Tuesday Night at the Movies

Tuesdays are discount nights at our local theater so the Frau and I frequently pick that night to catch up on our movies. By an amazing coincidence, HopMonk Tavern has a happy hour that leads up to movie time. So, tonight was a typical night. Got there before 6, ordered their excellent fish tacos with beer-battered fish chunks at a very reasonable price, and looked to see what new beers await. Right off the bat, two choices just leaped off the menu and smacked me across the nose (metaphorically speaking): 

Sculpin, left; Mongo, right. Identical SRMs.

Port Brewing Mongo IPA and Ballast Point's Sculpin IPA.

The Mongo (8.5% abv) is a full-bodied hopbomb with an intense assortment of hops; Columbus, Amarillo and Cascades. Still, it's very nicely balanced and the creamy mouth feel delighted my palate and set up the dry finish very nicely. This is a very satisfying beer.

Ballast Point's Sculpin IPA has been one of my top ten IPAs since I first had it last March in San Diego. Tonight I noticed that it had a long, lingering finish after a full-bodied journey over the palate. Always a pleaser.

As you can see in the pic, they are 12 oz pours and have very similar SRMs. Carbonation on the Mongo was a little crisper, I felt.

Happy hour means home-made potato chips. Yum!!

But the big surprise of the evening, another new one for me, direct from Uinta Brewing in Salt Lake City (Mormons- who knew?), a new fave: Uinta Dubhe Imperial Black IPA. (9.2%). This beer is amazingly smooth, with a very creamy body and the mouth feel I love in IPAs. More medium body than the color suggests, it's not aggressively hopped, tho the finish is appropriately dry. This one is a winner.
The brewmaster says it's because the toasted, chocolaty dark malts align with an astronomical amount of hops. No mention of the hemp adjunct which is indicated on the label. They associate the name with a star in the Big Dipper, also named Dubhe (pronounced doo-bie). With the hemp addition, I'm thinking of an entirely different animal. Anyway, try this when you can. You won't be disappointed.


Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance by Unger, Richard W. [Pape (Google Affiliate Ad)
 
Land of Amber Waters: The History of Brewing in Minnesota (Revised Edi (Google Affiliate Ad)

 The Complete Homebrew Beer Book: 200 Easy Recipes from Ales and Lagers (Google Affiliate Ad)

Smoked Beers: History, Brewing Techniques, Recipes by Daniels, Ray/ La (Google Affiliate Ad) 
 

Sweetwater 420 Festival News

Anytime I'm in the GA/SC area, Sweetwater is one of the brews I look for and know that I will enjoy. Saw this article about their April festival and thought I would pass it along in case you were going to be in the area (I might just be):



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/01/budweiser-corona-deal_n_2599341.html?utm_hp_ref=small-business&utm_hp_ref=small-business

Friday Night SF Beer Week Gala

Yep, you betcha, I'm gonna be there! It's going to be the kick off for a crazy, hectic but very rewarding week for us beer geeks. Read about it here:

http://www.sfbeerweek.org/

Big Beer News From Our Flagstaff Correspondent

A big-time collaboration between Deschutes Brewery (Oregon) and Mother Road Brewing of Flagstaff (AZ) took place today and was witnessed by our intrepid correspondent, Don Baker, local resident and craft beer enthusiast. 

Here's a quote: "Today I witnessed a brewing collaboration between representatives of Deschutes Brewery of Oregon and Mother Road Brewing Company of Flagstaff take place at Mother Road. The highlight of the afternoon, though was sipping a hot scotchy with malt from the “first wort” of the brew. Yowza!"

 
Details and photos (thanks for those pics, Don) are available at his FB page:

http://www.facebook.com/don.baker.319/posts/469768963071072

Lining Up For Pliney the Younger Continues!

Stopped by the Russian River Brewery yesterday for an update (and maybe a glass full!) but the scene was the same: line down the block. And that's 4 days after the release!
Sort of re-enforces the declaration that Pliney the Younger is the best beer being made, anywhere. I'll make another attempt Friday before heading to the SF Beer Week kickoff gala!

Tap Room at Whole Foods Comes Through Again

One of the things I can count on while visiting the Tap Room in the Santa Rosa Whole Foods at Coddingtown is that I will discover a new beer and tonight was no exception. 
Not only did they have Sculpin IPA on tap, which I can never refuse, but they also had Coronado's Idiot IIPA (Imperial IPA), a newbie for me!  An 8.5% ABV did not deter us and we found it paired nicely with a spicy beef and cheese panini that we grabbed from the prepared food court. Nice thing about the Tap Room is that you can wander out into the market, grab a snack, bring it back into the Tap Room to eat and pay for it there. Easy.

This Imperial IPA has a two-row malt body with an adjunct of brown sugar (?) but the use of Nugget and 4 other hops balances the sweetness so that the finish is appropriately bitter and satifying. And a hearty 90 IBUs! 

We ordered a second 10oz pour because we liked it so much. Try it!

Port Shark Attack Red Ale, l, and Ballast Point Sculpin IPA, r.

Yeast: The Practical Guide to Beer Fermentation by White, Chris/ Zaina (Google Affiliate Ad)

The Beer Drinker's Guide to Munich (6th Edition, Revised, Update) by H (Google Affiliate Ad) 

Pliney the Younger Released at Russian River - Mayhem Ensues!

Well, that headline isn't actually accurate. When I got there, all was peaceful, tho' crowded, as people waited in line on 4th Street in Santa Rosa for the Russian River Brewery to open the door and taps so faithful fans could enjoy this once-a-year event.

Here's what the front of the line looked like:

Looking west on 4th street.

And from the other direction: 

Brewery is white bldg just to left of parking kiosk sign.

So, who had the distinction of being first in line? His name is Matt Reagan, arriving at 3 am to grab the cherished spot. That's him in the photo below, apparently appealing to be let in. This was his first time to try Pliney the Younger, which at 10.8% ABV, might be a bit of a shock to the uninitiated.
This was taken at 9:15 am. Doors and taps were to open at 11 am, so still plenty of anticipation time ahead.

Matt seems to be reading the posted crowd instructions.

 

These two guys came in from Denver, CO, especially for this event. They plan to hit several other local breweries over the weekend.  Ed Smith, left in the photo, has never tasted Pliney the Younger before. Both are IPA fans, especially those of Oskar Blue Brewing.

Missed the name of Colorado dude on the right. Sorry,

 Other sights along the line:

End of the line was down the block and around this corner.

Katy Molnar arrived at 7:30am, well prepared for the wait.

Media was out in force, interviewing brewers.

Probably wondering, "what's all the fuss?"

And of course there is always the end of the line. That honor goes to these two beer lovers, Ray Lardizabal, left, and Marc Dipietra, right. Ray came from Newark; Marc from Alameda.

Marc, right, will be trying Pliney the Younger for the first time.

Staff commemorating the event with self portraits!

And as the morning sun rose slowly (way too slowly for some) over the rooftops along 4th street, I left the yearning crowd to their wait, knowing that the "beer of the Gods" will make it all worthwhile.

The Complete Homebrew Beer Book: 200 Easy Recipes from Ales and Lagers (Google Affiliate Ad)

The Brewer's Bible: How to Brew Delicious Beers at Home by Kunath, Bri (Google Affiliate Ad)

 Makers: All Kinds of People Making Amazing Things in Garages, Basement (Google Affiliate Ad)