Mould's Beer Blog

How often is it that you discover a new style of beer?  In this age of the Internets and the Googles, information is flowing faster than ever.  Due to the unwavering diligence of the words of the beer blogger, faithful readers get news of beer releases via label approvals sometimes MONTHS before a beer is released.  Therefore, you would think nothing could slip by, right? It wasn't so much a style that alluded me, but more a blend of styles.  I'm talking about saisons (farmhouse ales) that are hopped up like an IPA (hey, happy #IPAday, if you're into that sort of thing).  Let's call them simply, bitter saisons.  I had my first saison brewed in this way last weekend, but not on purpose, as I thought it was going to be more of a traditionally brewed saison.  Then, I came across ANOTHER one!  I bought it thinking it would be another traditionally brewed saison, but nope.  Both had tons of citrus/pine in the aroma and in the flavor, and surp...

Evil Twin Brewing Ron and the Beast Ryan There has been much discussion recently about contract brewing.  In most contract brewing situations, Brewer A will hire Brewer B to manufacture beer.  In some cases, Brewer B will do all of the actual brewing and packaging.  In other cases, Brewer A will actually go to Brewer B's facility, brew on Brewer B's brewhouse, maintain fermentation, and package up the product.  Sometimes, Brewer A will even purchase a fermentation tank to hold their beer at Brewer B's facility, so it doesn't interfere too much with Brewer B's brewing capacity (tank space = $$$).   It seems simple and harmless, but there is some disdain held for these contract brewing situations.  Some think that these "Brewer B's" should have their own breweries instead of using someone else's kit.  They should invest their own capital  and get their own skin in the game.   Personally, the first thing I hold at the forefront is...

Weyerbacher Seventeen As far as I know, Weyerbacher only has one rule.  Their anniversary beers must be at least 10% ABV.  This  saison fits the bill, coming in at 10.5% ABV.  At first, this struck me as odd.  Everything I knew (which is not a whole lot) about the history of saison led me to believe that saisons were normally low in ABV, and were brewed as a refreshment for farmers in Belgium.  I had a taster of this beer at the brewery, and was very impressed.  I couldn't wait to get home to fully appreciate this beer! Weyerbacher Seventeen pours a golden straw color, with a small head that quickly dissipates.  Not much lacing on this one.  On the nose, wow, tons of citrus!  Spice too!  Taking a drink, I get a mix of lemon and alcohol, which turns spicy and leaves my mouth with a peppery aftertaste.  The alcohol is there, but I enjoy it in this one.  For me, this is very drinkable for 10.5% ABV.  The m...