Interesting Beer Info Archives - Page 9 of 14 - Craft Beer Blog from The Beer of the Month Club

HAPPY Birthday Michael Jackson!

March 27, 2015 by Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club

And no, not that one. I’m talking about the The Beer Hunter and founder our Rare Beer Club! Michael James Jackson (27 March 1942 – 30 August 2007) was a beer journalist and critic, traveled the world discovering different beer cultures and his work was influential in the popularization of the brewing culture in the US. The modern concept of beer style is largely based on his work in the 1977 book The World Guide To Beer in which he categorized beers from around the world into style groups according to local customs and names. He also hosted a television series aptly titled the Beer Hunter in around the 1990’s. His awards and accolades are countless in the beer industry and we are honored to continue his pursuit of beer.

Salud!
David

Getting reacquainted with an old friend, Fantôme’s Magic Ghost

March 24, 2015 by Kris Calef

This beer tripped me out when we first featured it back in 2011 and once again over three years later when I busted open a bottle I had stashed from the 2011 run. It was still green to be sure, but not quite as vibrant as it was when we first ran it. Definitely a creeper that didn’t feel anywhere near 8% and I found the beer’s herbal qualities to be even more pronounced after some time in the bottle allowing it’s hop profile fade. As I was drinking it, I imagined Dany, the head brewer, darting about in the forest collecting various twigs and vines to toss in the mash. Still a definite lemon/lime citric nature to it and I still got the green tea notes that we picked up originally.

Suffice to say, my mood was altered a bit after downing the bottle while not doing much of anything else on our deck. It was pretty good (my mood) before I opened the beer…But really much, much better after the ghost worked his magic. Be sure to check out our original full tasting notes from when we first ran it.

Prost!
Kris

Fünke Hop Farm delivers the goods! Another Rare Beer Club® Exclusive

March 16, 2015 by Kris Calef

I’m really excited about this beer. We worked with Sudwerk damn near 20 years ago in The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club™ as they were, and continue to be, one of the best US craft beer producing lager houses. Honestly, I’m not sure why we didn’t connect again until 2015, but I’m really glad we did. I noticed that they were branching out into some barrel aged, small batch, creative stuff and reached out to them last year to discuss an exclusive project for The Rare Beer Club^®. They were all for it and sent us down a number of experimental beers that they were playing around with to run by the panel: Velvet Jackhammer, an 8% Helles Bock; Game Changer, a 7% funky wild lambic; and a bourbon barrel aged dry stout. Suffice to say, we dug them all, but then they sent us down a bottle of Fünke Hop Farm, a Dry-Hopped Blended Sour Saison, and it moved rapidly to the top of the queue.

You’re going to LOVE this beer. It’s brewed with oats and wheat and fermented out with two strains of saison yeast. About 6-9 months in an assortment of barrels (Petite Sirah, Grenache, & Chardonnay) all while being fermented with Brett and Lactobacillus. These various treatments are then blended with an all-Brett beer that’s barrel-aged separately, bringing in more tropical and guava notes. Then it’s dry-hopped with Simcoe, Nelson, and Citra. Suffice to say, Sudwerk busted out all the moves on this beer and it shows.

We’re proud to feature it.

Prost!
Kris

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They Are Women, Hear Them Roar

March 8, 2015 by Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club

Equality for women in the work force is stronger than ever, but don’t tell that to the beer industry which has been male dominated for hundreds of years and remains so today. However, things are changing fast and by the hand of the minority. In recognition of International Women’s Day on March 8th, the non-profit organization Pink Boots Society will be throwing their second annual International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day (IWCBD) with over 80 participants from 11 different countries. This year’s style to be mastered – Unite Red Ale. Following the event, over 80 versions of the beer will be released so that fans and supporters around the world can not only try the brew, but join in the cause of supporting women in the beer industry.

To that my friends, I say Cheers!
Shelton

Jolly Pumpkin Agrees to another Rare Beer Club® Exclusive!

February 7, 2015 by Kris Calef

JPartisanAlesHalfCircle I’m fired up. I just heard back from Jolly Pumpkin’s Head Brewer/Founder, Ron Jeffries, that he wants to do another RBC exclusive for us this year. The brewery is well known and loved for their funky and sour beers so I suggested that we do some kind of a wild ale this year. Looks like we’re targeting June, just in time for Father’s Day! I’ll keep you posted as we firm up on the details of the beer. We might even do a naming contest with this one be sure to check back with us from time to time. We’re making a real push to increase the number of exclusives that we run in The Rare Beer Club®. I’m hopeful that we can nail down more than half of our featured selections this year.

Prost!
Kris

Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin

January 26, 2015 by Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club

I first ran into this beer at a liquor store in San Diego while visiting my brother for the day. I was instantly filled with excitement and joy, being that I am a huge Sculpin fan already, and love me some grapefruit. I couldn’t wait to get this beer home and give it a try. However, I wondered how Ballast Point could improve on Sculpin’s already unique flavor. I’ve always followed the motto, “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it,” but, in this case, it works. The tart freshness of grapefruit perfectly complements the IPA’s citrusy hop character. It pours a brilliantly clear, golden, honey color with a large layer of perfectly white foam, which quickly fades to a very thin layer with good cling. It draws in a strong aroma of citrusy fruit, mostly grapefruit, go figure, with the apricot, peach, mango & lemon I’ve grown to enjoy with the original Sculpin. There is a light pine scent with floral hints and subtle alcohol. Taste is very fruity and very citrusy. Grapefruit is unmistakable, mostly in the backend, which is surprisingly crisp. This finishes clean, dry-bitter with pine notes and lingering citrus flavor. The balance between pine and citrus has been tilted way to the favor of the citrus, which is not a bad thing in this case. Grapefruit is known as a winter fruit, but this easy-drinking ale tastes like summer. Overall, a great IPA.

Salud!
Jason

2015 Will Bring More Rare Beer Club® Exclusives Than Any Previous Year!

December 16, 2014 by Kris Calef

If you’ve been on the fence as to whether or not you want to join or give a gift membership to The Rare Beer Club®, allow me to give you 12 compelling reasons that the time is now. We had set a goal of featuring at least 12 Rare Beer Club exclusive beers in 2015 and with a full 3 weeks to go in this year, it’s looking like we should be able to exceed that as we’ve already either locked down or have gotten fairly solid verbal commitments from the following stellar breweries. It’s going to be a year to remember… If you’re a member!

Here’s what we’re working on:

Saint Somewhere is brewing a 10% version of their highly coveted Belgian Strong Ale, Lectio Divina.
Les Trois Mousquetaires Signature Series Maibock – We love everything these guys put out and our members will be the first in the US to try this exceptional Maibock.
Sudwerk Brewing’s Funke Hop Farm is a dry-hopped sour saison that only about 100 folks have tried so far. You’re gonna love it.
Prairie Artisan Ales tossed out the notion of doing a Tequila Barrel Aged Imperial Stout last month at The Festival. My gut reaction? “Hell yeah!”
Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven – La Trappe makes an outstanding bock and our members will be the first to try it in the US marketplace.
Monkish Brewing Company – Everything we’ve ever tried from Monkish is rock solid. Henry wants to make a blended brett focused dry-hopped saison just for our members next year. We’re in.
Brouwerij Wilderen Tripel Kanunnik – An outstanding Belgian Tripel never before distributed in the US.
Jolly Pumpkin – When Ron says he’s game for creating something unique just for our members, we only have to ask when he can do it. Stay tuned.
Telegraph Brewing is on the map as well for a 2015 exclusive. We’re about to rate their Silent Partner Saison.
Odell Brewing – We’ve run a few of Eric’s one-offs over the years and are eager to see what he has in mind for the club next fall.
Pints For Prostates Brewery Collaboration – Every year we partner with PFP and a US brewery to create something really cool for the club and to promote awareness for the organization. The brewery has yet to be named.
Upright Brewing – Alex is doing some really cool stuff up in OR and we can’t wait to dig in with him on what he wants to do for our members.

If you got this far, you know that more than one of the styles above have yet to be determined so let us know what you want and we’ll toss it into the hopper for consideration.

Prost!
Kris