Posted by Mitch Schroeder on January 25, 2012 at 8:37 pm
Recently, my friend Nick and I were discussing the ridiculousness of the Beer Advocate’s Top 100 List. As you go through the list, you’ll notice that the majority of all the beers listed are Double/Imperial Stouts and Double/Imperial IPA’s. At the time, Russian River’s Supplication (ranked #13) caught our eye because of the words “American Wild Ale”. Curiosity got the best of us and we decided to try a bottle. If you haven’t tried an American Wild Ale, or a Sour as it’s so diminutively called, you’ll probably be caught off guard like we did. Imagine popping a Warhead into your mouth without realizing what it was. The face I made was probably similar to that of a child biting into a lemon.
After the initial surprise had subsided, and don’t get me wrong, it was a lengthy inquiry of “what the $#!@ did I just put into my mouth?” I started analyzing what I was experiencing. The smell was that of lemons, tart cherry, earthy aroma of yeast, and a little apple cider. Flavors of tart, sour cherries, bready/malty yeast, sour lemon, and that distinct smell of brettanomyces (Brett for short) pretty much dominate the palate. A light bit of hops were apparent in the middle and a tad bit of woodiness sum up the finish. Did I mention it was sour? So. Very. Sour.
The puckering mouthfeel is like no other beer type I had ever tried in my life. The beer attacks the salivary glands in a way that is both alarming and pleasurable, and lingers for quite some time. It has a minimum carbonation and should be enjoyed on it’s own, no food necessary.
I was extremely pleased with this beer and have since purchased 3 more bottles to enjoy at a later date. Maybe next time though, I’ll read the label before drinking.
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Posted by Greg Schroeder on December 13, 2011 at 11:33 pm
I don’t know if this is world breaking news, but it did catch my eye. Starbucks is adding wine and beer to their menu at a few locations, in order to test the waters. I seriously think they should have done this from the get go! What were they waiting for, it’s a total no brainer! Coffee Shops do most of their business in the early part of the day, the obvious add on to the menu is booze and a Happy Hour. Cafes across France and most of southern Europe have been doing this successfully for years, not to mention they sell tobacco to boot. It comes as no surprise to me that they were victorious, and that the guinea pig locations have doubled their afternoon traffic since adding beer and wine.
I work at Amazing Grapes Wine Store and we have one of the most over the top selections of Craft Beers ever to be seen. I also have a mind that never stops and this whole Starbucks deal got me thinking, why doesn’t Starbucks come up with their own line of Craft Beers. They could do cool flavored beers similar to the coffee drinks they’re so famous for. I tried the Young’s Double Chocolate Stout during my research for this story. This was the real deal, I tasted the dark chocolate, but it wasn’t so sweet that I forgot I was drinking a beer. Just look at the frothy foamy glass of beer and how can you not envision the same thing but with a Starbucks logo? I for one will be the first in line at my local Starbucks should they start doing their own beers!
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Posted by Mitch Schroeder on March 26, 2010 at 7:21 pm
We’ve been tinkering with the idea of expanding our beer selection ever since a local deli went out of business nearly a year ago. We purchased their two 10′ coolers with the idea of using them in our store for beer and a larger chilled wine and champagne selection. It also helped our decision to do this when some well publicized research recently reported the impending explosion of micro-brew and craft beers.
Well, the coolers are in now and we’re loaded for bear, I mean beer!
I think the first thing we should do is tell you what we are in the beer business and what we are not. That starts with definitions of “microbrew” and “craft beer.”
A microbrewery is a small brewery with a limited production capacity which produces labor intensive, hand-crafted beers.
“Craft beer” is a term that generally refers to beer that is brewed using traditional methods, without adjuncts such as rice or corn, and with an eye to what’s distinctive and flavorful rather than mass appeal. Whereas the term microbrewery is a term for a small scale brewery that produces a small volume of beer, craft brewery describes an approach to brewing, which in principle may be carried out on any scale. Most microbreweries are also craft breweries; however, “craft” beer can certainly also be a product of a large brewery, and there are many such products coming to market as a result of increased consumer interest in traditional beer.
As for what AG will be with beer – we’re leaning more to the microbrew side of the keg. We won’t be carrying the brands you see on TV, if that helps.
Here are links to Wikipedia for each style of microbrew we will be carrying for you to further your knowledge:
Pale Ales
Lager
Stouts and Porters
Hefeweizen (Wheat Beer)
Pilsner
From Ales to Stouts, you’ll discover and enjoy the many types of microbrew beers hand crafted in the U.S, Germany, Ireland, Belgium, even Italy and Canada at Amazing Grapes!
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Recently, my friend Nick and I were discussing the ridiculousness of the Beer Advocate’s Top 100 List. As you go through the list, you’ll notice that the majority of all the beers listed are Double/Imperial Stouts and Double/Imperial IPA’s. At the time, Russian River’s Supplication (ranked #13) caught our eye because of the words “American Wild Ale”. Curiosity got the best of us and we decided to try a bottle. If you haven’t tried an American Wild Ale, or a Sour as it’s so diminutively called, you’ll probably be caught off guard like we did. Imagine popping a Warhead into your mouth without realizing what it was. The face I made was probably similar to that of a child biting into a lemon.
