Brew Notes from the Great White North

This article from the Toronto Star iterates something I've been saying for years: home brewers can make beer as good (and often better) than the big boys. A more meaningful insight (to home brewers) is to say that home brewers can make beer that's every bit as good as commercial craft brewers; many times I've enjoyed a Big Sky IPA and thought, our Bearded Man IPA is every bit as good as this, if not better (and I like Big Sky).

Anyway, this sounded like fun: 17 home brewers took over a brewery for a day and showed nearly 200 people how they ply their craft. Maybe Boulevard or Pony Express would be willing to open their doors to the KC homebrew community in such a manner—I'd show up, for sure.

Steven's Point Cascade Pale Ale

Okay, so I have been a little lax in reviewing a few beers I've had lately to let's remedy that now. Last night I had Steven's Point Brewery's Cascade Pale Ale. It actually was the last of a six pack that has taken me about 5 months to finish. That should be an early indication of exactly how good (or not so good) this beer is. According to the Point's description, Point Cascade Pale Ale is handcrafted combining special top-fermenting yeast and a dry hopping process to create this truly classic American Pale Ale. The intriguing character is derived from generous quantities of the choicest Yakima Valley Cascade hops and the finest crystal, 2-row pale, and Munich malts. The result is a delicious American Pale Ale with a signature fragrant hop bouquet and soft malt palate. They even won a gold medal for this beer from the World Beer Championships in 1997 and 1998, a silver medal in 2008, won best pale ale of the midwest from the U.S. Beer Tasting Championships in 2008, and a bronze award from the World Beer Cup in 1996. Some pretty good accolades one would think.

This is the Point's attempt to garner some business from the hop heads of craft beer drinking, but American Pale Ales have come a long way since the late 1990s and this one falls far short in my humble opinion. First, the beer does have a nice color and holds a head well. It has a faint hop aroma, and some maltiness but falls far short on a hop flavor that is typical of beers in this category. It seems watered down to me and the bitterness is more fitting an audience of the masses - catering to the occasional adventurous Bud drinker. Point Brewery is one of the few larger brewers to make it through Prohibition years and has always brewed the classic American water down Pils. This is their attempt to re-invent themselves as a "craft" brewery. But to me this beer is far short from the golden standard of this category. I won't waste my money on this brew next time and instead if I am feeling the need for a good hoppy ale will go straight to the case with Sierra Nevada (or even better - open our Bearded Man APA!).

Carboy Watch, Day 4

As our good friend Professor Higgason would say, huzzah! Three carboys bubbling away; that is, the stout (at right, obviously) is bubbling away, whereas the APA appear to have seen a lot of action right away and now are just churning. Probably could have used more head space in the first carboy, but what the heck. Looking forward to bottling day a few weeks hence, and with luck, Ben's cider will be done as well. Updates to come.