Past Newsletters
Vol. 3 No. 3
| Brewery | Beers Featured |
| El Dorado Brewing Company | TrailBlazer Stout |
| El Dorado Brewing Company | Real Mountain Ale |
| Karl Strauss Brewing Company | Amber Lager |
El Dorado Brewing Company
Tucked away on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountain range on the edge of the El Dorado National Forest, The El Dorado Brewing Co. produces internationally recognized microbrews. The name El Dorado originated from a 15th century myth held by Spanish Conquistadors. They believed that a man existed in a city of gold that would cover his body in gold dust before diving into a lake to remove it. He was known as "The Golden One", or El Dorado. The name was adopted for the region in Northern California by the 49'rs during the 19th century gold rush. The brewery uses a 7 barrel brewhouse and has a current production of just 60 barrels per month. A former contractor, owner/brewmaster Jim Boyer adopted the name to signify his ongoing quest to produce premium quality, stellar microbrews. With only two employees, El Dorado is truly a microbrewery in the purest sense of the word.
For more information about the brewery and scheduled tours, call (916) 620-4253.
Serving Temperature: 40-45° F
Original Gravity: 15.0° Plato
Final Gravity: N/A
Int'l Bittering Units: 30.0
Alcohol by Volume: 5.0%
El Dorado's latest release, TrailBlazer Stout, is brewed with a complex combination of two row pale, caramel, black patent, and roasted barley malts. True to style, Jim uses only cluster hops at the beginning of the 90 minute boil so that the smooth roasted notes are not masked by an aggressive hop profile. El Dorado uses an in-house proprietary yeast strain.
Notes From the Panel:
Immediately note a very pleasant, dark roasted character in this stout's nose. Look for great head retention in this medium-bodied, clear, jet black colored beer. TrailBlazer begins with some sweetness up front which quickly turns to an aggressive, but smooth roasted body which lingers pleasantly in the finish. Overall, a very flavorful, well roasted stout with enough sweetness to provide a balanced profile. Perfect after a meal!
Serving Temperature: 40-45° F
Original Gravity: 15.0° Plato
Final Gravity: N/A
Int'l Bittering Units: 30.0
Alcohol by Volume: 5.0%
El Dorado's flagship ale, Real Mountain Ale is an India Pale Ale (IPA) brewed with a combination of two row pale and caramel malts. Real Mountain Ale is a cascade hop-fest! Jim uses cascades in several additions during the 90 minute boil and then dry hops with them as well after the boil.. The beer took 1st place in the India Pale Ale category at the 1995 California State Fair Commercial Brewing Competition. In a recent visit to the U.S., the British Bard of Beer and leading world authority on the subject, Michael Jackson, stated that tasting the beer "was like smelling a sack of hops." Jackson took particular interest in El Dorado over the many U.S. breweries he visited.
Notes From the Panel:
Notice a predominant wonderful Cascade hop aroma in the nose of this one. You should also find great head retention in this clear, medium-bodied, pale to copper colored beer. Real Mountain Ale starts with a slightly sweet, pale malt flavor which is soon consumed by an intense cascade hop flavor which could only be attained through dry-hopping. Overall, an excellent interpretation of an India Pale Ale. For hopheads only!
Karl Strauss Brewing Company
Karl Strauss' Old Columbia Brewery & Grill opened its doors to the public on February 2, 1989. At the time it opened, it was the first new brewery of any kind to open in the city of San Diego in more than fifty years. Karl Strauss Amber Lager was the first beer brewed at Old Columbia, and on opening day it was served along with Gaslamp Gold Ale and Downtown After Dark Brown Ale as the first 3 beers on tap. In 1991, the brewery expanded by building a second brewery to produce and distribute their Amber Lager. Founder Karl Strauss is one of the world's most recognized master brewers and was the first and only person to ever receive the Master Brewers Association of the Americas' Award of Honor and Merit, considered to be the highest of honors in the American Brewing Industry. More than 65 years of brewing expertise are reflected in the superb quality of the brewery's product line which is comprised of over 35 different recipes which are brewed and served from the three San Diego breweries and brewpubs.
For more information about the brewery and scheduled tours, call (619) 234-BREW or check out their web site at www.karlstrauss.com.
Serving Temperature: 40-45° F
Original Gravity: 15.0° Plato
Final Gravity: N/A
Int'l Bittering Units: 30.0
Alcohol by Volume: 5.0%
Currently the brewery's only bottled product, Karl Strauss Amber Lager is brewed with a combination of two row pale, munich, dextrin, and caramel malts. Karl adds both Clusters and Cascade hops in equal proportions during the boil primarily for their bittering contributions. A proprietary yeast strain is used.
Notes From the Panel:
Look for a sweet, caramelly maltiness up front with some hop spiciness evident in the nose. Note good head retention in this medium-bodied, clear, copper-to-amber colored beer. Karl Strauss Amber Lager starts off with a sweet, caramelly flavor as its nose indicates. The sweetness carries into the middle, however this beer ends with a mild bitter/dry finish. Overall, one of the better American interpretations of an amber lager we've tried.
Ask Murl
Dear Murl,
Hello from the Pacific Northwest, home of the re-birth of the microbrewery! First, I would like to thank you for your beer of the month service. Thanks to you, we've been able to enjoy a lot of great brews from around the country. My question is this: What is meant by the term "lagering"? And if I can get two in for the price of one, what is the difference between beer and ale? You might be able to tell from my questions that I am fairly new at this hobby. I don't know much about 'em, but I sure do enjoy drinkin' them! Keep up the great work!
Happily Yours,
Harold Scott
Belfair, WA.
Yo Harry!
May I call you Harry? I mean, my friends call me hairy and sometimes I get ticked, not because I have ticks, mind you, but because I am hairy. Anyway, Harold, thanks for the kind words; it means a lot to a guy that is usually rewarded with rawhide chewies and Science Diet's interpretation of a "Scooby Snack". Lagering is a term that originated from the German word "Lagen" which means to lie, rest, or repose. The term refers to the storing of bottom-fermented beer in cold cellars at near freezing temperatures for periods ranging from a few weeks to several months and occasionally up to a year, during which time the slow process chemical reactions take place which mellow the beer, reducing any harsh or off flavors.
Lagering generally creates a smoother, crisper, and cleaner product. On beer and ale, it's really just a question of semantics. The word beer is used rather broadly to describe nearly all beverages made with malted barley save zee inzamous Zima and zome other peculiar products. All beers fall into two primary categories or classifications, one of which is Ales, the other being Lagers. Furthermore, there are many different styles such as stouts, bocks, or hefeweizens that fall under each category. We've included several articles on the various beer styles in past editions of The Brew Harvest Review and also on our site: www.beermonthclub.com/beerstyleguide.htm.
Woof!
Murl.
Food For Thought...
TrailBlazer Mousse
Stouts get their dark color and robust taste from dark roasted malt barley. The well-roasted malt barley imparts a rich flavor that is a perfect marriage with desserts, and its born to go with chocolate! We've found a Mousse recipe in the Southwest Brewing News that'll give you a whole new appreciation for El Dorado's TrailBlazer Stout.
- 1 lb. chocolate chips, or other bitter chocolate
- ¾ cup El Dorado TrailBlazer Stout, room temp.
- 3 tablespoons coffee liqueur
- 8 large eggs, room temp., separated
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter
- 1 ¼ cups heavy whipping cream, chilled
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Melt chocolate chips slowly in double boiler. Remove from heat. Stir in Stout and coffee liqueur, blending until smooth. Add egg yolks to mixture two at a time, blending thoroughly after each addition. In a separate bowl, whip heavy cream, vanilla and sugar until stiff peaks. Chill cream mixture. In another bowl, whip egg whites with cream of tartar until stiff, and gently fold egg whites and whipped cream together. Very slowly fold ¼ of this mixture into the melted chocolate until smooth, then fold in remainder of cream mixture until no white is showing. Spoon into 10 serving goblets and chill. Some like to serve with a raspberry sauce, but you might not want to take any attention away from the pureness of its existing wonderful, malty, chocolate flavor.
Norm's Corner...
As spoken by Cheers' Norm
Coach: What's shakin' Normie?
Norm: All four cheeks and a couple of chins, Coach. Gimme a
beer.
True Brew Quotes
"It is my design to die in the brew-house; let ale be placed to my mouth when I am expiring, that when the choirs of angels come, they may say, "Be God propitious to this drinker." Saint Columbanus, A.D. 612
"Beer has virtue only in giving its victims more of the good-natured stupidity of the idiot and less of the demoniac frenzy of the madman" Lyman Beecher, 1826
"I would give all my fame for a pot of ale, and safety." William Shakespeare, King Henry V.
Beer Legend
How Hathor became the Chief Goddess of Beer:
A time came when the Sun God Ra lost his divine patience with mankind. Ra saw his temples neglected, his subjects fornicating, fighting, lying, stealing, and worse. Deciding to punish his children, Ra assigned the task to a Goddess. Hathor was assigned 3 days in which to complete her chastisement, while Ra turned his divine attention to other things. Hathor took the form of a leopardess and descended to Earth.
The First Day
At the end of the first day of punishment, Ra looked to see how Hathor was doing. To his horror, Ra saw the streets of Egypt running red with blood. A handful of humans survived, huddled in corners of flattened houses. Ra thought to himself, This is awful. There will be no one left to worship me. Having given Hathor 3 days of divine duty, Ra could not now stop her. After pondering the situation that night, taking the form of a baboon, Ra went to Earth with the job of throwing sweet dates and barley into the human blood that covered the land.
The Second Day
The second day dawned. The sun arose and the divine mixture of blood, barley, and dates fermented. Beer was born. In her leopard form, Hathor awoke planning to hunt the few remaining Egyptians, but instead she smelled the odor of beer. Halted at the river of beer, she tentatively lapped at the brew. She found the beer so pleasing that she drank, and drank herself into a stupor, staggering off under a date palm, where she drunkenly snored for two days and nights. Upon awakening, the goddess found her time was up. Beer was created, the human species was saved, and Hathor became Chief Goddess of Beer.
For Members Only
Give Your Friends FREE Beer, Wine, Cheese, Chocolate,
Cigars & Flowers!
Through our Customer Appreciation Program
Your name has real value to your friends, co-workers, and family members! Every time a friend, family member, or anyone else you know joins any one of our clubs, [or gives a gift] for 3 months or longer, we'll give them 50% off of their first month, but only when they mention your name. And we'll also give you 50% off your next month too which can either be applied towards your current membership or you can try one of our other Clubs out! (We can add one more month to your order at 50% off for prepaid memberships!)
The Fine Print: Members giving gift memberships do not qualify for referral credits and you can't give yourself a gift to qualify! This Program is mutually exclusive of any other promotions.
Membership Q & A
Q: What can I do if I'm having difficulty receiving my shipment
at home?
A: You should consider having our discrete box delivered to
your work location or to a neighbor 21 yrs. of age that can receive
it for you. As your shipment requires and adult signature to receive,
it's always best to ship it to a location where someone will be there
to receive it for you. The box is brown corrugated cardboard and doesn't
say "Beer" on it anywhere.
Q: What should I do if I'm moving or want to extend my membership?
A: Please call us prior to the 5th of the month to make all
account related information changes such as address changes, membership
extensions & terminations, or gift accounts desiring to continue
their memberships. Address changes made after that time may require
a repackaging and re-shipping charge of $12.00. Additionally, if your
box is re-routed by UPS from an address different than what was originally
specified, you may incur a $5.00 re-routing charge.
Q: What happens if my shipment is damaged?
A: If your shipment arrives damaged, please call us immediately
toll free at 1-800-625-8238 and report the incident for a prompt resolution.
Q: What happens if my credit card is declined?
A: We will send you a courtesy notice asking you for an alternative
payment method and your order will be temporarily suspended until
we hear from you.
Q: What happens if I join under a special incentive program
and don't stay a member for the entire term committed?
A: Not a problem. Although we want to do everything we can
to keep you as a member, we will allow you to cancel your subscription
early; however, you will be responsible to pay for the item that was
given to you as part of the promotion. If you received a discount
based on a specific term, the amount discounted will be charged to
your card.
