New Beer Friday 11/30/18

New Beer Friday this week is brought to you by Utah's Solstice Malts. For no other reason than their grains are all up in your beers this week.

*Just Added Uinta - Migrator: This Beer is a dopplebock aged in Bourbon barrels. Right off the bat you get rich caramel and toffee. Next up you get a hint of roasted malts, then the bourbon kicks in adding complex vanilla and wood flavors. Finishes a tad sweet with not too much heat. Medium mouthfeel. 8.0% - Available at Uinta.

RoHa - Shambo Juicy IPA: The nose has pungent citrus peel and vague tropical fruits. The taste follows with sweet malts more orange and grapefruit flavors. Finishes with a hint of bitterness. 6.5% - available starting today at RoHa.

Proper SMaSH Lager with Grüngeist Hops: This is a nice bitter lager made with Solstice malts. The malt Profile is on the toasty side with minimal sweetness. The Grüngeist hops are grassy and herbal with a slight citrus quality. If you love a dry lager, you’ll dig this. 4.0% - available at Proper. 

Squatters - SMaSH Kölsch: This beer is made with Solstice malts also. It’s light and toasty with more pronounced malt sweetness. The hops are more subtle making this a more malt forward Kölsch. Light and refreshing. 4.0% - available at Squatters downtown. 

TF Brewing - Barton’s Blonde Ale: This is much like Cream Ale with sweet malts and some nutty qualities. The hops have that classic German grassiness. 4.0% - Available at T.F. Brewing. 

Cheers! 

Welcome Hopkins Brewing Company to the Utah Beer Family

When T.F. Brewing opened its doors a few weeks ago, most of us thought that Salt Lake City had seen its last brewery of 2018 open it's doors. We were wrong. Due to a serendipitous set of circumstances we had a new SLC brewery go online yesterday which brings Utah's yearly total to six new breweries this year (SaltFire, Toasted Barrel, Policy Kings, Cerveza Zoulupes and T.F. Brewing) and there are still two breweries on deck ready to go by the end of the year.

We'll get back to the other two in moment; for now let's talk about brewery number six, Hopkins Brewing Co. The man behind the beer (pictured above) is Chad Hopkins, a local home brewer that has decided to join the fray and up his beer game.

If the space looks familiar, it should. It's the former Epic Sugar House location. Technically the building and brew house are still leased/owned by Epic Brewing; Hopkins worked out a deal to take over the space which has been fraught with an identity crisis since it opened as the Annex in 2013. Hopkins looks to breath new life into the location and will also bring a fresh perspective to the beers and it's Sugar House neighborhood.

Epic just secured a full bar license for the property on Tueday, so it looks like Hopkins Brewing will be an adult only brewpub. More specifics will be made clear in the coming weeks. Congrats to Chad on his first brew day and for getting Utah's sixth brewery of 2018 online. Stay close for the announcement the opening day.

Earlier I mentioned two other other breweries that will be going on line before the end of this year; Roosters' B Street Brewery in Ogden will begin brewing next week and Saint George's Silver Reef Brewing should be going on line pretty close to the same time as well.

Roosters just secured their Liquor license on Tuesday as well and will likely be open as soon as this weekend. So if you're keeping track and if all goes as planned, that will be eight new breweries in Utah for 2018. That's enough to make this old beer nerd all misty-eyed n' shit. Please keep checking back for updates on all of these new beer havens.

Prost!

Photo credit: Hopkins Brewing Co.

The Utah Brew Fest Promises a Unique Craft Brew Experience this Weekend

Workshops, seminars and guest speakers will combine with craft beer, spirits and food this Saturday at Salt Lake City's inaugural Utah Brew Fest. I guess the simplest way to describe this latest evening out for beer enthusiasts would be to call it half beer festival - half home brewing convention.

Not only will you be able to sample home brews and locally made beer and spirits (free of charge) but you will have opportunities to attend seminars and lectures on topics such as:

Home Brewing 101
BJCP Exams
Recipe Formulation 101 - Moving Beyond the Kit
Introduction to Mead Making
Whiskey Sensory Workshop
Small Batch Cider
Brewing IPAs using Brettanomyces
Homebrewing Sours 

The Utah Brew Fest takes place Saturday, Dec.1st from 6pm - 11pm. at Impact Hub, located at 150 s. State Street in Salt Lake City.

Tickets are $45 general admission ticket ($55 day-of) includes a commemorative glass, craft beer and cocktail tastings, access to workshops (first-come, first-serve), entertainment, and keynote speakers. An $85 VIP ticket includes the above, as well as access to a special lounge area with unique beer tastings, libations, a mixologist, swag bags and hors d’oeuvres. Online ticket purchases can be found here.

Participating Breweries and Distillers include:

T.F. Brewing
Shades Brewing
RoHa Brewing Project
SaltFire Brewing
Kiitos Brewing
Cerveza Zólupez
Dented Brick Distillery
High West Distillery
Ogden’s Own Distillery

Organizers say, they’ve worked closely with the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (DABC) on logistics and legality for this event to provide this unique single pay event.

Additional information can be found at the Utah Brew Fest's official webpage.

Cheers!

New Beer BLACK Friday 2018

I hope you're enjoying the long holiday weekend. There's not a lot of New Beer Friday action happening this week; what we do have is some interesting stuff that is all quite different from each other. Be safe out there.

Shades - Kveik 5: The fifth incarnation of Shades' Kveik is a golden sour ale infused with blueberry, raspberry, strawberry and blackberries. Its similar to the cherry version of Kveik but the flavors are much rounder with great fresh berry tartness. If you're into berry sours; you'll dig this. 6.3% - Available at Shades, Bayou, Beer Bar, Slackwater

Fisher - Feast Beer: This beer is basically an American imperial brown ale. You get a good dose of toasty malts up front but beneath you can tell there are plenty of caramel malts. Hop wise there's a huge amount of piney bitterness that helps dry out the whole package. 8.0% - at Fisher. 

Kiitos - Double Dry Hopped Pale Ale: Missed out on this one! If you're a fan of Mosaic hops you will likely love this one. You can be damn sure I'll be swilling one of these this afternoon though. 4.0% - Available at Kiitos.

Talisman - Barrel Aged Gingerbread Stout: This will be released later this morning. It's their gingerbread stout aged for 8 months in bourbon barrels. Damn, I need this! Not sure on the ABV, but it's upwards of 10.5% - Available only at Talisman.

Goose Island - Vanilla Bourbon County: The nose has a nice vanilla/Kahlua thing going on. Very nice. Big vanilla with maple and chocolate start off the taste. Wood and bourbon emerge soon after but it adds little in the way of heat. Dark malts and some molasses round it out with dark chocolate kicking in at the finish. The vanilla creates an almost marshmallow-like feels that leaves you in a s'more frame of mind. 13% - Available at Dick n Dixie's

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 11/16/18

In the immortal words of Positive Force - "we all got the funk (We got it), we got the funk, yeah".
'Nuf said. Happy New Beer Friday!

Talisman - Funky: This is Talisman's first barrel aged sour beer. It was created using Saccharomyces Cerevisiae during primary fermentation and then moved to barrels where it underwent a secondary fermentation with Brettanomyces Bruxellensis. It was aged in the barrels for 10 months picking up some great barrel notes and allowing the brett-brux to work its magic.

Talisman's Funky is described as having all the classic Brett-Brux characteristics of leather, tart cherry, and barnyard with a pleasant amount of funkiness. It is a complex yet balanced beer that also has characteristics of plum, oaky wood, and faint hints of earthy spiciness. It has mild to moderate acidity that helps balance the funkiness and has a great lingering finish that is both dry and crisp. This is an EXTREMELY limited release; one bottle per person and there will be no holds. Funky goes on sale Saturday morning (11/17) at 11am.

Toasted Barrel - Imperial Pumpkin Saison: Haven't had this one yet it. It's described as being made with real pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamon. 10.5%. This is set to debut tomorrow at Brewstillery.

Four Sons - Black Currant Sour K: Lemony tartness as you'd expect from a Berliner style sour, then a good dose of black currants come in adding a smidge of sweetness and more berry tartness. Super tasty and refreshing. 4.0%. Found at Beer Bar.

Mother Earth - Four Seasons Autumn: This oat forward Imperial stout has the added benefit of toasted coconut to round out the the more roasty aspects of this beer. The result is a very enjoyable coconut/vanilla stout that's smooth and dangerously drinkable.12.5% - Currently available at Beerhive and Bayou

Cheers!

It's Time for the 2018 Utah Beer Blog's Holiday Bottle Share

Sorry, the Holiday Bottle share is full. Please feel free to request to be on the stand-by list. There are always cancellations, people will be added in the order received. Thanks again.

It's time for the biggest damn bottle share of them all - the 2018 Utah Beer Blog's Holiday Beer Tasting. Back in 2009, a handful of us local beer nerds decided that our cellars were too fat with brilliant beers and came to the realization that we were all better off sharing them rather than hoarding them.  Our aim was simple - bring a bottle to share and get to know the rest of our beer community. I don't think any of us were prepared for the enthusiastic responses we received to our invitation - the scope and generosity of those who attended blew us away.

First of all, this is the only invite to the bottle share. If you're reading this you know about the party. I'm sorry but my social media pages have thousands of followers; Facebook, Instagram and Twitter aren't conducive to having an intimate party of this size.

This year we are donating to the Utah Food Bank. Please plan on bringing a non-perishable food item with you. 

Other than that concept is simple. Bring a nice beer, cider or mead. It can be in a bottle, can, jug, keg or jeroboam as long as it's "special" to you and you think it would be nice to share. It doesn't have to be rare - expensive or outrageous. Just something that you enjoy. That being said, it is in poor taste to show up with a six pack of grocery store beer and ignore it while you enjoy the rarer beers on the table. You know who you are.   

Homebrew is absolutely welcome! We have some incredibly talented homebrewers in the area, if you've got something that you'd like to share please bring it. Give us a heads up if it's kegged so we can make sure we have the appropriate amount of room.

If you have a tasters glass or a piece of stemware please bring it, you'll be glad you did. Plastic cups will be provided but I'd hate for anyone to have to use them.

You are not allowed to open a beer that you did not bring. 

The Holiday Tasting will be held at a private home and it's location will be given out only to those who RSVP. We will have to put a cap on the number of people attending due to the size of the venue. So get your RSVP in ASAP.

We'd ask that this be limited to "Beer People". People who know beer or are interested in learning more about craft beer. Please feel free to bring a guest (two max) if you don't want to come solo.

Speaking of "Beer People". Some of our local craft brewers will be in attendance as well as industry professionals. It'll be a nice opportunity for you to get to know them - and they you.

Plan ahead for your ride home. In previous years we've been hit with serious stormy weather, while it made for a beautiful Holiday evening, it created some difficulty getting people out the door and to their home's safely.

So, here's the info your gunna need.

Date: December 15, 2018

Please RSVP to utahbeer@gmail.com (we filled up in 6 hours last year)

Absolutely no one under 21.

What: 1-2 bottles for tasting and sharing - tasters glass or stemware.

Non-perishable food item for the Utah Food Bank.


If you feel like bringing food to share, it will be appreciated but not required.

Questions and RSVP: utahbeer@gmail.com

Again, this post is the only invite to the gathering.

The Family and I are really looking forward to seeing you!

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 11/9/18

What a weird week; though it was good to see everyone involved in the political process. No matter where you fall politically, I think we can all agree we all deserve a beer this weekend. Happy New Beer Friday! Desert Edge - Alpha Coffee Lager:  This kelllerbier has cold brewed coffee added from Alpha Coffee, a veteran owned roaster that sends coffee to deployed troops. For every Alpha Coffee Lager that Desert Edge sells, DE will donate money to send 100lbs of Coffee. The beer is toasty and slightly malty with a pleasant coffee flavor that works quite well with the base beer. Great beer, great cause. 4.0% - Available at Desert Edge. Anchor - Our Special Ale 2018: This is the the 44th year of this beer and every year has been different. This version has a nice caramelized chocolaty quality with vague spices, estery banana and a good dose of piney hops. 6.9%. Available at DABC Rogue - Yellow Snow Pilsner: The beer is malt forward with biscuit notes and caramel sweetness. Hints of lemongrass and spruce emerge next; the hop balance isn't quite up to the levels it should be at it tends to rely a bit too much on the spruce tips for bittering. Not a bad beer; I like the spruce but it needs balance. Rogue - Counter Currant: This beer is defiantly fruit driven with black currants dominating the flavor profile. The fruit is tart and pleasant with a small dose of malt. You do get a tiny smack of hops in the end. Not bad. 6.4% - Available at DABC Snake River - Alpha Prime: Assertive grapefruit and pine combines nicely with tropical flavors and medium bitterness. The malt profile id pleasant and balanced with the hops. Nice IPA. 7.5% - Available at Slackwater Caldera - Dry Hop Orange: Toffee malts are present, with a hint of butter. A big than I'd orange pith taste comes in next, stomping out some of the malt's flaws. The end has a good dose of bitterness. 5.6% - Available at DABC, Beer Bar Caldera - Hopportunity Knocks: Orange and grapefruit flavors with pith; balanced by an interesting toffee malt profile - very floral with some pine in addition to the citrus - moderately bitter, but mostly sweet. 6.8% - Available at DABC, Beer Bar Caldera - IPA: Malt forward; caramel and toffee followed by floral & citrus hops. Bitter finish & aftertaste. Mouthfeel is medium bodied moderate carbonation is creamy. 6.1% - Available at DABC, Beer Bar Caldera Mosaic IPA: Grapefruit peel is noticeable right off the bat. From there a good dose a buttery malt sweetness comes in. The end has a medium amount of hop bitterness. There a major diacetyl problem here (buttered popcorn). Not too good.   Caldera - Pale Ale: The aroma is citrusy with some pine hops and a good deal of bready malts. The taste is more bready malts and toffee upfront followed by some light citrus and pine. Bready finish. 5.5% - Available at DABC, Beer Bar Caldera - Ashland  Amber Ale: The nose was malty and sweet with caramel hints. Taste was malty with toffee and caramel notes with  grassy hops on the back of the tongue. Mouthfeel was full and creamy. 5.4% - Available at DABC, Beer Bar Samuel Smith - Yorkshire Stingo: Missed out on this one. 8.0% Available at Slackwater. On a side note: If you missed out on Squatters' Fifth Element release last weekend, well.... actually you didn't. There are still quite a few bottles left; so there ya go, get on that shit! Cheers!

New Beer - Brewery Friday 11/2/18

Three new breweries in three weeks? I'm pretty confident that this has never happened in Utah and it may never happen again. Salt lake's T.F. Brewing lasted only seven days as the new newness; passing the baton to Ogden's Cerveza Zólupez - a nano brewery that will specialize in craft brews with a south of the boarder flair. Congrats to Javier Chavez's on his new brewery.

Cerveza Zólupez Amber Ale: I haven't had this one yet. It's described a s being brewed with Piloncillo (Mexican brown sugar), and Mexican canela (cinnamon sticks). Giving it a malty, rich caramelly taste- balanced- with a good whiff and aroma of cinnamon. Two different batches of this beer was made.  #1 (5.12%) - #2 (8.12%) Available at Cerveza Zólupez tomorrow (11/3)


Cerveza Zólupez IPA: I haven't had this one yet. It's described a s being brewed with Blue Organic Agave from Mexico, and real lime peel (not concentrated lime flavor.) The lime peel, with the Citra hops, gives this IPA a hop forward fruit taste on the palate, and aroma lift to the nose. 7.63% - Available at Cerveza Zólupez  tomorrow (11/3)


 Epic Quadruple Baptist: The fourth incarnation (technically fifth) does not disappoint. The previous adjuncts of barrel aged coconut, cacao, and coffee is now combined with barrel aged almond creating a silky and smooth incarnation of Big Bad Baptist. The almond addition almost gives the whole chocolate/coffee/whiskey things and almost oat like quality that really sets it apart. If you're a fan of this series this one is a must for you. The version I had an ABV of 11.2%, but some are as high as 12.7% and as low as 10.3%  Available at Epic and soon to better beer pubs.

T.F. Brewing Northern Red Pale Ale: This is reminiscent of an old school pale. It has a medium light malt profile with hops that are citrus like to start then transition to more of a pine/herbal bitterness. Finishes dry. 4.0% - Available at T.F. Brewing.

2 Row Raspberry Sticks: If you're a fan of chocolate raspberry sticks, then you'll love this new holiday beer from 2 Row. This beer mimics the holiday treat quite well. It's got a good balance of raspberry and chocolate; the raspberry is particularly tart and fruity. The chocolate part come courtesy of Millcreek Cacao Roasters, it's adds a nice silky element to the stout. A very nice beer. 8.3% - Available at 2 Row, Bayou and Beerhive 

Proper - Country Mack's Harvest Pale Ale: This just hit my radar this morning. It's described as an old school American Pale Ale made with six different hops; including Meridian, Wolf and Dr. Rudi Hops. It's said to be bitter and dank with notes of vanilla and crackery malts. 4.0% - Available at Proper.

Toasted Barrel Oread Barrel 1: I missed these. A Brett Farmhouse ale aged in Waterpocket Distllery's Oread Botanical Liqueur. Look for notes of orange peel, anise, sage and lemon. 9.2% - Available at Toasted Barrel

Toasted Barrel Oread Barrel 2: Same beer, same barrel with a different balance of beer and barrel. Look for notes of orange peel, anise, sage and lemon. 9.2% - Available at Toasted Barrel.

Toasted Barrel Oread Barrel 3: Same beer, same barrel with a different balance of beer and barrel. Look for notes of orange peel, anise, sage and lemon. 9.2% - Available at Toasted Barrel.

Odell Isolation Ale: Has a nice aroma with caramel, citrus, and spices. The taste is sweet and malty with a slight bitterness. Starts with caramel, citrus, spices, and toasted malt. This is a malt driven beer that has enough bitterness to keep the the overall experience from getting too cloying. 6.0% - Available at Beer Bar, DABC.

Odell Whiskey Barrel Aged Lugene: The original Lugene was mothballed last year. This stout is a nicely round chocolate stout that can be on the sweet side. Lot's of barrel notes including wood and vanilla. It's full of chocolate,and lactose along with some light notes of coffee, and surprising amount of hops on the back end. Almost has a liqueur feel. Available at Beer Bar, DABC.

Saison Dupont: Light notes of clove, pink peppercorns, and a phenolic note cutting in. Nice peppery note at the front of the tongue, hint of bubble gum and sweetness, and a nice crisp finish. Super clean and refreshing. 6.5% - Available at the Bayou.

Speaking of the Bayou; they just got in a bunch of sour Belgian beers from Brouwerij Boon. I haven't had any of these yet, but my mouth is watering just thinking about them. These are in limited supply. get 'em before they're gone.

Boon Frambois
Boon Oude Gueze
Boon Oude Gueze Black Label
Boon Oude Gueze Mariage Parfait
Boon Oude Gueze - VAT 109
Brouwerij Van Steenberge - Tripel Van De Garre

Cheers!