Tag Archives: Schlafly

A Few More Interesting Reads

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Good afternoon, I just found this excellent article describing Schlafly’s evolving presence in St. Louis area with its continued success and Budweiser’s 2008 sale to InBev. The article goes much further than just an expose on Schlafly and touches the expanding St. Louis beer industry and culture. “The goal still has to be 40 breweries, because that was the number before prohibition” now that would be a site to see! The article also looks at social media’s place within the business. http://www.thestreet.com/story/11491765/1/the-beer-dance-how-schlafly-craft-beer-shook-up-st-louis.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEN

In March I wrote an article about Hoppy Wheat Beers and White IPA’s here are two more examples of this trend. Green Flash and Founders are teaming up to create a Linchpin White IPA and Springfield’s own Mother’s Brewing Company has recently released their Sandy Wheat which is described as a hopped up wheat beer and I look forward to trying soon.

Thanks in large part to breweries such as Lucky Town Brewing and many other dedicated beer fans, Mississippians can now purchase beer up to 8% alcohol by weight (the previous limit was 5%)! http://news.yahoo.com/miss-gov-bryant-signs-law-allow-stronger-beer-183210964.html

I do not see this method taking off amongst the craft beer world, but here is an interesting new possibility in keeping ones beer cold; beer foam. http://news.yahoo.com/soft-serve-frozen-foam-keep-beer-colder-longer-141500876.html

Beers To Look Forward To This March!

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March 2012 is looking to be an excellent month for beer! Here are a few beers you should consider this month.

1) Sierra Nevada Hoptimum: Hotimum was one of the best Double IPAs I have ever had and this years 100 IBU bomb shell is looking even better. The 2012 Hoptimum will be filled with Citra, Simcoe, Chinook hops as well as a new proprietary hop variety developed by Sierra Nevada. Look for it in the next few weeks if it is not already out in your area.

2) Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout: This famous whiskey barrel aged stout needs no introduction. It is great, if you have not tried it, you need to and if you have tried it, you need more! This should arrive in vary limited quantities in stores by the end of the month.

3) Sierra Nevada Bigfoot: The folks at Sierra Nevada have been working very hard lately as it is also time for the annual release of Bigfoot! This big, hoppy barley wine is delicious now and will improve for several years. Its reasonable price, age-ability and yearly release makes it an excellent choice for vertical tastings.

4) Dogfish Head Urkontinent: This extremely unique Dogfish collaboration with Google (yes, I said Google) is being tentatively bottled right now. I was not able to find concrete release date information and it does not matter if you are in Missouri, because this beer wont be…Still, this beer should be worth hunting town or trading for. Here is a video about its construction http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiFewPyLlQA&feature=youtu.be

4) Lagunitas Wilco Tango Foxtrot: Their website gives a release date of late February for this beer. I know it has not arrived in Missouri yet. Still, like nearly everything Lagunita’s produces should be deliciously hoppy and big. The Wilco Tango Foxtrot will also have a strong malt component to balance this imperial brown ale.

5) Schlafly Irish Style-Extra Stout: If you are looking for a great domestic beer to drink for St. Patrick’s Day, this is the beer for you. This foreign export stout is well balanced, slightly bitter, dark and tasty.

6) Lagunitas Imperial Red: This red ale is exceptionally complex and contains a lot of green hops balanced by enough malt to keep everything together. If you ignore the fact that Irish beers were traditionally not heavily hopped, it is another good choice for St. Patrick’s Day.

7) New Belgium Dig: A great spring session beer. Dig uses both Sorachi Ace and Nelson Sauvin hops in conjunction with some American varieties such as Cascade to produce a zesty pale ale.

8 ) Odell Red Ale: The Odell Red is another American take on the red ale style. It is piney and citrus-y with a mild, sweet malt to back it up.

9) Firestone Walker Sucaba: Formerly known as Abacus, the Sucaba is a beer beyond description. In fact, the 2011 Abacus is one of my favorite beers of all time. While I have not yet tried the Sucaba, I expect it to hold up to its forebearers. Think toffee, vanilla, caramel and so much more. Extremely complex and delicious.

List of Missouri Breweries/Brewpubs

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Spring is a great time for beer related travel. Whether live in Missouri and are looking for short trip or find yourself in Missouri and want some good local beers, I hope this list helps. I am sure I have missed some important breweries or brewpubs, therefore, please feel free to inform me of anything I left out and I will update this list accordingly. Feel free to mention your favorite Missouri Breweries/Brew Pubs as well.

Kansas City Area

-75th Street Brewery

- Boulevard Brewing *This is the largest craft brewery in Missouri and the 12th best selling craft brewery in the United States

- McCoy’s Public House

- Weston Brewing Company (Note: Flying Monkey Brewery also operates out of the Weston Brewing Company)

- Granite City Food & Brewery (Note, there are two in the Kansas City area, one is on the Kansas City in Olathe the other is in the Zona Rosa Shopping Center in the Northland)

- Gordon Biersch

- Doodle Brewing Company

Saint Louis Area

- Morgan Street Brewery

- Saint Louis Brewery (better known as Schlafly) *This is one of the largest craft breweries in the state, also owns a great restaurant called Schlafly Bottleworks.

- O’Fallon Brewery

- Anheuser-Busch Inc. *The largest brewer in the world.

- Perennial Artisan Ales

- Urban Chestnut Brewing Company

- Square One Brewery

- Kirkwood Station Brewing Company

- The Civil Life Brewing Company

- Griesedieck Brothers Brewery Co.

- Trailhead Brewing Company

- Six Row Brewing Company

- 4 Hands Brewing Company

- Amalgamated Brewing Co.: The Stable (The website does not currently work.)

- Cathedral Square Brewery

- Buffalo Brewing Company

- Ferguson Brewing Co.

- Granite City Food & Brewery

Springfield Area

- Springfield Brewing Company

- Mother’s Brewing Company

- Little Yeoman Brewery (in Cabool)

- Charlie’s Steak, Ribs & Ale

Southeast Missouri

- Crown Valley Brewing & Distilling Co. (Ste. Genevieve)

- Buckner Brewing (Cape Girardeau)

- Charleville Winery and Microbrewery (Ste. Genevieve)

Central and Other Parts of Missouri

- Piney River Brewing Company (Piney River Area)

- Tin Mill Brewery (Hermann)

- Horseshoe Bend Brewing Company (Ozarks)

- 5th Street Brewpub (Sedalia)

- Native Stone Winery & Bull Rock Brewery (Jefferson City)

- Prison Brews (Jefferson City)

- Flat Branch Pub and Brewing (Columbia)

- Broadway Brewery & Restaurant (Columbia)

- Augusta Brewing Co. (Augusta)

 

Perennial Abraxas (Review)

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Perennial Artisan Ales is a new brewery in Saint Louis that started in late 2010 or early 2011. Boy, are they making a splash! I thought 20 dollars for a bottle of beer from a brewery that is less than a year old was pretty audacious. Then, I tried the Abraxas and my feelings instantly reversed. The Abraxas was phenomenal. It pours an thick oily black with a robust mocha head. The nose contained a soft roasty aroma with hints of pepper and anise. On the pallet was where the real magic happened. This beer is delicious, there is a strong anise component that is balanced perfectly by a lot of bitter chocolate. It has a lot of other things going on including some cinnamon sweetness. I did not taste a lot of chilis, but that could be due to the fact that I am constantly eating dangerously spicy foods. The Abraxas is extremely well crafted and finishes really smoothly and creamy. It is an absolute marvel, get it before the rest of the beer community catches on!

On a side note, I am proudly from Kansas City and a little biased. However, the Saint Louis brewing community has a lot going on. I think Schlafly is an excellent brewery. I like O’Fallon’s seasonals (I know that some of these, were and may still be brewed in Wisconsin) and the 5 Day IPA. With, Perennial as well as several other new breweries that are under development, some great beer bars and liquor stores such as The Wine and Cheese Place and Friar Tuck’s, Saint Louis has the makings of becoming an even greater beer city. It does not seem right to talk about St Louis beer and not mention Budweiser. So there, I mentioned it.

Ten American Craft Beers to Drink While Playing Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3

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A friend of mine, who will remain nameless, recently bragged to me about drinking a bunch of Coors Light while playing Call of Duty. That conversation, inspired me to highlight a few themed craft choices for the game. Most of these focus on the patriotic theme in one way or another.

10) Pabst Blue Ribbon: Not all gamers have a lot of money. In this case, PBR may be the most viable American option. Goes great with saving the world.
9) Brooklyn Pennant Ale: This English Pale Ale (ironic isn’t it?) is sessionable and has a baseball is on the label.
8 ) Stoudts American Pale Ale: The label contains a flag and the contents contain a solid American pale ale.
7) Samuel Adams Boston Lager: The beer is highly drinkable, with the picture of a founding father on its label (as to all Samuel Adams products) and one of America’s most celebrated cities in the name. That is pretty American.
6) Schlafly Coffee Stout: Because, if you fall asleep while playing Modern Warfare, the terrorists win.
5) 21st Amendment Bitter American: Great name, even better can design (a monkey in a space suit). Pretty much anything from 21st Amendment Brewery can qualify for this list such as Fireside Chat, Brew Free or Die IPA and The Allies Win the War.
4) Rogue American Amber Ale: Stars and Stripes behind the traditional Rogue image. This is also delicious and drinkable beer.
3) Rogue Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale: If that does not scream “American” I don’t know what does. I suppose Canada might be able to make an argument for this as well, but it was brewed in the USA, so we win.
2) Oscar Blues Dale’s Pale Ale: One of the best pale ales out there and in a bright red and blue can.
1) Anchor Liberty Ale: Because isn’t that what you are fighting for in the first place?

Liquor Alternative
Three Olives Dude Vodka, mix with some real Mountain Dew and a little Sprite and you have a a dangerous alcoholic Mountain Dew.

Old Chicago, Springfield, MO (Review)

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My girlfriend, Nadia, and I went to the Old Chicago in Springfield, MO last night. This large restaurant chain brags about their 110 beers, unfortunately many of these beers are dominated by things such as Miller, Old Style, Budweiser and so forth. Considering I had fairly low expectations, Old Chicago’s beer selection was adequate. It is completely dominated by the big three,the Springfield location has Sierra Nevada Pale, New Belgium 1554 and Rogue Dead Guy on draft. They also have some solid bottles such as Chimay and Schlafly APA. The food was very good, try the Thai Pie, it is unique and exceptional. The spicy spinach dip was also delicious. And Caprese salad is pretty hard to mess up. I also enjoyed the atmosphere. The bar has Buzztime Trivia and I cannot complain about the two dollar drafts they were serving me. All in all, it was a pretty decent spot, it is a large chain, but has a beer selection that is better than most places in town, a pleasant atmosphere (sports bar) and some pretty good food. If I had to rate it I would give it an 80.

Also, Boulevard is bottling their Bourbon-Barrel Quad today, which should hit the shelves in December and make a nice addition to that month’s lineup.

Mother’s Brewing Company Winter Grind and Bell’s Java Stout (Review)

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Yes, I know it is 9:30 am, but it is one of my few days off, and I am very excited about these two beers. They are coffee stouts after all (a.k.a. breakfast beers, speaking of which, had I been thinking, I would have picked up a Founder’s Breakfast Stout to compare here aw well….next time…).


Anyway, Mother’s is Springfield, Missouri’s own microbrewery. They began operations in the old Butternut Bread bakery downtown this past spring. So far they have been pretty impressive, producing solid craft beers. I expect good things from them in the future. I am excited about this particular beer (The Winter Grind) because they are using a coffee blend from locally owned Mud House Coffee. Bell’s is one of my favorite producers and has yet to even come close to let me down. The only exception to that may be “Hell Hath No Fury” or the “Anniversary Ale”, both of which were good, just not the transcendent experience I was expecting…

As to the actual beers being tasted, both are, obviously a very very dark brown in color, with a little bit of head. The Mother’s has a tiny bit more than Bell’s. Naturally, both smell like coffee (being as I am not a an expert that is about as complex as my analysis on the aroma will get), the Mother’s has a much stronger coffee flavor and I think I smelled a hint of chocolate on the Bell’s. The Bell’s is nice, bitter, lots of coffee and a little burnt chocolate, but still pretty mellow and subdued. The Mother’s is much more simple, there is a lot of tasty coffee in here. It is a bit rough when paired side by side with Bell’s (but then again, most beers are). It is still very good and essentially, lightly carbonated coffee. The Bell’s is far more complex and balanced so I will have to give it the edge, Mother’s is considerably cheaper and both are a pretty good way to wake up! Both are good in their own right, the Mother’s is cheaper ($6-8 a six pack), stronger and more refreshing, as it is much heavier on the coffee. The Bell’s is more complex, better balanced and comes with a heftier price tag (around $15 a six pack). So, try them both if you can, unfortunately, Mother’s does not distribute outside of Springfield, yet.

Some other coffee beers you will definitely want to try are Founder’s Breakfast Stout is a staple as well as Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast, Brasserie Du Ciel Peche Mortel (which ages very nicely) and the upcoming Schlafly Coffee Stout. I would also consider the Southern Tier Java, this beer is a beast at 10.4%, for the really hard days at work….