Archive for the ‘Brewery’ Category
Raise a glass and raise some money for the victims of the Japanese earthquake
Friday, March 11th, 2011
I don’t know about you but yesterday evening I spent a lot of my time bitching about the weather … the rain was ridiculous, flooding was closing roads and making my journey home difficult, people were staying home (wisely, it has to be said) instead of coming along to The Falls for the Oliver’s pint night. All in all, I was pissed-off. This morning on my drive to work I was horrified to learn from NPR of the terrible earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and the devestation and loss of life that resulted. Horrified and acutely embarassed by my pathetic whining …it really puts things in perspective! Of course relief efforts are well underway but as always funding by donations from the likes of you and I are vital in circumstances such as this. If you want to donate money there’s a valuable piece at The Huffington Post highlighting many of the charitable options available. I’m also delighted to announce that Justin and Donald, owners of The Pratt Street Ale House are donating $1 from each pint of Strongman Pale Ale to the cause (we selected the Red Cross as our charity of choice). Why Strongman, well simply because it was hopped entirely with Japanese Sorachi Ace so it seems appropriate. These days, especially in times of economic uncertainty, it’s natural I think to become focused on ones own hardships but a disaster of this magnitude really serves to shift focus. Join us and raise a glass of Strongman to the families struggling through this experience and help us raise some money so that we can help in some small way.
Cheers
Beer With Benefits
Thursday, March 10th, 2011
You like a handcrafted beer, right? Of course you do! Then why not enjoy a beer or two and benefit a worthy cause at the same time. We at Oliver Ales/The Pratt Street Ale House are delighted to be involved with two forthcoming charitable events. The first is The Brewer’s Ball this coming Saturday at The Stars & Stripes Club at The Nationals Park in D.C. in benefit of the cystic fibrosis foundation. We’ll be pouring 3 Lions Ale (& maybe some Strongman Sorachi Ace). For further details check out http://dcbeer.com/2011/03/07/cystic-fibrosis-foundations-brewers-ball-is-this-saturday/. Next up is “Pints & Pinstripes” at Silo Point on March 26th to benefit “Rewired For Change”. We’ll be there alongside Heavy Seas and The Brewer’s Art so be sure to come and support a great cause. All of the details (and the chance to win tickets) can be found at http://beerinbaltimore.com/?p=5521.
Don’t miss out!
Where it’s at!
Wednesday, March 9th, 2011
New on tap at The Pratt Street Ale House is Strongman Pale Ale single hop Sorachi Ace version. It’s the same big, bold pale ale (8.6% abv) brewed the English way with a firm malt backbone and an underlying sweetness but this time hopped entirely with Sorachi Ace, a fairly high alpha acid hop with lemon citrus notes cultivated in Japan. It’s a really interesting hop and imparts some unique flavors in the beer. The only cask available outside of D.C. will be tapped at the ever wonderful Judge’s Bench on March 25th at 5p.m. I hope you’ll be able to join me for a pint or two and of course we’ll be giving away some Oliver’s glassware (first come first serve).
Tomorrow evening The Falls in Mt. Washington will be tapping one of the last kegs of “Godgifu”, our Chestnut brown ale (7.2% abv) conditioned on French oak and it will be available from 5pm for $4/pints all evening long (and once again I’ll be giving Oliver’s glassware to the early-birds!) Come say hi, I’ll be hanging out with Jacob for an hour or two. Also on the horizon at The Falls will be an Oliver’s night featuring a cask on gravity pour … watch this space for further details.
I’ve just learned that tomorrow’s featured firkin at Metropolitan will be the Biere de Garde (it was originally posted to be tapped next week). It’s a complex malt driven ale, 6.8% abv with a big Belgian yeast finish (courtesy of the Brewer’s Art Resurrection yeast with which it was fermented) … go check it out.
Speaking of cask ale, there’s been a sizeable Biophysical Society convention across the road this week … there’s a lot of Europeans in the House and they know how to enjoy a beer or two, especially of the cask variety. I tapped a kilderkin (that’s a 21.6 gallon cask) of Best Bitter on Sunday morning and it had been drained early Monday evening! I think that’s a new record at The Ale House. As I’ve been on vacation we haven’t got a back-up so the beer engines are all seasonal beers right now … we’ve got Biere de Garde, My Monkey’s Got Wood and Channel Crossing #3 on offer! Come get some!
The Friday Question
Friday, March 4th, 2011
By now you should see some of the latest seasonals (“18″/Hot Monkey Love batch #3/Channel Crossing Series Vol.#3) out and about at the likes of Max’s, T-Bonz, Judge’s Bench, Mahaffeys, RFD, ChurchKey, Meridian Pint, The Wharf Rat, Baltimore Taphouse etc. Check their respective draft lists. Joining them next week will be Strongman pale ale single hop Sorachi Ace version, which, in my humble opinion, kicks ass! I only filled 3 casks which will be destined for ChurchKey & Meridian Pint in D.C. and locally to Judge’s Bench, where we’ll be tapping it on Friday March 25th at 5pm … come join me for a pint or two. Speaking of Strongman I’ve just tapped the last cask of the U.S. hop version (dry hopped with Mounthood) …it’s on the beer engine at The Ale House now, come get some. I’ve already sent a few casks of Biere de Garde out, some of you may have tried it already at Bertha’s during the weekend of Max’s Belgian Beer festival and the draft will be distributed shortly. It’ll be the featured cask at Metropolitan on Thursday March 24th. The second brew for Meridian Pint is on the schedule later this month. It will be a variation of the first but with a Belgian slant courtesy of the Brewer’s Art Resurrection yeast and Belgian Dark Candi Syrup. Look out for it’s release at Meridian Pint in mid April as part of a joint tap takeover with Stillwater & Brewer’s Art! Channel Crossing series Vol. #4 is on the schedule for mid April, this time it’s an E.S.B. (that’s Extra Special Belgian!)
So, last week’s Friday Question asked in what order I drank the BrewDog “IPA is Dead” single hop series? There could only be one start point for me … Bramling Cross … I love that hop and, as expected, the beer was phenomenal! Next up I went for Sorachi Ace for no other reason than I’ve just used it but hadn’t tasted my beer yet so I was keen to see what BrewDog made of it. Again, a wonderful beer. Next up, Nelson Sauvin. I’ve only had one brush with this hop before, the Mikkeller single hop version, which I hated. Got to say, I was equally unimpressed with the BrewDog version, there’s just something about this hop I don’t like … sort of tastes like drinking a great beer through someone’s used socks! Before I get outraged comments, yes, I know other’s love it! That’s the great thing about beer … it’s an individual experience! Finally Citra … another good, solid beer. So, by my reckoning that makes Nick the winner, well played sir!
This week I offer a growler of any Oliver Ale and a bottle of something to the individual who can tell me how many owner operated brewpubs were still operating in Great Britain at the end of 1972? Have at it and good luck. As usual enter your answer via the comment option.
Here’s a gratuitous picture of a pint of cask ale fireside at Ye Olde Mitre Inn in Barnet, London because, that’s where I wish I were right now!
In search of the Great British Pub
Thursday, March 3rd, 2011
I have seen much on the internet in recent years regarding the decline of the British Public House. Pubs have been closing in record numbers apparently. On the occasion of my first return to England since April 2007 I was keen to find what I consider to be a classic English Pub, which, in my mind, has a lot to do with the availability of good cask ale. I say”good” cask ale because it is all to easy to find “bad” cask ale. Cask conditioned ale is far removed from keg beer … a trained monkey can change a keg but serving a good cask conditioned ale takes care and attention. As an example I present Yates’ in Tamworth. Now Yates’ is definitely not a “Great British Pub” … it’s a chain bar which by day presents a reasonable venue for some decent food and a pint (see picture below) at very reasonable prices, but at night is a different beast altogether … yes, you can buy a pitcher of Jagermeister & Redbull for 9 pounds and 45 pence! Or maybe you’d prefer a “Squashed Frog” or “Slippery Nipple”?
The cask choices at Yates'
We had a nice lunch and I had a good pint of Bombardier but my Dad was served a pint of Pedigree that would have been best served on his chips, such was the vinegar taint in it! A great beer but a bad pint!
My chances to “get down the pub” were few and far between as we were only there for 6 days. After a day out in London with Kelly and the boys and my best friend Dave and his family we returned to Barnet on the Northern outskirts of London, passed the kids off to our families for babysitting duty and planned to meet at a pub on Barnet High Street. But which pub? Dave hadn’t lived in the area for a long time and wasn’t sure where would be best so I asked my sister if there was a good pub nearby. My sister, although she doesn’t really go to pubs, apparently knows me well and suggested the Mitre as it was “an Old Man’s Pub”! Ker-ching … sounds good to me. And it was …soooo good! Ye Olde Mitre Inn was established in 1636 and was originally a coach house and now represented itself as “Barnet’s Premier Ale House”.
The interior was just what I’d hoped for … exposed brick and wood beams, an open fire, an impressive selection of cask ales. The walls were adorned with cask ale paraphenalia and the all important “Cask Marque” guarantee.
The pub offered 5 cask ales and a cask cider with a further ale being offered on Friday and Saturday. Timothy Taylor’s Landlord and Adnam’s Bitter were the house ales with the others rotating through a guest beer programme . During my visits we also had Holts “Two Hoots”, “Old Speckled Hen”, Woodforde’s “Wherry”, Brains’ “Bread Of Heaven” and Hop Back “Summer Lightning”.
All of the beers were in excellent condition, crisp and clean and beautifully bright, as you’d expect in a pub featured in the current CAMRA “Good beer Guide“ .
It doesn't get much better than this!
We found a table by the window in the bar area and enjoyed one of the most relaxing evenings that I can remember … good company and good beer in a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere. I don’t recall seeing a TV (although I suspect that there was one somewhere), in fact, I don’t recall even hearing any music playing. The pub was busy on this Wednesday evening with groups of people enjoying eachothers company and conversation, exactly what I had hoped for. My sister was correct, I guess, in her assumption that it was an “old man’s pub” for there was not one single baseball capped teenager in sight and I suspect that Kelly was the youngest peson there! I was truly relieved that the “Great British Pub” is still alive and well!
The evening slipped away and before we knew it time was being called and we merrily exited into the night, a perfect day behind us.
The Friday Question (UK Edition)
Friday, February 25th, 2011
Gotcha! I said that as soon as I walked out of the brewery on Monday my vacation started and asked what would be my first beer of the vacation … you honestly think I was going to be able to travel a few thousand miles before I had a beer? Not likely! Under normal circumstances Graham would have been correct as traditionally I have a Fuller’s London Pride or two on the plane (which indeed I did) but, prior to that, we stopped for dinner at DuClaw’s BWI location and I enjoyed a “Euphoria”, my first beer of the vacation, so no winner’s this time though I’ll buy Graham a consolation pint for being close! As it happens, my first pint in a pub was a Brains “Bread Of Heaven”.
As you may have seen elsewhere, I’ve been enjoying a few of the BrewDog “IPA is Dead” single hop IPAs, pictured
So, 4 different single hop IPAs …what I want you to tell me is, in what order did I drink them? If you guess correctly you could win a set of these (as long as they survive the journey back in my suitcase)! If there are multiple correct answers then they will be entered into a random draw. Please enter via the comment section, only one guess each please. Good luck!
The Friday Question
Friday, February 18th, 2011
Channel Crossing #3 in oak at Max's today!
… and it’s not just any Friday … it’s the first day of the legendary Belgian Beer Festival at Max’s Taphouse, without doubt one of the most amazing beer festivals I’ve been to … have you seen the beer list … it’s incredible?! This year I have the privilege of not just being an eager attendee but, by virtue of my collaborative relationship with Stillwater Ales, having a beer pouring there … awesome, I feel like a proud Father again! Brian & myself debut Channel Crossing #3 today, an “Anglo-Belge Barleywine” … in an oak barrel … on the beer engine!!!! It doesn’t get much better than this! I’ve just cleaned the lines and tapped the draft at the Ale House and I have to say, I’m a happy man. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do! The Oliver Ales anniversary ale, “18″, also debuts at the Ale House today. It’s a smoked porter brewed with 18 lbs each of smoked malt, chocolate malt, flaked barley, dark crystal malt and malted wheat on a base of Optic pale ale malt. It’s got a subtle, slightly sweet smokiness and I’ve got to say, I’m lovin’ it (but not in a McDonalds way!) If you happen to be in Fells Point at Max’s today, take the time to stop in at Bertha’s across the street where there will be a pre-release cask of Biere de Garde on gravity pour today. As usual it’s fermented with Brewer’s Art Resurrection yeast but this year sees a different recipe (as I had a lot of different Franco-Belge malts available as a consequence of my recent brews with Stillwater) …it’s deep amber in color, 6.8% abv … haven’t had a chance to sample it myself yet though!
O.K., onto the Friday Question. Last week I asked how Porter can be detrimental to your health and one of you hit the nail on the head, though Bryan F. provided scant details, he wins with his observation that “A tank of porter burst and drowned some english folks a long while back.” Indeed, on 17th October 1814 a disaster occurred at the Meux Brewery when a 20, 000 gallon vat of Porter burst sweeping away tenements and killing 8 people “by drowning, injury, poisoning by fumes and by drunkeness’! Congratulations Bryan. This week, as you may know I’m taking a break from the brewery and returning to Dear Old Blighty. As soon as I walk out of here on Monday morning, my first vacation for almost 4 years begins … what will be the first beer that I drink on vacation? As a prize I will bring back a bottle of something from my trip that isn’t available over here. As usual, answer via the comment option below, good luck.
The Friday Question
Saturday, February 12th, 2011
OK, I know, I’m a day late (again) but it was a busy day yesterday and I couldn’t find the time! I’m almost at the end of my brew marathon. Porter today, Ironman Monday and maybe a Red Tuesday and then no brewing for 2 weeks. Lots of processing/kegging of course next week but I am looking forward to not digging out a mash tun, that’s for sure. We’ve got some cool events going on in the next week as well. Monday is, of course, Valentine’s day so sees the release of Hot Monkey Love batch #3, a 10% abv strong ale brewed with 17lbs/barrel of honey. So, for all of you gentlemen who’ve been procrastinating and bashfully lurking outside Victoria’s Secret, get it done, make her happy and then come along to The Pratt Street Ale House and get some Hot Monkey Love! Ladies, don’t feel left out, I encourage you to come partake in some Monkey lovin’ also! I’ve been trying to decide whether I should tap a cask of “My Monkey’s Got Wood” (American Oak) or a cask of “My Minkey’s Got wood” (French Oak) for the release and then it dawned on me … it’s a no-brainer … French is the language of love, so My Minkey’s Got Wood it must be! On Wednesday I’ll be at the Columbia Firehouse in Alexandria for a very special cask event (see previous post for details). Friday sees the release of our 3rd Channel Crossing collaboration with Stillwater Ales. It will debut in oak cask at Max’s Belgian Beer Festival and will be on draft at The Ale House. Also on Friday, Bertha’s in Fells Point will have a pre-release cask of the new Biere de Garde (6.8% abv, fermented with Brewer’s Art Resurrection yeast) on gravity pour, take a breather from Max’s and grab a pint! As I’m sure you realise, we brewers like nothing better than releasing new beers so I’m very excited to announce a triple release for the D.C. market at ChurchKey on sunday 20th at 4pm. Brian of Stillwater Ales and myself will be there to welcome Channel Crossing #3, Hot Monkey Love & Stillwater’s “25 to 0ne” to D.C. Each will be available on draft and cask and, in the case of Channel Crossing, it is an exclusive cask with roasted, caramelised cocoa nibs and vanilla beans! Hope you’ll be able to join us.
Got wood? Our Monkey does .... come get some lovin' on Valentine's Day!
So, onto the business in hand, The Friday Question. There are two correct answers to last week’s question …. sort of …. my book of trivia states that “S.S. Egholm is sunk by a mine on passage from Leith to London with a full cargo of Wm. Younger’s beer” (on this day in 1945) which makes Dave Abernathy a winner (despite getting the ship’s name slightly wrong). However, when I researched the vessel it is commonly reported that it was sunk by a torpedo from U-2322 which makes Platypotamus a winner also. Congratulations gentlemen, you both get a growler of Oliver Ales and a bottle of something from the brewery fridge. I have to say, I loved all of the less serious answers … it was my intention to award a prize to my favorite but I simply can not choose between them so it would be my pleasure to buy all other participants a beer … stop by the Ale House or catch me at one of our events. For this weeks question I return to my book of bizarre beer related facts … HERE GOES … I’m partial to a pint of Porter but it can be detrimental to your health … how so? As usual, please answer via the comment section and if you haven’t got a clue, make me laugh and there could be a beer in it for you. Good luck, a growler of Oliver Ale is up for grabs.
Cask at the Columbia Firehouse, Alexandria
Wednesday, February 9th, 2011
Next Wednesday I’ll be hosting what is being billed as a “Cask Ale Masterclass” at the Columbia Firehouse in Alexandria. Details lifted from Mr. Cizauskas’ web page are below:
Cask-conditioned ale will be the topic on Wednesday evening, 16 February, 5:30 – 9pm, at Columbia Firehouse, in Alexandria, Virginia.
Steve Jones, brewmaster for Oliver Brewery at Pratt Street AleHouse in Baltimore, Maryland, will present a master class on cask-conditioned Real Ale: how to brew it, how to serve it, AND how to enjoy it.
Steve will tap and serve from a unique glass-bottomed firkin of his IronMan Pale Ale (6.2% abv). Participants will be able to actually see the beer and hops WITHIN the cask, and then observe what happens as the beer is poured! There is no formal agenda; Steve will be on hand from 5 until 9pm to talk about the cask and answer questions.
The official tapping will be at 5:30. The evening will include fresh cask-conditioned IronMan Pale Ale, complimentary hors d’oeuvres, and one souvenir glass per participant, while supply lasts. There is no admittance fee; simply pay for the beers you order. At the main bar, another of Steve’s cask beers —3 Lions Brown Ale (7.5% abv)— will be available, served handpulled through a traditional beer engine.
So, if you’ve ever wondered what the inside of a beer engine looks like or what the Hell a cask widge dispense is or, if you just want to enjoy a couple of pints of fresh cask conditioned ale, come along. I’ll be there between 5 and 9pm to discuss any and all aspects of cask conditioned ale and answer (if I can) any questions that you may have.
Cheers
The Friday Question
Friday, February 4th, 2011
Ah, Friday, here again so soon?! If you follow the brewery on facebook (oliver ales) you’ll already know that I’m on a bit of a brewing marathon at the moment. I’m taking a vacation in a few weeks and popping across the pond to Dear Old Blighty so I’m brewing like crazy to make sure that there’ll be plenty of beer flowing while I’m away! Among these brews there’ll be a couple of one-offs. Already in process is “eighteen”, a smoked porter, brewed to celebrate 18 years of Oliver Ales. I’ll be racking it tomorrow and it should be on tap in a couple of weeks. This week also saw the brew day for my Biere de Garde. This year sees a different recipe as I had some interesting Franco-Belge malts left over from the recent Channel Crossing brew. As was the case with last year’s brew though,it’s being fermented with Resurrection yeast, generously provided by our friends at The Brewer’s Art. I’ll be aging a few firkins on French oak. The Biere de Garde will be released in early March. Speaking of Channel Crossing, our collaboration with Stillwater Ales, #3, a barley wine style, fermented with Rochefort yeast and Ringwood yeast will debut at Max’s Belgian beer festival. It will be available on beer engine from a 10 gallon oak barrel and on draft. Tomorrow I’ll be brewing the Sorachi Ace single hop Strongman Pale Ale. I’m looking forward to seeing how those hops change the beer, I’ve never used the variety before.
See you at Max's Belgian Beer Fest!
Look out for the Pagan Porter on tap now at The Hamilton Tavern and Godgifu on tap soon at The Falls and The Tavern in St. Leonard. A firkin of Old Habit will be the featured cask at Metropolitan on Thursday 10th February. Next thursday’s cask at The Pug will be the Bishop’s Breakfast with coffee.
So, last week’s Friday Question marked the occasion of my Father’s 73rd birthday which makes Mr. Sandy Mitchell the winner. Congratulations Sandy, now you can stop complaining that you never win! This week I’m turning to my book of “facts, fables & folklore from the world of beer’. The question is this … in February of 1945 a shipment of Wm. Younger’s beer was lost … how? Now, unless you happen to own the same book (which, no doubt, someone does) chances are you might have a little trouble with this one so I urge you to be creative! I will be judging not only the correct answer but the most creative/amusing answer, so have at it! A growler of Oliver Ale is up for grabs as well as a bottle of “something”!
Cheers