I have been completely overwhelmed lately with outside obligations, so I have been unable to provide you with my usual reviews. Once I barrel through some of the work ahead, I should be able to resume business as usual. In the meanwhile I wanted to share with you this important piece of news that came my way.

As a subscriber to the Brewer’s Association newsletters, I received word of proposed increase in federal excise tax for alcoholic beverages. This could mean a severe increase in price to YOU, the consumer, as well as endangerment to smaller breweries in a number of states across the nation. I have posted the letter in its entirety below, and I ask that you step up and speak out to protect our common interests.

Dear Beer Enthusiast,

Small brewers are facing an imminent and extremely serious threat to their businesses. The consequences of remaining silent have the very real potential of reducing your choice of beer and dramatically increasing the price of any beer that you purchase.

The Senate Finance Committee in Washington, DC is currently considering a proposal to increase and equalize the excise tax for alcohol beverages as part of healthcare reform deliberations. This proposal would triple the excise tax for 4.5% ABV beer and impose even higher excise tax rates for higher ABV beers.

If such a proposal becomes reality, there is no question that many small brewery businesses will suffer, some will close and consumers will face higher prices and diminished choice in the marketplace.

The Brewers Association brewery members and leadership have been actively engaged in building the case against an excise tax increase, recently submitting a letter to the Committee outlining our opposition.

We need you to speak out now. Today or tomorrow at the latest.

If you live in the following states it is most urgent that you contact your Senator who is on the Senate Finance Committee:

If your Senators are not members of that committee, ask them to contact their Finance Committee colleagues and express their opposition to this proposal moving forward.

Your ask of them is simple:

Oppose the Tax Increase. Let them know that you oppose, in the strongest possible terms, raising the federal excise tax on beer because of the serious consequences it would have on small brewers and the craft beer they brew. Additional talking points appear below.

Once again: If one of your Senators sits on the Senate Finance Committee (roster of members below), urge them to oppose this proposal in committee deliberations.

If your Senators are not members of that committee, ask them to contact their Finance Committee colleagues and express their opposition to this proposal moving forward.

Take Action - Call and/or email your Senators’ Washington or district offices and make your personal case against this massive excise tax increase.

As always, thanks for your support.

Charlie Papazian

President, Brewers Association

Senate Finance Committee Members:

ISSUES OF IMPORTANCE TO SMALL BREWERS EXCISE TAXES

Small brewers are small Main street businesses, typically employing 10 to 50 employees.

• Small brewers represent only 4% of the entire U.S. beer market by volume, with 95% of them being very small businesses (producing 15,000 barrels or less per year).

We strongly oppose proposals to increase the excise tax on beer.

• Proposals to increase and equalize the tax among all types of alcohol will tax small brewers at the highest rates because our specialty, gourmet and innovative beers typically have higher alcohol contents.
• Brewers already pay a disproportionately higher share of taxes compared with other products – federal, state and local taxes represent over 40% of the retail price for beer while the same taxes equal nearly 24% of the price for all other purchases.

Higher taxes will worsen the economic recession – resulting in less competitive products, reduced sales and revenues, lost jobs and, for some small brewers, business closures.

• $1 per case excise tax increase will typically cost the consumer at least $1.69 due to successive mark-ups as the case moves from brewer to wholesaler to retailer.
• Many small brewers are struggling to deal with the consequences of the 2008 spike in ingredient and operational costs.

America (New Jersey) - 6.7% ABV
River Horse Brewing [website]
Oatmeal Milk Stout

Greatness in the form of fermented malt does indeed exist deep within the sweat glands of the armpit of America. I’m talking about my great home state of New Jersey, of course - the beautiful Garden State; or as you out-of-staters may know it, the punchline to every one of your lame jokes.

New Jersey isn’t typically known as a craft beer haven. I’ve written about the beer culture in New Jersey, or lack thereof, but I am a huge proponent of promoting the best of what this misunderstood state has to offer. This Oatmeal Milk Stout is one of the superior recent releases from the mid-Atlantic.

No matter where you call home, this is a classic sweet and roasty representation of the style - and great beer knows no boundaries nor discrimination.

River Horse Brewing is located in Lambertville, right beside the Pennsylvania / New Jersey border - so close, in fact, that if their beer was awful, I would just as easily credit our neighbors with the flop (in the classic NJ style of passing blame); but having recently fallen in love with some of the brewer’s offerings, I am proud to call this our own.

A Briefing on Style

This River Horse brew represents yet another version of our friend, the stout. In the Ølfabrikken review we learned that stouts were originally the strongest of the brewery’s beers. Today, we know that stouts (as with any other style of beer) can be found at varying alcohol percentages, but what we should expect of the stout is a dark, full-bodied brew with a moderate to heavy roasted malt character.

Exploring the numerous variations on the stout style is where the fun comes in: Irish dry stouts, milk stouts, sweet stouts, oatmeal stouts, coffee stouts, chocolate stouts, and even oyster stouts (I have yet to find one of these) live in the family. Wikipedia has a fine breakdown of the different types, and, for our interests, a brief description of the milk stout:

Milk stout (also called sweet stout or cream stout) is a stout containing lactose, a sugar derived from milk. Because lactose is unfermentable by beer yeast, it adds sweetness, body, and calories to the finished beer. Milk stout was claimed to be nutritious, and was given to nursing mothers… The classic surviving example of milk stout is Mackeson Stout for which the original brewers claimed that “each pint contains the energising carbohydrates of 10 ounces of pure dairy milk”. In the period just after the Second World War when rationing was in place, the British government required brewers to remove the word “milk” from labels and adverts, and any imagery associated with milk.

Beer Advocate offers a similar description of the style, but implies that sweet stouts don’t necessarily employ the use of lactose - I would lean toward the conservative side of differentiating the styles as well.

I have personally found that some milk stouts will leave a sweet aftertaste, unmistakably (if only for a split second) reminiscent of milk or chocolate/malted milk. In the case of malted milk, since we’re essentially dealing with some of the same basic ingredients, this isn’t surprising. The important takeaway, however, is the fact that the lactose is unfermentable - the brewer adds the sugar as a sweetening agent, and not for the production of alcohol.

The second major component of this River Horse beer is the use of oatmeal. The above mentioned Wikipedia article goes into some depth about the use of oatmeal in brewing. Oats used in great amounts during the brewing process will typically add considerable bitterness (”so much so that in 1513 Tudor sailors refused to drink oat beer offered to them because of the bitter flavour”). For this reason, their use (which was popular prior to the sixteenth century) declined historically - basically until production no longer existed - until a resurgence in the late 1970’s. With Michael Jackson’s writings of the style, and a sparked interest in a revival, Merchant du Vin commissioned British brewer Samuel Smith to make an oatmeal stout. Many consider the Sam Smith version to be the pure, basic representation of the style.

While without this recent revival we may not have had such inventive interpretations from other brewers, I tend to prefer other, more bold and flavorful oatmeal stouts. I will say, however, if you’re wondering what oatmeal adds or imparts to a beer, try the Sam Smith. By doing so, you may find it easier to identify the dry, bitter, slick and creamy mouthfeel components common of these brews.

Experience

The Oatmeal Milk Stout was another purchase from Oak Tree Buy Rite in South Plainfield - my home away from home. The salesperson recommended the beer, saying it was his favorite from the brewer. He also mentioned that although the beer was brewed as a specialty release, the brewer had mentioned we may see it return as a seasonal, due to popular demand.

I had already tried (and loved) their Tripel Horse, and was looking forward to something new, so I picked up two single 12 oz bottles. My wife and I enjoyed the beer immensely, so the next time I saw it at the store I picked up a six pack. This tasting  is a recent re-sampling of the brew:

The stout pours like Coke syrup, brown like molten plastic; sticky-looking. Opaque and almost black, smells of dark chocolate malt. Sips like mocha espresso, bitter and sweet, full on the tongue like a rich, foamy root beer float.

Intense roasted malt in a medium body - makes it well more drinkable than an imperial or even a typical oatmeal stout. The finish fades a bit quicker than desired but the faint roastiness resides on the back of the palate. I immediately want to go back for each sip, and am able to pull more flavor nuances with each taste.

Final Thoughts

Never underestimate the good things that can come out of this small state. Although the beer culture is still evolving here - and there may not be the enthusiast market for the plethora of selections available elsewhere - this brewery has certainly left its mark.

I have sampled a few Milk/Cream Stouts - St. Peters, Left Hand, and Lancaster to name a few, and I enjoy this one from River Horse as much or more than the others. Some beers are meant for a special occasion, or are so rich they’re seen as a ‘one-and-done’ but this brew is easy on the palate and light enough in the belly to become a regular in the rotation. I have no reservations about recommending this to dark beer fans. Maybe a few of the Jersey-haters will even stay quiet long enough to plug their gullets with one of these. Enjoy.

Belgium - 5.1% ABV (Classic)
6% ABV (Grand Cru)
Brouwerij Rodenbach [website]
Flanders Red / Flemish Sour Ale

The story of Rodenbach is prefaced by the eternal voice of the late Michael Jackson, legendary beer writer. Of Rodenbach’s Grand Cru, Jackson proclaims, “this individual product is the most refreshing beer in the world;” and his words are not often taken lightly in the beer community -  Jackson is regarded as one of the most respected opinions to have ever graced the world of great beer.

The rich brewing tradition at Rodenbach dates back to its foundation in 1821, when four brothers invested in a small brewery in the West Flanders region of Belgium. The partnership lasted for 15 years, until Pedro Rodenbach (one of the four) bought the brewery outright, and his son Edward ultimately oversaw the business into its most successful years. [Wikipedia]

It is Edward’s son Eugene who is credited for developing Rodenbach’s brewing technique. An informative  article from the 1996 Lambic Digest #846 tells us how Rodenbach’s signature sour ale came to be:

Eugene learned the job of brewer around 1860 in northern England. Returning to Rodenbach he copied two things he had seen: the kiln construction, but still more important is the way of making beer. During the time he was in England, a pub could buy fresh beer in a brewery. But there were traders who kept the beer for some years stored, and sold it for the double of the price. Visitors to a pub could drink the young or the old ale, or ask the bartender to blend both in a certain amount.

Eugene was the visionary to apply this blending technique directly at the source, and thus a lucrative opportunity was born for Rodenbach. Even though the brewery is now owned by Palm, the blending of old and young oak-aged ales remains the method for producing Rodenbach’s classic Flemish Sour as well as their Grand Cru.

The Anatomy of a Sour Ale

The unfortunate thing about sour ale is that even after hundreds of years of brewing tradition it remains a rare, misunderstood and unpopular style. Even the above-mentioned article from the Lambic Digest explains that while the regular enjoyment of sours is popular in the immediate surround of the Rodenbach brewery, complaints are common from areas as close as only 40km from the site.

The flavors of a sour are so incredibly unique and unfamiliar, patrons often think their beer has spoiled. We should hope that at least in the 12 years from which that aforementioned article was written, complaints from the near-locals have diminished - but the consensus on sours remains mixed here in the states, so we shouldn’t find surprising if the style hasn’t grown exponentially in popularity.

Rodenbach’s sours are the most identifiable - that is, they occupy the largest market share and they are comprehensively exhibitive of the style’s inherent complexities. In terms of Flanders Red, Rodenbach essentially sets the bar - there aren’t all that many players in sour ale circuit, and fans of sours whom I’ve met tend to recommended the Rodenbachs.

All things considered, however, there aren’t any other sours that taste exactly like Rodenbach - so one’s impression of these beers should not necessarily dictate his or her opinion of other brews in the same style. I suppose that’s a solid piece of advice for any beer. It seemed only appropriate to discuss both the classic Flemish Sour and the Grand Cru in a single article because, while they are inherently different beers, they are basically of the same DNA.

The initial conception of these brews begins with water from a private source behind the Rodenbach grounds, with which two similar worts are created - one slightly denser than the other. The secret to the souring process is actually the addition of lactobacilli bacteria to the yeast culture. Wikipedia reminds us we know lactobacilli as being present in the human gastrointestinal tract, and as employed in food production:

Some Lactobacillus species are used industrially for the production of yogurt, cheese, sauerkraut, pickles, beer, wine, cider, kimchi, chocolate, and other fermented foods, as well as animal feeds, such as silage. Sourdough bread is made using a “starter culture,” which is a symbiotic culture of yeast and lactic acid bacteria growing in a water and flour medium. Lactobacilli, especially L. casei and L. brevis, are some of the most common beer spoilage organisms.

Note - the same organism that spoils beer is actually used in careful balances to create these sours. The beer is, in a sense, intentionally spoiled in a controlled environment.

The precise bacteria and yeast mixture must be maintained in large quantities in order to keep it alive, and the brewer is able to reuse a good portion of it with each session. Rodenbach has been known to supply smaller brewers with the mixture to aid them in the production of smaller-batch sours, as it is a difficult to synthesize the properly balanced composition.

This yeast solution is added to the brews as they ferment for a couple of months, and then the slightly denser solution is transferred to huge oaken barrels to age for at least eighteen months more. In these barrels, a slower-developing yeast comes to life: Brettanomyces. Brett, as it is many times called in short, is often attributed to unwanted or off-flavors in beer, but it provides a desired characteristic to these beers.

Andy at Beer a Day tells us a little of his first experiences with the ‘funky’ Belgian Brett smells and flavors in his reviews of Orval, Girardin Gueuze and Monk’s Cafe Flemish Sour. All of the above represent intentional uses of Brett as a brewing component, as do as many of the beers of Cantillon and Jolly Pumpkin.

From what I understand of Rodenbach’s process, some of their barrels vary in size, and the aged brew must be sampled periodically by the brewer until it has reached desired maturity. The aged beer is then blended with the younger to create the Flemeish Sour and Grand Cru.

The classic Flemish Sour is 75% young and 25% aged ale and (I believe) the Grand Cru contains only about one-third (33%) young ale and two-thirds (67%) aged ale.

Experience

My wife and I have had both brews on tap and in the bottle, and while I am on the fence about which I prefer, she tends to gravitate toward the classic sour ale. From beer to beer we have witnessed extreme differences, so it took us several attempts to finalize our conclusion, but in all cases the Grand Cru is the more intense of the two.

As a change in format, below are my raw ‘live’ tasting notes from my most recent sampling, the Flemish Sour Ale.

Appear: Reddish brown, minimal off-white head, quickly recedes to a film sprawling the surface of the beer.

Smell: Vinegar, sour cherries, plum, socks (?). Somewhat sour on the nose, particularly as the beer warms.

Mouth: Very highly carbonated like soda water, tingles the tongue. Medium to light-bodied, a little watery.

Taste: Gentle sweet-tart up front, flat/neutral mid palette, a finish that sneaks up with intense sour on the back of the tongue at first sip. With each successive sip the sour sensation is less jarring. There are subtle fruit characteristics throughout, mostly reminiscent of sour cherries, but never overtaken by fruit flavor, only hinted.

There is a curious dry quality that dominates the mid-palette, almost neutralizing flavors for a moment before the sour sneaks back up. Traditional malt and hop qualities identifiable in other brews are not present here (save a little bit of a caramel-like maltiness at the end), this is a beer by definition only - it exists in a class of its own.

Finish: The finish showcases the heavy oak character and a earns the sour name. The flavors are an acquired taste, not easily accessible and a tad vinegary - likely to draw a second guess if not an adversarial wince from the unsuspecting imbiber.

Final Thoughts

I mentioned in the Nora post that the drinker may question if the beer has gone bad, and such is the case with these sour ales. I’ve heard the flavors of these ales described as metallic but I think ‘tanniny’ is a better descriptor, as the beer triggers the kind of unnatural salivary reaction one would expect from the sensation of a battery on the tongue (not a recommended trick). The end result is, ironically, harmoniously thirst-inducing. I love both of these beers.

While my notes are of the classic Flanders Red, they would read similarly for the Grand Cru- except the neutral-mid palate impression is removed by the intense semi-sweet, tart flavor of sour cherries carrying through to the finish. The word ’sour’ better describes the flavor of the Grand Cru than the classic, but is a little misleading in either case, as ‘tart’ is more appropriate.

I recently described the Grand Cru to a friend using cranberry juice as a comparative measure of tartness; and while these ales may have more in common with cranberry juice and vinegar than they do with other beers, the naturally occurring sweet and sour flavors are contributed without the use of fruit in the brewing process- an important note, so as not to mislead the drinker on first impressions.

I don’t think a literary description of this beer can do justice to its complexity, nor prepare the inexperienced beer-curious imbiber for what cannot be compared to other styles of beer. Trying either of these beers will bring this point to life almost immediately.

Italy - 6.8% ABV
Birrificio Le Baladin [website]
Egyptian Style Spiced Ale

The world’s most intricately composed orchestral symphony is but a rudimentary gesture when performed for a deaf crowd; so are the fates immovably poised against the great Teo Musso, famed Italian brewer.

Musso is of the eccentric mold - quirky, confident, passionate, and strangely mysterious - one of the rare and special few who candidly parade through life without inhibition. He is renown for the art of producing highly regarded craft beer - no small task in a nation of wine-lovers.

The tale of Teo Musso and the story of Le Baladin, begins in 1996, in the village of Piozzo. It is there, at his bar and brewery, Musso offers some of the most amazing and bizarre creations the craft beer circuit has ever known.

Take, for instance, the Xyauyu - a 13.5% ABV black ale aged outdoors until completely oxidized and almost wine-like. Brewing techniques like this are not only uncommon, they’re virtually condemned- regarded a surefire way to spoil the batch. Shamelessly showcasing blatent disregard for convention, Teo Musso has become an icon to the growing community of craft brewers in Italy.

The Jim Morrison of Beer

I found an absolutely outstanding article from British writer Adrian Tierney-Jones which offers a comprehensive look at Musso and Le Baladin. Don’t let the poorly designed website deter you from checking out the full read, I assure you Jones’ award-winning writing is some of the best I’ve linked to thus far.

Of Teo Musso, the author’s illustration is vivid:

He certainly has the aura of a man who believes his own publicity (‘he is the Jim Morrison of beer,’ I am told by one Italian beer writer). He is tall and rangy, draped in a long scarf, leather-jacketed, stick thin, heavily stubbled and blessed with the sort of distressed, windswept hair that must take forever to do in the morning. Even though he’s in his early 40s, there’s a boyishness about him, an enthusiasm, a sense of adventure or exploration, plus a easy charisma — he greets people in his bar with the sureness of one of those infuriating people who seem to have limitless self-confidence. …Ask him about beer and the last thing you will hear will be marketing double-speak.

I don’t know when Jones’ article was published, but I can only assume the depiction of Musso is as true today as it ever was; it’s the sort of image I have ingrained in my head - The Jim Morrison of Beer. I can tell you from just one look he’s got the sort of confident swagger I will never carry.

While navigating the brewer’s website, I came across a section dedicated to music. It turns out Musso’s got a heck of a taste for blues, particularly old classics like the legendary Muddy Waters. According to Jones’ article, Musso has found creative means to merge his passions for music and brewing.

Many hail him as a genius, though others of a more conventional stripe might think some of Musso’s ideas as thoroughly bonkers. For a start, most of the fermenting vessels have headphones attached to them. This is due to Musso’s belief that as yeast is alive it can respond to music, in the way newly born babies like a spot of Mozart. There is even a tango guitarist who has composed movements for the different phases of fermentation.

Just when you thought you had seen it all, I tell you - put that in your pipe and smoke it… but I think Teo Musso may have already beaten you there.

Experience

What poured as a towering white creamy head quickly subsided to a fading finger’s width, overtaken by larger foamy bubbles until the cap was completely diminished. Le Baladin’s Nora is honey-colored, cloudy, and bright with golden highlights; copious sweet fruit toyed with my nose almost immediately. Among the fruit smells are rich underlying spices (and some esters from the yeast, almost Belgian in character), and while I can’t quite dissect the nuances, clove and coriander come to mind… I’m sure the myrrh is up to something in there as well.

The flavors are fruity, but vague and varied: grapefruit, apricot, tangerine and even semi-sour apple are all insinuated but never quite committed. The delicate bubbles are active and plentiful, suspended in a light-to-medium slick body, hazy and dotted with yeast. The finish leaves a thin coating on the tongue, but the tangy, bitter close draws saliva to quickly cut through the remnants.

The beer brings the kind of sour funk at the tail end that makes you question, just for a moment, if it has turned south. The finish seems to last for days, and the intriguing off-tastes twist and toil mostly in the tail. During the resolution, the ending flavors somehow come to harmony and leave me smacking my lips in contemplation; I hastily return for more as the brew is deliciously inviting, easy on the eyes and palate. In only a few sips, the alcohol begins to warm my belly, though the complicated flavors had me forgetting there was any alcohol present at all.

Final Thoughts

I haven’t had a beer quite like Nora, but then again, I don’t see many Egyptian style ales on the shelves. It was hard to place some of the flavors, but the balance was outstanding - this is surely a beer I will return to in the coming warmer months. While the front of the palette speaks to sweet malt, the back end is defying and dry, sour and citrusy like orange zest.

There are a number of beers that exhibit these types of flavors and scents, but this is the first I’ve had that lends itself across multiple styles; Nora drives further into unexplored territory than many of the sours, wits, and spiced ales with which it shares its heart and soul. Moreover, there’s a lot to take in at every sample, but none of it is overpowering. The bold flavors intermingle in instantaneous synergy, the outcome is thirst-quenching and refreshing- molto delicioso.

From the moment I first read of the intriguing Teo Musso, I knew that Le Baladin was a label that had to find its way to this site. I hadn’t anticipated, however, just how much I would enjoy the Nora, and I was exceptionally pleased to have experienced this grand concoction from one of the most inspiring minds in craft brewing.

Tuesday night I attended a Sam Adams beer and food pairing with my wife and her brother at the Cloverleaf Tavern in Caldwell, NJ. A number of Sam Adams reps and distributors attended the event, a few of whom helped present an impressive five-course menu. Each course featured a different Samuel Adams brew.

I’ll preface the entire write-up by disclosing that we had a great time, and we hope the folks at the Cloverleaf hold some future events like this. It can be hard to find a good beer bar in the area, and these guys are taking it above and beyond the competition: good service, good food, great beer.

The head manager of the Cloverleaf attended the event, and on more than one occasion I heard him offering his candid reaction. I was pleased to see him weigh in with an educated, honest opinion, as I would have expected him to shower the visiting reps with praise at every turn. That said, there was some praise to be sung, but from an objective standpoint the experience left some room for improvement.

Read on for my thoughts, tasting notes, and reflections of the event.

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Beligum - 10.5% ABV
Brouwerij St. Bernardus [website]
Quad / Abbey Style

Abt 12,  a Belgian abbey-style from St. Bernardus, is often wrongly identified as a Trappist brew. While legally, they cannot call it an Authentic Trappist Product, there’s a secret deep within the brewing halls of St. Bernardus - the reason many connoisseurs consider this highly regarded brew on par with the greatest beer in the world.

Many people think that Brouwerij St. Bernardus was once home to Trappist monks - or at least a monastery - but that’s not quite the way it went down. The history of St. Bernardus is probably best told by the folks over at Brew like a Monk where they succinctly wrap up the story of the Belgium brewer, and put to bed any of those crazy rumors.

The St. Bernardus building was born as a cheese factory in the 1930s, originally established by the nearby monks of Mont des Cats. White Beer Travels indicates that these are the same monks that founded the St. Sixtus monastery of Westveleteren fame.

[In] 1946 the monks at [Westvleteren] decided to devote less time to brewing, producing a small amount a beer at their abbey (close to Watou) and contracting Saint Bernardus to [brew] the Saint Sixtus line of “Trappist” under contract from 1946 until 1992…

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Belgium - 10.0% ABV
De Dolle Brouwers [website]
Tripel

De Dolle Brouwers of the West Flanders province of Esen - highly regarded producers of the finest Belgian brews - are concise in describing their beer,

Dulle Teve means Mad Bitch, but the US goverment does not like the name, so we said TRIPEL.

The brewer’s website, lit up like a carnival with a dizzying array of scrolling label artwork, says little else of the beer, save its alcohol content and its inability to stand up to aging.

The statement had me wondering if the brewer was being cheeky by taking a stab at the government, or if the translation is simply blunt, no-frills; I mean, De Dolle means “The Mad Brewers” and the beer is called “Mad Bitch” - perhaps there’s some room for playful animosity? The directions to the brewery made clear, however, that there are massive cultural barriers complimentary to our language differences.

ESEN, where to find?
Very easy indeed, Esen is located on latitude 02°52” E and on longitude 51° 02N. Arriving by plane, you fly over the brewery, if landing in Brussels (BRU). Then you buy a 1/200.000° scale map and look in the North of Belgium near Diksmuide. We advise you not to take the word Esen in the mouth, to avoid people sending you to Essen, near Antwerp. Esen is a small village (1937 inhabitants) and the train station doesn’t function any more. Busses are passing three times a day. Local people may stop for hitch-hikers if you are standing in the middle of the road.

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I was recently ‘marketed’ (read: spammed) by a marketing agent from Cheapflights.com. The email was individually adressed and contained the marketing contact’s full information, as well as an attached PDF document.

Ignoring every piece of internet security advice I’ve ever received, I hastily opened the attachment. That document, an eight-page guide to craft beer in major airports, marked the first time I’ve ever been pleased with an item of spam. Not without its technical flaws (nor modesty in branding Cheapflights), the document is right up our alley of what we aim to do on this site: promote craft beer.

The Beer Lover’s Airport Guide offers up craft beer bar advice for travelers passing through airports in 20 major US cities: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, L.A., Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Portland, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis and Washington.

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Last night my wife, her brother, and a friend met me in the city after work for some beer. My brother-in-law had recommended a few places, and I had been dying to try them, so this was the perfect opportunity to hit the Big Apple for some Big Beers.

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Denmark - 7.5% ABV
Ølfabrikken [website]
Porter

While “Ølfabrikken” translates to “Beer Factory” the hand made brews from this Scandanavian brewer are anything but mass-market.

The humble beginnings of Ølfabrikken took root in 2003 when two Danish computer programmers decided to close their laptops and fire up the kettle. The Shelton Brothers (respected importers of some of the world’s best beer) tell the story of Ølfabrikken founders Martin and Christian:

Their plan was to brew a range of unfiltered and unpasteurized beers, focusing on strong, spicy, and hoppy ales, unlike anything that was being brewed at the time in Denmark. Back then,there were fewer than twenty microbreweries in Denmark, and most of them brewed beer for the untrained palate of the average consumer.

On a wing and a prayer, Martin and Christian used what little money they had to purchase used equipment from a small U.K. brewery. Martin’s parents allowed the two to take over a corner of the family barn for brewing - that’s where the two five-barrel fermenters produced the first beer in 2004. The first year was tough for the two, despite sufficient demand for the new brew. It wasn’t until an expansion and the addition of an extra brewer that Ølfabrikken grew from a side project to a self-sufficient business.

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