Just a few notes

Just a quick post here with a couple notes.

A few people have asked what "IBU" means in the stats section of the review. It stands for International Bitterness Units. Basically it puts a number on a scale of 0-100 on how bitter the beer is. A lot of people think that bitterness in beer is a bad thing (click that for a link) but it couldn't be further from the truth. For example from Wikipedia:
The bittering effect is less noticeable in beers with a high quantity of malt, so a higher IBU is needed in heavier beers to balance the flavor. For example, an Imperial Stout may have an IBU of 50, but will taste less bitter than an English Bitter with an IBU of 30, because the latter beer uses much less malt than the former. The technical limit for IBU's is around 100; some have tried to surpass this number, but there is no real gauge after 100 IBUs when it comes to taste threshold. Light lagers without much bitterness will generally have 5 IBUs, while a souped-up India Pale Ale may have 100 IBUs or more.

Some beers claim an IBU of 2500, but basically its a gimmick to say, "Hey, our beer is hoppy as shit" Most people agree 120 is about as high as you can really register taste wise. Let me give you some real world examples with beers you may know:
Bud Light: 7
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 38
Dogfish Head 120 minute IPA: 120

As stated above, the bitterness is relative to the amount of malt, but generally when you start getting over 50-75 IBU, you're getting in to a more bitter beer. Don't use the IBU scale as a limiting device, try some things and see what you like. Remember, if you have a beer you don't like, it's only one. There's millions others out there to try.

Remember, The Community Counseling Center Foundation will hold the 2nd annual Cape Girardeau Craft Beer Festival from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, at the Cape Girardeau Arena Park and SEMO Fairground Bank of America Show Arena.
Admission is $30 in advance and $30 at the gate. This includes a pilsner beer glass; tasting of over 100 beers from over 25 microbreweries; home-brewing demonstrations; and live German music by the Jerry Ford German Band. Food will be available from Cook's Bar-B-Que and there will be hourly drawings for gifts and prizes.
All proceeds from the event will go to the Community Counseling Center Foundation to be used for providing improved facilities, equipment and services for persons with mental illness.
Tickets are available at all Community Counseling Center locations, Bluff City Beer, Primo Vino, Kidd's Gas and Convenience Stores, P-Mac Music, Dirt Cheap, the John Huber Home Brew Supply in Fruitland, Mo., or at the gate.
For more information, contact Larry Essner at 339-6512. 

Cheers!

Abita Amber Ale

Howdy. Sorry for the delay in my weekly posts. I won't get into how many e-mails my inbox was flooded with, pleading for a new post. Let's just say it was a number. Hey, zero is a number...

Today, I'm reviewing Abita Amber from Abita Springs, La. a small town on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain. All of Abitas brews are made with water from artesian wells in town. Amber is one of their seven year round brews, and has been voted "Best Beer In New Orleans" numerous times. Along with being featured in many Louisiana recipes, it can be seen frequently in the HBO series Treme, a favorite show of ours. In the past several months I've noticed Abita beer at a few places in the Cape area, so to those of you curious...here's a review.

Abita Amber pours a medium amber color, no shock there. It has a slightly sweet smell and a sweet taste with just enough bitter to keep it in check. Malty with hints of caramel, very smooth with a dry and slight bitter finish. Nothing mind blowing here, but a great beer to drink for something different. It's a good "go-to" beer if you wanna shake up your normal routine a tad. I'd like to pair it with some cajun food to observe it in it's natural habitat.

The Stats:
ABV: 4.5%
IBU: 17

abita.com

Shiner Bohemian Black Lager

I love Shiner Bock, so naturally when some of their limited release beers started making it to our area, I was excited to give them a try. Shiner Bohemian Black Lager is a "Schwarzbier" which literally means "black beer" so no surprises come about here when pouring out a very dark brown, near black color with a tan-ish head.

Overall, there's not an overwhelming aroma as you might think. Subtle roasted smell that does increase a bit as the beer warms up. You would think there would be more of that strong, chocolaty, coffee smell and taste, but there's just not. It comes across to me as fairly bland but quite drinkable with a slightly bitter aftertaste. Overall, I'm kind of disappointed with this offering. I wouldn't say I'd never drink it again, but it's not going to be my first choice when I want to grab a 6 pack of a black beer...actually, I'm not sure what would be. Suggestions? Cheers!


The Stats:
ABV: 4.9%
IBU: 18
www.shiner.com

Bonus Blog: Some Beer News 9/13/13

I'm not a big fan of pumpkin...anything really, but I know a lot of people are. Seasons seem to come sooner every year. Winter clothes out in August, swimsuits in January. We've all gotten used to these things, but what about beer? Seems some folks are up in arms over a traditionally fall beer being released so early in the year. What's your thoughts? http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/early-pumpkin-beer-brewers-don-article-1.1444767

Here's an article from Hip Hops about a SEMO grad and Puxico native, who while working as head brewer at Perennial Artisan Ales is getting a chance to experiment on his own small batch brews. http://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/dining/bars-and-clubs-other/hip-hops/perennial-brewer-gets-to-experiment-with-side-project-brewing/article_4aa6bc4f-93bf-51f9-91c5-87fb9b055d21.html

Also from Hip Hops, Urban Chestnut Brewing in St. Louis has started construction of it's new brewery. They've outgrown their current brewery after 2 years and are embarking on a 10 million dollar expansion that will increase their output from 7,000 barrels a year to 15,000 with room to expand to 100,000 barrels. http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/urban-chestnut-brewery-construction-is-under-way-in-the-grove/article_81f9ec9f-e73b-5a8e-a881-cf961d34f79d.html

Some great news locally, one of my favorites is back on tap at Buffalo Wild Wings in Cape. O'Fallon Hemp Hop Rye.

Also, the 2nd Annual Cape Craft Beer Fest is right around the corner. Tickets are on sale for the Oct. 5 event now at Primo Vino, and possibly other locations. I'll have more info to share next week.

Any other beer news you come across, be sure to let me know. I'm also working on keeping track of new beers that come into our area. Cheers!

North Coast Scrimshaw Pilsner

North Coast Brewing comes to us from Ft. Bragg California. Named for the delicate engravings popularized by 19th century seafarers, it's a pilsner brewed in the finest European tradition.

Ok, so I stole that right from their website. Nothing really remarkable about it, and I guess it's not supposed to be. That's not always a bad thing. The bottle says "Water, malted barley, hops, yeast, that's all". Beer in it's simplest form. It pours a pale amber, with no overwhelming aroma. Just smells like, well...beer. It's well balanced, but bland overall. Slight metallic aftertaste, finishes clean and dry as advertised on the bottle.

Sorry this review is pretty short and sweet, but that's about all I got out of this beer. Cheers!