No Need For Modesty: Modist Brewing Review

Based on the number of disappointing first visits to new breweries I've suffered through over the past few years, I now rarely visit a brewery unless it's been open over 6 months.  Every once in a while I hear enough positive reviews from people I trust, that I'll break this rule and check them out.  Modist Brewing is one of these breweries.  Open since April 2016, this North Loop brewery is located very close to Fulton's taproom--giving you just one more reason to visit the area!

The brewery was started by four friends: Keigan Knee (head brewer), John Donnelly (head of sales), Eric Paredes (chief manager), Kale Anderson (operations manager).  I haven't met these guys but I'd like to!  Their website set-up and pictures certainly point to a great sense of humor...

This particular Saturday, we had two friends in from Colorado and wanted to show them around some of our favorite watering holes.  Since we were already at Fulton, we decided to sprint through the rain to the Modist Taproom.  Why not right?

The open and spacious taproom was busy but not insane, with only a short wait for beers.  The brewery itself is off to the right as you come in the door, a colorful bluish glow reflecting up from the floor upon the shiny stainless conical fermenters.  There's also an open patio area that was empty on this trip due to pouring rain.  At one point I thought I saw someone riding a bike around inside the circle of equipment, but by the time I grabbed for my camera he was gone--like a strange hipster brewery ghost.

The Beers

I can be in the fanciest taproom ever, but if the beer doesn't please me I'm done.  Let the beers stand for themselves... I rate on a 0-5 scale with 3 being a decent beer, 4 a favorite, and 5 is the best in its class.  I'm a tough grader.

1) Toats:  A 4.8 % ABV beer made with 60% oats.  60% oats??!!  Wow.  Deep amber to orange color.  Aroma and flavor I get citrus fruit, intense maltiness.  Medium mouthfeel.  Somewhat astringent finish to it.  3.75

2) Smoove:  5.5% ABV, salted caramel lager.  A very interesting take on the salted caramel craze, using caramel malts and sea salt in the brewing process.  For this review I've brought in a guest reviewer...

Ode to Smoove Beer

By Smoove B, Love Man

"Girl, this beer was made for Smoove.  With a color and glow like your sweet caramel skin, this makes me want to take you in my arms and then into my giant round bed with the mirrors on the ceiling.  The sweet sweet taste of milky caramel fairly explodes from my glass, reminding me of you, my one true love.  You know what I'm talking about.  You remember the Love Man.  And the Love Man remembers you.  After stalking you across the veldt of my mind, taking you down with my lion-like majesty, I finish this ode to a graceful beer.  I finish with a salty surprise on the end like the leftover sweat of our love, or the briny taste of Smoove's tears as you leave me once more.  Damn!"

Thanks Smoove B!  I couldn't have said it better myself.  I like the crisp lager finish on this one.  I give it a solid 4.

3) 100% Wheat:  A wheat beer using 100% wheat.  I had to ask our bartender how they managed to make this without clogging up the mash-tun.  Bonus points to her for knowing the answer--she said they have a hammer mill and special equipment to handle the fine grind.  Wheat has no husk, so can't be used like barley to act as its own filter--making beers with more than 50% wheat very difficult to handle without creating  a thick solid mass of wheat glue.  So by using a fine grind and (I'm assuming here) a special fine filter, they can get better extraction of sugars and get around the clogging issue.  Some of the large macro breweries use this technique, but I don't know of many other craft breweries doing it.  I'm guessing this is how they managed the 60% oats in Toats as well.

The beer was well hopped and citrusy with a hazy appearance.  4



4) Phresh: 4.5% ABV tart ale with Ella, Equinox, and Hull Melon hops.  I picked up crazy melon flavors like honeydew, as well as grapefruit, with a hint of melon rind funkiness.  Slight tartness.  A unique beer for sure and very rePhreshing (trademark that!)  I actually hate melon, but this beer uses that flavor in a perfect way. 3.75

5) First Call: A pale lager infused with Two Cousins Espresso.  This version was also infused with vanilla bean.  I picked up insane light roast coffee aroma off the bat.  Flavor was similarly overtaken by fresh cold-press coffee.  I picked up mild vanilla and some maltiness on the tail end.  Wow!  Other than Birch's Coffee Chocolate Golden Ale I haven't had a better light colored coffee beer.  This was the winner for the whole group of us.  4.5

6) Wasteland:  Made with 60% Rye (see a pattern yet?) and Apollo, Cascade, and Columbus hops.  This is a rye IPA with a dry spicy and citrus zing.  The finish is a bit rough and astringent for me.  My least favorite of the group but still decent.  3.5

Forget being polite to new breweries.  These guys had been open 3 months at the time of this tasting and and are putting out high quality and boundary pushing beers!  Most are lower gravity beers, allowing one to have a couple beers before rolling out, and all are very drinkable.  They are making good use of their special brewhouse to use those accessory/adjunct grains to their utmost.

We had a great time here, hiding out from the increasing rainstorm, sipping finely crafted beers.  I would love to go back and highly recommend them.

A Whale A Week: Jester King Nocturn Chrysalis

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!  I've been kind of bad about keeping up on this the past few months--maybe I should rename this to A Whale Every Other Week...

Jester King Nocturn Chrysalis Blend 2

Jester King Brewery is a wonderful brewery out of Austin, Texas specializing in sour beers.  Their beers eschew classic Belgian styles and really chart their own course, but still have the quality and complexity that good sours should have.  I've reviewed their Atrial Rubicite HERE for a previous Whale A Week.  

Nocturn Chrysalis starts as a sour red ale, and is then barrel aged with a large amount of fresh blackberries.  For this second batch (April 2014) they used Marionberries from Oregon.  ABV is 5.9%, Final Gravity 1.000, pH 3.3. The beer has a score of 93 on Beer Advocate and 99 on Rate Beer. 



Cast of characters: Me (homebrewer for over 25 years, lover and brewer of sour beers); Sarajo (my wife and fan of sours); and fellow Jack Of All Brews member and award winning brewer Josh Welch. 

Nocturn Chrysalis 

Aroma: 

Eric: Mellow blackberry aroma.  Light tartness.  Hint of sweet berry.  Light sulfur notes.  Brett--funky leather as it warms up.

Josh: Strong smells of wet hay, slight solvent, light jammy fruit.  

Appearance:

Eric: Deep red to nearly magenta.  Persistent wispy off-pink froth.  Excellent clarity and ruby sparkles.

Josh: Slight white head.  Good clarity.  Nice purple color from the fruit.  No legs, rolls easily in the glass.

Flavor:

Eric: Ooh!  Up front very dry and tannic--almost leathery.  Middle of taste coats the tongue with dry berry and cherry pit flavors.  Finish lingers with distinct blackberry, funk, and oak tannins.  Spritzy and has a very light mouthfeel.  Dry but not astringent.  Fruit still shows through nicely despite age and dryness.  Not overly acidic.

Josh: Less aggressive than the aroma.  Dry, light acidity, effervescent.  Modest apparent sweetness.

Overall:

Eric: Wow!  I really love this use of blackberry!  Dry but mellow and the fruit is really present.  compared to last week's Beatification which was all acid and little brett, this one is mostly brett and mild acid.  Refreshing, palate cleansing--makes me want to keep drinking it.  4.75

Josh: 4.5

Sarajo: Tart and refreshing.  4.5

Overall Score: 4.67

A Whale A Week: Revolution Brewing's Deth's Tar

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!  This week we try something different.  Tired of just trying out one beer (and lets be honest how can I really shrink my cellar at this rate) each week, we're going to break out a bunch of them! 

Revolution Brewing's Deth's Tar

Revolution Brewing is one of the very best breweries in Chicago as of this writing.  Revolution was started by former Goose Island pub brewer Josh Deth in 2010 as a brewpub, and has since added on a second production facility in the Chicago area.  We visited the latter on a trip about 2 years ago and picked up this little gem at the brewery.  Named after Josh, but evoking images of X-Wing squadrons and an exploding Alderaan, this is a big 11.4% ABV Oatmeal Russian Imperial Stout.  The brewer uses Warrior hops for bitterness and English Fuggles for aroma.  The beer spends about 10 months aging in bourbon barrels before bottling.  The bottle comes in a cool red box which makes it totally worth more!  We did get to try this fresh at the brewery, and now this bottle is about 2 years old and ready to go! Beer Advocate puts this at 94 and RateBeer at 99 for scores.  

Our judges for this session are me (Rogue Leader); Sarajo (my Leia); Matt Messier (Wookie co-pilot); Teresa (masked and mysterious bounty hunter).  As most great adventures do, this one started with meeting Matt and Teresa over some blue drink at our local Cantina (the Iron Tap)--a wretched hive of scum and villainy.  Later, in a rusted out R2 unit, we discovered a message...and a bottle...

In 

a beer

glass far

far away...

Aroma: In which the rebel scum attempt to steal the plans...

Eric: Molasses.  Dark chocolate.  A bit of strong alcohol on the nose.  Coffee--more of a dark espresso with some burnt character...  Some mild oxidation with a hint of Endor's mossy forest on the end.
Matt: Light and smooth.  Not much on my palate.

Appearance: In which the dark depths of space hide many enemies...

Eric: As black as Vader's helmet.  Head dark tan to almost brown, like the murky bubbling froth of Dagobah's swamps.  Tight bubbles and very persistent.  Deep as quicksand, hiding a sunken X-Wing.
Matt: Dark as night with a small froth.  Layers nicely on the glass.

Flavor: In which the moon that is not a moon positions itself...

Eric: Lots of bourbon right off the bat.  Plenty of vanilla.  Tart cherry notes as it warms.  Super boozy like something Figrin D'an would drink during a set.  Harsh as princess' retort.  Dry and astringent bitterness of coffee and dark chocolate on the finish.  Thick and coats the mouth like mynocks on a ship hull.  Finish has a touch of metallic--like licking said ship hull.
Matt: Initially tastes chocolaty, but burns off inside of the mouth very quickly--leaving and alcohol flavor at the end.

Overall: In which the rebels zoom down a trench and bulls-eye some poorly guarded exhaust ducts...

Eric: A very good beer.  Boozy and creamy, but ends a bit dry and rough.  The bourbon is strong in this one...  4
Matt: I like it.  Being a victim of marketing, a good label with lure me in.  I expected the Deth's Tar to explode my world.  It didn't.  Still a great beer to drink around the fire.  4
Teresa: I taste root beer.  3.5
Sarajo: I give it 4 big black fists...

Overall Score:  3.9 

Your moment of Zen: Sj with her Revolution big black fist tap handle...

A Whale A Week: Deschutes The Abyss 2010

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!  I've had a brief hiatus in these posts due to lack of time and travel to Oregon (check out my extensive travelogue of that trip here as well...)

Deschutes The Abyss 2010

This week we focus on a classic beer from Deschutes Brewery in Bend Oregon.  I've loved this brewery since I had my first Black Butte Porter while visiting my cousins out in Eugene many years ago.  Sarajo and I got a chance to visit the brewery a few years back when one of aforementioned cousins was kind enough to get married in Bend.  The Abyss was one of the early commercially available Russian Imperial stouts that got a lot of attention and was eagerly hoarded when it came out.  We'll call it a Proto-Whale.  Also back in the day Deschutes didn't have quite the availability across the USA that it currently boasts and getting a bottle in Minnesota was only through bootleg channels.  Enter my mom (Heddy) who lived in Oregon for several years, and would mule me back 6-9 bottles each November when it released out there!  Luckily now we get at least a nominal amount of Abyss here each year.  

The Abyss released in bottle for the first time in 2006.  There was a hiccup at one point in 2009 when the batch was infected (probably with the sour cultures from The Dissident) and is still gleefully called "Abyssident" by beer geeks like me.  The beer is complex, made with brewer's licorice, blackstrap molasses, vanilla beans, and cherry bark.  Portions of the beer are then aged in a combination of new oak, bourbon barrels, and wine barrels--then blended together before release.  As a result of this, the beer is more subtle than some bourbon booze bombs, making it easier to drink.  Ratebeer puts this beer at 100, and Beer Advocate rates it at 99.  While this beer is now readily available (and hence not super whale-ish) the 2010 vintage is certainly hard to come by in 2016, so I'm doing it!  Of course now, they've released some even more rare variants with rye whiskey and cognac barrel versions.  I hope to get to try these soon!  If anyone wants to share one for AWAW tasting I'll share my 2008 bottle...

Our judges for this session are me (BJCP National ranked judge, homebrewer 25+ years); Sarajo (my wonderful wife, lover of stouts); and Matt Messier (former Oregon native, beer geek, self proclaimed Deschutes fan-boy); Theresa (Matt's lovely wife, beer drinker but not a beer geek).  We met Matt at our local watering hole the Iron Tap in Waconia and realized we were neighbors...yet another way in which the social aspect of beer has led us to meet new friends!  

Aroma:  In which some of us are more sensitive to oxidation than others...

Eric: Deep earthy notes invade the nasal passages in a way that I can almost taste on the back of the tongue!  Licorice root present, but not overly anise-y.  Dark coffee roast notes.  Sweetness and molasses caramelized sugar.  Mild vanilla.  Light oak, bordering on papery oxidation as it warms up. 
Matt: Proper to the nose--makes me want to devour it now!
Theresa: I'm sensing wet dog.

Appearance: In which we gaze into The Abyss and hope it does not gaze back...

Eric: Pitch black.  Like staring into a...what's the word I'm looking for here?  Pit?  Chasm? Hole?  Rift?  Crevasse?  Void?  Hmmm, it'll come to me.  Mid-tan head with large bubbles, which fades to a wispy finish.  
Matt: Looks like a good root beer--a bit bubbly.

Flavor: In which we taste lots of coffee

Eric: Complex as anything!  Off-sweet up front, but the end is fairly dry with lingering flavors of dry cocoa, coffee grounds, and light anise.  Mouthfeel is medium to high with lots of mouth coating action.  Burnt sugar.  Mild dark fruit and cherry as it warms up.  Oxidation present, but adds complexity rather than detracts from the beer. 
Matt: Lasting flavor!  Starts smooth with molasses flavor, but ends with a coffee tinge.

Overall: In which the ladies bring down the curve with their hating...

Eric: This has more coffee flavors than I remember, but I love coffee so no harm no foul.  Great balance of sweet and dry in such a strong beer.  Mild oxidation for such an elderly statesman of a beer.  Hold up remarkably well and I'd place it in the top echelon of my favorite Russian Imperials.  4.5
Matt: Very enjoyable.  Being a Bend, Oregon native, I'm biased.  I would never turn this away!  4.25
Theresa: It was pretty good until I swallowed it.  2
Sarajo: A little cardboardy.  3.5

Overall Score: 3.56

A Whale A Week: Side Project Blueberry Flanders

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!  This week we try something different.  Tired of just trying out one beer (and lets be honest how can I really shrink my cellar at this rate) each week, we're going to break out a bunch of them!

Side Project Blueberry Flanders

I've reviewed one of Side Project's beers before (Saison du Fermier) HERE, so check it out for more background on the brewery and the super friendly wizard that creates such amazing beers for both Perennial Brewing and his own Side Project Brewing. For this tasting, Rob Wengler (one of my old high school friends, homebrewer, beer video journalist with Limited Release) shared this little bottle.  Along with us was my wife Sarajo--professed lover of sour beers.  The Blueberry Flanders is based on the Flanders red sour mixed fermentation style made most famous by Rodenbach in Belgium.  Obviously blueberries were used in the process, but I'm not sure how.  And the beer was aged in wine barrels to add complexity.  The 7% ABV beer has a 96 score on Ratebeer and a 91 on Beer Advocate.  


Aroma:

Eric: Just taking a whiff of this beer my salivary glands freaked out and caused me to gleek all over the place.  Very tart and tannic.  Blueberry skins.  Mix of acid, brett funkiness, and maybe some pediococcus.  Fruity and bright.  Eye opening.
Rob: Smells sour.  I do get a hint of mellow blueberry pie--but the tartest blueberry pie ever.

Appearance:

Eric: Highly carbonated and deep amber with pink highlights.  Looks like fruit soda.  Very fine white head fades to the glass edge quickly.  Excellent clarity with bubbles coalescing on the sides of the glass. 
Rob: Looks like Canadian grape/raisin soda.  Purple with a twinge of brown.  Lots of tiny bubbles like Champagne.
Sarajo: Can't see for the bubbles!

Flavor:

Eric:  As I take my first sip shivers go up and down my neck and spine.  So tart it almost hurts--like biting into a raw cranberry.  Has a hint of sweetness at the center, but is quite fleeting.  Blueberry is subtle and comes off more as the tannic skin of the berry rather than the sweet flesh.  Hint of pie cherry and lemon rind.  Stays with you after finished with a strong tart end.
Rob: Not mind-bendingly tart like I thought it would be.  I wouldn't say it was and overwhelming blueberry flavor, but think it comes through as a "rounding of the corners" of the sour ale.  Still makes me drool like a 2 year old (REDACTED) with a tooth coming in.
Sarajo: Mouthpuckeringly tart.

Overall:

Eric: A wonderfully sour beer, but really at the extreme edge of drinkability.  Glad this comes in a small bottle!  Much more tart and acidic than the typical blended Flanders style.  Despite all this, I still love it.  4.5
Rob: Light, crisp, of course effervescent.  I'm not a big sour guy but this is still pretty good.  4
Sarajo: 4.5

Overall Score: 4.42

Wabasha Brewing: Get Out Of Your Cave And Try It!

On our recent weekend field trip to St. Paul for the two day Winterfest beer festival at the Union Depot, my wife and I stayed downtown and explored the surrounding environs.  Coming from Waconia, we don't get to the St. Paul side of things very often, so this was a great excuse to check out a few of the newer taprooms in the area.  On the Sunday after the second night of Winterfest--we were feeling good--we went for another great breakfast at The Buttered Tin, followed by a trip to Wabasha Brewing Company.  We had tried two of their beers for the first time at the festival and been intrigued.  Our hotel was on Wabasha Avenue, so getting there was pretty simple--even for a directionally challenged guy like myself.

This was a Sunday, and the brewery opened at noon.  We were about the first ones inside and the place stayed pretty quiet while we were there.  The brewery is on the outside edge of town in an older neighborhood that borders between residential and light industrial--near the Wabasha Caves.  The building itself is pretty nondescript with small signs directing one into the parking lot--but hey, there was a parking lot!  A small picnic table patio area takes up a bit of space in the parking lot near the entrance to the brewery taproom, but it was snowing this morning and not looking like a great option!

Stepping into the very small taproom you walk down a small flight of stairs into a sunken area.  For those with mobility issues, they have a small lift (also used for moving kegs in and out of the brewery).  A few high tables and chairs fill the bright yellow painted room, as well as a tiny alcove with a couple of couches.  A twelve foot bar separates the taproom tasting area from the actual brewing space, but you can see all the equipment easily.  The brew system is 15 barrel (small but pretty big for this space) and the fermenters are 7 barrels each.  This is the opposite of most breweries I know of, who brew twice on a smaller system to fill a larger fermenter.  I'd hate to be the brewer for Wabasha since there is very little space between equipment and it looks like some mad contortionist skills might be needed for the job!

A very helpful and outgoing young lady named April was busy flushing taplines and getting everything ready for the day's festivities when we arrived.  She's been with the company since nearly the start of the taproom about a year ago and really seems to like her work.  I had her pour me a sampler of everything so I could get to work tasting and reviewing the beers.

A little background on me before we begin.  I'm a BJCP National ranked judge, homebrewer for over 25 years, and a serious beer geek.  I rate beers on a 1-5 scale with 3 being my default decent drinking beer, 4 being amazing, and 5 being my favorite beer of all time.  Sarajo tastes along with me but doesn't like to grade things with anything other than a smile or a bitter-beer-face.  April was happy to answer questions on the beers as we tasted through them.

1) Son of Eric Cream Ale--If I had a son, this would probably not be my spawn.  I get a nice maltiness up front.  Hint of corn.  Hopping is on the high end for the style, but adds some bitterness and keeps it in balance.  The description on this beer is "Nordic cream ale".  When I asked Sarajo what she figured that might mean, she thought for a second and responded, "It's repressed and won't admit how it really feels?"  Well done wife, well done!  3.75

2) West Side Popper--This takes the base beer of the previously mentioned cream ale and adds jalapenos that they smoke right outside the brewery.  Don't they know that the Nordic folk think that black pepper is too spicy?  Are they Mad??  I get a smoky, charred corn, green pepper aroma up front.  The flavor is pretty much the same.  Nice balance of malt, hops and spice dries this one out a bit.  Spicy but not overly so.  Solid beer.  4

3) Red Bonnet Amber--I'm not usually a fan of ambers, but this one is pretty good.  Not a ton of aroma to it--just a mild generic hop.  Flavor has light caramel notes, but not sweet.  Crisp more like a Vienna lager than an American amber.  Mild cherry notes.  Hint of smoke?  Asking about the cherry flavor April told me that they do add 13# of cherries to the batch--a small amount, but enough to explain it!  4

4) Snowblower Vanilla Porter--Aroma has roast, hint of smoke, dark chocolate, and vanilla.  Flavor is  quite malty. The vanilla accentuates the sweetness, but doesn't get to cloying territory.  Complex. For a 4.1% ABV beer, the mouthfeel is pretty good!  4.25

5) Implosion IPA--I get Sweet-Tarts on aroma.  Flavor pretty subtle with not much hop character.  Plenty of bitterness with a very dry to almost astringent finish. 3

6) Red Desert Red IPA--Plenty of citrus and malt in the aroma.  Flavor is malty but not sweet.  Orange flavors are strong.  Finish quite dry but pleasant.  Good beer.  4

7) Oak Aged Cave Stout--This is the brewery's strong stout.  It is aged in the cellar temperature of the brewery (not really in a cave, but at similar temps).  The version we had on this visit was in a firkin and had oak added.  Aroma sweet, mild roast, hint of oak tannin.  Flavors of malt, including plenty of roasted grains, and tannins.  Mouthfeel is a bit thin--probably accentuated by the oakiness.  Interesting beer and made smoother by the firkin.  3.5

Overall, I was pretty impressed with beers.  All were well above average to my palate and better than expected from a relatively small and new brewery.  I like the interesting things they are doing.  Other than the IPA, I think the balance and drinkability of these beers was stellar, and the use of adjuncts just added character rather than overwhelmed those beers.  The brewer has a subtle hand and knows his fermentation process.

I enjoyed our visit to Wabasha and they are hereby on my Beer Radar!  The taproom is pretty tiny and bare-bones, but does the job.  It looks like they are planning to move the taproom to a place with seating for 100+ people, so that may change soon.  For now, it's more about the beers.  Solid and interesting beers overall.  Both of our favorites were the Snowblower and the West Side Popper.

In Search Of Bigfoot...Barleywine!

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!  This week we try something different.  Tired of just trying out one beer (and lets be honest how can I really shrink my cellar at this rate) each week, we're going to break out a bunch of them!

This week we do the first of a two-part series on Sierra Nevada's classic Bigfoot Barleywine Style Ale.  This is a beer that I first tried back in the 1990's and promptly spat out in disgust.  How and why would someone create such a bitter beast of a beer?  Sierra Nevada was really one of the first American craft breweries, and is still sitting pretty today as one of the biggest and still most popular.  Their Pale ale was one of the very first commercially available, and really set the guidelines for the whole category (local Summit Brewing was right up there though!)  Anchor Old Foghorn was released back in about 1975 so they held the lead on the modern American Barleywine, starting with a fairly English barleywine malt bill but jacking it up with American hops.  Bigfoot really took the style to new hoppy levels. Bigfoot was first released in 1983 and is now known by most as the default for what the style should taste like.

Screen shot from the infamous Zapruder film...perhaps he's on his way to the pub?

I tried Bigfoot again at a cellared beer tasting by a member of our then-fledgling homebrew club, Brett Schneider. Tasting aged (and more mellow) versions of this hop monster really opened my eyes to the changes that can occur in a beer over time--some good and some bad.  That tasting was around 2006 or 2007 and I've been getting a pack of Bigfoot every year since.  A few years ago Brett moved out of the area and downsized his cellar of vintage beers, leaving me with a fairly epic collection of aged Bigfoot to add to my growing stash.  I've cracked some at brewclub meetings over the years, but this year I wanted to do a more controlled vertical tasting of the beer.  While this beer isn't as rare as some we've tried for A Whale A Week, getting to try a huge vertical going back as far as 1995 is pretty difficult to pull together.  Perhaps I should call this Sasquatch Of The Week?  Yeti Of The Week?  Abominable Snow Man Of The Week?

I invited over Dave Manley--one of the most barleywine enamored guys I've ever known--for this one.  Discovering that Waconia Brewing's illustrious brewer Tom Schufman is a huge fan of this beer, I made sure he could take part as well.  And of course my wife Sarajo helped out despite her lack of love for the hoppier beers.  With 19 years of beers to try, we decided to split this tasting into two parts.  I really wanted to try all of them together in order to better pick our favorites compared to each other--but barleywines are high in alcohol and even two tastings is pushing it!  The second half of the tasting is available to read HERE.  Feel free to crack any old bottles you have in your cellar and taste along with us!  Without further ado, let's raise a glass to the crypto-zoologists of the world!

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Vertical Part 1

For this first tasting we started back in time...the 1990's!  All of us took notes and came up with a score for each vintage...occasionally going back and either tweaking our scores or retrying the previous vintages to compare.  Your results may vary!  Oh and all of these bottles have been stored in a cool basement out of the light and have twist-off caps.

Bigfoot 1995

Eric: Aroma--lots of sherry, borders on cardboard.  Some cherry and hops are mild.  Very little head--just  wisp.  Plenty of oxidation on the flavor.  Still some bitterness that I pick up as minty.  Still better than expected for its age.  2.75
Dave: Heavily oxidized.  2 sips are plenty.  Hops still present.  2.5
Tom: Peach notes.  Light CO2.  Deep caramel.  Low oxidation flavor, but high in the aroma.  3
Sarajo: Blech.  2.5
Overall Score: 2.67

Bigfoot 1998

Eric: More hops in aroma than 1995.  Earthy, almost musty basement aroma.  Carbonation still pretty dead.  Flavor is vegetal and fungus-like.  "Kids, grow mushrooms in your basement!"  Hopping present but comes off as English hops (EKG or Fuggles).  Bitter cardboard finish.  2.5
Dave: Some oxidation, less than 1995.  Aroma--caramel. Taste--about the same, just 3 years newer.  A bit of a flip from the '95 in that I like the aroma better than the taste.  2.75
Tom: Mold aroma, high oxidation.  Wet cardboard.  Higher CO2 than '95.  Flabby.  Sherry notes.  2.5
Sarajo: Yech.  2.5
Overall Score: 2.56

Bigfoot 1999

Eric: Minty hops mix with oxidation in aroma.  Caramel noted in aroma as well.  Slight carbonation rousable with swirling.  Flavor is getting better.  Caramel but not sweet.  Some sherry cask.  Bitter finish.  A bit aqueous on mouthfeel.  Dark fruit as it warms up.  3.25
Dave: Aroma getting better, flavor improves as well.  A bit fruitier, less caramel on the tongue.  This tastes more British.  3
Tom: Less cardboard, smells like 1998.  Somewhat tart.  Tannic flavors but hoppy finish.  3
Sarajo: 3
Overall Score: 3.06

Bigfoot 2000

Eric: Hoppy aroma--mild citrus--like an orange marmalade with oxidation.  Carbonation still super low, but up from previous vintages.  Caramel increased in flavor, but still not sweet.  Bitterness stronger in flavor.  Oxidation still present but dropping.  Hop flavors of cooked orange rind present.  3.5
Dave: OK, We're getting closer...  3.25
Tom: More plum and dark brown sugar, but yup, still oxidized.  Nice bitterness.  More rounded flavor.  3
Sarajo: 3.25
Overall Score: 3.25

Bigfoot 2001

Eric: More hops and some sherry aroma--increased oxidation from 2000.  Wispy carbonation, but more noted on mouthfeel.  Increased hop citrus flavor.  Bitterness on the end, but not overwhelming.  Brighter overall.  3.5
Dave: Can we get rid of the musty aroma already?  Other than that, starting to really dig it.
Tom: Minty.  Bitter.  Same beer as 2000.  3.25
Sarajo: 3.25
Overall Score: 3.31

Bigfoot 2002

Eric: Seems like less hop aroma this year.  Less oxidation.  Flavor brighter, more orange character.  Easy to drink this one.  Balance is better than any so far.  3.75
Dave: Now we're talkin!  3.75
Tom: Aroma has a hot alcohol note.  Solid malt profile.  Well in balance, but sweet.  3.75
Sarajo: Best of them. 4
Overall Score: 3.81

Bigfoot 2003

Eric: Seems sweeter and more caramel and prunes.  Figs?  Less hop bitterness than 2002.  Oxidation up from previous year.  Drop in score from 2002.  3.25
Dave: A little more oxidation from 2002.  Hotness.  3
Tom: Tannic bitterness is back.  Not much to say.  3
Sarajo: 3
Overall Score: 3.06

Bigfoot 2004

Eric: Sweeter aroma, not much hop.  Mild oxidation.  Flavor has more oxidation and dark fruit along with some hop bitterness to even it out.  More orange/citrus character.  3.5
Dave: Still some oxidation, a little less than the '03.  Still not as good as the '02.  3.25
Tom: Marmalade is back.  Still a bit astringent.  3.25
Sarajo: 3
Overall Score: 3.25

Bigfoot 2005

Eric: Hops are back in the aroma and citrusy.  Carbonation is better, prickly.  Milder oxidation.  More hop bite.  Carbonation improves the mouthfeel on this and makes it more dry.  3.75
Dave: Carbonation helps.  3.5
Tom: Hoppy aroma.  Best balance of the vertical thus far.  Cascade hop on finish?  3.75
Sarajo: 3.5
Overall Score: 3.63

Bigfoot 2006

Eric: Carbonation!!!  Still some oxidation present, but more of a wine barrel effect.  Earthy, piney hops.  This is the stuff!  Orange and pine hop flavors--candied kumquat.  Sweet and sugary, but not cloying.  Finish is off-dry.  Smooth and mellow.  Seems like a cross between and English and American barleywine.  4
Dave: Picking up some nice malt complexity--figs and raisins.  3.75
Tom: Nice carbonation.  Somewhat thinner.  Bright flavor.  More spicy and citrus notes.  4
Sarajo: 3.75
Overall Score: 3.88

This was a fun tasting.  Frankly, I had low expectations for the older vintages and that mostly played out as expected.  Still it was fun to try a beer from 21 years ago!  Heck one of these was probably that vintage I tried fresh back in the 1990's and spat out in disgust!  I enjoyed getting Dave and Tom to take part since both of them are big fans of this beer.  There was a distinct progression of slow loss of oxidation and improved carbonation from oldest to newest with the 2006 being the overall favorite of the bunch.  However, 2002 was an enigma, coming in second overall.  We are currently planning on our second tasting: covering 2007-2015, topped off with a bottle of barrel aged Bigfoot.  If any of my readers tasted along with vintage bottles, please comment on your findings here!

Got Wood? Big Wood Brewery Review

Recently, my wife Sarajo and I spent a weekend in St. Paul for the epic two day Winterfest event at the Union Depot.  On that Saturday, after a wonderful breakfast at The Buttered Tin, we decided to try out Big Wood Brewery.  Located in White Bear Lake, this place has been on my radar but far enough from my Waconia home to make it less enticing to visit.  However, from downtown St. Paul the brewery is just a 20 minute drive!  Possibly the best part of our field trip was that temperatures (Feb in Minnesota!) were upwards of 55 degrees out and a beautiful bright sun shone in the crazy blue skies.  Driving into the center of town, I was surprised at how cute the area is, and with the sheer number of people out and about.  Like the white bear that emblazons road signs and nearly everything else in town, locals had crawled out of their caves, shaken the hibernation grogginess from their heads, and inundated the streets and shops of White Bear Lake!  Frankly, White Bear Lake surprised me with how quaint and active it was.  Olive oil shops, boutiques, independent book and toy stores, bakeries, all vie for one's attention.  And now a brewery!

Big Wood Brewery was founded by Steve Merila (Founder), Jason Medvec (President) and Ty McBee (Head Brewer).  They started out brewing at Cold Spring Brewery (along with 21st Amendment, Liftbridge, and more) for about a year and a half in order to build brand name and the capital to open their own brewery.   In February of 2014 they were able to open their own taproom.  We accessed the brewery via a cool little alleyway decorated with a strange and eclectic mix of outdoor furniture and lawn decorations from the next door shop.  Coming out of this fantastical alley, we discovered that there was a large (but full) parking lot right next to the tap room itself.  The building is big and brick, with a somewhat large but still understated "Big Wood" painted up near the top of the building wall.  Some big hunks of wood carved with the logo sit up against the building.  The outdoor patio area was full of people on this strangely warm day so we went inside.

Sarajo "Vogues" it up outside Big Wood

Stepping down into the ground-floor/basement of the building, I was struck by the rustic and woodsy feel of the place.  Bright sun filtered though the windows and open door, throwing lines of shadow and light through the whole place and accentuating the wood grain of nearly every surface within.  Heavy wooden chairs cluster around several high wood tables.  The bar top is made of a beautiful polished piece of solid wood (probably ash) that came from a windfall tree on WBL's own Manitou Island.  The place was busy, but we were able to find a table for 4 easily.  Two servers behind the bar were happy to take our drink orders and were great about coming around to deliver beers and refill water glasses for us during our stay.  Great service!

Taking a field trip around the place, I discovered a bench made of a half-log with a cribbage board incised into it (I didn't tell my wife about this for fear that she'd make me lose to her again.)  A second seating area (with ping pong table) that blended into the brewery itself was located down a short hall and through a cool round hobbit-hole door.  On the other side of the taproom is another solid dark wood door decorated with a sturdy weathered metal Green Man knocker.  Through this ominous doorway lies the copper and stainless steel brewery itself, along with the small Sabco 10 gallon brew system that started the whole thing off.  While I was sneaking around back there and taking pictures for this blog, I ran into the head brewer Ty McBee.  Ty was very passionate about brewing and was happy to talk brewing nuts and bolts with me for a while (despite being busy at the brewery that day).  I asked him the toughest question--which of his babies (beers) he likes the best.  His response: "That's just mean to ask!  If I'm still brewing, it will be something pretty light.  But all in all Morning Wood still surprises me.  I love it!"

The copper brewery lording it over the tiny Sabco pilot system...

Back in the taproom, my wife and I met up with some local friends Ron and Denise, whom we had met at NHC in Michigan a few years back.  Big Wood is their nearest taproom and they frequent the place regularly.  It was great hanging out with them while enjoying this beautiful day and sipping on a wide variety of beers!

You want me to talk about the beers?  But of course!

I've had Big Wood beers in the past, mainly at beer festivals and have not been a fan.  I found most to have astringency that was out of balance.  I've heard that things have improved, and our friends like the place, so why not give them another try in their own environment?  I'll give my brief impressions of the beers below.  I grade on a 5 point scale with 3 being an average drinkable beer, 4 being stellar, and 5 being something I'd hoard or drink every day if possible.  For my credentials: I'm a BJCP judge and homebrewer for over 25 years.  At Big Wood they had two samplers--one with the regular rotation beers and one with the taproom exclusive and seasonals.  I ordered both and made my friends and wife watch me sip, sniff, and tap into my phone!

1) Amigo Grande: Mexican Lager--I get a hint of sulfur, but acceptable in the style and fades after first whiff.  Crisp finish.  Very easy to drink on a 50+ degree day!  4

2) Thrice Shy: Belgian golden strong ale--Doesn't hide its high alcohol content well, comes off a bit hot.  Plenty of pilsner malt character and fruity esters to add complexity though.  Fairly sweet but not cloying.  Not a bad American version of Belgian ale.  3.5

3) Bark Bite IPA--This has a pleasant citrus aroma to it.  Flavor has plenty of hop citrus character as well.  The body is pretty thin and the finish is pretty astringent.  3

4) Jack Savage Pale Ale--Not a ton of hop aroma to it.  Flavor has caramel notes, but not overly sweet.  Some bitterness present, mild orange flavors.  Well balanced pale ale.  3.5

5) Bad Axe Double IPA--Better than last time I had this.  Malty notes at first, but very bitter finish.  Lots of pine hop character.  Some alcohol to it.  3.5

6) Big Black Wolf: Black IPA--I'm not a fan of black IPA's in general.  This one is very bitter with strong roast and smoke.  Roast malt adds astringency to an already hop bitter beer. 3

7) Udder Stout: Milk Stout on Nitro--Pretty sweet (as it should be). Coconut flavors.  Thick mouthfeel and very creamy.  Mild milk chocolate as warms.  This was Sarajo's favorite.  3.5

8) Morning Wood: Coffee Ale--Better than in the past (used to be unbearably astringent).  Light coffee and chocolate aroma.  Flavor similar to aroma and more mellow than remembered.  Possible hint of diacetyl, but OK in this beer.  3.5

9) Yule Wood: Holiday/Winter Ale--Strong allspice, orange peel and clove in aroma.  Sweet flavor and lots of spices present. Brown sugar.  Allspice is strong in this one!  Luckily I like that flavor!  3.75

10) Forest Fire: Smoked Rye--Sweet malt present.  I can pick up the spicy rye.  Phenols from the smoked malt come off a bit band-aid rather than bacon.  I tend to like smoked beers, but this one isn't quite right for me.  3

I frankly had not been overly impressed with Big Wood beers in the past, finding most to be very thin and astringent for my liking.  I had also been a little turned off by the Dude-Bro style marketing (Morning Wood anyone?).  However, having been to the taproom and partaken of the glorious wooden ambiance, extensive mix of beer styles, and great customer service, I've been pleasantly surprised.  I'm always impressed when one of my favorite beers in a place is their lager--that takes some skill!  I still find that many of the beers border on thin body and astringent finish, but this has improved (I bumped up previous scores of 2-3 on a few to above average) since my last tasting.  When I get a similar effect in many beers at one brewery I start to think about water treatment.  Big Wood does filter and treat their water for different styles but don't do reverse osmosis.  Knowing how hard most of the water is in the Twin Cities area, I think that may be accentuating the bitterness in the hoppier beers here.  From talking with Ty, it sounds like he's always tweaking recipes and trying to improve the finished beer, and I can tell this is the case.  I think the beers here are pretty good, but the overall experience we had during this visit has elevated it to more than the sum of its parts.

I'd easily be tempted to go back to explore White Bear Lake and make Big Wood a stop on my tour in the future.  I'd love to check out some of the cute shops and even a steam-punk looking cocktail bar in town (Alchemist!).  Oh, and Ty says that they'll be coming out with a new FINE IPA in 750 bottles at the brewery very soon, so keep an eye out for it!

A Whale A Week: Russian River Sanctification Batch 006

Now in my second year, A Whale A Week is my challenge to try (with an array of beer loving friends) a rare beer for every week of the year.  Last year I had a great time with this and have continued it for 2016.  Not every beer will be a truly "white whale" beer, but all are hard to find and a treat to try!

This week we try a rare (at least in Minnesota!) sour beer from the famed Russian River Brewing Co.  in California.  The brewery started as an offshoot of Korbel vineyards.  In 2003 Brewmaster Vinnie Cilurzo and his wife Natalie took over the business. In 2004 they built/opened a new brewpub in Santa Rosa, and then expanded with a production brewery nearby in 2008.  Since then they continue to put out some amazing beers, but in small enough quantity that all of them are much sought-after.  The brewery is probably most well known for putting out what was possibly the first Double IPA Pliny the Elder, as well as it's incredibly rare tap-only cousin Pliny the Younger.  They were one of the first American breweries to start working with brettanomyces yeast and other wild/sour organisms in their beers as well.  This place is on my bucket list for breweries to visit.

I've tasted both Plinys as well as several of the sours over the years, thanks mostly to my mom muling some back for me from her trips out to Oregon.  I also received a few vintage bottles in a large cellar buy a few years back.

Sanctification is a fairly low gravity (6.75% ABV) golden beer that is fermented with 100% brettanomyces yeast.  The beer is bottle conditioned (initially with standard yeast, but now using brett for that as well).  The beer was first brewed in 2004 and was one of the first commercially available all-brett beers.  The brewery's website actually has some of the brew logs from the first several batches of their beers which is fascinating to see.  The first few years of this beer they added lactobacillus, then the third year they added some mixed wild culture to it.  In 2009 and 2010 they moved to pure brett fermentation for this beer.  I believe that it is fermented in stainless steel and has no oak contact.  I'm pretty sure that batch 006 came out in 2012, but batch 005 is the last one on the brew logs so I'm not sure of this.

This week's tasting panel was made up of: Me (Eric Wentling)--Homebrewer for over 20 years, BJCP National ranked judge, lover of sour and brett beers.  Beau Hammel--Homebrewer of tasty Belgian ales.  Sarajo Wentling--My other half.  We served this beer into tulip glasses.  We did do this tasting at the tail end of a couple others, so our write-up was a little shorter than usual... By this point Beau and I were perfectly calibrated in our judging.

Russian River Sanctification Batch 006

Aroma: 
Eric: Pineapple.  Tart apple.  Sweet honey and malt.  Light barnyard funkiness.  Some lemon-orange citrus character.
Beau: Acid.  Rotten hay.  Lemons.  Tropical fruit--guava.

Appearance: 
Eric: Very light straw to golden color.  Fine tight white head.  Excellent clarity.
Beau: Light golden.  Clear.  Medium head.

Flavor:
Eric: Very tart and dry apples.  Sour mango rind.  Slight sweetness, but that fades fast--like the first bite of an orange slice.  Body is light, but not thin.  No hop flavors.  Not incredibly complex.
Beau: Pleasantly sour with lemon flavors.  Slight funk of decomposed grass or hay.

Overall:
Eric: Very fruity. Dry and tart but not really puckering.  This is infinitely drinkable and refreshing.  Complexity is not crazy, but for what this beer is, it's near perfect.  I wouldn't mind a little more funk. 4.5
Beau: Very well balanced.  Nicely sour without being too dry or puckering.  Nice lemon and fruity flavors.  Nice complimentary funk.  4.5
Sj: (Too distracted to come up with a pithy comment this week...) 4

Overall Score: 4.33


Photo info:  I simply used a shot of the bottle label and did an overlay layer with another shot of Val Dieu Abbey (a brewery in Belgium but not actually run by monks).  The abbey picture was very underexposed and was almost a silhouette, so I just accentuated that before blending the two photos.

Off The Edge of the World: Flat Earth Brewing Company

Flat Earth Brewing has been around for a while.  They were originally established in 2007 (open by 2008) by former Town Hall Brewing alum Jeff Williamson.  The name was based on the Flat Earth Society--a group that to this day believe that the world is not a sphere.  Most of Jeff's original names focused on science fiction or geeky subjects--he was nerdy before it was cool!  The old brewery was literally spitting distance from their much larger neighbor Summit Brewing, and was a pretty small affair nestled into a warehouse building.  Several of our homebrew club (Jack Of All Brews) members made a trip out there for a Saturday tour shortly after they opened.  It wasn't much to look at, and this was prior to legal taprooms in Minnesota, so we just had a few free samples and hung out with Jeff a bit.  The first time I ever tried Flat Earth beer was at a tasting they held at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival--again shortly after they opened.  I was impressed--especially with the Belgian Tripel and was excited for what they would do over time.  They were really in the forefront of the the craft beer renaissance here in Minnesota.

Sometime around 2010 Flat Earth had financial troubles which necessitated bringing in outside investors to avoid foreclosure.  In May of 2012 Jeff either left the company or was fired (there was a bit of confusion about that matter at the time and I've never heard what really happened).  The then assistant brewer Friday Bob Roepke continued on as the head brewer at that time, and continues in that position today. Fairly recently Flat Earth moved into the old Hamm's Brewery building in St. Paul and added a taproom for on-site pints and growler sales.

Frankly, Flat Earth is one of the few older breweries I've not reviewed for this blog. In part, it was probably still out of loyalty to Jeff, but he seems to be doing fine these days.  This year my wife and I each bought a PubPass -- a passport-like book giving you a free pint at each of the locations involved in the program.  We did this because it included several places we already like (Freehouse, Indeed, Bryant Lake Bowl) but also some we've been meaning to try.  As a last minute replacement (when Glockenspiel went out of business) Flat Earth became a new spot in the program.  Then, in a feat of beer trivia madness at The Happy Gnome we won some Flat Earth shirts, glasses, and a free growler fill.  OK, the world was clearly trying to tell us something here...time to get out to the brewery and check it out!

On an overcast day we set out from distant Waconia on our trek to the very Edge of the World--St. Paul!  In usual fashion, shortly after crossing the river, my car's GPS decided to have a seizure and try to send us in circles on roads that no longer exist.  Luckily, Sarajo was able to get Google Maps on her phone functioning and we eventually found our way to the huge old brick monstrosity of the Hamm's Brewery.  Much of the complex is decrepit, with holes in windows, crumbling brick walls, graffiti tags, etc.  The entrance to the taproom is actually down a fairly tight alley between two of the looming red brick buildings with a small sign claiming "Brewery" that is somewhat easy to miss.  Into the darkened recess you go but once inside, there's a wide central area providing plenty of parking.  The taproom is up a short flight of stairs and through a large wooden door with just a tiny chalkboard sign indicating that you are at the right place for Flat Earth Brewery.

I'd love to go spelunking in this old derelict pile...

Entering via the old fashioned heavy oaken door, we found ourselves in a dark (that day anyway) large open space with high ceilings and minimal lighting.  Thick brick walls fairly radiated the cold of a meat-locker, requiring us to keep our coats on for much of our stay. A few windows at the back of the taproom provide a bit of a view and some much needed light.  Strange old antique furniture including a throne-like chair, a mini pipe organ, and some large industrial scales are scattered about the space without much rhyme or reason.  For a room this size there was surprisingly little actual seating--one large table and a few more mismatched garage sale reject tables.  A small bar in the corner provides growlers and swag for sale.  On arriving we actually discovered someone we knew--Pio (the super friendly brewer for Minneapolis' Freehouse) and his friend Ryan.  Small world!

Continuing past our friends, we wound through some dark labyrinthine hallways and alcoves, passing odd murals, curling photographs, crumbling brickwork, groups of quietly conversing people, and outdoor patio furniture.  The dark, the cold, the twisted byways, bring to mind the dank subterranean vibe of a sepulcher or the Poe story The Cask Amontillado.  Eventually we made our way to the taproom bar (fairly high and without seating).  Our winter-coat-wrapped server was happy to serve me up two sampler boards so I could try through most of the line-up.  No worries about the beer getting warm here! We carted our beers back to the front room since there was no space to sit in the back room.  When we first arrived the place wasn't especially crowded, but by the time we left (4:30ish) the joint was jumping and the whole back bar was crowded with people standing by for beers.

Here's the part where I go through all the beers and give a quick thumbnail sketch of my impressions.  I'd go into more detail, but everyone would be bored (and my wife would probably be upset that I was ignoring her even more at the taproom!)  I rate on a 0-5 scale with 3 being my average beer, 4 is stellar, and 5 is one I'd take to a desert island with me.

Starting with the Flagships

1) Angry Planet Pale Ale: Citrus/orange aroma with some caramel. Flavor very orangey up front and a hint of sweetness. Not much body to it and the finish is bitter and dusty tasting.  3

2) Northwest Passage IPA: Hopping present in aroma and flavor, but not extreme.  Flavor sweet and biscuity with a dry and bitter citrus finish. Much better than I remember this one. Decent balance. 3.75

3) Belgian Style Pale Ale: (Up front, I don't tend to like super hoppy Belgian beers.)  Lots of ester, clove, fruity Belgian yeast character in aroma and flavor. Sweet balance to this one.  Citrus hops strong.  3

4) Cygnus X-1:  Classic porter.  A very pleasant mix of roast malt, coffee, and chocolote.  Balanced with some initial sweetness and finish is fairly dry.  A well done American style robust porter. The best beer they had by far. 4

Moving on to the Seasonals

5) Red Cape Ale: Brewed for the Winter Carnival.  Not much aroma here.  Flavor is subtle with a hint of roasted barley and caramel.  Off dry finish.  A decent Irish Red if that is what they were aiming for.  3.75

6) Spoon Thief: Oatmeal stout.  The body is thin, but there is still a slickness to it.  I get a meaty or brothy flavor that can come from yeast autolysis (breakdown).  Slightly astringent burnt finish.  Did not like this one at all.  2.5

7) Bermuda Triangle: Belgian Tripel with honey.  Aroma is fairly quiet--not much Belgian yeast character at all.  Flavor is very sweet and seems under-attenuated.  Bitter on the end.  Yeasty tasting.  Some green grape ester flavors as well.  A bit hot. 2.75

8) Winter Warlock: Single malt English barleywine based (if I remember correctly off Bass Number 1).  Very light in color with excellent clarity.  Smells and tastes like a strong but dry apple wine.  More cidery than many actual hard ciders I've tried.  Hot alcohol.  I couldn't finish this sample. 2.75

At this point I had tried most of the beers and we still had our free pints coming!  So Sarajo got the Cygnus X-1 (also her favorite of the bunch) and I got Black Helicopter.

9) Black Helicopter: Coffee stout.  This was one of the first good coffee beers I tried back in the day and was my favorite Flat Earth beer--that's why I saved it for last!  This version was served on nitro and had a thick tight off-white head on it.  Mild coffee notes and sweetness in aroma.  Much stronger cold press coffee in the flavor for sure.  The body is really thin--accentuated by the nitro I think--which makes this taste like a good slightly sweet cold press coffee on nitro.  Not as good as I remember, making me unsure if the beer has changed, my tastebuds, or if the nitro has altered it that much.  3.5

Overall the beers were a mixed bag.  My two favorites of old (Black Helicopter and Bermuda Triangle) were kind of disappointing to me this trip out.  The Cygnus X-1 was our favorite and I got my free growler filled with this.  One thing I'll point out here is that other than the Red Cape and Spoon Thief, the brewery hasn't exactly been changing up their line-up or trying many new things since 2012.  I'm curious to see how much they expand production or try out new recipes now that they have plenty of space in their new building. (Addendum: I did get to try a stout aged in Waconia's own J. Carver Distillery Gin barrels at Winterfest that was pretty interesting...)

Our experience at Flat Earth was (like the beers) a bit mixed.  The place is big, has parking, and had pleasant staff.  However, the place comes off as dank, somewhat somber, and a bit tomb-like.  Scattered oddities and mismatched furniture give it a thrown-together-from-grandma's-musty-storage-unit kind of feel.  Just to see the old brewery building (in all its derelict glory) it was worth the trip.  I'd love to get a chance to explore the rest of the grounds and building complex with my camera...  Here's to hoping that Flat Earth takes full advantage of the space, and starts experimenting more!