Day 676: He Said,He Said

Scene: Me and some friends enjoying beers out on the town in State College for Penn State's homecoming. I'm sitting at the bar right in front of a set of taps. Bartender is switching out one of the tap handles and I launch into full Chatty Cathy let's-talk-beer-mode. 

They just tapped a collaboration brew from 21st Amendment and Elysian. The tap handle states (or at least it was close to this as I didn't have the mind to take a photo): 

     Baltic porter

     Lager brewed with pumpkin 

I've had some strange collaborations before, but a porter-lager...with pumpkin? To the Googles! Here's what I learned from the 21st Amendment He Said site:

He Said let’s brew a dark beer with pumpkin and spices and put it in a light colored can. He Said let’s brew a light beer with pumpkin and spices and put it in a dark colored can. So they did both and produced a pumpkin beer collaboration like no other: two black pumpkin beers and two white pumpkin beers, together in one box.

Who are the hes in question? Dick Cantwell, the pumpkin king at Elysian Brewing and Shaun O'Sullivan, the 21st Amendment brewmaster who brought me one of my favorite beers Hell or High Watermelon Wheat.

Evidently the tap handle covers both beers and is a great conversation starter! I lucked out with the light version of He Said. It's a Belgian-style tripel and it poured a hazy medium gold color with an off-white head. It was full of Belgian candid sugar aroma and some malt. The flavor is tons of caramel and pie spice. Not overtly pumpkin-y, but delicious nonetheless.

Beer stats
Style: Tripel
ABV: 8.2%
IBUs: Unknown
Rating: Excellent

Previously reviewed from 21st Amendment
Hell or High Watermelon, Bitter American, more Hell or High Watermelon, Fireside Chat

Previously reviewed from Elysian
Split Shot (espresso milk stout) and I rap Sir-Mix-Alot lyrics, drop a Faygo reference and sing the praises of TJ's Bar
Prometheus (IPA)

Day 499: Come Hell or High Watermelon

I didn't realize I was writing tonight and don't have anything clever to share. I'm also kind of fried from the past few weeks on the job. Part of on-the-job risks is the inability to be clever after seating 900 people at a variety of events during a three day period. My world is all dining rooms, table numbers and worrying that I lost someone in the last table shuffle. Event planning. Riveting stuff.

So how does one properly escape from the world of event planning when it all starts seeping into one's dreams? Good beer. That's how. It started with Day of Marci yesterday with visits to Spring House Tap Room and then Lancaster Brewing Company. A glorious day like yesterday requires a road trip. That's another proper way to decompress.

Tonight's escape comes from 21st Amendment Brewery. Unfortunately in our 24 hours in San Francisco last summer, we didn't find time to visit in person. Don't worry. That will be rectified in the coming years.

I'm not a fan of watermelon so I was skeptical the first time I heard of this beer. Then I managed to get my hands on some and HOLY COW! SUMMERTIME IN A CAN! Yes, it is that good.

It pours a slightly hazy golden color with a loose white head. It smells of wheat and citrus and light watermelon. The flavor is a strong, natural watermelon wrapped up in a nice wheat beer package. It tastes like best thing ever on hot summer days. It has a nice body with a bit of prickly carbonation.

Beer stats
Style: Fruit beer, wheat ale
ABV: 4.9%
IBUs: 17
Rating: Excellent

Previously reviewed from 21st Amendment
Gary's review of Bitter American with some serious Super Bowl analysis and his thoughts on Hell or High Watermelon
My review of Fireside Chat

Super Bowl Edition: San Fran; Who wins?

Day #420 Bitter American / 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, CA
Previously from this brewery: Watermelon Wheat (in my Top 25) and Marci's review of Fireside Chat

Representing San Francisco in my Super Bowl beer battle is a can of Bitter American, a pale ale from 21st Amendment Brewery.  Out of the can, this beer has a honeyed amber color, with a quickly dissipating head.  There are citrus aromas, and the taste is a mellow collection of pine, lemon, caramel, and sweet malt, with some good bitterness at the finish.  This session beer is a mild 4.4% ABV, which means you this very tasty beer will go well with day drinking or tailgating.  Well done, 21st Amendment.  Very well done.

More great can art from 21st Amendment

21st Amendment advertises this beer as a tribute to "unsung, unwitting heroes everywhere," which I guess includes the chimps that get sent into space (like the furry guy on the can).

Okay, so the winner of my Super Bowl beer challenge?  Too close to call - both Bitter American and Green Peppercorn Tripel were delicious, so we're calling it a tie!!!!  Let's go to overtime and compare each city more closely:

Television shows:
- Baltimore: The Wire, Homicide: Life on the Street
- San Francisco: Full House, Too Close for Comfort
Two incredibly hard hitting dramas versus two awful comedies?  Even the inclusion of Ted Knight can't save S.F. here.  Huge edge: Baltimore

Cuisine:
- Baltimore: hard shell crabs, Old Bay Seasoning, crab cakes
- San Francisco: Rice-a-Roni, Ghirardelli chocolate, sourdough bread
Sorry Uncle Ben, you lose.  Edge: Baltimore

Breweries:
- Baltimore: The Brewer's Art, Stillwater, Clipper City/Heavy Seas
- San Francisco: 21st Amendment, Anchor, Speakeasy
San Fran's might have more name recognition across the country, but don't sleep on the quality in B-more. Edge: Even

Make sure to visit:
- Baltimore: National Aquarium, American Visionary Art Museum
- San Francisco: Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf, Haight & Ashbury
While the Visionary Arts Museum is outstanding, it's hard to top San Fran in the tourism department.  Plus, being close to wine country doesn't hurt. Edge: San Francisco

The winner?  By a score of 2-1, we give the nod to Baltimore in this Super Bowl fight!!!  Congratulations on this esteemed honor.  Now, what this Baltimore victory will mean on the gridiron tomorrow, I have no idea.  I just want to eat buffalo chicken dip and drink beer, really.  But good luck to whatever team you're rooting for.

Thing to Think About Today:
In the spirit of all things Super, I present you with Soul Coughing's Super Bon Bon.  Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRqP52c0OLU

Hell-o!

Beer #198 Hell or High Watermelon / 21st Amendment Brewery, San Francisco, CA

One of the beers I was really, really looking forward to drinking in California was the Hell or High Watermelon from 21st Amendment.  However, I realized there's a good selection from this brewery available in my back yard, and I should probably focus on working through some harder to find breweries.  So, I didn't get to visit the brewery or drink any of the other varieties they may not distribute.  Which was mildly unfortunate.

However, all is not lost, as it makes a perfect beer for an evening in my backyard, with some sausages and and corn on the grill for dinner.  This delightfully named beer is a hazy orange color in the glass with a fluffy head that lingers.  The aroma is light, with the scent of sweet fruit and yeast.  The taste is summertime in a glass - a nice watermelon flavor up front, with yeast and wheat flavors.  Nice and easy drinking, this beer would go perfectly at your Fourth of July BBQ or a lazy afternoon by the pool.  As we're in the midst of summer, I like it so much that it's getting a place on my Top 25 Beer list.  Shazam!

Plus, I love the can art - Lady Liberty picking up watermelons off a barge going by the Golden Gate Bridge. Pretty sure I didn't see that happening while I was in town, but admittedly I wasn't looking the whole time.

Summer in America!

This brewery was opened in 2000, and for those who do not recall their civics classes, is named for the Constitutional amendment which repeals Prohibition.  Now you know.

Thing to Think About Today:
If we're thinking about watermelon, let's go to the greatest song ever featuring the word "watermelon" in the lyrics.  That's right, the great Tennessee by Arrested Development.  You know what I'm talking about - "I won the game of horseshoes.  Now you owe me a watermelon."  We had horseshoe pits in the front yard of my fraternity house in college, and I'd always sing that lyric in my head during pre-game warm-ups.  Just made sense.

Anyway, on with the show:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VCdJyOAQYM

Anyone have a number where I can reach these guys?  Thinking about booking them for an upcoming BBQ at my place.  Let me know...

Lucky #13: 21st Amendment Fireside Chat

Remember those strange old days when beer in a can was passé?  Now it's all hip and cool in the can.  I bring this up because my journey to Wegman's gave me the opportunity to add a can to my six pack of single bottles.  Strange days indeed.

Why does my iPad take such shitty photos?

Today we're drinking 21st Amendment Fireside Chat.  This beer is definitely out of my norm - hoppy with clove and nutmeg and a lingering bitterness that I tend to associate with hops.  What drew me to this beer was the can's illustration of a very dapper Franklin Roosevelt sitting fireside with what looks like a brandy snifter but I'll lie to all of us and claim it to be a tulip glass of beer.  The website describes the beer as a Strong Ale with added spices and cocoa nibs.  I'm getting the Strong Ale flavor and the spices, but I'm missing out of the cocoa nibs.  I guess you can't win them all.




Sidebar:  The Breweries "Visited" section is getting out of control.  I'm thinking that section will become the 10 most recently sampled breweries with the complete list on its own page.  I'm also enthralled with the idea of saving all the cans and bottles we drink during this adventure for a final photo.  It's absurd, but so is this blog.