Days of the Beer, February 1

The beer for today is Great Divide St. Bridget's Porter.

Today is the Roman Catholic Feast Day of Saint Brigid of Kildare, also known as Brigid of Ireland.

Brigid lived from 451 to 525. She was a nun, abbess, and founder of several convents. Along with Patrick and Columba, she is one of Ireland's patron saints.

There are several stories that go with Brigid. Her father was a pagan, and named her after their goddess of fire. At an early age, she converted to christianity, and started her charity work, basically giving away the family fortune to the needy. She wanted to join a convent, and when she gave away her fathers jewel encrusted sword to a leper, he sent her away.

Another story was that she founded an Abbey in Kildare that was for both nuns and monks. At one point she was receiving the blessing as the Abbess from St. Mel. He accidentally read her the rite of consecration of a bishop, which cannot be rescinded, so she had the authority of a bishop from that point on.

Of course, the most famous story of St. Brigid was that she could turn her bathwater into beer. In The Life of St Brigid the Virgin:

On another extraordinary occasion, this venerable Brigid was asked by some lepers for beer, but had none. She noticed water that had been prepared for baths. She blessed it, in the goodness of her abiding faith, and transformed it into the best beer, which she drew copiously for the thirsty. It was indeed He Who turned water into wine in Cana of Galilee Who turned water into beer here, through this most blessed woman’s faith.

As to the beer:

Great Divide Brewing company is located in Denver Colorado.

St. Bridget, a legendary Irish saint, created a sensation by turning her bathwater into beer. What better way to celebrate her worthy miracle than with our zymurgistic tribute to her feat: St. Bridget’s Porter. St. Bridget’s is a smooth and elegant brown porter. Brimming with coffee and chocolate characteristics from dark barley malts, St. Bridget’s is carefully hopped to provide the perfect complement to its malty robustness. This beer is a “must have” beer for all porter lovers.

This beer is probably available where ever Great Divide beers are. It is in several of the better bars in Champaign Urbana. It has won several awards and is highly rated on both Beer Advocate and Rate Beer.

So, for the woman who turned water into beer, go have a St. Bridget's Porter.

Some info from Zythophile.

Days of the Beer, January 31

The beer for today is Lakefront Bridge Burner Strong Ale.

On January 31, 1846, the cities of Juneautown and Kilbourntown united as the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This happened as a result of the Milwaukee Bridge War, that was a conflict between the two regions.

Juneautown (east-side) and Kilbourntown (west-side) had developed quite a rivalry, most of it was because of Kilbourntown's founder, Byron kilbourn. He had tried to isolate Juneautown to make it more dependent on Kilbourntown. In 1840, the state legislature determined the ferry system on the Milwaukee River was inadequate, and ordered construction of a bridge. Kilbourn was against this, and the two towns argued over funding for the bridge. This led to Kilbourn destroying part of the bridge in 1845.

It was in the aftermath of the Bridge War, that led to the unification as the city.

As to the beer:

Lakefront Brewery is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It opened in 1987 and is located on the Milwaukee River.

Made with three styles of fresh American hops and fruity ale yeast that requires greater fermentation, it finishes with a dark amber appearance, spicy hop flavor and bold, malty backbone. The punch this potent brew packs reminds us all that when you want to make a point, you're better off making a statement.

The beer started out as a release for a beer festival, but there are plans to make it a year round brew.

Interestingly, the Juneau Avenue and Kilbourn Avenue bridges in Milwaukee, are about a quarter mile away from each other.

So, for the Bridge War, that ultimately resulted in the founding of Milwaukee, have a Bridge Burner.

Days of the Beer, January 30

The beer for today is BridgePort Ropewalk Amber Ale.

On January 30, 1962, two members of the high-wire act, the Flying Wallendas, were killed when their seven-person pyramid collapsed during a performance in Detroit, Michigan.

The Flying Wallendas got their name from a performance in Akron, Ohio, when the group all fell off the wire, and none were hurt. The next day, a reporter was quoted in a newspaper as saying "The Wallendas fell so gracefully that it seemed as if they were flying"; and that's how the name The Flying Wallendas came to be. Priot to that, they were known as The Great Wallendas.

In the 1962 incident, the group was performing the seven-person chair pyramid. The front man faltered and the pyramid collapsed. Three men fell to the ground, killing Richard Faughnan (Karl Wallenda's son-in-law) and Karl's nephew Dieter Schepp. Karl injured his pelvis, and his adopted son, Mario, was paralyzed from the waist down.

The Wallendas are famous for performing without a net. Their first performance without was at the Madison Square Garden, in 1928, when their net had been lost during travel.

The Wallendas still perform, with most of the performers being grandchildren of the founder, Karl Wallenda.

As to the beer:

BridgePort Brewing is located in Portland, Oregon.

Ropewalk is a mellow, malt-driven amber that dances a subtly sweet line. The balance of Crystal malt with a subtle dose of Northwest hops delivers a refreshing ale that makes for a great session beer. Originally brewed to mark our 20th anniversary, Ropewalk – which literally means “a long narrow building where rope is made” – is a tribute to our building’s roots as a rope factory, while also celebrating feats of daring everywhere.

The beer comes in at 5.6% ABV. Don't drink too many of these and try to walk a straight line.

So, for the Flying Wallendas who didn't make it off the ropewalk, have a BridgePort Ropewalk.

Days of the Beer, January 29

The beer for today is Great Lakes Holy Moses White Ale.

On January 29, 1754, Moses Cleaveland was born in Canterbury, Connecticut. Moses was a lawyer, politician, soldier and surveyor, who founded the city of Cleveland, Ohio in 1796.

Moses was a shareholder of the Connecticut Land Company, that purchased land in northeastern Ohio. They asked him in May 1796 to lead a survey of the purchases. On July 22, the party of about 50 people, landed at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River. When he climbed the bank, he saw a plain covered with forest, and thought it would be a good site for a city.

He surveyed the town into lots, and it was named Cleaveland, in his honor. After the expedition and survey, he went back to Connecticut and died November 16, 1806; never returning to Ohio or his city.

The town was basically renamed in 1830, when the first newspaper, the "Cleveland Advertiser" was established. The name Cleaveland was too long to fit on the masthead, so he dropped the "A".

As to the beer:

Great Lakes Brewing Company is located in Cleveland, Ohio. Holy Moses is a Belgian Wit style beer.

A complex and heavily aromatic ale with fruit, spice and other floral characteristics. Brewed with unmalted wheat and oats. 30 IBU.

The beer comes in at 5.4% ABV. Holy Moses used to be a year round offering, but has since stopped being that.

For the man who founded Cleveland, have a Holy Moses White Ale.

Days of the Beer, January 28

The beer for today is The Twisted Hop Challenger.

On January 28, 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart after liftoff killing all seven astronauts on board.

The disaster occurred at 11:39 a.m EST. Disintegration began 73 seconds into the flight after an O-ring seal in the right solid rocket booster failed at liftoff. That failure allowed a flare to reach the external fuel tank.

The crew compartment and other vehicle fragments were recovered from the ocean floor after a long search and recovery operation.

The event was viewed live due to Christa McAuliffe, the first member of the Teacher in Space Project. (I know I was watching it in Biology class my freshmen year in high school. )

As to the beer:

The Twisted Hop is a brewery that produces traditional English style cask conditioned ales in Christchurch, New Zealand.

A well hopped and full bodied special bitter.

The beer comes in at 5% ABV.

Challenger is the name of a style of hops. It has an Alpha Acid content of 6.5 - 8.5%. It is commonly used in ESB's, Barley Wine's, Brown's, and Porter's. It was bred in England to be resistant to downy and powdery mildew. It is a dual-purpose hops and can be used for both bittering and aroma.

So, for the seven members of the Challenger disaster, have a Challenger beer.

Days of the Beer, January 27

The beer for today is Stone 06.06.06 Vertical Epic.

On January 27, 1968, Michael Allan Patton was born in Eureka, California. Patton is a singer, songwriter, composer and instrumentalist, best known as the lead singer of the band Faith No More from 1988 to 1998. He has also been the lead vocalist for Mr. bungle, Tomahawk, Lovage, Fantômas, The Dillinger Escape Plan, and Peeping Tom.

With Patton at the lead, Faith No More released four albums, The Real Thing, Angel Dust, King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime, and Album of the Year. The Real Thing was the bands biggest commercial success. It had the song Epic.

As to the beer:

Stone Brewing Company is located in Escondido, California. Which is a short 748 mile drive from Eureka.

APPEARANCE: Dark brown to black with a tan head. AROMA: Fruity, phenolic yeast notes with dark malt roastiness. FLAVOR: Clove, smooth roasted malt, mild spiciness, and some hop bitterness. A dry finish with apparent alcohol. PALATE: Medium to full-bodied, good carbonation…no astringency. OVERALL: Very full and complex…not sure how it will develop.

So, for Mike Patton, grab yourself an Epic Ale.

Beer Review, Empyrean LunaSea ESB & Third Stone Brown

Friday and Saturday, I finally had the time to sit down and give my attention to the final two brews sent to me by Bill.

The last two were the LunaSea ESB, and the Third Stone Brown.

Friday night, during Battlestar Galactica, I had the Luna Sea. This one poured a golden brown, and had a head that seemed to dissipate rather quickly. It smelled a little hoppy, along with some sugary malt. It felt rather thinnish, but was effervescent beyond what would be expected from the thin head.

Originally, it tasted bitter, but wasn't too sweet. There was a bit of back of tongue bite of bitterness. As it warmed, through the somewhat disappointing episode of BSG, the hops started releasing more flavors. It went from just a slight bitter flavor, to releasing some pleasant citrus notes. It wasn't quite an orange juice, but it did have a nice citric acid feel to it.

It was a pretty good ESB. This could easily be a gateway beer. I've long thought that ESB's and some other ambers make really good conversion beers. (Kriddy's first few beers that she really enjoyed were along the same line as this beer; Birra Moretti La Rossa, and Jack of the Wood Greenman Ales (Asheville, NC) ESB.) This one was an easy to drink beer, at 6.3% ABV, it's not gonna get you totally wasted real quick, it'd take some serious pounding to get completely FUBAR.

Our brewer’s pride and joy, that’s why we call it “Extra Special.” Big, sweet, caramel and biscuit flavors are delicately balanced with crisp, cedary, Noble hops.

Saturday's geek-fest consisted of Doctor Who, on BBC-America. The two episodes on Saturday were Midnight, followed by Turn Left. I had the final beer of the set with these. The last one was Third Stone Brown.

This one was dark brown, the color of Coca-Cola. It had very little head, that stuck around. It smelled a little grapey, like grape gum. It had a medium thickness, nowhere near milk, but thicker than a soda.

The taste initially was grape or raisin. I didn't get as much malty ... um... brown-ness as I would have hoped; at least not at first. As it warmed, more of the malt profile emerged, but I was still getting a little of the grape. Scott thought it tasted like a homebrew (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). I got a bit of that characteristic from it as well, just something about it reminded me of brewing on my stove. The hops in it weren't really noticeable. Wow, just looked up the hops used in this, Tettnanger and Summit. Tett has an AAU of around 3.5-4.5%, whereas the Summit has 17 -19%. Jeebus, use enough Summit, and you'll have an IBU bomb. They must not use a whole lot of the Summit, as the hops profile wasn't that strong.

Of the three beers, the Vanilla Porter would probably be my favorite. It would be followed closely by the ESB. The brown was good, but it wasn't the brown for me.

Again, thanks to Bill for the care package from Nebraska.

*note* Bill, if you are going to be shipping products like this again in the future, do NOT ship it through the USPS.

Other items, such as alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, liquor), are not considered hazardous but are prohibited and boxes displaying such markings are also prohibited.

Penalties for shipping prohibited substances can include fines, or imprisonment.

That's just for the USPS. UPS, Fedex... aren't federal, they may have rules against shipping things, but they (probably) can't send you to jail for shipping beer.

If a shipment does not comply with all FedEx requirements and applicable federal, state or local laws, FedEx reserves the right to refuse tender of the shipment, withhold the shipment from delivery, return the shipment to the shipper at the shipper’s expense or destroy it, at the sole discretion of FedEx.

That's a better option than jail.

Again, thanks. If you make it out here, or if I head west, I'll let you know, and we'll meet up for some beer.