier Beer Geek is the fact that we've been able to gather for the past two years to celebrate our very own post-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving Dinner, in which we roll out our most Thanksgiving-like beer pairings, in an effort to remind Jason that it's still not Christmas - even if his lights have been up for a month already.

Yesterday we ran our recap from Thanksgiving 2008, and Sunday we'll gather together once again to eat, drink, and create the content for for our next Thanksgiving KOTBR. Today's classic roundtable comes from way back in 2009.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours, and thanks for reading Hoosier Beer Geek.


Similar to last year, we decided to have a big Thanksgiving get-together complete with craft beer pairings. This year we decided to brine the turkey in a beer-based brine, using a bunch of old homebrew Kolsch. We also went with a redeye gravy that featured Dogfish Head Chicory Stout instead of coffee. The Bruery's offerings were an ideal choice since they are both new to Indiana and feature a number of spiced and Belgian style beers.


Over the course of my HBG/KOTBR career my appreciation for certain styles of beer has developed in strange ways. Lately I'll find that before really falling in love with a style, I first fall in love with the idea of the style.

For example, ever since we participated in our beer and cheese pairing with the folks at Goose the Market (thanks again, Gabe - we're thinking about you) and a reintroduction to beer from Brasserie DuPont, I've grown to love the idea of saison - the light, tight and refreshing farmhouse ale from the south of Belgium. To be fair, I'm in love with the idea of anything Belgian right now - from Eddy Merckx and the spring classics to bad weather and waffles. The love of ideas can be dangerous - often times the final result or product behind that love fails to live up to the hype.

Perhaps that's why The Bruery's Saison Rue was so pleasing - a light flowery nose, a subtle front and then a full flowery fruit finish were exactly what I had in mind. The light mouthfeel and delicate balance of flavors throughout were good enough to put this near the top of my list of favorite saisons. 4.20 Mugs

After meeting my expectations perfectly with the first round, The Bruery's Autumn Maple was a sort of let-down. The description reads as follows:

Brewed with 17 lbs. of yams per barrel (in other words, a lot of yams!), this autumn seasonal is a different take on the “pumpkin” beer style. Brewed with cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, vanilla, molasses, and maple syrup, and fermented with our traditional Belgian yeast strain, this bold and spicy beer is perfect on a cold autumn evening.

With all of that going on, my expectations were extremely high - I was hoping for a sort of sweet potato superbeer. Instead what I got was a similar pumpkin beer nose - spicy cinnamon and red-hot candies, followed by a heavier-handed pumpkin-ish flavor. Had I just expected a pumpkin beer (and had I not looked all over town before I found the beer (at PartiPak)), my rating might be higher. A lovely pumpkin beer - but not what I had hoped for. 3.24 Mugs


Our final Bruery beer of the evening was Two Turtle Doves - a beer obviously meant for the Christmas season. Notes of licorice and chocolate came from the nose, but upon first sipping my thoughts immediately turned to tobacco. Warming and yet balanced, earthy and slightly fruity - it's a beer that might benefit from age - or it might be perfect right now. In either case, it's one that I think I'd enjoy. 4.20 Mugs


Giving thanks for...

...things spicy and peppery. Big and bold and spiced. Like the pepper bacon in the brussel sprouts dish that Mike and Gina brought. When I tried the Saison Rue, I thought maybe I still had some pepper in my mouth. Nope, that's just the way this golden slightly sour beer rolls. 3.49 mugs.

...things sweet and starchy. Sweet potatoes are a must have at my Thanksgiving table. My grandmother fries sliced sweet potatoes in butter and brown sugar. So really, the potatoes are just a vessel to carry other flavors. Much like the Autumn Maple. The sweet potato beer (think pumpkin beer) is best used for carrying the sweet flavor of maple syrup. I think this copper colored beer with a filmy mouthfeel needed another shot of maple syrup. 3.24 mugs.

...things dark and hot. Like hot chocolate that has been "Irished up". Two Turtle Doves offers a beer of spiked hot cocoa. It is dark like coffee and has a dark chocolate nose, but isn't overwhelmed with chocolate flavor. Because of its high ABV, this beer is very "hot", perfect to take along while wassailing this yuletide season. 3.95 mugs.


I had been cooking and baking for the past two days prior to this event, so I was a bit out of it before our little get together. Don't take that wrong; I'm not complaining. I actually volunteered our house to host and I do a huge Thanksgiving meal for Jess and me every year because I love cooking that much. But two full days really takes it out of you. I hope my notes are coherent...

Saison Rue
Basic saison style nose with brett, lemon and a hint of spice (perhaps cinnamon?). This is actually a very good example of the Saison style. It begins fairly light and champagne-like with slightly sour notes and a bit of lemon. A lot of spices are present, such as sage, coriander and black pepper. Saisons, including this one, typically finish dry which make them excellent for pairing with food.

Pairs well with turkey and stuffing.
4.0 mugs

Autumn Maple
Fruity and sugary up front with a lot of cinnamon. Although the more I think about this, the more it makes sense; this beer really tastes like a good pumpkin beer. Notes of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and maple syrup all round out a solid pumpkin or butternut squash style sweetness.

Pairs well with sweet potato pie and pumpkin pie (kind of obvious).
3.8 mugs

2 Turtle Doves
Not a lot going on in the nose besides cocoa and molasses. I get the impression of spicy imperial stout up front and the beer definitely follows through. Lots of dark chocolate, molasses, honey and bourbon. The strong roasted malts almost have a burnt marshmallow-style carcinogen character. I'm also getting some cherries in here but I'm not sure why. After I read the description on the bottle I started to pick out some toasted nut flavors as well. I would like another bottle of this to lay down for their Vertical Epic-style aging experiment.

Pairs with most desserts rich in cream, butter and chocolate.
4.1 mugs


I'm the backup when Rodney is in the kitchen so my notes are a little less discombobulated. I have a sweet gig going here; he makes the food and I get to eat it. That does mean I get to clean all the dishes though so maybe he has the sweet gig of making a mess and I clean it up?

Saison Rue
Mr. Rue pours out cloudy and dark golden with a contrasting stark white head. The nose on this bad boy is very lemony and when I take a sip I get lemon and brett in the first taste. On second taste I let it roll around my mouth a little more and I get maple syrup and just a hint of roast beef. I think I need to give more Saisons a chance but they all end up tasting like either meat or flowers. I give this 3 mugs.

Autumn Maple
This was the one of the three that I was most excited for as I love all things sweet potato. I don't know what I was expecting though because it just ended up tasting like a pumpkin ale. It poured out looking like very thin maple syrup and had a very spicy, orange peel nose. The flavor there was a very sugary pumpkin pie. Almost tasted like candied pumpkin. I'd drink it again for sure though, giving it 4 mugs.

2 Turtle Doves
This pours very dark and thick with very little head and lots of oomph. It's not as thick as Dark Lord but has a lot of the similar notes. I get a LOT of booze on the back end of this and it would definitely stand up to some aging. I made the comment that it was like someone mixed Dark Lord with cherry cough syrup. Lots of nutty chocolate notes but also a hint of cherry syrup. I'd give it 3.6 mugs only because of how boozy it was.


Overall Mug Scores
The Bruery Saison Rue: 3.67 mugs
The Bruery Autumn Maple: 3.57 mugs
The Bruery 2 Turtle Doves: 3.96 mugs

HBG Classics: KOTBR #62 - A Very Special Hoosier Beer Geek Thanksgiving Roundtable

One of the things we're very thankful here at Hoosier Beer Geek is the fact that we've been able to gather for the past two years to celebrate our very own post-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving Dinner, in which we roll out our most Thanksgiving-like beer pairings, in an effort to remind Jason that it's still not Christmas - even if his lights have been up for a month already.

Tomorrow we'll run another recap of Thanksgiving from 2009, and Sunday we'll gather together once again to eat, drink, and create the content for for our next Thanksgiving KOTBR. Today's classic roundtable comes from way back in 2008.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours, and thanks for reading Hoosier Beer Geek.


A while back Matt R. (I think) made a suggestion that we might want to try doing a Thanksgiving beer pairing, complete with courses and beers to match each. We all agreed that that sounded like a good idea, and we laid out a menu of traditional Thanksgiving foods - carrot ginger soup, turkey, sweet potato pie, sweet potato casserole, cranberry relish, cranberry sauce, stuffing, green beer casserole, corn casserole, rolls, pumpkin pie..

One thing I learned from the Turtle/Rabbit/Squirrel beer paring was to not overdo it - but a full cast of Knights (short Jim - who is a Jewish Vegetarian Lawyer (and those people are weird)) meant that if anything, there would be more than enough beer.

Because coordinating a write-up between a cast of nine is usually a trainwreck, I laid down one rule: No one leaves until we're gotten everything written up. While doling out responsibilities, the question was asked: "Are we reviewing the parings? The beer? The spirit of Thanksgiving?" "Yes, Rod, we're reviewing the spirit of Thanksgiving." What follows is out of order in more ways than one. And so..

The Spirit of Thanksgiving

Once every year, the ghost of Jesus rises from the dead to feast on the souls of the living. Every year we survive this atrocity, we celebrate our safety for another year through the holiday of Thanksgiving.




Back to Mike: When we decided to do a Thanksgiving pairing, I immediately turned to Garrett Oliver's The Brewmaster's Table for turkey pairings, and came across two full paragraphs expounding upon the virtues of Biere de Garde and Thanksgiving foods. A sample:

The French have yet to discover this food match, so let me be the one to tell you - biere de garde is brilliant with turkey. And not just with turkey - it is also brilliant with the turnips, the stuffing, the cranberry sauce, the potatoes, the whole darned thing.

That's a fairly convincing argument, right?

Schlafly Biere de Garde

We probably served this beer a little too cold to start. The bottle specifically says cellar temperature ("51-55 degrees F") and we served it straight out of the fridge. Later samples definitely showed a bit more fruitiness. Not that that necessarily would have helped with the Thanksgiving meal pairings.

As for specific pairings, I thought the beer went particularly well with the green bean casserole. It was more of a contrasting pairing as opposed to a complimentary pairing. The fruitiness was interesting counterpoint to a dish full of green beans and mushrooms, though the caramelized onions linked up perfectly with the caramel malt flavors in the beer.

Mike: 3.5
Gina: 3.5
Rod: 3.47
Jess: 2.8
Chris: 3.3
Matt R: 3.8
Matt E: 3.0
Kelly: 2.0
Jason: 2.5

Schlafly Biere de Garde Average: 3.09 Mugs


Troegenator Doublebock - Troegs Craft Brewery

The nose starts out with a bit of a raisin sourness with chocolate and caramel toffee notes. It has a nice dark caramel color that resembles caramel ice cream topping. Taking a sip of this 8.2% ABV brew is a bit misleading as it warms the palate and tends to meander through the malt sweetness. As it warms to room temperature you tend to taste the lightly toasted caramel malt and it balances out. For being a fairly boozy brew, this has a great balance to misrepresent the ABV.

In regard to our Thanksgiving pairings, this worked really well with the sweet potato pie. It brought out the maple syrup notes and complimented the toasted pecans on the top. There is a great pairing with the oyster stuffing with bits of salty mushrooms and the malty sweetness of the beer. Overall, this works quite well with the majority of dishes for the Thanksgiving meal.

Matt R: 4.0
Chris: 3.1
Rod: 4.1
Jess: 4.2
Matt E: 3.75
Jason: 3.66
Kelly: 3.8
Gina: 3.3
Mike: 3.5

Troegenator Doublebock Average: 3.71 Mugs

Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron

This is supposed to be a brown? We picked up a black liquorish nose, with hints of vanilla, smokeless tobacco, bourbony alcohol, soy sauce, molasses, and almond extract. A deep black/purple/marron-maroon color filled the glass and left no lacing. This is an all out beer, with little in the way of subtlety. Black liquorish, sassafras, molasses, some cough medicine I had and hated as a kid (someone else said Dimetapp, bourbon, and toasted wood all came to play.

We all agreed that this beer would be interesting with some age on it, but would it be good?

Mike: 3.0
Gina: 2.1
Matt. E: 2.175
Matt R: 2.0
Jason: 2.5
Jess: 3.1
Chris: 3.1
Kelly: 1.7
Rod: 3.8 (Who also noted: "You guys are jerks. If this was aged, (my score) would be even higher)

Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron Average: 2.60 Mugs


Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar

Jason brought out this beer and it wasn't really paired with anything, but just went along nicely in between dinner and dessert. Is that a new meal time? Rouge's take on the brown ale adds some nutty complexity with the traditional brown ale base. The mouthfeel is a little lacking in carbonation, but it still cleared the way for pumpkin pie quite nicely. This is beer is neither offensive or something to really write home about, but it is of good quality and worth your time.

Jason: 3.5
Matt R: 2.5
Matt E: 3.6
Kelly: 2.5
Gina: 2.3
Jess: 3.75
Rodney: 3.2
Mike: 2.0
Chris: 2.6

Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar Average: 2.88 Mugs


Sorachi IPA

For lack of a Left Hand Juju Ginger, we paired the carrot ginger soup with Chris' homebrew Sorachi IPA. Named after the Sorachi Ace hops, this IPA carried a very refreshing lemon flavor. Citrus and pine filled out the background but this IPA was noticeably lighter than others, while maintaining a very prominent bitterness. When paired with the ginger and black pepper flavors of the soup, a very floral character emerged and created a chamomile and heather flavor profile which blended nicely with the soup. The finish was a bit overpowering, as the hops quickly cleansed the palette of creamy squash and carrot. I think the lesson that we learned here is a citrus pale ale with a bit of a floral character would be a good pairing for ginger spiced squash or carrots.


Ps. Thanks to the folks at Goose the Market for their great brining instructional video and for all their help with the bird. Even I managed to make an tasty and tender turkey, which is no small feat.

HBG Classics: KOTBR #70 - Founders Great Expectations

Today marks the official release of Founders KBS at their Grand Rapids brewery. After a cavalcade of fantastic regular Founders offerings made their way to Indiana shelves last year, we thought it might be time to ask the question: "Is KBS worth the hype?"

Of course it's not 2009 any more, and even with consistent recipes, beer does change from year to year and batch to batch. As always, we advise that it's always worth finding out for yourself.

This roundtable originally ran on April 18th, 2009.

KOTBR #70 was a special occasion. Special in that we gathered up (perhaps) more beer than we've ever reviewed in one sitting before. Special because we were joined by Cari, the Kahn's Beer Queen. And special because we're all fans of Founders Brewing, the Michigan powerhouse of tasty brewed treats.

The question I put forth to my fellow Knights was this (in many many more words):

"Is Founder's KBS (formerly Kentucky Breakfast Stout) really Founders' best beer?"

What I was really getting at was the question of hype versus taste. Is KBS' reputation built on the fact that it's not an easily acquired beer? How often does an obsessed-over beer reward that obsession?

We're probably as guilty as anyone at overhyping how good a beer can be - so in this review we ask the question - Do these beers meet expectations? And we'll admit that might be a snobby question to ask.



Thomas Jefferson once wrote:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all beers are not created equal, that they are endowed by their Brewer with certain unalienable qualities, that among these are malt, hops and the possible infusion of coffee, chocolate, bourbon, and other flavors.

Yes, he wrote that. It was part of the Declaration of Beer Dependence that he wrote when he was part of Colonial Beer Geek. He later adapted the text for some statement that was sent to the King of England.

Jefferson was a polymath. And like many of his contemporaries, one of his interests was the production and consumption of beer. Don't believe me? Here's proof.

While little is known about what sort of beers were brewed at Monticello, I think it is a safe bet that none of them were like any of the Founders beers that we sampled.


Porter – Exceeds expectations: Sometimes, I find porters to be lacking. Often, the mouthfeel is too watery to fully carry the flavors. This is not the case. The fullness and creaminess of this porter easily carries the chocolate and coffee maltiness.

Backwoods Bastard – Exceeds expectations: Bourbon and stouts have always played well together. But Wee Heavy ales and bourbon may end up being BFF’s. The caramel and buttery components of bourbon and the roasted caramel malts of the Wee Heavy create a wonderful concoction that is best described as butterscotch candy in inebriating liquid form.

Double Trouble – Does not meet expectations: With a name like Double Trouble, you really expect to get the hop-shit slapped out of you. And based on the smell, I was preparing myself for a punch. While it had a sweet taste and a clean mouth, it was too light for a double IPA. The only trouble I found was in the enjoyable bit of spice left in the back of my throat.

Curmudgeon – Does not meet expectations: 9.3% ABV. Old Ale. The name. All reasons why I had high hopes for this beer. But, I found this to be a weak beer in comparison to the other Founders beers I have consumed. Not a bad beer by any means, but left me wanting more.

Breakfast Stout – Exceeds expectations: The mouthfeel of the Breakfast Stout was lighter than expected, but this coffee stout is very enjoyable with its big coffee flavor highlighted by hints of bitter chocolate. A mocha frappucino in beer form.

Imperial Stout – Exceeds expectations: The words chocolate and coffee and caramel and malty have been thrown around a lot when talking about stouts. This one exceeds them all. It is a big, sugary explosion of a stout. In short: fantastic!

Kentucky Breakfast Stout – Does not meet expectations: It’s funny to say that a beer I rated at 4.7 mugs was disappointing. I like bourbon. A lot. And I feel that the latest KBS is not as bourbon-infused as last year’s. It is still, however, extremely tasty.


PORTER - Exceeds Expectations: This porter is incredibly robust with huge chocolate flavor with hints of coffee, molasses, and toasted almonds. The kind of flavors you'd expect to find in an Imperial Stout but with the body and ABV of a Porter. I would gladly order this at any bar.

BACKWOODS BASTARD - Exceeds Expectations: When this was fresh, it fell a bit short. The flavors were all right but it had a lot of alcohol burn in the nose and the swallow. Now that it's six months old, the alcohol has mellowed and the bourbon flavor is even better. If you like bourbon you HAVE to try this. The nose of oak, vanilla, caramelized banana, and toasted coconut alone is enough to sell me on this.

DOUBLE TROUBLE - Does Not Meet Expectations: You know, I really liked this beer. They shouldn't call it a double IPA, though. Maybe an Extra IPA (that's a hot trend currently). Devil Dancer is a tough suit to follow, and even though it was dubbed a "triple" IPA, it did set a precedent for any "double" IPAs coming out of Founders. The lighter body on this was refreshing, and the grapefruit and lemon zest from the hops had a nice bitterness, but this was a really good IPA, not a double IPA.

CURMUDGEON - Does Not Meet Expectations: I had high expectations for this one. Founders is great at bold flavors and barleywines are a perfect match for this. For some reason, Old Curmudgeon came across fairly light in this department. Easily drinkable, tasty, but not the barleywine I wanted it to be. I did appreciate the coconut notes in the flavor, though.


BREAKFAST STOUT - Meets Expectations: This beer has a huge following and a tremendous amount of praise. It's hard to exceed that, but it certainly lives up to all the positive things that are said about it. The coffee flavors are balanced by a nice sweetness and there's even some chocolate and smoke in there. This is the stuff that sets the high standards for all of Founders' beers.

IMPERIAL STOUT - Does Not Meet Expectations: With how impressive the Breakfast Stout and Porter are, I had really high hopes for this one. Unfortunately it came across as a standard Imperial Stout. Cacao nibs, molasses, and lactose are in there, and it's well-balanced, but when you slap the "Imperial" brand on a Founders beer, I'm expecting something so strongly flavored that I'm going to have to sip it. If they called this Founders Stout I would probably be a lot happier with it.

KBS - Does Not Meet Expectations: But just for the 2009 batch. I don't know what they did to this, but it's much lighter than previous years. The whiskey flavor is incredibly faint with flavors of chocolate, caramel, and even raisins coming out more prominently. This is more chocolate than whiskey. And that's about as mean as I can be here because despite my disappointment in the 2009 batch, it's still a damn good beer and I'm glad I got some this year.

Overall - I think Founders is probably slightly over-hyped in the beer world, but then again, most good breweries are. Founders is easily one of the best breweries in the Midwest and we are incredibly lucky to be able to buy all of their stuff with relative ease (obviously with the exception of KBS). They are a world-class brewery and are doing exactly the kind of thing that makes American craft beer so great. I hope they continue along these lines for many years to come.



Porter - Did not meet. It was chocolate and cherry with a frothy, creamy head. I was expecting this to have a little less of the chocolate and coffee notes and to be more of a brown ale.

Backwoods Bastard - Extremely Exceeded Expectations. This was bourbon-barrel-aged beer at its finest with hints of cherry vanilla and vanilla sugar. It was mellow and easy to drink. I also appreciate the coconut notes on the finish.

Double Trouble - Exceeded Expectations. The nose is pure hoppy goodness. It's yellow and golden (quite light in color) with acetone, floral, and herbs. It's citrusy and piney all in one beer. It's not a true DIPA, but I enjoy it for being a bold IPA that could get me in a lot of trouble the next morning.

Curmudgeon - Met Expectations. It had a big malty taste with lots of barleywine flavor. It also has a hop flavor that enhances the beer and gives it a little something extra to set it apart. I enjoyed the lighter flavor and how it was less syrupy than other barleywines.

Breakfast Stout - Met Expectations. This was quite delicious and reminded me of the Peppy Grill in a bottle. It had hints of chocolate, tobacco, coffee, and cigarette smoke. The only letdown was the weak mouthfeel. It felt quite light on the tongue and didn't coat the glass. I would recommend this to someone who is looking for that diner experience and they don't want to come home smelling like smoke.

Imperial Stout - Exceeded Expectations. I had sampled this at Shallos on tap and wasn't really looking forward to the bottle version. I was pleasantly surprised when I was met with roasted malt, chocolate syrup, and coffee notes all in the first sip. It was followed with that creamy, sugary milky stout taste and had a great heavy mouthfeel. This is a very soothing beer that I would recommend picking up without hesitation.

KBS - Did Not Meet. Now while I wouldn't hesitate to have my fair share of this rare beverage, it wasn't quite as good as what I remembered. It was a chocolaty, woody experience that had too much hot alcohol burn. I wished that it had more of the whiskey barrel taste that I had grown to love with previous KBS years and this disappointed. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, but it wasn't what I remembered. It was like waking up Christmas morning and finding out that there wasn't a Santa Claus but I still got presents. I do eagerly await next year's KBS - maybe they went back to the vanilla?


PORTER - Exceeds Expectations: One of my favorite examples of the style. It must be warmed to near cellar temp though because I always get a bit of a chalk flavor when this beer is too cold. Once it has warmed I get wonderful flavors of roasted coffee and chocolate with a silky smooth mouthfeel.

BACKWOODS BASTARD - Meets Expectations: I thought this beer was terrible when it first came out. The alcohol was very hot and the vanilla and bourbon flavors overtook everything, but put a little bit of age on this beer and it rounded itself out into a very nice beer. I get flavors of vanilla and pepper with a touch of oakiness and bourbon. I also get some sweet caramel coming in on the back of the palate.

DOUBLE TROUBLE - Meets Expectations: This is the clearest DIPA I've ever seen, but the flavor profile packs a big grapefruit punch with a a little bit of sticky pine as well. I would have liked more of a malt body on this beer, but there is a bit of malt that tries to compliment, but the hops are to powerful for it. I also don't think I would have more than one pint of this beer in a sitting.

CURMUDGEON - Neither Satisfied or Unsatisfied: Dark fruits and caramel render a flavor profile that is lacking of much of a "wow" factor. I am not offended by this beer, but I wouldn't seek it out either.


BREAKFAST STOUT - Exceeds Expectations: I just flat out love this beer, and am very happy that Indiana got what seems like a 1000% increase of it over last year. I get plenty of coffee, chocolate, and espresso in the flavor profile and a wonderful nose to match. The oatmeal in the grain bill also makes this have one of the most velvety smooth mouthfeels going down, but still has an thick and almost chewy mouthfeel.

IMPERIAL STOUT - Exceeds Expectations: I am always blown away with every bottle of this beer that I open, and I've been through at least six four-packs of this beer. I find it to be one of the best Russian Imperial stouts right out of the bottle. I hate that I have to age so many RIS's, but I don't have to with this beer. I love the blast of bitter hops upfront with an even stronger bitter roasted malt flavor that is filled with anise, smoke, dark fruit, and molasses. I also find this beer to have an amazing mouthfeel that coats the tongue and goes down very smoothly for a high ABV beer. Bless you Founders for making a RIS in a 12 oz. bottle!

KBS - Does Not Meet Expectations: I say that with a grain of salt. I was so looking forward to the 2009 KBS, but it didn't live up to how good previous versions were. They changed the recipe this year. The chocolate is very prominent in the flavor profile and takes away from the bourbon and vanilla flavors that I've loved so much in previous years. Having said that, I still really liked this beer. Had I never had any other year of this beer, I would have found it pretty amazing, but it was almost like an old friend wasn't there to greet me at the airport, but he sent a pretty good substitute instead.



Porter - Met expectations. Had one when Founders released it. Liked it then, and I like it now. Hint of berries and chocolate in the nose. Creamy mouthfeel, flavor full of chocolate and coffee and a touch of vanilla. An excellent representation of the Porter style, which is a style that I've grown to love over the last year.

Backwoods Bastard - Did not meet expectations. Bourbon nose, heavy bourbon flavor, watery mouthfeel. Bourbon is not my bag, yet I do enjoy many of the bourbon-barrel-aged beers that I've tried (e.g., BBC Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout). Still, I expected better from Founders with this beer. I prefer a hint of bourbon in the taste, not a full-on bourbon flavor like this beer had.

Double Trouble - Exceeded expectations. Very pale color for a DIPA. Looked like a lager. Pineapple nose, crisp and dry pineapple flavor. A nice, dry alternative to the malty sweet DIPAs offered by other brewers. You done good on this one, Founders.

Curmudgeon - Exceeded expectations. Old Ales and Barleywines don't trip my trigger, so I expected not to like this too much. Despite this, I appreciated what Founders is shooting for with this beer. Had a pleasant bready nose with a bit of bourbon in the back. Flavor followed suit, along with a touch of sweetness.

Breakfast Stout - Met expectations. Bought a four-pack when Founders released this year's batch, so I knew what I was getting into. This is a good coffee stout, but not my favorite (that honor belongs to Schlafly's Coffee Stout). What to say about it? Nose: coffee, coffee, coffee, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. Taste: ultra-black coffee, along with a hint of sweetness and cream.

Imperial Stout - Exceeded expectations. Many Imperial Stouts are a little too heavy with the cherry profile in nose and flavor for my particular taste. This one was not in that category. Founders Imperial was tilted more toward the chocolate, vanilla, and cream realm. Some coffee character as well. On top of that, the mouthfeel on this beer was phenomenal.

KBS - Did not meet expectations. I expected this vaunted beer to completely blow away all of its Founders companions. It simply did not do that, primarily because I think it is too green at this point, as evidence by the alcohol burn it produced. Still, the bourbon, vanilla, coffee, and chocolate characteristics that you'd expect from a bourbon-barrel-aged stout were there in spades. An excellent bourbon-barrel-aged beer.


Porter - Met Expectations. A very nice porter. Probably would have rated this higher but just a little something odd was lingering in my mouth. Matt said "chalky" and I immediately knew that's what was hanging around.

Backwoods Bastard - Does Not Meet Expectations. I feel like I'm drinking bourbon. It burns. Bourbon, bourbon, bourbon. Either you like it or you don't. I don't.

Double Trouble - Exceeds Expectations. An absolutely amazing, crystal-clear DIPA. Had one bottle when this first came out, but it really GRABBED me this time. Surprisingly easy drinking, with a light body and great citrusy, grapefruity hopiness.

Curmudgeon - Does Not Meet Expectations. Actually, I'm not sure what my expectations were -- Old Ale is kind of an odd style. Very malty, but not dark and smokey like stout. Hopped, but not as much as barleywine. Lots of caramel sweetness and dark fruit with a touch of spice. I'd have it again, but I'm not running to the store.

Breakfast Stout - Exceeds Expectations. Creamy, chocolately, wonderful coating mouthfeel with huge coffee notes helping to provide some additional bitterness to balance out the malt. This is a great all-around stout.

Imperial Stout - Exceeds Expectations. Wow, I was not expecting to like this more than the Breakfast Stout. Very much exceeds expectations. Great chewy, slightly creamy mouthfeel with chocolate, coffee, and dark fruit notes. A relative bargain for the RIS style.

KBS - Does Not Meet Expectations. There is so much hype surrounding KBS that I'm not sure the beer could possibly live up to expectations. Compounding things, I think this is a little hot right now and needs to sit a while before it's really ready to drink. Still, it's an interesting, complex stout and one I'll look forward to trying again after some aging.


SCORES:
Founders Porter
Matt R 4.1 Mugs | Jess 3.0 Mugs | Jason 4.15 Mugs | Jim 4.1 Mugs | Rod 4.0 Mugs | Chris 4.1 Mugs | Mike 3.7 Mugs | Cari 3.9 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.88 Mugs

Founders Backwoods Bastard
Matt R 3.14 Mugs | Jess 4.8 Mugs | Jason 4.55 Mugs | Jim 3.25 Mugs | Rod 4.5 Mugs | Chris 2.9 Mugs | Mike 4.2 Mugs | Cari 4.0 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.92 Mugs

Founders Double Trouble
Matt R 4.05 Mugs | Jess 4.3 Mugs | Jason 4.4 Mugs | Jim 4.3 Mugs | Rod 3.8 Mugs | Chris 4.8 Mugs | Mike 3.5 Mugs | Cari 4.4 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.19 Mugs

Founders Curmudgeon Old Ale
Matt R 3.0 Mugs | Jess 3.5 Mugs | Jason 3.7 Mugs | Jim 3.9 Mugs | Rod 3.2 Mugs | Chris 3.7 Mugs | Mike 4.2 Mugs | Cari 3.8 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 3.62 Mugs

Founder Breakfast Stout
Matt R 4.35 Mugs | Jess 3.75 Mugs | Jason 4.46 Mugs | Jim 4.0 Mugs | Rod 4.3 Mugs | Chris 4.2 Mugs | Mike 3.71 Mugs | Cari 3.9 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.08 Mugs

Founders Imperial Stout
Matt R 4.85 Mugs | Jess 4.5 Mugs | Jason 4.7 Mugs | Jim 4.65 Mugs | Rod 3.85 Mugs | Chris 4.5 Mugs | Mike 3.72 Mugs | Cari 4.7 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.43 Mugs

Founders KBS (2009)
Matt R 4.4 Mugs | Jess 4.4 Mugs | Jason 4.7 Mugs | Jim 4.4 Mugs | Rod 4.35 Mugs | Chris 4.0 Mugs | Mike 3.7 Mugs | Cari 4.2 Mugs
KOTBR Score - 4.26 Mugs