One morning while reading The Heavy Table, Shawn learned about one of Minnesota’s newest breweries, Boom Island Brewing Company. The biggest difference between Boom Island and many other breweries that have hit the news recently, is that Boom Island was already putting its beer up for sale. I attended a quick tasting at The Four Firkins in Saint Louis Park, where I grabbed two of the first bottles released. Boom Island Brewing is Belgian-inspired brewery, based in Minneapolis. The story of Kevin Welch, brewer, is one of a homebrewer’s dream. What could turn out to be Boom Island’s “ace in the hole” is the fact that Kevin is cultivating his own yeast strains, gathered during a trip across Belgium. We review the some of first releases available from Boom Island Brewing: Silvius Pale Ale and Thoprock IPA. On its website, Boom Island also teases the eventual release of a Dubbel and Tripel in bottles. read more…
We’ve reached into the archives to release a “lost” episode of The Happy Hour. Back in 2010, Jason and Mike were lucky enough to receive a bottle of Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout. This annually released beer shouldn’t be considered a simple oaked version of Founders Breakfast Stout, but is a wholly different beer. Kentucky Breakfast Stout is a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout brewed with coffee and chocolate. It’s tempting to draw parallels between KBS and Goose Island Bourbon County Stout, or more specifically, the Bourbon County Coffee Stout. The beer leads coffee and is bourbon second. read more…
Specs from Goose Island:
ABV: 6.2%
Color: Ruby, Chocolate
Hop Bitterness (IBU): Changes year to year
Malts: Pale Ale, Munich 10, Caramel 20, Caramel 60, Caramel 120
Hops: Change year to year
Availability: November – December
Serving Suggestions:
Preferred Glass: Nonic
Food Pairings: Ham, Turkey, Lamb
Cheese Pairings: Aged Gouda, Dry Jack
Cellaring Notes: Develops in the bottle for up to 5 years
The Review
Appearance: The body is a deep garnet, with fluffy toasted marshmallow-colored head, which quickly subsides and leaves no lacing.
Aroma: The nose is soft, but as the beer warms, the body of hazelnut appears. There is a slight alcohol hint lingering, that becomes less present when the beer reaches room temperature.
Flavor: I detect a bit of aged hops with the first sip. There’s a bitter finish that quickly fades. I can imagine there’s a brown sugar / spice duo, but it’s only a very faint notion. It’s certainly a warm, sweet brew, but at 6.2%, not alcoholic.
Mouthfeel: Christmas Ale 2011 is sweet, with very low carbonation. There is a roasted caramel toffee aftertaste. This beer reminds me of a ramped-up version of Mild Winter.
Overall: I’m pleasantly surprised by this one. When I think of a Christmas ale, Anchor Brewing’s Christmas Ale comes to mind. However in this example, Goose Island nailed it. They produced a centric, not overly-hoppy, smooth-malted ale. This beer works well throughout the Christmas gathering. I’ve been sipping on it while grazing appetizers, and plan to open another bottle to enjoy during dinner.
Thanks to Ken Hunnemeder at Goose Island for providing me this sample.
Supplementary Review (by Mike)
Appearance: The Christmas Ale poured hazy amber with a tan, bubbly froth on top. If you swirl the glass around, the beer will slowly drain off the sides. There does seem to be a bit of carbonation as bubbles cling and rise against the glass edge.
Aroma: This beer comes off as slight sweet and somewhat toasted. If you hold your nose to the glass long enough, you can convince yourself that you’re smelling banana bread.
Taste: I get a fair amount of effervescence with this beer. Not that it’s a bubbly champagne, but it doesn’t fall flat on the palate. I get that metallic tinge with slight bitterness. The real flavors here, however, are the roasted malts balanced with some sort of spice (maybe cinnamon) element.
Overall: The beer tastes rounded, and I believe it’s because of the alcohol content. It’s not too high of an alcohol content at 6.2%. But that ABV does make the beer a little warmer and leaves a balance between the sweet and the spice.
Specifications from Goose Island:
ABV: 5.6%
ABW: 4.4%
Color: Toffee Brown
Hop Bitterness (IBU): 20
OG: 14.0° Plato
Malts: 2 Row, Carapils, Dark Chocolate, Roast Barley, Rye Flake
Hops: Pilgrim, Centennial, Tettnang
Availability: December – March
Serving Suggestions:
Preferred Glass: Willi
Food Pairings: Beef, Stews, Sausages
Cheese Pairings: Gruyere, Fontina
Cellaring Notes: Enjoy within 180 days
The Review
Appearance: The body is a ruby to toffee brown. The head is fluffy white, and as it subsides, it laces the glass. I poured into a Saison Dupont glass, the only example of a willi glass I own.
Aroma: Soft, caramel roast, raisins. Fleeting finish, with peppery rye notes.
Flavor: Mild Winter is only slightly sweet. It’s very reminiscent of a British mild or a bitter, with low hop presence and a slight toffee bitterness. I enjoy the fact I’m not drinking a boozy behemoth. I could comfortably quaff a few of these at a sitting.
Mouthfeel: Sweet, low carbonation. It feels slightly like corn or unfermented grain. The beer finished with little bitterness and no alcohol heat.
Overall: Mild winter is a great change of pace for the season. When friends are bringing out high ABV brews like Russian Imperial Stouts and barley wines, or spicy winter warmers, this beer would please a broad range of beer drinkers’ palettes. I know I plan to share this brew with my family (they’re typically drinking American adjunct lagers at get-togethers).
Thanks to Ken Hunnemeder at Goose Island for providing me this sample.
Much of my excitement for homebrew derives from drawing inspiration from my surroundings. Fall in Minnesota is one of my favorite experiences, and sadly, Fall will be coming to a close in the coming weeks. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate its passing with a beer.
Wild Rice in Minnesota is a grain typically harvested in September. Truth be told, Wild Rice is not actually rice but a water-grass seed.[^1] The techniques for harvesting wild rice have remained unchanged for centuries. Two people will occupy a canoe in which one, the “poler”, pushes the canoe through the wild rice bed of a lake, and the other, the “knocker”, uses cedar sticks to bend the wild rice stalks over the side of the canoe and taps the kernels off the stalk.[^2] In Minnesota, the celebrated grain finds its way into many food dishes like salads, soups, and Thanksgiving stuffing. Even Fitger’s Brewhouse in Duluth made a vegetarian wild rice burger. So, when looking for a Minnesota native ingredient to infuse in a Fall-seasonal beer, it is only sensible to make one with wild rice. read more…
