It has been quite a few weeks since I have needed to do this, but today I gladly thank Seattle Jeff for passing along some good beer news to share.  Of course he is still holding on to his time spent in Colorado so I may just have to declare him my beer correspondent for the entire Western United States.  That is a lot of responsibility for him to take on with his already crazy schedule, but I think he can handle it.

On we move today . . .

• Going to ease into the reading today by simply going with some images of a handful of new beer labels that have been approved.
• I personally do not do any beer shopping at convenience stores, but I probably would if I could be filling a few growlers while picking up a pack of gum.  This version of the news is simply thrown in because I am surprised there is something called “Convenience Store News.”
• As a person who does love to talk about craft beer, I am still concerned when at times the minutia gets in the way of what used to be simple enjoyment.  That and I totally agree with him that a “pint is a tasting portion.”
• This is a little funny to read as I see them talking about rebranding their product because “they perceive it as dull and lacking excitement.”  Surely those fancy aluminum bottles will make the beer taste better.
• This I suppose is included today not so much as news, but for The Wife and the other Red Sox fans out there as a few players make a cameo in this beery music video.
• It is all about not reading today as you can either choose to read the article or simply click on the video about half the way down to have it read to you with some fancy moving pictures along with it.
• This seems like it would make a person not want him to play any better, so I guess it is ideal for those non-Nationals fans living in D.C.  Thanks to Jess (@JessMilcetich) for finding this one.
• Funny how this article about craft beer in the Finger Lakes area catches my eye only days after returning from that area.  Traveling the wine trails there is great fun and having just learned about the cheese trail while there I am totally for another trip for culinary research if I can also get my beer fix.
• Building on the last story where it was referencing growing more local hops in NY, here is just another reason to continue enjoying what this Colorado brewery brings to your fridge.
• Simply reading about some of the interesting beers that this brewery is putting out makes me want to jump in the car and go visit some of my friends in Charleston.

via http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com

Since I chose not to use any sort of filter in putting together the news for today, I will try to be brief when introducing each piece.  Thank you (again) to The Wife for tossing me a story and on with the show we go . . .

• Taking two breweries that produce beer separately that I almost universally enjoy and having them collaborate on a beer seems like it can only end in a tasty concoction (for a worthy cause).
• There is no way that I will get a taste of the initially batch of this recreation, but maybe it will be popular enough to go into greater production in the future.
• I am not really sure how to pronounce the first word of this new series from Stone, but I am looking forward to trying some of it nonetheless.
• It is always sad to hear that a brewery closed, especially when having heard such positive things about what they were doing.
• Kudos goes to Asheville again, but the margin of victory over the cities it beat does not help me take the poll very seriously.
• Any steps in a positive direction is a good thing and hopefully the brewing industry in Alabama will gain even more in future law adjustments.
• My familiarity with Mexican beer is pretty much limited to what we all see on the grocery store shelves, but it sounds like a movement in well underway to change that perception.
• I felt like I had to include this since I was caught up in what a good marketing idea this was for a 12-pack.  Now I just need to set aside some time to sample all 6 of the IPAs and compare them side by side.
• The glory that is good canned craft beer has been highlighted many times here,  but this story takes a look at it from a different, perhaps more scientific angle when compared to glass bottles.
• There have been many discussions among my friends about how there are not a ton of options out there for really good, sessionable craft beer.  everything seems to be going higher and higher in alcohol.  As this story and this one explain, this may be changing at least a bit.
• With his popularity and with the proximity of his restaurant to the brewery I am a little surprised that it took as long as it did to have a collaboration beer made.
• I don’t know that I would support the argument it promoting morning drinking, but I do think you would have to be at least a little bit of an alcoholic to pay 34 bucks for a 4-pack.

Breakfast beer (via http://www.stuff.co.nz/)

After looking back at these notes as I typed them up I feel that they make it sound as if I did not enjoy this beer, but that was not really the case.  I consumed this one side by side with Genesis Ale and maybe that was a bit unfair (perhaps even to both).  This beer was not at all that bad, but there was no doubt that I liked Genesis better and as a result the notes for this one make it sound that I am really down on it.  So in short it is a good beer, but not as good as their Genesis Ale.

Now for the second of two Shmaltz reviews this week . . .

Brewery: Shmaltz Brewing Company (brewed in Saratoga Springs, NY)

Name: He’Brew Messiah Bold

Style: American Brown Ale

ABV: 5.60%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass.

Aroma: Earthy roasted maltiness with a bit of raisin-like sweetness.  Mild overall aroma, but nice.  – 8/12

Appearance: Dark brown color with garnet tones when held to light.  One finger light brown head with small bubbles that dissipates pretty quickly without leaving much trail.  Close to opaque in appearance though is clear with rising bubbles when held to light. – 3/3

Flavor: A pretty mild overall flavor with light roasted malt that seemingly has a hint of earthy, smoky character.  Also very faint bitterness somewhere in there.  Finishes just slightly dry with a bit of lingering flavors.  – 14/20

Mouthfeel: Medium(ish) body with a fairly low level of carbonation.  Drinks smooth and is quite creamy on the palate.  – 4/5

Overall Impressions: The flavor really did not work for me (especially after drinking Genesis).  Beers usually grow on me a bit, but this one not so much.  Certainly not a bad beer, but not really doing it for me.  Very easy to drink though and nicer warmer (liked it better). I think it primarily suffers by comparison to Genesis. – 7/10

Overall: Very Good – 36/50

Shmaltz Brewing Co. - He'Brew Messiah Bold

A bit closer

Far too often I am guilty of sampling some of the (at least seemingly) more unique beers from a brewery without stopping to enjoy some of the flagship brews that they do so well.  I know for sure it would take more than two hands to count how many beers I tried from Shmaltz before stopping to finally enjoy two of the beers that have been around since their early days.  I should not be surprised by how much I enjoyed them.

So for the first of two Shmaltz reviews this week . . .

Brewery: Shmaltz Brewing Company (brewed in Saratoga Springs, NY)

Name: He’Brew Genesis Ale

Style: American Amber (Red) Ale

ABV: 5.60%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pint glass.

Aroma: Sweet on the nose with light toasted maltiness and a hint of spice.  Pretty mild overall aroma.  – 8/12

Appearance: Medium amber color (lighter than initially appears).  One finger cream color head that is pretty frothy with good retention and leaving some trail after settling to a more creamy consistency.  Bright and clear with rising bubbles visible when held to light. – 3/3

Flavor: Toasty/biscuity malt flavor initially with some subtle earthy character somewhere underneath that.  Light bitterness from middle to the finish.  Smooth finish overall with some faintly lingering flavors.  – 17/20

Mouthfeel: Medium body with a relatively low level of carbonation.  Smooth and nicely creamy on the palate after some slight sharpness initially.  – 4/5

Overall Impressions: Not overwhelming flavor, but a very enjoyable beer.  Seems like I am almost drinking an ESB since I feel like the flavors and mouthfeel are similar.  A beer that I could drink all day as it is not palate destroyingly intense in flavor, has a moderate ABV, and I think would pair well with most food.  Quite nice a bit warmer the refrigerator cold. – 8/10

Overall: Excellent – 40/50

Shmaltz Brewing Co. - He'Brew Genesis Ale

The Genesis

If I had not already used my quota of the word “random” for my “Random Thought Sundays” it sure would have been used to describe the news post for today.  A thank you goes out to The Wife and The Architect known as Ken for throwing a few stories my way this week.

Now on to the news . . .

• Unfortunately there are no videos to accompany this one.  Part of me really wanted to see how one tells if an owl is drunk or not.
• This one both gives me some Shmaltz brews to look forward to this year (and beyond) and also reminds me that I need to finish reading Jeremy’s book.
• Though this is mostly about the food and concepts behind a new restaurant in Chicago, it also makes mention of some specially brewed beers in the works.  Just another reason to get back to Chicago one of these days.
• Nothing really to say here other than this new beer sounds really really awful to me.
• Those of you that read my ramblings consistently know of my distain for pretty much all beer commercials, so I was happy to read that someone else is not in love with them either.
• I am now very much looking forward to checking out this movie later this year at least in part because of the breweries that are to be featured.
• There was mention on the site a while back of some very, very old yeast possibly being used to brew beer and now that has apparently happened.  I am glad that they chose beer over bread in this case.
• Finishing up with some (semi) local love.  The only problem that I can possibly see with having 25 taps filled with Cigar City beers is choosing which beer to start with.

Mark Tuchman (via http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/)

Cheers!