New Beer Friday 9/28/18

Apparently today is National Drink a Beer Day. This being the case, I've found a nice round selection of local regional beers to help you accomplish this sacred national obligation.

It's also worth mentioning that Utah has two new breweries that have gone online and are now fermenting beer. Policy Kings Brewing located in Cedar City started brewing last week and will hopefully be selling their suds to our brothers and sisters in Southern Utah in the coming weeks. The Templin Family (TF) Brewery went online yesterday and hopes to be serving beer at their Granary neighborhood spot by the end of October. Congrats to Utah's newest beverage playgrounds!

Fisher Purple Power Sour: Black Currents were added to this new brew. They give it a deep purple color that is tinged towards the red. The taste is lemony tart as you'd expect, with a good amount of berry fruitiness. One of their better sours for sure. 4.0%. Only at Fisher

Fisher Best Fresh Citra Pale: The name says it all - whick means this probably won't be around very long. There's a good amount of citra hops in here, which gives it that nice tangerine zing. The malts are equally pronounced giving it an all around balance. Tasty! 4.0%. Only at Fisher 

Kiitos Barrel Aged Barley Wine: This new 13.0% Barley Wine is being released tomorrow to celebrate Kiitos' one year anniversary. Look for big toffee, tobacco and dark fruits combined with bourbon and oaky vanilla. Boom!

Kiitos Fruit Milkshake: A bright red fruit blast, mostly raspberries with some blueberries and plums as well. Kiitos used over 1.5 pounds of fruit per gallon of beer and it tastes like a smoothie. Available in cans and on draft. 4.0% Available 9/29

Kiitos Marzen: is an amber lager and is their take on an Oktoberfest style beer. The beer is malt forward and very crisp. Available on draft only. 4.0% Available 9/29

Kiitos Session Brut IPA: is very light and dry with high carbonation allowing the citrus hop flavors to shine with no bitterness. Available in cans and on draft. 4.0% Available 9/29

Red Rock Fallen: This non traditional Dunkle is dark brown in color with aromas of dark malts, some cacao notes, banana and a touch of resiny hops. Taste has a somewhat spicy quality due to the ginger. The malts are semi-sweet and bready with cacao, banana, clove and lemon. It finishes with some citrusy hops. Medium/light body and carbonation. A nice twist on the Dunkle style, I think you'll like it. 4.0%. This should be hitting Harmon's Grocery stores anytime. 

Zion Pecan Nut Brown: A medium amount of sweet malts combined with toasted grain and pecans make this brown ale the perfect autumn companion. I fell in love with beer on the first sip. Very  satisfying and appropriatly complex for it's 4.0% ABV. Available At Zion Canyon's Brewpub and at Beer Bar for a limited time.

Wasatch Clothing Hoptional: While this beer isn't technically new, the use of the wild Summit County hops keep it different every year; so let's call it new. The addition of local malt makes it a true local beer. This beer debuts Saturday, 29th. at Wasatch's original Park City brewery.   

Desert Edge Fresh Hop Ale. This is an unfiltered pale ale brewed with farm fresh Citra hops used within 24 hours of harvest. Using fresh undried hops bring out subtle floral qualities usually lost in the drying process. This beer has light malt character and low bitterness to let those fresh flavors of peachy, citrusy, goodness stand out. 4.0%. Available at Desert Edge.

Desert Edge CitraNali Pale Ale: This unfiltered pale ale is brewed with lots of Citra and Denali hops for a bold hoppy ale full of bright grapefruit and tropical fruit flavors. Light malty background with high bitterness and dry finish. 4.0%. Available at Desert Edge.

Deschutes Hopzeit Autumn IPA: It starts off with toasted/bready malts and light caramel. The citrus and tropical flavors from the from the hops blend nicely with malts making it very drinkable. The finish has a nice dose of spicy/herbal bitterness. 7.0%. Available at DABC and better beer pubs.

Silver Moon Mango Daze: This is a new brewery to hit our market, it quietly slipped in from Bend, Oregon. It opens orange zest and mango. Tropical and citrusy hops dominate though, creating a nice fruit salad effect. The mango adds to the hop character in a way that seems natural and purposeful.   Mid way through you get mild toast/caramel notes with a finish that is mildly dry and acidic. Nice beer. 6.0%. Available at DABC and better beer pubs.

Dogfish Head Fruitful Fort: This beastly fruit beer dials in at whopping 18%. I don't want to over describe this beer's complexities because there's a lot going on here and it's not going to be everyone's jam. Look for chewy molasses along with concord grape, blueberry and raspberry. Calling it full bodied would be an understatement. It finishes super boozy and astringent. I'd grab some of these and cellar them for a few years. A little time in the bottle will hopefully mellow this fucker out. I found this at Beer Bar.

I'll be discussing these beers and other random beer topics this afternoon with Mick and Allen on KBER101 at 3:30pm. Please tune in.

Cheers!

New Brews Soon For You: September 2018

In today's preview of new brews that are coming soon for your consumption we have what looks to be a shload of new IPAs; guaranteed to cuddle your inner hop fiend. The breweries creating these beers have not officially announced release dates on these, but trust I will let you know when they hit shelves/taps. 

Saltfire We Hop - Lupulin Dew: That gorgeous label pictured above is for Salfires new Wet Hop Ale. Wet Hop IPAs require that hops hit the brew in less than 24 hours from the time they were picked. This can be expensive due to overnight shipping costs but the taste is well worth it.

Saltfire Frankly Mr. Shankly: This IPA is Saltfire's entry into the Hazy IPA game. Look for low bitterness, a high amount of tropical/fruity hops and alomg with a good dose of malts. 

Proper Hopothetical: This experimental IPA series from Proper will feature - whatever the hell the
boys and girls at Proper want. This "mad scientist" beer will hit whenever with whatever. Hopefully sooner than later.

Vernal Autumn Harvest: I love Harvest ales! They're always so fresh and bright and they seem to add more flavor than the typical beers especially when the air outside tends to get a little crisp. This won't be your typical harvest beer. This one will dial in at a hefty 10%. Boom!

Talisman One-Off Ale: You're not going to get a lengthy description here. The name says it all; look for another whatever/whenever beer from high to low ABV. I do know that whatever these beers turn out to be, they'll be in 22 ounce bombers. Seriously, It's a great thing when breweries invest in experimental one off beers. 

RoHa Shambo: Another New England style is headed our way. Shambo is a the RoHa brewing Project's ante into the hazy IPA poker game. This one will come in at 7.0% ABV and should feature a fruit salad of tropicaL and citrus delights. All that and a handy 12 ounce can.


Uinta Pack it Out: This new IPA from Uinta describes itself as being "unfiltered" not hazy so you can
take that to mean whatever the hell you want. Uinta does a pretty good job with their IPAs, even at session strength. They hope you'll take this 4.0% beer with you when recreating in the greatnewss that is Utah. Remeber to pack it out after you pack it in. 

Cheers!

Images found at Shipcomplient.com

New Beer Friday 9/14/18

Kiitos Pumpkin: Typical pumpkin spice aroma with some faint hops. The taste follows with an adequate amount of spices followed by a little bit of vanilla and caramel. There is a small dose of  medium bitterness in the finish. 4.0%. Available at Kiitos and Oktoberfest at Snowbird. 

2 Row French Saison: Missed this one. It’s only available at 2 Row’s brewery as part of their Utah Food Bank donation drive. Only available for a limited time. 4.0%. 

2 Row New England Citra IPA: Missed this one. It’s only available at 2 Row’s brewery as part of their Utah Food Bank donation drive. Only available for a limited time. 4.0%.

Proper Rye Geist: It’s cloudy like a Hef but takes on more earthy hues. The aroma is faint with malt along with light banana esters. The taste starts with caramel and spicy rye malt. The yeast kick in from there adding banana and clove esters. Low bitterness in the finish. 4.0%. Available at Proper Brewing. 

Fisher Mosaic Kölsch: Tropical and citrus aroma. The taste follows with bright fruity hops that range from grapefruit to pineapple. Malts a lightly sweet and toasty. Nice hoppy Kölsch. 4.0%. Available at Fisher. 

Fisher Black Kölsch: If you like your Kölsch to look and taste like a porter this is the beer for you! Nothing about this beer screams Kölsch. However it is a very nice roasted porter; full of chocolate and coffee notes. Very tasty. 4.0%. Available at Fisher. 

Epic Brut IPA: Big fruity tropical hops in the nose. Not as dry as some Brut IPAs that I’ve had, but it does have a low amount of malt sweetness. The citrus and pine and mango qualities of the hops really shine from the Mosaic-like hops. 4.7%. This beer is only available in Epic’s high point growlers

Gordon Biersch Full Pressure Pils: The malts are sweet and toasty which give it a nice authentic taste.   The hops are assertive without being overly bitter. They provide just enough balance to bring it all together. Worth trying. 5.0%. Spotted at Gordon Biersch’s pub at Salt Lake International. 

Budweiser Copper Lager: I haven’t tried this, but I am curious. Anyone tried this? Please share. 6.2%. Available at DABC. 

Cheers!

$3.00 Growlers at 2 Row for a Simple Donation

Starting today (Sept 13th), 2 Row Brewing Company will begin their first ever Food Drive for Beer. Simply bring in three food items and your favorite (clean) growler then 2 Row will fill it for just $3.00. Yup, that's right: three smackers - buckeroos - clams or doubloons will get you a maximum of 64 ounces of 2 Row's finest 4% draft ales for your home enjoyment.

And if that's not enough of an incentive; two brand new exclusive beers will be offered with this charitable food drive. Besides hIPAcrit IPA and Inevitable Amber Ale you also get the choice of 2 Row's French Saison and newly concocted New England Citra IPA.

So, just to recap: That's 3 cans or non-perishable food items for one of your 64 ounce (self cleaned) growlers (max four growlers a day). This offer does not apply with 2 Row's high ABV growlers. The beers will be available until Sept 22 or until they run out.

This is an incredible deal and it's a great incentive to help 2 Row meet their goal of 1000 lbs of food for the Utah Food Bank. What a great idea.

Prost!

New Beer Friday 9/7/18

Happy New Beer Friday! We're IPA heavy this week and the options pretty much run the gambit in regards to the style, this should make most of you very happy. Have a great weekend and don't forget to check out New Beer Friday on KBER101 with Mick and Allen later today at 3:30.

Kiitos Brut IPA: The nose is simple and fresh with citrus peel and waves of lemon and lime, backed up by honeydew melon. The flavor boasts with light grain sweetness and a hint of toast. From here the hops dominate adding a twang a various zests that carry on to the end. It finishes very dry and spritzy. 6.1%. Available at Kiitos, Beer Bar

SaltFire Citra Singularity: Dank orange citrus pith, has earthy and musky undertones with brighter points of tangy juice. Medium mouthfeel, smooth with a slowly gripping bitterness. Moderate sweetness and soft carbonation. Very nice. 7.3%. Available at Saltfire.

2 Row Constant Haze: Starts with big chewy tropical flavors along with a fair amount of sticky malts. This is definitely a full bodied IPA. As you work your way into the back end of the beer yuo get  more mango flavors along with a descent blast of citrus peel and pith. Noticeable alcohol in the finish. 10.5%. Available at 2 Row and most of your favorite better beer pubs.

Squatters Bike Week Amber: Smells of caramel and bready malts with some floral hops. The taste starts with more bready and toasty malts along with faint caramel that adds a bit of sweetness. Back end is toasty with a honey and a floral hop bitterness. light body. Solid all around. 4.0%. Available at Squatters and West Side Tavern.

Odell Cloud Catcher IPA: This "milkshake" IPA has lactic sugars added to give it that creamy sweetness. It has all the elements of a New England IPA. a big hop profile featuring grapefruit rind and mango. A lot of malt and tropical fruitiness in the end. Medium body with a finish that is lightly bitter. Not bad. 6.8%. Available at many of your favorite beer pubs.

Odell Oktoberfest: The aroma is full of caramel malt, spicy hops and a hint of rye. Tastes of big  caramel and wheat malt with some vanilla and hint of nuttiness. The hop profile is low but noticable with some grassy/spicy hops. This a a pretty solid Marzen/Oktoberfest that hits all of the marks.6.1%. Available at many of your favorite beer pubs.

Cheers!

Uinta Looks to Close-Out 2018 in a Big Way

In the beer world it's all about the fourth quarter. This is generally the time of year when the breweries begin to bring out their heavy hitters and and most coveted beers. As I began my research into what is "on tap" for later this year, I found quite a few intriguing options from Uinta Brewing that I thought you might be interested in.

Pictured above is Uinta's Single Barrel Series. This is more of a special edition label than a specific beer. This label looks to be an outlet for Uinta's R&D department. It's designed to give you an idea of  what Uinta is working so that you can provide feedback into what you'd like to see from the brewery.

Next up is Migrator. This is a Dopplebock aged in Bourbon Barrels. Bocks and bourbon are a perfect pairing the sweetness of the beer provides fertile ground for the whiskey to build upon. This beer will dial in at 8.0% and be available in 12 ounce cans.

As we get into harvest time in natural that the breweries feature fruited beers that reflect the autumn months. This label for Valley Orchard Wheat looks to feature cherries and could likely involve other fruits as well. This will probably be a 4.0% beer that could be
more than just a seasonal beer. This will also be offered in 12 ounce cans.

Brut IPAs are going to be the big thing in the next couple of months. Uinta was a little slow in the hazy IPA game, but it's looking to get into the brut game toot-sweet. If you're not familiar with the style yet, Brut IPAs are just as they sound, bone dry. Most of the fermentable sugars are fermented out leaving a minimally sweet very hoppy and dry beer. Saddleback Brut IPA will likely be at session strength and will be available in 12 ounce cans.

Old Ephraim really has me excited. This beer is an Oud Bruin; basically it's a Belgian style sour brown ale. These typically have a dark fruit sour profile that I find to be the most enjoyable of sour styles. This beer will be in Uinta's corked and caged 750 milliliter bottles that are reserved only for the breweries funky and barrel sour beers. it will have an ABV of  6.7%.

Uinta also has an  "Oktoberfest style lager" coming out. I have no image for this other than a keg collar. This will be a high point offering that will hit at  5.3%. Still waiting to see if this will be packaged in cans or not. Stay close on this one as it's getting to ne the time of the year for this style of beer.

All of these may or may not be hit in the fourth quarter so be patient and i'll get the info on these as they get it to me.

Prost!

Images found at Shipcomplient.com