As part of my specialty beer glassware review series, I bought the official stout glass that Rogue and Left Hand did with Spiegelau recently. I was really excited to try this glass because dark beers have always been a favorite of mine, and I had such a good experience with the IPA glass that I wanted to try this one out! Style & Design At a first glance, you might think, "Wow, that's basically an IPA glass without the curves at the base." But although the general shape of the glass is ... continue reading...
A Brief History of Hops
The plant Humulus lupulus, conventionally known as the hop plant, plays a critical role in brewing beer, acting both to provide stability and also as a flavoring agent. ... continue reading...
IPA Tasting #2: Descutes, Lagunitas, Sierra Nevada, New Belgium
This week I had originally planned to do a saison tasting, but a trip to Save Mart changed my plans unintentionally. Surprisingly, they had a 6 pack of Drakes 1500 (not featured here)...then I also noticed a Deschutes Fresh Squeezed IPA. Once I had 2 six packs, another 2 weren't a big deal, so I also got a pack of Ranger IPA and Extra IPA, both of which are famous, easily attainable IPAs that I haven't tried yet. And so the IPA tasting session #2 was born. I've already done another IPA tasting, ... continue reading...
TeKu Glass Review - Is It Really The Best In The World?
Since I've been stocking my cabinets with all the great beer glasses I can find, I couldn't resist buying the enigmatic and enchanting TeKu. Advertised as the best beer glass in the world, I had to try it. It was a bit on the pricey side, but for something that you can use over and over again, it was an easy buy decision for me. Last week I did a review of the IPA glass from Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada. I also did one for the porter glass from Left Hand + Rogue. This week I want to review ... continue reading...
Blend Experiment #1: Orange Wit + Chocolate Doppelbock
After reading an article in the recent issue of Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine on blending beer, I was inspired to do some blends of my own of whatever I had on hand. From what off hand knowledge I have of blending beer it sounds like there are many points at which you can blend: Pre-fermentation, post-fermentation pre-aging, and simply in the glass. I don't have any brews fermenting at the moment, so today I'm going to blend two beers I have on hand. Orange Clove Wit + Chocolate ... continue reading...