Beer of the Day: Bad Martha Martha's Vineyard Ale

 

Click here to find more about Bad Martha!

Beer of the Day: Mayflower Spring Hop Ale

 

This brew from Mayflower Brewery in historic Plymouth Massachusetts is perhaps my favorite springtime brew. I couldn't wait for this to come out after this ridiculous winter we've had here in New England this year. A nice blend of an amber ale and a pine hop bitterness that isn't over powering to balance out it's light malt character.  This is one of my favorite local breweries and have rarely let me down with their selections. For more info you can visit them here.

Boston Beer: A History of Brewing in The Hub by Norman Miller

Boston Beer: A History of Brewing in the Hub by Norman Miller
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An excellent guide to the history of brewing beer in Boston. It starts from the colonial period through the revolution years. Then through growth from ciders, ales and the later the lagers which exploded in popularity. Right up until prohibition which unfortunately cleared the playing field and only a few survived when the great experiment was lifted. After the World War the national beer companies eventually gobbled up the regional brands and the last brewery in Boston(Haffenreffer, which is now home to Boston Beer Company, aka: Samuel Adams)closed in 1964 it would 20 something years before brewing returned to the Hub. We get an early history lesson of the craft beer craze in the early 80's with the birth of Samuel Adam's Boston Lager and Harpoon brewery. Runs through to today with the newest brewery Trillium being latest on. A must read for those looking to learn more about Boston's past and present relationship with beer.

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Brewed Awakening by Joshua M. Bernstein

Brewed Awakening: Behind the Beers and Brewers Leading the World's Craft Brewing Revolution by Joshua M. Bernstein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A fun introduction to the world of craft beers and those that make them. A colorful and easy to read style and presentation. Many different brewers and and beers are introduced with many behind the scenes stories behind the brews. Great place to start if your new to craft beers or great place to bone up on your beer knowledge.

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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2014 by Anchor Brewing

I was waiting for this day to open this one and I wasn't disappointed. Has a subtle nutmeg nose. The off-white about one finger high likes to stick around. At first taste I picked up nutmeg and cinamon but it is not overpowering like some holiday seasonal brews which some can be like liquid candy. Anchor seems to have taken a more tradition approach which I believe is part of their appeal. Meaning they go for quality first. 

This is the 40th Anniversary of Anchor releasing this brew. I had the 2010 but I believe this one even tons that one. If you haven't tried this one yet you should. 

Merry Christmas to all!

Foolproof Brewery in the Ocean State

Recently I visited the Foolproof Brewery in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. It's location in a old New England industrial park is a bit misleading once you tried their array of fine brews. Opening in 2012 they are relatively new to the brewing scene. They now offer five year tasty round brews. They offer tours on Saturdays and tastings on Friday and Saturdays(check ahead of time for details). They have a humble tasting area at the entrance with a small bar type of area where you can sample their offerings. Their year round offerings are:

• Backyahd - Style: India Pale Ale
• Barstool - Style: American Golden Ale
• Raincloud - Style: Robust Porter
• Le Ferme Urbaine - Style: Farmhouse Ale(aka:Saison)
• King of the Yahd - Style: Imperial IPA

For the tour(and $10)  your allowed to sample 3 different brews and keep the a pint glass(tulip glass is offered but is extra $). I had tried their "BackYahd" and "Barstool" before. The two that impressed me on this day were their "Raincloud" which is a Porter and the Le Ferme Urbaine which is a Saison, or Farmhouse ale. 

Also part of the tour is a short summary and story by the founder of Foolproof Brewery Nick Garrison. He's friendly, personable and very passionate about his brewery. 

A bonus this day was a taste of their "The Taproom Project" series was "Rain Barrel" This rolling  in at 7% ABV this Sour Ale was a throat warmer that hit the spot on a cool winter afternoon. This was just a small sample. 

Founder Nick Garrison

After the tour your able to purchase some samples, in limited quantities, along with other related items. I enjoyed my visit and hope to do so again soon.

Foolproof Brewing Company

241 Grotto Avenue

Pawtucket, Rhode Island 02860

Online: http://www.foolproofbrewing.com

Beer of the Week: Sierra Nevada Flipside Red IPA

 

Sierra Nevada Flipside Red IPA

This weeks brew is from the well known craft brewer Sierra Nevada out of Chico, California. This one I discovered by chance as it was was half off due to be change of season clearance at my local beer store. I was not disappointed.  This is an West Coast Style IPA(India Pale Ale) not unlike their more well known Pale Ale. This however is an amber colored and maltier version of that. Has a tropical fruit with a citrus bite. It also has a nice crisp apple like character. It's refreshing yet still means business. It's a seasonal offering for late summer and early autumn. Worth a try. I gave it 4 out of 5 on RateBeer.com.

Cape Cod Growler Refill

Lonely growler needing a refilling.

This weekend my girlfriend and I were going on a road trip to Cape Cod so I thought this would be a great time to visit the Cape Cod Beer Brewery in historic Hyannis, Massachusetts. I had a growler to refill that I had been waiting since summer. It had originally been filled with their IPA but I was unsure of what to go with this time.

Taps and tanks at Cape Cod Beer, where the magic happens!

 We had previously had visited Cape Cod Beer in the spring time and had the tour, which they do daily at 11:00am each day. It was kind of wet cold New England fall morning on the Cape. They are located in an industrial park close buy to the local malls. This has become one of my favorite places to visit in this touristy area.

I was undecided to what to get a refill of so we decided to go for their sampler deal which you can get 5 - 3oz  samples for $5. You get to keep the glasses. You can also get a pint for same price also. So between my girl and I we get to sample a lot. They had their sample bar located in the open work area so you can cozy up to a mini bar while in full view of the tanks where future brews are being made.

Here's a list of samples we tried this day:

• Berry Merry Christmas Ale
• Ten Year Pale Ale
• Harvest Ale
• Session IPA
• Kurt's Farmhouse Saison
• Oatmeal Stout
• Hoppy Holidays

Berry Merry hanging out with Hoppy Holidays.

The Oatmeal Stout, Hoppy Holidays and Session IPA were new releases the day before on 12/12/14. These were top on my list to try first. My girlfriend and I shared samples to we could try more of them. My favorites were the Hoppy Holidays,  Kurt's Farmhouse Saison, Merry Berry and the Oatmeal Stout. My other half really liked the Oatmeal Stout and the Merry Berry. 

After some chatting with other visitors and some more samples we walked away with a growler of the delicious Oatmeal Stout and 22oz bomber of Berry Merry. The Oatmeal Stout had the typical roasted coffee taste that had hint of sweetness in the finish. The Berry Merry Ale is a nice Amber Ale with nice touch of cranberry dry tartness that compliments the malty character nicely it perfectly. 

I can't wait open these back home. Cheers!

The Complete Beer Course by Joshua M. Bernstein

The Complete Beer Course: Boot Camp for Beer Geeks: From Novice to Expert in Twelve Tasting Classes by Joshua M. Bernstein
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An easy to read and follow beer guide. Learn about different styles of lagers and ales. Suggested samples of each style are given to give you an idea what they are like. This would make a good beer reference guide for the novice and may have stuff for the connoisseur also. Pour a cold one and enjoy.

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Beer for Thought: Got Beer?

I'd like to see beer drinkers unite and stop the infighting amongst the industry. This may sound a bit naive but so do many crafty beer fans in their passionate hatred of big beer. I can understand where the feelings of mistrust of corporate beer comes from. Also keep in mind I'm also a craft beer fan also so don't think I'm an apologist for the old school big beer. 

I have to admit when I first started into craft beer several years ago I took up the anti-macrobrew flag also. Why were these people drinking this swill? After many brews I kind of came down to judging beer by it's taste rather than the brand name or how big they are. It's so bad that some even claim that craft beer pioneer Jim Koch's Boston Beer(aka:Samuel Adams) isn't a real craft beer cause it's tooo big. Never mind that they brew some pretty dam good beer. Isn't that what it's really about. 

This also harkens back recently to 10-Barrel Brewing being purchased AB-InBev. The craft beer circles were going nuts over this swearing of AB products and crying "sell outs"! They also claimed that the quality would go down also. Even though it may have happened in the past but I kind of doubt it will with these high profile purchases. Big beer is slowly learning they are being watched by enthusiasts and are working on their image. They tried making pseudo-craft brewery's like BlueMoon, Shocktop and others which are OK but are little respected by craft beer geeks. 

It's a bit narrow minded to think these micro-brewers to stay micro forever. They also have a bottom line too. To make more beer they have to make a profit too. I have no ill-will towards companies like 10-Barrel or Goose Island who see the benefit from having the influx of being bought out. There is a lot more to the beer industry than making beer. Like other businesses they have to contend with supply issues, labor, marketing, distributing, investment capitol to keep producing. Unless you've run a business I doubt the average beer/critic knows squat about running a successful and profitable one. 

Why don't brewers unite like other industries do? We've all seen the milk mustached celebrity ads. Like beef, milk,cheese, pork and other producers can't they come up with a campaign extolling the virtues of enjoying this wondrous beverage. Do it in a responsible way without promoting misuse. 

Perhaps I'm a bit biased cause of my age group. Being middle aged I grew up when big beer was still king. Schlitz, Michelob and Budweiser were the beers my elders drank. the Craft beer movement was still in it's infancy when I came of legal age. I did become somewhat aware better beer while stationed in Germany but was hard to come by back in the states. I still in many ways hold a bit of respect for beer nostalgia and history. I've tasted some pretty good beer from macro-brews and some drain-pours from microbrews. It's all a matter of taste. Why did the pale lager come about? Cause people loved it. So what did smart brewers do? They followed the money and sold more of it. So perhaps the blame shouldn't be entirely shouldered by big beer but the consumers who guzzled it down. 

I'd like to see less of a rivalry going on beer drinkers and brewers. I do understand that big beer at times employs what is considered bullying tactics. I am not that naive to think that that stuff still doesn't go on. It seems that since overall beer consumption is in a downward trend that beer companies are turning inward fro growth(against other brewers) instead of looking for newer consumers outward. Perhaps it'd be better to promote beer in general and look outward for new consumers rather than inward towards other beer companies. I think everyone could benefit from that. We all enjoy the same thing beer. Can't we get along?

Beer Word of the Week: Barley

Without Barley we wouldn't have beer. It is only behind water as an essential ingredient. As a plant it is a member of the grass family and is considered one of the major cereal grains. 

 

When heated in water it's enzymes create proteins and starches creates sugars. This fermentable sugar is what the yeast will use to create alcohol in the future beer. This creates what is called a malt.

Some malts are created for the base of the beer or are more specialty malts that can add sweetness or others a roasted character. Dark malts add color to Porters or Stouts.

Beer of the Week: Shiner Oktoberfest

This weeks brew hails from the Texas town of Shiner, population 2,107(2013). The Spoetzl Brewery has been turning out fine beers since 1909. Legend has it that Bavarian born Kosmos Spoetzl would leave cold beers for local farmers on their fence posts after working in the Texas sun all day.

Fall Seasonal - ABV-5.7% - Bitterness- 18 IBU

 The Shiner Oktoberfest is a Marzen-Style Ale which has a rich spice malt taste which is lightly dry hopped. I've found it a clean and refreshing example of this classic autumn seasonal. I've grown to like this one a lot. It has been brewed in Shiner since 1996. I'd raise a glass of this any time. PROSIT!

That's No Moon!

Samuel Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale

I finally gotten around to trying this one out. I haven't been impressed with the few "pumpkin beer" I've tried so far, I've only tried a couple of others so you can keep that in mind but I was kind of impressed by this one. Here is my review from Ratebeer.com:

4

   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 4/5   TASTE 8/10   PALATE 5/5   OVERALL 16/20

rjplumer (415) - Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA - OCT 31, 2014

A bubbly rich amber red body. Smooth nutmeg and pumpkin aroma that isn’t overwhelming but yet enticing. Has a touch of roasted malt on the nose too. The nutmeg and pumpkin are noticeable to the taste. Has a crisp apple like character also. Smoothness from start to finish as it leaves your palate clean and wet without any negative aftertaste. First "pumpkin beer" to actually impress me. Rather than slamming you pumpkin spice it is subtle and respectful to your sense. Well done.

Newburyport Beer Fest 2014

I just ordered my ticket fro the Newburyport Beer Fest this November 8, 2014. This will be my first beer event in over two years so I'm looking forward to this event. Admittedly this will be a good hike for me from Foxboro(where I live) to Newburyport.

This trip does have a duel purpose besides the beer fest which may explain, other than the great brews that will be there and scenic seaport. This is home of where my ancestors landed in the colonies. Not only was my 9th Grandfather Francis Plumer a founding settler of the town Newbury in 1635, he was also the settlements first innkeeper. So I hope to track down the above marker and monument before heading to tasting some excellent beverages.

Good chance this one will be there.

Click here if you wish to purchase ticket or find out more here at 2 Beer Guys Blog

Leffe Blonde

This Belgian Ale is a true pleaure to taste. Has a heady foam head upon a  clear gold  body. Smooth tasting and bready body to contradict its clear body. Don't be fooled by Belgians who are very serious and passionate about their beer and ale. I'd drink this any time and in vast quantities. It's worth a try. Very pleasant and smooth. 

Drink Beer and Live Longer!

Post by RateBeer.

Luke, I have your beer!

Crafty Bastards by Lauren Clark

Yes the the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth because they were low on beer. I don't remember hearing that in history class. You'll get the full story and more here. It was in 1620 that New England's relationship with beer and ale started. You'll learn about the growth of brewing and New Englander's thirst for for the stuff has rarely ebbed. Although Cider, rum and prohibition gave beer some competition it still survived. Even learn of it's revival in recent decades. Crack open a local brew and enjoy this easy to read and enjoyable trip along the region's brewing history. Crafty Bastards: Beer in New England from the Mayflower to Modern Day by Lauren Clark
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Yes the the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth because they were low on beer. I don't remember hearing that in history class. You'll get the full story and more here. It was in 1620 that New England's relationship with beer and ale started. You'll learn about the growth of brewing and New Englander's thirst for for the stuff has rarely ebbed. Although Cider, rum and prohibition gave beer some competition it still survived. Even learn of it's revival in recent decades. Crack open a local brew and enjoy this easy to read and enjoyable trip along the region's brewing history.

View all my reviews

Still Some Summer Left To Go!