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Friday, December 12, 2014

New Beer Friday, "Merry Xmas to Me" Edition (Dec 12)

"MerryOldSanta" by Thomas Nast - Edited version of Image:1881 0101 tnast santa 200.jpg.. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MerryOldSanta.jpg#mediaviewer/File:MerryOldSanta.jpg
"Any KBS in stock?"
By Steve Siciliano

As soon as I unlocked the door a cherry-red Subaru pulled into the parking lot. An old man with a long white beard got out, hitched his pants up over his considerable midsection, crossed his arms behind his head and had a good stretch. Before walking into the store he replaced his wire-rimmed spectacles with dark glasses and put a red plaid Stormy Kromer on his head.

“What can I help you with,” I asked when he came in.

“Am I the only one here?” he whispered looking around.

“Yes,” I said. “I just opened.”

“Good,” he whispered. “I’m looking for Michigan beer.”

“Well you’ve come to the right place.”

“That’s what I hear,” he whispered and pulled his hat further down on his forehead.

“You don’t have to whisper,” I told him.

“Of course not,” he said. “Can you show me where your Michigan section is? I’m afraid I’m in a bit of a hurry and I’ve got a long drive ahead of me.”

“Where are you from?” I asked him.

“North,” he said.

“Up north?” I asked.

“Way north.”

“The U.P.?”

“Farther.”

“Canada?”

“Farther yet,” he said.

“Farther than Canada? And you came all this way just to get Michigan beer?’

The old man looked at the five case stack of Breakfast Stout that was sitting in front of the sales counter and smiled.

“Yes I did,” he said. “Merry Christmas to me.”

New and Returning Beer

  • Breckenridge Christmas, $1.99/12oz - "The chill of a Colorado high-country winter calls for a beer with extra flavor and strength. Here it is. At over 7% alcohol, with a sturdy texture and rich flavors of caramel and chocolate, our holiday seasonal is the fermented equivalent of a good fire" (source).
  • Epic Big Bad Baptist, $12.09/22oz (1 bottle limit) - "It’s Big, it’s Bad, Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, with Coffee and Cocoa Nibs" (source).
  • Sierra Nevada Ovila Abbey Quad, $3.29/12.7oz - "Ovila Abbey Quad with plums is heady with aromas of caramel, rich malt, and dark fruit-balanced by the spiciness and delicate fruity notes of a traditional Belgian yeast. This beer features sugar plums grown on the grounds of the Abbey, and harvested by the monks in Vina. We hope you enjoy this collaboration ale" (source).
  • Lagunitas Hairy Eyeball, $4.79/22oz - "Laying there, staring up at the ceiling, head pounding, last night was a dim recollection. How did he get home? Was he alone? Looking to the left and right, the answer was yes, maybe. His head was full of ’rag water, bitters, and the blue ruin’.His teeth felt like he’d been chewing aluminum and his breath smelled like a burning tractor tire. There was a wrenching knot somewhere between his liver and East St. Louis and he couldn’t be sure whether or not he’d wet himself. A yellow sine wave rang in his ears so loud nit made his teeth itch and he was sure that if he touched his skin anywhere it would induce a rhythmic retching jag. Even in the face of all that, he found himself smiling at the realization that today represented the fresh breast of a new year- an undiscovered country- and also there was still one warm, half-full, flat redolent Hairy Eyeball on the nightstand. Yes-there is a God" (source).
  • Abita Wrought Iron IPA, $1.69/12oz - "Abita Wrought Iron® IPA embodies the resilient, indestructible nature of New Orleans. This india pale ale is forged with the intensity of Apollo, Equinox and Mosaic Hops. Brewed with pale ale malt for a golden color as bright as iron from a fiery forge" (source).
  • Abita Grapefruit IPA, $1.69/12oz - "Abita Grapefruit Harvest is a brilliant golden IPA with a subtle zest of grapefruit flavor and aroma that enhances the strong hop character. This bright, snappy brew is made with real Louisiana Ruby-Red grapefruits, pale, pilsner and caramel malts and cascade hops" (source).
  • Short's Dan's Pink Skirt, $1.99/12oz - "Dan’s Pink Skirt is an American IPA brewed with Summit and Simcoe hops. Malt characteristics are mild and practically undetectable in the nose. Dan’s Pink Skirt has pronounced floral and citrus aromas, with a pine resin hop bitterness that attacks the pallet" (source).
  • Short's Thirst Mutilator, $1.69/12oz - "Thirst Mutilator is a light straw-blonde lager with sharp doughy yeast esters that gather atop a perfectly retained head. Kilned barley produces perfect bready and flour-like qualities that blend pleasantly with the beer’s mild hop bitterness. Aided by a wonderful effervescence, these delicate flavors fade into a crisp clean refreshing finish" (source).
  • Green Flash Cedar Plank, $6.19/16.6oz - "This hoppy pale ale starts out as 30th Street Pale Ale and then undergoes Spanish cedar aging. Wood aging imparts an intense cedar aroma which dominates the dry hop. The flavor contributions from the Spanish cedar include peppercorn spiciness and a tannic dry mouth feel that makes the hop flavor and bitterness linger in the finish" (source).
  • Brewery Vivant Wizard Burial Ground, $6.29/16oz - "This Tier 5 Single Batch Release is a Bourbon barrel-aged Quadruple ale. The 2015 release is barrel-aged for one year, it will be packaged in 16oz cans and it comes in at 10.4% ABV" (source).
  • Goose Island Festivity Ale, $1.59/12oz - "Every year we brew a brown ale to celebrate the holidays. To make each year’s special, we alter the recipe. This year we wrapped caramel and dark fruit malt flavors inside a creamy toasty brown ale. May your holidays be filled with Festivity" (source).
  • Arcadia Cocoa Loco Triple Chocolate Stout, $2.69/12oz - "This triple chocolate stout is a unique interpretation of the style, combining three different chocolate malts, cacao nibs and 63 percent semi-sweet chocolate, creating a sinfully delicious brew. The addition of blackstrap molasses produces an earthy, caramelized tone in an already complex flavor profile. It's creamy, milkshake-like mouthfeel earns this beer the reputation of being dessert in glass" (source).
  • Greenbush & Small Bar Mr. Hyde, $2.19/12oz - "Maris otter, biscuit malt, carafa iii, crystal 10l, crystal 60l, crystal 120l, pureed dates" (source).
  • Summit-Harvest Fresh IPA, $2.09/12oz - " Harvest Fresh IPA will be the first beer in the Unchained Series from brewer Tom Mondor. It is an exploration of fresh hops picked at the peak of the fall harvest and shipped directly to Summit. Some of these hops will be fresh hop pellets from Roy Farms, pelletized fresh off the kiln floor. This process leaves more wonderful hop oils intact than complete drying and results in more hop character in the finished beer. These fresh pellets will include Centennial, Cascade and Chinook. It will also be brewed with super-fresh, whole-cone Chinook wet hops from Michigan" (source).
  • O'Fallon Cherry Chocolate, $2.09/12oz - "A dark wheat beer that tastes like a chocolate covered cherry…only better! Voted Best Overall Beer at the 2004 Ninth Annual International Beer Fest in Springfield, MO" (source).
  • Einbecher Winter Bock, $2.69/11.2oz - "Doppelbock. Das Einbecker Brauhaus erweitert mit dem neuen Einbecker Winter-Bock sein Sortiment. Die saisonale Bockbierspezialität in der traditionellen Exklusivflasche startet im Oktober 2008 in limitierter Auflage. Einbecker Winter-Bock wird dann für kurze Zeit im Handel und bei ausgewählten Gastronomiepartnern zu haben sein" (source).
  • Left Hand Fade to Black (Foreign Export Stout), $2.09/12oz - "2013 & 2010 Gold Medal Winner at the Great American Beer Festival in the Foreign Stout category. That time of year when the day seems to fade away. Drifting further into the darkness with each passing day. Volume 1 - Foreign Stout - Pours black with licorice, espresso bean, molasses, and black cardamom notes that give way to a feeling of self loathing, burnt opportunities and smoked relationships" (source).
  • Southern Tier Choklat, $9.29/22oz (1 bottle limit) - "At Southern Tier, we’re not surprised that hieroglyphs of the ancient Maya depict chocolate being poured for rulers and gods. Even through the many voyages of Columbus, the mystical bean remained nothing more than a strange currency of the native peoples. Moving through centuries, the circular journey of cacao has been realized in our brewing house, encompassing the complexity of the darkest, bitter-sweet candy together with the original frothy cold beverage of the ancient Maya to bring to you our Blackwater Series Choklat Stout. We have combined the finest ingredients to tempt your senses & renew the power & interrelation of history in every bottle" (source).
  • Oddside Sinister Vertigo, $2.59/12oz (2 bottle limit) - "A spunky imperial stout" (source).

Video of the Week | Hopcat Detroit


Congrats to our pals at Hopcat who are opening their Detroit location this weekend.

Cheers!

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