Holy Thursday: From the Source

"Where is thine ale concocted from?"

You know what? For being "snobby" "geeky" and "bratty" about my beer and the vessels in which I consume it out of over the last few years, I have also become lazy in a few aspects. Lazy in what department? That would be getting my beer in growlers.

I have three growlers on my current premises. That only gets me beer from two establishments - Blue Dust and East End Brewing. I have two growlers from East End. That's actually pretty sad for someone that prides himself on trying a lot of different styles and brews as well as boasting about the local beer around Pittsburgh.

I mean just think about what I've been missing here. Roundabout Brewery just opened up in Lawrenceville. Full Pint and Rivertowne are just a 20 minute drive or so from where I am. All three of which fill growlers. Yea, I can find some of their brews on draft at some pub around the city, but there's just something about going to the source and bringing a fresh growler back to enjoy in the comfort of home.

Here's to getting out there and exploring more than I used to.

Do a Barrel Age

I've only become familiar with just one brewery in or outside the Pittsburgh area that has pulled-off a well-known barrel-aged beer. That would be Full Pint in North Versailles with Rye Rebellion. I'm not the world's biggest fan of this sub-style, but I'm curious to see when some of the local breweries try do add one to the growing arsenal of oak/bourbon infused brews. I was able to try a bit of Anderson Valley's Wild Turkey Barrel-Aged Stout not too long ago and I actually enjoyed it. The barrel it was aged in didn't overpower the other aspects of the beer.

I was excited to discover earlier today that another local brewery is taking a whirl at this creative process. It just so happens that it's just a few miles from where Full Pint is located. I'm fairly sure that this brewery hasn't tried this before, but please correct me if I'm wrong!

We're excited for our bourbon barreled oatmeal coffee stout! Are you? (Available in bomber bottles late February) pic.twitter.com/sfD4HlusbM
— Rivertowne Brewing (@rivertownebeer) December 28, 2013

Brewers on Television

The news for the Sam Calagione/Dogfish head Craft brewery sitcom on FOX came out more than a month ago, but last night I had an entertaining thought. What if it were a Pittsburgh brewer or brewery that was lucky enough to have such an opportunity? Which one would it be? Which one would you like to see depicted?

The choice was easy in my mind. It'd have to be Full Pint Brewing in North Versailles. There are multiple brewers that run the place. Each of them are awesome characters in their own right. They're sometimes hanging out in the tap room if you've ever visited the place just off of Route 30. The television networks would be able to put together one hell of a cast. Sometimes they've modeled themselves as characters on their own beer labels. Just an entertaining group.

The Full Pint story is an interesting one as well. Five brewers basically going "All In" to start a brewery. One of their first brews even took on that name. Full Pint has already taken a dip into Pittsburgh pop culture by releasing the new 3-2-1 Win Beer with Pittsburgh Dad on it.

I realize that this is unlikely because not many brewers around here have yet to secure such national acclaim as Dogfish has. Still, it's special that in some way we're all close to the people that make our beer here in Western, Pa.

The Six Pack Project: Western Pennsylvania

About a month or two ago, I noticed Justin of his cleverly-named Brew Review Blog participating in a beer blog collaboration project called the Six Pack Project. The idea is the brainchild of Bryan of This is Why I'm Drunk. The objective is to get beer bloggers across America and maybe even the world to help spread word about some of the local beers that seem to best represent our unique beer cultures.

Here are the rules, according to Bryan.

1. Pick a six-pack of beers that best represents your state and/or state’s beer culture.
2. Beer must be made in your state, but “gypsy” brewers are acceptable, so long as that beer is brewed with an in-state brewery and sold in your state.
3. Any size bottle or can is acceptable to include.
4. Current seasonal offerings are fine, but try to keep selections to year-round brews as much as possible. No out-of-season brews preferred.

Now, four of the six I narrowed down are either pretty close to Pittsburgh or definitely on the western side of Pennsylvania. Of the two remaining, one hails from the central sector of the state while the other is much farther east. I felt it important to have the concentration of my selections favoring the Pittsburgh area since the aforementioned Justin has already done some of Pennsylvania for this project. Also, these beers are in no particular order or ranking.

White Lightning by Full Pint Brewing Company - North Versailles, Pa.

If you paid any attention to last year's Great American Beer Festival you might have noticed that this beer earned a silver medal. It's tart and citrusy. It has a lovely aroma of coriander and spice, which both contribute to a spicy finish. Hops are easy, but provide a kiss of bitterness to compliment the tart and fruity aspects of the brew. It has a vivid straw color and creamy white head. The 5.5 percent ABV doesn't interfere at all. Tastes quite sessionable even though some might not consider it as such.This is quite an easy get when you get a chance to cruise through a couple bottle shops here in Pittsburgh. The brewers at Full Pint pretty much threw everything they had into starting this brewery. They sort of represent the hard-working people around Pittsburgh. This is arguably the brewery's best offering, in my opinion.

Monkey Boy Hefeweizen by East End Brewing Company - Pittsburgh, Pa.

Of the brews that hail from Pittsburgh, this is the one that's closest to my heart. This is quite lighter on the ABV scale at 4.8 percent. The remarkable thing about this beer is that it's a nice foggy hefeweizen that tastes like a banana, but there isn't any actual banana used in the brewing process. Some creativity with the yeast strain unlocks such a flavor in this beer. This beer also seems special in terms of how craft beer has grown over the years. Some time ago, beer tasting like this might have been considered spoiled and tossed out. Now it's considered great beer! East End can only be found on taps around town, from growlers at the brewery and in a growler shop downtown.

Sunshine Pils by Troegs Brewing Company - Hershey, Pa.

Moving away from Pittsburgh for a second we have a nice German Pilsner that's crisp and hoppy. If you've had this before you already know those two facets because it says it on the case and bottle! Not only does it have a nice dosing of tasty hop flavor that plays well with the rest of the beer, it features a few citrusy undertones you don't come across in many pilsners. It's light in ABV at 4.5 percent, always well-carbonated to add some nice texture and represents the many German/Dutch communities that dot the central part of the state. This is a seasonal offering, but is still available at certain locations. Especially bottle shops. The brewery in Hershey has some in the tasting room the last time I checked.

Wynona's Big Brown Ale by Voodoo Brewing Company - Meadville, Pa.

This is the booziest of the bunch that I selected with an ABV of 7.4 percent, but you can trust me in saying that it's not a bad thing at all. I was on a real brown ale kick a few weeks ago and found a bottle of this in a cooler at a nearby shop. I was pleased with my choice. There's a lot of cocoa in this to the point where you feel like you're eating spoonfuls of Nestle Quik mix like you did as a kid. Some darker flavors like toffee and roasted malt take over on the finish. This is one creative beer. Meadville is quite north of Pittsburgh and is a much more spacial place than the city is. Voodoo is known for concocting some adventurous beer. Just as adventurous as it is when driving the back roads of northwest Pennsylvania.

RT Lager by Rivertowne Brewing - Murrysville, Pa.

I sometimes thing that lager gets a bad wrap nowadays and are though of as being boring. This beer is far from boring. This is a beautiful red lager that comes in at 5.4 percent ABV. Not only do the Cascade hops used in the brewing process provide some bite, but so does the malt bill that's used. It's crisp and has a nice bubbly texture. That's if you like carbonation. I tend to enjoy it. Just as Pittsburgh is a classic town, this beer is also classic. It's not flashy, but tastes great. Just like the Super Bowl champion Steelers teams of the 1970's, this beer tastes gritty and still comes through. (If you don't get the reference, the 1970's Steelers ran the ball and grinded it out. Lager is considered boring, but this is a fantastic beer) Rivertowne just recently started canning it's beer. This is now becoming readily available. I purchased a case for myself not too long ago.

Poor Richard's Tavern Spruce by Yards Brewing - Philadelphia, Pa.

Weighing in at an even five percent ABV is one third of the infamous Ales of the Revolution series by Yards.  This beer is based on Benjamin Franklin's personal spruce ale recipe. After all, what better Pennsylvania historical figure to have a beer after than Franklin? He's one of only two non-presidents that are on American currency! This beer has an attractive beige head in contrast to the deep brown body. The sweet profile and tang of the molasses used in the brewing process play very well off of each other. The booze is slightly present in this beer, but only in a warming sensation that warms your throat as it goes down.

The other Six Packs for this month:

• Ed from Dogs of Beer for Delaware
• Jeremy from SubBeerbia for Illinois
• Heather from HeatherVandy.com and the Honest Pint did Massachusetts
• Mark via Bryan's blog did Michigan
• Chris from I Think About Beer did Belgium

You can also read other Six Pack's at the Six Pack Project Archives.

Brewsylvania

Nothing stirs intense debate within the blogosphere like a top-whatever list. An article via CNN this week ranked the top eight beer cities in the United States. I must admit that I thought I'd see Pittsburgh on there. Unfortunately I didn't, but Philadelphia did make the list.

Almost a year ago I wrote something about how this side of Pennsylvania knew how to drink and the Philadelphia side knew how to eat. I remember a few people close to the Philly area not being too happy about that. Maybe things have changed on my end.

I certainly have my favorite beers and brewing companies here in Pittsburgh. East End Brewing always has an awesome selection. Full Pint Brewing Company in North Versailles has an interesting group of people at the brewery and has an awesome lineup as well. Is there a neater brewery in Pittsburgh to have a great beer and an awesome meal than Church Brew Works in Lawrenceville?

Despite my obvious bias, I've grown closer to a few beers/breweries from Philadelphia. One of my favorite breweries in all of Pennsylvania has been Troegs in Hershey. I must admit that Yards Brewing in Philadelphia has quickly climbed my charts. That has been evident in my musings on this blog on multiple occasions.

Even Mr. Penn would be proud.

The thought of Philadelphia Pale Ale makes my mouth water. Can I speak about the the Ales of the Revolution any more without people thinking I'm in love with them? The Love Stout is something I'm curious about trying. Still, I'm not yet sure my tongue is ready for a oyster stout (at least it's an oyster stout according to a friend that visited the brewery).

I honestly don't have a problem with the list. Maybe I'm just sparking some debate? I think both cities do an amazing job in terms of craft beer. Keep brewing and drinking, Pennsylvania. I still have one request. I want a beer with William Penn on the label.

Robust

You know when you have one of those moments when it comes to drink or food? Those moments when you feel like you're having a party in your mouth. Ones where life just pauses for a moment and nothing else in the world matters.

I had one of those moments at a beer tasting/pairing last night. I wrote about my visit to my family's restaurant on Route 30 in which there was a wine pairing. Last night was the pairing with Full Pint Brewing Company. If there's anyone that cares about what exactly was served you probably already know due to my posting of the menu I got my hands on after the wine tasting.

I must say the two highlights were the almond crusted chicken paired with the Chinookie IPA and the dessert with the Perc E Bust Porter. The chicken breast was served with a lemon cream sauce and an orange juice reduction. This complimented the grapefruit flavors of the IPA amazingly. You'd like this pairing even if you don't particularly care for IPA's.

The dessert was awesome. It was sweet, but the slight bitterness and strength of the coffee in the porter cut it perfectly. A spoonful of that ice cream and chocolate sauce, with some of the porter already in it, and a quick swig of the porter left me in some sort of a food coma for about 30 seconds. I've always said that if you haven't experienced this you haven't lived!

Pair Away

Cabernet Savignon at the wine tasting.

In case you didn't know, I have close family that has ownership in Teddy's Restaurant and Lounge just off of the Irwin exit (Pennsylvania Turnpike) along Route 30. Last Wednesday, I was there for the first big wine tasting the restaurant has ever had. To say the least, it was awesome. I was full of awesome gourmet food and sampled some great wine.

The restaurant is going through a transitional period and this was the first step in that direction. It wants to incorporate drinks and plates that are featured in tastings such as these in the future on a full-time basis. The next scheduled tasting features nearby Full Pint Brewing.

It will feature five brews and four meal courses. I've been given a copy of the menu and have written it below. Tickets are limited and are going like hotcakes. If you're interested Teddy's phone number is 724-863-8180. Cost is $45 per-person.

Greeting: Hobnobber

First Course: White Lightning - Orange, ginger, garlic, honey and thai chile marinated chicken breast skewered then drizzled with an orange, red pepper, and soy glaze atop white rice and minced onions.

Second Course: All In Amber - Amber Oysters cooked with spinach, bacon Amber beer cheese and seasoned bread crumbs.

Third Course: Chinookie IPA - Orange, rosemary and almond crusted chicken breast with sun-dried tomatoes, lemon cream sauce over an orange juice reduction wild rice and dried grapefruit garnish.

Fourth Course: Perc E Bust - Porter float of vanilla bean ice cream, drizzled hot fudge, coffee beer and garnished with pirouline artisan-rolled wafers.

Flowing Locally

I'm sure that many of us that live here in the Pittsburgh area are proud of the local breweries that offer some outstanding stuff on the market. I'm certainly not the most accomplished in terms of trying as many beers as I can, but there are a few beers that are brewed locally that I always find myself coming back to. It's kind of like that first love of your life. Alright, maybe I'm exaggerating. We still have some great stuff to drink around here. Here are the two I enjoy the most.

East End Monkey Boy

Whenever I get to a Pittsburgh bar, this is one of the first beer's I look for on a tap list. If I see it, I almost always grab a pint of it. Recently, I've started frequenting the new East End Brewing Company digs in Larimer to grab a growler or two of it. Unfortunately, you won't find cases or six packs of this beer. So, keep on the lookout in bars. You can also get the aforementioned growlers at the brewery location and at its growler shop in the Strip.

This is an awesome hefeweizen that's a hazy gold with a  foamy white head. It's nice and spicy and tastes like banana. It also has a very sessionable ABV at 4.8 percent. According to its brewer, this beer doesn't actually have banana in it. That just adds to the luster of this beer. Not only is this my favorite beer brewed in Pittsburgh, it's one of my all-time favorites.

Rivertowne Hala Kahiki Pineapple 

I keep telling you that I really enjoy fruit beers. Pineapple is an unlikely fruit that's used in beer. At least I haven't come across many that use pineapple. This beer also has an ABV of 4.8 percent and goes down nice and smooth.

This beer is somewhat spicy, but it its own unique way. There's a decent hop presence too. Oh and the fruitiness of the pineapple is fantastic. Rivertowne recently just started canning this beer. So, it's very accessible. I'm glad I got myself a case.

There are many more where these came from. We can't forget about other beers such as Rumplepilsen and White Lightning (which recently won a GABF award) from Full Pint as well as Pious Monk Dunkel from Church Brew Works.

That's Some Useful Grain

I think one of the forgotten parts of brewing is what sometimes happens to the grains that are used in the brewing process. If you brew with grains at home you're most likely to just toss it. I found an interesting piece on what a few brewing companies do with the grain they've already used. Just head on over to CraftBeer.com to read it in its entirety.

I could understand if a few of these uses surprised you because they easily slipped your mind. Trust me, I didn't come to think of any of it either since I'm usually more concerned with the final product the grain assists in making.

A few of the interesting uses include the grain being used as fuel for a boiler to help save actual fuel costs, fertilizer (did you even know that spent grain is actually a good fertilizer for fungi? I sure didn't) as well as using it in foods such as bread.

That last one caused me to recollect something I was told during a visit to Full Pint Brewing in North Versailles. On occasion, Full Pint uses their spent grains in pizza crusts when the opportunity arises. Unfortunately I haven't had a chance to actually get out there and try one. That's definitely on my list, though.

Beer Review: Full Pint Chinookie IPA

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 6.2 percent

Appearance: Chinookie IPA pours somewhere inbetween a pretty shade of red and orange. It has a cloudy, hazy look to the body and features a foamy white head that has half of a finger thickness. The beer's haziness seems to screen any visible carbonation flowing to the head of the beer. Otherwise, the head and colors of the beer complement each other very well.

Smell: Much citrus. Very piney. This beer as an enormous and deep grapefruit aroma, which to me is somewhat different fro the usual orange citrus notes you get from India Pale Ales. The pine is a nice and spicy compliment to the sour fruitiness of the brew.

Taste: Both the grapefruit and pine combine for a great flavor. The beer tastes sour (you have to love grapefruit bitterness in order to take this) at first and then tingly on the finish. A touch of breadiness smooths everything out. If you don't like grapefruit, then you'll struggle through this.

Overall Rating: 

I like this beer because it's just different than you're usual IPA. I love that there's a note of grapefruit that eminates from the hops used during the brewing process.

Full Pint Brewing Company: Growing Fast

I was privileged to spend a good portion of my day, yesterday at Full Pint Brewing in North Versailles. The brewery's Twitter account bio reads "Good people, good beer." In my opinion, this holds true.

I got to meet some of the brewers there as well as tasting some of the newer concoctions it has to offer. Over the last two years or so, Full Pint has gone from newcomer to a household name on the shelves at our local beer distributors.

Full Pint's current brew house

The brewery intends on releasing a new beer series entitled Beer Nerd Saison. I was fortunate enough to try the most recent batch, which was brewed with a helping of Elderflower. Expect to see this beer on local taps soon as mostly a draft-only release.

I was also lucky enough to try the recently released Night of the Living Stout by Full Pint, which features a strong, roasted malt presence with plenty of cocoa notes. That should be both bottle and draft.

Full Pint is also getting ready to expand. According to Jake Kristophel, the brewery is planning on adding to the current brew house and possibly adding more 30-barrel bright tanks. More Rumplepilsen and White Lightning for craft beer fans in this area can only be a good thing.

A new batch of Chinookie IPA being brewed.

Full Pint to Produce Spruce Beer

According to a post on Full Pint Brewing's Twitter account, the local brewer plans on implementing a new spruce beer into its brew lineup. Spruce, as it would be called, will be ready sometime in the next two weeks.

This is exciting news for me since I'm becoming a bigger and bigger fan of Full Pint's beers. I'm currently working through the brewery's sampler case which features beers such as Chinookie IPA, Rumplepilsner and White Lightning.

I haven't been disappointed with any beer by Full Pint. From what I can read on the label that was posted on Twitter, it doesn't look like this spruce concoction will miss at all.

Beer Review: Full Pint Rumplepilsen

Serving Type: Draft

ABV: 5.2 percent

Appearance: Rumplepilsen doesn't have anything really notable in it's appearance. That doesn't necessarily mean that's a bad thing, but it looks like your typical light beer with the golden straw color and a weak, white head. There wasn't a lot of carbonation in this beer either, but I think a lot of it might have interfered with the taste.

Smell: This beer smells very sweet and a biscuity. Those infamous pilsner malts also dance around in your nose after taking a waft.

Taste: It tasted very crisp and had that widely-known biscuity taste that's we are accustomed to with Czech Pilsners. It's very, very potent on the back of the tongue. The appearance of this beer isn't anything that draws you in, but the taste is what you expect with this style.

Overall Rating:     


Czech Pilsners are quickly making their way to the top of my list of preferred beer styles. That biscuity taste on the back of the tongue has become one of those beer sensations I've started to crave consistently. This beer's appearance isn't the greatest, but the taste blew me away.