Easton, PA's Weyerbacher Brewing Company, brewers of awesome beers such as Merry Monks, Blithering Idiot and Old Heathen, like to experiment with different beers in their Brewer's Select series. After having completed a beer for each letter of the NATO phonetic alphabet, they have now turned to constellations. I thought it would be fun to use this space to learn about the experimental beers that Weyerbacher is brewing, and also to learn a little bit of astronomy along the way!
The fifth beer in Weyerbacher's Northern Hemisphere Constellation Brewer's Select Series is Bootes. Check out some quick facts about the beer followed by some facts about the constellation!
The fifth beer in Weyerbacher's Northern Hemisphere Constellation Brewer's Select Series is Bootes. Check out some quick facts about the beer followed by some facts about the constellation!
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| Bootes from Weyerbacher Brewing Company |
Bootes the beer facts: (from Weyerbacher)
- ruby brown american strong ale, 9% abv
- brewed with pale, wheat, biscuit, crystal and roasted malts
- mash-hopped with Simcoe for increased bitterness
- aroma-hopped with Bravo and Centennial
- 100 IBU range (one of the highest done at Weyerbacher)
- Not an IPA, but more of a barleywine with extra hop character
- often referred to as "the Herdsman"
- first documented by Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century
- Greeks used to call the contellation Arctophylax, which is "bear watcher" or "bear keeper."
- Usually visualized as a herdsman holding a staff and two dogs on a leash, chasing Ursa Major around the pole.
- contains 4 stars with known planets
- can be seen at latitudes 90 and -50 and is best visible at 9pm in the month of June
- home to Arcturus, the third brightest star in the sky. It is a red giant, 36.7 light years away, and about 110 times more luminous than our Sun.
- belongs to the Ursa Major family of constellations.
My pour of Bootes from Weyerbacher Brewing Company
Overall, Bootes was great. Definitely similar to a barleywine, so if you like those, you'll be into this. Find Bootes in bottles at the brewery, or on tap at a small amount of bars until it runs out!
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