Day 640: North Coast Brother Thelonious

I would really like to ask the people involved in the three separate accidents I saw on a quarter mile stretch of my commute what happened. The accidents appeared to be completely unrelated to each other. The weather was perfectly fine. Did someone forget how to drive? Were they caused by one of the dicks I encounter on a pretty regular basis who can't be bothered with speed limits, turn signals, ability to read traffic signs and common courtesy? I suppose I'll never know.

Instead of ruminating on how it took me 90 minutes to travel 17 miles, let's talk beer.

This is North Coast Brewing Company's Brother Thelonious Belgian style abbey ale from the American Artisan Series. For every bottle sold, North Coast makes a donation to the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in support of jazz education. I'm drinking beer. I'm doing good. My day is totally turned around!

It poured a ruby-tinged deep brown ale with a medium tan head. It smells of molasses and roasted, dark fruit. The flavor is interesting...cinnamon, plums, bitter chocolate. Every few sips the dark plummy part tasted a bit more on the unripe side. There's lots of complexity to this beer. And despite all that flavor, it had a thin mouthfeel and was easy to drink.

Beer Stats
Style: Belgian style abbey ale
ABV: 9.4%
IBUs: 32
Rating: Good

Previously from North Coast
Scrimshaw review from me, a Scrimshaw from the Mr. and his take on Brother Thelonious

Japalgium, or Belgipan. Either One.

Day #639 Tokyo / Brouwerij Saint Bernardus, Watou, Belgium
Previously from this brewery: Tripel and more Tripel

Today was an unmitigated f'ing disaster.  I won't go into it here, but let's say the best thing about today is that it will eventually end, and I probably won't be dead.  Beyond that... not a great day.

Beer won't fix it, but I need to write about something on this stupid blog, so here goes.  Today's offering is a glass of Tokyo, a St. Bernardus beer that was launched to commemorate them opening a true Belgian beer bar in (wait for it....) Tokyo.  The Beercycling tour took us to this brewery on our next to last day, after spending the night before in a gorgeous bed & breakfast right next door.  Conveniently, it used to be owned by the brewery owner, who interestingly originally started his business by making cheese, not beer. While there were many great parts, the best part of the B&B was the honor bar stocked with every tasty St. Bernardus beer.

A smile; clearly not a photo from today!!

As part of the tour, we got to sample beers from their tasting room, so I made a beeline for a bottle of this new beer.  It poured a hazy gold color with a thin head - a relative rarity in Belgium.  There are really nice flavors of bread and grain, along with a spicy quality of coriander and pepper.  Good citrus flavors coming through, but definitely not overpowering.  In my notes I wrote, "very summery", as it was very light and refreshing, with a great flavor profile.  Great find!

I like how the monk donned a more appropriate robe

This might be available in limited quantities in America, but I've never seen it, so kudos to me for finding a rare beer to sample.  Yay, me.  Also, kudos to Beercycling for being their first tour of the day, at the beer friendly hour of 10am.

Thing to Think About Today:
Going to relax, perhaps with beer, perhaps with bourbon, perhaps with both.  Reaching into my collection of quiet music to unwind and remind myself that everything will be fine.  I'm going deep into the mix for some Sea Wolf and Middle Distance Runner.  It's not really a song about running, but I like it anyway when I want to slow things down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YHB4sycC-U

"So won't you run to me tonight?"

Day 638: Hopped Up 'n Horny

Today's beer is from Horny Goat Brewing Company. Against my better judgment, I opted to give my hard earned money to a brewery that advertises via over-sexualized goats. But I'll let that go and tell you about the Hopped Up 'n Horny IPA.

It pours a slightly hazy golden color ale with a thin white head. It smells of hops and kind of just like beer in general. The flavor is nice. There's a good floral hop with a slightly hoppy, bitter finish. It is exactly what I'd expect for an every day IPA.

Beer stats
Style: IPA
ABV: 6.4%
IBUs: 41
Rating: Good

Previously reviewed from Horny Goat
Mr. Blog Named Brew's review of the Hopped Up 'n Horny

Game Day

Day #637 Jambe-de-Bois / Brasserie De La Senne
Previously from this brewery: Zinnebir way back when

Today is Penn State's home opener against Eastern Michigan.  Therefore, prepare to be astounded by how quick & dirty this post is.  Well, more quick than dirty, but let's face it - we all would rather be watching football right now.

Up today is a glass of Jambe-de-Bois, from De La Senne.  This tripel has a gold hue and gives off a big aroma of fresh fruit (mostly banana).  The taste has a malt sweetness, and some hops for balance, but the big floral and fruit notes steal the show.  Plenty of banana and apple, with some spice in there as well.  It's a touch boozy; you notice the 8% ABV more than I anticipated.  Nice beer, well worth your time.

tasty

The name of the beer translates from French to English as "Wooden Leg."  Sounds about right, as there's a peg-legged character on their website.  This beer may have something to do with the Belgian revolution, but I have neither the time nor the ability to speak French to find out for sure.  So... there you have it.

Thing to Think About Today:
Maybe I need a pump up video.  Beaver Stadium, see you soon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jq8LvMQmxAk

Wipers

Day #636 Ypres / De Struise Brouwers, Oostvleteren, Belgium
Previously from this brewery: Elliot Brew

Day before the PSU home opener.  Not sure if it's the fact that the season is already underway or what, but just not yet in the groove for a home opener.  Hope that changes a little between now and noon tomorrow.

Back to the recaps.  One of the best meals of Belgium came from 't Hommelhof in the town of Watou.  The group was treated to a special dinner, where the chef paired unique beers with each course.  One of the beers was a bottle of Ypres, from De Struise Brouwers.  This oud bruin was paired with a gazpacho served with a piece of fried mullet.  The gazpacho was simple yet delicious, which is probably how I could describe the entire meal.  I will say that with a few tiny exceptions the food on the trip was outstanding. However, almost every menu I saw had the same items on; croque sandwiches, lasagna, goat cheese & bacon salads, frites, etc.  Nothing wrong with that, but 't Hommelhof was the first inventive and unique - and therefore most memorable - restaurant of the trip.

And the beer?  It poured a dark brown hue, and gave off aromas of tart fruit with earthy notes.  The taste is a heavenly mix of tart cherries, sour apple, and an earthy, oaky taste that grounds some of the tart and sour flavors.  This beer was aged in two different barrels - Bourgogne wine and Wild Turkey whiskey.  This was a bottle from 2009, and the internet seems to suggest it was only brewed once.  Shame, as it was magnificent.  Speaking of the bottle, the artwork was very cool - it depicted a scene from World War I. Another beer from De Struise that people tried was Black Albert, which was widely regarded as one of the best beers of the trip.  I only had a sip, but I would agree.  We technically "visited" this brewery, which means we drove our bikes by and looked in the windows.  They were closed... perhaps it was a Sunday? De Struise wasn't on my radar before this trip, but after having this beer and trying the Black Albert, I'm a committed fan.

Ypres, Ieper, Wipers.  Just call this beer 'delicious'

Two items you may find interesting.  As with most everywhere in Belgium, there is the Flanders spelling/pronunciation and the French spelling/pronunciation.  In French, the town is known as Ypres, and in Flemish, Ieper.  British forces stationed there during World War I apparently couldn't pronounce either, and instead referred to the town as "Wipers."  The second odd fact for you is that this brewery was started by owners of an ostrich farm.  I kid you not - an ostrich is still featured on their logo.

Thing to Think About Today:
A beer brewed to honor those who fought and died in the First World War means we close things out with Edwin Starr and his protest song, War.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01-2pNCZiNk

Day 635: Russian River Consecration

One of the things that I love about living within a clear evening's earshot of a high school is those magical moments when I can hear the marching band practicing. This experience is mostly reserved for late August evenings or the rare Friday night that I'm not on my very own football sojourn to Penn  State. There's something inherently small town about it. It's calming. It makes me feel part of something real. And, man, do I need that right now.

Tonight's beer is Russian River's Consecration ale--a sour ale aged in cabernet barrels. It pours a warm, hazy brown color with a thin off-white head. It smells of dark fruits, very ripe cherries and fruity esters. The flavor is woody and chocolate with sour cherries and dark currants floating in it. There's lots of red wine tannins in there as well. Consecration is just the right level of tart and drinks with a great smoothness ending with a solid sour bite. 

Beer stats
Style: Sour ale
ABV: 10%
IBUs: Unknown
Rating: Excellent.

Previously reviewed from Russian River
Prepare yourself, it's a long list!
My sampler review; horizontal tasting of Supplication
Mr. Blog's sampler review, Consecration and Damnation; followed by a Captain Ahab-esque search for Pliny the Younger but not Pliny the Elder

Redheads and...Well, That's About It

Day #634 Rookop / Brouwerij De Plukker, Poperinge, Belgium
Previously from this brewery: Keikoppenbier and more Keikoppenbier

Fantasy Football draft night, which means I've been spending hours pouring over data and draft magazines and figuring out what the 3rd string fullback had for lunch I'll probably just draft whoever.

Beer always sounds good, and today's beer is the second offering from De Plukker, a bottle of Rookop. This dubbel has a brown hue with an off white head.  There's an earthy aroma with plenty of malt, and the taste has nice notes of caramel and lightly toasted malt.  Not as much malt sweetness as some of the other bruins I drank, but certainly has a nice even flavor.  Well worth a sample if you ever find yourself in Poperinge.  I believe the name of this beer loosely translates to "redhead", if my notes and rudimentary understanding of Flemish are on target.

Smiley beer label = happy beer

From their website, a beer named Rookop "s to be brewed in the St-Joris brewery in Reningelst, Belgium until 1963 when the brewing activities stopped. The brewery was restored back to its original condition in 2012 and now functions as a meeting centre for families with children."  

De Plukker brought this beer back to life, albeit with a new recipe.  I love that an old brewery is now a community center for kids.  De Plukker is for the children!!

Thing to Think About Today:
Beer named after a redhead means... I have no idea.  I guess maybe this means I can drop in some famous redhead Florence Welch and let Dog Days are Over take us home.  Night, folks!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsr8oXxzFEI

Day 633: Fantome Printemps

Throughout the entire vacation in Belgium, Mr. Blog Named Brew was on the lookout for any offerings from Fantome. Fantome is a one-man operation in Soy, Belgium that specializes in saison style beers. Much to our surprise, it is easier to get Fantome beer in the States than it is in Belgium. Go figure! 

So mere days after arriving home this summer, I hit up Teresa's Next Door (an excellent Belgian beer bar in Wayne, Pennsylvania) and bought up one of each of whatever Fantome bottles they had in stock. 

This was the first bottle I broke into--Fantome Printemps saison. It's a Belgian ale brewed with spices and from what I could gather the recipe changes with the seasons each year. Unfortunately for me, I couldn't discern what year I had. 

It poured a hazy, medium golden color with a sticky white head. It smells spicy...lots of black pepper. The flavor is smoky and kind of bacony. Sadly this beer doesn't do it for me. As it warmed up the smokiness turned into more of a wood ash flavor and really overpowered any nuanced saison flavors. 

Beer stats

Style: Saison

ABV: 8% 

IBUs: Unknown

Rating: Average

Previously reviewed from Fantome 

Mr. Blog Named Brew's review of a saison that drives a great deal of traffic to our site thanks to King Boo!

My review of the same saison

Day 632: Perennial and Half Acre Make a Beer Baby

I'm just going to borrow what's already been written about this collaboration between Perennial Brewing and Half Acre Brewing from the Beer Street Journal (obviously correcting for typos because typos! Seriously?): One of St. Louis, Missouri’s newest breweries Perennial is collaborating with Half Acre Beer Company (Chicago). The beer is dubbed Plan B and is the first collaboration by Perennial. Plan B is a sour mash Belgian dark ale brewed with black currants. Currants are perennial berries with a sweet taste.

I found my Plan B at TJ's--my go to beer bar. It poured a deep, dark brown color ale with a tan head. It smells like wet wood and light smoke. The flavor is mild with just a hint of sour. The currants were very understated and I'm not sure I would have noticed them if I didn't already know they were in there.

Beer stats
Style: Belgian dark ale
ABV: 8%
IBUs: Unknown
Rating: Good

Previously reviewed from Half Acre
My review of Daisy Cutter with a warning on the dangers of string cheese
Mr. Blog's review of Daisy Cutter and some excellent breakfast recommendations in Chicago (mine has a far greater entertainment value!)

Previously reviewed from Perennial
First one!

Agriculture and Old School Rap; Perfect Together

Day #631  Keikoppenbier / Brouwerij De Plukker, Poperinge, Belgium
Previously from this brewery: Keikoppen

Back home after a  road trip to New Jersey to watch football yesterday.  Not a perfect day by any stretch of the imagination, but it did include a PSU win, which is always welcome.

I mentioned yesterday that part of the Beercycling tour took us through the region of Belgium famous for growing hops, and right in the middle of this was Brouwerij De Plukker, notable for being the first organic brewery as well as for growing their own hops on the farms next door.  We had a chance to meet the owners, Joris and Kris, who were nice enough to take time out of their day to give a Masters class in hop farming and brewing, share some of their beers, and let us wander around and take pictures.  In case you didn't know (and I didn't):
1. Hops grow on vines that are staked and supported by wires, and the vines grow at least 20 feet high or so
2. There are male and female versions of the plant
3. Having male versions of the plant in your hop field can get you in hot water, as only unpollinated plants have lupulin, the oil that helps preserve and flavor beer (or something like that)
4. Hops enjoy the same soil qualities as potatoes; hence, you often see them in places like Belgium and the Pacific Northwest
5. Hop cones smell DELICIOUS
6. De Plukker uses no pesticides on their farm, instead relying on natural methods to control pests

Grow up delicious!

Enough about agriculture, you're here for the beer.  We sampled a glass of Keikoppenbier, a blonde ale with a huge head and a dark gold hue.  There are light aromas of citrus and pine, and the taste pleasantly reminded me of an American Pale Ale in hoppiness and flavor.  It was dry and earthy, with a touch of bitterness on the finish.  Very enjoyable beer, and I greatly enjoyed meeting the brewers/farmers and hearing their story.

so pretty.....

Per the owner, the name of this beer is derived from a nickname of someone who lives in Poperinge, and describes someone who is stubborn and hard headed.

Thing to Think About Today:
All that learning about hops today means more hops are still needed.  If I need more hops, then I'm taking you back in time to 1993 to let Naughty By Nature drop some Hip Hop Hooray on us all.  Hooray for hops!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA2_-eQ26tY

"cause I'm naughty by nature, not 'cause I hate ya"