Featured Selections Archives - Page 7 of 12 - Craft Beer Blog from The Beer of the Month Club

Who wants to name Jolly Pumpkin’s next Rare Beer Club exclusive beer?

March 4, 2016 by Kris Calef

That’s right cats and kittens, it’s been awhile, but we’re announcing the first of 3 beer naming contests we’ve got slotted this year and another chance for you to win a 6-month, 2 bottle membership to The Rare Beer Club®.

So here’s how this one got started. My 19 year old Maine Coon, Rosie, died last October. He was a real piece of work. Yeah, that’s right…HIS name was Rosie! His story is a bit like Johnny Cash’s “Boy named Sue”…you had to be tough to own that name and he was. Rosie was a huge personality in the hood, entered neighbors’ homes at will, was generally as adventurous as they come and into everything, and survived several coyote and raccoon attacks. Lived pretty much outdoors backing up to a canyon with plenty-o-predators for the majority of his life.

So I got to thinking that a cat that was that cool deserved to have a beer named after him. I’ve got a bottle of Jolly Pumpkin’s La Roja on my desk because the artwork featuring this wild, swashbuckling red pirate cat always reminded me of Rosie. Seemed a no brainer to reach out to Ron and see if he had any interest in the project. Lucky for me he’s owned cats and dogs, had owned a coon himself at one point, and could relate to the loss of a good buddy. So Ron’s in. Sweet.

The beer will be based on Jolly Pumpkin’s La Roja, an amber ale brewed in the Flanders tradition offering earthy caramel, spice, and sour fruit notes developed through naturally occurring brettanomyces and lactobacillus from barrel aging. It will be unfiltered, unpasteurized and blended from barrels ranging in age from two to ten months. Ron intends to bump the ABV slightly and modify La Roja’s recipe to make the beer’s flavor profile even more assertive and bold to match Rosie’s personality. In short, a wild red ale to celebrate a wild red cat.

“I’m in, Kris. How do I play,” you say? Here are the vitals you need to know about the contest:

You can submit up to three names by 2 pm PST on Wednesday, March 16th. Three finalists will be announced on Friday, March 18th at which time contest entrants, club members and the general public will be allowed to vote for their favorite choices. Contest winners will be announced on Friday, March 25th. If your beer name is used, we’ll hook you up with a 6-month membership to The Rare Beer Club (two bottles per month club).

To receive this RBC exclusive beer, you’ll need to be an active member of The Rare Beer Club in July of 2016 when it will be featured.

Have fun. I’m really looking forward to seeing what you all come up with this time. I’ve never been disappointed in the final beer name of any contest we’ve run in the past.

Prost!
Kris

We Missed You Jopen Koyt…
And are So Glad You’re Back!

December 22, 2015 by Kris Calef

I’ve waited a long-ass time to slot Jopen Koyt, an 8.5% Scottish Gruit produced in the Netherlands. Seven years to be exact! I first tried it when Shelton Brothers sent me a bottle to run by the panel in 2007. I hadn’t had many gruits that parted my hair at the time, so I was taken back a bit when I really, really dug this beer. We couldn’t get it done for one reason or another and the next thing you know, they were no longer bringing it into the US. Shit.

I’ve been bugging Christian at Shelton Bros. literally annually to bring it in for us as they’ve done with so many other beers, but there was some kind of issue at the brewery and it never happened. I really wanted to share the experience of finding a gruit I could get groovy with with our members, so I was like Paris Hilton’s Chihuahua; nippin’ at their heels until they finally caved. So you can thank me when you drink it as I’m sure they maybe, sort of, wouldn’t have brought it back without my “encouragement.” That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.

Enough about me. What about the beer? It’s brewed with gruit, a blend of herbs including a big ole pile of sweet gale. This stuff dates back to medieval times, baby, and the ritual of how the gale was harvested was key. In fact, legend has it that, to avoid its hallucinogenic properties, sweet gale could only be picked at full moon by nude witches. I’m serious. Could I make that shit up? My only question is, are we talking about sexy witches like Sam on Bewitched, or more of the nasty, Wizard-of-Oz-green-skinned, pointy-nose type? That’s kinda key for me in my gruit fantasy.

Koyt’s got a big, herbal, piney, woody, resiny, and earthy nose. Seems like something Little John should be sloggin’ down while creeping in a bush somewhere in the forest waiting for the tax collector’s stage coach. It’s got a caramel and toffee backbone and a ripe fruitiness in the middle (I have to resist another Little John reference here…Think Robin Hood: Men in Tights). The sweetgale opens up a bit more if you allow it to warm up. An herbal bitterness finishes this well-crafted gruit, perhaps the best we’ve ever rated.

Koyt will be featured in The Rare Beer Club® in January 2016 and will be paired with an 8.5% RBC exclusive, River Horse Brewing Company’s Imperial Chocolate Porter. It’s going to be a solid way to kick off the year, trust me.

If you’re looking to impress a beer geek on your shopping list, look no further and save some money while you’re at it by using our rare craft beer club coupons.

Happy Holidays and may your gale harvest be bountiful.

Prost!
Kris

Hit Me With Some Père Noël in My Stocking This Year, Would Ya, Father Christmas?

December 15, 2015 by Kris Calef

Who doesn’t love stocking up on your favorite holiday seasonals and winter warmers as the holidays approach? I gotta say, I like it just a bit more than Christmas shopping. I guess if you buy a bottle or two for someone in your office for a white elephant exchange then, technically, it is Christmas shopping.

I don’t know about you, but I can only put down so many 10%+ strong Belgian ales in a month. It was our assumption that our members were right there with me when we decided to slot De Ranke’s Père Noël with Chernyy Medved, a 13% Russian Imperial Stout, this December.

I love everything about this beer. Love the label, with Santa lovingly embracing a tulip glass of the stuff. Love that it’s not overdone with holiday spices that often take away from the beer itself. And, of course, I love the flavor profile.

The brewery’s description, “a Christmas ale, though very different from any other Christmas ales you might know,” is both accurate and, at the same time, pretty vague. It pours like the Big Elf himself conjured it up with a massive, thick head that sticks around like the abominable snowman. It’s hazy. It’s orange. It’s making my mouth water just writing this sentence. It starts with bitter, herbal hop notes that mingle nicely with the yeast profile. There’s a bit-o-spice going on, but not too much. The emphasis is definitely on the core, the dry, bitter, malt and hop components of the beer, rather than its additions. Really, really drinkable.

You can only get your mitts on it once a year, and since less than 250 cases managed to make it to the U.S., it’s worthy of coveting to be sure. Between this one and Chernyy Medved, a 13% Russian Imperial Stout brewed with smoked wood, pine, vanilla, and cherries, our December line up is as solid as it gets and will make an impressive gift for the beer lover on your list. This is one of those thangs that you see for someone else and end up getting for yourself, so be careful!

And if you do, save some money by using our rare beer club coupons on your order.

Happy Holidaze.

Prost!
Kris

The Gift of Chernyy Medved is Sure to Warm Their Bones this December!

December 8, 2015 by Kris Calef

valiant-kelly-and-kris — Kris with Valiant Brewing’s Kelly Schoepfer

It seems like forever since I first sat down with Brian Schroepfer, one of the owners and Head Brewer at Valiant Brewing, to talk about potentially slotting his big, bad Russian Imperial Stout in The Rare Beer Club®. Since that time, we’ve all been eagerly awaiting the batch that he’s made just for us, and this week, Brian dropped off the goods. My team and I wasted no time busting open a couple of bottles after work on Friday and I have to say, it is outstanding!

It’s big. It’s viscus. It’s smoky. It’s delicious! Like the sample we rated back in August, we all found it surprisingly approachable for such a big beer. Huge mouthfeel. Big roasted notes, as you’d expect, with smoky chocolate malt flavors intermingled with vanilla and hints of cherries, all of which integrated perfectly.

Don’t take my word for it; read the Chernyy Medved tasting notes written by Ken Weaver, our newsletter writer and the editor at All About Beer Magazine. But be warned, it’s going to cost you if you do, because you won’t be able to resist giving it to the beer geek in your life… or picking up a few bottles for yourself! This one will be one of our two Rare Beer Club® featured December beers, so be sure to order by 12-20-15.

If you do order a bottle or two, be sure to save some money by using our rare craft beer club coupons on every order.

You’re going to thank me. This is a really special beer. You’ll want to toss one back now because you won’t be able to wait, and lay a couple down, as it will age nicely.

Prost!
Kris

El Monstruo Lupúlo – 1 Year Later

September 5, 2015 by Brett Olson

To celebrate our company’s 20^th Anniversary last year, Cigar City was kind enough to brew us a one-off exclusive for release in our July 2014 Rare Beer Club shipment: El Monstruo Lupúlo, an imperial IPA monster crafted with eight different hops – including a few experimental varieties – and aged on Spanish cedar and spruce.

A hop bomb like that is meant to be enjoyed fresh, while the hops are undegraded and still bursting out at full tilt. And we certainly enjoyed plenty fresh bottles. But we also hid some away to revisit later, to watch how the beer would hold up and evolve in bottle over time.

This week we decided to crack one open, more than a year after storing it away in a cool, dark cellar (otherwise known as our server room). How did it hold up?

Pretty darn well, actually. It was immediately apparent that some of sharper higher-octave hop notes had subsided somewhat, which we expected. But make no mistake, this brew is still a big, bad, hoppy monster. The citrusy core of orange and grapefruit was still front and center in a big way, along with light hints of evergreen from the spruce and Chinook additions. There was a berry-like hint in there as well, bolstered by a softly floral overtone and a mild vanilla-esque quality. Bitterness was still very big.

The malts seem at least as prominent as we remember them, perhaps even moreso now that the topmost edge of the hop profile has subdued a little. Lots of toasty, toffee-like notes offer plenty of structure, all touched by woody hints.

So, despite being over a year old, El Monstruo Lupúlo has held up really nicely and still displays a wonderfully complex hop profile in tandem with those woody additions that augment them just as well as we remember. We’ll have to crack another one open at the 2-year mark to see exactly what long-term aging will do to it, but we’re confident it’ll still be delicious.

Cheers!
Brett

Adelbert’s Brewery, The Rare Beer Club® and Pints for Prostates Partner to Reach Men Through the Universal Language of Beer

September 1, 2015 by Kris Calef

Charlotte, N.C. – Adelbert’s Brewery of Austin, Texas, and The Rare Beer Club®, which ships unique craft beers nationwide, are teaming up to benefit the Pints for Prostates campaign.

Adelbert’s is releasing specially labeled bottles of Scratchin’ Hippo to create awareness and support the mission of Pints for Prostates, which uses the universal language of beer to reach men with an important health message. This award winning Bière de Garde will feature a limited edition label with the Pints for Prostates logo exclusively available through The Rare Beer Club.

Scratchin’ Hippo is a 6.9 percent alcohol by volume traditional, rustic artisanal French-style farmhouse ale. Its complex malt-driven flavor elicits notes of toasted caramel, roasted malts and cocoa, complimented by a mild sweetness.

“Scratchin’ Hippo is one of our most popular and unique beers. It is named for a massive hippo in Kenya that decided one night to scratch itself by rubbing up against the house where my brother Del, the namesake of the brewery, was living. He thought it was an earthquake,” said Scott Hovey, Founder and Brewmaster of Adelbert’s Brewery. “We are happy to partner with Pints for Prostates and the Rare Beer of the Month Club on this project to help raise awareness about prostate cancer.”

The limited edition label features the Pints for Prostates logo, which includes the blue ribbon to remind people of the ongoing search for a cure to prostate cancer, a leading cause of death among American men. A donation for every 750 milliliter bottle of Adelbert’s Scratchin’ Hippo sold through The Rare Beer Club will be made to Pints for Prostates.

“The annual release of a special beer through The Rare Beer of the Month Club helps us to connect with guys and urge them to take charge of their health by getting screened for prostate cancer,” said Rick Lyke, a prostate cancer survivor who founded Pints for Prostates after successful prostate cancer surgery in April 2008. “We are extremely grateful to Adelbert’s and The Rare Beer of the Month Club for helping us to achieve our mission.”

“This is the sixth year The Rare Beer Club® has partnered with Pints for Prostates on this project and we’re always pleased to do so as it’s a great cause and our members really look forward to a unique beer each year. Adelbert’s is a great craft brewery that we’ve only worked with one other time in 20 years, so we’re really excited to be working with them again,” said President Kris Calef. “Together with the brewery, we’ll donate $1.00 for every bottle sold and include a Pints for Prostates information card in each shipment to remind our members to get tested. A little education and early detection goes a long way to save lives.”

To get the specially labeled version of Scratchin’ Hippo join The Rare Beer Club online or call 800-625-8238 and be sure to start your membership in September. .

According to the National Cancer Institute, prostate cancer will claim the lives of nearly 30,000 men in the U.S. during 2015. Prostates cancer is 33 percent more common in men than breast cancer is in women, yet few men know they should get a prostate health screening at age 40. The release is part of the Pints for Prostates Oktoberfest for a Cure observance that is taking place from August through October.

About Adelbert’s Brewing

Based in Austin, Texas, Adelbert’s Brewery is committed to brewing Belgian-style, bottle-conditioned ales for people to seek, savor, and share with others. Adelbert’s uses Bohemian old-world floor malted barley, low alpha Noble Czech hops, fresh yeast propagated at the brewery, and a multi-temperature decoction mash technique. The brewery believes quality beers require quality ingredients and a painstaking attention to detail throughout the brewing process. Learn more at www.adelbertsbeer.com.

About The Rare Beer Club®

The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club™ offers four different options for consumers. From the very inception of our original domestic beer of the month club in 1994, we’ve focused on consistently providing three primary product characteristics: Quality, Variety & Freshness. And in that spirit, we now offer you four outstanding beer club options, each dedicated to those same principles. Our owner’s favorite club features the finest the world of beer has to offer in limited-release, celebratory, artisanal beers from some of Michael Jackson’s favorite breweries. Two different selections are presented each month in 750 ml bottles, often cork finished, and some individually tissue wrapped. Members experience bold U.S. and imported interpretations of Farmhouse Ales, Russian Imperial Stouts, Barley Wines, Belgian Abbey Ales, varied Imperial, Extreme, Strong Ale and Grand Cru offerings, oak-aged ales imparting bourbon and vanilla notes, and much more. Many selections are pushing the envelope of creativity, are not yet distributed in the U.S., and brewed such that they can be cellared and aged.

About Pints for Prostates

Pints for Prostates reaches men through the universal language of beer to encourage them to take charge of their health. The group was founded by prostate cancer survivor and beer writer Rick Lyke in 2008. The grassroots effort raises awareness among men about the importance of regular men’s health screenings by making appearances at beer festivals, social networking and pro bono advertising. According to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 233,000 new prostate cancer cases are diagnosed annually in the U.S. More information is available at www.pintsforprostates.org. Pints for Prostates also has a presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@pints4prostates).

Hoping to Slot Prairie Artisan Ales in Q4

August 25, 2015 by Kris Calef

Literally the same day that I had met with the owner of Valiant Brewing company and locked down on running their 13% oaked Russian Imperial Stout, Chernyy Medved, I received and email from Chase Healey, the owner of Prairie Artisan Ales, asking what styles I was interested in running in The Rare Beer Club® in Q4. We featured Prairie Noir, an Imperial Stout Aged in Oak Whiskey Barrels, more than two years ago and after meeting Chase last October at The Festival, I was really eager to run them again. Really cool guy making outstanding beer. And Prairie Noir doesn’t have a 99 rating on RateBeer by chance. It’s world class stuff. Chase suggested we consider a tequila barrel aged version and I’ve been emailing him monthly ever since!

It’s not a done deal yet, but I’ll be doing my best to lock down something dark and delicious, more than likely something that’s spent some time on wood, for October, November or December. I kinda like the idea of running a Russian Imperial Stout from Prairie and Valiant within a 3 month span and am quite confident we wouldn’t get too many complaints from our members as that style always goes over well. That said, Okie, a 10% Imperial Brown Ale Aged in Oak Whiskey Barrels and The Beer that Saved Christmas, a 10% Old Ale Aged in Oak Barrels, both sound pretty tasty. So much beer, so little time.

Wish me luck and stay tuned!

Prost!
Kris