Summer is just around the corner, and with that, we will soon be seeing a litany of summer beers from A - Z. Ahhhh, the summer. We can hardly wait for it. Vacations. Time to float rivers, go to the lakes, tube, hang glide, head to the coast, sit in the pool in the backyard, or fill a metal goat feeder from a feed store to put your feet in and pretend you are in the other locations.
First, since there is a large quantity of summer ales from which to choose, Average Guy is committed, dedicated, and sworn to you, the loyal reader and beer enthusiast to leave no stone unturned, no trail not traveled, nor allow a lead to not be exhausted, to find and sample and report back to you of the sensory experience provided by a refreshing ale in the summer. It is as though God, during creation, said that there needed to be seasons: one to let you know summer was coming to an end - the fall; one to rest the weary land from its harvest - the winter; one to plant in anticipation of a bountiful harvest - the spring; and one to provide enough heat so as to enjoy a cool refreshing ale - the summer.
Yes, it all comes together in the summer - from planting to harvest for us to enjoy the fruits of our labors. Well, actually we enjoy the grains of our labors, but you get the idea via cliché.
Our first beer I first enjoyed about two summers ago in Milwaukee at the Miller Beer Pub in the Hilton in downtown. Milwaukee is a beautiful city that sits along Lake Michigan and features much of what we have learned to love in life - beer, baseball, Harley's, and all things that go along with living on a great lake (fishing, boating, and other such activities). While at the pub, I asked the young man behind the bar to give me something local, so he gave me samples of Leinenkugels (which still is a craft brewery but it was purchased by Miller probably as we were speaking).
My favorite at that tasting was the Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy. Leinenkugel Brewery is located in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, and no doubt, the effects of life in that town had an impact on this beer. The Shandy has a strong lemon taste (the ingredients state lemonade to be specific) which is perfect or a summer beer (in contrast to fall or winter beers who seem to insist on cloves in addition to cinnamon and some other fruit making it almost undrinkable). Like the people of Wisconsin, this beer has a certain amount of character to it. I will confess I violate the beer enthusiast's creed of ethics and drink my summer beers cold, not cool.
The young man at the pub knew I was staying at the hotel, and so he felt moved to share samplings of the beer and some food he thought it went well with. Consequently, after a few hours of watching baseball, talking to him, sampling beer and food, I went back to my room for my eight hour nap early.
There are more summer beers to enjoy, but this one is a particular favorite of mine. Hope you enjoy as well. Average Guy has much sampling and reporting to do this summer, so I'm taking it one at a time.
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
National Home Brew Day, Post Script
The question isn't how did it get by us because the answer is simple, it did. Monday, May 4 marked National Homebrew Day. Now, most days that are given a status of some kind before Congress are a complete waste of time. What is an "Administrative Professional" and why did Congress need to tell me to pause, once a year, and say thank you to my secretary? There are others, and you know them in your heart. You begrudgingly go to a store (come on - you know you do, admit it) and thumb for a minute or two, probably the day before, to find that card NOT, mind you, for that special someone, but rather to not look like a boob, a heel, a loser when everyone else gathers and "friends" ask, "What did you get?" "Joe Bob bought me a fishing reel and a six pack for Mother's Day," she says at church, almost ducking her head hoping no one asks.
But this, this my friends, is a day we can call our own. Congress, probably not realizing what they did when they passed it in 1988, gave credence to the rise of the home brew movement before it was cool. Will I observe such a thing? Well, does a wild bear poop in the woods?
Naturally I spent most of the weekend honoring the day. Our own local homebrew store, Yellow House Canyon Brew Works (601 N. University) had a Big Brew Day that I attended. Fresh in my stock is a witbier (currently fermenting patiently). Bottled are two beers - a kolsch and a pale ale. And after going to the Big Brew Day at Yellow House, my commitment has ratcheted up a notch (more like four or five notches). Plans are already underway to purchase the necessary materials for a complete and full grain brew and not a partial batch as my first 10 (that means I don't buy the malts that come in concentrate form anymore, I steep the grains myself to create the sugars that eventually become the alcohol and flavor).
On Saturday, we had family over and I asked my nephew (bringing the paternal grandparents and joining our house which had his maternal grandfather) to bring a craft brew to add to my assortment, including my home brewed ales. So, from Big Brew event on Saturday to pulled pork and homebrew at night, I'd say we'd done a tremendous job acknowledging craft beer and home brews.
My nephew brought Deep Ellum IPA, brewed in South Dallas by the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. Having just brewed a pale ale, we had a homebrew next to a craft brew. The Deep Ellum IPA has similar ingredients to mine, but the hoppiness factor was much more clarified in theirs than mine (I begrudgingly tossed my third ounce of hops when I began cooling the wort instead of just at the end of the boil which gave it enough of a hops flavor for the pale ale enthusiast but left it not as hoppy for someone like me - accidentally I might add).
The pale ale, in general, was great against the salty, smoked flavor of pulled pork, so the contrast was great. I enjoyed the Deep Ellum IPA as did my nephew, so we recommend it if you can find it in a store near you. The upside to the evening was that we were with family who are friends (you know exactly what that means - everyone has family they dread coming over). The other upside is that most either don't drink beer or are "Bud" men, meaning my nephew and I had the run on the homebrew/craft brew market that night. The downside was it was the day before Sunday which of course meant that we had to limit our intake so as not to nod off the next day praising God and what not or go to church wearing sunglasses in the sanctuary.
On Monday, the actual day of National Homebrew Day, we sang Doxology in honor of God, the Father, who gave us the ingredients and know-how to create this miracle of beer. "Praise God from whom all blessings flow, praise Him all creatures here below...." Happy Brewing!
But this, this my friends, is a day we can call our own. Congress, probably not realizing what they did when they passed it in 1988, gave credence to the rise of the home brew movement before it was cool. Will I observe such a thing? Well, does a wild bear poop in the woods?
Naturally I spent most of the weekend honoring the day. Our own local homebrew store, Yellow House Canyon Brew Works (601 N. University) had a Big Brew Day that I attended. Fresh in my stock is a witbier (currently fermenting patiently). Bottled are two beers - a kolsch and a pale ale. And after going to the Big Brew Day at Yellow House, my commitment has ratcheted up a notch (more like four or five notches). Plans are already underway to purchase the necessary materials for a complete and full grain brew and not a partial batch as my first 10 (that means I don't buy the malts that come in concentrate form anymore, I steep the grains myself to create the sugars that eventually become the alcohol and flavor).
On Saturday, we had family over and I asked my nephew (bringing the paternal grandparents and joining our house which had his maternal grandfather) to bring a craft brew to add to my assortment, including my home brewed ales. So, from Big Brew event on Saturday to pulled pork and homebrew at night, I'd say we'd done a tremendous job acknowledging craft beer and home brews.
My nephew brought Deep Ellum IPA, brewed in South Dallas by the Deep Ellum Brewing Company. Having just brewed a pale ale, we had a homebrew next to a craft brew. The Deep Ellum IPA has similar ingredients to mine, but the hoppiness factor was much more clarified in theirs than mine (I begrudgingly tossed my third ounce of hops when I began cooling the wort instead of just at the end of the boil which gave it enough of a hops flavor for the pale ale enthusiast but left it not as hoppy for someone like me - accidentally I might add).
The pale ale, in general, was great against the salty, smoked flavor of pulled pork, so the contrast was great. I enjoyed the Deep Ellum IPA as did my nephew, so we recommend it if you can find it in a store near you. The upside to the evening was that we were with family who are friends (you know exactly what that means - everyone has family they dread coming over). The other upside is that most either don't drink beer or are "Bud" men, meaning my nephew and I had the run on the homebrew/craft brew market that night. The downside was it was the day before Sunday which of course meant that we had to limit our intake so as not to nod off the next day praising God and what not or go to church wearing sunglasses in the sanctuary.
On Monday, the actual day of National Homebrew Day, we sang Doxology in honor of God, the Father, who gave us the ingredients and know-how to create this miracle of beer. "Praise God from whom all blessings flow, praise Him all creatures here below...." Happy Brewing!
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