Sam Adams Scotch Ale
Smoky, malty and brewed with traditional British ale hops, this is a brew for adventurous beer drinkers. (Description provided by company)
I arrived at Old Town Beer Exchange in downtown Huntsville eager to find a good beer to review. My malty sweet tooth was in control, so when I saw Florence's Singin' River had a doppelbock out, I immediately knew I would be taking a crowler of Orchestrator home with me.
Shortly after getting home, the crowler was popped open and the clear copper brew was poured into a glass. I may have been a bit timid with the pour but I expected a little bit more than the very thin cap which never quite melted away. It seemed to be mostly made up for the fact that it left plenty of white lacing on the glass.
I got a general sweet smell when I first brought the pint glass to my face. As I drank more, I could discern caramel and a bit of booze. I'm a bit disappointed by the lack of aroma. I decide to leave the crowler on the counter to warm up in hopes of eliciting a stronger aroma on my second glass. Sure enough, the aroma bloomed as it warmed. The caramel still dominated, but I started to pick up some vague dark fruit aromas (kinda plum-ish) along with a char affectation to the caramel sweetness. The warming definitely helped. It wasn't a night and day difference, though. The second glass seemed like a more fuller experience.
Beer is made of these core ingredients: barley/malt, hops, water, and yeast. In this blog post, I'll be writing about malt and some of what I've been reading in Robert Moser's Tasting Beer. First off, barley is the grain of choice for making beer, although other options exist. But regular old barley isn't in a good condition for releasing starches for making alcohol. Barley first needs to be malted.
First, barley is soaked in water for about 24 hours, or until it reaches 45% water content. The grain is pulled from the water and allowed to cool and dry. During this process, the grains will start to sprout. This growth and cracking of the shell is vital to getting what brewers want from the malted barley. The grain is then kilned to complete the drying process and to roast the grain to the desired darkness. It is possible to create two different malts of similar color but different flavors by varying the moisture content during kilning. If roasted dry, there will be a sharp, biscuit-like toastiness. If roasted moist, there is more of a toffee-like richness.
Smoky, malty and brewed with traditional British ale hops, this is a brew for adventurous beer drinkers. (Description provided by company)
Czech Style Pilsner is a celebration of hops. It was first brewed in the Czech town of Pilsen in 1842 using special yeast smuggled out of Germany by a Czech monk. The region surrounding Pilsen is famous for its hops. Pilsner was the first clear golden brew: beers before it were dark and cloudy.
Märzen (Mayrt-zen) was historically brewed in Bavaria from March through the end of October.
Gordon Biersch FestBier celebrates fall and the flavor profiles of beers served at the modern day Oktoberfest. Originally, the Oktoberfest was held in the middle of October.
Our lightest, most refreshing lager, delicately hopped with a clean, crisp finish. The demand was so high when it was first brewed in the 1870's in Germany that it was exported to other German states. Hence the name "Export". (Description provided by company)
Every year we brew a brown ale to celebrate the holidays. To make each year’s special, we alter the recipe. This year we wrapped caramel and dark fruit malt flavors inside a creamy toasty brown ale. May your holidays be filled with Festivity. (Description provided by company)
An ale brewed with Kentucky honey and ginger and aged in oak bourbon barrels. (Description provided by company)
Cider fermented to amplify the fragrance and essence of the apples whilst achieving a delightful, lip-smacking dryness. (Description provided by company)
Coffee and craft beer are both drinks that inspire passion in the faithful. As we dreamed up ideas for a winter beer, they seemed destined to come together.
For this week's Curious Tuesday we have made a new take on an old favorite. We had our friend over at 1000 Faces Coffee brew us some fresh cold brew (the beans are from Brazil) and let it age in a rye whisky barrel.