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Scribe’s Worst Beer in the World Award

scribeworstbeer

KO_BW_Pour-with-Bottle_web_204X3771 On the border of where craft beer meets crap beer, there’s a beer even some Konaheads might resent. While not THE worst beer, certainly qualifies as one of, especially when it comes to watering down the essence of craft: FLAVOR. It’s the Ultra-fying of craft.

Ye Old Scribe has been absent for quite a while, but not quite as “absent” as Big Wave is of flavor. There’s a hint of hops. Hey guys, gals, did you toss in one pellet into a fermenter? Did some ant drag it across the wort during boil? OK, Scribe would add it’s so bad the ant must have fell into the boil. But it’s not bad in that sense. It’s bad in the sense Scribe wished it had at least that much flavor.

Was there a malt ban when this was brewed? Even white bread has a lot more flavor.

Is it ‘Kona,’ or ‘CON-ah’? Some ale-like attempt to mimic Miller Clear with the lightest sprinkle of a hop, not ‘hops’?

Thank God for the carbonation. Scribe keeps opening cans and waiting for it to fill his model of the Hindenburg. And waiting. And waiting. And…

mclear

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Sailing Into Winter: Full Sail’s Darkness and Light

TPF

Full Sail recently sent me a bottle of their big, fat, brawny annual miracle, their Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout. My primary beer occasion, every year, is the arrival of a bottle of Deschutes “The Abyss” because, at heart, I am a Stout guy down to my chromosomes. I get excited by the release of any great beer. I get aroused by the arrival of  siome great Stout on the order of The Abyss, Perennial “Abraxis”, pFriem Bourbon Barrel Stout, Cigar City “Huhnapu’s”, Lost Abbey “Serpent”, Crux “Tough Love”, Boneyard “Suge Knite”, Firestone Walker “Parabola”…

…and Full Sail Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout.

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The Colour of Fall Leaves: Tasting Notes on Märzen, Oktoberfestbier, and Vienna Lager

Written by Franz Hofer for A Tempest in a Tankard

Wondering about the differences between Märzen, Oktoberfest Beer, and Vienna Lager? Check out “Autumn in a Glass: Märzen, Oktoberfest Beer, and Vienna Lager” before cracking open your first beer in this four-pack of Central European beers.img_0599

a) Märzen

Märzen is a malt-lover’s dream. Depending on the brewer, the malt character can run the gamut from toast and what I’d describe as a “Munich malt fruit” character (dark cherry-like) to dates, dried figs, autumn honey, malted milk, malt balls, and Swiss milk caramel.* My partner in crime nailed the style: It’s like a Rolo, she said.

*Swiss milk caramel is a descriptor I use often for beers like this, and requires some explanation. When I was a kid, my grandma used to send us a parcel at Christmas that had all kinds of chocolates and sweets that we never saw in Canada. She always sent along a box of caramels that were quite a bit different than the ones we used to get while out trick-or-treating at Halloween. They were much lighter in colour and had a pronounced creamy taste that brought the caramel flavour down a notch. So when I mention Swiss milk caramel, think of a very light caramel aroma and flavour with fresh cream.

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Craft beer consumers “tired of choice” – Anheuser-Busch InBev CEO Carlos Brito

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Anheuser-Busch InBev CEO Carlos Brito has suggested that the US explosion in craft beer brands may be nearing an end, saying that consumers “get a bit tired of choice”.

Brito, whose company has corralled a selection of leading craft brewers into its distribution network, also said retailers have realised they they cannot keep pace with the continued enlargement of the craft beer category. “There’s only so much shelf space that you can share and cold box that you can spilt,” Brito said.

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On The Importance Of Water Chemistry

martinheadshot_bvI’ve heard this line for years: Homebrewers worry too much about water. However, there is a reason that more and more brewers “worry” about their water… it makes a profound difference to the resulting beer. Read on to understand why this is a worthwhile step in your brewing practice.
Water is the largest component in beer and its quality can affect the other beer components: Malt, Hops, and Yeast. While it’s true that you don’t want to brew with bad tasting water, how the water tastes cannot assure good beer. You actually need to do a little more to promote your beer’s success.

Ions such as sulfate, chloride, sodium, and magnesium make a difference in beer taste. But the aspect that brewers need to be most concerned with is the pH of their wort. pH influences beer quality and perception in a major way.

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A Beer Judge’s Diary: OFBB 2016

North of Old Forge
North of Old Forge

Old Forge BIG Beer and Odd Ale Competition, Old Forge, NY

By Ken Carman
By Ken Carman
 It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood! Oh, sorry. I was singing. And the picture above, taken a few days before the competition, shows peak came a tad late this year. So visiting judges got to drive through Adirondack fall splendor, as did BOS (Best of Show) judges, those attending Old Forge BrewFest. Oh, and I didn’t get eaten.
 That’s right: in 2014 I was wondering if a bear was going to eat me at about 1am. It was pitch black and I was the only one on Moss Lake the night before Old Forge BIG Beer and Odd Ale… then called Old Forge Old Ale Competition. The second year, due to a judge shortage and drop off locations, I ended up driving over a thousand miles, sleeping on different couches and in my Honda Element, to do all I needed to do. We judge in a rain storm on a leaky porch… while our sponsor: Saranac/Matt Brewing, stared down at us. I was delighted to be entertained by Tim Belczak’s munchkins near Buffalo, not too shabby I must admit, but picked up no entries even though the business told me they had three. Drove to Erie to judge and, again, picked up no entries.
 This year, NOW what? Continue reading “A Beer Judge’s Diary: OFBB 2016”

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Autumn in a Glass: Märzen, Oktoberfest Beer, and Vienna Lager

Written by Franz Hofer for A Tempest in a Tankard

As the leaves in the beer gardens begin to don their autumnal attire and the evenings hint of the harvest, my beer preferences turn to the kinds of beers whose colour reflects my surroundings. These gold, amber, and russet beers of autumn also have just enough added alcoholic warmth to stave off the evening chill –– the perfect transit point between the lighter beers of summer and the heftier beers of winter.img_0609

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