The Muse of
Brews
December 08/January 09 Column
Another Great American Beer Festival is over and Ohio brought home a gold medal, thanks to Fred Karm of Hoppin’ Frog Brewery in Akron! His B.O.R.I.S the Crusher (Bodacious Oatmeal Russian Imperial Stout) was the best of 44 entries in the Imperial Stout category. Congratulations, Fred! Maybe it will be one of the beers featured at the December 21 Hoppin’ Frog beer and food pairing dinner at Flemings Steak House in Akron?
As this issue is featuring beer and food pairings and beer dinners, it is appropriate to point out the continuing beer dinners held monthly by the Buckeye Beer Engine. They feature a wonderful lineup of beers paired with a 5 or 6 course meal, usually featuring beers from a particular brewery, and often with a guest speaker representing the featured brewery. The Beer Engine dinner on December 2 will be a special Christmas Beer Dinner. On January 12, expect a Belgian Beer Dinner. On December 5, the Beer Engine celebrates the repeal of the 18th amendment; prohibition with a big party, cheap drinks, and fifty-one ounce Baltika's for five bucks. The Beer Engine is the place to be all through December, it seems! They are promising a a 'kid in a candy store' selection of Holiday ales this year. All bottled beer is available for take-out. On December 12 through the 19th, they celebrate Christmas in Belgium, exploring the many renditions of a Holiday Ale. A special Samuel Smith's 'Winter Warmer' tasting will be held on December 18, and don’t forget that the Beer Engine is open every day of the year, including the holidays! On January 16, come back for the Lake Effect event which will include barleywines, big barleywines, and gigantic barleywines. And, on January 24, from 2-7 pm they will have a selection of wood-aged beers for your tasting pleasure.
Cornerstone Brewing and Great Lakes Brewing also sometimes offer beer dinners and beer/food pairing events, but as of this writing haven’t advised me of any planned for December or January. Check with the breweries for more up-to-date information.
Thirsty Dog Brewing Company has unleashed the 12 Dogs of Christmas Ale in bottles and is available in all distribution areas (which now includes Michigan!) and on tap throughout Northeast Ohio. And, their Siberian Night imperial stout has just received a 94 rating from “Draft Magazine” as one of the ‘must have’ big beers this winter. The brewery is now open the first and third Saturday of every month from 10-3 for purchasing growlers and for tours. The Thirsty Dog will be at the Northside Bar and Snooks located on North Main in downtown Akron on the first Wednesday of each month doing demonstrations and tastings with beer. Beer and chocolate will be on the agenda on December 3. January 7, it will be cooking with beer, while February 4th will be devoted to the love of Ohio beer. The Northside bar was originally built by Burkhardt Brewery at the turn of the century and is one of Akron’s oldest continuing operated pubs now featuring Thirsty Dog beers along with some of the best live blues music.
Recently I stumbled across a great place to buy beer near Toledo. It was the Andersons store in Sylvania. They have hundreds of good beers to choose from, both microbrews and imported beers, most of them also available as singles. If you can’t find the beer you want, ask and they will try to get it for you. Andersons has stores in several locations around Toledo, two in the Columbus area, and one in Lima. The stores carry an eclectic mix of groceries, hardware, sporting goods, and housewares in addition to wine and beer. Go to their website at www.andersonsstore.com and sign up for their weekly newsletter for news of beer tasting events. They recently had a blind tasting at the Sylvania store pitting Ohio brews, Buckeye Beer brewed by Maumee Bay Brewing and Great Lakes Brewing Edmund Fitzgerald Porter against Wolverine Beer and Bell’s Porter in a Michigan vs. Ohio contest.
Willoughby Brewing Company’s Jason Sims had a hit with his pumpkin ale this fall, running out almost before Halloween! So hurry in to catch the Wenceslas Christmas Ale before that, too, is gone. It’s a dark ale with hints of orange peel, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and other spices for that warm holiday feeling. Others on tap this winter will be the Pride of Willoughby Porter, Daisy Cutter IPA, and in January a strong winter warmer as yet to be determined. Oh… and don’t miss their New Year’s Eve bash!
Zanesville’s Weasel Boy Brewing Company is now featuring live music every other week throughout December and January. Watch their website for up-to-date line-ups and times. (weaselboybrewing.com). They will be hosting a New Year’s Eve party with live music, catered food, one-year old Anastasia Russian Imperial Stout, and a best party hat competition. In mid to late December they will release their 2008 Anastasia Russian Imperial Stout. Snow Ermine Holiday Ale is planned in time for the Winter Solstice on December 21, and Super Genius Barleywine to follow in early to mid January.
Weasel Boy hosted an event on Thanksgiving weekend to raise awareness and money for breast cancer as part of a nationwide event sponsored by White Labs, makers of brewer yeast. I mention this after the fact because you may still be able to support the cause and buy a ‘Beer for Boobs’ t-shirt at the White Labs website (www.whitelabs.com/breast_cancer.html)
The BREW Kettle Taproom and Smokehouse is sporting a new menu with many new items to tempt you: hearty starters like Buffalo Chicken Dip and their Sloppy Nachos, new Chicken Cordon Bleu and Junkyard Dog sandwiches, and entrees such as Great Lakes Yellow Perch and Brewmaster's Steak. And, better leave room for the Brownie Bomb dessert! Draft distribution within Ohio has begun of their well-known favorites including 4 C's Pale Ale, Copperhead Red Ale and Olde 21 Imperial IPA. Specialty drafts like the Winter Warmer will also be making an appearance in select locations. They have expanded their Brew-On-Premise capacity to accommodate the ever increasing demand to brew your own. Thirty percent additional brewing space and additional fermentation capacity is operational just in time for Holiday brewing!
Elevator Brewery & Draught Haus in Columbus is running an interesting promotion. They cite a brewing historian, Bob Skilnik, that asserts Benjamin Franklin never actually uttered the phrase: “Beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy,” and are offering to replace at no charge all such t-shirts previously sold by them in an attempt to squelch the beery urban legend. While you are getting your t-shirt replaced, enjoy one of their award-winning brews and award-winning food. Their chefs won the first prize in all five categories (appetizers, entrée/main dish, side dish, dessert, and vegetarian entrée) at the Microbrew Cooking Competition at Ohio Brew Week.
I promised news of Fat Heads Brewery & Saloon, soon to be opening in North Olmsted, but all I know so far is they have applied for their brewing licenses, they are planning a New Year’s Party, and will be featuring unfiltered, naturally carbonated, real ales and lagers.