New Beer Friday 9/30/16

It's no secret that a few craft beers will inflict... a... shall we say, an enthusiastic gastrointestinal response when one has a spirited session of drinking. You can always rely on New Beer Friday to keep those home fire burning.

Proper Brewing Tripel Stamp - One beer? I'll take it! Not only is it a local beer, but it's a local beer - based on an old style - with a new twist. The addition of oats to this beer will give it more body than typical your typical Belgian style triple and this is style that generally doesn't suffer from lack of body. This beer will make it's debut this evening at a special release party at Proper beginning at 8pm. Look for a beer that is big on sweetness [due to the addition of candied sugars] low on hops with flavors that range from peachy to mango. Yeast spiciness will be prevalent also. These usually dial in between 9-11%  ABV.

Speaking of Belgian Style Tripels, Shades of Pale has re-released their Saint Blackout Tripel. This new batch was bottled on Wednesday and is described as having flavors akin to peach and pear. The ABV comes in at a comfortable 9.3%. As an added bonus - you can now enjoy this and all of SOP's beer at the brewery as they have acquired a club license! Woot!

Don't forget, this weekend we have the 4th West Oktoberfest put on by Mountain West Cidery and RedRock Brewing. There will be a shload of ciders, cider cocktails and of course an ocean of RedRock's German inspired beers. This party starts today at 3pm and goes til Sunday evening.

Also happening - The Basin Beerfest!  Sample and taste all of the best local Utah Craft Beers while tasting Bavarian Inspired Foods and treats. Sample beers from Bohemian Brewery, Uinta Brewing, Squatters Beers, Wasatch Beers, Red Rock Brewery, Roosters Brewery, 10 Barrel Brewing Company, Payette Brewing Company and more!

Prost!

Drink a Beer Day 2016

I have some bad news for you. Due to the public demand and an overwhelming need for it, today you must drink at least one beer. I'm sorry, I know it's going to be a burden. I mean it is one of the oldest man made beverages dating back to the neolithic era - not to mention it has sustained the diets of cultures all over the world in many different forms. All while extending the uses of the grains from which it comes from.

With hundreds of new and traditional varieties and styles out there I'm sure there's one out there that'll help you find your "Drink a Beer Day" groove.

Here are some great local options to consider:
Bonneville's Ton Up Nut Brown Ale
Shades of Pale's Forte IPA
Uinta's Piggy Back Peach IPA

Cheers!

2016 Snowbasin Beer Fest

This weekend (10/1 - 10/2 )Sample beers from Bohemian Brewery, Uinta Brewing, Squatters Beers, Wasatch Beers, Red Rock Brewery, Roosters Brewery, 10 Barrel Brewing Company, Payette Brewing Company, Laughing Dog, Melvin Brewing, Mountain West Hard Cider, Selkirk Abbey, Snake River Brewing Company, Talisman Brewing Company, and Moab Brewery!

Where: Earl’s Lodge and Patio at Snowbasin Resort

Price: $2.50 per sampling token
Samples are poured at 6oz.  (2) Tokens Required for Heavy Beer sample.  (2) Tokens to fill Mug and (3) Tokens to fill mug with Heavy Beer.
Tokens purchased Saturday October 1st can be redeemed on October 2nd.

Packages:
Beer Fest Sample Mug with (4) Tokens $30
Beer Fest Sample Mug and (10) Tokens $45
The King of Beer Fest package:  A special Mug with 12 tokens, a special King of Beer Fest crown, a T-shirt, and VIP access to the front of the line from specific breweries.  $125 – limited to the first (50) and after 50 we will sell out!


SUNDAY, OCTOBER 2 - KING OF BEER FEST COSTUME CONTEST
3:30pm – the winner of ‘King of Beer Fest’ will be announced which will include a 16.17 season pass.  Those ‘King of Beer Fest’ participants are encouraged to dress up and play the part.  Sunday at around 2:00pm someone will tap you on the shoulder and invite you to the King of Beer Fest awards at 3:30 at the front of the main stage.  Questions, Dancing, and stories will be told while the crowd picks the True King of Beer Fest which will include your name on a wall in the Cinnabar, and bragging rights for life.  2nd prize gets a $125 Snowbasin Resort Gift Card.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 9/23/16

This week we have some formidable beers that are guaranteed to put hair on your chest!

Proper Brewing Mavon Weizbock - Weizbocks can be on sweet and cloying side of the beer spectrum, this beer is more balanced. Look for malts that are semi-sweet with a nice pecan-like nuttiness that's transisions into full on banana bread mode. @ Proper

Proper Brewing Salted Caramel Porter - Not as big on the caramel as I had hoped. Starts moderately sweet with caramel malts and finishes with a tiny sodium bite. 4.0% ABV @ Proper

Proper Brewing Hefehafer Oat Weisbier - This is a nice crushable beer. It has a nice crackery doughiness up front with with very subltle caramel backing it up. The oats clean up some of husky flavors some wheat beer have. Carbonation is nice and prickly. 4.0% ABV @ Proper

Proper/Epic Collaboration: Lime Hefe - This one hasn't been tapped yet. It debuts tomorrow at Proper's and Epic's Proptoberfest. 4.0% ABV

Uinta Funk'n Patch Brett Pumpkin Ale - This is Uinta's debut in the wild ale game. It's has a very Bretty nose with the typical pumpkin spices. The taste is subtly sour (not as bracing as some) with a nice malt base backing it up. The spices play well with the caramel sweetness creating a nice balance. Basically it's more funky than sour. If you're a big fan of the funk, this will be right up your zip code. 8.0% ABV @ Uinta starting at 11am.

RedRock Franconian Rauchbier -  This lager is mostly malt driven with an assertive smokiness that will take over the beer mid way on the tongue. It's very complex adding a hint of berry fruitiness beneath the smoke into the finish. If you want to get into traditional German smoke beers, this would be an excellent place to start. This beer tastes like Autumn! ABV. @ RedRock starting at 11am. 

Prost!

RPM Brewing Company

If you live in the south end of  Salt Lake County you may have noticed a new restaurant located in Draper called the Garage - Not to be confused with the bar with the same name located on Beck Street in SLC. This new eatery is owned by the Equiwest Hospitality Group and will begin operating a nano-brewery at the Garage in the coming months.

Not only will there be a nano-brewpub but there will also be a production brewery that will be located in Salt Lake City. The nano operation is ready to begin brewing with a projected weekly production of 6 bbls. The Production facility will be in an 11,000 square foot facility to produce only kegged beers (for now) with a projected initial delivery of 5,000 bbl/year with a good portion to be consumed by the restaurant group.
  
Remember, the Garage is open right now, it's located at 1122 e. Draper Parkway in Draper. They are current pouring beers on their house tap handles made by Moab Brewing - until they've hired their head brewer. Think you're up to the job? Then here's the info on that position. There are also taps, bottles and cans from other local and national breweries being served right now.

As more details come in regarding the nano and production brewery, I'll fill you in. I love it when I can add another new brewery to the Utah list.

Cheers!

The 4th West Oktoberfest

Starting Friday, September 30^th, 2016, Mountain West Hard Cider and Red Rock Brewing start their own tradition of 4^th West Oktoberfest. Mountain West Hard Cider will be pouring their full line of locally made cider and Red Rock Brewing is currently brewing up a half dozen award winning German and Autumn specialty beers designed around Oktoberfest.

You can buy tickets online here!** And, they will also be available at the door if the festival hasn't reached it's capacity!

4^th West Oktoberfest brings live bands, DJ Justin Godina, food trucks, games, and family-friendly fun so that revelers of all ages may join the party! Don’t miss out on giant Jenga, Cornhole, ring toss, giant beer pong, a children’s craft tent, etc. etc.

Remember, this is a three day event. There's defiantly an option out there that'll work for you.

Participating Food Trucks include:
Poutine Your Mouth
Tacos Don Rafa
Spuds
Bumblebee’s BBQ and Grill (Saturday only)
Shylo’s Mobile Cafe (Saturday and Sunday only)

Performance Schedule of Bands:
Friday, Sept. 30th, 7:00pm – 10:00pm: Candy’s River House
Saturday, Oct. 1st, 1:00pm – 4:00pm: Tony Holiday and the Velvetones
Saturday, Oct. 1st: 7:00pm – 10:00pm: Hectic Hobo
Sunday, Oct. 2nd, 12:00pm – 2:30pm: Talia Keys
Sunday, Oct. 2nd, 2:30pm – 5:00pm: Michelle Moonshine
Plus DJ Justin Godina will be spinning tunes there all weekend!

See you there at 4th West Oktoberfest! Prost!

Proptoberfest

The First Annual Proptoberfest is coming up this weekend. The two day, all-ages outdoor event will feature a beer garden, German food, live music, games, activities for the whole family. Also, look for a special collaborative beer between Proper and their pals from around the block at Epic Brewing Company. The beer will be exclusive to this festival - a Lime Hefeweizen from what I understand. 

So here's what we have:
Saturday, September 24 3pm-11pm
band lineup TBA!

Sunday, September 25 12pm-10pm
featuring bands Hound Mystic and Color Animal (more TBA)

Admission is $5 for adults


Prost!

New Beer Friday 9/16/16

Oh baby! Everything is local this week - less one beer from Green Flash Brewing.

Talisman Bourbon Barrel Oatmeal Stout - Talisman continues with the very limited releases. This new brew is an Oatmeal stout aged in Sugar House Whiskey Barrels. Only 100 bottles produced - one per person. Available at the brewery. SOLD OUT ALREADY 6.3% ABV

Epic Tropical Imperial IPA - Whoa! this is one damn juicy IPA. Mango, pineapple and lotsa grapefruit. Has a bit of a Creamsicle thing going on in the finish. The 10.3% ABV is well hidden. Go get some! @ Epic locations

Uinta 801 Coffee Pilsner -  If your expecting a dark color from the coffee addition you can forget it. This beer has all that filtered out leaving a nice yellow straw color behind. The nose is cappuccino-esque with a taste that is similar and subdued. Surprising drinkable. 4.0% ABV @ Uinta's Brewhouse Pub - Everywhere in the coming days.

Green Flash Sea to Sea Zwikel Bier - Dry crackers and a touch of pilsner malts. Nice grassy and peppery hops balance it all out. Clean and crisp finish. Very crushable. 4.0% ABV @ Grocery/C-stores.

Wasatch 30th Anniversary Extra Special Pale Ale - Brewed with Cascade hops and four types of Australian hops. The hop flavor is massive. It comes across with a strong tropical fruit character the combines well with the sweet malt and deceptively high ABV, 7.3%. @ The Beer Store and better beer bars around town.

Returning Favorites

Desert Edge Radius - D.E.'s new Brewmaster, Chad Krusell is keeping the Radius tradition alive with this locally sourced ale that's hopped with wild Utah hops. Because the hops are wild you never know what you're going to get bitterness-wise. Don't wait too long, it goes fast. 4.0% ABV. @ Desert Edge.

Epic Big Bad Baptist - This newest batch of this Utah original has a spicy coffee blend combined with fruity cocoa - it's all backed up with with roasted toffee, vanilla and Bourbon. Damn! 12.1% ABV. @ Epic Locations

Cheers!

Wasatch's 30th Anniversary Ale is for Sale

Wasatch's 30th Anniversary Extra Pale Ale went on sale last night for the first time. The re-imagined tribute to one of Wasatch's original high ABV beers was bottled just yesterday and will be finding it's way to all Wasatch/Squatters locations today or tomorrow. I know it's in the cold case at the Beer Store located at the Utah Brewers Cooperative right now.

This pale is not as hop forward as a standard IPA which makes it a good choice for those who like a bit of bitterness but not the in your face hop flavor. Look for a maltier base with hops are citrusy with a bit of pine resin backing it all up.

It's packaged in the Squatters/Wasatch signature 220z. bottle.

Cheers!
   

Bohemian's Oktoberfest Märzen Bier

Bohemian's Oktoberfest Märzen Bier is back to ease you into the Autumn months. This year you have the added option of taking a six pack home from the grocery store. For a limited time Bohemian is offering up cans of their popular Oktoberfest in brand new packaging.

This beer has a clear amber-orange color with a good two fingers of white head. The nose is mostly malt driven with caramel and citrus highlights. The flavor has a mild maltiness with a bit of vanilla and a slight bitterness. Average carbonation with a medium/light body.

These cans are just going into distribution, so it's hard to say where they'll exactly end up. You can buy the cans right now at Boho's brewery or of course find it on tap where there are Boho seasonal taps and of course at Oktoberfest at Snowbird.

Speaking of Bohemian, The brewery with be hosting their annual Boho-Fest on Saturday September 24th from 2-7pm. You'll be able sample Boho's full array of beers, including a sausage eating contest, Music games and prizes for the best German themed attire. All ages are welcome.

Prost!

The West Side Tavern Officially Opens

The Squatters/Wasatch West Side Tavern is now officially open. Located next to the Utah Brewer's Cooperative's Beer Store at 1763 300 W, Salt Lake City - this new watering hole is equipped with 24 tap handles - four of those are dedicated nitro taps - two of those will be rotating seasonal offering's by both Squatters and Wasatch. 

This is a tavern (for now) so the menu for will be very basic. At some point in the future, the UBC will pursue a a full club license so that their entire line of beers will be available, to be enjoyed in the tavern. I'll let you know when that day happens. For now, Cold high point beer will be for sale to-go 7 days a week from 10:00am - 10:00pm.

It's quite nice, check it out when you get a chance.

Prost!

New Beer Friday: Rivalry Edition

If you're a BYU fan and reading this post, odds are pretty good that your bishop will soon be calling you in to his office for a little "come to Jebus" talk, in regards to your reading habits.

So, going with the assumption that things are mostly crimson red in here today - combined with the fact that proper tailgating is absolutely verboten in Provo. I'm happy to bring you a few new options for your rivalry enjoyment. No matter if you're tailgating, chill'n in the casa or at the pub.
   
Desert Edge Rye Pale Ale -This is the first brand new beer brewed by Brewmaster Chad Krusell since taking over the reins at Desert Edge. This ale is nice and malty with a touch of rye spiciness. the hops are citrusy and fruity. It finishes semi-dry. This beer is soooo damn tasty. It wont be around for too long so be sure to snag a growler of this one for the game tomorrow. 4.0% ABV @ Desert Edge

Squatters Old Castle Brown Ale - As the name suggests this beer is akin to the English staple, New Castle Brown. This interpretation uses all English malts and is lightly hopped. the result is a brown ale that has more toffee and toasty flavors than it's American counterparts. Look for very low bitterness in this brand new seasonal. Very enjoyable. 4.0% ABV @ Squatters Downtown 

Proper Ainsley Amber - Not tried this yet, it will be released later this evening. Described as having rich earthy and fruity flavors to compliment the full-bodied amber base. The result has a nutty tang, a malty middle and a dry, dark chocolate finish with a int of smoke. This amber ale is imminently drinkable and surprisingly refreshing. 4.0% ABV @ Proper Brewing

These Ritual beers are new to the market. If you made it to the Utah Beer Festival the other week you may have got a sneak peak of these.

Ritual Wit's End - Not tried this one yet. It's described as having an orange, peppery and floral nose with flavors that are floral, malty and have a malty finish. 4.8% ABV @ The Bayou

Ritual Hop o Matic IPA -  The nose is piney with citrus peel and toast. The taste follows with ample hops, followed by resinous pine and a slight alcohol bite. An overall tasty IPA. 7.1% ABV @ The Bayou

Ritual Extra Red Ale - The nose is malty, with citrus and grass. The taste starts sweet with toffee, caramel and toasted malts. Next comes vague citrus notes with grapefruit, and a touch of pineapple. A very flavorful American Style Red Ale. Definitely worth trying. 6.5% ABV @ The Bayou

Ritual Hellion - Not tried this one yet. It's described as having a nose of fruity spices with lots of yeast spices and fruit flavors. Biscuit malts and caramel sweetness is abundant and has a dry hoppy finish. ABV. 8.4% ABV @ Bayou

New Beer Friday hit's the airwaves today at 3:30pm on KBER 101. Join Mick and Allen along with myself as we discuss this week's beers and other sudsy topics.  Go Utes!

Cheers!

Utah Beer Trailer: Uinta's Rise and Pine

We have a new movie...errr Beer Trailer for you this morning. This preview comes to you courtesy of Uinta Brewing. This new beer looks like it's another addition to what's looking to be a big Fall/Winter for Uinta's beer portfolio.

Rise and Pine looks to be like a hybrid ale. Made with juniper and piney hops, it could be akin to a Black IPA or an American Black Ale. Whatever it ends up being, it has definitely piqued my interest.

There is no ABV listed, though I'm told that this will dial in around 7.5%. Look for it in 12oz bottles, cans and on draft out side Utah.

Prost!

The Annex is No More

The Annex by Epic Brewing is done, gone, no more. It's been relegated to the pages of Utah's beer history. In It's place?... well, it's still the same brewpub we all love, it just has a different name. Epic Brewing Sugar House is the re-branding of Salt Lake City's southern most brewpub, that probably way overdue. 

The Annex has done a fair amount of business, but it's struggled to find a following. On the flip side, the Epic Brewing brand is enjoy massive growth both in and out of Utah. It only makes sense that Utah's only [appropriately sized] Epic Brewpub should ride some of that wave.

If you're a fan of Epic's beers and haven't visited Epic - Sugar House, it is [in my opinion] the best way to enjoy Epic's complete line of beers. Yeah, Epic's Tapless Taproom at the downtown brewery is tiny, quaint and close to the brewing action. However I'd like to emphasize the "tiny part". A party of four is pretty much filling up the place. The advantage of Epic - Sugar House? It has everything The State Street brewery has, including the full line of of Epic's Utah Session Series beers - not to mention greater elbow room, spacious patio, flat-screen, a bottleshop, a more diverse dinning experience and of course every Epic beer served by the glass, not just the whole bottle.

This is a great time to re-familiarize yourself with this great craft beer jewel in Sugar House.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 9/2/16

Just two beers this week but they are damn tasty, quality beers. Try and work these in sometime this Labor Day Weekend.

RedRock Brauhaus Festbier - It has a nice light ruby red color with some slight brown hues. The nose has Caramel and butterscotch notes. The taste starts sweet with vanilla and toffee. Granola flavors come next with bready danish pastry round out the back end. Little to no hop bitterness is perceived.
The finish is surprising semi-dry. This beer is like cereal in a glass. Wonderfully malty with a medium body. If Your looking to get your "Oktoberfest on" - this will treat you nicely. This goes on sale 11am Saturday morning at RedRock's Bottle Shop. 5.9% ABV @ RedRock locations, Beerhive

Squatters Nitro Red Ale - This beer was just bottled last night and will likely go on sale at the UBC's Beer Store somtime this afternoon. Please call first on this one before making the trip. Look for a beer that has creamy nitro goodness that will play off of Fruity and pine hops. The malts will be biscuity and have a dry hoppy finish. Can't wait to try this one today! 4.0% ABV @ The Beer Store (soon to all Squatters/Wasatch locations) Wide distribution soon.

Prost!

Uinta's Free Form Gluten Free Beers

Uinta Brewing is getting into the Gluten Free game, y'all. Actually they've been in the game for a while, tweaking and modifying their new line of beers - making sure they're good to go. The initial packaging will be 12oz. bottles and draft.

Their first offering will be Free Form IPA. This 100% gluten free IPA dials in at 4.0% ABV. It utilizes Citra and Ella hops impart a bright and tropical essence to what is described as an "exceptionally thirst quenching and well-rounded Gluten-Free brew". Also coming soon is the Free Form Belgian-style Blonde will hit at the same ABV and contain Sterling & Opal hops, coriander and orange peel.

I know real gluten free beers aren't in everybody's wheelhouse, but they fill a niche for people who aren't able to enjoy malt beverages. If you've had them out of state, share your thoughts.

Cheers!