Couldn’t you have graffitied something not related to beer? Next time can you find a nice vodka billboard or something?

Sorry about the lack of posts guys, I’m trying to get my life caught up after vacation!

Wed Sept. 24th @ The Happy Gnome 6pm start $70.
Brewery Ommegang Beer dinner featuring Brew Master Phil Leinhart pairing 6 of his beers with 6 of Chef Matthew Hinmans food courses. Please call the Happy Gnome at 651-287-2018 to reserve your seat.

In honor of getting my BJCP results back(74!) I thought I’d flex my muscles a little bit and show you guys how the professionals review a beer. Let’s hope I can make this a regular thing. Here goes nothing:

Aroma: Good lord. I hate to say it, but this beer smells almost exactly like creme brulee. Intense aroma of charred sugar. You can smell it from across the room. Bring it up to your nose and things change into vanilla and molasses. Incredible sweetness. No hop aroma. Any esters are hidden by the sugar aroma. Faint alcohol tingle in the nose.

Appearance: Pours a deep brown, not quite black. Almost like motor oil. Very clear. I tried to coax some head out of this but I couldn’t get more than a few mm of “creme brulee” colored bubbles that quickly retreated. Swirling the glass leaves huge legs.

Taste: Amazing taste of caramel and vanilla mixed with high levels of malt sweetness are the first things you’ll notice. Sweetness is quickly met by a bitterness that almost seems out of place, I’m not sure if it’s the hops or the malt roast. Things finish a touch to the bitter side with some hints of bourbon, but I’m not convinced it’s a bad thing. You need something to help cut the initial flavors. No hop flavor.

Mouthfeel: Medium high body, medium carbonation. Alcohol warmth is present and lingering. No creaminess. No astringency.

Overall Impression: This is certainly an outstanding beer. It seems they achieved exactly what they set out to do. That being said, I feel like this should be packaged in 12oz bottles. 22oz is way too much sweetness for me to handle. Southern Tier Creme Brulee Stout is a bottle to share, for sure.

Autumn Brew Review is just over six weeks away, and tickets go on sale tomorrow. Don’t forget to pick some up, this event has been selling out!

I’m a few days late on the news, but Surly Brewing Co. has announced the first annual Surlyfest, to be held on Saturday, September 6. Tickets are $30 and highlights include the first keg of this year’s SurlyFest. More info is on Surly’s website. See you there!

Posting around here will be pretty sparse for the next few weeks while I’m off in the Land of the Rising Sun.

We’ll get you all caught up on beer goings on when I return.

Until then, Sayonara.

Corey from Hohenstein’s Distributing dropped a line to let us know about the release of the new Ommegang beer, Rouge. Looks like this one’s a Flander’s Red and oh baby do I love those.

Beer Folk,

We will be debuting the Ommegang Rouge on draft @ The Corner Table Rest 4257 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis (612) 823-0011 tomorrow July 31 @ 5:30 until 7:30. Scott from Hohenstein’s will be sampling people and obviously you can buy a glass of the Rouge too. I would HIGHLY reccomend eating there too as the Corner Table is one the Twin Cities best restaurants.

For my money, there’s nothing better than a beer that showcases the versatility of one hop. In the hands of a lesser brewer these beers can be limp and one dimensional, but in the kettle of a master you end up with understated complexity and clean pure flavors.

Hey All,
Time for us to share some hops with you! We made the single hop Warrior Ale. This time it is pale ale strength not double IPA….but dont fret we hopped it well for you. Warrior hops in the brew kettle, warrior hops in the hop back, warrior dry hop in fermenter and warrior dry hop in the serving tank. Let’s just say you can really get the warrior hop in “Warrior Double Dry”
Release on Monday 7/28
MMMMMMMM!

It’s almost like Mike can read my mind. See you at Town Hall!

I’m sorry if you’ve already made plans but Mike requests your presence:

Well you drank all the Blueberry Wheat…Good Job! Now we get to release “Cow Tipper”, this is a Midwestern Wheat Beer. A great addition to nearly any summer event Cow Tipper is brewed with over 50% malted wheat.
Stop in for the release today @5pm
Moo!

See you at Town Hall tonight!

Today marks the first observance of International Brewer’s Day. We all love beer but often forget about all of the people who make it happen. IBD is the time to do just that. So tonight as you’re pouring a pint of your favorite beer, give a few moments thought to the guys and gals that make that magic in a glass for you. They’ll appreciate it.