That’s right kiddos, last year’s Inaugural Eugene Beer Week was such a smashing success (and a direct catalyst for Portland and Corvallis Beer Weeks – Humbleness Editor), the event is returning for a sophomore run. And this year’s EBW promises to be better, stronger, faster! Well, maybe not [...]]]>
That’s right kiddos, last year’s Inaugural Eugene Beer Week was such a smashing success (and a direct catalyst for Portland and Corvallis Beer Weeks – Humbleness Editor), the event is returning for a sophomore run. And this year’s EBW promises to be better, stronger, faster! Well, maybe not faster… not really sure how that even relates, but definitely those first two things I mentioned. In any case, come May 7th, lil’ ol’ Eugene will once again be drenched in a solid week of beer revelry.
Of course, an event of this magnitude cannot occur without a truckload of hard work, planning and general behind-the-scenes monkey business. Oh, and money too… Yep, money sure helps. Remember those fantastic posters, hand bills and advertisements from last year’s EBW? Well, they didn’t design, print and distribute themselves… although with NASA’s budget getting hacked to pieces, we should now have some top men and women with some free time on their hands. I wonder if they can be convinced to work for beer? But I digress…
Last year, EBW had just over a dozen official sponsors, and Mike and crew did a fantastic job stretching every sponsorship dollar to its fullest extent. Those posters, hand bills and advertisements I mentioned above were the result of sponsorship monies. And if you have no idea what I’m talking about, well, then you can see one of the reasons we need more sponsors this time around. With this in mind, official planning for EBW 2012 got underway last week, with a meeting to discuss the marketing of this year’s event. While we are busy working on our list of potential sponsors, I thought I would get the ball rolling with a call-to-arms to the craft beer community.
Do you have a favorite brewery, bottleshop or watering hole? The next time you visit your establishment of choice, ask them if they are aware of Eugene Beer Week and ask them to get involved. Or perhaps, like our NASA friends, you have a little extra time on your hands too? Well, volunteers are always nice… especially those with server permits. Happen to be an artistic individual? We’d love to see your ideas for a new EBW logo.
You can get involved by contacting EBW through the official website at www.eugenebeerweek.org, or the event’s Facebook page. And keep an eye on both for more information on this year’s event.
Cheers and stay tuned!
Kevin
Archer Kevin Williams was born January 3rd, 2012 at the PeaceHealth Nurse Midwifery Birth Center in Springfield, OR. 8lbs 2oz, 20″ [...]]]>
Archer Kevin Williams was born January 3rd, 2012 at the PeaceHealth Nurse Midwifery Birth Center in Springfield, OR. 8lbs 2oz, 20″ long and, like his father, a head like a melon. Sorry wife.
Archer’s arrival was a lightening-fast adventure. We arrived at the birth center around 9:30 a.m. At 10:11 a.m., we had a baby. No time to call any family, no time to set up the laptop we had loaded with 8 hours of music to soundtrack the journey of birth. Again, sorry wife, next time we will leave earlier.
So, how did I celebrate the arrival of my first child? I started by opening a bottle of Hellshire I. And not just any bottle of Hellshire I, mind you. I opened the very first bottle of Hellshire I that was sold at the release last May. A bottle I acquired by being the first to arrive at the event, a bottle tucked away specifically for this occasion.
A big night for my father too; first grandchild and first barleywine, though the baby trumped the beer somewhat.
Well, that’s all for right now. I have a bunch of stuff coming down the pipe; Ninkasi Renewale 2012 and Critical Hit Barleywine, Falling Sky Brewing, Eugene Beer Week ’12 planning, a bunch of Active Directory Group Policy stuff and a DIY guide for building a custom FightStick with genuine Sanwa arcade parts (Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom III is doing a number on my Xbox 360 controllers). Oh, and when I got home from work today, I found a couple packages waiting on the doorstep – Widmer W’12 Dark Saison and Redhook Nut Brown.
Now I just need to find some time between the coffee grinding and diaper changing…
Cheer!
Kevin
Block 15 – La Ferme’ de Demons
Nick does some amazing things at Block 15 and La Ferme’ de Demons is a great example of beer-wizardry. This dark Saison, aged in Pinot, Bourbon and Oregon oak barrels with cherries, was my pick for Oregon Beer of 2010.
Batch one was unfortunately draft only, but in October batch two was released in handsome, corked and caged 750 ml glass. Expect one to set you back about $15.
Oakshire – Hellshire II
Hellshire I flew off the shelves so fast it quickly became one of those beers of legend. By comparison, Hellshire II’s sales have been a little languid. The beer is still readily available around Eugene, but is starting to develop a story of its own.
There is much talk right now on Beer Advocate that Hellshire II is infected. Matt replied in the thread that analysis is currently being performed, and offered some tasting notes of his own, but neither confirmed nor denied the presence of that sneaky bugger Brett. Of course, human perception being what it is, once the “wild” fire alarm is pulled, hysteria ensues. And we all know the logistical problems associated with unringing bells.
So, let’s call this my gambler’s pick. Maybe it is infected and will worsen over time. Or maybe it will turn out to be a happy accident, like Abyss ’09. Or maybe, just maybe, the labs will come back clean and all the stone-throwers can try again… assuming they didn’t dump the rest of their bottles in outrage and can get the taste of foot out of their mouths. In any case, this feels like another legend in the making… a bet worth $15.
Ninkasi Winter 4 Pack
As I mentioned in my last post, this thing is a hell of a deal. Total Domination, Believer, Sleigh’R and the new Imperiale Stout, all packaged up in an easy-to-wrap box and all for about the same price as the other two beers on this list ($15). Perfect for Ninkasi diehards and new inductees alike. And since I am completely failing at nicking relevant images from Google tonight, I’ll finish with another label shot.
Cheers and Merry Christmas!
Kevin
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Both Down Under and Imperiale are creamy, full-bodied brews, but they go in completely different directions when it comes to the way in which the dark malts are used. Down Under is light on roast, while Imperiale hits you immediately with sharp notes of coffee and chocolate. Where Down Under maintains a consistent dark-malt flavor from start to finish, Imperiale finishes with a kick of hops and a punch of alcohol.
In fact, Imperiale reminds me quite a bit of Widmer’s W’11 KGB from earlier this year, but without the sticky sweetness and occasional hot alcohol notes. Not to say that I didn’t enjoy KGB, it’s just that Ninkasi’s package feels a little a bit more polished, or maybe rounded is a better way to describe it. And while I’m on the subject of feeling packages, I want to mention that you can still get Imperiale in the Winter 4-pack, which also contains bombers of Total Domination, Believer and Sleigh’R. Not a bad deal for around $14 and not a bad gift idea for those of you with a beer lover on your list and some holiday shopping still in front of you.
And on a final Ninkasi note, I am looking forward to the 2012 Renewale Porter, which should be available sometime after the first of the year.
Cheers!
Kevin
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So, this past weekend, I attempted to remedy my situation by inviting a couple friends over for jerk chicken and beverages of the adult persuasion. Among the bottles opened were two stouts that I felt were each unique enough to warrant a post; Ninkasi’s Imperiale Stout and Redhook’s Down Under Stout.
Down Under Stout, described as being loosely based on the Australian and sweet stout styles, is the latest in Redhook’s Blueline Series. Okay, time for a small confession. My experience with Australian stouts both starts and ends with Sheaf. So, drawing on my broad base of knowledge, I went in with the assumption that Down Under was going to be sweet, smooth and somewhat creamy, with an understated roastiness. And, sample size be damned, that is exactly how I would describe it.
Now, I don’t want to give the impression that Down Under and Sheaf are one and the same. Down Under is richer, much fuller bodied and avoids the odd alcoholic harshness that often lingers on the back of Sheaf…though that last assertion might be more the result of improper handling than a fault of the beer. In any case, Down Under is a nice change-up from typical, overly-roasted, beat-you-about-the-head-neck-face-back-and-chest NW stouts.
I was going to get into Ninkasi’s Imperiale Stout in this post, but it’s getting late and my fingers are doing a poor job of transferring my thoughts to text on the screen. So, I’m going to fix the title and first couple sentences to reflect my laziness and head off to bed. We’ll give Imperiale its own post tomorrow…unless the baby decides to show up.
Cheers!
Kevin