Tasting Notes: Sublime Citrus Wit from Starr Hill Brewery

Posted on by mashingin

StarrHillSublimeTasting Notes is back in regular rotation and this week we are going to take a look at Sublime Citrus Wit from Starr Hill Brewery (Crozet, Virginia).

Sublime Citrus Wit comes to us by way of Starr Hill Brewery’s new Heavy Rotation Series, a series that provides a fresh look at non-IPA styles by utilizing “really interesting new yeast strains, additives and processes.”  Sublime is rocking Belgian Witbier yeast, Saaz hops, and 2-Row & Wheat malts, but this brew gets its twist thanks to freshly zested lemons and limes.  To pair with this Witbier, Starr Hill also compiles a playlist to enjoy with this and all Heavy Rotation brews.  To access the playlist and more information on Sublime Citrus Wit, click here.  Sublime is available on draft and in 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles now and will be hanging around through the month of August. Look for this one at select craft beer establishments in Alabama and throughout Starr Hill’s distribution footprint.  Now that we have those particulars covered, it is time to track down a bottle opener and get to some Tasting Notes!

Tasting Notes for Sublime Citrus Wit from Starr Hill Brewery

Appearance: Sublime Citrus Wit pours a very pale, hay-like golden in color.  Held to the light, the yellow hues brighten and gain vibrancy to achieve an almost sunshine quality.  The body is lightly cloudy, but not by any means opaque.  A sizable and lively carbonation level is on display throughout the body.  The initial pour supplied almost a finger of loose, pristine white foam that falters quickly to the thinnest of rings.  That ring of head does what it can to leave what lace is possible, but it only provides minimal spotting.

Aroma: The Belgian Wit character is certainly present in the aromatics for sure.  The fruity and lightly spicy Belgian yeast kicks things off here.  Wheat maltiness lends some sweetness, but it is countered quickly by the unquestionably clear notes of real lemon and lime.  An earthy hop presence is muted and merely here to lend support and balance to that lemon-lime character.  This beer just billows a sense of refreshment.

Taste: The flavors first up to the plate are those incredibly pronounced qualities of lemon and lime.  The citrus is huge, but somehow not overwhelming every aspect of the flavor.  It is just clean, impossibly clear and distinct, and offers up just a touch of zing.  This shifts effortlessly into the Belgian Wit base of spice, coriander and Belgian yeast goodness.  In keeping with the idea of what one would expect from a “sessionable Witbier”, the malt sweetness and hop bitterness remains light and wonderfully on point.

Mouthfeel: This beer is very light in body with a crisp, bright carbonation level.  Coming in at just 4.7% ABV, any and all alcohol presence is seemingly nonexistent.  Ridiculously clean on the palate, Sublime dries out easily and almost immediately.  The aftertaste is all lemon and lime.

Final Thoughts: Could it be the best of both worlds here?  Sublime Citrus Wit has a firm foothold in the Belgian Wit style, but it absolutely has all the citrus (lemon and lime in this example) and refreshing qualities that are synonymous with American-made “session beers” these days.   It may not be the most dynamic beer that Starr Hill Brewery has released lately, but that is not saying it is without complexity.  With that said, a sessionable brew should focus more on drinkability and clean flavors over a crazy amount of complex qualities that aggressively challenge your senses.  A beer such as this one is all about sipping while relaxing after a day out in the summer’s heat.  If that is the goal, Sublime Citrus Wit certainly walks that walk with ease.  Overall, this is a fantastically presented beer and a great drinking experience.  Prost!

 

Alabama’s ABC Board, Proposed Regulation Change & Privacy of Craft Beer Drinkers

Posted on by mashingin

_5Xxp2HDThe Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board (ABC) has recently submitted eight proposed changes to rules and regulations, and one of these possible changes has craft beer fans up in arms about privacy concerns.

When Alabama lawmakers legalized off-premise sales of craft beer (growlers & packaged beer) directly from the state’s breweries and brewpubs last session, there was a stipulation within the law that limited these purchases to 288 ounces a day per consumer.  The act of enforcing this limit falls on the Alabama ABC Board and they have proposed a regulation change to aid them in achieving this task.  The problem here is centered around privacy concerns from the craft beer community as the possible change calls for breweries and brewpubs to collect the following data from the purchaser during each off-premise transaction:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Telephone Number
  • Date of Birth

Free the Hops, a grassroots, non-profit organization whose mission is to help bring the highest quality beers in the world to Alabama, has voiced their opinion on their blog (click here to read) and they are highly concerned  that “this rule would essentially empower the ABC Board to come to an individual’s house to confirm his or her purchase of a six pack of beer.”  The Alabama Brewers Guild has also addressed this issue on their blog (click here to read).  Although the Brewers Guild recognizes that the ABC has a job to do, they also believe “there are less invasive ways to ensure compliance.”

If you are concerned about this new proposal, Free the Hops has provided information on how you can help.  Let your voice and opposition to this regulation change be heard by the ABC Board by sending an email to admin@abc.alabama.gov or letter to the following address:

Alabama ABC Board
2715 Gunter Park Drive West
Montgomery, Alabama 36109

All correspondence concerning this issue must be received by the ABC before September 7th, 2016.  Let your voice be heard and keep fighting the good fight, Alabama.  Prost!

Pair O’ Dice Brewing to hold taproom release for The Great Nelson Motato

Posted on by mashingin

PODLogoPair O’ Dice Brewing Company (4400 118th Avenue North, Suite 208, Clearwater, Florida) recently announced that they will be hosting a draft release for The Great Nelson Motato Double Pale Ale on Friday, August 5 at 4 p.m.

To mark the first beer release for Assistant Brewer Dominique Eva Erwin, Pair O’ Dice Brewing will be featuring The Great Nelson Motato Double Pale Ale on the taproom’s tap wall on Friday.  The name of this offering is an homage to The Great Mutato, the monster in Dominique’s favorite X-Files episode called The Post-Modern Prometheus (Season 5/Episode 5).  This Double Pale Ale weighs in at 7.4% ABV and was brewed with Nelson Sauvin and Motueka hops.  This hop treatment should yield an aromatic and flavor profile that is bursting with tropical fruits and a lovely complexity reminiscent of white wine grape notes.

While you explore all that The Great Nelson Motato has to offer, you can also enjoy a wonderful pairing of bratwurst from Brats Sensation (on-site at the taproom from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.).  The beer starts pouring at 4 p.m. on Friday, so get there early to sip on this special limited release from Dominique and Pair O’ Dice Brewing Company.  Prost!

Avondale Brewing to add Spring Street Saison to lineup of cans

Posted on by mashingin

AvondaleSSScansAvondale Brewing Company (Birmingham, Alabama) announced earlier this week that Spring Street Saison will soon be available in 12 oz. cans.

Coming in as the fourth beer to make it to cans from the brewery (joining Battlefield India Pale Ale, Mill City White Belgian Wit, and Vanillaphant Porter), Avondale Brewing’s flagship Spring Street Saison will soon be delighting craft beer fans with canned convenience.  This truly fantastic Saison is brewed with a “proprietary house yeast, a 4 malt blend and traditional Slovenian hops.”  Although it may come in at a sizeable 7.2% ABV, Spring Street Saison’s delightfully easy drinking ways will be welcomed in any cooler found at the lake, river or beach.

There is no word on the exact date these cans will hit shelves in Alabama, but you can still find Spring Street Saison in bottles and on draft until the official release of this new packaging option.  Once the information is released, I will update you with that info here.  Stay tuned.  Prost!

Vital Information on Spring Street Saison from Avondale Brewing Company

Style – Belgian-style Farmhouse Ale
Availability – Year-round
ABV – 7.2%
IBUs – 18

Dogfish Head launches SeaQuench Ale as new limited release

Posted on by mashingin

SQ2Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton, Delaware) recently announced the limited release of SeaQuench Ale Session Sour this week.

To kick off a “new partnership between Dogfish Head and the National Aquarium that will focus on inspiring conservation of the world’s aquatic treasures,” Dogfish Head Craft Brewery has brewed and released SeaQuench Ale Session Sour.  This new offering is a sessionable Sour Ale that is a blend of three German styles.  SeaQuench starts with a “straightforward Kolsch with lots of wheat and Munich Malt, then . . . a salty Gose with black limes, coriander and . . . sea salt,” and it is all finished “with a citrusy-tart Berlinerweiss made with lime juice and lime peel.”  The National Aquarium contributed by helping the brewery replicate the sea salt from Maine and the Chesapeake Bay to give the Gose portion of this beer its satisfying salinity.  The blended, finished beer comes in at 4.9% ABV and has “amazingly tart, refreshing crisp flavors of lime and the deeper slight bitter of black lime, a touch of salt on the tongue, [and] a bit of malt sweetness in the finish.”

The limited release of SeaQuench Ale officially shipped from the brewery on August 1st and will be hanging out throughout September.  Look for this one on draft and in 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles in Florida and in other select markets within Dogfish Head’s distribution footprint (full list below).  Additionally, SeaQuench Ale will be available year-round in the National Aquarium’s cafe and at select National Aquarium events.  Get it while you can and be sure to enjoy this refresher during the hottest months of the year.  Prost!

Vital Information on SeaQuench Ale Sour Session from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Release – Limited, August through September
ABV – 4.9%
IBUs – 10
Distribution – FL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, GA, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, NC, NH, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA, WI
Fun Fact – “Releasing just in time for the 500th anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot – aka the ‘German Beer Purity Law’ that says it’s illegal to brew with anything other than water, barley, and hops – SeaQuench Ale both commemorates (and disintegrates) this art-censorship law.”

 

 

Stone Brewing ships Stone Enjoy By 09.05.16 Unfiltered IPA

Posted on by mashingin

eb_090516_6pack_webStone Brewing Co. (Escondido, California) recently announced that Stone Enjoy By 09.05.16 Unfiltered IPA officially releases this week.

Stone Enjoy By 09.05.16 Unfiltered IPA is basically the Stone Enjoy By IPA that we all know and love, but this offering just leaves out that whole filtration step.  Not only does this treatment allow the “extra yeast, hop sediment and proteins that build up in beer as a natural result of the brewing process” remain in the brew, but it also amps up its “peach and tropical fruit hop flavors.”  The finished product is a hazy, 9.4% ABV Double IPA that gives you a new perspective on an old favorite.  

This beer is officially available as of Monday, August 1st.  You can look for Stone Enjoy By 09.05.16 Unfiltered IPA on draft, in 22 oz. bottles and in 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles at craft beer-friendly establishments in Alabama, Florida and other select markets throughout Stone Brewing’s distribution area.  “This IPA is brewed specifically NOT to last,” so be sure to get your hands (and palates) on this beer before September 5th.  Prost!

Vital Information on Stone Enjoy By 09.05.16 Unfiltered IPA from Stone Brewing Co.

ABV – 9.4%
IBUs – 90
Hops – Nugget, Super Galena, Simcoe, Delta, Target, Amarillo, Cascade, Galaxy, Citra, Nelson Sauvin, Motueka & Helga
Release Date – August 1, 2016
Packaging – Kegs, 22 oz. bottles, 6-packs of 12 oz. bottles
Distribution – AL, FL, AK, CA, CO, CT, DE, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MT, NV, NH, NY, NC, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, VA, WA

Terrapin Beer Co. releases Hi-10 DIPA as latest Side Project

Posted on by mashingin

Hi10DIPAcanTerrapin Beer Co. (Athens, Georgia) recently announced that Hi-10 Mango Habanero Double India Pale Ale has been released as the brewery’s latest offering in their Side Project Series.

What started as a challenge to improve the already tasty Hi-5 California-style India Pale Ale, the brewers at Terrapin Beer Co. doubled down and created Hi-10 Mango Habanero DIPA as Volume 27 in the Side Project Series, a series of limited release “extremely unique, fun and creative beers.”  Hi-10 DIPA starts with the original recipe for Hi-5 IPA, boosts the beer’s gravity, and then takes on an infusion of mango juice concentrate and habanero.  This combination leads to a 9.3% ABV DIPA that has a “big and juicy upfront hop aroma that gives way to flavors of mango and habanero” and finishes “a touch sweet with a spicy pepper kick that sneaks up on you after a couple of sips.”

From the label:
“Surf’s up with our ‘Hi-10’ Mango Habanero Double IPA. With citra waves for days, and just enough heat to make you sweat, our big and juicy DIPA has plenty of kick to keep you barreled from start to finish. ‘It takes two to Mango'”

Previous Side Project Series offerings were only released in 22 oz. bottles, but Hi-10 Mango Habanero DIPA mixes things up this time around by being available in 6-packs of 12 oz. cans.  Look for this limited release to be available at select craft beer-friendly establishments in Alabama, Florida, and throughout Terrapin’s distribution footprint.  Prost!

Vital Information on Hi-10 Mango Habanero Double India Pale Ale from Terrapin Beer Co.

ABV – 9.3%
IBUs – 110
Original Gravity – 20.5
Hops – Zythos, Amarillo, Citra, Simcoe (Dry Hop Amarillo, Centennial, Citra, Simcoe)
Malts – 2-row, CaraMalt, CaraPilsner
Other Ingredients – Mango and Habanero