New Beer Friday, A Walk in Florence Edition (November 8)

Steve at Pitti Palace

Preamble by Steve Siciliano

It was Sunday afternoon in Florence and Barb and I were dead tired. We had just left the Uffizi Gallery, and after the trudge up to the fourth floor and the five hours of working our way through the massive art museum we were running on empty.

The works by Botticelli, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Titian and Raphael roused our intellects and perked our senses, but the cumulative effects of two weeks of travel had taken a physical toll on our weary bodies. It was our last day in Italy.

Our plan after leaving the Uffizi was to find an outdoor café where we would sit for an hour or so, drink a few beers, and relax before an early supper. There was a flight to Frankfort the next morning and then a ten hour plane ride back to the states.

Santo Spirito

We walked on our leaden legs through Florence. Every seat in every outdoor café in every piazza, it seemed, was occupied by tourists and Florentines enjoying late lunches. We made our way through the Palazzo della Signoria, past its wonderful Neptune fountain and its magnificent Renaissance sculptures, over the jewelry-shop-lined Ponte Vecchio, past the massive stone walls of the Pitti Palace, where the Medicis once resided, and we kept walking until we found ourselves in the square in front of Santo Spirito, a church that has a wooden crucifix carved by a 17-year-old Michelangelo. We walked until we came to a little piazza where I spotted an empty park bench. “Sit down,” I said to my exhausted wife. “I’ll be right back.”

Inside a bar just off the piazza I bought two bottles of Pilsner Urquell. “Aprire?” asked the man behind the counter. Si, I wanted them open.

We drank the beer while sitting on the park bench in the piazza. We watched Italian men wearing scarfs reading the Sunday paper. We watched their wives standing in groups talking and their children chasing pigeons and eating gelato.

I have many delightful memories of our travels in Italy—from gazing in amazed wonder at the magnificence of St Peters, to looking out at rolling acres of vineyards and olive trees from the height of a Tuscan hill town, to drinking that rejuvenating Pilsner Urquell while sitting on a park bench in a piazza in Florence on a Sunday afternoon.

Here's to making your own delightful memories with a little help from Siciliano's and the newest beers to arrive on our shelves.

New and Returning Beer

• Shorts Evil Urges, $2.19/12oz (limit 2/person) - "Evil Urges is a Belgian dark strong ale with a deep dark brown color. A sharp aroma of chocolate and molasses hits the senses, reminiscent of a rich liqueur. Aided by additions of Belgian amber candy sugar, the initial flavors are sweet and malty, with some unique, dark fruit qualities. This full bodied beer is defined by its roast malt character and slight black coffee bitterness that lead into an intense warming finish" (source).
• Stone Double Bastard, $7.69/22oz - "This is a lacerative muther of a beer. The evil big brother of Arrogant Bastard Ale. It is strongly suggested you stay far, far away from this beer. Those foolish enough to venture close enough to taste will experience a punishingly unforgiving assault on the palate. ’Course there’s always the masochists" (source).
• He'brew Jewbelation Reborn, $13.79/22oz - "With a brand new 20,000 square feet brewery in Upstate New York, Shmaltz Brewing is rarin’ to go with this year’s limited-edition Anniversary releases, including Jewbelation Reborn® (17 malts, 17 hops, 17% alc)" (source).
• Southern Tier 2Xmas, $1.99/12oz - "Double spiced ale brewed in the tradition of Swedish Glögg" (source).
• Southern Tier  Old Man Winter, $1.69/12oz - "With the onset of winter, the brewer’s mind turns to providing warmth. For our winter seasonal, Southern Tier offers Old Man Winter Ale, a rich and complex amalgam of hops and barley that will put the feeling back in your toes and lift your spirits above the snow. Old Man Winter throws a deep and inviting hue with a thickness that clings to the glass and the warmth of an open flame. Because of its high alcohol content, Old Man Winter is a heady brew that encourages sipping and pondering its essential richness. Drink it fresh now, or cellar some bottles to see how this old man becomes wiser with age" (source).
• Boulder Beer Shake Chocolate Porter, $1.89/12oz - "Our twist on the traditional american porter, Shake chocolate porter is black in color with rich, dark chocolate aromatics and flavors and subtle coffee-like notes. This unique brew blends five different grains, including Chocolate Wheat, that along with cacao nibs create a devilishly delicious chocolate finish with a velvety mouth feel." (source).
• Atwater Winter Bock, $1.79/12oz - "This malty, sweet, dark amber colored German-style bock beer is brewed with imported malt and hops. Its uncommon smoothness and impeccable taste make it the perfect companion for a cold night" (source).
• Frankenmuth Christmas Town Ale, $1.69/12oz - "Brewed with American hops and sweet dark malts, the Christmas Town Ale offers a distinct taste that undeniably calls to mind the memories of Christmas past. The tree, the feast, the snow falling through the winter air and now Christmas Town Ale will all be a part of your holiday traditions" (source).
• Scaldis Peche Mel, $5.49/12oz - "A fruit beer with big taste and out of this world peach aroma. Pêche Mel’s Dubuisson signature yeast gives it a peppery kick and keeps it from being too sweet. A unique beer that pours a deep russet color and forms an absolutely gorgeous rocky head. Think of it as the moscato of the beer world" (source).
• D'achouffe Houblon Chouffe, $4.59/12oz - "A unique marriage between the English tradition of IPAs, the new American revolution of Imperial IPAs and the classic Belgian way of brewing. Houblon Chouffe, although very much hopped as it is, showcases the unique balance between a very strong IPA and a very special Belgian Tripel exclusively created for this ale (Big malty body, distinct dryness, expressive estery fruitiness). IBU: 59, Original Gravity: 1092" (source).
• D'achouffe N'ice Chouffe, $4.59/12oz - "A dark brown, fruity, lightly hoppy, sparkling, strong beer and is not pasteurized" (source).
• Dogfish Head American Beauty, $14.09/22oz (limit 1/person) - "More than 1,500 loyal fans of the brewery and band suggested an ingredient idea and the Dead-inspired story behind it. Our favorite was granola, from California Dead Head and craft beer lover Thomas Butler. “The components of granola – honey, toasted grains, oats and fruit – offer a lot from a beer perspective,” says Thomas, a chemist by day, homebrewer by night. “The idea is to have a bold pale ale that highlights the oats and honey with a nice ‘dank’ hop selection.” American Beauty is brewed with all-American malts and hops, granola and little bit of soul. It’s malty with a big hop kick, and notes of toasted almond and honey round out the flavor profile and balance out the hop bitterness" (source).

Picture of the Week

Big Bass Lake, Irons, Michigan
(A far cry from Italy, but not a bad place to spend the day)

Cheers!

The Boss Abroad: Six Days in Loro Ciuffenna, Tuscany

In the fall of 2013, Siciliano's Market owners Steve & Barb Siciliano spent two weeks in Italy. What follows is an account of one leg of that trip.

The streets of Loro Ciuffenna

By Steve Siciliano

Loro Ciuffenna is a small town tucked in the southern foothills of the Pratomagno, a range of medium-sized mountains located in the northeast region of Tuscany. The town was built up along the sides of a deep gorge and, if you’re brave enough, you can cautiously shuffle up to the waist-high railing of an ancient stone bridge just off the central piazza and gaze far down below at a tumbling mountain stream. Among the stone buildings that rise up along the steep cliffs is a water-powered mill dating from the 13th century, and just downstream from the mill is the small hotel called Casa Eugenia where Barb and I stayed during our six days in Tuscany.

Many Tuscan hill towns are surrounded by immense stone walls that were erected as protection from invasions during the middle ages. If you’re traveling in Tuscany by car, you park in lots outside those walls and walk up to the towns on steep, narrow, stone paved roads called vicolo (little streets). There are no walls surrounding Loro Ciuffenna—apparently it wasn’t strategic enough to be worth invading. But, as in most Tuscan towns, unless you live there or work there, you are not permitted to drive on the streets. After parking our rental car, Barb and I rolled our suitcases up and down the vicoli looking for Casa Eugenia.

The front door of Casa Eugenia

Because we were a bit frazzled after getting lost on our drive up from Chiusi, and because we had such a hard time communicating our predicament, we were euphoric that we were able to find the hotel so easily. That euphoria quickly dissipated after discovering that the only entrance to the hotel—a glass door—was locked. After a few minutes of knocking and peering into the dark lobby, Barb noticed a hand written sign—suonare il campanello—and after consulting our Italian/English dictionary we were able to deduce what the words meant—ring the buzzer. We kept ringing that buzzer for five minutes. Finally I left Barb with our luggage and walked back up the vicolo where I saw an old lady walking slowly behind two little white terriers.

“Buongiorno,” I said.

“Buongiorno,” she answered.

“Inglese?” I asked hopefully.

She stared at me. I pointed down the vicolo towards the hotel. “Casa Eugenia,” I said. “We’re staying there. The door is locked.” I made a gesture that I’d hoped would convey an attempt at opening a door.

“Eh?” the lady said.

“Casa Eugenia.” I said again, pointing. I put my palms together and laid my head on my hands. “We’re sleeping there,” I said, pointing again. “We can’t get in.”

She walked a little ways down the vicolo until she spotted Barb standing at the door with our luggage. “Ah,” she said, followed by a lengthy stream of (to me) unintelligible Italian.

She began walking and not knowing what else to do I followed. After a few minutes we were in Loro Ciuffenna’s piazza. She stopped abruptly and pointed towards one of those little cafes with a few outdoor tables that in Italy are called bars.

“Andare,” she said.

“Andare?”

“Si, si. Andare.”

Before the rain

I relunctantly left my new friend and walked into the bar. Two old men were standing at the counter drinking espressos and there was another old man standing behind the counter. All three eyed me suspiciously. “Inglese?” I asked the man behind the counter without much optimism.

“Yes, I speak English,” he replied in a British accent. I was so surprised to hear perfect English, let alone perfect English with a British accent, in a small hill town in Tuscany, and so relieved that I was actually able to explain my dilemma, that I had to restrain myself from hugging him. He happened to be the hotel owner’s father. He told me that his son Carlos was running errands and that his daughter-in-law Francesca was at the dentist. He made a phone call. “Carlos will be there in five minutes.” I found out later that Carlos’ Italian grandfather was stationed in England during World War II and that his father had been born there.

Carlos and Francesca turned out to be extremely charming hosts. They too spoke very good English, minus a British accent. Each morning they laid out wonderful breakfasts of sweets, fresh fruits, meats, cheeses, cold cereal, crusty Tuscan bread and huge, steaming cups of excellent coffee. They offered advice and printed out directions for our day trips in Tuscany. They gave us suggestions on where to eat, places to go and things to see.

After the rain

One morning after an all-night rain they convinced us that it would be too dangerous that day to drive. When Barb and I were walking through Loro Ciuffenna’s narrow streets after breakfast we saw that the tumbling stream had transformed into a roaring, deep-plunging, mist-generating torrent. We hiked up a high hill on the outskirts of town, up through neat vineyards and stands of olive trees to an ancient stone church. While we rested we gazed out at the mist-draped valley and watched bolts of lighting flashing in the distance. The next day we heard that some tourists had died in Chianti when their car veered off a rain-slick road.

On our last evening in Loro Ciuffenna we were sitting outside the bar in the piazza when the old lady walked up with her two little dogs. Communicating with fragments of Italian and a good deal of hand gestures, we learned that her name was Deena, that the names of her dogs were Romeo and Juliet, that her husband had recently died and that she was suffering from a lung ailment. She went into the bar and came out with a pack of cigarettes.

“Buonasera,” she said and smiled as she walked past us.

“Buonasera,” we answered.

Steve & Deena

Revisiting Home Winemaking

By Weston Eaton

Perhaps I best begin this essay by noting what it is not about. Rather than providing detailed instructions on how to make wine from grapes or from a winemaking ingredient kit, I want to instead tell the story of my own home winemaking experience. For explicit instructions on making wine, visit Siciliano's Market or their website. What follows here is a description of what it takes to make wine at home, which I present as a primer for those interested in taking up the practice of winemaking, as well as to those of you who have wondered what I am up to out in my garage.

Although increasingly popular and visible, home winemaking is nothing new. Like all fermented products, making wine is essentially a means to preserve produce, in this case grapes or other fruit. All wine, of course, was once “made at home.” In particular, up until the industrial and scientific revolutions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, home beer and winemaking in (Europe at least) was the providence of women working at home. However, along with the rise of science and technology came an increased division of labor between men and women, resulting in the masculinization and professionalization of beer brewing and wine making. While farmers and others continued to make wine from their own grapes, these historic processes were largely successful is separating lay people—me and you—from professionals. As a result, wine was something that was bought, rather than made for one’s self or family.

Steve Siciliano (left) and Wes Eaton
crushing grapes behind Siciliano's Market

In North America, the lay/professional divide was challenged by early homebrewing pioneers such as Charlie Papazian, whose “off-the-grid” ethic personified a movement bent on taking fermentation out of the hands of professionals, whose products were getting stale frankly, and redefining what fermented products could and should be. From my perspective, the home beer making movement is key for home winemaking. However, there are distinct histories, which are likely due to necessary ingredients. Unlike beer, which requires malted barley, hops, and brewers yeast—items not normally grown in the yard—wine can be made from anything (although some ingredients, such as grapes or apples, are likely to produce superior wine than others, such as onions). Due to the accessibility of ingredients, home winemaking remained a practice passed down generation to generation, taking place in cellars, garages, and barns.

"I'm crushed," said the little grapes.

The distinction between beer and winemaking first became apparent to me while working at Siciliano’s Market. Whereas homebrewers were often younger folks generally new to fermentation, and were either in search of a new hobby or fascinated by craft beer and looking for a way to create their own, winemakers were often confident in their general understanding of the practice—they had seen their uncle, father, or grandfather make wine in the cellar or barn years before. When they did have questions, the trick was to introduce some of the ‘science‘ of wine-making–sanitization, yeast, sulfites, pH, gravity, and so on—in ways they were comfortable with and that enhanced, rather than intruded upon, their vision for what winemaking was. Others, including myself, were introduced to winemaking as an extension of the repertoire of possible fermentation activities, including cheese and yogurt making, beer, and pickles. Grapes, however, were not alway available. In this way, I came to understand wine making as a seasonal activity, like maple syrup making, in that one makes wine when the grapes are ready.

Seasonality then is my first point in explaining my winemaking practice to inquiring minds. I use fresh grapes, grown near Allegan, Michigan, by Taylor Ridge Vineyards, although there are numerous vineyards one can order winemaking grapes from. Depending on the year, as well as variety, grapes are generally ready for harvest from late September until late October, which means you must be ready for them. Once picked, it's best to process your fruit within 24 hours, lest the fruit flies and elements dampen their quality. Most home winemakers think in terms of 6 gallon batches, which makes thirty 750ml bottles. A batch generally requires one hundred pounds of grapes.

Bryan Taylor of Taylor Ridge Vineyards

Processing your fruit is my second point. Again, the folks at Siciliano's can provide you specifics; my intent instead is to paint a clear picture of what it takes to make wine. First, your grapes need to be crushed and de-stemmed. One can indeed do this by hand, depending on the volume! Or one can use equipment meant for this, such as that offered for rent on site at Siciliano’s Market. [Editor's note: Contact Siciliano's for more information on renting our crushing/destemming equipment.]

Second, red grapes will ferment on the skins, in a large crock, plastic or stainless fermenter, whereas whites will have the juice pressed off immediately. Fermenting on the skins allows for the extraction of tannins and colors into the must, which is the fermenting liquid slurry. Once fermentation is complete, in about a week, the skins are scooped into a wine press and the juice is collected into a glass fermenter. Once sediment collects on the bottom, the wine is then transferred to a final fermenter, where oak is added, and the wine ages 'in bulk.' In fact, I set my wine aside, on oak, until the following year’s grapes are ready, and bottle only when I am getting next year’s vintage started.

With even this brief description, one can see that winemaking, for me at least, is a process that takes place over the course of the year, and that becomes ingrained in the seasons and in this way built up over time as a family tradition. I’m sure there are other ways to do this, ways that are suited to the constraints of other households and families. But this is precisely the point I would like to emphasize: Winemaking is a rich practice that takes place over the course of months, albeit in numerous short spurts of activity. Its rewards are both immediate—the satisfaction of transforming grapes into must, and activating fermentation for instance—as well as long term. This holiday season, for instance, my family will be enjoying my 2010 vintages.

New Beer Friday, A Visit to the Old Country Edition (Nov 1)

Preamble by Steve Siciliano

A Roman holiday

“Due birre alla spina media, per favore.”

I never thought I’d be saying those words so often in Italy.

Translation: “Two medium draft beers, please.”

Barb and I drank a lot of wine during our recent Italian vacation but we were expecting to do that. Italy, after all, shares with France the title of largest wine producer in the world, and a good portion of our trip was spent in Tuscany where some of Italy’s most famous wines—Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino—are produced. Each night we enjoyed wonderful meals that were enhanced by equally wonderful bottiglie of vino rosso. The fact that we would also enjoy bicchieri of drought Italian beer each afternoon was an unexpected but pleasant surprise.

We drank those icy cold glasses of Peroni or Moretti while sitting at the little outdoor cafes that are called bars in Italy. The bars are as ubiquitous in Italy as convenience stores and coffee shops are in the states. Besides offering alcoholic refreshments, the bars are where the Italians, and tourists, go for tiny cups of espresso, caffe machiatto and caffe latte. We certainly drank our share of caffeine in these establishments but we found too that a birre alla spina after hours of sight seeing in Rome and Florence or after exploring the magnificent Tuscan hill towns proved to be the perfect restorative.

For restoratives newly available state-side, see the list of beers below.

New and Returning Beers at Siciliano's

• Lagunitas A Little Sumpin' Wild, $1.99/12oz - "Another Big Sister of the Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale…. Loads of Malted Wheat for a Curious Malt Foundation and a Light Color, But Our Belgian Yeast Leaves a Huge Flavor and Complexishness" (source).
• Lagunitas Brown Shugga, $1.99/12oz (limit 1 6-pack/person) - "An aborted batch of their Old Gnarleywine ended up tasting nearly as good as that they were hoping for, so they bottled it. God bless capitalism" (source).
• Abita Christmas Ale, $1.69/12oz - "As befits any Christmas present, each years offering is a unique product crafted with special care. Generally, this beer is a dark ale, however, the recipe changes each year. Available November thru December" (source).
• Victory Winter Cheers, $1.79/12oz - "A wheat ale, combining German wheat and barley malts, oats, torrified wheat and whole flower Tettnang and Citra hops, this fruity and warming holiday brew delivers a refreshing finish, with spicy hints of banana, clove and citrus" (source).
• Founders Backwoods Bastard, $3.09/12oz - "Big and delicious for your ’perty mouth. Expect lovely, warm smells of single malt scotch, oaky bourbon barrels, smoke, sweet caramel and roasted malts. A bit of earthy spice and a scintilla of dark cherries. It’s a kick-back sipper made to excite the palate" (source).
• Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale, $1.59/12oz - "Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale represents a time honored tradition of brewing a special beer for the holiday season. There are generous portions of barley malts and fine whole hops of several varieties, creating a brew with a full, rich and hearty character" (source).
• Shorts Good Humans, $1.99/12oz - "Dry hopped double brown ale" (source).
• Shorts Village Reserve, $1.49/12oz - "Fermented as “beer” from wort extracted from fully modified two-row pale malt which provides a beautiful straw color. This beer is aggressively hopped with Perle and Centennial hops. Its light body and low alcohol allow the hops to become more prominent throughout the beer. The floral aroma is attributed to heavy handfuls of centennial hops at the finish of the boil. Hearty handfuls of hops lend a grape fruity tone in the flavor and finish of the beer" (source).
• Shorts Lil' Wheezy, $1.99/12oz - "A light bodied, heavily hopped, amber colored ale with predominant hop aromas of tropical fruit with compliments of sweet malt. The sole hop, Falconer’s Flight, has characteristics of dank earth and grassy hay-like flavors are balanced slightly by some full grain attributes before a big bitter shock strikes the back of the pallet and resonates sharply" (source).
• Heavy Seas Winter Storm, $1.99/12oz - "Our 'winter warmer' ale, brewed with copious helpings of English malts and US and English hops, a ruddy hued 'Imperial ESB' in style. Full malty flavors dancing with powerful hop aromas and a lingering, firm hop bitterness. Seasonally available from mid October to February" (source).
• Rogue Yellow Snow, $2.79/12oz - "Beeston Stout, Chariot Pils, Melanoidin, & Cara Foam Malts, Amarillo Hops" (source).
• Jolly Pumpkin La Parcela No. 1 Pumpkin Beer, $14.39/22oz - "Ok, so the joke was that Jolly Pumpkin doesn’t brew a pumpkin beer. Well, now we do. Just this one. Packed with real pumpkins, hints of spice, and a gentle kiss of cocoa to liven the soul. An everyday easy way to fill your squashy quotient. Guess now folks will have to find something else to joke about" (source).
• Virtue Cider Percheron, $21.59/750ml - "In Normandy, France, cider has been made on the farm for over a thousand years. Apples were carried from orchard to barn by cart, drawn by a big, grey horse—a percheron. The apples were milled and pressed into juice through straw—driven by that same horse—then fermented with wild yeast in used wine barrels. The resulting farm cider, or cidre fermier, was rustic and complex, with notes of both the farm and barrel. Percheron Cidre Fermier is dedicated to the big, beautiful horse of Normandy. Like its French cousin, it bares the unmistakable scent of the farm, a strong body, and a gentle finish" (source).
• Shorts mixed 12-pack of limited availability beers ($20.09/12pk), featuring:
• Shorts Black Diamond - "The new Schwartzbier brew, which translates into a German-style black lager, will be called “Black Diamond”— giving it a nod to winter and skiing. Visually, black lagers can be deceiving, featuring an opaque, black color and a full, chocolatey flavor similar to stout or porter. But unlike its dark cousins, Schwartzbier features a bottom fermenting lager yeast, which produces a medium-bodied brew with a smooth finish that will be worth savoring" (source).
• Shorts Ginger Snap - "An English Dark Brown Ale brewed with cinnamon, molasses, and ginger" (source).
• Shorts Mystery Stout - "This beer demands respect and respect it will have. Imperial Oatmeal Stout with cocoa and molasses. It is very strong and possesses rare flavor combinations which can overload even the most experienced beer connoisseur. Capture every bit of its warmth and wisdom, as it will demand all of your attention" (source).
• Shorts Snow Wheat - "Snow Wheat is a light, clean, easy drinking Hefeweizen. This beer is categorized by a grain bill of 50% malted wheat and a German weizen yeast strain that is directly responsible for the distinctly complex flavors. Immediately evident are the esters of bananas and cloves that reflect similar flavors tasted, in this light clean easy drinking beer" (source).

Picture of the Week

What more do you need in life?

Cheers!

New Beer Friday, Cut to the Chase Edition (October 25)

Still life with Luke

By Chris Siciliano

Our apologies for a third straight abbreviated NBF preamble. Truth is, sometimes you just have to let the beer do the talking.

Please enjoy this week's list of new beers along with this photo of Luke. Both the list and Luke are compliments of the Siciliano's, just because we like you.

New and Returning Beer

• B. Nektar Dwarf Invasion, $8.19/500ml - "This mead is the Non-Imperial version of our Imperial Funky Monky. A smaller mead, but big on flavor. Tart Balaton cherries, honey, and Styrian Golding hops" (source).
• Rogue Beard Beer, $7.39/22oz - "Beer brewed with yeast taken from the brewmaster John Maier’s beard" (source). Seriously.
• Atwater Blueberry Cobbler, $2.89/12oz - "Blueberry Cobbler is deceptively complex outing that features bready malts the dryness of fermented blueberries, light vanilla and blueberry aromatics. Strong, yet the flavors play well together" (source).
• North Peak Hoodoo Midwest Wet Hop IPA, $2.89/12oz - "North Peak Hoodoo Midwest Wet Hop IPA is the first of it’s kind. Brewed with fresh from the farm Michigan hops for exceptional flavor. Hoodoo is hops from start to finish with a little malt in the middle, just enough to keep Hoodoo from going Voodoo on you. not to worry - pretty much nothing but hops" (source).
• Dark Horse 4 Elf Winter Warmer, $2.09/12oz - "A spiced winter warmer brewed with nutmeg, clove, allspice and other holiday flavors" (source).
• Goose Island Harvest, $1.69/12oz - "Our latest creation is brewed in the style of a traditional American Extra Special Bitter (ESB). As Summertime fades, the sun shines less bright, and evening comes a little sooner. Harvest time arrives – it’s a time to reap the benefits of a great Summer. Fresh picked cascade hops from Washington and the richest Midwestern malts makes Goose Island Harvest Ale an extra special beer worthy of your devotion" (source).
• Arbor Espresso Love Breakfast Love, $2.29/12oz - "Oatmeal and 20 pounds of fresh roasted coffee from the Ugly Mug Cafe contribute to a mildly chalky espresso character balanced by a rich, sweet, creamy maltiness. Coffee finish dissolves into chocolate with a slight roasty bitterness" (source).
• Thirsty Dog Raildog Smoked Black Lager, $1.99/12oz - "Rail Dog was made for the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad's 40th anniversary. It's a crisp, clean lager with plenty of smoke character" (source).
• Warsteiner Oktoberfest, $1.49/12oz - "A truly German import brewed according to the German Purity Law, as are all Warsteiner beers, in limited quantities especially for Oktoberfest celebrations. This special edition has a well-balanced, mild and smooth taste with a uniquely soft, hoppy aftertaste and 5.9% alcohol.  So bring a bit of Germany with you to your next Oktoberfest celebration and bring a Warsteiner Edition Oktoberfest" (source).
• Southern Tier Pumking, $7.89/22oz (limit 1 bottle/person) - Pumking is an ode to Púca, a creature of Celtic folklore, who is both feared and respected by those who believe in it. Púca is said to waylay travelers throughout the night, tossing them on its back, and providing them the ride of their lives, from which they return forever changed. Brewed in the spirit of All Hallows Eve, a time of the year when spirits can make contact with the physical world and when magic is most potent. Pour Pumking into a goblet and allow it’s alluring spirit to overflow. As spicy aromas present themselves, let it’s deep copper color entrance you as your journey into this mystical brew has just begun. As the first drops touch your tongue a magical spell will bewitch your taste buds making it difficult to escape the Pumking" (source).

Event of the Week | Detroit Fall Beer Fest

Is anybody going to this?

Cheers!

New Beer Friday, ALCS Game 5 Edition (October 18)

"I've got my eye on you, Dirt Wolf."

By Chris Siciliano

Since, like last week, the Detroit Tigers are playing on Thursday night (the time I typically piece together New Beer Friday), I see no other choice than to cut short this week's NBF preamble.

Let's all keep our fingers crossed that these abbreviated introductions continue for at least one more week, which necessitates the Tigers wining two of the next three games against Boston. In the meantime, have a gander at the latest beers (and whiskey) to hit the shelves at Siciliano's.

New and Returning Beers

• Oskar Blues Ten Fidy, $4.19/12oz - "This titanic, immensely viscous stout is loaded with inimitable flavors of chocolate-covered caramel and coffee and hide a hefty 98 IBUs underneath the smooth blanket of malt. Ten FIDY (10.5% ABV) is made with enormous amounts of two-row malt, chocolate malt, roasted barley, flaked oats and hops. Ten FIDY is the ultimate celebration of dark malts and boundary-stretching beer" (source).
• Shorts Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster, $2.19/12oz (limit 2/person) - "A double Belgian IPA brewed exclusively with galaxy hops. These specialized hops ate loaded with flavors of tangerine and passion fruit" (source).
• Victory Dirt Wolf, $2.59/12oz - "Wildly assertive, intentionally untamed and dangerously satisfying, DirtWolf Double IPA is the culmination of Victory’s double IPA series experiment with whole flower American-grown hops. With two-row German malts and a well-balanced combination of whole flower Citra, Chinook, Simcoe and Mosaic hops, this 8.7% abv brew blends the powerful citrus aroma and fruity flavors, with the piney, earthy and mildly floral characteristics found in these intriguing hop varieties. Replacing Victory’s Hop Wallop® Ale, which will take a hiatus from the market for the time being, DirtWolf Double IPA will launch the brewery’s entry into four-packs when it begins to hit markets in October". “So a wolf and a prospector walked into a bar…,” joked President and Brewmaster, Bill Covaleski. “No, in all seriousness, Hop Wallop will be missed, but isn’t necessarily gone forever. We developed that brand 10 years ago as our flavorful response to the hop-bomb vogue of the time. But as brewers who enjoy experimenting with beer styles and ingredient varieties, we looked for the opportunity to do other interesting recipes as time passed. Making the decision to put Hop Wallop aside for a few years allows us to bring this delicious new double IPA, DirtWolf, to the market in bottles" (source).
• Bell's Cherry Stout, $2.69/12oz - "This unique ale begins its life as a powerful and richly sweet stout to which Michigan tart cherries are added. The resulting black brew is complex, sweet and tart with a distinct cherry finish. It will improve with cellaring" (source).
• Anderson Valley Winter Solstice, $2.19/12oz bottle, $1.99/12oz cans - "Each year, when people are starting to unpack their winter clothes and replenish their firewood, our tiny brewery in the coastal redwoods of Northern California makes seasonal preparations of a different kind. As the cold arrives, we release a unique beverage created to add warmth to even the coldest and darkest of winter's days. Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale begins with a very high original gravity to create a hearty and spicy brew with a deep amber hue and a smooth finish. Anderson Valley Brewing Company wishes you the very best for the holiday season and the New Year" (source).
• Big Sky Powder Hound Winer Ale, $1.69/12oz - "Powder Hound is our Winter Ale, and since it is our own creation we call it a Northern Rockies Strong Ale. Powder Hound satisfies, with the fine hand selected British hops fully complimenting the smooth malt notes. After a day on the ice or in the snow, enjoy a Powder Hound Winter Ale" (source).
• VanderGhinste Oud Bruin, $4.49/12oz - "VanderGhinste Old Brown in 1892 was originally called "old triple" and was the first beer that Omer Vander Ghinste on the market. It is a South West Flemish brown beer of mixed fermentation that is typical for this region. As basic ingredients for VanderGhinste Oud Bruin is used malted barley, wheat, caramel malt, hops and water. Creates a top-fermented beer made. By cutting this beer with beer of spontaneous fermentation, at least 18 months old, aged in oak barrels (= foeders), one obtains this specific South West Flemish Red-brown beer . The typical flavor is characterized by a harmonious balance of fruitiness of high fermentation with the gentle acidity of spontaneous fermentation beers and has a pronounced thirst quenching and refreshing aftertaste. VanderGhinste Old Brown belongs to the HORARB (Supreme Council for the authentic Flemish Red-brown beers) and strive for a European recognition after this type Reddish brown beers" (source).
• Two Beers Pumpkin Spice Ale, $7.19/22oz - "One of our fall seasonal beers, brewed in true small batch tradition. This beer is brewed with pumpkin, nutmeg, clove, allspice and cinnamon" (source).

Whiskey of the Week

• New Holland Bill's Michigan Wheat, $39.26/750ml - "This wheat whiskey is distilled from wheat grown and malted in our home state of Michigan. Its biscuity sweet malt and toasty character is an homage to craft distilling icon, Bill Owens" (source).

Cheers!

New Beer Friday, Abbreviated Preamble Edition (Oct 11)

By Chris Siciliano

Due to the 8:07 p.m. Thursday night start of the American League Divisional Series game 5, featuring the Detroit Tigers (hooray!) and the Oakland A's (boooo!), your regularly scheduled New Beer Friday preamble will not be written at its regular time.

Tune in next Friday when we return to regularly scheduled NBF preamble programing. In the meantime, please enjoy the this week's list of new beers, and go Tigers!

Update: Tigers Win!

New and Returning Beers at Siciliano's

• Arbor Buzzsaw, $2.29/12oz - "A big, bold hop-forward west coast style IPA. The malt character is subdued to showcase a blend of Simcoe, Amarillo, and Centennial Hops creating a lingering dry finish with notes of pine, grapefruit, and apricot" (source).
• Dark Horse One Oatmeal Stout, $2.09/12oz - "Number one in a series of five stouts produced for the fall and winter seasons. This beer is full bodied with hints of chocolate, roasted barley, coffee flavors and a nice creamy head" (source).
• Goose Island Pepe Nero, $3.19/12oz - "A black rye saison that combines a roasted/smoky malt character in balance with a pepper spice from the yeast. Finishes dry with a refreshing level of carbonation" (source).
• New Holland Hopivore, $2.39/12oz - "Michigan grown hops are the story in this seasonal harvest ale. Hopivore is wet-hopped with hops added to the brew just hours after harvest, creating rare, fresh flavors" (source).
• New Holland El Mole Ocho, $8.19/22oz - "Our exploration into the flavors of mole, the legendary sauce of central Mexico. Malty aroma and rich, cocoa-laden body laced with an invigorating tinge of dried chilies and coffee" (source).
• Thirsty Dog Barktoberfest, $2.89/12oz - "A traditional old world German Oktoberfest made with German grains, yeast and hops" (source).
• Greenbush Unicorn Killer, $2.19/12oz - "Flavored ale brewed with pumpkin and spices" (source).
• Morte Subite Kriek, $6.49/375ml - "The Kriek Mort Subite is brewed according to the ancestral lambic recipe. This original Belgian beer ferments spontaneously. Enriched with cherries, it matures soft and slowly in oaken casks. To be served cool" (source).
• Morte Subite Framboise, $6.49/375ml - "Pale orangey/pink colour with a semi-hazy appearance; earthy fresh raspberry aromas with notes of cider and rye bread; quite flavourful; a smooth creamy mouthful of earthy/woody malt and sweet raspberries essence with a refreshingly tart acid finish" (source).
• Fullers Honey Dew, $5.09/16.9oz - "Served chilled, Organic Honey Dew offers both refreshment and an unbeatable taste. The real organic honey in the brew gives a gentle sweetness that appeals to a wide range of people, even those who perhaps wouldn’t usually drink beer, making it a very popular choice!" (source).
• Fullers Black Cab Stout, $5.09/16.9oz - "Brewed with a combination of five different malts, some heavily roasted for a near jet black appearance, and beneath its dark exterior features luxurious red berry notes, toasty aromas on the nose and culminates in a dry, bitter finish" (source).
• Big Sky Biere De Noel, $15.79/750ml - "A strong Belgian-style dark ale, brewed in small quantities for the holidays" (source).
• Shorts Curl, $1.99/12oz - "Brewed with 40% more ingredients to bump any ordinary pilsner to an imperial level. We hop the kettle four times, using a good amount of Amarillo hops to balance the malty sweetness from the pilsen malt and lots of flaked maze. At 7.5% ABV and 50 Bittering Units, this beer is still very quaffable and packed full of flavor thanks to the help of our house American lager yeast. This beer was brewed upon the request of every ones favorite beer tender, Jeremy “the curl” VanSice. 50 IBU's" (source).

Picture of the Week 

Old Fitzgerald whiskey bottles barrels behind
Griffin Claw Brewing Company in Birmingham, Michigan

Cheers!