The Muse of
Brews
April/May
2009 Column
I attended the 3rd Annual Glass City Beer Fest in Toledo in March. It was my first time at this festival, and it was a good one with more than 90 different beers from 28 breweries. Ohio breweries Barrelhouse, BREW Kettle, and Maumee Bay had their beers on tap, and others from Ohio and across the nation (from Boston to San Diego) were represented by the distributors with mostly bottled beer. One nice thing I found different at this beer fest was the beer tasting score card they gave out, so you could rate each one from 1 (spit) to 5 (chug). Not quite “professional” judging, but I like the idea.
Jon Koester is the brewmaster at Maumee Bay now (the former brewer left for New Belgium in Colorado), and they had the Buckeye Lager, a Belgian trippel, Glass City Pale Ale, and India Pale Ale on draft at the festival. If you’ve not been to Maumee Bay before, it’s near downtown Toledo on the river, and is in an old building that used to be a hotel. It’s an interesting setting, the food is good, the view is nice, and the beer is craft-brewed on premise. What more could you want?
Well it’s happening at last. Fat Heads Brewery and Saloon will be open in North Olmsted by the time you read this. I’m sure this time, because brewer Matt Cole has already brewed an IPA, an American Pale Ale, a Beligian Dark, a Belgian saision, a hefeweisen, a Scottish Export ale, and will be brewing a honey rye (with local honey) in the next day or so. He says he’s happy with the results and I can’t wait to try them. He planning to cask some of the beers and, besides their own beer, Fat Heads will feature a different microbrewery each month with their rotating taps. There’s a lot more, according to Cole, but I’ll save that for next issue, after I’ve experienced Fat Heads myself.
I don’t generally let other people write my column but this was too good to change. This is the news from Jay Cox, brewer at Cornerstone Brewing Co. “Well it's spring time again at Cornerstone Brewing Co and it's time for a rebirth of some of our favorites. Fresh fruit aromas are bright and inviting in the Erie Blü Raspberry amber ale. Fifteen gallons of pureed Oregon raspberries and blackberries should be inviting. If it isn't, then I don't know what is. Spring time also means goats are out frolicking and getting their groove on, being bright and frisky. So we decided to follow suit and make a nice spring time bock to get everybody else bright and frisky. A hearty malt backbone with a nice dry finish, should do the trick. April also means taxes. What better way to drink away your refund than with C.P.A. (Cornerstone Pale Ale). Bright gold and a zesty hop should get those "paying the man" blues out of your system. Liquid Söl has also made a triumphant return. A clear orange hued Belgian pale with bitter orange peel, and licorice root is a nice way to welcome back green grass, warmer days, and the sound of chirping birds. There are eight constantly rotating taps here, flowing with freshly brewed beer, so stop in and try something new.” Thank you, Jay, I couldn’t have said it better.
Hoppin' Frog Brewery won the Winter Warmer Fest’s People’s Choice award in Cleveland with BORIS the Crusher Oatmeal-Imperial Stout. This, however, was not the first keg to run out at the festival. The first was the new Outta Kilter Wee-Heavy Scotch Red. The strongest of the Scottish styles, this "wee heavy" Scotch ale is like an Irish red, with more flavor and kick at 8.2% abv. It is complex, smooth, and tasty! Outta Kilter is being released March 16, so this was a special preview for the Winter Warmer Fest. It will be available in 22-ounce bottles all across Ohio, at The Vegiterranean Restaurant in Akron, and other fine beer establishments and retailers in Ohio and many neighboring states. Hoppin' Frog is hopping across to the East Coast, and just signed-up North and South Carolina.
Ohio Brewing has a new beer on tap call the Ohio Hibernian Ale. It is a strong Irish Ale, at about 7.5% abv, and while possessing a noticeable hop finish, it is still balanced by rich malts. The seasonal Maple Porter is going strong and may not last much longer on tap. Also look for Ohio Brewing beer on tap at other locations around northeast Ohio. Ohio Brewing is having a beer tasting dinner on Tuesday, April 21 at 7 p.m. And if you haven’t been there recently, they have a new menu since Damon’s left. It must be good because their chili recently won the chili cookoff as Lock 3 in Akron!
Buckeye Beer Engine continues their beer dinners with one on April 28 and one on May 19. Having attended three of these now, I can attest to the quality and quantity of the food and beer. You will not be disappointed! I especially enjoyed meeting Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery. It was also the opening of the “Engine Room”, which is the new downstairs banquet room that is now available for parties and private beer dinners for up to 60 people. Stay tuned to their website or get on their mailing list for details of the next dinners. In other news at Buckeye, they have updated their draft system to 100% stainless steel. The 3rd annual 420 HopFest will start with keg tapping on April 17 with an in-line hop filter (named Randall the Enamel Animal?) Then on 4-20 at 4:20 p.m., they will have live music. Remember in last issue, Garin Wright promised the biggest IPA he’s ever made for the 420 HopFest? Don’t miss it.
Weasel Boy Brewing i Weasel Boy Brewing Company is hosting the 2009 National Homebrew Competition’s First Round East Regional. Close to 600 homebrew entries are expected to be judged by a team of beer judges at the brewery the weekend of April 17-19. Owners Jay and Lori Wince, having long been avid homebrewers and members of the Columbus based Scioto, Olentangy and Darby Zymurgists, are excited to be hosting a first round sight for this pinnacle of homebrew competitions which is also the largest beer competition in the world.
Expansion of the Weasel Boy taproom may also be just over the horizon. The brewery is currently in negotiations to add 1800+ square feet to their facility. The expanded space features the same panoramic riverside view that patrons have come to expect and will more than double their seating capacity. Weasel Boy is also now partnering with their next door neighbor, Muddy Miser’s Café, to offer a selected menu of fresh-baked flat bread pizzas. One such offering is a barbeque chicken pizza featuring barbeque sauce made with the brewery’s Dancing Ferret IPA.
Upcoming beers for this spring include the return of last summer’s very successful Wiesel Junge Kolsch and the brand new Mischievous Marten Marzen. The Kolsch, registering at 4.9% abv., is hopped with German Magnum and Spalt hops. The Marzen should also weigh in at just under 5% abv and is brewed with Continental Vienna and Munich malts with just enough Magnum and Spalt to balance the malty goodness. Enjoy live music at the Weasel on Saturday nights.
At Kellys Island Brewery, they have been busily preparing for another season. This will be the first full season with the Venture Resort Hotel next door. They have been planning new events and new menus. They will be starting with First Annual Yoga Retreat May 15 thru 17, which includes a Friday night fire, a beer and wine tasting, and meals from dinner Friday until breakfast Sunday included. Check their website for other exciting events, www.kellysislandbrewpub.com.
Kellys Island Brewery also has a new Ol’ Number 69 Imperial IPA, a higher gravity version of their IPA. This beer has a starting gravity of 1.088 with alcohol content close to 9%. This high starting gravity results in a large malty flavor, which is then hopped with 69 IBU’s of Centennial Hops. “If you want to try some aromatherapy this summer, this beer is intense,” says brewmaster Doug. Their classics, Dawg Bizkit Brown, Angler’s Ale, Island Devil, Lake Erie Lager, and Summer Haze, will be revolving on the taps all year, until November 20.
I met Jim Lieb at the Winter Warmer Fest, who is the new brewer at Rocky River Brewing Co. He’s planning on celebrating the arrival of spring with a Maibock and a big IPA, to be followed by the return of the Nickel Plate Porter and an as yet undetermined Belgian style ale.
Thirsty Dog was awarded best spiced beer in Midwest by the Beer Tasting Championships for 2008-2009 for their Twelve Dogs of Christmas Ale. As spring is finally here look for Maibark in your favorite craft bars soon and dust off those Thirsty Dog growlers for Thirsty Thursdays at the brewery with $8 fill ups on any beer except Cerberus & Orthus. Thirsty Dog will again be sponsoring the 5th Annual Blues & Brews Festival at Stan Hywet to be held this year on August 8. Tickets will be available at stanhywet.org after April 20.
The Brew Keeper in North Ridgeville, has been madly adding new location where its Mad Brewer label beers can be purchased in either 22-ounce bottles or on draft. You can even get 1/6 barrel kegs for home parties at some locations. April and May mark the return of the seasonal Mad Bee Honey Wheat Ale, an easy drinking ale with a light honey presence. It is brewed with 100% clover honey and is perfect for backyard grilling or just as a good summer session beer.
If you want to brew your own beer, there’s seldom a long wait to schedule the brewing of your own beer at the Brew Keeper's craft brew-on-premise facility. There are 65 different styles of beer to choose from and you can create your own cool beer label. Check the website brewkeeper.com for the latest information and numbers to call to schedule.
At the BREW Kettle, Jack Kephart is working on an Imperial Wit Bier at 8.5% abv, and a hoppy German-style pilsner made with German Tettnang hops from Sam Adams Brewery that he is calling Son of Sam.
Rust Belt Brewing in Youngstown is expanding its distribution. I had a very interesting Chocolate Red Ale on tap at the Boxcar Lounge. It was a deep mahogany with notes of caramel and chocolate. The Boxcar apparently mixes that with the Rust Belt Wheat to make its own version of a strawberry blonde, which I didn’t try. Their website, www.rustybrew.com will list locations the beer can be found on draft.