Friday, May 27, 2016

Southern IPA Elite 8 Results

Owen Ogletree set up eight American IPAs that were poured at last April's Classic City Brew Fest in Athens in an "IPA Elite Eight" blind tasting bracket. All the IPAs were produced in breweries from the Southeast, and the beer judges chose a beer from each pair that seemed to have the most impressive IPA character and hop profile.

The tasting panel was comprised of Owen Ogletree, Steve Holzman, Aaron Wallace of Highwire Lounge and Trappeze Pub, Daniel Pittard, Richard Miley from Catch 22 Gastropub, Dean Graves, Gail Graves, Pete Dasher and Ian Meents of Southern Brewing Company.

From the BJCP American IPA style description...

American IPA: A decidedly hoppy and bitter, moderately strong American pale ale, showcasing modern American or New World hop varieties. The balance is hop-forward, with a clean fermentation profile, dryish finish, and clean, supporting malt allowing a creative range of hop character to shine through.

Vital Statistics:
OG: 1.056 – 1.070
IBUs: 40 – 70
FG: 1.008 – 1.014
SRM: 6 – 14
ABV: 5.5 – 7.5%

Here's how the blind brackets went down, with Southbound Brewing's Hop'lin IPA taking "best in show"...

Our Bling Tasting Notes:

SweetWater IPA
Light hop aroma; citrus; kiwi; a hint of lemon; well-balanced; light, lingering bitterness; pleasant; subtle.

Foothills Hoppyum
Piney; hops are upfront; hoppy finish; good malt balance; hint of pepper; hint of malt sweetness; hop flavor is restrained; woody hops; citrus and grapefruit emerge after a bit; tasty.

Red Brick HopLanta - RUNNER UP
Slight fruit nose; metallic hint; pine-like bitterness; citrus hops; spicy hops; grassy; herbal hint; bright and crisp; bold hops.

Monday Night Slap Fight
Earthy hop note; nice, lingering bitter finish; herbal, tannin-like hops; hints of citrus; hops are in background behind malty character.

Highland IPA
Light pine tannin hops; very drinkable; a touch earthy; great color for style; hops are pleasant but light; soft, appealing, moderate carbonation.

Southbound Hop'lin IPA - WINNER OF THE CHALLENGE
Sweet, malty notes; pineapple; hint of alcohol warmth; balanced malt/hop profile; guava; fruity; wonderful after-taste; light piney hop note; medium body; a touch murky with chill haze; delicious.

Jekyll Hop Dang Diggity
Clear and bright; tropical fruits; kiwi; earthy hint; light bitterness in the finish; smooth hop notes; mild bitterness; pleasant balance.

Lonerider Hoppy Ki Yay
Hop aroma is mild; slight metallic flavor; hops and malt seem restrained; lots of fruity esters; seems malt-forward with interesting fruit complexity.

Photos by Gail Graves

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Owen Ogletree's Articles from "All About Beer" Over the Years

AUTHOR: OWEN OGLETREE, All about beer magazine

October 20, 2014 - Owen OgletreeEverards Brewery team leader Mick Trevor and Terrapin Beer Co. brewmaster Brian “Spike” Buckowski unlatched the lid of the Everards mash tun and peered through steamy haze at the thick, gooey grain bed containing 10% sticky rye malt. Draining the sweet wort from this glue-like porridge was proceeding slower than Trevor had anticipated. Seemingly unfazed,...View Article
Sidebars - Travel Features
BEER EVENT CRIB LIST
September 1, 2011 - Owen OgletreeFor those who can’t plan their own events, here’s a list of established happenings… Tri-Beer: The Triangle Beer Meetup – Beer gatherings and special events in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. meetup.com/tribeer Lagunitas Skunk Train – Annual beer train through the redwood forests of northern California. lagunitas.com Good Beer Lunches – Australian group bringing craft...View Article
Full Pints - Travel Features
BEER EVENT BRAINSTORM
September 1, 2011 - Owen OgletreeTwenty craft beer lovers, all wearing the same T-shirts, walk into a bar. No, this isn’t the beginning of a joke―it describes an organized pub-crawl for charity. Across America, people are realizing that craft beer can form the impetus for switching off the TV, getting off the couch, heading out of the house and bringing...View Article
Full Pints - Travel Features
MEMOIRS OF A BEER ROADIE
March 22, 2010 - Owen OgletreeWith sheets of rain blanketing our SUV, windshield wipers pounding out a mind-numbing rhythm, a stream of crimson brake lights ahead to the horizon and two stressed-out beer reps in the back seat on their Blackberries, all I could think was, “Man, I really need a beer.”
Culture - Live Beer - Sidebars - Travel
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
November 1, 2007 - Owen OgletreeUnfortunately, several southern craft breweries of the early ‘90s were perhaps ahead of their time and not able to survive. New Orleans’ Acadian Brewing (closed in 2002) produced a crisp, hoppy pilsner for a time and offered a pleasant beer garden for visitors. A delightful brewpub that featured live jazz, Port City Brewery in Mobile,...View Article
A TASTE OF THE SOUTHEAST
November 1, 2007 - Owen OgletreeHere’s a handful of distinctive brews you can find only in their home region. Terrapin Rye Pale Ale, Terrapin Beer Co., Athens, GA Medium gold in color with a crisp American hop nose and flavor. Finishes dry with touches of rye spiciness and light bitterness that fade quickly, leaving a clean palate.
BEER IN THE NEW SOUTH
November 1, 2007 - Owen OgletreeWhile Oregon and Washington, Colorado, Maine or California amongst others saw explosive craft brewery growth, the Southeastern states seemed trapped in light lager culture and a persistent prohibitionist mindset. Beer remained stuck at sports bars and tailgating parties.

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Golden Beer Styles Bingo - April 2016

Owen Ogletree gathered 22 craft beer fans on April 30, 2016 to taste eight mystery golden beers and try to match each one to a BJCP style. Even though each beer offered different aroma and flavor notes, matching each to its style turned out to be quite a challenging task.

At the conclusion of the tasting, before each beer name was revealed, participants voted on their picks for "best of show" - a favorite beer that was close to perfection, based on its style description.

All these wonderful ales and lagers were poured at our 2016 Classic City Brew Fest in Athens, Georgia.

FIRST PLACE: Ritterguts Gose
Gose

A well-carbonated, slightly dry, fruity, pleasantly sour wheat ale with light notes of coriander and salt. Not bitter and hoppy at all. Reminiscent of sweet tarts and light citrus.

SECOND PLACE: Gnomegang

Belgian Blond Ale

A moderately strong, Belgian ale with wonderful fruit, spice, clove and malt character. Fermentation character from Belgian yeast strains is appealing, and the finish is medium dry. Offers lemon hints and slight initial sweetness.

THIRD PLACE: Foothills Torch Pilsner

Czech-style Premium Pale Lager (Bohemian-style Pilsner)

Golden pilsner malt backbone supported by hefty doses of floral, spicy noble hops. A lingering hop finish and clean, non-fruity lager character. Beautiful hops and good bitterness for style.

Mother Earth Endless River

Kolsch

A crisp, light ale with appropriate malt/hop balance, light fruitiness and pleasant floral German hop bitterness. Offers a dry and refreshing finish.

Foothills Pilot Mountain Pale Ale

American Pale Ale

A beautifully balanced, hoppy pale ale with light fruity esters and citrusy, piney American hops. A classic example of the style.

Weihenstephaner Original Premium

Munich Helles

A classic, lightly malty German lager with a smooth, light malt sweetness, honey-like undertones and a soft, somewhat dry finish. Light spicy, floral/herbal hops keep the balance toward malt, but not too sweet. A gorgeous session lager.

Mother Earth Weeping Willow Wit

Witbier (Belgian White)

A refreshing, complex, elegant, light ABV wheat ale with wheat cereal grain notes, orange peel, coriander and subtle Belgian fermentation notes. This beer exhibits a wonderful balance of all the appropriate aroma and flavor components.

Lonerider Shotgun Betty

Weissbier

A wonderfully drinkable version of the classic German-style wheat beer with soft, creamy mouthfeel, moderately dry finish, and banana, clove and light bubblegum yeast complexity.

Thursday, April 14, 2016

I Feel the Need - the Need for MEAD

Owen Ogletree gathered fellow beer lovers Sachin Patel, Ian Meents, Ashton Smith, Dean Graves, The Beer Wench, Mark Hall and Lizz Berstein to sample and comment on ten different meads. Meads are a type of wine made from fermented honey, and they offer a surprising range of aroma and flavor components...

1. Fox Hill Meadery Special Reserve
Marshall, NC
Off-dry with buckwheat honey, 16% ABV
Offering a deep amber, bourbon-like color, this mead provides hints of cereal, spicy rye, honeycomb, alcohol, golden raisins and toast with butter and honey. With a rich, honey flavor with hints of cinnamon, sherry and apricot jam, this selection comes across as warming but not extremely complex.

2. Monks Mead
Avondale Estates, GA
Carbonated mead with wildflower honey, 12.9% ABV
This local mead contains a hint of CO2 sparkle and is a bit reminiscent of a light sparkling wine in the aroma. Notes of cane syrup, muscat grapes, demi-sec champagne and slight spices give way to a somewhat bitter, but pleasant, finish. Color is golden, and the mead is quite clear.

3. St. Ambrose Meadery Rosé Ambrosia
Beulah, MI
Medium-dry with 33% grapes, 67% honey, 12% ABV
This mead pours a deep ruby red color with aromas of Pinot grapes, butter and grape jam on toast. Sweet red wine notes on the palate lead into an overall character of mixed berries, jam, red currants and pomegranate.

4. Redstone Meadery Pumpkin Nectar
Boulder, CO
Melomel with pumpkin, 8% ABV
The nose picks up French vanilla, clove, plastic, higher alcohols and light solvents. Flavor notes of nori seaweed and phenolic honey produce a unique profile in this clear, light straw colored mead.

5. Preissl Neuburger Met Extra Spezial
Imkermeister Preissl - Neuburger, Austria
Mead with cherries, 13.5% ABV
Chosen as SECOND PLACE (tie) by our panel.
This mead offers deep, dark amber/copper hues that are almost brown. Aroma and flavor tones of oak, wood, brown sugar, sorghum, vanilla, sweet port, dark cherries, nuts and papaya make for an extremely complex, satisfying dessert mead.

6. Nectar Creek Honeycone
Corvallis, OR
Hop session Mead, 6.9% ABV
There's a definite hoppy note and resiny hop profile to this slightly earthy, medium-sweet mead with flavors of floral hops, kiwi, light tropical fruit and mild hop bitterness. Quite quaff-able and refreshing. It sports a pale straw color with a hint of fizz.

7. B. Nektar Dwarf Invasion
Ferndale, MI
Cherries and hops, 6% ABV
Chosen as SECOND PLACE (tie) by our panel.
Slight sour cherries and hops highlight the rustic fruit wine character of this mead, along with notes of strawberries and a clean, lactic acidity. Hops come through more in the aroma than the flavor in this dark red honey wine.

8. Alaska Meadery Batch #73
Anchorage, AK
Clover honey mead, off-dry, aged in bourbon barrels for nine months, 15% ABV
Chosen as THIRD PLACE by our panel.
This mead is packed with flavors of honey, vanilla, oak, alcohol, butter, clove, nutmeg, biscuit crust, rum and clover flowers. The appearance is clear, golden and attractive, and the overall impressive seems like a vanilla butter cookie dipped in honey.

9. B. Nektar Necromangocon
Ferndale, MI
Mango, black pepper, 6% ABV
Chosen as FIRST PLACE by our panel.
Mango, black pepper, cantaloupe, peppercorns and honeysuckle nuances highlight the lingering, pleasant pepper zing of this light golden mead with just a hint of carbonation. Also look for notes of blood orange zest and pine turpentine.

10. B. Nektar Black Fang
Ferndale, MI
Blackberry, clove, orange zest, 6% ABV
Notes of clove, ozone, sulfur and fruit mingle in the earthy aroma. Flavors of sangria, blackberries, gunpowder and rose hips are balanced by hints of black cherries, smoke and light citrus. This warming mead offers ruby/garnet hues and is brilliantly clear.