In a way, I was thrilled.  I am looking forward to some respite from this insane heat and humidity that is part and parcel with living in Missouri, but really, brewers…there are other  ingredients that are associated with fall.  And yes, I realize there are other seasonal brews out there–like the many various renditions of ‘Oktoberfest’ beers–but the hallowed pumpkin beer always hordes coveted beer shelf realty space.

I just don’t get it…both from a taste perspective and from a business perspective.  No, I don’t like pumpkin beers, not even the revered Dogfish Head Punkin beer.  But at least I am willing to concede that just because I don’t like a particular style of beer doesn’t mean that my opinions are industry standard.  Beer is subjective.

But from a business perspective, were I to open a brewery, my absolute last choice for a fall seasonal beer would be a pumpkin beer; and this is a decision based off logic, not my flavor preferences.  Why?  It’s simple.  Consider this metaphor:  Imagine that you want to buy a new shirt.   You live in a world in which humanity only produces fluffy pirate shirts.  As you head to any of the many shirt stores, you notice a new one.  You go in.  The store has plenty of fluffy shirts, as you presupposed, but there in the back is a rack of t-shirts of various colors.  What would you be inclined to buy, price being the same?

The t-shirt, of course.  Even your most stick-in-the-mud being needs a little change…that’s why fall seasonals even exist.  What the purveyor of colored t-shirts did, is create uncontested market space. Your typical brewery who decides to pump out yet another pumpkin beer now has to fight for market space amongst craft beer drinkers.  Even if their new pumpkin beer tastes like the sweat of God, it has too much competition.

Perhaps this dawned on the folks over at the Bruery when they drew of the recipe for their yam beer.  Or maybe they just hate pumpkin as much as I do.  You know what reminds me of fall (flavor wise)?  Caramel Apples.  Now that would be an interesting flavor profile for a beer.  Another flavor that reminds me of fall is roasted nuts.  The sky is the limit when it comes to beer.  Why settle for the industry standard?

I myself am going to work on creating my own fall seasonal…what flavor profiles remind you of fall?

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Nate just moved with his five kids…I can’t imagine the packing and unpacking alone.  On top of that, he’s been working on the place they are living in and looking for a job.  For my part, well…the reason I’ve not been writing much is that I’m really busy lately.  I know that many of us could say that same thing, but I’m busy in a way that I’ve never been before.  First off, I have a job after a big drought, so I went from all the time in the world to a work week.  But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

During the 4 1/2 months I was off, I was not brewing while depleting my reseverves of homebrew.  Now that I have a job, I’m brewing like a mad man, so much of my weekend is consumed with brewing duties.  Now that’s just below the tip of the iceberg.  I should probably still wait to say anything because nothing is for sure…but I’ve been taking some major (and time consuming) steps toward a nanobrewery.  Between speaking with people who have already started, are starting, or are planning to start a nano, I’ve burned up a lot of time.  In fact, that’s what else of been doing on nights and weekends.  Actually, there’s a little more to it.

Recently, I’ve been in contact with the TTB on the ABC website and have been talking to the city of Pasadena about zoning.  We are not shy about the fact that we will have a brewery someday, as you all know.  But what you don’t know is that I’ve been told by someone who is in a position to do something about it to put my money where my mouth is.  I’m genuinely glad that it happened, too.  Honestly, I needed a kick in the ass, and I’m going to show how hard that kick really was when I meet with the person on Sept 6th.

So if you are wondering what has happened to me lately—let’s just say that for the doors to open, sometimes the walls have to close around you.  I promise that I’ll have plenty more to write about and that I’ll be back at the site really soon.

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A little known fact about me is that I can be slightly introverted.  While I have no problem with public speaking, regardless of the size of the crowd, I tend to put up my guard when it comes to first time social interaction.  Nonetheless, when Bull E. Vard invited me to brew show down that he and several other Kansas City beer bloggers frequently hold in which two breweries’ similar styles of beer are pitted against each other in a blind tasting, I jumped at the chance.  Although I’d never met any of these guys in person, Bull E. Vard and Yeti (who does tours for Boulevard Brewery) pulled strings to get me (a guy they’d never met) on a booked up tour at Boulevard last December.

The event was fantastic, as were the attendees.  Seriously, as awkward as I typically feel around new persons, none such awkwardness existed with these guys.  Their approach to the beer showdown was simple and absolutely un-pretentious.  Instead of judging each individual beer down to the molecular level, the gents simply blindly taste two beers and vote for which they prefer.  There is no arbitrary scale (like “I rate this 92 out of 100 and this one 94″–as if two points is significant)…just and aye or nay.  In my opinion, this really gets to the heart of beer:  It’s less about intense scrutiny that an lead to reading into flavor profiles, and more about the overall experience you have.  The breweries that were matched were Sierra Nevada VS. Left Hand:  Two breweries whose beers I honestly haven’t visited in quite a while (I’ve been drinking mostly homebrew these days).

In the blind testing, Sierra Nevada took the win, but based off total votes for all beers combined, it was pretty close since Left Handed’s Milk Stout wooped on the Sierra Nevada Stout.  After the tasting, I got to share some brews…a homebrew sour dandelion saison, and 2010 Dark Lord.  I love sharing beer, especially one like the Dark Lord; a brew that many folks only hear about from frothing at the mouth beer geeks.  I was able to taste Boulevard’s Bourbon Barrel Quad (thanks to Yeti) and found it to be delicious.  You may recall my expressed disdain for bourbon aged beers in many a past posting on this site.

I had such a good time, and felt like I left having made more than a few friends.  I’m greatly looking forward to the next event.  Next time I may come more prepared to write down notes so I can do a more adequate job reciting the evening, but since I can hardly even remember which beers I voted for, I suggest you head on down to KC Beer Blog for a witty recollection of the evening. Have a good story of how beer saved as a nice ice breaker?  Lay it on us in a comment!

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I know that hands down, the greater beer selection would be had at the Great American Beer Fest.  Beyond my wildest dreams, I’m sure, there would monster IPAs, sour ales, and obscure beer-blogger-bragging-rights brews just waiting to be quaffed, were I able to pony up the cash for enough tickets.  I’m sure the scene would be cool…lot’s of beer enthusiasts swishing their glasses and sharing stories, beer authors and beer greats chatting it up, and so on.  But how would the culture fare?  Could it move beyond JUST the craft beer culture?  Colorado’s cool and all…I’ve been there and found it interesting.

Oktoberfest would be a different story.  For the most part, the beers would be similar and selection would be whittled down to six brews:  The same six breweries have provided the beer since 1818:   Spaten, Löwenbräu, Augustiner, Hofbräu, and Hacker-Pschorr.  (Click here for more info).  I doubt you’d bump into Papazian, Brooks or Bryson (three guys I’d LOVE to meet someday) or Betty Beer Blogger for that matter.  I think you just might revel in anonymity, lots of golden beer, and a heck of a lot of culture.  I’m sure there would be plenty accordion and tuba led dances, big old barrels of frothy Oktoberfestbiers tapped the old fashion way, and gobs of heart stopping sausage, spitzel, and kraut…God’s gift to the tongue, in my opinion.  I’ve been to Germany also, for what it’s worth, I found it to be an incredible place to visit.

I’ve been to neither of these events.  At this point in life, I’ll be relying on a wealthy benefactor to make it happen.  Given my lack of experience, I’d choose to visit Oktoberfest.  The history and culture of the mass beer party is compelling enough, let alone the allure of a foreign land.  But, besides this…sometimes I feel like I live the Great American Beer Fest on a weekly basis as I peruse the internet land of beer writing.  There seems to be little difference besides the coagulation of beer writers  and their respective beers in one building.

How about you?  If someone paid your fare, which festival would you choose to attend and why?

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All of us are aware that life encounters can lead us meandering down the most unexpected paths.  Through a calculated encounter, I met someone who may be very helpful for the future of a brewery.  In reality, she already was. Let it suffice to say that I began taking the future even more seriously.  But one piece of the puzzle was still missing: real people who had really started a nano brewery.  Sure concepts are great but I’m the type of person that likes speaking and learning from other human beings.

In comes Hess brewing (I have to mention that I spoke to several other nanos and they were also very helpful).  Imagine my surprise when I realized that several nano breweries were operating within a three or four hour radius, I decided it would be foolish not to talk to people who had done it.  I emailed and then called Mike Hess from Hess brewing in San Diego.  It wasn’t long until we were scheduling a call time and also the certainty of a future visit.

Hopefully, I don’t have to tell you that brewers are a busy bunch.  I don’t think that busy even does justice to nano breweries.  They are often known as people who have “real” jobs and love brewing as a second job.  So, time is at a serious premium for guys like Mike (nice name, by the way).  When he told me to call him any time after 5pm or on Saturday, I was, once again, reminded how great people who love beer are.  Not knowing me from Adam didn’t stop him from helping me with some questions I had, offering details, or warning me of possible pitfalls.  He gave me about an hour and a half of his time and would have likely given me much more.

Wow!  What a warm and fuzzy story, right?  Well, that may be the case, and I’m glad if it gave you butterflies.  But what I really want you to take away from this is that if you are even near San Diego, you should go patronize this brewery.  Not only does a company like Hess represent the American ideal of small entrepreneurial business as the backbone of our nation, it represent the fortitude, passion, and hospitality that is indicative of true American character.  Who wouldn’t want to support a company like that?

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Here is the basic recipe.  I have to credit, Amy for her simple calzone recipe as pretty much the basis for what I’m doing with mine, but I’ve tried to improve upon it for my needs.

Dough:

3 cups flour (all purpose works fine)

1 Teaspoon salt

1 Teaspoon sugar (I like a slightly sweeter dough)

4 teaspoons yeast (a packet is typically 2 1/4 teaspoons)

7/8 cup water (I like to mix half water and half beer)

1/8 cup + 1 more Tablespoon Olive Oil (you’ll notice that I like quite a bit of olive oil in the recipe)

Here are the instructions for the dough:  Take everything but the flour and yeast and stir together, making sure it’s between 105-120º.  Add the yeast and stir, allowing to re-hydrate for about 15 min.  Once the yeast is frothy, add it to the flour and mix it with a spoon until it’s a very loose dough.  Pick up the loose dough and kneed it by hand until it’s smooth and supple.  This should be a 5 to 10 min process.  Place the dough in an (olive) oiled bowl and move it around ensuring that the dough is coated.  Let it sit in a warm place for about an hour.  I like to heat my oven at the setting of 200° (or the lowest setting) for about 2 min and turn it off.  Then I place the dough in there, which encourages it to rise fast an become airy.

Once the dough is doubled, punch it down and kneed it until the oil oil absorbs and there is a smooth dough again. Break the dough into 4 balls and let them rise for about 20 min.  Take the individual balls, along with a little flour and work them into thin circular disks.  Add your favorite ingredients and fold the dough over itself into a half circle and cook.

Tip: This calzone is good cooked in the oven.  But I found what really took this recipe to the next level was grilling it over charcoal and wood chips.  With a brush, I add a little olive oil while the calzone is cooking on the grill.  This soaks into the dough and encourages the smokiness to come with it.  I cook both sides of the calzone until it darkens quite a bit (3-5 min each side) and then move them to the edges and close the grill up.  In effect, I’m baking them on the grill.  Believe me when I tell you that this makes a world of difference.  Plus, I’m not heating up the house.  The total cooking time should be about 15-20 min, but keep a close eye on them. Forget the wine, serve with a smoked beer or a smoky toned beer, and you will be in heaven.

Perfect Tomato Sauce: Unless you want to use fresh tomatoes and cook them down all day (I’ve done this), here is a quicker but great sauce for the filling.  Of course, what you prefer can make all the difference, but I’m going to show you what I like to do so that my sauce will incorporate the entire filling of the calzone because I think it melds the flavors.

1 Onion (medium), caramelized on a lower heat setting.  Add a bit of sugar to encourage this process.

1/4 cup of wine and a lighter bodied beer mixed (add after caramelization)

1 Teaspoon balsamic vinegar (add after caramelization)

add the rest of your veggies (garlic, bell peppers, banana peppers, hot peppers…all depend on your taste and how much you like them) cook until soft.

Add 15 ounces of tomato paste and more wine and beer.

Add marjoram, basil, oregano, thyme to taste.  Marjoram is strong but important for a pizza sauce flavor.

Add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)

Add 2 to 4 teaspoons of sugar (I love sweet sauces) to taste

Add olives (if you like them and remember to account for the saltiness)

Add spinach, kale, chard, or nothing leafy.  I find this is a good way to sneak in some extra nutrition.

A lot of this stuff is simply a matter of preference and tastes, which is why I don’t put amounts.  Cook it the way you like it and you’ll find that it’s just right (for you at least).  For instance,  I like bold flavors, thick sweet sauces, beer flavors, plenty of garlic and a yeasty calzone.  You’ll have to try this recipe and see what you like the best.  At any rate, the dough is going to be the same, what you put inside makes it yours.  Cheers!

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After defending BrewDog achievements of making a 32% and a 41% beer, I have to defend the creation of a  55% beer called The End of History, a reference to Democracy as the high human political achievement (the implication that the human political struggle reaches its terminus in democratic ideals). This is another notable achievement and landmark in the making of a massive beer.  Imagine, 55% ABV.  Wow!  Read about it here.  But the accomplishment of making a 55% beer is where I have to end my applause for BrewDog.  Here’s the deal:

We live in a time where all of us are more and more sensitive, more and more concerned about political correctness, and more and more readily offended at things like, say, a stuffed, dead animal with a beer running through its body.  I for one am not actually that discomfited with the idea, especially since these animals were already dead.  I’ve hunted for several years and am not at all uncomfortable with an animal hide.  Let me say, though, that I can see how someone might be bothered about it.

Sausage jokes don’t bother me either.  Rhetoric can be a fun and absolutely funny vehicle for making a point or, in this case, selling a beer.  All this to say that it’s not a matter of offending my sensibilities that is the cause of writing this small post against what BrewDog is doing.  Those of you who’ve read this site for any amount of time know that I’ve defended BrewDog against the evil Mr. Protz and have even joined in the fun of trying to make my own “world’s strongest beer.” (scroll down to get to the posts)  I get it, I really do.  Pushing boundaries is fun, making a huge beer is a challenge, and taking such care in making such a huge product can be a truly intense engagement.  For all that, I don’t fault James Watt or BrewDog in the least.

What I do find disturbingly problematic is the price.  Now I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve spent a pretty penny on a beer here or there.  In fact, I purchased Utopias in the past.  That beer set me back $160 for a 24-ounce re-sealable bottle. Perhaps this is a self-admission that my own thoughts are contradictory or even self-defeating from the outset…maybe. Honestly, I’ve even argued that a degree of aristocracy is a necessary evil if beer is to gain a reputation that has a chance of being on par with wine.  Yet somehow I doubt that drinking from a dead animal is going to accomplish that goal.

While I did acknowledge that a degree of aristocracy is necessary for the beer culture, I took the argument in the direction of rare beers and price appreciation rather than off the line price.  A small distinction, I admit.  There are 11 available bottles of Brewdog’s beer and one more still being worked on.  So, 12 bottles of this beer will exist.  The prices for the various bottles are currently $764.15 or $1069.81.  My guess is that the one hare bottle will be a hair more expensive than the others, so I’m assuming that beer will be around $1400.00.  By the way, your eyes are seeing this correctly.  The latter two prices do make this the most expensive modern beer (I’ve seen an 1800s vintage beer sell for $300,000), scraping by the former $1,000.00 mark.  This takes beer appreciation and aristocracy to a new level and doesn’t seem very democratic at all.  An alternative approach to history would suggest that the victors (write powerful and wealthy) write history.  Maybe a name like “spoils to the victor” would be a better name for the brew.

Sure, if the money one pays for the beer covers the cost of a flight to and stay in Scotland, the beer, and maybe a tour of the brewery, then it could be a comfort to buy the beer.  Alternatively, wouldn’t it have been cool for BrewDog just to ship the bottles to a few people just to give them the exclusive beer, thus building their reputation?  I personally think another approach was needed rather than just selling 12 bottles of beer to the public.

Let’s make clear which public we are speaking about. The public in view is not you and me.  Generally, two people are buying this beer.  Crazed beer fanatics who must try everything and spend every last dime they have on beer or people who don’t care a bit about spending $1,000 on a bottle of beer.  I’ve recovered from being of the former disposition and will likely never  be a member of the latter group.  So, generally speaking, people with a fair amount of expendable income will be buying the beer.  Let me be clear, I’m not a class warrior: but isn’t this the problem?

What I mean is, a beer like this undermines what BrewDog is trying to do.  By their own self-admission, they are attempting to undermine the ubiquitously bland lagers and ales from the market, or at least offer an alternative.  Great, at least you are doing it 12 bottles at a time, the average price for a bottle being roughly $920.  I know that this probably offers the average drinker in the UK a viable alternative.  ”We want to introduce as many people to the amazing world of craft beer as we can, to change people perceptions and challenge their understanding of what beer is.”  I don’t think you are going to accomplish it this way.  Perhaps their other slogan, ”We are selfish: we make the beers we want to drink,” is the more accurate depiction of their attitude.  I wish it could be both, but it certainly isn’t in this particular case.

Now, I realize there are some political aspects to the BrewDog reaction as well, so I don’t want to oversimplify the matter.  They’ve been fighting with temperance people, beer people, government people and people from other countries. And, let’s not forget, the tax structure for beer in the UK is ABV-based, not flat barrel price like in the U.S., so some of the cost from the tax structure really dictates the cost of the final product.  But, let’s be honest, they still decided to make and sell this product.  All this to say that I really want to offer BrewDog the benefit of the doubt where I can.  But I’ve become weary of defending them on this account.

Those who read this might make the argument that ultimately people don’t have to buy the beer if they don’t want to spend the money.  I fully grant this point, but I am thinking in terms of principles.  Should this beer cost this much regardless of who buys it?  That’s the sort of question I ask.  Or is it consistent with the philosophy that BrewDog has set out?  I would argue that it’s yes and no.  Yes, because they are pushing the limits, and no, because they are not doing what they’ve defined themselves as doing, that is, offering the normal consumer a viable alternative.  It sounds democratic and capitalist on the surface (I think capitalist implies democracy, which means “of the people,” so I don’t like separating them so readily). But, in practice, it seems mostly an elitist and aristocratic beer.

As far as taste goes, I doubt that I’d even have a chance to taste it.  Who knows exactly what the beer will taste like?  Will it be an alcohol bomb like the rest of BrewDog’s stuff or will it be sweeter and more balanced?  Will it resemble a triple at all?  Who knows.  What I can tell you about the beer without tasting it is that it’s a little salty for me.

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I do care what’s in my beer.  I care that it’s a quality product made with malts, hops, water and good yeast.  In short, I care that the beer I’m drinking doesn’t have fillers and cheap production.  But for breweries to have to list ingredients like ginger, the reviled addition for Peter, is a discomfiting proposition to me.  The example I used on Peter’s post and the one I’m going to use here deals with Wit beer.

The exotic spices used in Wit beer are notoriously hard to pinpoint.  Some of the world’s best tasters may have a guess, albeit an uncertain one, as to which ingredients are actually used.  The mysterious appeal and subtle qualities of a Wit beer are essentially based on these “secret” ingredients.  Now suppose the ingredients of the Wit are required to be disclosed.  First off, the proprietary aspects of the beer would be revealed.  Obviously, the amounts are not disclosed but the basic structure of the beer is.  Is it fair to require the disclosure of ingredients based on what others might find distasteful?  I don’t think this is enough to dictate an ingredient list.

Known allergens are a different matter because of health risks.  In the event of those allergens, there should absolutely be a distinct and explicit reference to the said allergen.  In fact, I’m sure it’s a legal requirement.  Thus, I don’t think allergens are the real issue here.  The question is whether or not an ingredient list should be required.  For me, the answer is a resounding no.  To force this takes away proprietary uniqueness from the brewer (I noted this above).

We might think that because this is required of food that we have it on beer as well.  But even Ketchup leaves room for a unique product.  I can’t count the number of food labels that list several ingredients and then the word spices.  So, would listing two row malt, crystal malt, yeast, hops and various spices really solve the issue?  How much of a particular spice needs to be in the beer to make it a list worthy?  These are the sort of questions that we would have to ask.  Perhaps in the end we would have to have beer label that are even more specifically navigated than the Ketchup label.

Let’s be honest here, generally speaking, the drinker will only be out a beer or a six pack worth of cash.  I look at it like buying a salsa that you might not like.  Now you know you don’t like it through experience.  What’s more, we are in the internet age and while many of us beer reviewers avoid other reviews of the beer we are drinking, the information about most of these beers is out there.  The reason for avoiding the reviews is obvious.  One doesn’t want read reviews to influence how he or she thinks about the beer.  However, a beer with a disliked herb or spice that is pronounced enough to note is not really a secret in a beer review.  Therefore, the spice could be avoided.

The temptation is to think that because everyone can taste it, what’s the big deal about having to disclose it?  But I’m sure many of us know the philosophical concept of slippery slope argumentation; the problem with this type of logic is that stopping points are fluid and eventually the lowest common denominator is reached and required.

(As a side note: Matt [in the comments section] has stated that the ATF has a technical requirements for listing things like ginger but that just listing “spices” is the way that brewers get around it.  If so, I’m glad that brewers can get around it.  Furthermore, the requirement seems to extend not to labeling information but product; which of course means that it has to be somewhere but not necessarily on the label.)

Another point that Peter brings up is that he would like to see ingredients that are not common for the style listed.  This is exactly what I don’t want to see.  The reason I don’t is that what makes the beer not “common for the style” is the uncommon ingredient.  So, what makes the beer different and unique?  Uncommon, if you will, is that is has a specific ingredient.  I could personally see the listing of the unique ingredients as being detrimental to experimentation and exploration.  Instead of searching for one’s own unique path, there might be a temptation of act based on what other unique additions others have done.  The point it obvious.  The very thing that makes the beer unique for the style is the very thing that will be required to be listed…?  I’m not a fan.

However, these are all dwarfed by what I see as the biggest problem with the line of argumentation.  In the comments, Peter notes that he thinks ABV should be required on all beers.  However, the reason for the disparity of listing, listing over certain amounts, or listing at all is the fact that individual states are allowed to legislate.  The real problem of forcing the listing of ABV, unusual ingredients that pose no danger of allergy, or encouraging uniformity across the board is that there is only one entity that could make this happen.  I’m sure you know who I’m talking about.  I think that last thing we need is more government involvement.  This is the same government that put the three-tier system in place.  Yes, I’m arguing guilt by association.

Thomas makes a good implicit point (and Matt’s explicit point) in the comment section when he says breweries don’t have access to a lab.  The implicit point is higher cost of obtaining various points of information.  This is the other side that would come with government requirements or even voluntary involvement, more cost for the brewery which will be passed on to the consumer (this would be yet another competitive edge for the big boys as they already have labs, which are figured into their product cost).  So, this requirement would not simply be a “pain in the arse,” as Lee implies in the comments section; it’s about cost and uniqueness.  Thomas’s other point that the ATF doesn’t want to imply health benefits by listing various aspects to a brew is well taken.

I want to be fair to Peter.  He says that he is against regulation.  But the only way that what he is stating is going to happen is one of two ways: either the brewers agree to do it themselves or the government makes them.  I personally don’t think either would be good for business.  After all, what about those of use who don’t like a certain hop or malt that much…shouldn’t that be listed, too?

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So, I had an idea (not sure if it’s going to flop or fly) that involves making a simple statement and then asking our readers to finish the thought.  I think it will be fun and all of us will get to know each other better.  Without further ado, here is the first statement.

“I love hops in a beer because they…”

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Folks, one of the great things about Erik’s fundraising is that he can exceed the amount given and add it to further his success. I’ve personally been out of for for 3 1/2 months (I do have a temp job and have an interview tomorrow), so I’ve not been able to give.  However, I plan on giving some money before his fundraising ends.  Please go to his fund page and do the same.  Let’s help him to more than succeed.  It’s no mystery that we can be a part of it.

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