#brewtalk

[brewocracy]

And Brewocracy is back underway....

[creativekitsu]

Finally made the logo for the brewery. Still needs some tweaks (and hopefully an experienced eye to look it over), but it’s done. @v@ Now to work on the website!

[brewocracy]

The Dirty Dozen

Let’s see, what is an alternative synonym for the word and number twelve???

 One may assume the word “dozen.” However, this synonym or nickname possesses phrases in several linguistic comparatives; a dime a dozen, by the dozens, daily dozen, a baker’s dozen, maybe a few others. But ultimately, the most bad-ass term always comes down to “The Dirty Dozen.” Well folks, I think we may have found a scrumdiddlyumptious craft beer in a form none other named as “THE MOTHER-EFFIN DIRTY DOZEN!!!”.... subtract the “mother-effin” and you have Founders Dirty Bastard!!

Like, oh my god! Hashtag plaid is my fave!!!! The packaging is so fresh and so clean that it’s a mini portable suitcase full of love grenades. We should ask Outkast to film the commercial for us. Nice way to burst distribute Atlanta market ay?? Regardless of the packaging, the love grenades contain a scotch ale that will have your kilts blowing in the wind. This bad boy helped form Founders into what it is today. Respect and recognize. 

I have a marketing suggestion.... does everyone know of Buzz Ballz? Those awkward, spherical, well.... balls filled with nasty mixed cocktails? Founders should revitalize the packaging scheme with plaid metal balls filled with their Scotch ale and name it FAT BASTARD. Boom. Gotta love Austin Powers. Drink Responsibly. Over & Out

[brewocracy]

Thirsty Thursday : Weyerbacher Double IPA

Thanksgiving is approaching, with a rather balmy transition of seasons. We’ve surpassed the likes of Hump Day and approached the beginning hike of a rough, rocky road called Thirsty Thursday.. at least for some of us. This day of the week is fully embedded with TBT (Throwback Thursday) facebook pics, weekend jitterbugs, and completely disregarding our cognitive crispness on Friday; therefore, some of us pound some barley pops tonight. Instead of pounding, we gently caress the brews with our senses, savoring each and every sip.... before pounding the next beer of course. But with all due respect, Brewocracy would like to make a cheers to the United States of America, all of its’ veterans, and our current form of armed forces and protection. It’s a marvelous feeling making a toast to our country and its’ veterans with none other than a double IPA that rivals the rest of them. 

Towering at a threatening 9%, this independently righteous brewski possesses qualities that will have hop heads quivering in the fetal position. The label seems to hypnotize its victims in a Humulus lupulus euphoria, crippling them into a content, inebriated night of Rangers hockey and Jets football. Not that we like either of those teams, but sports is simply entertaining for Brewocracy. And so is awesome craft beer.

 A hop medley consisting of cascade, bravo, mosaic & simcoe, submit the drinkers into dreaming of sitting on a coniferous, tropical island.... with a bakery. The elements of pine, resin, citrus, and tropical fruit burst through the aroma and taste. Caramelized biscuit and slightly roasted malt notes help bolster the hop astringency. The esters, tannins, and heat from ABV help open the palate, bridge the gap, and finish the palate off, always encouraging another sip. If we were you, we’d grab all the Weyerbacher Double IPA possible. Enjoy your Thirsty Thursdays. Drink Responsibly. Over & Out.

[brewocracy]

It’s Oktober already?!?!

Yep, when late August and early September start kickin’ around, the beers of latter months tend to premature ejac..... I mean, emerge into the market earlier than anticipated and/or desired. This is how the business works. Operational efficiency for the beer industry supply chain is the primary root of Oktoberfests, Pumpkin Beers, Spiced Browns beers, and “fall” seasonals entering into the marketplace while it’s 95+ degrees outside and Frat/Sorority Houses haven’t even been occupied yet. 

The majority of people out there are simply not ready for the demand of oktoberfests and other Q3 styles when they release. But the supply chain has adapted to the market movements on a properly sequenced calendar. These premature market oktoberfest babies are delivered by distributor storks to preemptively land on the freshest beer doormats for proper rotation (for the consumers like us) and for clearance of operational space which is then needed for the winter seasonal releases. 

And let’s not forget people, breweries cannot snap their fingers and create beer out of thin air. It takes time, which is contingent on the scientific relationship with water, fermentable sugars, hops, and most importantly, yeast. Think of this entire procurement and release process as a layered onion, with each onion moving at a slightly different rate; the core is the marketplace and us consumers. The outer layer triggers orbit as the inner layers begin to follow. If a layer fucks up, the core can break. People..... the core cannot break. If the core breaks, breweries won’t have money to begin initial orbit the next time around; which is precisely why many breweries fail. Not for all, but for many. 

Having said all this malarkey, some of these seasonals certainly sell out quickly and some are available in the marketplace a bit longer. At any rate, a man’s (or woman) gotta drink when a man’s (or woman again) gotta drink oktoberfests, pumpkin beers among other seasonal styles. So without further ado, Brewocracy will quickly provide a handful of top notch craft liquids per seasonal category. 

Oktoberfest / Marzen: 

-Westbrook Brewing: Marzenbier 

-Sierra Nevada Brewing: Oktoberfest : Brauhaus Riegele Collaboration

-Great Lakes Brewing: Oktoberfest

-Brooklyn Oktoberfest

-Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan: Festbier

-Victory Brewing: Festbier

-Paulaner Brauerei: Oktoberfest/Marzen

Pumpkin Beers:

-River Horse Brewing: Hipp-O-Lantern

-Dogfish Brewing: Punkin

-Heavy Seas Brewing: The Great’er Pumpkin

-Rogue Ales: Rogue Farms Pumpkin Patch Ale

-Cisco Brewers: Pumple Drumkin

-Weyerbacher Brewing Co. - Imperial Pumpkin

-Southern Tier Brewing: Pumking

Misc Seasonal Releases:

-Rising Tide Brewing: D’Automne (Saison brewed w/ oats & fermented with American & French Farmhouse yeast strains)

-New England Brewing: Ghost Pigeon Porter

-Somerville Brewing: Attic & Eaves

-Allagash Brewing: Fluxus

-Founders Brewing: Breakfast Stout

-Russian River Brewing: Temptation

Neither Brewocracy nor the readers have enough time in the day to list all the best liquids out there. We actually have to go out and enjoy these instead of reading! This was a quick, compressed spurt of inspiration for all of the craft beer lovers out there..... and layered onion lovers. Drink Responsibly. Over & Out.

[brewocracy]

Brew Spotlight 2.15.15

The craft beer scene stampeded the gates of 2015, showing signs of another promising year of growth and prosperity. This industry is placing a common precedence in consumer beverage markets; the acknowledgment of profitability along with larger demands of commodities has constructed a burgeoning forum of business. Existing breweries thrive, triggering further market growth with an increasing amount of start-ups. Breweries struggling with the election of next-generation management will evolve organically, or they will sell a portion, if not, all of their business to larger business entities. A lucrative and cut-throat industry such as craft beer involves competitive means that may hinder sight of integrity; craft brewers attempt to maintain prosperity from within, whereas the Anheuser-Busch guys are embellishing their image by consuming the smaller segment craft guys, e.g. Elysian Brewing out of Seattle, Washington. From an exterior perspective, it is obvious that this market is establishing contingencies of evolution, innovation, and market dynamics. Some will stay, and some will go. Some will die, and some will grow. Why am I not drinking yet??? I don't know. 

Heavy Seas Brewing - Cross Bones Session IPA

Heavy Seas, formerly known as Clipper City Brewing, has just recently begun brewing this session IPA. Standing at an adequate 4.5% ABV, this IPA is larger than life. With a thin white head and bright amber hue, Cross Bones has quick, subtle retention and a well-rounded aroma of floral notes, orange, citrus rind, and apricot. Mouthfeel is light to medium with moderate carbonation. The moderate carbonation balances the hop heavy finish with a sturdy malt backbone. Some pungency from the residual sugars helps compromise the hop astringency, making cross bones a well-rounded session IPA. 

Cross Bones is like sunshine in a bottle, which certainly accommodates for the sheer icebox that we're currently living in. A New England winter at its finest, howling chilled winds and cascading sheets of ice all up in our grill piece. I don't have a fire place, so Cross Bones will do just fine. Thank you bartender, I think I'll have another. Happy Sunday. Drink Responsibly. Over & Out.

[brewocracy]

Brew Spotlight 11.5.14

November is upon us. The clocks have been shifted, in turn, the transcendent sunshine dissipates in certain areas due to Earth's tilted axis. In our case, residing within the Quaker foothills of Connecticut, sunshine is slimmed and darkness is widened. That's right, darkness is upon us. And despite the balmy, mild fall season, the lurking depths of winter will soon approach, and generate frigid temperatures, howling winds, showers of freezing rain, sleet, hail, and snow..... which means lot of time for the indoor activities in order to sustain adequate body temperatures.... which means lots of sex. One common variable facilitating the act of sex would be alcohol in moderation, it calms the nerves and strengthens the cravings. So, in conformation, this whole darkness thing might be kinda good after all, ay? What might be a smooth facilitator this winter? 

Founders Brewing Co. - Dark Penance

    Oh boy, another deviant creation from the malt masters of Founders Brewing Co. An "Imperial Black India Pale Ale." For lack of a better term, that pretty much means Black Sex in a bottle. Frankly, I'm bewildered at the absence of Samuel L Jackson's face on the label instead of Gollum's grandmother. Oh well. 

   Dark Penance pours a .... dark.... deep, black with hues of dark ruby towards the edges. A refined, one-finger, light beige head is formed with cohesive retention that quickly descends. Mouthfeel is medium to heavy a bolstering carbonation to ward off the massive roasted malt backbone. The balancing act in a beer such as this, is not easy. Founders essentially must create a palate of juggernauts that play nice all at the same time. Kind of like seeing 4 sumo wrestlers looking sexy in a sandbox.... it ain't easy. You got this unyielding malt bill that consists of big body, robustness, HUGE roastiness, and other malts that may mellow the harsher bolder malts. And besides, Founders must create a towering hop bill that fulfills expectations, yet does not exceed. Because if one element or the other exceeds itself, the liquid will not be balanced... it will be compromised. Then the yeast must accomplish science and construct an alcohol concoction qualified to get us winter warmers under the sheets. What I'm trying to say is.... Dark Penance epitomizes black sex in a bottle. BIG BLACK SEX in a bottle. I think I heard Barry White's voice when I cracked the bottle.

     Black IPAs and Black Ales are far from ubiquitous, but are beginning to find themselves on more lines and shelves than in years prior. A challenging and bold style.... which is quintessentially... craft beer represents in a nutshell. Remember, wear a raincoat when it rains. Drink Responsibly. Over & Out.

[brewocracy]

Monday Night Football

Ok people, here is the deal. My liver is quivering at the mere concept of digesting any form of alcohol. But it's time for Monday Night Football dammit!! Which meansssssss, I have to drink a beer. And SO DO YOU! It just so happens that my favorite football team is the New England Patriots... so I gotta sack up, crush a beer to take the edge off, and enjoy some genuine, pigskin action on the gridiron. Monday Night Football is something we must cherish. It represents tradition in the American culture. It manifests a social environment with friends and families. It facilitates economic gain for business owners such as liquor stores and restaurants; the businesses create a venue or accessory to the game-watching experience. It's a primary outlet for competing breweries to get in the spotlight at the local bars for a draft line or for a 60 second commercial on whichever channel the games are broadcasted on. So complex for a rather simple scheme. Monday Night Football? Sure. Big ass TVs, buffalo wings, and one pint of barley pop..... or 17. It's got vitamin B-12 bro. Go Patriots! Drink Responsibly. Over & Out.