New Beer Friday 3/31/17

Sometimes you need to trust those who are more brilliant than yourself. Happy New Beer Friday!
 
Uinta Hopscursion #2 - This version has more pineapple notes than the previous version due to the addition of Mosaic, Simcoe, and Denali hops. The 100% brett fermented base is full of funky, doughy yeasty notes that give this beer a full and round body. Drink this fresh! This brett beer is not for aging. 6.5% ABV @ Uinta,
 
New Belgium Citradelic - Not tried this one yet. it's described as being a Tangerine IPA brewed with Citra hops, orange peel and orange. 6.0% ABV @ DABC
 
Stone Enjoy by 4/20/17 - This DIPA is very clean and balanced. It's citrucy proifile is assertive but not over the top and it's 9.4% ABV is well hidden. A must try. @ Bar Bar, Beerhive, Slackwater, Dick n Dixie's
 
Proper New Zeangland Hazy Session IPA - Featuring Waimea, Motueka, and Wai-iti hops. These impart the tropical notes you've come to expect with grapefruit peel, pith and a wee bit o' pine. The hops leave a lingering bitterness on the sides of the tongue. Quite nice. 4.0% ABV @ Proper
 
Boulevard Rye on Rye X: Sazerac Cocktail - I haven't tried this one yet, but I'm a big fan of the previous versions. Add the Sazerac Rye Barrel to it and I imagine that it's going to be brilliant! This beer is based on the New Orleans cocktail, the Sazerac. The official recipe is composed of rye whiskey, absinthe or Herbsaint, a sugar cube and bitters all garnished with a lemon peel. To translate this classic cocktail into a beer, Boulevard brewed batches of the base rye beer that received spice additions mimicking bitters as well as lemon peel during the boil. The resulting wort was fermented with their house Scottish ale yeast before being aged in freshly emptied Templeton Rye barrels. 11.8% ABV @ The Bayou

Firestone Walker Bravo - Incredibly rich and smooth and complex with notes of graham cracker, tobacco, bourbon, coconut, orange marmalade, cherries, raisins, toffee, apricots, kiwi, and pralines. Holy shit! This is a phenomenal barleywine that you must try. @ Beerhive, Beer Bar, Slackwater

The Results are in, and it looks like it's going to be a 2 Row party in the finals this year. As you can see below, the voting was very close. But in the end 2 Row's fan base won out. 2 Row has pretty much dominated the entire competition, coming a long way in their brief time in the market. So, 2 Row's Tastes Like Citrus IPA and Dark Alley Imperial Stout will go head to head on Monday to see which beer is most beloved. After that we will begin the Session Beer Competition.

Cheers!

Total	Answer
51.5%	2 Row Tastes Like Citrus IPA	103 (51.5%)
48.5%	RedRock Paardebloem	97 (48.5%)

(200 Total Votes)

 Total

	Answer
51.01%	2 Row Dark Alley	101 (51.01%)
48.99%	RedRock Elephino DIPA	97 (48.99%)

(198 Total Votes)

Roosters Femination American Ale

Since it's International Women's month, Ogden's Roosters Brewing Co. decided it was damn time to make a beer that celebrates women - in particular the women in Utah's beer community.

Femination American Ale was brewed by Roosters Brewer, Jacquie King Wright on International Women's Day (March 8th, 2017). Jacquie has been breathing new life into Roosters portfolio of beers, providing a feminine perspective that is definitely perceivable in the beer.

This new ale is basically an American Strong Ale that features Midnight Wheat and Rye malt, which will give Femination an earthy spiciness. Australian Helga and Slovenian Aurora hops will compliment the malts with floral, spicy and herbal notes without making it overly bitter.

Femination is set to debut sometime around the 21st of April. Look for more great things to come from Utah's feminine inspired brews.

Note: The Epic/Telluride Collaboration beer, Blizzard Conditions WILL NOT be released at the SLC brewery this morning. It apparently wasn't delivered as scheduled. Instead, Galloway Porter will be in growlers today. Galloway is being DQ'd, so if your a fan? i'd stock up. You may not see it for a while. Again sorry for the bad info on the N.E.IPA.

Lastly, voting is still underway in the Final Four Round of the Utah Beer Challenge's High Point Competition. Encourage anyone that gives a shit about local suds to participate!

Cheers!

Image found at Shipcomplient.com

Epic/Telluride Collaboration Beer: Blizzard Conditions

This Beer Will not be released on March 30th. It will instead be released on April 6th.

Tomorrow, Salt Lake City will get it's first taste of the new collaboration beer from Epic Brewing and Telluride Brewing. The birth of this beer began last January when Telluride’s brewmaster Chris Fish and Epic’s Kevin Crompton discovered neither of them had brewed a New England-Style IPA before and both were intrigued by the new hopping techniques many breweries were using to pack insane amounts of juicy hop flavor into the beer without a high level of bitterness.

Approaching the new style together, both brewmasters set out to find just the right hops. “The excitement is all about juicy hop goodness! Not bitterness!” says Chris Fish. “We’re looking to present super tropical fruitiness in both flavor and aroma. To achieve that we got our hands on a new hop variety, Cashmere.”

Cashmere hops are relative new on the market, having been released in 2013 by Washington State University, and is the product of a marriage between Cascade and Northern Brewer hops. Their resulting daughter, Cashmere, is unique, producing aromas full of lemon and lime citrus, sweet ripe-cantaloupe, and tropical fruits like guava and mango. Because of these qualities Cashmere excels as a cold-side dry hop and is perfectly suited for New England-Style IPAs, which pull as much hop character as possible from late boil additions and dry-hopping.

Blizzard Conditions is hazy gold color with just a hint of green highlights. Its huge aroma is bursting with orange blossom, ripe melon and guava. The spelt, a type of malted wheat, helps give good body to the beer, which supports the sticky hop character. Bitterness is low with just a moderate amount lingering on the palate. If you’re a hop lover and enjoy the newer American varieties emerging on the scene this beer won’t disappoint; and if you’re the type of drinker who shies away from the traditional, piney IPA, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how bright and juicy New England-Style IPAs can be.

Blizzard Conditions will debut in the SLC market April 6th tomorrow morning (3/30/17) at 11am. It will be packaged in Epic's Growlers. 22oz. bottles may appear in the future, but for your first taste, you get growlers. So don't forget to bring your empties to exchange.

Speaking of Epic. The Oak and Orchard Dark Sour with Plum and Apricot is now on sale. Only 74 left. Stay close for the other three releases.

The results for the Utah Beer Challenge's Elite Eight High Points are in and it looks like It's going to be a grudge match between RedRock and 2 Row. The Elite Eight Round saw mostly blow-outs, but the final scores that separated Dark Alley Barrel Aged and Paardebloem came down to just two votes. The ballots for the Final Four beers are up and in the column to the right. The voting on these beers will run for 48 hours and end at the time stamp on this post. These beers are all pretty different and it could go anyway.

Just a reminder that the Utah Beer Low Point Challenge will be starting immediately following the completion of this challenge. I'd love to hear some feedback on how you think things have gone so far.

Cheers!

Total	Answer
62.76%	2 Row Tastes Like Citrus IPA	123 (62.76%)
37.24%	Squatters 529	73 (37.24%)

(196 Total Votes)

Total	Answer
64.67%	RedRock Paardebloem	119 (64.67%)
35.33%	Shades Pale Salt City Citrus	65 (35.33%)

(184 Total Votes)

Total

	Answer
39.47%	2 Row Dangereux	75 (39.47%)
60.53%	2 Row Dark Alley	115 (60.53%)

(190 Total Votes)

Total

	Answer
49.5%	2 Row Dark Alley - Barrel Age	99 (49.5%)
50.5%	RedRock Elephino DIPA	101 (50.5%)

(200 Total Votes)

Uinta's New Brett Tripel

This week is starting out to be a sour puss' dream! Yesterday we we brought you the happy news of Epic's "sour spring", now Uinta Brewing will be adding a new brett beer to the calendar as well. Brett Tripel - Uinta's newest sour beer will be in the same vein as RedRock's Rêve - having a Belgian style tripel ale as it's base beer. The difference here being the addition of Pink Peppercorns and their own take on the blending.

This one is still a few weeks out. It will of course come in Uinta's corked and cages 750ml. bottles. Stay close for the release. 

The Elite Eight Round continues in the Utah Beer Challenge, if you haven't voted yet you have until tomorrow morning to participate.

Skol!  

Epic Unleashes Four Sour Beers in 40 Days

Epic Brewing’s mad fermentationists are at it again, and this time their evil plan is to sour your spring!

They have been plotting with their “bugs” all winter and starting this April they will unleash four sour beers in 40 days. Three of the four will come from the Oak and Orchard Series, and one is the return of the Sour Brainless On Peaches, our most ruthless version of this beer yet!

Oak and Orchard Syrah, Release No. 2, ~8.5% ABV, 661 cases- This time around they we went with a little less funk and a lot more fruit. They loaded one of their Napa Valley foeders with our sour saison and so much blueberry, boysenberry and black currant that it was practically bursting at the seams, resulting in a beer that explodes with huge, fruity, wine-like notes. Available starting the first week of April with a release in Salt Lake City on April 14.

Oak and Orchard Dark Sour with Plum, Release No. 2, 654 cases, ~7.5% ABV - The second packaging of this trip to the dark side is finally being released beyond the breweries’ walls. This Dark Sour has spent most of it life brooding in retired whiskey barrels before being finished with plum puree. Aromas of dark fruit, plum and fig fade into faint notes of earthy funk. Hitting markets around the country the second week of April.

Oak and Orchard Pinot, Release No. 2, 650 cases, ~8.5% ABV - this is the second release of this extremely limited sour. This sour saison was fruited to mimic Pinot Noir (with blueberry, boysenberry, cranberry strawberry, plum) and aged in oak for months until it reached the peak of puckering perfection. Available at the end of April.

Sour Brainless on Peaches, Release No. 3, 800 cases, ~7.5% ABV - She smells like a peach, but packs a cruel, puckering punch! This is Epic's most sour version of this beer yet, but it still retains beautiful notes of peach skin, citrus and a dose of barnyard funk. Available in the beginning of May.

We have more big news as well! Epic has added another two foeders to the family, which brings it to a total of 14 vessels and more than 1,000 BBL of total foeder capacity. When combined with the 3000-plus individual oak casks in our barrel-aging warehouses that makes Epic Brewing one of the largest wood-aged beer producers in the West. These new, 68 BBL wooden beasts were recently retired from Heitz Cellars in Napa Valley. This all means larger and more frequent releases of these unique beers are on their way!

It looks like local sour funk will be a common staple for those of you that love to get you pucker-on!

The Utah Beer Challenge's High Point Competition resumes today. This round seems to be dominated by 2 Row Brewing with two beloved favorites from RedRock holding strong. Shades of Pale is kicking ass as well, with their Salt City Citrus as it goes against the sour power of Squatters' 529 Oud Bruin.

The Elite Eight Round also runs for 48 hours from the time stamp below. The Final Four Round will begin on Wednesday Morning. Please share this round on your social media, if you can.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 3/24/17

The sweet 16 Round is over in the Utah Beer Challenge's High Point Competition and there were a few upsets. Shades of Pale's Salt City Citrus had a big win over perennial favorite, Labyrinth from Uinta and 2 Row's Dark Alley edged out what many believe is Utah's best local beer, Big Bad Baptist. It's all listed above in all of it's "bracketie glory". The Elite Eight round will begin on Monday morning.

Now, on to New Beer Friday!

Uinta 24th Birthday Suit - Mostly tart, cherry is subtle with some floral notes. You get a bit spiciness from the Belgian yeast. Overall: not the best year for this beer but it's still very refreshing and drinkable. 6.2% ABV @ Uinta

New Belgium Juicy Watermelon - Melon notes are present along with lime, but not over powering.. light pale malt and some background citrus hoppiness. A slightly tart, refreshing bright fruity pilsner. Has a definite artificial flavor. 5.0% ABV @ DABC

Sam Adams Fresh as Helles - The nose is grainy with cracker-like pale malts along with a mix of citrus fruitiness. The taste is bready and doughy with a bit of caramel and cereal. Vague citrus comes next with some earthy/floral hops rounding out the back end. This isn't a textbook Helles but it is quite enjoyable. @ DABC

Anchor Liberty IPA -This is not Anchor's Liberty Ale - a beer that most beer historians consider to be the original American IPA. This is a re-imagining of that beer. The nose is citrusy with bready/fruity malts. Pine and citrus dominate with bready malt and ripe fruit in the back. The finish is bright and hoppy. It's a simple - not too gaudy IPA. 5.9% ABV @ DABC

Bonneville 4th Anniversarye -  Haven't tried this one yet. This year’s beer features malted rye, caramel rye and big blasts of Eureka hops. It's also fermented with lager yeast at room temperature to add an additional twist to the flavor profile. The result is earthy, spicy and herbal with splashes of citrus and pine. A big, round mouthfeel that transforms into a snappy dry finish. 4.0% ABV @ Bonneville, Allstar Lanes and where there's a Bonneville seasonal tap handle.

Lagunitas Bavarian Style Dopple Weizen - The nose has banana bread, clove and honey. The taste starts with sweet banana bread and clove with pepper and spices lingering throughout. Bubblegum and orange peel round out the end. Finishes witha bit of herbal bitterenss. Quite a departure from the typical Lagunitas offering. 8.7% ABV @ Beerhive, DABC

Proper Hop vs Hop release #6 - Missed out on this one last night. This version features Idaho 7 and Wakatu hops from New Zealand. Look for resinous pine and citrus combined with stone fruit and tropical notes.7.6% ABV @ Proper

Elysian Split Shot -There's a good balance here of coffee and milk sugars. has a slight cappuccino feel. If you like your coffee beers this will please you. 6.0% ABV @ Beer Bar

Cheers!

Sweet 16 Round Begins

I'm noticing a trend this year. The majority of you seems to really, really love IPAs and Imperial Stouts over practically everything else and 2 Row and RedRock seem to have the strongest followings.

The results for Round 3 have been updated in the bracket above. For the Sweet 16 Round things will get more intense for these two breweries. both of them have two of their own beers going against each other - there's nothing like sibling combat, eh?

There's also a powerhouse Imperial Stout match-up between Big Bad Baptist and Dark Alley. That should be a close one.

This round of voting will be 48 hours as well, and it will end Friday morning at the time stamp below. Please share the Utah Beer Challenge's High Point Competition on your social media, so we can increase the voting pool.

Prost! 

First Round Recap - Round Two Begins

Well, it looks like for the most part the randomly generated match-ups in Round One were for the most part complete blow outs in the Utah Beer Challenge High Point Competition. The closest race was between Squatters' Fifth Element Wild Saison (55) and 2 Row's Dark Alley Imperial Stout (56). Never thought I'd see Fifth Element go out in the first round - talk about an upset!

The decisions you have in Round Two are defiantly going to be more difficult. Christ, two of RedRock's powerhouse sours are going head to head. I guess we'll see which one you truly love more. Voting for the entire 2nd Round will run for 48 hours from the time stamp on this post.

The bracket above has all of scores so far. I'd love to hear your comments on how things are going so far.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday - Saint Patrick's Day Edition

Well, it's a Saint Patrick's Day - New Beer Friday. Some of you will stay home and leave today in the hands of the temporary Irish - others, will conquer the holiday in a more Viking like fashion. Just stay safe and avoid the green beer. Seriously, just don't. I managed to come across two new beers this week. Seek them out if you can.

Strap Tank Eat Side Ride - Not tried this one yet. Made with five pounds of fresh ginger and fourteen pounds of lemon grass. Your tongue and your gutty-works will thank you. 4.0% ABV @ Strap Tank

Proper Beckerman's Brew - The nose is malty and toasty with some earthy hops. The taste starts grainy, with some bready notes. Not overly malty or sweet, but definitely drying and bitter towards the end and into the aftertaste. The hops are on the floral/piney side and they finish off the palate with a drying bitterness. Nice, very drinkable lager.

Desert Edge Irish Red - This Red Ale is described as being malty, with low hop flavor and bitterness with a medium dry finish. 4.0% ABV @ Desert Edge

Desert Edge Wai-iti IPA -  This session IPA is brewed with Simcoe and Wai-iti hops. The aroma is mango and citrus. The flavor is the same with a light bready caramel flavor. 4.0% ABV @ Desert Edge

Now onto the Utah Beer Challenge. Part 2 of Round One of the High Point competition Starts now. You have 48 hours as of the publish date below to vote. Ballots are in the column to the right. The bracket above is updated, so you can see what's coming up in the next round. It already looks tough.  Please spread the word on you social media, let's get those votes up!

Slaite!

Beckerman's Brew Debuts Today

As promised, we have details on the release of Proper Brewing's new Beckerman's Brew. It's out today! The kids at Proper will be throwing a big party to celebrate. Starting at 5pm the beer hits the taps and goes on sale in the bottleshop. Kyle Beckerman will also be on hand. I imagine photo ops will be happening.

Most importantly, all pints of Beckerman's Brew will be $4 all night and since it's Proper's anniversary week, all draft pitchers are $10.

Here are the results for Part One of Round One. I'll get the second part of Rounf One up as soon as I can. My day job is sucking up all my attention. 

Hoppers Summerset Saison -  72

Bohemian Dortmunder

- 196

Moab Tripel Ale - 55
2 Row Tastes Like Citrus IPA - 246

Epic Elder Brett - 182
Vernal .50 Caliber IPA - 81

2 Row Random Mosaic - 230
Wasatch First One Down - 74

Squatters 529 - 177
Vernal Little Hole Lager - 74

Talisman Presents Trip IPA - 122
Proper Hop Vs Hop 3 - 137

Park City IPA - 65
Wasatch Ghostrider - 216

Roosters Iron Rooster Stout - 82
Bohemian Altbier - 168

Epic Big Bad Baptista - 206
Shades Pale HogsHead 2 - 67

Roosters Niner Bock - 68
Shades Pale Saint Blackout - 169

Uinta Dubhe - 115
RedRock Paardebloem - 165

Roosters Chanticleer - 39
RedRock Rêve - 213

Talisman Iron Age - 129
Proper Ostara IPA - 120

Epic Sour Brainless Peaches - 117
Uinta Labyrinth - 136

Shades Pale Salt City Citrus - 193
Park City Imp Pilsner - 64

Squatters Outer Darkness - 166
Talisman Dagda IPA - 97

Prost!

2017 Tour de Brewtah

It's Time again for the Tour de Brewtah, the best marriage of beers and bikes since... ever! If you're not familiar,  the Tour de Brewtah is a Salt Lake City bicycle ride of local breweries.  The Tour fosters a fun active community in Salt Lake, promotes giving back locally, and is open to riders of all levels and abilities. This year's theme is Dynamic Duos. The event benefits Splore and makes it possible for people of all abilities to experience meaningful outdoor adventures. To learn more about Splore, go to www.splore.org.

There are four different routes for enthusiasm and skill levels.

Bonnie and Clyde Route (approx. 4.5 miles)
The Bonnie and Clyde Route has been designed for those of you who put the beer before the biking. This route is only 4.5 miles long and will take you to some of the finest breweries in downtown Salt Lake City.

Squatters Brewery

Desert Edge Brewery

Park City Brewery

Butch and Sundance Route (approx. 11 miles)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid would have been so proud to know that this route was named after them. It offers some amazing brews and a great ride around Salt Lake City. This was our most popular route last year, so we decided to not change it one bit! Enjoy.

Shades of Pale

Wasatch Brewery

2 Row Brewing

Thelma and Louise Route (approx. 9 miles)
The Thelma and Louise route will take you out of downtown Salt Lake into Sugar House proper, and back to downtown again. You will taste beers from Salt Lake as well as Moab on this epic ride.

Epic Brewing

Moab Brewery

Proper Brewing

Lewis and Clark Route (approx. 26 miles)
This ride is for all your cycling enthusiast out there. You will journey south to discover what awesome brews exist in far off lands such as Midvale, UT! This ride is sure to impress your beer pallet as well as your friends.

Bohemian Brewery

Uinta Brewery

Red Rock Brewing

Registration begins today at Noon. The "Tour" usually sells out, so don't wait too long to register.

Date: Saturday April 29, 2017
Starting & Ending Location: Gallivan Center
Costume Theme: Dynamic Duos
Registration includes:

• Tour de Brewtah Pint Glass
• Several pours of Utah’s finest craft beer or soda
• Post-ride party with music, vendors, and fun
• Riding through Salt Lake City on a beautiful day with tons of great people
• Support for Splore and its mission of providing outdoor adventures to people of all abilities.

2017 Utah Beer Challenge

It's time to choose your favorite local beers again in the Utah Beer Challenge. This time we're doing things a bit differently. High Point vs. High Point - Low Point vs. Low Point. It seems somewhat unfair to place a session lager up against a barrel aged barleywine with brett. So, hopefully this evens things out. We're starting with the high point beers - round one of two begins now, so vote!

Another new thing this year, we're using Untappd's database to choose the beers. Many of you felt that Rate Beer's data (though more accurate) is too "pretentious". Okay, I'm game to give it a whirl. I finally got the bracket installed so that you can all follow along. It's at the top of the page.

Ballots are in the column to the right and the match-ups are randomly generated. This round will end Thursday morning. Any questions?

Cheers!

Epic Oak and Orchard Dark Sour Plum and Apricot

Epic Brewing is re-releasing a couple of their Oak and Orchard Sour beers this morning in Salt Lake City. The Oak and Orchard Dark Sour with Plum AND Apricot will go on sale this morning at 11am. So if you somehow missed these previously, you've been given a second chance. Also, 2nd Tracks Sports will be at the brewery starting at 2pm to offer ski / snowboard waxes. So bring you sticks and boards. and make an afternoon of it.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 3/10/17

People just can't stop putting my mug on labels.... Yeah, you laugh but that's me the day after St. Patty's Day last year. Anyway, I found a few beers that are made by our friends and neighbors that stretch from Ogden to Springville. Happy New Beer Friday!

Roosters Mosaic SMaSH - Look for berry, tangerine and papaya backed by graham cracker malts with a bit of rose blossoms and grass in the finish. 4.0% ABV @ Roosters Ogden

Fisher Brewing Rye Cream Ale - nutty malts, with peppery hops. Some rye spiciness as well. A wee bit thin as well. Overall a nice pounder for a warm day. 4.0% ABV @ Fisher

Squatters Apollo 13 -  Hopped only with Apollo hops from start to finish. Then dry hopped with more Apollo. Just enough caramel from the malts to compliment. Nice. 4.0% ABV @ Squatters

Strap Tank Adele Saison - Haven't tried this one yet. 4.0% ABV @ Strap Tank

What did I miss? Help out your fellow beer nerds and spread the new brew love.

Cheers!

Your New Liquor Laws in a Nutshell

Well, it looks like your lives are about to become far more complicated from here on out. Your new DUI ceiling will soon be .05 from .08. This means that the next dose of NyQuil that you take, may land your ass in jail and cost you thousands of dollars in penalties and attorney's fees. We all know this is more about "you people" than it is about safety. Texting and driving is equally (if not more) more dangerous, but it will always get a comparable slap on the hand because Mormons legislators are guilty of it too.

The Zion Curtain will be coming down for some eating establishments - IF you've got the room to implement the new alternative barrier that is. You get ten feet from the bar or mixing area, after that the kiddos will be contamination free. Some may have to erecting a 42 inch barrier (because children shorter than that are most impressionable),  others - will just have to make it obvious that it's a different area.

The legislation also does away with dining club and social club designations and creates a single bar license. Owners who now have a dining club license would have until July 1, 2018, to decide if they would switch to being a bar. If the establishment chooses to be a restaurant, owners would have until July 2022 to comply with the barriers and designated dispensing-area rules. Basically this mean that you can choose between serving booze or allowing kids in your establishment, you can't have both. Park City and other tourism towns are going to love this. What a bunch of assholes! The state markup on liquor and wine will be 88% from 86%. Heavy beer goes to 66.5% from 64.5%. Again, assholes!

One bright spot is the reduction on the distance where alcohol can be served. It will be 300 ft. instead of 600 ft. from church's, schools and libraries. I'm sure that there's a typo here and that it was meant to be 3000 not 300.

Sorry to be the dark cloud on warm and sunny day, but that's your new world in a nutshell.

Cheers

Proper Brewing Teams Up with Kyle Beckerman

Salt Lake City loves it's Soccer. You may not find a more devoted fan base than that of our beloved Real Salt Lake. That's seems especially true when it comes local craft beer drinkers. On game days, notably when involving a rival match, beer bars around town fill to capacity with devoted fans that don their red, cobalt and gold and look to enjoy a good beer.

Proper Brewing Co. in SLC is one of those great supporters. While officially they aren't a beer sponsor, they are doing what they can to show their support just as Epic Brewing did for many years with their Rimando's Witbier (still available as Utah Session Wit Beer).

In the coming weeks Proper will team up with Real Captain, Kyle Beckerman to produce Beckerman's Brew, a craft lager, made with German and Idaho grown barley - combined with a good dose of Mt. Hood hops for balance. This beer looks to be a staple for Proper and will likely be around for the foreseeable future.

Beckerman's Brew will be available at Proper Brewing, Avenues Proper and better beer bars around the Wasatch Front. While at Rio Tinto Stadium, you can look to Uinta Brewing Company for your suds as they were recently named the Official Craft Beer Real Salt Lake. Stay close for the official release.

Olé!

Image found at Shipcomplient.com

The 2017 Gate City Brewfest

This Saturday, March 11, 2017, the 7th Annual Gate City Brewfest returns to Old Town Pocatello.  Many of your favorite local and regional breweries will be on hand pouring some of their great lagers and ales. Look for 80 plus beers, live music, great food, and trolley service to each area of Old Town Pocatello.  Click on this link to purchase advance tickets. Ticket locations the day of the event include the Old Town Pavilion, 420 N. Main St, and the Elks Lodge, 410 S. Main St.  Both ticket locations will open at 12:30pm and the trolley will start moving people between the Brewfest Stops. Tickets are $25 with sampling from 1pm to 6pm.

Click on the map to the right to get a better view of who is pouring and what the layout of the "crawl" looks like. Pocatello is a fairly quick hop across the Idaho border, not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon, eh?. For more info on the Brewfest and lodging, please click here.

Prost!

New Looks Coming for 2 Row Brews

2 Row Brewing is putting some polish on some of their year round and seasonal offerings. We got our mitts on some of the labels that will be adorning some of their brilliant beers.

First up is Mikey's Citra India Style Pale Lager. This beer came out last June and quickly became one of the most important beers ever made by human hands. Considering that this beer is so important, I am a bit confused as to why 2 Row opted to go for this look. The "subject" portrayed is obviously befuddled by whatever it is he's attempting to do, not to mention he's sport'n the that typical beer nerd smirk. All joking aside, when this image greeting me Saturday Morning, I was beyond flattered and honored. Cheers, Brian!

Next up in 2 Row's new gallery, is the artwork for the cunningly named Inevitable Amber Ale. As with many local brewers that swear to stay away from low point suds, the "inevitability" of discovering the reality of Utah's unique beer market eventually take hold. 2 Row managed to convey this in the name, while making a fine ale that represents it's brewery well. Growlers of Inevitable Amber are available at the brewery and is finding it's way into restaurants and bars all over the SLC area. Stay close for it's bottled debut.

Prost!

Images found at Shipcomplient.com

New Beer Friday 3/3/17

I'd like to thank the "Academy" for this prestigious honor. New Beer Friday began as a dream. A dream to find a pint of something new every week. I'd also like to thank my wife - who keeps me grounded, by roller her eyes at me at every available opportunity.

Talisman Imperial Coffee Stout with Cocoa nibs - This is under the Talisman Presents label Look for big coffee in the nose and on the palate. Chocolate rounds out the back with some acid coffee in the finish. Made with Wasatch Roasting Company and Ritual Chocolate. 9.5% ABV @ Talisman

Wasatch Denali UTX - I Haven't tried this one yet - look for a nice lemon/lime aspect from the hops with some slight resin. 4.0% ABV @ Wasatch/Squatters

Strap Tank Lorraine Tart Cherry Saison - I Haven't tried this one yet - It was made with Mexican hibiscus and tart cherries.You have my attention sir! 4.0% ABV @ Strap Tank

Strap Tank Road Rash IPA - This Beer isn't really new, ,just previously unmentioned.Straight up resony pine and grapfruit peel with a bit of light caramel backing it up.Solid Session IPA. 4.0% ABV

Squatters Tempest-tost Wit - I Haven't tried this one yet - Made with green cardamom, sweet orange peel and a healthy dose of torrified wheat. Remember, all proceeds from the sale of this beer will benefit the Utah Chapter of the International Rescue Committee, an organization that supports refugees in realizing their dream of leading self-sufficient and fulfilling lives. 4.0% ABV@ Squatters

Rogue Hazelutely Choctabulous - The nose is nutty and chocolaty with some vanilla and light char, cream, nuts, deeply roasted malts, dark breaded malts, light vanilla, and light char. The taste follows with vanilla and cake like malts swirling around a sea of hazelnuts and roasted malts. Some light coffee and dark chocolate as well in the finish. This is one of those beers you'll love or hate. I found it tasty but the 22oz bottle is too much for such a rich beer. 5.7% ABV @ DABC

Big Sky Shake-a-Day IPA - The nose has a fresh grapefruit and pine aroma with sweet malt beneath. The taste has a big dose of sweet caramel malt out of the gate - tangerine and orange come in next with a bit of pine to balance it all out. The finish is fairly bitter, which is good because it controls the initial sweetness. Overall a nice refreshing IPA. 7.5% ABV @ DABC

2 Row Hop Reload - Never got around to this one last night. But it's a 2 Row IPA. I'm sure it's a winner. Please share what you think! 6.2% @ 2 Row

Avenues Proper Chai-Hulud Saison with Chai - There are no Sand Worms in this beer, what it does have is Chai spices intermingling with spicy coriander from the yeast. With all of those assertive flavors, it's still pretty subtle - justy missing a little melange. Ok, i'm done with my "Dune geeking". 4.0% ABV @ Avenues Proper only.

Anchor Steam Brotherhood Steam - Made in collaboration with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood this steam beer has hints of wet grass and pine in the nose along with some toffee and biscuit. The taste is nicely bready and earthy with with notes of caramel, grass, and citrus. Floral hops come next with notes of grass and pine. The end has some light citrus notes of orange peel and grapefruit. Good malt presence with notes of caramel, toffee, biscuit, and yeast. A wonderful and solid beer. 5.6% ABV @ Beer Bar

Wasatch White Label -Though not new, it is returning after a long absence. It's wheaty, spicy with clove acsents and has hints of orange and mellow citrus. Good carbonation, balanced with a clean after taste. 6.0% ABV @ Wasatch Squatters - soon to DABC.

Tune in to Mick and Allen on KBER 101 today at 3:20pm as we discuss these and other beer related topics in New Beer Friday Radio.

Cheers!

Grapefruit Revolution and 801 Special Dry Hops

 Shades of Pale's Grapefruit Revolution got some proper labeling today. SOP's citrus bomb (with no citrus) has been a huge success for brew master Trent Farger and assistant brewer Márcio Buffolo. The hop forward session IPA has garnered a huge following since it's release. You should start seeing the new labels in the coming days.

Uinta's 801 Pilsner is being re-imagined in a two new special releases. Not only are these two new versions dry hopped, they feature hop treatments from non-traditional regions (non-Euro hops).
The first release of 801 Small Batch, Dry Hopped Pilsner will feature North American Citra hops along with Australian Galaxy hops. This will likely have higher bitterness with tropical flavors. Release number two will feature American Simcoe hops and Australian Ella hops. Look for spicy floral notes along
with pine and citrus. I'm not sure which small batch will be released, but odds are pretty good I share it with you when it happens. Maybe.

Also today, Epic Brewing has a new Cream Ale for their weekly Thursday Growler. This beer is made exclusively for Parry's Pizza in Denver and is rarely sold outside of that establishment.

Prost!

Images found at Shipcomplient.com

New Squatters Beer Supports Refugees and Immigrants

To show solidarity with our refugee and immigrant communities, Squatters Craft Beers has brewed a "Middle Eastern Witbier" featuring ingredients indigenous to some of the countries singled out by President Trump’s recent travel ban. All proceeds from the sale of the beer will benefit the Utah Chapter of the International Rescue Committee, an organization that supports refugees in realizing their dream of leading self-sufficient and fulfilling lives. Beginning March 1st and until the kegs run dry, Tempest-Tost Wit will be available at all Squatters and Wasatch Brew Pubs, as well as the West Side Tavern. Squatters’ Brewmaster Jason Stock and brewer Conor Papineau have crafted this unfiltered wheat beer utilizing green cardamom, sweet orange peel and a healthy dose of torrified wheat. The beer is designed to reflect the complexity and nuance of the regions from which the ingredients originate.

From the melting pot to the brewing kettle, the story of Salt Lake Brewing Company - like most American stories - is one of immigrants. It was in the spirit of this legacy that Wasatch Sugar House server Rich Vosepka hatched the idea of brewing a beer to help our local refugee population. “Focusing on the two things that we do best – brewing beer and creating an environment where all feel welcome and safe – is a win-win for everyone,” says Vosepka.

“This promotion speaks directly to the core values of our company,” adds Chief Operating Officer Doug Hofeling. “Tempest-Tost Wit not only gives our guests the opportunity to try a unique and delicious beer, but also contribute to a truly worthwhile cause.”

The name for the beer comes from Emma Lazarus’ poem “The New Colossus,” which serves as an enduring reminder that we were all strangers once.

This beer is available starting today.

Cheers!