New Beer Friday 4/4/14

It's a "big boy" New beer Friday! You'll literally wet yourself over this week's offerings of new local - and out of state beers. The Utah Beer Challenge continues with new beers going head to head as round one continues. Ballots are in the column to the right. As you can See, I've provided the full bracket above.

Bohemian/ Beer Bar - Beer X: This is an exclusive beer for the Beer Bar. It's a collaborative beer made with Bohemian Brewing. This rotating beer will change multiple times over the year - right now it's a Helles style lager.

Anchor California Lager: The nose has earthy hops and a hint of grain The taste starts toasty/sweet with bread notes accompanied by some grainy sweetness. Earthy/grassy hops come next with a touch of fruitiness. The end is lemony and grassy. Finishes fairly dry. @Beerhive

Pelican Red Lantern: Big malt in the nose with citric/pine hops. Taste starts with toffee and spices then transitions straight into a big blast of resinous orange and pine. @Beerhive

Bonneville First AnniversaRYE: Not tried this one yet. 4.0% ABV

Bohemian CTR (Choose the Rye): The nose is earthy and fruity. The taste starts with musty rye and spicy hops, the end has a touch of citrus at the end to balance things out. 4.0% ABV @Bohemian, @Beer Bar 

Ninkasi Renewale: The nose is slightly floral and dank. The taste starts malty sweetness with a big resinous punch of hops that flow over the sides of the tongue. A nice mix of English Bitters with a Northwest hop smack. @Beer Bar

Hopworks Urban Brewery Organic IPA: Light grapefruit is prominent in the nose - Big hop flavor - lemon, grapefruit, with lots of pine and spice as well. Dank with a great malt base that supports and balances the hops, but the hops steal the show. @Beer Bar

Hopworks Urban Brewery IPX: The nose is dank with grapefruit, lemon and tangerine. The tastes starts bitter and herbal with  lemon, grapefruit and oranges following. Malt character is minimal, but there is a little bit of a toasty grain flavor. Finishes dry. @Beer Bar
 
Hopworks Urban Brewery Survival "7-Grain" Stout: The nose is heavy with coffee, roasted malt and a hint of molasses.  The taste is similar to the nose with bold and spicy coffee notes with an earthy hoppiness towards the finish. Nice stout. 5.3% ABV

Mother Earth Boo Koo Mosaic IPA: This is a Mosaic hop bomb with mango, pineapple and citrus in the nose. The tastes starts fruity with pale malts and toast. Tangy citrus and melon come next with a dry resiny end. 7.5% ABV @Beerhive

Mother Earth Printemps: Not had this one yet. @Beerhive

Sierra Nevada Ovila Quad with Plums: The nose is earthy with pumpernickel, molasses and dates. The taste starts with raisiny malts. Plum and fig come next with a sweet toffee finish. Very light for a Quad, not the most full bodied but enjoyable. 10.2% ABV @Beer Bar & Liquor Stores

The Hive Winery Blackberry Wine: This wine opens with a full rich blackberry aroma with light floral notes. A sweet-tart opening flavor that captures the essence of a fresh blackberry gives way to a distinctive finish from the blackberry tannins. Try this wine pared with a cheese fondue or roast pork. This wine is a Seasonal wine release available only at the Winery.

Part Two of Round One of the Utah Beer Challenge begins today. It will go for two days as well. There were a few extremely tight match ups, Desert Edge's Road Rage Rye nudged out Bohemian's Cherny Bock by just two Votes and the Drioma/Hopulent fight went back and forth a couple of times.

Looking forward to part 2 of of round one - It looks like another tough, early match-up with Fifth Element and Dubhe looking to knock out each other early. I've provided a breakdown of part one's voting below.

Total	Answer
52.63%	Epic Hopulent IPA	80 (52.63%)
47.37%	RedRock Drioma Imp Stout	72 (47.37%)

(152 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
12.5%	HopN'KEG Amber Ale	15 (12.5%)
87.5%	Moab Scotch Ale	105 (87.5%)

(120 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
49.28%	BOHO Cherny Bock	68 (49.28%)
50.72%	Dsrt EDGE Road Rage Rye	70 (50.72%)

(138 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
65.08%	Moab Black IIPA	82 (65.08%)
34.92%	Moab Export Stout	44 (34.92%)

(126 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
42.71%	HopN'KEG Nut Brown	41 (42.71%)
57.29%	HopN'KEG Pale Ale	55 (57.29%)

(96 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
11.18%	ShadesO'Pale Jack Wagon	17 (11.18%)
88.82%	RedRock Elephino DIPA	135 (88.82%)

(152 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
28.48%	BNVILLE Free Roller Pale	43 (28.48%)
71.52%	Wasatch GhostRider White IPA	108 (71.52%)

(151 Total Votes)

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Total	Answer
33.33%	ShadesO'Pale Publican Pale	47 (33.33%)
66.67%	Wasatch Winterfest	94 (66.67%)

(141 Total Votes)

Cheers!

Voting Continues

The first round of voting in the Utah Beer challenge continues. There are three very tight races that may come down to a vote or two. In case of a tie... I have no idea. Better get on that.

Utah Beer Challenge Begins!

Okay - Today marks the beginning of The first part of round one. Right off the bat there are a couple of breweries that have their own beers going head to head. Remember, this is about the individual beer not the brewery. I'm already seeing some tough calls and there are more coming - trust me.

I'll post the results of the voting at the end of each round - along with the bracket so you can see ehat match-ups are coming. All the match-up were generated randomly. If you haven't figured it out, the ballots are in the right column.

Feed back is welcome. Please have fun.

Cheers!

The 2014 Utah Beer Challenge

Two years ago we tried to have a little fun and take advantage of the whole March Madness Bracket bull shit. We pitted the best four beer from sixteen Utah breweries against each other for four weeks to come up with a very non-scientific "Best Beer in Utah". Sadly the results were tainted by a groups of genetic anomalies that had nothing better to do at 3am, so we killed the competition in the last few hours of the finals. It was sad, there was a lot of enthusiastic voting, and everyone from the breweries to the casual beer geek got involved.

The Interwebs is full of anonymous assholes, we all know this, and there nothing we can really do about them. So after weeks of racking my tiny brain, I've decided to try and resurrect the Utah Beer Challenge once again. Due to my limited budget of "nothing", I've been scouring the web for a free polling service that hides the results from voters until the voting has ended - I think I've found one that'll work. Hopefully, this will discourage any cheating.

Before I get to the rules and how I came up with breweries and beers, I will state right now that I will reserve the right to alter any voter outcome that I deem to have tampered with. Many votes will come in from a single IP address, I get that - but when I start to notice a flood of cookie resets and odd hour multiple votes, I'll start making adjustments. Social media and P.R. representatives of the competing breweries, please feel free to encourage your "friends of the brewery" to enthusiastically participate. Just ask them to please keep the crazy in check. On to the Challenge!

There are currently 25 places in Utah that fall under the category of brewery/brewpub some contract to have their beers made while others are brewpub chains that don't manufacture here, but sell beer around the state. Brewpubs that fall into these categories I've decided to omit this year. It has nothing to do with the quality of the beer it just comes down to simple math. 16 breweries x top 4 beers = 64 bracket spots.

Some of the breweries have more than one entity. These entities will be lumped into one brewery except for Wasatch and Squatters - who both have a long independent histories before their companies merged.  

I took the current crop of existing manufacturing breweries and grabbed their top four beers as listed by ratebeer.com's database. These beers will be randomly selected to go head to head in round one. This has proven to be tough because some peoples finalist contenders have ended up facing each other right off the bat as well as having one brewery's beers go up against each other. There is no fair way (within reason) to identify seeds for all of these beers.

The rules are simple. Two days to vote in each single elimination round. Vote for your favorite beers in the column to the right. I will post a bracket at the end of each round to help you keep score.

The first round will be broken up into four parts with two days of voting each.
The second round will be broken up into four parts with two days of voting each.
The third round will be broken up into two parts with two days of voting
The fourth round will be broken up into two parts with two days of voting
The Semifinals will consist of two days of voting
The Finals will consist of two days of voting

Voting for Part One of Round 1 will begin 4/2/14 at 5am and will end 5am 4/4/14. Any questions?
No, this is not an April Fool's Joke.

Cheers!

The Beer Bar Opens Today!

Wahoo! Finally the news most SLC beer geeks have been waiting for the Beer Bar is finally open for business. Three years ago Duncan Burrell, Richard ­­­Noel and Modern Family actor Ty Burrell decided to get into the bar game and open a high end cocktail bar at the sight of one of SLC's most infamous watering holes, The Bar X. Gone was all the old school remnants of notorious "men only" past in favor of a more modern mixology based cocktail experience.

 Though cocktails put them on the map, craft beer was always on their minds; and when the two vacant spaces next to Bar X became available, it was the perfect opportunity to infuse more new life into Salt Lake's beers scene with their newest concept, The Beer Bar.

This place is more than just a "beer bar". The owner have gone to painstaking efforts to make this new place a beer lovers dream. Not only did they bring in some new out of state brands, they also hired former RedRock brewer Kyle Trammel to oversee the implementation and design of their beer menu, staff training and systems. From a wide range of style- appropriate glassware to separate temperature controls for ales and lagers, the high tech European influenced bar is designed for the fussiest beer drinker.

I can describe it, but you really have to go down and check it out for yourself. I've been teasing most of you with the great new beers that Beer Bar has brought in, now I can finally release the new beers on their extensive beer list. And while your there check out the house beer, a unique, specially made collaborative beer made with Bohemian Brewing. This rotating beer will change multiple times over the year - right now it's a Helles style lager.


Here's the newest additions to the market. What do you think?

10 Barrel – Apocalypse IPA
10 Barrel – OG Wheat IPA
10 Barrel – Project Failed RED
10 Barrel – Sinistor Black Ale
Alameda – Papa Noel Olde Ale
Alameda – Sisikou Golden Ale
Alameda – Klickitat APA
Alameda – Yellow Wolf IIPA
Alameda – El Torero IPA
Alameda – Black Bear STOUT
Burnside – Oatmeal Pale Ale
Burnside – India Pale Ale
Ninkasi – Pravda Pilsner
Ninkasi – Total Domination 22oz
Ninkasi – Total Domination 12oz
Ninkasi – Tricerihops IIPA 22oz
Ninkasi – Tricerihops IIPA 12oz
Ninkasi – Believer Dred
Ninkasi – Dawn of the Red
Ninkasi – Oatis Oatmeal Stout
Guinness – Forign Extra Stout
Moab – Forign Extra Stout
Greene King – Old Suffolk
New Belgium – TRIP
New Belgium – Blue Pad Pils
New Beglium – Shift Pale Lager
New Belgium – Sunshine Wheat Ale

And more coming.....

Cheers!

Half Assed New Beer Friday

Got called into work this morning at 2:30am, so I never really got a chance to get New Beer Friday put together. Here's what I have.

Uinta Revolver White IPA - haven't tried it yet. This one replaces the Black IPA

Uinta Birthday Suit Sour Saison (see Monday's review)

Cheers!

The 2014 Tour de Brewtah and the Return of Rêve

Registration is now open for the 2014 Tour de Brewtah. If your not familiar with this event it combines two of my favorite activities bicycling and beer. Last year's event not only had bikes and beers but also a Star Wars theme! This year will have a theme as well, but as of now it's yet to be determined.

 The 2014 Tour de Brewtah will be held Saturday, May 3rd, 2014. The cost of the ride will be $45 regular/ $75 VIP and includes a beverage of choice at each stop, commemorative pint glass, snacks along the way, and a feeling of doing good in your community.

There will be a couple food trucks on site in the morning serving up coffee and breakfast stuff, and multiple trucks at the wrap up party serving up some awesome grub for dinner!!  So bring your cash and get your fill.

And, of course, World Dog will be at Uinta again meeting your gourmet hot dog needs!

Also there will be entertainment at the end! More details to follow. Here's the link to the registration page. This event fills up fast so don't wait.

RedRock's Rêve Belgian style Triple is back! If your a fan of Triples you'll really love this beer. If your not a fan of Triples your really going to love this beer. One of the things that sets this beer apart from others of it's style is the blending of RedRock's wild, sour beer strain to it's base. This year’s batch contains a blend of one and two-year old Belgium funky ales that have been basking in the high-life of French Oak Chardonnay barrels. 

Pours a light golden honey color with with a moderate fluffy white head that dissipated to a very thin froth. The nose is a little boozy with banana, cloves malt and ripe mango. The taste is very much the same starting with candied sugar and cloves that transitions into toasted malt and banana. Tart vinous fruit come next balancing out the sweetness creating dry and almost puckering finish. The alcohol is warming and welcomed, masked well by Rêve’s full body. It adds a whole new dimension to the beer. You really get a good sense of the oak in the finish. It’s 10.3% abv is more than enough to warm your inner beer geek. Rêve is truly a dream! Available at RedRock locations and Northern Utah's better beer spots. 

Cheers!

Birthday Suit, Sour Farmhouse Ale

Uinta's Birthday Suit is back, bringing with it more tart goodness and a little Belgian twist. While the Birthday Suit brand was not developed to be a 'sour brand', the tradition, thus far, has carried on, becoming one of the breweries more unique offerings
 

This year's third rendition of Birthday Suit is an unfiltered sour farmhouse ale that showcases a mix of underlying spices from the Saison yeast used in it's primary fermentation. The taste starts with with puckering lemon zest and a clean wheat breadiness. Coriander like spiciness and grass round out the end with a moderate tartness carrying through to the finish. Crisp and refreshing, Puckering and bright with a well hidden ABV of 6.3%, Birthday Suit is akin to a big Berliner Weisse. It's refreshing as Hell with a great citrusy sourness that is worth celebrating.

This limited release for Uinta's 21st Birthday (Hey they're finally legal) is scheduled to hit shelves today or tomorrow. Check back here or at Uinta's Facebook Page for it's exact release day. As always call ahead.

Cheers!

Beer Bar Preview

This is just a teaser for the opening of the Beer Bar. In the coming days your going to be seeing a lot of new beer brought in by Utah's newest craft beer bar. The owners have asked me to keep a lid on their new beer list, but if your in the know, you can probably make out one of the brands you'll be drinking in the coming days.

Check back to get the full list.

Cheers!

Green Flash Coming to Utah

On this day of green things I thought it would be appropriate to announce to you all that it's official, Green Flash Brewing Co. is finally filling the two state hole in their their distribution map, bringing Utah and Hawaii into the fold. Located in San Diego, California, Green Flash is known for helping to create the the "west coast" style of IPAs that have become so incredibly popular around the world. Green Flash brews ten styles of beer regularly, on draft and in bottles as well as a growing lineup of seasonal and special offerings, including several barrel-aged beers, throughout the year. Those special releases will hit local beer bars before store shelves, but keep your eyes out regardless.

With the new distribution deals comes new packaging. Consumers can expect to see the fresh packaging on store shelves beginning in late April with the entire lineup expected to roll out with the new look through the end of May.

Now, don't bust my balls if these don't hit town when their rumored to, y'all . The DABC does what they want - when they want to - at the pace they feel is most likely to piss everyone off. I'm just the fucking messenger, so don't be bring'n torches and pitchforks to my door or URL if they haven't popped up when stated. Capisce?

And before I forget, let me remind you all of the importance to be responsible vehicle operators today, avoid the car if your gunna participate in today's festivities. And an equally important part of being a good  bar crawler is to avoid the green beer. A lot of well meaning craft beer makers around town will be adding green dye #86 or whatever to their beer to take care of the "party drones" out there, you don't have to be one of them. For you, the color of your beer should be Red, Straw, Black or Brown.

Sláinte!

New Beer Friday 3/14/14

There was only one new beer that I could find today and your gunna love it!

RedRock Imperial Red Ale - For their 20th Anniversary RedRock came up with a brilliant tasting take on "irish-ish" styles. Big ruby tones with a sturdy ruddy head. the nose pops with toasted caramel & pine. The tastes starts with toasted bread, tobacco and a hint of fudge. Big pine resin comes next with bitter chocolate and a hint of orange in the end. The finish is dry and bitter. This is a full flavored beer that crosses into barlewine territory. While it's 9.5% ABV is well hidden - it will put the hammer on you if your not paying attention. @RedRock locations

Since this is a St. Patrick's Day weekend, I thought I'd throw a few local non green beer option for you.

Roosters Cyclops Irish Stout - Then nose is roasty with, chocolate and herbal and flowery hops. The taste is dark malts, bittersweet with a mild hop background. Very light smoke and nutty qualities on the finish. A nice seasonal from Roosters. 4.0% ABV @Roosters

Squatters McGruhes Dry Irish Stout - Black with a thick creamy tan "nito head". The nose rich with espresso and roasted biscuit The taste starts with coffee then turns to espresso. Heavily roasted malt come next with a nutty/smokiness in the end. Mild hops come late and provide a slightly dry finish.4.0% ABV @Squatters

Bonneville Irish Twins - Part Irish stout, part Irish red, served only this month. Sweet malt and caramel up front and the dry, roasty finish of a stout. Very limited quantity only available at the brewery. 4,0% ABV

Wasatch Brew Pub's Jalapeno Cream Ale -  Not a traditional Irish beer, but the only green thing in your beer should be Jalapenos! @Wasatch Brewpub/Beer Store

Hoppers Irish Baghandler - Hoppers Rockwell Porter and Irish Red blended together. The nose is of toasted malts, grain, piney hops. Taste follows the nose with grain bitterness hints of fruity malt and cocoa.  Finishes clean, not overly dry. 4.0% @Hoppers

Avenues Proper Oatmeal Red - Copper in color with beige head. Bready malty nose. Toffee and light cocoa up front with biscuit, and subtle dark fruit rounding out the end. One of my favorite beers from AveProp! 4.0% ABV @Avenues Proper

Avenues Proper Sláinte Stout - This nitro pours black  has a deep dark with a creamy vanilla head of foam. The nose is roasted with a sweet maltiness. The taste starts with dark roasted malts backed by sweet malts. A hint of sourness comes next with a cocoa bite rounding out the end. Nice depth for a 4% stout. @Avenues Proper

Sláinte!

RedRock's 20th Anniversary Imperial Red Ale

In 1994 one of Utah's most prolific breweries began making beer for the thirsty people of Salt Lake City. In those twenty years a lot has happened. We've seen them expand into other markets, create a giant production brewery, broaden their reach throughout Utah with other satellite RedRock pubs and of course being named Large Brewpub of the Year in 2007. 

Anyone who has considered themselves a friend of the brewery know the dedication of the staff (in and out of the brewery) is what has made RedRock a long lived staple along the Wasatch Front and Back. From the Chicken Schnitzel to Dandelion infused beers, at least my life has been made much better over the last two decades.

To honor their 20th anniversary the brew staff at RedRock has come up with a special edition ale to celebrate their dodeca year. The Anniversary Imperial Red Ale is deep crimson in color with a robust and fruity malt character that is balance with a substantial amount of floral and citrusy hops. This will be a very limited edition ale, that will disappear fast.

It's due to be release this Thursday, March 13th and as of this writing will only be available at RedRock locations. Big congrats RedRock on this huge milestone.

Cheers! 

New Beer Friday 3/7/14

Hoppers Brewmaster and Secret Agent, Donovan Steele has stepped out of the box once again to deliver something new for us today.

Waikikamukau Draught (pron. Why-kick-a-moo-cow) is an interpretation on a mild ale that has it's roots in 19th century New Zealand. Immigrants from the U.K. back then craved the Mild Ales and Bitters they had back in England. Utilizing locally sourced grain and hops this beer evolved to become a lager. Made with lager malt, light caramel malt, and chocolate malted barley.

Hoppers' single hopped New Zealand-style Draught has an amber brown color, complex malts flavors balanced with juicy New Zealand Rakau hops. The Rakau hops have a pleasant tropical flavor and perfume aroma that sit nicely on top of the soft rich malts. It has a lager crispness, making for a very drinkable session lager. 4.0% ABV @Hoppers

Pelican Doryman's Ale - The nose smacks with sweet pumpernickel, coffee and spicy hops. The taste starts with roasted coffee and sweet toasted malts. The middle brings out some balance with citrus rind and pine. The finish is semi-toasty and dry. 6.2% ABV @Bayou

Pelican Tsunami Stout - Big nose, full of dark fruits, smokey/bitter chocolate and nice rich espresso. The tastes starts dry with slightly bitter coffee beans. Dark chocolate comes next adding some bitterness. Figs, dark wheat, raisins and graham crackers round out the middle with a dry dark chocolate powder finish. 7.0% ABV @Bayou

Roosters Deep Powder Dortmunder - The nose is grassy with a fair amount of citrus peel. The taste starts with strong grassy and herbal hops up front. An understated toasted malt presence comes next with a lingering earthiness. The end is slightly dry with a lasting bitterness. Nice, clean taste. Reminds me more of an Altbier than a Dortmunder - regardless, it's quite tasty. 4.0% ABV @Roosters, Beerhive

Firkin Friday at the Bayou this week is courtesy of Wasatch Brewing. Today we have Alta Ale hopped with Mosaic and Chinook hops. Looks to be a winner. 4.0% ABV
 
Cheers!

The Liberty Tap Room

The 9th & 9th area of Salt Lake City is one of the more charming areas of the capitol city, it's full of walkable restaurants and eclectic shops, nestled in an old middle class neighborhood full of charming hundred year old homes.

The one thing that has been missing from the area is a proper watering hole for locals to gather that matches the diverse burb's unique feel. Scott Evans, owner of Pago and Finca restaurants, is proposing a new culinary project called The Liberty Tap Room. Located at 850 E. 900 South; The proposed tavern would be a place where guests can enjoy a beer without ordering food, but also has a dining area where Chef Phelix Gardner will offer classic pub fare using local and seasonal ingredients. Since club licenses are are impossible to get right now, Evans has applied for a beer-only tavern license with the DABC.

If approved, the Liberty Tap Room would likely be open for business in late April or May 2014. If there's something the towns and suburbs of Utah are in desperate need of right now it's more walkable watering holes for neighborhoods. let's hope it sails through all of it's needed bureaucratic bull shit.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 2/28/14

The Mother Earth Beers are finally here! The Beerhive received four of the San Diego brewery's more popular labels.

Mother Earth Sin Tax Imperial Stout - The nose has a "whiff" of peanut butter with notes of coffee and chocolate. The taste is strong with coffee and chocolate. There's a hint of the PB in the end. Not too boozy for an Imperial Stout. 8.7 ABV. @Beerhive

Mother Earth Cali' Creamin' Vanilla Cream Ale - The nose is similar to Honey Grahams with vanilla notes. The tastes is fairly sweet with vanilla and malt.  There is a mild amount of grassy hop bitterness in the end. Overall, if your a fan of vanilla (which I am) you'll like this beer. The vanilla presence is pleasant. 5.2% ABV @Beerhive

Mother Earth Kismet - The nose has orange, grapefruit, peach, little white grape (Mother Earth must really love Nelson Sauvin hops). Taste is big with grapefruit, melon, and white grapes. Floral herbs come next with rye notes and more of that graham cracker sweetness. The finish is fairly bitter and dry. Damn tasty! 7.0% ABV @Beerhive

Mother Earth Hop Diggity -  The nose has nice citrus peel notes with an herbal pine resins. The taste starts with grapefruit,  melon and berries. Floral bitterness picks up from there as a graham cracker sweetness balances it out. It finishes relatively dry. A really nice and approachable DIPA. 8.0% ABV @Beerhive

Payette Rodeo Rye Pale Ale - Yes, they're here! This is quite a nice pale ale, Citra hops give it a tropical fruit nose that is full of passion fruit, peaches and mangoes with a malt profile that has that nice spicy, rye kick. 4.0% ABV. Found at Whole Foods, where else?

Squatters Means Business Lager - Named for one of my favorite people at Squatters, Jessica Means. The nose is of toasted malts and honey. The flavors starts with wheat crackers and tangerine. sweet malt comes next with a smack of herbal bitterness in the end. Finishes mildly bitter. 4.0% ABV @Squatters

Roosters Grizzly Brown Ale - Not had a chance to get to this one yet. Anyone? @Roosters

Bohemian Steam Beer - It's a brilliant copper colored beer boasting smooth caramel malt notes but with noticeable hop bitterness and finish.4.0% ABV @Bohemian

Desert Edge Citra in Red returns - If you've not experienced this citrusy, fruity delight you have my pity. 4.0% ABV @Desert Edge

Epic Copper Cone #56 - This version is made with Amarillo hops. Great pale ale. The malt and hop combo is right on. fruity and malty. Definitely one of the better versions of this beer. Absolutely love it! 7.0% ABV @Epic Brewing SLC, Denver

Cheers!

Bohemian Dampfbier

Bohemian Brewing thrives on sticking with old world beer styles. Now they have another new interpretation on a beer style born in the old world but perfected in the new.

Steam beer also known as California common beer, was originated by Anchor Brewing Company, which trademarked the name Anchor Steam Beer in 1981. Due to lack of refrigeration, these beers were originally thought of as a "cheap beer" because they were fermented with lager yeast at near ale temperatures. The name Steam Beer derives from "Dampfbier" (literally "steam beer"), a traditional German beer that was also fermented at unusually high temperatures and that may have been known to 19th-century American brewers, many of whom were of German descent.

Bohemian Brewery’s latest Brewer’s Stash offering picks up on this tradition. It's a brilliant copper colored beer boasting smooth caramel malt notes but with noticeable hop bitterness and finish.

It likely won't be around long, so get on it.

Prost!

New Beer Friday 2/21/14

Got a few morsels for you this morning. Like the Dude's rug, they'll really tie your room together.

Samuel Adams Cold Snap -  Kinda looks like golden lemonader with a slight white head. The nose is mild with citrus, coriander and crackers. The flavor follows suit. Somewhat similar to Blue Moon but with a greater emphasis on the orange and spices. It finishes a little on the dry side.

The Hive Winery Apricot Honey Wine - It pours a brilliant golden color with a nose of pleasant, apricot and sweet clover. It's a semi-sweet wine with subtle honey notes that complement the light tartness of the apricots. This is a limited release with only 203 full size bottles and 36 split size bottles hitting the shelves, so hurry in to get yours while they last! Available only at the Winery.

Firkin Friday at the Bayou is courtesy of Hoppers: Wheat Ale with African Red Rooibos, fresh   tarragon and mint.

And while I have you, I'd seriously consider getting your asses over to RedRock Brewing to check out some of their seasonal offering, they're killing it right now!

- Yeah, well. The Dude abides

Epic Cans Coming this Summer

When Epic Brewing first burst on to the scene a few years ago, their mantra was basically, go big or go home. And they stuck to that for quite a while. The beers were like nothing that had come before them in Utah; producing no beers under 4.5% ABV.  The packaging was also big, choosing to go with 22oz. bottles instead of the more common 12ozers.

The no 4% beers eventually fell by the wayside with the advent of the Unsacred Brewing line of beers as well as the the creation of the Annex Brewpub. Their new mantra soon became, "never say never". Now comes the official announcement that the Utah/Colorado brewery will be getting into the canned beer game.

Now, less than a year after opening their second production brewery in Denver, Co., Epic Brewing is getting ready to show it's new packaging with their first six packs in 12-ounce cans. The first beers to be released in cans will feature one Colorado Original and one Utah Original. Escape to Colorado IPA – a nicely fruity, dry-hopped Mosaic hoped IPA and Hop Syndrome – a hugely hopped Euro-style lager. The packaging that will feature the Hop Syndrome Lager will be a rotating seasonal, while Escape to Colorado will be the mainstay. Both beers will be brewed and canned exclusively in Colorado, with a tentative release sometime after June.

The Denver brewery is currently in the process of establishing a canning line because the Utah brewery is completely out of space. Epic co-founder Dave Cole said the Eco-friendly PakTech six pack cans will be distributed to the brewery’s markets across the country (including Utah), as well as to Japan.

Epic spokesman Matthew Allred says, While Epic is known for its 22oz bomber format we are also avid adventure junkies and when it comes to the outdoors, the can is king. We’re looking forward to joining you on your next excursion.

I've made no secret of my advocacy for cans and smaller packaging. I'm sure as more breweries recognize the profitability and portability of cans more and more labels will start to appear.

Cheers!

Zion Canyon's New Direction

We along the Wasatch Front and Back tend to get a little wrapped up in our own little beer world, living here in the north, I'm guilty of this as well. We tend to forget Utah takes up a huge chunk of real estate and that our beer culture thrives in all corners of the state.

Zion Canyon Brewing is one of those breweries that tends to get overlooked. It started as a production brewery located in the basement of the Majestic View Lodge - that made it difficult to find all on it's own. Then the distribution to the northern Utah was slow in coming and spotty at best. Now new life is being pumped into Southern Utah's only brewery and damn it you should be aware!

ZCBC  just finished a big remodeling and are opening their awesome new Zion Canyon Brew Pub at the entrance to Zion Canyon National State Park. With a new Brewmaster in tow they are revamping old brews while introducing all new beers, like their new Redemption West Coast IPA.

If you find yourself in Southern Utah, takes some time to get your asses to Springdale, UT and help support our craft beer brothers and sisters in the desert. They're all alone down there and need your "beer love".

Prost!  

Barley's Angels 2014 Beer and Chocolate Pairing

Ladies It's time again for a little Choco-Beer-Man-Free-Quality-Me-Time! The Utah Chapter of Barley's Angels is holding one of their most popular events - the Beer and Chocolate pairing. This sessions featured pairings will come courtesy of Uinta Brewing and MillCreek Cacao Roasters.



This Event is very popular and fills up fast, so don't put it off. To RSVP please call 801.719.0525 or Email BarleysAngelsUtah@gmail.com. This is a private LADIES ONLY 21 andolder, event (you must RSVP)

 The cost is $15 and will be held on Thursday, February 20 at the Boneyard Saloon in Park City at 7:00 PM Barley's Angels aims to advance the female craft beer enthusiast and encourages education and interest in beer.

Cheers!