New Beer Friday: Adiós 2017

What a weird year 2017 has been, there's been no shortage of strange shit and many of us wondered if we were living in some kind of alternate reality. However, there was one thing that wasn't out of Bizzaro-Land; Utah had a record breaking year in regards to brewery expansion. 2017 saw the  addition of A.Fisher Brewing Co., the RoHa Brewing Project, RPM Brewing Co.and Kiitos Brewing Co. to our brewery count. As I see it, Utah now has 28 breweries (counting two independent brew houses for Roosters and Proper and three for the Wasatch/Squatters group). 2018 will likely see an additional three or four new breweries added to the roster. I don't have to tell you that a vibrant beer scene will help take Utah's beer culture out of the 1970's while greatly improve the outstanding local beverages we currently enjoy. Happy New Beer Friday and please have a happy and safe New Year!
  
Strap Tank Barrel Aged Stout: This is a barrel strength stout. Meaning it is not blended with a fresh batch of the base beer. This gives the beer more "umpf" and body. The beer is jet black, with a chocolate colored head. the nose has chocolate, booze, bitter coffee, woody highlights, and tangy cream sweetness. The flavors are rich and robust, with a smooth milk chocolate highlighted by campfire smoke. All of this on a bitter roasted coffee backbone, with woody and boozy highlights. Some crème notes, too. It has a rich, chocolate and vanilla aftertaste, with whiskey highlights in there, too. Smooth, slow finish, with a nice warmth and lingering chocolate. 9.6% ABV. Available for enjoyment at the brewery today. To-go sale coming next week. Congrats on UTah County's first barrel aged beer! 

Avenues Proper Coffee Pale Ale:  Brewed with La Barba Ethiopian coffee beans and American hops. The idea here is to find a good combination of a fruit-forward coffee bean that wouldn't be overly acidic to pair with fruity American hops and bready malts to try and coax some flavors out of a coffee beer that you don't normally see. I havn't had a chance to try it yet but it sounds very intriguing. 4.0% ABV. Only at Avenues Proper.


Kiitos Wheat Ale: Kiitos is flexing a little muscle with this beer. Though it's only 4.0%

ABV, it's made using 75% wheat malt. If you've ever brewed with large amounts wheat and rye; you know it's a sticky mash. Kiitos' brew system allows them to utilize these water retaining grains with high efficiency. Basically, what I'm saying is that you won't find many 75% wheat beers in the market. This one is clean and bready with nice cereal and cracker qualities. Give this one a shot. Available at Kiitos. 

Moab FMU Double IPA: Generally FMU means "Fuck Me UP" and while that may not be Moab Brewing Company's intent, it is becoming common vernacular in regards to high ABV beers. This Double IPA boasts a shload of throughout and packs a 9.6% ABV. I'd give this a rating of, "meh". This feels more like a thin barley wine. It's sweetness overpowers much of the hop profile, though it does finish quite bitter on the back of the tongue. Available at most DABC stores.
  

Oskar Blues Barrel Aged Ten Fiddy: Some bourbon, vanilla, oak, chocolate, caramel and a bit of coffee in the aroma. Lots of chocolate malts and some vanilla, caramel and coffee. Some roasted malts. The Bourbon isn't too overpowering. Smooth, silky texture. A very nice brew!
12.9% ABV. Available at your better beer bars.

Base Camp 5th Anniversary: This beer is basically an olde stock ale. It's kind of a baby barley wine. This was aged in multiple wine and "spirit" barrels. The malts are sweet and the barrel aging adds nice vinious tartness that is light and pleasant. It does feel a bit thin though. Non the less it's an enjoyable beer. I found it at Beer Bar. 7.9% ABV.

Stone Vengeful Spirit IPA: : A tropical and citrusy nose with mandarin orange, mango and pineapple along with malt. The taste is similar with orange and and mango off the top. The pineapple is a bit more restrained by the malts and the fruitiness as whole. pineapple. The finish is light and bitter. A nice and easy IPA with good fruit flavors and nice balance.7.3% ABV.

Deschutes Abyss - Tequila Barrel: The nose has a noticeable tequila that works well with the dark chocolate, coffee notes and licorice. I can't tell if I'm getting agave or not, but there is a vegital like sweetness off the top of the taste. This Abyss variant is a little lacking in the distinctiveness of the tequila barrel. And frankly I don't know if tequila is the best fit for an Imperial stout like this. What are your thoughts? 11.9% ABV. I found this at the Bayou.

Cheers!

Thanks to the Columbia Daily Tribune for letting me alter their cartoon.

New Brew Soon for You: Talisman - RoHa

In an attempt to keep it clear; in regards to previewing new beers vs. announcing their arrivals, I'm going to implement the New Brew Soon for You title. Often people think some of these preview blurbs are the official release for these beers. Hopefully this new strategy will keep it clear. Capisce?
 
You have a new IPA coming soon from Talisman Brewing soon. The Ogden brewery will be offering this rotating India Pale Ale called Adventures in IPA that will feature a different hop bill every quarter or so. Props to Talisman for keeping things interesting in regards to their IPAs.  

Also in the new brew soon for you column we have a collaboration beer with Salt Lake City's Local 81 Firefighters and the RoHa Brewing Project. The Maltese Cross is will be made especially for these firefighters (and for charity), this beer is specifically designed to be enjoyed after those long 48 hour stints that our local heroes endure, all to keep us safe.

Stay close for the release on both of these "New Brew Soon for You beers and others as soon as the hit.

Cheers!

Images found at Shipcomplient.com

New Beer Friday 12/15/17

Desert Edge Smoky The Beer.: This is a Robust style porter brewed with a small amount of smoked malt for a lightly smoked porter. The flavor and aroma are coffee like roasted malt and light smoke. Low hops and bitterness. Medium dry finish. Come in out of that filthy air and have a pint or two! 4.% ABV

Strap Tank Benny: Missed. Sorry not tried yet. It's described as being a historic-ale collaboration between Strap tank and Benjamin Franklin. Using his original recipe, we sourced a diverse array of local, raw & malted grains instead of the usual malted barley. The result is hazy & unfiltered, but silky-smooth with notes of molasses, local Bagley honey and fresh baked bread. 4.0% ABV. Only at Strap Tank.

Fisher IPA;  A straight forward IPA with a good dose of mosaic hops to make it nicely citrusy. Not over the top at all. You need this! Available tomorrow in crowlers only at 10am. 7% ABV Only at Fisher

 Ballast Point High West Victory at Sea: Big roasted barrel whiskey barrels dominate with some caramel rounding it out.ts nd  barrel ans whiskey flavors takes control. 12.0% ABV. Available at Beerhive, La Ferrovia

Leinenkugel Snow Drift Vanilla Porter: Missed out on this one. 6.0% ABV available at DABC stores.

Lagunitas Willet Coffee Stout: The whiskey here is on the sweet end, which gives it a nice vanilla-like flavor. The coffee is subtle - not like Epic's BBB. 12.6% ABV Avaiable at Beer Bar, Beerhive, La Ferrovia.

RoHa's Grapefruit Back Porch Pale Ale: This version of Back Porch is is "dryhopped with rehydrated grapefruit peel. Tons of Grapefruit all around in this limited edition beer. 4.0% ABV. Available at RoHa.

Also, Vernal's Not your Mama's Imperial Milk Stout is now avaiable along the Wasatch Front at DABC Stores. If you havn't tried this yet I highly recommend it.

The nose is sweet with light chocolate and coffee notes - like a rich coffee drink. The taste with huge sweet lactose and chocolate followed by some balancing roasted malts. After you get past the lactic sweetness the coffee notes become more assertive. The end has some bitter cocoa and hint of black malts. Damn! I was really taken aback by how damn drinkable this 8.5% beer is. It's so drinkable and smooth on the palate, you'd swear it was in the 6% range. 

Cheers!

New Bayou App Lets You Order From Your Smartphone

The Bayou has just released the latest version of their iPhone and Android app. With the latest of The Bayou app you can now order beers right off your phone. You simply obtain a order code from your server, enter it into your phone and then click "Order Beer" on whatever beer you wish.  When you are ready for your check you can hit "Request Receipt" on the app and have your ticket brought right over.

With 490 beers currently in the app, this new ordering method should make ordering your next beer as easy as clicking a button.

Other new features are phone notifications for new beers and weekly firkins as well as other news. The app size was dramatically reduced (we are talking 10's of MB smaller) and there is apparently more robust error handling which should help out those of you with spotty connections.

They also figured out why some people were having problems loading beers into the app.  It was all due to issues between AT&T and The Bayou's DNS server.  They got that sorted out and AT&T people should no longer have any problems going forward.

I think this is pretty cool, I can't wait to give it a whirl!

Cheers!

New Brews Coming to You 12/12/17

I  have more previews this morning of what's coming soon to Utah's beer world.

First up, we have this new seasonal from Bohemian Brewing Company. The Brew Ski Mountain Lager is a 4.0% ABV beer made for Utah's Solitude Mountain Resort. As you can see the label features a bright depiction of Solitude's terrain, while inside of the can you get a German-style lager with mildly sweet malts and floral Bavarian hops. This beer is expecting to hit taps and store shelves very soon. Stay close!

On the heels of Uinta's popular Lime Pilsner you can soon expect to get your hands on a little Mango Lime Pilsner. This 5.0% ABV beer is not hiding what it is and looks to be a beer that fits better on the beach that on the groomed slopes. Don't let those marketing guys fence you in! If the beer is good for skiing, then buy it. Coming soon.

Cheers!

Labels found at shipcomplient.com

New Beer Friday 12/8/17

Talisman Gingerbread Imperial Stout: This sounds amazing! An Imperial Stout with gingerbread? It's described as having a subtle gingerbread cookie taste with malt sweetness and a boozy finish. 10.5% ABV. Available at Talisman Brewing

Squatters London Fog: Squatters take on the famed tea latte is an English Golden with Earl Grayer tea infused at flame out and a dry addition post fermentation. Served on Nitro.

Kiitos Citra PaleAle: Nobody has had this. It supposed to debut today.... race ya! 4.0% ABV. Only avaible at Kiitos. 

Ommegang Winter is Here: This is a witbier with subtle clove, wheat crackers and a good dose of herbal hops. At 8.3% it's way heavy on alcohol and is guaranteed to turn the heartiest soul into a white walker. "My watch has ended". Available at DABC Stores.

pFriem Pilsner: Bloody Hell! what a nice pilsner. This one doesn't often hit markets outside of Oregon. Subtly sweet malts, dry crackers, toast and a healthy dose of grass and herbal hops make this pilsner sing! A must try. ABV is slightly high for style. Available at Beer Bar.

pFriem Oud Bruin: This sour brown ale is lightly tart with nice malty character and ample sourness to give it a great fruity profile without the addition of fruit. Not the best Oud Bruin I've had, but it's really enjoyable. 8.7% ABV. Available at Beer Bar.

pFriem Pumpkin Bier: Missed out on this one. It's described as fluffy pumpkin pie. 6.9% ABV.

pFriem Flanders Red: As sours go, Flemish Reds usually fall on the opposite sides of Oud Bruins. They are far more tart and less balanced. This is not that ; it actually has balance, which leads me to think that this beer is too young or slightly out of style. That being said, it drinks incredibly well. Try it now and try it again in a year to see if it changes. 7.0% ABV. Available at Beer Bar. Available at Beer Bar.

I know I missed something, please share the beer love.

Prost!

Roosters' B Street Brewery Breaks Ground Tomorow

Last year I was happy to bring you the news that Ogden's own Rooster Brewing Company would be creating a production brewery/pub to service it's growing outside accounts. Today I am once again happy to bring you the news that Roosters B Street Brewery is set to break ground tomorrow Thursday, December 7th.

With this new dedicated facility and canning line, Roosters B Street Brewery will increase their current brewing capacity ten-fold. “The two small breweries in Ogden and Layton have been at capacity for the last couple of years,” said owner Pete Buttschardt. “In order to keep the shelves stocked and expand, we’ve been working to create a dedicated production facility and move to canning. This new location really matches our brand and our vision. We couldn’t be more excited for what this means for Roosters Brewing Company.”

The Roosters B Street Brewery will be located in the new “Trackline” development located off Avenue B in Ogden. Located adjacent to the Ogden River Parkway, the site features a mile of spur trail leading straight to the new brewery which is perfect for Roosters cycling-forward brand appeal.

The brewery is expected to be completed in the summer of 2018 and will feature a quick bites menu and tap room.  In addition to the nearly 13,000 sf of brewery, dining and tap room space for Roosters, the campus will feature an additional 6,000 sf of available space for retail and manufacturing, as well as an outdoor amphitheater and dining area.

Roosters Brewing Company originally opened its doors in 1995 on Historic 25th Street, featuring elevated pub fare and a gathering space for community and visitors. Since then, Roosters opened a second location with a brewery in Layton, launched a bottled high-point label available in Utah DABC stores and most recently, ventured out of state with bottled products at retail locations throughout Wyoming.

Of course all updates will happen here as soon as they're relevant. Congrats to Roosters in this newest chapter in Ogden's brew scene.

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 12/01/17

I tried to get a handle on most of these beers yesterday, but I'm only one man. This is likely the largest New Beer Friday ever, so I'm going to try to keep it brief.

Kiitos' India Pale Ale: A straight-up west coast style IPA. Full of citrus peel and pine. On the drier side. A very nice high point beer - out of the gate for Kiitos. 6.1% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' Double IPA: This is likely being canned as you read this, so I've not tried the finished product yet. Since they nailed the IPA, expect nice things from this double version. 8.5% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' EPA - Chinook: This single hop Extra Pale Ale has grapefruit peel with a bit of pine. The malts are light - super tasty. 4.0% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' EPA - Mosaic: This single hop Extra Pale Ale has tangerine and bit of tropical fruits. Same malt bill as above. Very tasty. 4.0% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' Blackberry Sour: Very tart, yet the berries still seem to pop! Plus it has a vey nice scarlett hue. So nice. 4.0% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' Coconut Stout: Very tasty. The coconut is subtle and it play very well with the roasted malts in the stout. Damn tasty! 4.0% ABV. available at Kiitos

Kiitos' Holiday Ale: This is basically gingerbread beer, so proceed with this impression. I think it delivers as described. 4.0% ABV. available at Kiitos

Epic's Chapulin Gose: If the whole cricket thing freaks you out, please don't let it affect your impressions. I got nothing from this beer, but a lemon tartness and salt. A very nice gose. 4.3% ABV. available at Epic.

Epic's Pulp Addiction: One of Epic's more subtle interpretations on the East Coast IPA. Sweet, juicy and semi-dry. Very nice! 7.3% ABV. available at Epic

Uinta’s The Friesian: Not very Belgian-like. Super roasty with a good dose of hops. Some Brett funk with subtle tartness. If you can hang on until March 2018, I think this will be much better. 10% ABV. available at Uinta.

Desert Edge's Bears Ears Amber: This is an unfiltered American amber ale brewed with centennial hops. The aroma is malty caramel and citrus. The flavor is toasty malt and caramel balanced by a citrusy hop character. 4.0% ABV. available at D.E.

Cascade's Figaro: Dusty dry sourness with raw cheese and fruit. A tasty wild ale. 9.5% ABV. available at Beer Bar.

Cascade's Manhattan NW: Missed out on this one. 10.3% ABV. available at Beer Bar.

 Cascade/Terreux's One Way or Another:  Missed out on this one. 7.9% ABV. available at Beer Bar.

To ØL's Fuck Art Winter's Coming: Yes, this the actual name of the beer. Sadly I have no notes on this one. 8.0% ABV. Available at the Bayou

Trois Dames' L’Amoureuse Blanche: Missed out on this one. 8.0% ABV. Available at the Bayou

Haandbryggeriet's Bestefar: Missed out on this one. 9.0% ABV. Available at the Bayou

 Sorry the notes are brief, but this was too much beer for this beer dweeb on a school night.

Prost!