Tag Archives: Anchorage Brewing Company

Musings On Incorporating Wine Into Beer

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I am not going to go as far as saying that combining wine and beer is a trend nor is it a terribly new idea. But, I have noticed in 2011 that such combinations have become more common and often with impressive results. Of course, the manner in which they are combined is extremely important. I have seen beers that directly used grapes in their recipe. More often, I have noticed brewers aging beers in wine barrels. The purposeful of specific use of wine yeasts in beers has also been done by many brewers to great effect. I have also noticed that beers brewed with grapes or aged in wine barrels tend to come from really high end brewers like Cantillon, Anchorage Brewing Company or Mikkeller. I believe this is due to several reasons such as the skill of the brewer, the brewery’s emphasis on innovation and experimentation as well as the price tag (I am sure used wine barrels are not cheap, plus the time and resources it takes to age such beers must add up quickly). Here are a few examples of the incorporation of wine in brewing that I noticed. I am sure I have missed many excellent examples and am genuinely curious, please feel free to and add your thoughts and experiences!

Cantillon St. Lamvinus- The St. Lamvinus was brewed with merlot and cabernet-franc grapes that were soaked in Bourdoux barrels that contained 2-3 year old lambics. I have one of these babies sitting in my cellar, but have not yet tried it. Considering Cantillon’s steller reputation and the uniqueness of this beer, I am extremely excited for the moment that I decide to open it.

He’Brew Rejewvenator (Year Of The Grape) 2010- This beer was brewed with concord grapes. I have not tried it but I regret that I missed my opportunity. Schmaltz has yet to let me down with their innovative and impressive beers.

Dogfish Head Midas Touch- Midas Touch was based on residue found in drinking vessels from King Midas’s tomb which included muscat grapes. Proving, this idea is by no means “new”.

Allagash Victoria Ale- According to their website, Allagash used over 200lbs of chardonnay grapes in brewing this beer/wine fusion.

Paeleman Brewery Druivenbier- I will be honest, I am not familiar with this beer but a quick Google search leads to a page from HomeBrewTalk about grape beers. This Belgian beer was apparently one of the first modern beer/wine fusions in 2005.

Saint Somewhere Cynthiana- This month’s Michael Jackson’s Rare Beer Club selection, Saint Somewhere Cynthiana is a Belgian style ale brewed with Cynthiana grapes. This is even more interesting because Cynthiana grapes tend to come from the less prestigeous wine producing states such as Missouri, Illinois, Florida and so on. So more power to Saint Somewhere for utilizing a unique member of the Vitis aestivalis (compared to Vitis vinifera or Vitis lambruska).

Samuel Adams even included a grape pale ale in its 2007 long shot six pack.

Probably the most common incarnation of beers that are combined with wine are those aged in used wine barrels. A few notorious examples of this are Mikkeller Nelson Sauvin Brut which was aged in sauvignon blanc barrels and used Champagne Yeast (amongst other yeasts). Stone Brewing Company’s 2007 Old Guardian barley wine was aged in red wine barrels. Anchorage Brewing Company’s Bitter Monk and Love Buzz were both aged in wine barrels. Mikkeller included a red wine barrel aged beer and a white wine barrel aged beer in his Black Hole series. Russian River Brewing Company aged their Temptation and Supplication in chardonnay and pinot noir barrels respectively. Even Springfield’s new brewery Mother’s Brewing Company aged a batch of Foggy Notion barley wine in sherry barrels. The list goes on and on. While these beers are not super common and do not have their own category in the ranking systems, they are interesting and worth trying out!

My Favorite Beers of 2011

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I know this list is entirely subjective. Sadly, there were many new beers that deserve to make this list that I was not fortunate enough to try and many that I simply forgot (it has been a very eventful year). Still 2011 was an excellent year for beer in my world and these are some of my favorites. Hopefully, 2012 has some tricks to compete! The list is in no particular order and I am trying to focus on beers that were new to 2011 (or at least new to bottles, if I am mistaken on some, I apologize), so classics such as Bell’s Hopslam and Chimay Grand Reserve are excluded.

1) Anchorage Brewing Company: Bitter Monk with a description like this “Belgian style double IPA with Brettanomyces. this ale is aged in french oak chardonnay barrels. Brewed with Apollo, Citra, and Simcoe hops. Dry hopped in the barrel with Citra hops. Triple fermented- First in the tank with a Belgian yeast, second in french oak chardonnay barrels with brett, and finally in the bottle with a third yeast for natural carbonation.” how can it be bad? The complex, funky taste lived up to the hype.

2) Mikkeller: Mikkeller Nelson Sauvin Brut This is the perfect beer to drink on New Years or anytime for that matter. It is truly fantastic, lots of funk, a little white wine and citrous, just fantastic. It is expensive for a beer, but $20 is still cheap compared to a good champagne.

3) Jolly Pumpkin: Lupulo De Hielo This Michael Jackson’s Rare Beer Club exclusive is one of many reason I will continue to utilize that excellent service. This beer is crisp, funky and complex. Like many of Jolly Pumpkin’s offerings, world class all the way.

4) Boulevard: Collaboration No. 2 – White IPA This beer was the result of a collaboration with Deschutes Brewery. This beer retains some of the lightness and spice of a wit yet boasts some strong citrousy hops. In three words, it is beautiful.

5) New Belgium: Le Terroir Released for the first time in bottles this spring. This beer is astonishingly refreshing, tart and fruity.

6) Firestone Walker: Firestone 15-Aniversary Ale I am not sure where to begin on this one, this is an extremely complex blend of amazing beers. There are layers upon layers of delicious flavors, including toffee, bourbon, coffee, dark fruits and the list goes on.

7) Lagunitas: Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale Do not let the clever, self depreciating name fool you. This American double IPA is astounding. It contains about everything I could ever hope for from an IPA and I have all but forgotten about Brown Shugga. I can not wait for “Leftovers”.

8 ) Founders: Canadian Breakfast Stout Bottled for the first time in 2011. This maple barrel aged version of the already stellar Kentucky Breakfast Stout is a real treat, if you can find it.

9) Avery: Rumpkin This beer is huge clocking in at 15.9%. It is also very sweet and boozy, but unique, complex and delicious.

10) Firestone Walker: 2011 Abacus I have not had previous incarnations of the Abacus, but this English Style barley wine is one of my favorite beers of all time. The 2011 Abacus is decadent, smooth and so complex it is perfect for long contemplation.

A few very unique honorable mentions include, Rogue Bacon Maple Ale, Sierra Nevada/Dogfish Head Life and Limb, Odell Friek and New Belgium Kick.

Anchorage Brewing Company Bitter Monk (Review)

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This was a phenomenal beer. Even the label is world class, not only does it have an intense comic-like picture but it also provides the following information “Belgian style double IPA with Brettanomyces. this ale is aged in french oak chardonnay barrels. Brewed with Apollo, Citra, and Simcoe hops. Dry hopped in the barrel with Citra hops. Triple fermented- First in the tank with a Belgian yeast, second in french oak chardonnay barrels with brett, and finally in the bottle with a third yeast for natural carbonation.”
100 IBU. It can probably go unsaid that, I was sold on the beer long before it even touched my lips. Fortunately, it did not disappoint. The Bitter Monk certainly made it into my top 5 for 2011. It poured a slightly hazy golden color with a substantial but soft head. The Bitter Monk had a lot of funk as well as citrousy hops on the nose. The taste was a magnificent combination of the funk from the Brettanomyces, a little pine and a lot of citrousy hops that battled with a definite sweetness. There was a lot going on in this beer and I loved it! The Bitter Monk was extremely complex and profound and should be tried immediately if you have access to it.