Barrel aged beer lovers, get your fix. Port Brewing’s Older Viscosity has arrived. You take Old Viscosity aka “Big Black Nasty” and throw it into bourbon barrels. The beer blurs the lines on strong ale/porter/stout/barleywine etc.
Shmaltz Brewing’s He’brew Origin Ale. Brewed with pomegranate.
In the Greek myth of Persephone’s abduction by Hades, lord of the underworld, the pomegranate represents life, regeneration, marriage, perhaps the seasons… contradictory versions, way too convoluted for a beer flyer-googleit! – The Continue Reading →
North Coast Brewing (Fort Bragg, CA) plans on releasing “Grand Cru” this year. From the description, it is an ale brewed with agave nectar then aged in bourbon barrels.
A beer 3 years in the making. The Lost Abbey will be release “Veritas” on May 28, 2011. This edition has been the most time consuming beer to produce to date by the brewery. Over the course of Continue Reading →
The most expensive beer produced by Sam Adams has been released for 2011. Utopias is legendary in the beer world, not only because of the price, but because of how it’s made.
A couple of years ago, Sierra Nevada Brewing paired up with Dogfish Head and created 2 beers, Life & Limb & Limb & Life. Life & Limb found bottles and draft handles around the country. At the time, it seemed Continue Reading →
Bell’s Eccentric Ale, brewed once a year and aged for a year, is about to make it’s yearly visit.
This American strong ale is – as described, shrouded in mystery. Eccentric Ale is not mentioned on the Bell’s website. Ingredients & spices, a mystery. Eccentric is brewed with Michigan maple syrup.
A rare ale that’s specially brewed to bring out your inner self. Or revel the site of you that doesn’t get out much. Or release the part of you that would never show up at the office.
Style: Strong Ale Availability: 12oz bottles Arrival: Winter, 2011
Barrel aged beer lovers, get your fix. Port Brewing’s Older Viscosity has arrived. You take Old Viscosity aka “Big Black Nasty” and throw it into bourbon barrels. The beer blurs the lines on strong ale/porter/stout/barleywine etc.
Before you even get to “Older” lets check out Old Viscosity. The big thick beer is a blend of 80% new Viscosity – a stainless steel fermented beer, and 20% from a previous batch that has been aging in bourbon barrels. Older Viscosity is just straight barrel aged beer.
An enormously rich but satisfying beer, Older Viscosity is 100% straight no chaser barrel-aged Old Viscosity – the beer we blend in the production of Old Viscosity. The color is black like asphalt and the aroma is an uncompromising malty nose with dark caramel and chocolate overtones.
Style: American Strong Ale (barrel aged) Hops: German Magnum, Malts — Two Row, Wheat, Domestic and English Crystal, Carafa III and Chocolate Malts Yeast — White Labs California Ale and Proprietary Yeast Strains
In the Greek myth of Persephone’s abduction by Hades, lord of the underworld, the pomegranate represents life, regeneration, marriage, perhaps the seasons… contradictory versions, way too convoluted for a beer flyer-googleit! – The pomegranate gave its name to the Hand Grenade from its shape and size (and the resemblance of its seeds to a grenade’s fragments) – Although not native to Japan, the pomegranate is widely used for bonsai, because of its lovely flowers and for the unusual twisted bark that older specimens can attain. – St. John of the Cross made the pomegranate seeds the symbol of divine perfection. – The Pueblo believed that those who witnessed the ingestion of the arils were blessed with powers of divination. – In China the pomegranate is widely represented in ceramic art symbolizing fertility and abundance. A picture of a ripe open pomegranate is a popular wedding present. – In ancient Rome newlywed women wore headdresses made from pomegranate twigs, and its juice was consumed as a remedy for infertility. – Among the Bedouins of the Middle East, after a wedding, a fine specimen of pomegranate is split open by the groom as he and his bride open the flap of their tent or enter the door of their house. Abundant seeds ensure that the couple who eat it will have many children. – In Buddhism, along with the citrus and the peach, the pomegranate is one of the three blessed fruits, often represent the essence of favorable influences. – The heavenly paradise of the Koran describes four gardens with shade, springs, and fruit, including the pomegranate. Legend holds that each pomegranate contains one seed that has come down from paradise. – Since the rind of the fruit is tough, but the juice sweet, the pomegranate came to symbolize the priest; severe on the outside, indulgent on the inside. – In Christian art, the pomegranate often found in paintings of the Virgin and Child symbolizes resurrection and life. – The Song of Solomon compares the cheeks of a bride behind her veil to the two halves of a pomegranate. – The Qu’ran mentions pomegranates three times – twice as examples of the good things God creates, once as a fruit found in the Garden of Paradise. – In some parts of the world, it’s believed that Eve tempted Adam with a pomegranate. – “Or from Browning some ‘Pomegranate’, which if cut deep down the middle / Shows a heart within blood-tinctured, of a veined humanity.” -Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Lady Geraldine’s Courtship – Medieval representations of the pomegranate tree were associated with the end of a unicorn hunt. The captured unicorn appears to be bleeding from wounds that are pomegranate seeds dripping blood red juices on his milk white body. Wild and uncontrollable by nature, unicorns can be tamed only by virgins. Once tamed, the unicorn was chained to a pomegranate tree. – Etymology: The genus name, Punica is after the Phoenicians, who spread its cultivation, partly for religious reasons. Its species name granatum derives from the Latin adjective granatus, meaning ‘grainy’. However, in classical Latin the species name was malum punicum or malum granatum, where “malum” is an apple. This has influenced the common name for pomegranate in many languages (e.g. German Granatapfel, seeded apple). Even “pomegranate” itself has this meaning; pomum is Latin for apple. – In “The Persian War,” Herodotus writes of golden pomegranates adorning the spears of warriors in the Persian phalanx. – The pomegranate was chosen as the logo for the Millennium Festival of Medicine from a shortlist that included DNA, the human body, and a heart beat. – The British Medical Association and three royal colleges feature the pomegranate in their coats of arms. The Royal College of Physicians of London had adopted it in their coat of arms by the middle of the sixteenth century. – The use of pomegranate rind and root bark as a treatment for tapeworm infestation (“Latas tineas ventris”) was recommended by several early Roman medical writers and is still listed as a treatment for tapeworms and diarrhea in a current encyclopedia of medicinal plants. – Dioscorides describes some of them: “All sorts of pomegranates are of a pleasant taste and good for ye stomach…The juice of the kernels prest out, being sod and mixed with Honey, are good for the ulcers that are in ye mouth and in ye Genitals and ye paines of ye eares, and for the griefs in ye nostrils”.
Style: American Strong Ale (w/ pomegranates) Availability: 22oz bombers, Draft
North Coast’s Grand Cru To Feature Agave & Bourbon
North Coast Brewing (Fort Bragg, CA) plans on releasing “Grand Cru” this year. From the description, it is an ale brewed with agave nectar then aged in bourbon barrels.
That’s pretty much all the info known at the moment. Judging by the size – looks like the bottle will be corked & caged like the Old Stock 2011 was.
A beer 3 years in the making. The Lost Abbey will be release “Veritas” on May 28, 2011. This edition has been the most time consuming beer to produce to date by the brewery. Over the course of the past 3 years, this strong ale has spent time in both wine and bourbon barrels.
The Lost Abbey Site Tells You All You need to know:
The Lost Abbey will release the next in its coveted Veritas small-batch barrel-aged beers on Saturday, May 28, 2011. The most complex and time-consuming beer released by the brewery to date, Veritas 009 took more than three years and periods in bourbon and wine barrels to create. With only 100 cases available, Veritas 009 will not reach general distribution and will be available for purchase directly from the brewery only. The 750ml cork-stoppered bottles will be $35 each and strictly limited to four bottles per person.
Veritas 009 is a substantial departure from earlier members of The Lost Abbey’s small batch experimental program, which were generally sour beers aged in French oak barrels for 12 to 15 months. Begun in late 2007 as dark base beer, it was sent to freshly emptied bourbon barrels from Kentucky’s Heaven Hill Distilleries. The beer aged for 15 months before it was moved into French oak barrels previously used for wine (primarily Syrah). Sour cherries were added and the beer was left to rest for another year and three months. Finally, in mid-2010, it was pulled from the barrels, blended, bottled and sent off to condition for an additional 11 months.
“It’s one of the most complex beers we’ve ever created,” Arthur said. “Veritas 009 has strong notes of cherry, red wine, cedar and dark cocoa accentuated by a pervasive acidity that makes for an incredibly deep finish. It’s an amazing beer and easily one of the most cellarable produced at The Lost Abbey. I have no doubt that it will drawn fans from both the craft beer and wine worlds.”
Interestingly, Veritas 009 came close to never being made available to the public. Begun as a private project of Arthur’s, the existence of the beer and the details behind it were kept secret until last year. Even after news of the beer leaked to the public Arthur declined to discuss it beyond acknowledging that he did indeed have a barrel-aging project referred to only as “KT”, a reference to the secretive order of the Knights Templar. It wasn’t until a sampling session that Arthur decided to move the beer into Lost Abbey’s public small batch program and release it as Veritas 009.
“There is so little and it took so long to perfect we actually considered issuing it as a private release, or not at all,” Arthur said. “But after sampling last week, we decided that it was just too good to keep hidden and the public should have access to it.”
A total of 117 cases (12 bottles each) of Veritas 009 were produced. 100 cases will be made available to the public on release day. More details are available below.
Veritas 009 Release Details
When: Saturday, May 28, 2011. 10am — 6pm
Where: Port Brewing / The Lost Abbey — 155 Mata Way, Suite 104, San Marcos, CA 92069 (click for directions)
The most expensive beer produced by Sam Adams has been released for 2011. Utopias is legendary in the beer world, not only because of the price, but because of how it’s made.
Stylistically, Utopias is an American strong ale. It’s more than just a single brew, it’s a blend of beers that have been aged in wood casks for up to 18 years. There are even a range of casks, including sherry casks from Portugal & Spain, port casks, & Madeira casks. (Madeira is a Portuguese wine from the Madeira islands.) The blend adds massive complexity to the beer. 53 barrels used in all.
With a specialty beer this unique you wouldn’t do something as mundane as bottle it. It comes in a decanter. Suggested serving size is 2oz, served in a snifter. The beer weighs in at 27%, so a little goes a long way.
Flavors:
[quote]The 2011 batch of Samuel Adams Utopias is a blend of liquids which have been aged in a variety of wood casks for up to 18 years. This complex aging process enhances the beer’s distinct vanilla, maple and cocoa notes, and it offers an aroma of ginger and cinnamon. Sherry casks from Spain and Portugal add nutty oak, toffee and honey notes, while Madeira and port casks offer a slightly more elegant, dark fruit aroma, imparting earthy flavors inherent to fine European spirits. The complex flavors intensify individually over time, making Samuel Adams Utopias a very special brew that becomes even better with age.Availability: Very limited release. 2011 is the 6th release of Utopias. $150 dollars a bottle.[/quote]
Style: American Strong Ale Hops: 3 Noble hops – Spalt Spalter, Hallertau Mittelfrueh, and Tettnang Tettnang Yeast: Ale Yeast, & proprietary champagne yeast
27% ABV
Full Press Release
(Boston, MA) — Craft beer pioneer Jim Koch, founder and brewer of Samuel Adams beer, invites drinkers to explore the most extreme beer with the unveiling of the 2011 batch of Samuel Adams Utopias®, available this May. Meant to be savored like vintage fortified wine or fine cognac, this strong, rich, uncarbonated dark beer is best served as a two-ounce pour at room temperature in a snifter glass. Samuel AdamsUtopias is brewed in small batches, blended, and aged in the Barrel Room at the Samuel Adams Boston Brewery. Following its first release in 2002, Utopias received the coveted title of world’s ‘strongest beer commercially available’ in the Guinness Book of World Records. The 2011 offering of Samuel AdamsUtopias weighs in at 27 percent alcohol by volume. The average beer is around 5 percent.
“Each time we begin the process of crafting our next evolution of Samuel Adams Utopias, we strive to make the new vintage more unique than the last, and the 2011 brew is no exception. The brewers and I spent years perfecting it, experimenting with different barrels and aging techniques until we felt it lived up to the long-standing heritage of Samuel Adams Utopias – a quest to push the boundaries of beer,” said Koch. ”Since I first brewed Samuel Adams Boston Lager in my kitchen, I’ve made it my life’s work to elevate beer and make people rethink the possibilities of what beer can be.”
The 2011 batch of Samuel Adams Utopias is a blend of liquids which have been aged in a variety of wood casks for up to 18 years. This complex aging process enhances the beer’s distinct vanilla, maple and cocoa notes, and it offers an aroma of ginger and cinnamon. Sherry casks from Spain and Portugal add nutty oak, toffee and honey notes, while Madeira and port casks offer a slightly more elegant, dark fruit aroma, imparting earthy flavors inherent to fine European spirits. The complex flavors intensify individually over time, making Samuel Adams Utopias a very special brew that becomes even better with age.
Samuel AdamsUtopias is brewed with both ale yeast and a variety typically reserved for champagne. A unique blend of several malts gives the beer its rich ruby color and three varieties of Noble hops – Spalt Spalter, Hallertau Mittelfrueh, and Tettnang Tettnanger – give the beer its floral character and spicy note.
The limited edition 2011 Samuel AdamsUtopias comes from just 53 barrels, all brewed, blended and aged at the Samuel Adams Brewery in Boston. This limited distribution brew is hand-bottled in numbered, ceramic brew kettle-shaped decanters, available at select specialty beer and liquor stores this May in honor of American Craft Beer Week. Hitting shelves just in time for Father’s Day, Samuel Adams Utopias is sold at a suggested retail price of $150.00 per bottle. For more information, visit www.samueladams.com.
A couple of years ago, Sierra Nevada Brewing paired up with Dogfish Head and created 2 beers, Life & Limb & Limb & Life. Life & Limb found bottles and draft handles around the country. At the time, it seemed like the beer was a one time brew. Not anymore! It’s currently being brewed as we speak.
The collaboration touted some unique ingredients: Estate barley from Sierra Nevada brewery in Chico, California. Pure maple syrup from the Calagione farm in Massachusetts. Also, for the first time in craft beer, birch syrup from Alaska used for natural carbonation. Yeast strains from both brew houses were combined to make a unique signature.
More info on the original collaboration at Life-limb.com. The website hasn’t been updated since the original release as far as dates are concerned.
