#sour Archives – Page 6 of 10 – PorchDrinking.com
Illinois Breweries are Preparing for FoBAB
November 4, 2019 | Mike ZollerIn any industry, to be recognized for exemplary work is an incredible feeling. To win a medal at the Festival of Wood and Barrel-Aged Beer (FoBAB), one of the country’s premier barrel-aged beer festivals, is a massive accomplishment.
Analyzing the Influx of European Brewers Canning Their Beers to Better Compete in the U.S.
August 22, 2019 | Taylor LaabsThe craft beer scene in the U.S. has been around for a relatively short period of time. Part of its rapid growth and success can be attributed to the industry’s willingness to evolve and contort itself to appeal to the ever-changing whims of today’s curious consumer. While hard seltzers and fruit-puree sours might be nothing more than a passing trend, one recent market shift seems to be here for the long haul: craft beer in cans. The benefits of cans are clear: they’re more transportable, better for the environment, and boast longer shelf life than their glass counterparts. A huge signal that the can trend is more of a foundational than fleeting trend in the U.S. is that century’s old European brewers are also augmenting their typically rigid perceptions of packaging to appeal to the American market.
Austin Street Brewery | Obsolete Vernacular
August 21, 2019 | Kailey PartinThis story begins as many brewery stories start, with a friendship and a passion for home brewing. Austin Street Brewery, co-owned by friends Jake Austin and Will Fisher, opened in 2014 on Industrial Way in outer Portland, Maine. Together they spent years on Austin Street in Westbrook, Maine, creating beers on their homebrew system that they wanted to drink. In 2013, as the craft beer boom commenced, they took a chance and opened their brewery with a one-barrel system. When speaking with Jake Austin, he made it clear that their focus is to create “highly drinkable beer, not to chase trends.” It would seem that mission is working well for them as they recently opened a second, larger location in Portland’s East Bayside neighborhood.
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Wild Creatures | Tears of Saint Laurent
June 28, 2019 | Asa StoneWhat happens when a vintner’s daughter, who has worked in her family vineyards and wine cellar from early childhood, falls in love with spontaneously fermented beers in Belgium? Enter Jitka Ilčíková and her “vintner brewed beer” at Wild Creatures in Mikulov, Czech Republic.
Loveland Aleworks | Blackberry Lemon Bar Sour
June 27, 2019 | Bryan OldhamSummer is in full swing. That means weekends and evenings go from on the couch with Netflix to the porch or patio, trading in the chocolate for the more fruit-inspired desserts, and throwing back a few brews as the days get longer.
Sours tend to see an upswing in production and popularity in the warmer months, as they supply a balance of refreshing zest and irresistible pucker. Sours have become the antithesis of IPAs, and it seems that drinkers from either of these two camps stand their ground when it comes to their beverage of choice for the summer.
Haw River Farmhouse Ales | Vuilbaard
June 21, 2019 | Christopher HilliardFrom Appalachia to Outer Banks and everywhere in-between, fine craft beer crops up all over North Carolina. For example, some 25 minutes east of Chapel Hill, you’ll find Saxapahaw, North Carolina. If you reach Haw River, turn around and look for a rejuvenated old mill. You’ll know by music from the chronically hip Haw River Ballroom, weekly community get-togethers in the form of Saturdays at Saxapahaw, and maybe most importantly, fine craft beer from Haw River Farmhouse Ales.
BlackMan Brewing | Blueberry Hostel Cereal
April 12, 2019 | Eric JacksonSome brewers pull inspiration from current trends and others seek to brew according to personal like and although neither is wrong, Barrett Tillman of BlackMan Brewing, he’s in neither category.
Insert the Hostel Cereal, a timidly tart sour ale, which according to Tillman “began as a study on famine, its cause and how people survive.” During his travels through Africa and staying at hostels, the breakfast that was served was a porridge, made from grains and topped with whatever fruit was available. This was Tillman’s inspiration for the Hostel Cereal.
Blending the Old with the New | How New Belgium’s Sour Program Continues to Resonate
April 4, 2019 | Taylor LaabsIn today’s U.S. craft beer market, tenure is a very relative term. So, when something has been around for 20 years, you take notice. That is the case with New Belgium Brewing’s wood-aged sour program, which is the oldest in the United States. The program has created sour trendsetters like La Folie; all the while continuing to set the mark for what consumers should look for in a good wood-aged sour.
Ask the Experts: Spring Beers They’re Excited About
March 19, 2019 | Taylor LaabsFlowers bloom, jackets get placed in storage and new beer makes its way onto store shelves. If the recent weather is any indication, spring is right around the corner. And while I don’t want to jinx it, I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t already daydreaming of new spring releases and returning seasonals that pair well with warmer temps and added sunshine. Thankfully, I’m not alone in that sentiment. Spring is an exciting time for craft brewers as darker beers retreat to their barrels and lighter and fruitier options come into prominence. This spring might be even more adventurous for beer releases as craft brewers continuously compete to address changing consumer preferences amongst the surging popularity of lighter alcohol options, wine and spiked seltzer.
5 Questions with Firestone Walker’s Master Blender, Jim Crooks
March 13, 2019 | Taylor LaabsBeing a master blender is much like being a mad scientist. It takes an innate knowledge of the craft, a bit of daring, and a bit of flare. The job inherits a lot of risk thanks to how unpredictable wild yeast can be. Thankfully, California-based Firestone Walker has the man up to the task.
Jim Crooks, affectionately called Sour Jim, has run Firestone Walker’s Barrelworks wild yeast facility since its introduction in 2014. During that time, he’s worked on unique barrel blending projects like Feral One and newer ventures like their recently-released Rose-style beer that uses locally-sourced Paso Robles grapes. Crooks has produced a lot of innovative offerings over the past five years, but the best may be yet to come given their focus on blending the lines between beer and wine with the help of locally-sourced ingredients. We asked Jim five questions about his role, why he focuses on fresh, and what comes next for Barrelworks. Here’s what he said.
Short’s Brewing Company | Exterior Illumination
February 21, 2019 | Danny KingOne of my favorite holiday traditions is driving around looking at lights. When I was a kid, my family would pack into the car and take the longest route possible between my aunt’s and our house to look at Christmas lights. Even in high school, my friends and I would drive around looking for those homes whose merry-making bordered on deranged. Now that I’m older, I still take the Christmas light tour after dinner. Short’s Brewing Company, following in the Christmas tradition, released an American sour ale to highlight the raucous displays that have become as much a part of the holidays as Santa and presents.
Revolution Brewing Expands Freedom Session Sour Series
November 26, 2018 | Mike ZollerIn what could be a sign of changing times, Revolution Brewing announced earlier this month, that they would begin expanding their Freedom Session Sour lineup making that series available in cans all year round. Next up in the series is a Kettle Sour with black currants called Freedom of Press. In order to make room for those beers, a Revolution staple, Bottom Up Wit, will no longer be canned.
Brewery Bhavana | Cellar Door No. 3
October 25, 2018 | Christopher HilliardConfession: I never wanted to be a beer snob. In fact, I fought it. But I wouldn’t be writing this if I succeeded.
I started drinking craft beer because I didn’t know better. All I knew was I liked it better than the macros. Before long, I was drinking craft beer because I did know better. Words like “boozy” and “barnyard” and “mouthfeel” entered my vocabulary. At bars, the hunt began with the most expensive. I researched the history of lambic and pilsner and bière de garde. And to complete my snob-ucation, I joined a beer club.
2018 GABF Route Guide | Funk, Sours & Wilds Route
September 19, 2018 | Tristan Chan 2For the past month and a half, our staff has been reaching out to every brewery attending the Great American Beer Festival to try to preview what they’ll be bringing to the fest. As part of that research, we’ve sifted through that list of beers to bring you a series of themed routes to help you plan for your GABF based on various styles and flavors.
Stoup Brewing | Loral Dry-Hopped Sour
July 26, 2018 | Hannah CarlsonIt is summertime in Seattle – and in consequence, the city has, collectively, fled to the nearest patio from their non-air-conditioned apartments in search of a brew that can quench summer cravings. With the heat climbing steadily and the days continuing to seem never-ending, we Seattleites are all in need of something light, something delicious, something sustainable – nothing too strong. Luckily, Stoup Brewing has answered the call with their Loral Dry-Hopped Sour.
Edmund’s Oast | Sour Blackberry Raspberry
July 18, 2018 | Barry Barz 2One of the greatest things about craft beer is the actuality that people are being introduced to it every day. Whether by sheer curiosity or encouragement, craft beer finds it way to someone’s palate for the very first time. Although many will argue that the craft beer scene is becoming over saturated, there are still markets that have tons of potential. If you reside outside of the Southeast you may consider Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida as big brewery states for beer chasers and beercations. Emerging as a front runner for brewery hot beds, Charleston, South Carolina is adding on to it’s already impeccable list of reasons to visit and helping put South Carolina on that very radar. Read More
Crow Hop Brewing | Rado’s Red Sweet Cherry Sour
May 25, 2018 | Bryan OldhamThe Colorado brewery scene is one with its ups and downs, ebbs and flows. Some breweries see their star shine brightly, then quickly fizzle out and shut their doors nearly as soon as they opened. Others, like Crow Hop Brewing in Loveland, CO, find increased success year after year and eventually need to move locations to accommodate the greater fanfare.
Two Brothers Adds Three New Beers to Their Lineup
March 5, 2018 | Mike ZollerFor over two decades, Two Brothers Brewing Company has been making solid beer and is a mainstay in the Chicago beer scene. Just recently, they added a new year-round beer to their rotation as well as two seasonal/limited releases.
New Belgium’s Lost in the Woods: A Psychedelic Celebration of Sours
February 14, 2018 | Kara RowlandAs someone based in Denver who makes a hobby out of beer writing, I have what can only be described as an embarrassing confession: I had never tasted New Belgium’s La Folie—or any other of its critically acclaimed sours—before last week.
The gravity of this oversight may be lost on the casual enthusiast, so allow me to explain. For 20 years, the Fort Collins-based brewery has been cranking out some of the country’s most complex wood-aged beers, starting with the first iteration of La Folie, its flagship Flanders-style Sour Brown Ale aged in massive oak barrels called foeders. New Belgium’s is now the largest wood cellar program in the U.S., with 64 French oak foeders and one American white oak foeder all imparting funky flavors to base beers as they mature.
First Draft Taproom & Kitchen Announces Sour Month Lineup
February 2, 2018 | Tristan ChanFor many in Colorado, the arrival of February signals the official start of Stout Month, a cult following tradition that extends to all Mountain Sun Brewery and Pub locations. However, our friends at First Draft Taproom & Kitchen have begun a February tradition of their own, by celebrating the tart and acidic side of beer with a Sour Month celebration.
First Draft Taproom & Kitchen team has been saving up a multitude of draft and bottle sour gems and we’ve got the info on what sour beers to expect this February. Drop into First Draft Taproom and Kitchen in Denver’s River North Art District located at 1309 26th St., Denver, CO this month to enjoy some of this special sours!
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