The Beer Road

#IPADay 2015 is today.  For true IPA fans, I doubt you needed an official reason to celebrate IPAs, right?  I know I don’t.

However, for those of you heading to this year’s Microfestivus, let me say this.  Just for kicks, I say we “officially” plan to move this “official holiday” to Saturday.  Because by my count, there are going to be enough notable IPAs there to keep your tasting glass filled with delicious hoppiness all day.  Not convinced?  Here’s a little breakdown of just some of the IPAs and Imperial IPAs that will likely be available, grouped (hopefully) helpfully and accordingly, with a little info about what they bring to the table.

The Produce Department: One of the most endearing attributes for IPAs are how they can deliver all sorts of citrus like, fruit forward aromas and flavors.  Here are a few.

Firestone Walker Brewing Company Easy Jack (“Session” IPA) – Oranges all day. Also, is light, low abv, insanely easy to drink, with a mineral like finish.  I took this to the beach this year and never looked back.

Terrapin Beer Company Hi-5 (IPA) – oranges, nectarines, this is also fairly easy drinking with some pine and a dry-ish, crackery malt to it.

Troegs Brewing Company Perpetual (Imperial IPA) – Some tropical fruit and oily, piney hops, as well as slightly sweet, as you might expect.

Foothills Brewing Jade (IPA) – Slightly spicy (white pepper spicy?), melon flavors, and shadowy herbal aromas and tastes.

The Party Crowd: IPAs such as these deliver, of course, plenty of bitterness and ‘bigger’ versions more than a “solid malt backbone” to match…

Parkway Brewing Company Four Damn Fights to a Pint (Imperial IPA) – Boisterous and bitter, big grapefruit, malt to match.

Sixpoint Brewing Resin (Imperial IPA) – The name says it all, right?

Hardywood Brewing Company The Great Return (IPA) – Grapefruity, orangey, with a medium bodied mouthfeel.

The Well Dressed: While with others, that hop/malt balance is restrained, in a good way of course, lifting whatever hop profile the beer has to a high level…

Alpine Brewing Company Duet (IPA) – Nimble, deftly constructed, pine, citrus, and a perfect amount of supporting malt.  Just amazing stuff.

Big Lick Brewing Company Peace, Love, and Hoppiness (Imperial IPA) – I always hate to use the word, but for a bigger IPA, it’s fairly balanced.  Well placed pine and citrus, assertive but not overly so.

Sierra Nevada Hop Hunter (IPA) – Grassy, white peppery, spicy, piney, oily.  In other words, there’s plenty going on to enjoy.

Of course, there will be many, many others, including many Virginia examples.  Wild Wolf Brewing’s Primal Instinct, Brothers Brewing’s Hoptimization, Chaos Mountain Brewing’s Ultimate Warrior, South Street Brewing’s Bar Hopper and Parkway Brewing Company’s Get Bent Mountain IPA.

I’ll say it again.  IPADay, if not everyday, is most definitely being celebrated….Saturday.

Cheers.

Posted in Uncategorized

Making their first appearances at this year’s Microfestivus will be a couple of newer local breweries, and both are bringing with them a good overall representation of the beers they produce.  Big Lick Brewing Company opened in late September of last year and since then has rolled through what seems like a few dozen well crafted ales and lagers at its downtown Roanoke location.  At Microfestivus, head brewer Bryan Summerson plans on bringing his easy drinking Status Quo Cream Ale, his ‘session’ IPA Time The Avenger, and his knock it out of the park Imperial IPA Peace, Love, and Hoppiness.  Any of these three are worth the stop by their tent on Saturday.  If you haven’t made it down to their place, I recommend trying all of them.

Also making what I believe is their first appearance at Microfestivus is nearby Callaway Brewing Company, which opened in late May of 2014.  The brewery will likely be bringing their Five Mile Mountain Amber Ale, their Freeborn IPA, and a relatively new White’s Wheat American Wheat Ale, which according to their Facebook page, uses wheat grown in Franklin County.

Witness The Changing of the Seasons at Microfestivus

Although my thoughts couldn’t be farther from cooler temperatures and the end of summer, I was reminded just a couple days ago that fall is approaching when I nearly ran over a stack of Southern Tier Pumking in the store with my shopping cart.  And while that mighty fall ale might not be coming this year to Microfestivus, a couple others will, so should you want a taste of the soon to be upon us season, seek out these:

Harrisonburg’s Brothers Brewing Company (formerly Three Brothers) is likely bringing their Fairgrounds Fall Ale, which uses allspice, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg to impart a sense of the (coming) season.

Nothing says fall beer like an Oktoberfest style lager, and nearby Sunken City Brewing Company may bringing their own version, their Sunktoberfest, as well as their dark wheat beer Nachthexen.

Also, be on the lookout for this one:  There seems to be a chance that Pennsylvania’s Saucony Creek Brewing may be represented by their Maple Mistress Imperial Pumpkin ale, which is also made with spices and is produced with an addition of maple syrup.  It’s a bit sweet, but is a very solid beer if you don’t mind a sweeter fall/seasonal beer.

***Please keep in mind, the nature of a festival beer “list” is always subject for changes…and don’t forget to scroll down for yesterday’s Microfestivus ’15 post!  Cheers!

Posted in Uncategorized

I can’t help it.  You could call it simple curiosity I guess, but I know better.  Leading up to any beer festival, I try to become as well informed and acquainted with the beer list as possible.  I simply want to know what I can try that I haven’t had before, or at the least, what favorite I’ll have a chance to revisit.   I simply can’t wait for the list to be handed to me at the gate.  Days before, I’m on the event’s website, seeing what’s what.  The night before a major beer fest?  I can be found poring over the list, forming a plan of action.  It just may be the craft-beer-nerdiest thing I do.

So, with Roanoke’s Microfestivus craft beer festival just a few days away (Saturday, August 8^th), I figured a quick look at some of the beers that will be making an appearance was called for.  Of particular note are some well known breweries that, as far as I can remember, are making a first appearance at Microfestivus.  There are also some smaller breweries which are new to our area that will be represented as well.  With the disclaimer that pre-festival beer lists can always change at the last moment, and often do, here are a few possibilities to consider:

Alpine Beer Company – Alpine, CA. 

Makers of several highly rated beers, including many IPAs, such as Nelson and Duet.  Due to a recent agreement with Green Flash, who of course will be opening up a Virginia facility in 2016, a handful of Alpine’s beers have begun showing up at tap events in the state, including very recently at Blue 5.

Possible beers at Microfestivus:  Alpine Pale Ale, Duet IPA, McIlhenneys Irish Red Ale.

Ballast Point Brewing Company – San Diego, CA.

Another brewery making their first (I think!) appearance at Microfestivus, but with beers such as Sculpin and Victory at Sea, Ballast Point needs no introduction.

Possible beers:  Grunion Pale Ale, a beer that can redefine what you think of most ‘run of the mill’ pales ales with its dank aroma and taste, Even Keel, their ‘session ipa’, with a slight chance we’ll also see the Thai Chili version of the brewery’s Wahoo White Ale.

Firestone Walker Brewing Company – Paso Robles, CA.

(Notice a certain pattern?  And some wonder why the West Coast still carries that certain sense of revered craft beer nobility.)

Possible beers:  Easy Jack IPA – easily one of the best low ‘session’ ipas on the market, and Pivo Pilsner.

Green Flash – San Diego, CA (and in 2016, Virginia Beach!)

Possible beers:  Jibe session ipa, their Soul Style ipa, and Le Freak.

….and here are a couple of breweries that you might not know of yet that will be in attendance, again, with possible beers representing them:

The Civil Life – St. Louis, MO.

Beers appearing:  Rye Pale Ale and their American Brown ale.

Monocacy Brewing Company – Frederick, MD.

Beers appearing:  Riot Rye Pale Ale, and their HL Rex Session Pale Ale.

Brewers Alley – Frederick MD.

Beers appearing:  An English style IPA and a Kolsch.

This is merely just a start to some of the beers that will likely be at this year’s Microfestivus.  I hope to post a few more in the coming days…!

Posted in Uncategorized

If the recent development of Alpine Beer Company’s beers showing up on draft around Roanoke wasn’t enough, yet another very respected West Coast brewery is being introduced to the area as we speak, so far in the form of bottles showing up on store shelves.

San Diego’s AleSmith Brewing Company, producers of the acclaimed Speedway Stout, has entered into distribution for the area, and at least a few of their more year round ales should be available for sale in the next day or two.  The sumptuous Speedway Stout, a velvety smooth, rich and delicious Imperial coffee stout, leads off a list of beers for our area that includes their Anvil ESB, their year round IPA, and a few others.  I only recently tasted the Speedway, and for any big stout fan, it is simply a must try if you haven’t had it yet.  Most of AleSmith’s beers are available only in 22oz bottle format.

In more regional brewery news, two Williamsburg breweries have collaborated to produce a red rye IPA, in celebration of a growing craft scene in that area.  Williamsburg AleWerks and The Virginia Beer Company, a new brewery with plans to open later this year, collaborated to produce the beer, and will debut it at the city’s Whistle Belly Beer and Food Festival on August 2^nd.  The beer will also be available at the AleWerks taproom on August the 6^th.

Apparently, there is also a new double IPA in the works for AleWerks as well.  So far, a name only entry has shown up on a couple of beer websites, and a label design is available on the internet as well.  With just the name so far – Secret Admirer – (as well as style) to go by, it’s hard to know what to expect from the beer, but with the reputation the other brewery’s bigger IPA – Bitter Valentine – it’s worth getting excited about.

Posted in Uncategorized