Pliny the Younger Tasting!!! March 10, 2013 Sunday.

Here’s the current line-up for the event this Sunday (March 10) starting at 11:00 am at Blue Dog Chalfont, PA.  We’re happy to report that they have added a few real nice beers (e.g. – Elder, Humulus)!

We are really pleased with this selection, and we hope you are as well.

As per the Blue Dog… “This is a pay-as-you-go event.  Like last year, Younger will again be offered in four ounce pours.  We received nothing but positive feedback on these pours last year (I’m not issuing a challenge-I’m sure there were a few folks who thought there was a better/fairer way of allocating the beer).  We think these pours permit more beer lovers to enjoy Younger for a longer time period in a frenzy-free atmosphere.  Hopefully you’ll agree.”

Here’s what will be on draft-

                                                                  

 

Russian River Pliny the Younger

Rated “World Class!” on BeerAdvocate.com

Russian River Pliny the Elder

Rated “World Class!” on BeerAdvocate.com

Anderson Valley Wild Turkey Bourbon Barrel Stout

Hill Farmstead Harlan IPA – Rated “Exceptional” on BeerAdvocate.com

Bullfrog Pomme Par Jour

The Bruery Humulus Lager

Rated “World Class!” & the #1 Imperial Pilsner in the world by BeerAdvocate

Bear Republic Tartare Berliner Weissbier

Rated “World Class!” & the #1 Berliner Weissbier in the world by BeerAdvocate

Haandbryggeriet Odin’s Tipple Dark Norse Ale (Russian Imperial Stout)

Rated “World Class!” on BeerAdvocate.com

Founders All Day IPA Session Ale

Bear Republic Racer X Double IPA – Rated “World Class!” on BeerAdvocate.com

Green Flash Palate Wrecker Imperial IPA – Rated “Exceptional” on BeerAdvocate.com

Tröegs Nugget Nectar Imperial Amber – Rated “World Class!” on BeerAdvocate.com

And more!

Wealth of Riches!!! Local Rare Beer Tasting Event

This Saturday, September 29, The Blue Dog Tavern in Chalfont will be hosting an insane tap list of rare and delicious beers. Taps open at 11am and the beer will flow until each keg is kicked. Then, the next rare keg will be tapped.  The cool beers will last for quite a few days, as there are almost 3 DOZEN interesting kegs.

The Tavern is located at Route 202 and County Line Roads in Chalfont, PA.

Here is the ridiculous opening tap list:

Cantillon Lou Pepe – Kriek  “Very rare unblended cherry lambic, straight from the oak barrels, with almost twice the cherries of the normal blended Kriek.”

Founders CBS – 2011

Founders KBS (Feb ‘12)

Founders Imperial Stout (Jan ‘11)

Founders Curmudgeons’s Better Half

Founders Frangelic Mountain Brown

Founders Devil Dancer Triple IPA

Hill Farmstead Everett Porter

Hill Farmstead/Kissmeyer Collaboration – Holger Danske Smoked Brown

Russian River Pliny the Elder

Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Voodoo Cowbell Imperial Oatmeal Milk Stout (8.5% abv)

FiftyFifty Old Conundrum American Barleywine

Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break Imperial Stout

Old Forge Bourbon Barrel Aged Hank The Belgian Stout

Ballast Point Sculpin India Pale Ale (Rated #1 American IPA by BeerAdvocate) (7% abv)

Evolution Jacques Au Lantern Pumpkin Ale (6.3% abv)

Free Will Napoleon Sour Farmhouse Ale (7.9% abv) on Merlot skins, French oak and vanilla beans, served from a firkin

The kegs “on deck” are equally awesome. Hope to see you there!

Brewery Release notice!! Weyerbacher Sour Black – Today!

Head up to Easton, PA tonight for this special brewery release.  The follow up to Rapture, with only 350 cases available.  Great for summer and great for cellaring.

http://weyerbacher.com/blog/2012/06/sour-black-release-event/

 

Lansdale Beer Fest 2012 was a Success!

Lansdale Beer Fest is in the books.  Saturday was a beautiful day for an outdoor event: 80 degrees and sunny.  My group and I attended with VIP tickets and find it’s certainly the way to go at an event of this nature.  We were admitted an hour before the “official” fest began, food was provided, and we were able to sample more than 2 dozen beers that were only available during the VIP session.

The 4 tents seemed to be divided by wholesaler; Gretz, Origlio, Muller, etc…  It made sense to set up the venue that way, but it didn’t make finding the breweries any easier.  Thank goodness for the provided map, which I used for the first 30 minutes then stuffed into my pocket.  That’s also what happened with my notepad: thorough notes, followed by not-so-thorough notes, then cliff-notes, then a check or X symbol, then done.  We’ll say I was having “too much fun” to take notes, yes, that’s my story and I’m sticking with it! All the organizers did an admirable job with event planning.  As a patron, everything I saw seemed to be going smoothly.

As far as the beers go, the selection was ridiculously good!  Who would ever think that breweries the likes of Lost Abbey, Jolly Pumpkin and Mikkeller would be at a local beer fest.  Impressive.  There was also a very good showing from some local breweries including Freewill, Round Guys and Prism. My personal highlights included: Deschutes Brewing- The Stoic.  Another of my favorites were the selections from Innis and Gunn a Scotch Ale that was aged in various casks like Rum and Highland.  The local breweries are always a highlight.  But, my favorite beer of the day was Mikkeller’s Chipotle Porter- thick, rich, and amazingly delicious with a nice amount of spiciness.  I have to find some more of that.  My taste was only about 1 ounce – they were having trouble with the tap.

One improvement I would address for upcoming years was the lack of swag.  I grabbed a few great stickers for Wells Bombadier and Breckenridge breweries and a couple of coasters.  I was able to purchase a nice snifter from Philly Beer Scene for a cheap $5.  But overall, I would have liked some more stuff to grab.  I’m sure it had to do with the wholesalers filling in for the breweries.  Maybe it’s me, but I like that stuff.

In the end, a great day was had by all.  After the fest, we patronized a local establishment for someplace to sit and eat – Molly Maguires on Main Street Lansdale… great chicken fingers.  Looking forward to next year!

Philly Beer Week 2012- Begins Friday.

All around Philadlephia and the surrounding suburbs, beer will be poured and tasted from breweries from around the world.  The main website categorizes events by date, venue and by brewery.

http://www.phillybeerweek.org/index.cfm

There are far more events than one could possibly attend, so take a look and see what’s interesting.  I’ll be posting events that stand out to me.  Possibly ones I’d like to attend, or events that are local.  I’ll even note some that have particularly good selections.

I’ll definitely be attending as many as possible.  Hope to see some of you out and about!

Brew Day at Round Guys!!

Thanks to Rich and Scott at Round Guys Brewing for letting me help them out on a brewing day!  It was a great day making their Black IPA.  During the day, we milled more than 550 pounds of grain, brewed 300 gallons of beer and were meticulous with sanitation and cleanliness.

Brewing consists of lots of work interspersed with lots of waiting.  During the down times I had an opportunity to speak with some of their customers in the tap room about the 5 brews that are currently available for sale in growlers.  The patrons were quite pleased with the beer and everyone seemed enthusiastic to have a brewpub in Lansdale.  Plus, lots of growlers were sold… a pleasant sight for any new brewery!

Unfortunately, even a well-oiled machine is not without its mishaps.  Notable events were the 15 gallons of water that overflowed from one of the tanks, as well as me knocking my glasses off into the mash tun holding the spent grains.  After digging out my glasses, they smelled like horse-feed for a few hours.

In the end, it was a great day creating a delicious beer.  I went home exhausted; with sore muscles and a growler full of their awesome Berliner Weiss.  Can’t wait to help out again!

Thanks, Guys!

Check out Round Guys Brewing at:

324 West Main Street, Lansdale PA 19446, 215-368-2640

Lansdale Beer Festival Kick Off Event Tomorrow

Save The Date!

The 3rd annual Lansdale Beer Tasting Festival is scheduled for Saturday June 23rd, 2012.

Join us to kick-off the festivities on Thursday, April 12, 2012 at the Blue Dog Pub in Chalfont with a real “buy local” extravaganza. Enjoy some local beers and the first opportunity to purchase tickets to the festival!
We will be tapping beers from: Round Guys Brewing Company (Lansdale) Free Will Brewing Company (Perkasie) Forest and Main Brewery & Pub (Ambler) Prism Brewing Company (North Wales)
The folks from these breweries will be at the Blue Dog to talk beer, beer and beer. This will be a fantastic event where you can sample many beers you’ve never before tried while you pick up your tickets to the festival.
The first 50 go-getters to purchase tickets for this year’s Lansdale Beer Festival will leave with FREE STUFF… (shirts, glasses, hats, openers) … courtesy of the good people at Lansdale Beer Festival.

A Great Goose Island Flight +1

A flight at the Blue Dog contains 4 choices.  Today, they tapped 5 Goose Island beers.  I ordered a flight plus 1 extra sampler size of the 5th beer.

Summertime German Kolsch – 4.7% ABV

Nut Brown – 5.3% ABV

IPA English Style – 5.9%

Matilda- Belgian Pale Ale – 7%

Pere Jacques- Belgian Abbey Ale – 8%

Summertime is crisp and clean with flavors of herbs, fresh cut grass and hops.  It’s very refreshing.  There is a peppery flavor present with a hint of spice.  It feels a bit watered down and it’s very light bodied.

Nut Brown has mild, roasty-toasty grain flavors with malt.  There are English hop notes, as well as slight chocolate and tobacco notes.  It has a balanced hop/malt profile.  It’s smooth and silky texture has a nice moderate carbonation with excellent head and lacing down the glass.  A very subtle brew.

IPA – 55 IBUs.  Styrian, Fuggle, Cascade and Centennial hops provide a fresh, fruity hop flavor with a malt middle.  There is a fine, bitter finish with fruity hoppiness and a piney bite.  It’s lower than average alcohol and IBU may make it easier drinking than a regular American IPA.

Matilda – The spicy, herbal aroma is slightly sour.  It’s yeasty with hints of spices like cinnamon and cloves.  It’s faint, but present.  The carbonation is aggressive with a bit of alcohol heat and great overall texture and drinkability.

Pere Jacques – A big malt Belgian profile with yeast, candi sugar and dark fruit.  Raisin and date flavors present.  Big flavor with a bit of warming alcohol on the tongue.  Great Belgian Double.

My favorite is Matilda, but the flight is the way to go to get some impression of Goose Island’s profile and mission.

Great stuff to seek out  Highly recommended.

Goose Island Update – First Tapping Tomorrow – Thursday March 8, 2012

Reposted from Blue Dog e-mail:

It’s been a long wait, but Goose Island Brewing Co. has arrived in Pennsylvania!  If you’re the type who lines up for the release of the latest iPhone, then you’ll want to be at Blue Dog Lansdale tomorrow.

Tomorrow Blue Dog Lansdale will be the very first establishment in Pennsylvania to serve Goose Island when we tap-

Matilda

Wild in character, with a slightly fruity aroma and a spicy yeast flavor that is as unique as it is satisfying – Matilda is an intriguing choice for beer and wine lovers alike. Dry and quenching, it’s the perfect accompaniment at the dining table or for casually socializing at the bar.

Style: Belgian Style Pale Ale Alcohol by Volume: 7%

Pere Jacques

Brewed with loads of malt and Belgian yeast, Pere Jacques is a wonderfully fruity, malty ale. Pere Jacques’ complex flavors stand shoulder to shoulder with the Belgian Dubbels enjoyed in the world’s finest beer bars. At the dining table it’s the perfect alternative to a glass of vintage port.

Style: Belgian Style Abbey Ale Alcohol by Volume: 8%

India Pale Ale

Our India Pale Ale recalls a time when ales shipped from England to India were highly hopped to preserve their distinct taste during the long journey. The result is a hop lover’s dream with a fruity aroma, set off by a dry malt middle, and long hop finish.

Style: English Style India Pale Ale Alcohol by Volume: 5.9% International Bitterness Units: 55 Color: Bourbon Hops: Styrian, Fuggle, Cascade, Centennial

Nut Brown

Our Nut Brown Ale combines the finest domestic and imported malts to produce a chestnut-hued ale of unusual complexity. Subtle notes of chocolate, honey and fine tobacco give this ale an enjoyable and satisfying “nutty” finish.

Style: Brown Ale Alcohol by Volume: 5.3%

Summertime

The color of sunshine, with a light fruity aroma and a hint of fruity acidity, Goose Island Summertime is the perfect summer session ale. A Kölsch beer brewed in the traditional German fashion, you’ll find yourself enjoying and savoring each sip of summertime as much as you do those hot summer days and cool summer nights.

Style: German Style Kölsch Alcohol by Volume: 4.7%

Upcoming Suburban Pliny the Younger Event, Sunday March 11, 2012

Blue Dog’s “GREAT BEER” FESTIVAL featuring HOPS!

at BLUE DOG Chalfont

Sunday, March 11 starting at 11 am

This is a pay-as-you-go event.

The draft line-up thus far:

Alesmith IPA

Victory Ranch R Double IPA

Tröegs Nugget Nectar Imperial Amber

Half Acre Double Daisy Cutter Double IPA

Russian River Pliny the Elder Double IPA

Russian River Pliny the Younger Double IPA (4 oz pours)

Dogfish Head Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew Russian Imperial Stout

Mikkeller + Three Floyds Boogoop Buckwheat Ale

Ballast Point Sculpin India Pale Ale (Rated #1 American IPA by BeerAdvocate)

Williamsburg AleWerks Brewers Choice Bitter Valentine Double India Pale Ale

Clown Shoes Vampire Slayer Imperial Stout

We’ll be adding some other great beers to this line-up to make it a fantastic day for everyone who attends!

I hope you can join us on March 11!