Category: Barley Pop

All things beer related

Mr. & Mrs. Beer Snob

BG and I couldn’t decide who could best tell you guys about our time at the Wasatch Brew Pub in Park City, so we are BOTH going to tell you about it.  This will be the inaugural post for a (hopefully) regular segment called, appropriately, “He Said/She Said” in which we give you both his perspective and mine on a particular event, place, food or beverage.  It’s not that complicated an idea so, we trust no further explanation is needed. 🙂

After wandering around Main Street Park City for a few hours we grew thirsty.  Since BG is never one to pass up a local brew we, of course, wandered right on into the Wasatch Brew Pub to do a little tasting and quench our thirsts.

We were excited.  After all, we had tasted the Wasatch Devatstator at No Name Saloon and really enjoyed it.  At first glance, there was lots Wasatch goodness to try.

She Said: I’m sorry to say, that’s pretty much where the excitement ended and the disappointment began.  Disappointment #1 – The brewery didn’t sell a flight or sampler.  What brewery doesn’t sell a sampler… You know, so you can sample everything, then order more of the ones you really like.  Hmm, I think I just answered my own question…

Disappointment #2 – The beer on the draft pulls didn’t match all the beer listed on the tasting menu.

We’re foodies.  We like tasting notes.

Round 1: Him – Wasatch Hoptoberfest, Her – Nitro Cream Ale

He Said: Meh … Not hoppy. I’m sure there’s more to say, but when one advertises one’s brew as a “Hoptoberfest” … well, one best be bringing the hops.

She Said: I wanted the Nitro Bobsled Brown Ale listed on the tasting menu.  Not available.  So, I got the Nitro Cream Ale.

Blah!  Not much going on there except a lot o’foamy head.   Loved the Devastator from earlier today, so I’m optimistic about my next round.

Round 2: Him – Wasatch White Label (bottled), Her – Apricot Hefeweizen

He Said: A Belgian ale. (She Interrupts: ‘Cause my man loves him a Belgian!) It’s cloudy, with a pale straw color. There’s honey and spice on the nose with good flavor and a nutmeg finish, but the carbonation is overpowering.


I’ll give it 3 of 5 kegs.

She Said: BG had me take this pic to prove that “no fruit was injured in the drinking of my beer.”

He Said: What?!? Drink it like the brewer made it! Beer for me, hold the fruit.

She Said: Um…but we’re actually at the brewery and that’s how they served it… Whatevs! On to my apricot hef… Wonder if the Brew Master intended for there to be a lot of apricot in there? 🙂

Well, that’s apricotty…and flat. Smells like shampoo, though!  (He Interrupts: “Let me taste that.”)

He Said: Once again, a cloudy straw color. Strong apricot smell. Strong apricot taste…strong apricot everything. Everything, but not enough carbonation. I’ll give it 3 out of 5 kegs, but I won’t drink two at a sitting.

She Said: Smells like shampoo, kinda tastes like it too.

Round 3: Snack Time – Macaroni and Aged White Cheddar Cheese

We got a little peckish admist all our tasting.  So we decided to split some Mac and Cheese.  After seeing this on the menu, how could be pass it up?

As good as it looked on the menu, it looked even better when it arrived.

He said: nothing. He was too busy shovelling the hot delicious goodness into his beer hole.

She said: Oooohh…dig that cheesy goodness!  If there’s macaroni in there, it’s filler.  That’s the best thing we’ve had since we got here.  Maybe they’ve missed their calling.  Maybe they should change focus from a brewery to a mac-n-cheesery!

Round 4: Him – Jalapeno Cream Ale, Her – Winterfest Seasonal

He said: And now, gentle reader, it’s time to explain the title for this post. WineGirl and I were sitting at the bar, next to a pair of other couples. The fairer of the couple to our left cried out as she tasted her Jalapeno Cream Ale. She said it was like a spicy Bud Light, and recommended it to WineGirl. “Hmm,” sniffed WG dismissively, “I’m kind of a beer snob.” I suspect that WineGirl would have been more pleased with the Bud Light.

Upon visual inspection, this hot little beer was clear and golden with a 1/4″ head.


Jalapeño scent on the nose and with the first tast of foam. Whoa! Tastes of jalapeño. And the aftertaste … you guessed it – jalapeño! This would be a kick ass beer for Tex-Mex food, but on the whole feels a bit like a gimmick beer.

I look into the future, and decide that this is my first brew that actually requires Prilosec!

She said: I’m not a jalapeño fan, but he’s ranting and raving enough that I have to at least try a sip…

Man, who thought THAT was a good idea?  Bad!! Very, very bad!! Why would you ever drink anything that tastes remotely like jalapeño?  And I totally disagree.  It would NOT be a “kick ass beer for Tex Mex food.”   The Rogue Chipotle Ale was perfect for that.  That was a nice amber ale with a slight smokey, chipotle finish.  This was like somebody put a jalapeño in a juicer and added some carbonated water.  There’s been so little flavor in pretty much everything else we’ve tasted today.  Why did they decide to blow their wad on the jalapeño? So very, very, VERY bad…

I need to go brush my teeth and eat a Tums.  Oh, but I guess I should tell you about the Winterfest Seasonal.

Frankly, I can’t tell you what it tastes like because my tastebuds were sacrificed in the tasting of the Jalapeño Cream Ale.  Looks pretty in the glass, although it’s a little light and yellow for my taste.  I’m more of an amber kind of girl.  Here’s what the marketing fliers had to say about it:

Greatest beer on Earth?  That’s over egging the pudding a bit, don’t you think?

Wasatch Overall

He said: The beer here smells good but it lacks the advertised taste. Not bad, but it gets you excited and then leaves you a bit disappointed.

In like kind, every time a truly epic song would come on the radio in the bar, the staff would change it to some less daring channel, in one instance changing from Enter Sandman to a forgettable tune by Steely Dan. (A note to the reader, BeerGuy prefers the older Metallica catalog, but the black album is good, too)

Silver lining — very good service from Susan, and the macaroni and cheese was so good that they should name the place “Wasatch Mac’n’Cheese”

She said: Generally nice and friendly atmosphere in a great location.  I’ve got to agree with BG, though.  The beer generally smells really good (except for the Jalapeno Cream Ale – yuck!), but doesn’t really follow through with the same flavor.  They should narrow their focus and stick with what works – The Devastator and Mac-n-Cheese.

Even if I didn’t love the beer, this was certainly much more fun than my near-death experience on the slopes!

Cheers, y’all!

Wine Girl

Beer Guy

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The Way to a Man’s Heart

They say they way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, right?  But what about a man that loves beer…and bread?  Well, the way to his heart is still through his stomach, but you get there a lot faster if you combine his two favorite things.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Beer Bread!

I like how the light in that shot sort of makes the bread look like it was sent from heaven…because I kinda think it was.

Before I go any further, I would like to point out that before tonight, I have never made bread before.  As in EVER.  Never made bread before tonight.  I’ve told you before that I like to cook, not bake.  And frankly, the idea of bread making intimidated me – what with all the yeast, and rising, and kneading, etc, etc, etc…But, as Gabi from Honest Fare points out, the use of beer in the recipe neatly avoids all that jazz because – what is one of the key ingredients in beer…

YEAST!

The recipe was super easy.  In under an hour, I went from someone who never made bread to having fresh homemade bread on my table! The ingredients list was super simple.

First you mix and sift the dry ingredients, then add the “secret ingredient”…

I have no idea what kind of beer that is.  Gabi seemed to feel that “cheap” beer was best.  So I sent BG out for a single can of “cheap plain beer” and this is what he brought back.  It’s probably the kind of thing a beer snob like him wouldn’t ever be caught dead drinking.

Once the secret ingredient has been added, mix until a “stiff batter” is formed.  Gabi recommends that you use your hands once it starts to stiffen so that you don’t over mix it.  Here goes nothing!

Yuck!

After you wash the sticky, yeasty goo off your hands, scrape the batter into a loaf pan, brush on melted butter and bake away!

Voila!  Fresh, homemade bread in under an hour!

Get me!  I made bread! It was so yummy with a biscuity texture.  Delicious!  So very, very delicious.  Some of the commenters on Gabi’s blog discussed their successes with different flavors of beer and adding various herbs.  That’s the beauty of recipe as simple as this.  The potential variations are endless.

Bread this yummy would have been perfectly lovely eaten with just butter or dipped in olive oil.  But with fresh bread in the house, we had to get fancier than that.  Tune in tomorrow to see what we did with it!

Cheers, y’all!

Wine Girl

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Blonde’s Have More Fun

A few weeks back, WineGirl arrived home with six-pack of a new beer — Leffe Blonde.
It’s a pale ale brewed at the Belgian Abbey of Leffe, and it’s a tasty surprise. I don’t know whether to say “Leff” or “Leffé” (and while I could call it “Kent”, that would only be funny to a few)

Leffe Blonde

The abbey was established in 1152, and the Premonstratensians bought a local brewery in 1240. It prospered until the mid 15th century, when a combination of plague, floods, and finally invasion by Charles the Bold brought it to its knees. The brewery recovered, though finally suppressed by French Republicans in 1796 and ceased production in 1809. The beer that we drink today is from a cooperation between the abbey and a local brewery, started in 1952.

Leffe Blonde is clear and golden in appearance, with a lacy head. (I used a wine glass, as I’m still investing in proper Belgian barware). It smelled yeasty with hints of honey and banana. The first sip was sharp, moderately carbonated, with a pleasant bite on the front of my tongue. I let it warm a bit, and I got more of the sweet honey taste, with a dry finish.
WineGirl and I will definitely buy this again.

I’ll give it 4 kegs
4 of 5 Kegs

Beer Guy

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Back to Basics

What’s your favorite beer?

A friend asked me that last night, and though her question was earnest, I had trouble answering.
I settled on Delirium Tremens, which has indeed been a recent fave, since our recent visit to TAP. DT has edged out Chimay in my Belgian book.

When she said her favorite was Negro Modelo, I was torn. I really like that one too, and I’m especially glad to see it on draft. I declared that it, too, was my favorite, though from a different style. Ooh, and I’m drinking a lot of Fat Tire nowadays. And the Chub! I’ve had a recent hankering for Old Chub Scotch Ale.

Pop! One Heineken opens and then another. My friend asks another drinker “what does that taste like?” The answer – “Like Heineken!”

And then the inevitable question of whether it’s skunked or merely another different flavor. I weakly regurgitate what I’ve read about bottle color and UV light and “some mysterious compound” similar to what skunks will emit.

That started me thinking about other styles and other beer mysteries. Why won’t my father drink beer with more flavor than MGD? Is it really the water that makes Olympia special (or was it the time with my Dad and uncle?) Are my brothers-in-law being ironic when they castigate my “lager” while sipping on Bud and Miller?

Hmm. What’s a beer guy to do?
My nom de plume may imply a certain expertise with beer — I’ll go far enough to say I’m an experienced drinker — but for the skunky question, I’ll defer to the Alström Bro’s over at Beer Advocate. And then I’ll look up how to pronounce isohumulones.

We’re going back to basics here for a series of posts, looking at the brewing and ingredients in beer, the different styles of brew, and then how to review beer “properly”.

So, find yourself a designated driver and come along for the ride!

Beer Guy

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It’s Chili Weather

It’s in the air.  You’ve no doubt felt it, as have I.  I’ve been waiting for it since it left last spring.  You know what I mean, right?  The CHILL in the air.  It was 37 degrees in the Queen City yesterday morning.  The leaves are turning.  Football is in full swing.  The jeans and light sweaters have been resurrected from the back of the closet.  It’s officially CHILLY outside.  That means…

It’s time for CHILI inside!

Here’s how to make My Momma’s Chili…which just happens to be the best EVER!

First you start browning the beef

If that looks like a lot it’s because I double the recipe.  (It’s always better the next day because the flavors really mesh.  So I like to make sure we’ve got a few days worth prepared.) Meanwhile chop the bell pepper and the onion

(I hate chopping onions and I don’t like big chunks of onion in anything so I cheat and use the Cuisinart Food Processor)

When about half the beef is browned add peppers, onion, and minced garlic and continue to cook until all the beef is browned, then drain.

My mom always cooked this recipe in a soup pot on the stovetop.  In recent years I have found that a slow cooker works just as well…if not better.  So, next transfer the drained beef and veggie mixture to a slow cooker or soup pot, whichever you have or prefer.

Next up are the canned ingredients

(I have dreams of going all Martha, starting a community garden and eventually using my own canned tomatoes for this, but for now TJ’s will do.) First the diced tomatoes

Then the tomato sauce

Then the beans

My mom’s recipe calls for kidney beans, but I am just not a fan of those.  I much prefer black beans so I substitute those.   (I also think that the contrast of the black against the red of the chili base looks prettier.  So it’s really a win-win.)

Next up are the spices

the water (remember, I’m doubling the recipe.)

and the tomato paste.

Then give it a good stir, cover it, and let it cook.  If you are using a slow cooker, put it on the low heat setting.  If you are cooking it on the stovetop, then simmer.  Either way it needs to cook for a couple hours, stirring occasionally, so that all the flavors meld together.  You’ll know it’s ready when it smells fantastic and all the ingredients look homogenized rather than separated in the pot…like this

To serve it you’ll need corn chips and cheese.  I realize that the addition of corn chips is a little “low brow,” but, trust me, it’s worth it.

Cover the bottom of your bowl with the chips, top with a couple ladles of chili, then sprinkle with the shredded cheese.  Personally, I like a few corn chips on the side for added crunch.

Of course you’ll also need a good brew to rinse it down.  I sent the Beer Guy on a beer run and he came back with this deliciousness – Rogue Chipotle Ale.

Many of our favorite beers are from the Rogue Brewing Company and this one has just been added to the list.  I must say, it’s smoky flavor, crisp mouth feel, and slightly heated finish were the perfect accompaniment to the Chili Dinner and the Chilly Weather.

Go ahead make this dinner for yourself and look for this great beer in your area.  Here’s the full recipe

My Momma’s Chili

  • 1lb ground beef
  • 1 can crushed or diced tomatoes
  • 1 can tomato sauce
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp cayenne red pepper (or more for spicier chili)
  • 1/8 tsp paprika
  • 1 medium onion (chopped)
  • 1 green bell pepper (chopped)
  • 1 clove garlic (minced)
  • 1 1/2 c water
  • 1 small can tomato paste

Brown meat, onion, pepper, and garlic in a skillet.  Drain.  Add all ingredients into a soup pot or slow cooker one at a time.  Mix well.  Bring to a medium boil. Stir often.  Turn down to low heat.  Simmer.  Cook until all tastes have blended together.  This can simmer all day, just make sure that it is not too fast or too high or it will scorch.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy the warm chili in your tummy while the weather is chilly outside!

Cheers, y’all!
Wine Girl

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Beer Heaven

It has been a fun, but LONG day! We left our friends in Colchester around 8am this morning. Since then we have driven ALL OVER CONNECTICUT…literally!  We’ll recap that in a later post.

After many hours of driving, peeping, eating, taking LOTS o’pics and having a generally good time we eventually landed in the City of Brotherly Love – Philadelphia, PA. Tired, but hungry we took the conceirge’s advice and walked a few blocks down Chestnut Street to grab some sustenance at Triumph, a local microbrewery.

It had a cool vibe and I liked the decor. The brew list was artfully displayed on the wall…

but failed to impress in the glass. We split a sampler

then each decided to have a full pull of the Double Witbier.

Apparently we visited Triumph on some sort of local musician open mic night. Being a singer myself, I typically would have found this to be cool but tonight it was just annoying…especially since the musicians were the only other people patronizing the brewery besides us. Triumph’s saving grace for us were these yummy stuffed mushrooms and mushroom ravioli.

One was an appy, the other an entree. We split them both.

Finished with our munchies and unimpressive brews we decided to head back to the hotel because as BG declared “Life’s too short to drink foamy beer.”

Across the street was a watering hole by the name of Eulogy.

It caught BG’s attention while en route to Triumph because of it’s name. Not wanting to end the day on a bad beer, he requested that we just cross the street “see what they have on draft.” Little did we know…we were about to hit the MOTHER LOAD.

You see that?  THAT is Eulogy‘s BEER MENU.  This is a place that specializes in Belgian Abbey Ales – which just happen to be BG’s favorite beers!  Eulogy had 300 Belgian Abbey Brews available.  He quite literally thought he had died an gone to BEER HEAVEN!

He wasn’t that far off


We were greeted with this sign right inside the door

Now THAT’S a motto we can get behind!  We instantly knew we were in the right place.  Looking around, his eyes gleaming like a kid in a candy store, BG proclaimed -“I want to live here!”

Look at him.  He’s GIDDY!

And no, he’s not double fisting. That’s him bringing each of us a draft back from the bar.  Eulogy also had a unique draft list display playing off the whole monks/abbey motif.

I don’t remember which ones BG sampled, but I had the LaChouffe and the Abbey of Christ Monks Ale. While both were delicious, my favorite was the LaChouffe.

There were so many GREAT beers and we had so little time.  We only got to sample four but as BG said, that was 4 down and 296 to go!  So I think it goes without saying that the next time we are in Philly, we are DEFINITELY heading back to Eulogy!

Cheers, y’all!
Wine Girl

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A week in Beer

The more patient readers will note that, a few weeks back, I announced the new weekly series Beer 101. True to form as a “back to schooler”, I promptly wrote up none of my homework, but drank beer instead 🙂

Seriously, I have been reading my textbooks, and during the last 7 days I’ve tried every new beer that someone would leave within arms reach.

So here is the barley retrospective:

Tuesday night, after a flight to Cincinnati for work, my bearded cohort and I stopped at the local Claddagh Irish Pub for drinks and dinner. First a Strongbow hard cider (always on the lookout for a cider to replace Scrumpy Jacks), and after the fruity fermentation failed to satisfy, I moved on to Smithwicks. This Irish red ale was so good, it even made up for the barman’s surprisingly foul sense of humor (of which, gentle reader, I shall spare thee). I’ll have to find a local source for Smithwicks and continue my education. (Note: the iPhone photo doesn’t do it justice)

Smithwicks in Cincinnati

Then, a few days of work to earn my wage, and we were awaiting sister and new brother (whom we’ll call G and P), from the land of Elvis. Flights were delayed, so we went straight from the airport to our favorite new sushi place — Cyros Sushi, just north of SouthPark Mall. Cyros deserves its very own post, and since WineGirl referred to their Avante Garde Roll as “a bit of heaven in the mouth, that melts into deliciousness”, I’ll let her take up that task.

For drinking at Cyros, I started with another new-to-me brew, Weihenstephan Kristall Weissbier. No, my lips can’t pronounce the name, but they drink the beer just the same. Weihenstephan Brewery, which claims to be the world’s oldest operating brewery (licensed since 1040), started in the Benedictine Abbey of the same name in Bavaria. As the multilingual reader can already tell, it’s named for Saint Stephen. I found it to be quite tasty, and as I must have bought the last half-litre in the bar, this filtered wheat beer will require additional study. I then joined P in quaffing Kirin Ichiban, a solid if conventional sushi sauce.

For a tasty dessert at home, WineGirl had made brownies with goat cheese. Oddly delicious, but again, I’ll defer to her for the write up. Alas, our dessert needed a dessert beer, so I reached into the refrigerated recesses and pulled out a winner. P & G, WG & me … we first split a Chocolate Stout from the Fort Collins Brewery. This brew was a 2010 U.S. Open Beer Championship Gold Medal Winner, and also quite a match for the choco-cheese brownies.

Next, in keeping with the dessert flavor category, I popped a Thomas Creek Stillwater Vanilla Cream Ale. Yum! But now what? hmm … the natives are getting restless, especially with 4oz pours, so out comes a Blackthorn Cider … and New Belgium’s 1554 Enlightened Black Ale … finishing with New Belgium’s Mothership Wit.

And that was all just Friday night. Saturday, we visited the Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, which will be written up in a future post, along with Frank the terror of the Brew Tour. We traded pints of the Mecklenburger lager and OMB Copper, and I can’t wait for their upcoming Mecktoberfest on October 2nd. Come support your local brewery!

I picked up a few more offerings to pair with WineGirl’s Korean Short Ribs for Saturday night: Shiner’s Smokehaus and Bad Penny Brown Ale from Big Boss Brewing Company of Raleigh, NC. The Smokehaus is brewed with mesquite-smoked malt, which was brought out even more by the barbecue ribs.

Sunday saw us at Big Daddy’s for lunch with fresh brews, and as P & G flew from CLT, I retired for the evening with Blowing Rock’s High Country Ale.

Here’s a line-up of this weekend’s brews:
Beer Gallery

After this brief “survey course”, I’ll be taking these one at a time to sample and report.

Beer Guy

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Back to School — or Beer 101

So for years, I’ve fancied myself as an experienced beer drinker. Not a connoisseur, perhaps, but at least well seasoned. It appears that I need a refresher course on this most noble of refreshments.

For my birthday, Wine Girl bought me (among other items) two books on beer: The Naked Pint and Tasting Beer. (The Naked Pint is written by a duo who’s other writings can be found at the blog Beer for Chicks)

I’ve taken several sips from The Naked Pint, and I’m finding it to have the right balance of facts and fun, with plenty of recommendations of new beers to try. And so, try I shall. Armed with my new books and blogs like BeerAdvocate.com, I will be starting a new series called Tuesdays on Tap, wherein I shall pour my new-found knowledge into the beer blog. And for any helpful readers, I will try all suggestions.

So, grab a mug and pull a pint from the tap.

Beer Guy

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Palmetto Lager

We’re hot and sweaty at the Quarterdeck in Harbortown, Hilton Head. WineGirl and I have been riding bikes around the resort for the last 3 hours.
HarborTown, Hilton Head

We rolled up to the cafe, racked the cycles, and the first bottle was gone before I had a chance to review.
So, round 2!

The lager is pale in the bottle (no glass for pouring). No distinct flavor … Not smooth, not bitter, and a little nutty, says the WineGirl. A little bite at the end, says I.

I’ll give it 3 kegs.
3 of 5 Kegs

Beer Guy

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Rock Bottom Brewery, Charlotte

“I shall have yours next …” she says, after tasting my Maibock.

It’s the seasonal offering from Rock Bottom that she’s eying now. Her first round was the Randolph’s Ride Red Ale (American Amber Ale). A safe choice, but her curiosity was piqued.
Maibock in the glass
This beer is most appropriate for WineGirl on her birthday. Maibock (or literally “May bock”) is pronounced like “My Bock”, as in “I’ll have one of those Maibocks for myself!” A quick Sunday lunch has spilled into a lush afternoon of sipping and watching the crowds.

Bockbier is traditionally high gravity, and while it may have sustained medieval monks during their fasting, our behavior is anything but abstemious.

I smell hints of fresh bread in the glass. In the mouth, I get notes of crispness on top and a smooth, rolling undertone.
My Bock
On cross-examination, WG says it’s a little like cola. Hrmph.

The Maibock — 4 of 5 kegs
4 of 5 Kegs

Beer Guy

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