Author Topic: The Beer Thread  (Read 3907891 times)

Space Freely

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6615 on: March 27, 2016, 09:24:46 am »
Has anybody been to Pen Druid? Very interesting beer list, and the owners are on Thrill Jockey.
We were thinking of going today following a hike, but the forecast looked too iffy last night so we bagged it for today.

https://www.facebook.com/pendruidbrewing/photos/a.1629129004022210.1073741829.1517347478533697/1710847842516992/?type=3&theater

http://www.pendruid.com/about/



Pen Druid Brewing focuses on mixed and wild fermentation, barrel fermenting and aging, and spontaneous fermentation. The brewery is owned and operated by the three brothers Lain, Van and Jennings Carney who are in the psych-rock band Pontiak.

The brothers have spent nearly a decade traveling North America and Europe, playing music and experiencing the local beer traditions. They've released 10 albums on the legendary Chicago independent record label Thrill Jockey Records. In between tours they would brew beer at home.

The name, Pen Druid, comes from their old family farm which sits on the Thornton River in Rappahannock County, Virginia, just a few miles downstream from the brewery.

In the winter 2015/2016 the brothers isolated their own cocktail of wild yeasts and bacteria from the Virginia Piedmont reflecting the terroir of Rappahannock. And in that spirit of capturing the terroir of the Rappahannock Piedmont, the brothers also began their spontaneous fermentation program which employ two copper-lined coolships.

That same winter the brothers expanded their production and are now brewing on a 5bbl system, using an oak mash tun and open oak barrel fermenters.

They opened Pen Druid Brewing in August 2015 partnering with Jonathan Staples from Black Hops farm.

Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6616 on: March 27, 2016, 10:07:57 am »
^ looks interesting
isn't this close to you Walky?

look they even named one after you

SPACE - Barrel-fermented and aged Imperial Farmhouse Biere de Miel. Fermented with 60lbs Rappahannock Goldenrod Flower Honey from Windsong Apiary, two Saccharomyces strains, and Brettanomyces Lambicus and Brettanomyces Claussenii.
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slack

walk,on,by

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6617 on: March 27, 2016, 08:04:49 pm »
It is roughly close to me, about an hour. I will have to go check it out. There's a Distillery near there as well and some excellent wineries. Also a beautiful part of Virginia.

Unsanity

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6618 on: March 27, 2016, 08:12:25 pm »
that place looks awesome. I am going, next opportunity I get.

Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6619 on: March 27, 2016, 11:36:25 pm »
South Florida Beer trail 2.0

Went to the Barrel of Monks 'you only turn one once' party with a VIP pass and was privy to some extremely flavorful and dynamic brews

It was a hot day for this time of year, so starting off with Hunahpu's Imperial Stout by  Cigar City Brewing (11%) was a little harsh in the heat, but it was very tasty.  I then had the BoMB 1801 Mocha Koffie Saison...wow was that delicious and quite the pallet cleanser after Hunahpu.  But I threw caution to the wind and got a 1/2 pour of the Hunapu and it went down so much better the second time around...that keg kicked and many were sad.  The White Wizard from BoMB was a great beer for the heat, but what was even better is I went outside and they had a Passion Fruit White Wizard and that was extremely drinkable and a great contrast to the regular.  The PF gave it a tart flavor that wasn't overly sweet and the carb was a little different (in a good way)

It really was a shame it was so hot out as I just couldn't have the Triples and the Quad's as BoMB had about 10 or so variations on tap.  Luckily they had quite a selection of other stuff.

One of my favorites of the day had to be the Odd Breed Wild Ales Dry Hopped Wild Farmhouse Ale.  Was soo good I went back for another...and got the last one of the day.  This really has to be my favorite find.  Crisp and sour with a great body and color.  They were pouring it right out of a mini wooden keg.  Was a little sad I missed their American Flanders and Plums (dark wild ale with plums), but it was excellent to chat with the brewmasters.  They currently couldn't even charge for their beer due to regulations, so they are just at a lot of Craft Beer fests and they can only make money selling merch, so I picked up a sweet workshirt with their logo
 
But they are working on getting a tap room open in the next year...keep an eye on these guys

Next I went on to the BoMB Nuance Noir, it is a special release ?black saison?
this was one of my favorites, with the light crisp Sasion feel, but a malty/toasty finish.  Could have drank many of these on a hot day

Had a S'tart Mango another BoMB brew that was a really drinkable Lambic.  this was a solid beer, but really got overshadowed with some of the others
Same with the BoMB DB Quad (aged in Rum Barrels), really a delicious beer, but lost in mix of so many good options.

Had a chat with some of the BoBM guys and they were just beaming on how great everything had been going
They used to only have 3 20BBL fermenters going and doing exclusively Beligian styles was making it really hard to keep up with demand as some of them stay in the tank for 2 months.  He said that Cigar City can pump out the Jai Alai in under 10 days in comparison.
In the last few months they added 80 BBL capacity, so they are really pumping out the beers as fast as the Floridians can drink them.

The coup de grāce of the day, taped at the end for the VIP was the J. Wakefield Brewing DFPF

This Dragon Fruit Passion Fruit Berliner really was worth the hype IMO (this beer had Yada's name all over it)
with it's dark pink foam and fuchsia color this was clearly something different than I'd ever had before
it was fruity, but not over the top, sweet and tart
the body was crisp and refreshing with a perfect carb for me and just a little funk that made this beer work perfectly.  Was really glad I got this one and wish I lived closer to JWB.

I also got to hang out with the brewers from Wynwood brewery and meet Pop's who gave the name to Pop's Porter (which I had a loved earlier in the week) They had a Imperial Pop's Porter that was really good, but it was a little thick for the heat.  I can't say I liked it as much as the regular Pop's, but a soild beer nontheless

Finished off the day with another fine SouthFL brewery MIA
they had the Oud Couple on tap.  A Flanders Oud Bruin.  It was tart with a little sour, not too heavy (compared to all the others).  Was fine beer to leave on.
Another brewery that was only 1 years old

The Floridian craft scene is really top notch
I really had no idea how broad and wide it was
Very happy that my parents are down there as that means at least 1 to 2 times a year I'll get to dive deep in these scrumptious malted beverages
slack

Yada

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6620 on: March 28, 2016, 08:56:18 am »
That moment when sidehutch shows up in your explore users list in instagram... How does the internet work?

That pink drank does indeed look crushable.

Yada

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6621 on: March 28, 2016, 09:17:41 am »
http://www.pendruid.com/about/

Place looks killer.... Hopefully I get out there by the year 2022.

walk,on,by

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6622 on: March 28, 2016, 09:41:52 am »
there are so many amazing areas out where I live, just for simple half day exploring trips, that it boggles my mind that people crush their hopes and dreams by living in a city . . . for a job.

Bagley

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6623 on: March 28, 2016, 10:34:12 am »
Picked up a case of the Anderson Valley Briney Melon Gose,  now out in cans,  to hold me over til the Victory Cherry comes out.

sweetcell

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6624 on: March 28, 2016, 12:53:15 pm »
this past weekend's brew-a-thon was brought to me by Undercover Shutdown Ale, Space Dust and Duvel... and a few homebrews (takes some to make some).
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Space Freely

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6625 on: March 29, 2016, 12:45:39 pm »
For the Founders fans in the house....

The Official DC Launch of @FoundersBrewing KBS 2016 at @ChurchKeyDC
Join us on Friday, April 1st as ChurchKey hosts the official DC area launch of the inimitable Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout! On this night, we will feature no less than 20 beers from the Michigan brewery, including 7 uber-rare vintage beers from our cellar.
 
One of our very favorite releases of the year, Kentucky Breakfast Stout is brewed with a massive amount of coffee and chocolate, then cave-aged in oak Bourbon barrels for an entire year until it is absolutely perfect. Be sure to come on by to taste the first keg of KBS 2016!
 
And to further celebrate this special occasion, beer director Greg Engert dove deep into our cellar to personally select 7 very special vintage beers that we will pour from bottle during the event. Notables include Bolt Cutter 2012, a bold Barleywine aged in Bourbon and maple syrup barrels; Backwoods Bastard 2014, a big, delicious Wee Heavy cave-aged in oak Bourbon barrels; and Big Lushious 2014, a deep, rich Imperial Stout brewed with tart raspberries.
 
There is no admission fee for this event and all Founders drafts will be priced individually by the glass and in 4 oz. tasting pours.
 
The Official Founders KBS 2016 DC Release List:
Founders KBS 2016
Founders Bolt Cutter 2012 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Better Half 2012 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Founders Imperial Stout 2012 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Sweet Repute 2013 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Backwoods Bastard 2014 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Big Lushious 2014 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Blushing Monk 2015 (Bottle Pour)
Founders Mango Magnifico 2016
Founders Mosaic Promise
Founders Old Curmudgeon
Founders Rubeaus
Founders Imperial Stout
Founders Dark Penance
Founders All Day IPA
Founders Centennial IPA
Founders Red?s RyePA
Founders Porter
Founders Nitro Oatmeal Stout
Founders Dirty Bastard

Space Freely

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6626 on: March 29, 2016, 12:58:40 pm »
Can't find the Sidehutch post about the Ocelot anniversary party, but ticket on sale now.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ocelot-brewing-1-year-anniversary-party-tickets-24050813631

$25 gets you 8 five ounce pours (bring a driver?), though if you choose the barrel aged stuff you get less pours.

sweetcell

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6627 on: March 29, 2016, 01:29:38 pm »
For the Founders fans in the house....

Founders Sweet Repute 2013 (Bottle Pour)

might have to make it out to taste this one again.  i got two bottles back when it was released, excellent stuff.  the missus is going to be pissed that she won't be able to enjoy it again...
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Space Freely

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6628 on: March 29, 2016, 01:39:20 pm »
For the Founders fans in the house....

Founders Sweet Repute 2013 (Bottle Pour)

might have to make it out to taste this one again.  i got two bottles back when it was released, excellent stuff.  the missus is going to be pissed that she won't be able to enjoy it again...

My employer is giving us an optional telework day that day. That's my wife's normal telework day. My wife is offering daytime sex with no kid in the house if i stay home and telework (and do a couple of easy errands) with her.

But damnit, it's KBS on draft. (and maybe bottles to go at P Street WF, who knows?)

sweetcell

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Re: The Beer Thread
« Reply #6629 on: March 29, 2016, 03:03:54 pm »
uhh... i'm kinda speechless about your wife's daytime offers of intimacy, so i'll focus on:

But damnit, it's KBS on draft.

last time i had KBS on draft was 2 or 3 years ago with brennser and stevewizzle.  we were somewhat underwhelmed.  it was hot, the alcohol heat hid the finer points of the beer.  i'm more excited about the sweet repute and better half.

assuming that KBS bottles will be about $10 each (maybe $30 a four pack if lucky), imma gonna hafta think long and hard about whether or not it's worth the price.
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