Crafting History | Brussels Edition

Back in July, I had the incredible opportunity to visit Brussels, Belgium. A city and country rich with beer history, this trip is a bucket list destination for many connoisseurs. Belgium’s diversity of styles, centuries-old brewing techniques, and preservation of tradition have all impacted its place as one of the most culturally significant countries in the world when it comes to heritage. This installment of Crafting History features contributions from legends of the industry Werner Van Obberghen – Owner and Managing Director of 3 Fonteinen, Moeder Lambic owner Jean Hummler, and former Chairman of De Heikantse Bierliefhebbers Fons Minne, as well as reviews of a few Belgian relics – some of which have been cellared for over two decades.

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Artist Spotlight | Woodworking in Craft Beer

During this craft beer boom, the industry has provided so much more than just a new and exciting wave of beer styles, techniques and breweries. It has also created an outlet and newfound respect for the arts. Artists all over the country have found support and work from breweries looking for anything from taproom murals to label art to small batch glassware and other merch. Many breweries have even involved the arts at their events as a continued means of support. In fact, this was a huge focus of The Eighth State Brewing’s Altered States Festival in Greenville, SC. One field of artistry in particular that has really popularized itself in the craft beer community recently has been woodworking.

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Anchorage Brewing Adds Innovative Wood Coolship

Anchorage Brewing in Alaska’s most populous city has been known for its sour and mixed-fermentation beers since opening in 2010, and will soon be adding a new layer to its sour program: a 14 bbl coolship on the rooftop deck of its new expansion. While a new coolship at an American craft brewery is noteworthy on its own, this one is even more unique in being the first all-wood coolship in commercial operation. It was made by Foeder Crafters in St. Louis, Missouri.

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Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen | Intens Rood

A decade ago, in the early days of the ISO:FT message boards, 3 Fonteinen beers were the kids wearing pink on Wednesdays and making “fetch” happen. High bounties were paid for a Hommage, Framboos, or a rare Zenne y Frontera, with airline luggage fees serving as the general mode of transportation for this precious cargo.

Thanks to a huge increase in production and distribution, 3F beers are no longer the Charizard foil cards they once were. While this provides that constant IV drip of Oude Guezes, it also means that we get a few other Lambic oddities, such as the Intens Rood. Read More

Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales | Raven Rock

While styles like lambic and gueuze might conjure images of a farmhouse in the rolling countryside,  some of the best sour and funky beers in America are made by Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales right on South Broadway in Denver, CO. Their collab with Falling Rock Tap House, called Raven Rock, is no exception. While Raven Rock might not technically be a lambic, it’s about as damn close as you can get. 

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Cantillon | Lambic d’Aunis

One of the hardest decisions for the dedicated craft enthusiast has to be how long to cellar a prized bottle. How do you ensure that you see your beautiful bottles reach their final form? The balance of power between #drinkfresh and amassing a cellar so massive it would make the Sun King blush is a wobbly tight rope, indeed. Too often you find yourself paralyzed to open those most revered bottles, worrying that with a particular Cantillon or Side Project or Hill Farmstead we’ll never cross paths again. Or worse, you fear the chiding from fellow Ahabs for not inviting them along to take down the white whale.

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Gueuzerie Tilquin | Oude Quetsche Tilquin à L’Ancienne

A true Lambic is brewed exclusively in the Pajottenland region of Belgium, southwest of Brussels. Lambic beers include gueuze and kriek styles and differ from most beers in that they’re fermented spontaneously using wild yeasts and bacteria native to the Senne Valley. The distinctly tannic, vinous, often sour quality that is the by-product of this process is one that may entice the taste buds of hesitant wine lovers.

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What’s in a Name? | Méthode Traditionnelle

What’s in a name? Well, quite a bit actually. A name not only identifies an object but it can represent a lineage, a history or even a tradition. Louis Vitton, Ferrari and Lambic – all of these wonderful things stand alone. With nothing more than the name, a lot is said about the product. Read More

The Unknown Brewing Co. | 3.5ish

The next stop on North Carolina’s sour beer train takes us to Charlotte, home of The Unknown Brewing Co. This summer they released 3.5ish, a gueuze-inspired lambic-style ale, to celebrate three-and-a-half years (more or less) of beer brewing. Read More

Event Recap | New Belgium’s Le Kriek Noir Bottle Release

At 10:30 p.m. we approach a line that spills out the door of New Belgium Brewing Company in Fort Collins. The red carpet is rolled out, and folks are dressed to the nines wearing elegant cocktail dresses, suspenders, and fedoras to go along with the “film noir” theme of the evening. In a return to the cork and cage format of La Folie’s past, New Belgium’s Unveiled & Uncorked bottle release party was a celebration of the launch of the brewery’s Wood Cellar Reserve, a series of very rare, small batch wild and sour ales—and the star of the night was Le Kriek Noir, the first release from Wood Cellar Reserve. Read More

Event Recap | The Inaugural Funk Collective: A Gathering of Independent Breweries

Craft beer as a whole has gone through a shit storm over the last few months. Literally and figuratively. And the in-fighting hasn’t stopped. But at the Funk Collective: A Gathering of Independent Breweries, no amount of storminess could keep the masses away.  Read More

Brewery Preview | Dovetail Brewery

Days before the craziness of Chicago Craft Beer Week (CCBW), I was offered the opportunity to tour soon-to-open Dovetail Brewery, which is co-owned, operated and run by Bill Wesselink and Hagen Dost. What better way to begin the beer week, than with a preview of the next chapter of Chicago’s burgeoning beer scene.

Dovetail is a reference to the carpenter’s joint of interlocking boards, it is famed for its resistance to being pulled apart. As Bill so elegantly expressed, “It’s coming together to make a stronger brewery. A mix of old and new, American and European to create what we feel is our interpretation.”
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Event Preview: Delilah’s Sour Fest

Pucker up and give us some sugar sours. Delilah’s is hosting their annual Lambic and Sour event on Saturday, May 21st from 12pm-5pm during Chicago Craft Beer Week. For beginners and enthusiasts, this event will be one not to miss.

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Brasserie Cantillon | Iris

Style: Unblended Lambic | ABV: 5.0%

Most people have a favorite flower, and mine just happens to be the iris. The iris flower is also the symbol of the Belgian city Brussels. This magnificent European metropolis was built on marshes and swamps, where fields of yellow irises grew in abundance. The yellow iris flower is even on the city’s flag. Brasserie Cantillon, founded in 1900, is located in Brussels, the Belgian capital.

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Upland Brewing Co. | Blackberry Lambic

It is open season in Bloomington, IN. Open sour season that is with the recent release of Upland Brewing Co.’s highly regarded sours. A sour ale from almost every fruit imaginable, Upland has created some of the most sought after sour beers in the country—and I got my hands on one! Read More

Roundtable Discussion | This Year’s Memorable Beers

2014 was a year of good beers, but sometimes we have favorites that weren’t necessarily released this past year. We asked the PorchDrinking staff to name their most memorable beers. Little did we know, we’d get such a variety from all over the world!

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Mikkeller | Spontanbeetroot

What’s the name of that beer? Damn you Mikkeller and your obscure names and labels! What are you? Seems to be a common thought every time one picks up a Mikkeller bottle. So many bottles with crazy names like Orange Yuzu Glad, Big Worster, Winbic, Wheat is the New Hops, and so on. All “inside joke” names aside, we’re always intrigued to try these innovative beers. Read More

Brouwerij Lindemans – Cuvee Rene

Brouwerij Lindemans – Cuvee Rene

ABV: ?

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Goose Island – Madame Rose

Colored in crimson, aged in red-wine barrels and soaked in sour cherry deliciousness—what more could you ask for? A seductive member of Goose Island’s now famed ‘Three Sisters’ group, Madame Rose is one of the brewery’s elusive bottled wild ales that tantalizes and plays with our taste buds from start to finish.

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Ultimate 6er | Fantastic Fruit Beer

Many people shy away from fruit beers. They just don’t think the two should ever mix, never to dance the delicate art of brewing. But, not all great beers have to be pale and bitter, and a little sweet goes a long way. With summer just around the bend, folks are eager to get out and enjoy the warm cosmic rays. And, although all of these beers (save for one) come in 22oz or larger bottles, here is a phenomenal six pack that will make you second guess what great beer can be.

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