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Items by Joe Ruvel
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10:35
Cocktails of the year - NY and SF
» Beer at Joe's -
13:26
Holiday Fun
» Beer at Joe'sHappy Holidays! Sorry about the lack of posts. We have been enjoying ourselves (ie eating way too much and drinking lots of beer) in the Wisconsin North Woods for over a week now. Once we get back into town we will go back to regular posting - but until then enjoy a little photo slide show. First a few pictures from the Beer At Joe’s Holiday Party at La Trappe in San Francisco and then a few beer and snow shots from Wisconsin. Hope you are all enjoying a few days off and a few good beers! Oh and Happy New Year if I don’t get to post again before then.
Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.
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18:34
A few more holiday beers
» Beer at Joe'sSick of holiday beers yet? Amazingly, I am not (come February, though, I am making the change).
This Friday I, and a few friends, are going to work our way through a bunch of holiday beers at La Trappe in North Beach, San Francisco. Not sure if all of these will be available on Friday night - but this is my wish list:
Barber Winter
Blaugies La Moneuse
Fontome Noel
Fantome d’Hiver
Gouden Carolus Noel (Draft too!)
Kerstmutske
Petrus Christmas
St. Bernardus Noel (Draft too!)
Tsjeeses (Draft too!)
Bink Winter King
Val-Dieu Grand Cru - Draft
Slaapmutske Triple Nightcap - DraftShould be a fun night - if anyone is around the area, stop by - we will be the rowdy table drinking lots of holiday beer (hmm…there could be more than one).
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11:02
Shopping, a new blog, and some thoughts on Black Albert
» Beer at Joe'sOn Saturday I braved the cold (I know it is SF so it isn’t that cold - but damn it feels like it sometimes) and the crowds and went out to finish up our holiday shopping. Amazingly (and completely by accident - wink wink) that brought me right by City Beer Store - wow - OK, I guess I can stop in for a taste or two
I sampled the famed Black Albert - a Russian Imperial Stout at 13.00% ABV by De Struise Brouwers. This beer is a perfect example of the weird place that the craft beer drinker finds himself in an urban area like SF or NY. There are so many great local beers being made and you want to try them all. There are also a bunch of great bottle shops and bars serving not only the local beers, but imported beers from tiny breweries you might or might not have heard of and to make matters worse you remember reading somewhere on Rate Beer or Beer Advocate that these beers are some of the best in the world. It’s a lot of noise. But alas you taste the beer and see what you think.
Black Albert was a fine beer. Black as can be - lots of flavor - chocolate with some berry in the nose (I kept thinking of making a raspberry pie and eating the entire pie with a six pack of Black Albert - yeah I know it won’t make me feel good but damn it will be fun). The malt smoothness was there and just a bit of an alcohol burn. Is it the most complex beer I have ever had? Not really - but overall it did rock and I am happyIi tasted some and bought some. The price is a point of contention - it isn’t cheap - but at least it was a controlled price (from the brewery website you get the idea that people have been gouging the prices of their beers on Ebay). And in the end, for 13 bucks I get a small bottle of great craft brew from a far off land. I have bought a lot of really crappy bottles of wine for a lot more then that. I guess it’s just how you think about it. I wonder how it will age?
Up next was a taste of He’Brew Jewbelation Twelve. What a fun beer. Lots of spice - almost too much going on - but you know what it is, He’Brew - and there are 12 malts and 12 hops so what the hell - Happy Chanukah! Oh and you have got to check out this product shot - great tag line too.
I forgot to mention the blog. So in looking for info on Black Albert after the tasting, I found the blog Beer & Nosh - I think I have seen it once before but this time I really gave it a look. Cool site - great pictures and a lot of good food coverage, which I love. Check out Beer & Nosh’s write up of the Black Albert tasting at City Beer Store.
Oh and a final note - if you haven’t tried the Marin Brewing Company’s Holidaze Christmas Ale give it a shot. Easy drinking for a holiday beer and full of ginger and other holiday cookie spices. Yum!
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15:26
21st-Amendment Brewery Repeal Parade
» Beer at Joe'sCheck out these two videos and a few pics from the 21st-Amendment Brewery parade that went on last Friday - which was the 75th anniversary of the repeal of prohibition.
We want Beer!
This first one is a good picture of the band (I think it is the Green Street Mortuary Band) and the crowd - with their big grins and ready signs - oh and make sure not to miss Frank Chu
(Please open the article to see the flash file or player.)
The next video is a fun one - Shaun O’Sullivan dances with Grand Marshall, Clara Kalin - who is 75 years young on December 5th.
(Please open the article to see the flash file or player.)
And a few pics:
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17:51
Imbibers One Hundred
» Beer at Joe'sImbibers One Hundred from Art of Drink - a spin off from the Omnivore’s Hundred that went around the blogs recently. What a good idea! - Here is my rundown:
Instructions:
1) Copy this list into your blog, with instructions.
2) Bold all the drinks you’ve imbibed.
3) Cross out any items that you won’t touch
4) Post a comment here and link to your results.OR
If you don’t have a blog, just count the ones you’ve tried and post the number in the comments section.
List of Drinks You Must Try Before You Expire
1. Manhattan Cocktail
2. Kopi Luwak (Weasel Coffee)
3. French / Swiss Absinthe
4. Root beer
5. Gin Martini
6. Sauternes
7. Whole Milk
8. Tequila (100% Agave)
9. XO Cognac
10. Espresso
11. Spring Water (directly from the spring)
12. Gin & Tonic
13. Mead
14. Westvleteren 12 (Yellow Cap) Trappist Ale
15. Chateau d’Yquem
16. Budweiser
17. Maraschino Liqueur
18. Mojito
19. Orgeat
20. Grand Marnier
21. Mai Tai (original)
22. Ice Wine (Canadian)
23. Red Bull
24. Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice
25. Bubble Tea
26. Tokaji
27. Chicory
28. Islay Scotch
29. Pusser’s Navy Rum
30. Fernet Branca
31. Fresh Pressed Apple Cider
32. Bourbon
33. Australian Shiraz
34. Buckley’s Cough Syrup
35. Orange Bitters
36. Margarita (classic recipe)
37. Molasses & Milk
38. Chimay Blue
39. Wine of Pines (Tepache)
40. Green Tea
41. Daiginjo Sake
42. Chai Tea
43. Vodka (chilled, straight)
44. Coca-Cola
45. Zombie (Beachcomber recipe)
46. Barley Wine
47. Brewed Choclate (Xocolatl)
48. Pisco Sour
49. Lemonade
50. Speyside Single Malt
51. Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee
52. Champagne (Vintage)
53. Rosé (French)
54. Bellini
55. Caipirinha
56. White Zinfandel (Blush)
57. Coconut Water
58. Cerveza
59. Cafe au Lait
60. Ice Tea
61. Pedro Ximenez Sherry
62. Vintage Port
63. Hot Chocolate
64. German Riesling
65. Pina Colada
66. El Dorado 15 Year Rum
67. Chartreuse
68. Greek Wine
69. Negroni
70. Jägermeister
71. Chicha
72. Guinness
73. Rhum Agricole
74. Palm Wine
75. Soju
76. Ceylon Tea (High Grown)
77. Belgian Lambic
78. Mongolian Airag
79. Doogh, Lassi or Ayran
80. Sugarcane Juice
81. Ramos Gin Fizz
82. Singapore Sling
83. Mint Julep
84. Old Fashioned
85. Perique
86. Jenever (Holland Gin)
87. Chocolate Milkshake
88. Traditional Italian Barolo
89. Pulque
90. Natural Sparkling Water
91. Cuban Rum
92. Asti Spumante
93. Irish Whiskey
94. Château Margaux
95. Two Buck Chuck
96. Screech
97. Akvavit
98. Rye Whisky
99. German Weissbier
100. Daiquiri (classic) -
0:26
Two winter beer tastings at The Jug Shop this weekend
» Beer at Joe'sDrink the winter away - what else are you going to do! A plethora of beers to taste at the Jug Shop in San Francisco - from their website:
JINGLE BEER PARTS I & II
Imported & Domestic Winter Brews
Friday 12/5 & Saturday 12/6Get Yer Beer Bells On!
“Christmas beers, also known as Winter Warmers, are a tradition dating back at least 2,000 years, with the ancients making highly intoxicating brews to celebrate winter’s Saturnalia. This brewmaking evolved into a holiday celebration when medieval monks, the world’s first professional brewers, pulled out their finest ingredients to produce soul-warming styles for the occasion. Today brewers continue the custom, either with centuries-old recipes or newfangled concoctions with spices and herbs, enabling thirsty beer fans to put aside their everyday favorites each winter and deck the halls with the world’s most flavorful ales and lagers, brewed especially for the holidays.” from Don Russell’s Christmas Beer: The Cheeriest, Tastiest, and Most Unusual Holiday Brews.
In America and around the globe, seasonal brews have become the hallmark of the craft beer and microbrew world, focusing on the weather and seasonally available ingredients. Winter brews are probably the best known of these. These “strong” beers (i.e. higher in alcoholic strength) are brewed specifically for the winter season, traditionally to fortify travelers during long, cold treks but also to mark special occasions and holidays.
So maybe SF doesn’t have winter weather as such, but we DO loves us a celebration! And due to the hearty nature of these beers you could even put some aside for summer, when our notorious inclement weather begs for something “soul-warming”.
Our no holds barred tasting of holiday brews was initially planned for a single evening. However we quickly realized that due to the sheer number of interesting beer we’d like to show (and the associated alcohol levels) that this may lead to some sort of feral foamy fracas. Therefore, we are splitting the tasting into two parts.
The first tasting on Friday will feature imports from Belgium, Austria and Germany. We’ll have 10 of these open, including brews from Brasserie Dupont, Scaldis, Gouden Carolus, Delirium, St. Bernardus, De Glazen Toren, Samiclaus and Pinkus. Then on Saturday, we’ll showcase 14 winter beers from domestic craft brew stars such as He’Brew, Moylans, Marin Brewing Company, Shipyard, Avery, Deschutes, New Belgium, Anchor and Wandering Aengus.
Tasting fee for each event is $15 per person. Helmets are optional.
Jingle Beer Part I - The Imports
Friday, December 5th
6pm to 8pm
$15 per personJingle Beer Part II - The Domestics
Saturday, December 6th
5pm to 7pm
$15 per person
Our in-store tastings are informal, no RSVP is required. Tasting fees are generally between $10 and $20 per person other than when noted.
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23:45
Big beer and a big turkey
» Beer at Joe'sOur turkey barley soup is cooling on the stove. There has been roast turkey, thanksgiving omelets (a yearly tradition), multiple turkey sandwiches, and the soup. We had a BIG turkey. 22 lbs to be exact. There were a bunch of great drinks to go with all that turkey and other holiday delights. A friend made a great brandy fruit punch. We had a some wine and some beer.
I wanted to get a special beer for everyone and so I picked up an Anchor Holiday Ale 2008 Magnum. It is a big beer both in size of the bottle and in taste. A sweet ale with some burnt sugar and licorice spice in the taste. Warming with 8% alcohol (UPDATE: Probably not - not sure where i got that from - maybe i had a bit too much holiday ale. Not sure if Anchor releases the ABV - there wasn’t one on the magnum - checking out some sites - including - What’s on tap - seem to say it is 5.5% - sounds good to me. I am happy we have that straight now) but not as strong as many Christmas beers. This is the first magnum I have ever bought and it was a good time. Friends who tasted the holiday ale at Anchor a few weeks ago said it was a bit different from the Magnum. I think they said it tasted lighter. I have heard that wine from a magnum is a good way to taste the wine as it was suppose to taste. Maybe beer is the same way.
As the holiday beer season begins, I can’t wait to try Anchor Holiday 2008 again.
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21:04
Back from the land of Guinness
» Beer at Joe'sThat’s right, we’re back. What a trip it was. An absolutely fantastic fun vacation. There was good food, vibrant convivial people, great scenery, and of course sheep. And yes there was beer. Lots of beer. Some say the pub culture is dying - and while we saw signs of that - we also had a great time in many pubs all with their own charm. We shared pints and glasses (yup every single pub has a smaller size called a glass or a half pint that can be ordered) with many people and pretty much every time, got this warm happy feeling that this is the way of the land. Drinking, talking, laughing and learning from others.
That said - the beer selection was pretty bad. I think the number of micro breweries and brew pubs in all of Ireland is around 11 or so. Just to give you an idea how low that is - the number in San Francisco alone hovers around 11. So in every bar you see Guinness (wonderful - creamy - well poured beer that it is), Beamish, Bulmers Cider, Heineken, sometimes Murphy’s, sometimes Carlsberg, and then a string of crappy light lagers from America. So yeah it was a bit tough to see people sucking down Coors lights in a beautiful Victorian pub in Dublin - but we got by and even had some great microbrews on the way. Don’t get me wrong at all - I really did have an amazing time - but it is interesting that the Irish people really have been drinking mostly the same beer for so many years.
In the coming weeks we will post more specifics about our trip. There was our time at Guinness’ Gravity bar which was amazing. And then there are the pubs. There was a Jameson whiskey tasting and tour. Also our trip to the Porterhouse brewing company - an exciting place with good beer and an attitude akin to a angry teenage girl. Did I mention we won’t forget the pubs?
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4:40
It’s Monday - we must be in Dublin
» Beer at Joe'sWe are in Ireland this week - drinking, eating, and having a glorious time. The Guinness really is better over here. We miss you all of course - hopefully we can post more updates soon.
Cheers!
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23:28
A Pliny for the 44th President - Barack Obama
» Beer at Joe'sWow! Good Job America!
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12:57
Beer at Joe’s says No on 8
» Beer at Joe'sJust a brief divergence into non beer related topics. It is political in nature - so if you don’t care then come back soon and we will be back to beer.
Google Ads seems to want to tell all of you that Beer at Joe’s says yes on proposition 8, which is the ban on gay marriage. I just wanted to say that our official stands here at Beer at Joe’s HQ is a big NO on prop 8.
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14:24
Brewing in Brooklyn
» Beer at Joe'sGood article about Sixpoint Craft Ales in the NY Times today. I have had a few of the Sixpoint beers both at GABF and when I use to live in NY. They won bronze at GABF for the SMP (smoked Baltic Porter) which, unfortunately, I did not get to try. But I did have some of Mason’s Black Wheat - very different and pretty damn tasty. Their Belgian IPA was also kick ass.
(picture from nytimes.com)
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9:40
Watching football and drinking beer
» Beer at Joe's
There are a ton of places to watch football in San Francisco - usually on Sunday - while drinking a few beers. The problem usually is not that you can’t find at least some good beer, it’s that it’s always the same good beer - no selection really. Yesterday I was lucky to hang out with my friend Dan — or San Francisco’s #1 NY Giants fan as he would like to be called — and enjoy a great football game, a relaxed, not-crowded bar, and some great and varied beer. The place is Kennedy’s Irish Pub and Curry House. What an odd, wonderful place it is. Larger then it should be. Lots of TVs. Hundreds of beers to choose from. And, if you so desire - Indian food. That’s right - you can have Indian food to soak up all the alcohol any time you want. I hear it is pretty good too. Their beer list on their website is a bit outdated but gives you an idea of the kind of beer they have. Yesterday we tried a bunch - one of my favorites was a beer I have had before - Ellie’s Brown from Avery. So chocolaty and smooth. Their prices are reasonable too. You can get 22 oz bottles and some imports for a bargain compared to what you will pay other places. So yeah, next time you are dreading drinking the same old beer while you watch your football game, come to Kennedy’s and try something a little different. Oh and don’t tell too many people - I like it not that crowded.
I almost forgot - they have the video game Big Buck Hunter in the back. It is loads of fun.
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9:47
I voted for Obama yesterday
» Beer at Joe'sAt Half Moon Bay Brewery! A nice light ale - with a good cause behind it. Here are the current standings:
Half Moon Bay Brewery Alection
I also tried the brown ale and the pumpkin harvest ale. Didn’t love the pumpkin harvest ale. A little too subdued for me. I bought a bottle to see if it is any different then from the tap. I will post an update soon.
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9:58
Back from GABF - Decompression Begins
» Beer at Joe'sWhat a trip! I can’t believe we were only gone a weekend. My brain has so many good beers and memories bobbing around inside of it, it is rather tough to work this morning. Over the next week or so we will post some pictures, videos, interviews, and thoughts on all things GABF. We had a blast. This really is the end all be all for American craft beer. If GODZILLA decided to destroy the Colorado Convention Center during the Great American Beer Festival, well then craft beer in the US would suffer greatly.
As we talked to a bunch of brewers, writers, and beer enthusiests we just kept being amazed at how open and excited everyone was. Everybody was jonesing on the buzz of the place and the beer. I already can’t wait for next year!
I will try to get some pictures and highlights up tonight - in the meantime be sure to check out these blogs with GABF coverage and reports:
William Brand’s - What’s on tap
The Thirsty Hopster - GABF Part 1 and Part 2
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10:33
Surreal Moment at Falling Rock Tap House
» Beer at Joe'sAs I nurse a pretty hard hangover this morning I think back to yesterday.
First a surreal moment from last nights fun at Falling Rock - The place is packed and the band is playing loudly. I have a bottle of New Belgium La Folie in my hand and a glass in the other. It is one of those moments that just sits there - timeless where you are truly happy. Now for the surreal part - I was standing next to the loooong bathroom line and who is in it but the one and only Don Younger. I say hello to him and chat for a second - he is a bit mad that the line is so long. Then next in line comes Sam Calagione. A drunk guy is trying to pull Sam out of line to dance with him. I guess this is a big part of what GABF is about. Everyone in Denver to have a good time and drink some amazing beer.
GABF was in full force last night. I knew that the Friday session would be crowded but wow it was nuts. Overall though it was a great time. A little too crowded and fast paced for my taste but the beer was there in full force. I would write more but it looks like I am late for standing in line for today’s members-only tasting. More beer! Hopefully sometime today I can post some of our favorites.
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7:10
Off to GABF
» Beer at Joe'sThe Beer At Joe’s crew is off to the San Francisco Airport in about 30 minutes. We are on our way to the Great American Beer Festival. It feels a bit like going to disneyland as a kid. You keep jumping up and down and saying things like - oooh which beers do i want to try from which breweries. I am also excited to see Denver. All that I have read gives me the impression that this city is beer crazed all year round and then launches into orbit during GABF. We are going to try and blog during the festival. Time to finish packing - to Denver we go! See you there if you are going.
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15:28
The Bistro’s Wet Hop Beer Fest Run Down
» Beer at Joe'sChill festival with loads of fresh wet hop beer. Good music and cool people all over the place.
People’s Choice winner was Lagunitas Marshall Wet Maximus - made with Nugget and Cascade hops grown on Tony’s Hop Field in Marshall, CA (btw - you can get amazing oysters in Marshall - goes well with the beer!)
Joe’s Top 5:
1. Port Brewing - San Marcos - Homegrown Hop 15 - Boren Farms Fallbrook and Centennial
2. Moonlight - Just Go Shopping Fresh Hop Lager - Cascade and Canadian Der Bine
3. Lagunitas - Marshall Wet Maximus - Nugget and Cascade
4. 21st Amendment - Harvest Moon - Chinook and Cascade
5. Bear Republic - Grandmas Homegrown - Roy Farms ChinookHonorable Mention: Black Diamond - Rye Ipa Wet Hop - Chinook and Liberty
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9:15
New Glarus: Berliner Weiss
» Beer at Joe'sThanks to Jasmine’s brother and his girlfriend, who just came back from a trip to Wisconsin, we now have a few New Glarus beers in the fridge. New Glarus is one of my favorite breweries. Their beers consistently taste great. The vibe and feel of not only their brewery but of their company is one of experimentation and thoughtfulness. There is a lot of care in their beers.
And all of that makes me jump for joy when I can try a brand new beer of theirs. Berliner Weiss - brewed as part of Daniel Carey’s (the brewer) unplugged series - was the first one we tried the other night. Here is a little from their website:
“A lively and elegant masterpiece this Berliner Weiss is a kaleidoscope of fresh flavor. Barrel fermentation, Pinot Grigio, Riesling grapes and Wisconsin White Wheat are bottle fermented with five proprietary yeast strains.”Lively is for sure. The beautiful orange hazy yellow color packs a nice tart flavor. Not exactly a sour beer, really, but it is definitely different then your usual Weiss beers. The lemony taste is there and a prominent grape flavor is also present. A fun, different beer. The next unplugged beer to try will be the Bohemian Lager.
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10:10
Happy Belated Sake Day
» Beer at Joe's
I totally missed the boat on this one but yesterday was Nihonshu No Hi - Sake Day. Every year on October 1st people in Japan and around the world toast a few drinks of sake and smile. The event I missed and didn’t even tell you all about was right here in my hometown of San Francisco. True Sake, the amazing sake store in the Hayes Valley neighborhood, put on yesterday a big Sake Day 2008 celebration at Fort Mason. I imagine it was pretty amazing. They billed it as the OctoberFest of Sake. At least I did end up drinking some great local organic sake. Sho Chiku Bai Organaic Nama sake from Takara in Berkeley was the one I tried. Really good! Nama means fresh - and so this is not pasteurized - kind of like real ale. They also use organic rice from the Sacramento Valley. The clarity and light taste were a bit surpising. I was expecting more of a bite. Overall I was very happy with the sake and for the price (around $10 from BevMo I think) it was a good value.
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9:32
Great American Beer Festival - Beer Styles
» Beer at Joe's -
9:38
Have a pint of pumpkin
» Beer at Joe'sIt is the time of year again where the pumpkin beers come out of hiding and are turned onto the market - like a batch of pumpkins getting thrown from the back of a truck.
It happens pretty much over night and in the end - I try to embrace it. I like most pumpkin beers. The bad ones have too much sweetness and are usually over-spiced. But the good ones have a nice pumpkin pie spice and full ale taste to them. They are warming usually with a good amount of alcohol and go well with fall foods.
One of my favorites is Dogfish Head Punkin Ale. Love the name and the beer. I think the secret to this one is that DH starts with a good brown ale and goes from there. They aren’t too heavy handed with it and it shows in the beer. At 7% ABV a few of these will make you feel like a pumpkin. I had mine with some homemade sourdough walnut bread (thanks Jasmine!) and a little peanut butter. Made me very happy.
Haven’t tried Punkin Ale on tap yet - but I hear that you can get it at Monk’s Kettle in the mission district of San Francisco - so I will probably be heading over there soon.
Anyone have any other recommendations for pumpkin beers - or really any other beer that graces the public only in the fall?
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22:23
Sunday Night Random Links
» Beer at Joe'sFrom one of my favorite food sites - The Food Section: “The Japanese manga comic “Kami no Shizuku” (”The drops of the gods”) follows the adventures of Shizuku Kanzaki, an anime oenophile in search of the world’s finest wines.”
Japanese “Usuhari” glass - very thin - so thin it helps transfer the flavor of the drink to the air - but be careful when clinking glasses. Shiwa glass even has a crease in it!
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10:13
Good beer and a rant about dirty lines
» Beer at Joe'sQuite weekend of relaxing and cleaning over at Beer At Joe’s headquarters. It is really nice to actually do nothing for a few days and not run around trying to find this or taste that. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t good beer involved. I cracked open a beer that has been in my fridge for a little while, the 4th beer in the Frank Zappa series of beers by Lagunitas Brewing Company, We’re Only In It For The Money - a Belgian-style tripel, at 8.2 percent. Good beer to drink on a Sunday afternoon. Some citrus in the nose and in the taste - sweetness without being too sweet. I can definitly pick up that Belgian yeast banana taste. Good representation of the style and what a cool bottle and beer name!
Now for the rant…Later that night I went to a show at a bar a few blocks from my apt. It was a friend of friend’s band and the music was great - lively but chill - good for a Sunday night. The beer on the other hand was insipid, tasteless and flat. I do not blame the beer - Sam Adams Octoberfest on draft. I have had this beer many times in both bottle and draft and while not an amazing beer it is a good standby at bars with only ok beer lists. But this time - you could taste the dirty tap. The temperature was all off. It was pretty gross. My new idea is to start a letter grading system - like the LA health department system - but for bars. The system will not judge a bar by what beer it serves (as much as we want to) but will judge them on how the represent the beer they have. If it is bottles - then how cold are they? Draft - how are those lines? Temperature? What kind of glasses are being used for the beer? People want to know! Beer drinkers unite! Ok rant over - go enjoy some good beer at a bar that cares about you.
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12:53
Brews on the bay - Fresh Hop Edition
» Beer at Joe's
Last weekend we had a great time on the SS Jeremiah O’Brien for Brews on the Bay. The most memorable beers for me were two that I had never had before. ThirstyBear Wet Hop Harvest Ale and Beach Chalet Hop Patootie Harvest Ale. I put in a email and a call to ThirstyBear to see when they will have it on tap. The Beach Chalet representative that answered the phone said they should have the Harvest Ale in about three weeks. Both had great fresh hop taste and were perfect for drinking outside in the sun.
In about two weeks, October 4th, is The Bistro’s 5th Annual WET HOP festival. I am ready!
Update from ThirstyBear:
“Yes Joe, the Wet Hop Harvest Ale is currently on Tap at Thirsty Bear. I think we have about 2 weeks worth left, so come on down! Cheers, Brenden.”
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9:47
Burgers, Beer, and Hubert - Oh My!
» Beer at Joe'sHubert Keller’s Burger Bar is coming to San Francisco (or well it it has been coming here for a long time but now has a venue). Beer and burger lovers rejoice:
“The restaurant is known for its build-your-own-burger concept, with 40 to 50 sides, toppings and buns; fries, salads, milk shakes, “a great wine list,” says Keller, and lots of beer - at least two dozen on tap, and more than 100 by the bottle. ”
We can hope that the beer list is a well chosen one. Check out the rest of the Chronicle’s write up.
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9:55
2008 NY Brewfest
» Beer at Joe's
The Tools
Originally uploaded by spike666
I am very excited to introduce Beer At Joe’s first guest poster, my good friend Spike. He braved the rain and drank some beer all for the sake of the blog (and good beer of course). Take it away Spike:
Ah, yes. Beer. On friday, September 12, I went to the 3rd Annual NYC Brewfest down at the South Street Seaport in New York City with my great friend, and fellow beer lover Zad. While it was slightly drizzling when we got there, people were in good spirits and there was quite a crowd.
Upon entering the event, we were given a set of tools for this great beer guzzling journey: a silver wristband, a small plastic pint glass (that holds far less than a pint), a map of the fest with lists of all the breweries and a card to keep your drinking in line. They explained to us that the card should be punched with every fill-up we get, and when it runs out of places to punch, it can be redeemed for a new card provided we don’t appear intoxicated. It became immediately apparent that this was only done to comply with some silly laws about public drunkenness and was not being enforced. Our cards were not punched a single time, and after the first beer, everyone either pocketed or discarded the cards.
Brewfest was HUGE. There were tents lining all edges of the Seaport with a very large population of porta-potties scattered throughout. At the start, the place was crowded, but there was still plenty of room to move around, but I didn’t waste much time observing before I went straight for the beer.
The first beer I sampled was Jack’s Pumpkin Spice. I’m a huge fan of pumpkin beers and the fest had a pretty wide selection of them. I would have to say that Jack’s was a disappointment. You could barely tell that it was pumpkin beer, and in my haste to try the next beer, I downed the entire mini-pint. Only then could I detect a slight hint of this pumpkin spice that they told me about.
I went on sampling other beers, including, but not limited to Spaten Oktoberfest, Brooklyn Lager, Brooklyn Octoberfest, Heartland Breweries Smiling Pumpkin and Red Rooster Ales, Arrogant Bastard Ale, Captain Lawrence’s Xtra Gold, Steen Brugge and Franziskaner Weissbier. Unfortunately, when you’re at an event like this, after you get past the 10th or 15th beer, you start to lose track of what you’re drinking and what you’ve had. The rest of the event is nothing but a blur of beer, rain, pulled pork sandwiches and trips to the porta-potties.
I would have to say that the highlights of the event were Brooklyn’s Lager (of course!) and Octoberfest, Spaten’s Oktoberfest, and some [unknown to me] brewery’s pumpkin ale. That last pumpkin ale was the best pumpkin beer I’ve ever had. It was sweet, refreshing and tasted like liquid pumpkin pie. I only wish I took note of it.
I can’t wait until next year’s Brewfest. It should be amazing.
Of interesting note is that many tents had Poland Spring water available, and many people were washing their mini-pint glasses out with it.
Check out the rest of Spike’s pictures here
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9:53
Beer on Both Coasts
» Beer at Joe's
Whether you are in NY or SF this weekend there are beer events for you.First up New York City. NY Craft Beer Week begins in force tonight. There are events planned all weekend long. I am hoping to get a roundup of what breweries are there and what they are serving from two of my NY friends and Beer At Joe’s correspondents. Another cool thing that is going on as part of the craft beer week, is the concept of craft beer crawls setup through out New York City. Check it out even if you aren’t in NY now - you can use it as a list of good beer bars to visit when you next go to NY, I know i will. Here onthe west coast, I am very much looking forward to Brews on the Bay - which is an all SF brewery beer fest. It is put on by the SF Brewers Guild and is held on the Jeremiah O’Brien at Pier 45. Lots of good brew, fun crowd, and a great location. Hope the weather is nice - the first year we moved here we went and it was real cold. The entire crowd cheered when a bit of sun came out andthen crept back away. Either way it should not be missed. See you there! 
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9:30
Beer Events on Both Coasts
» Beer at Joe's Whether you are in NY or SF this weekend there are beer events for you.First up New York City. NY Craft Beer Week begins in force tonight. There are events planned all weekend long. I am hoping to get a roundup of what breweries are there and what they are serving from two of my NY friends and Beer At Joe’s correspondents. Another cool thing that is going on as part of the craft beer week, is the concept of craft beer crawls setup through out New York City. Check it out even if you aren’t in NY now - you can use it as a list of good beer bars to visit when you next go to NY, I know i will. Here onthe west coast, I am very much looking forward to Brews on the Bay - which is an all SF brewery beer fest. It is put on by the SF Brewers Guild and is held on the Jeremiah O’Brien at Pier 45. Lots of good brew, fun crowd, and a great location. Hope the weather is nice - the first year we moved here we went and it was real cold. The entire crowd cheered when a bit of sun came out andthen crept back away. Either way it should not be missed. See you there! -
23:55
Trying a Red Eye
» Beer at Joe'sI am currently taking a UC Berkley extension class on food writing. So far the class is great. Here is a beer related excerpt from our first homework:
Flipping through the Ultimate Bar Book, by Mittie Hellmich, I was looking for another drink to fling my tomato water at. I am a beer geek so the Red Eye looked perfect. A Red Eye is a simple cocktail composed of one part tomato juice and four parts beer. Usually the beer is a Mexican lager. Instead I used 21st Amendment’s “Brew Free! or Die IPA” canned craft beer. The strong hop finish went great with the tomato water. A salted lime juice rim tied it all together. Every sip is refreshing and yet also makes me want to change it into a light sauce for grilled meat or pasta.
Try a Red Eye if you ever get a chance. I made mine with Tomato Water - rather light, refreshing, and different.
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14:38
Gearing up for a slow food weekend
» Beer at Joe's
Our first event that is part of Slow Food Nation doesn’t start for about 30 hours - but I am already so excited that I am fidgeting in my seat. This is the food crazed event of the year. While beer is my passion - food has always been my love. It is going to be a great event. Get there if you can. Most events are sold out but you might be able to score an extra taste pavilion ticket at whole foods around the bay area.
The hardest part is deciding what to have. Four hours might seem to be a lot of time but not when there are so many must try items. William Brand breaks what beer you can expect.
And here is the description, from the press kit, of all the varied beverages you can try:
Beer – Randolph Designs
John Randolph designed San Francisco’s Gordon Biersch Brewery and Restaurant and is back to his craft, craft beer that is. Paired with Beer Curator, Dave McLean (Magnolia Pub and Brewery), Randolph has repurposed refrigerated shipping containers to chill and store the 150 microbrews being served via bottle, cask and keg and to provide enclosure in an otherwise windy outdoor location at Fort Mason. The bar, made of recycled beer bottles, will be topped by a loaned Vetrazzo “Alehouse Amber” recycled countertop.Coffee & Tea – envelope Architecture+Design
The Coffee and Tea Pavilions at the Slow Food Nation Taste Hall are conceived of as filters for experience. Sheer fabric enclosed Tea Pods and Coffee Halls remove the visitor from the activity of the larger event. These tasting chambers offer a more intimate taste experience and allow visitors to focus on the cup in their hand, the nuances of the brew, the discussion with an expert.The pavilion design is framed by an ethic of reuse: all elements of the design are either rented readily available items or will be repurposed after the event.Spirits – Min|Day
The Spirits Pavilion is an abstract field of colored strips reminiscent of agricultural planting beneath a floating cloud of colored paper umbrellas. The environment created by the exhibition evokes the agricultural origins of spirits; surplus grains and produce transformed into something magical. Backing this abstracted environment is a long wooden bar clad in historical images of bars, public houses and cocktail lounges from the origins of the American cocktail.Wine – David Winslow, Winslow Architecture
The largest space of the indoor Taste Pavilions, and housing wines from across the nation, the Wine pavilion design features a 36-foot long bar and five tasting tables, staffed by professional sommeliers. In addition, large infographic panels focusing on sustainable wine production and practices, photography from American vineyards and iconic wooden wine barrels will showcase the best of American wines. -
12:17
A beautiful cup of clover
» Beer at Joe'sI recently had an amzing cup of coffee at ritual coffee roasters. I ordered a cup of finca el guayabo from colombia made in a clover. Clean and fresh is the first thing that comes to mind. It was a very flavorful and memorable cup of joe.
Here is a video of ritual demonstrating the use of the clover:
(Please open the article to see the flash file or player.)
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22:07
Toronado Lost Abbey/Port Brewing Report
» Beer at Joe'sLoads of drunken fun last night at Toronado. The place was packed. Here are the draft beers I tried (most favorite first)
Judgment Day - holy crap! I LOVED this beer - this is a dangerous beer - goes down real easy even though it is 11%. I want to make brownies with this beer. It is barrel aged with raisins.
Cable Car - wild yeast - and not that sour. Overall a great example of the style.
2nd Anniversary Imperial IPA - lots of hops - very tasty .
Lost and Found Abbey Ale - this one didn’t blow me away - there was pretty much no corbonation - still flavorful and complex.
Wipeout IPA - i think i might have been a bit drunk at this point - i remember linking this IPA but thinking it wasn’t anything really special but i will have to try it sometime when I sober.
I wanted to buy all the bottles but because of money and ability to carry them home, I ended up with a bottle of Isabella Proximus and Older Viscosity. After a much needed sausage next door, I had some not completly mature but still very good homebrew stout at a friend’s house. Another fantastic Toronado night.
Check out another report on the event from The Thirsty Hopster.
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12:16
A night at Cantina
» Beer at Joe's -
22:58
Speakeasy Anniversary
» Beer at Joe'sIf you aren’t doing anything this coming Saturday and live in the bay area, you might want to head to Speakeasy Ales & Lagers. They are having their 11th anniversary party from 2pm - 6pm and they know how to party. The 10th anniversary was amazing last year - just be careful of the double daddy and big daddy they pack a mean punch. Also come early it gets real crowded. Oh and I would not suggest driving - take the Muni T or 19 bus - or maybe a cab. See you there!
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11:16
Back from the east - Boston Day 1
» Beer at Joe'sBoston was a blast. Very cool city. It had been a long time since I had been to Boston and I don’t think I have ever really explored the city. It was always somewhere I went to visit a friend or go to an event, never to just drink and eat (which of course I love to do). I only had a few hours in Boston before heading to Burlington, to meet up with Jasmine, so I planned on having at least one good meal and some good brew. Eastern Standard was a perfect choice.
Bleary eyed, after a rather long red eye flight, I wondered into Eastern Standard. A large but welcoming bistro, ES, has great beer and kick ass food. I wanted to try a bunch of the beers but i was pretty beat. In all I only had two drinks. My first beer was Harpoon UFO. A standard unfiltered wheat beer that I ordered more for nostalgia reasons then for the sake of trying a new beer. It is a good wheat beer and something I can’t get on the west coast. It also goes great with oysters - the lemon and wheat playing off the briny and sweet.
Not sure what to get next, I poured over the beer and cocktail lists. Both were pretty impressive. I thought about getting the Peak Organic Pale Ale but i wasn’t really in the mood for a pale ale. Then I was very close to getting Hoppin Frog Mean Manalishi Double IPA, and i probably should have looking at its ratebeer score, but a 22oz double IPA just didn’t seem like the way to go at the time. Instead I ordered an Ameri-Beer from the exciting beer cocktail section. The bartender told me that picon is a French biter that has a pretty strong orange flavor. Mixing that with a Czechvar made for a odd but good mixture. Like nothing I had ever had before. A dark bitter beer with a little orange and liquorice flavor to it. If i didn’t know that there was a shot of biter in there i might think this was a new beer i had never had. Overall a great meal and a place i highly recommend.
After that I found myself at Boston Beer Works. Nothing really special, although I did find it interesting that they like putting fruit in their beer. Huge wedge of watermelon in the watermelon wheat and a bunch of blueberries in the blue beer. Not sure I am totally on board with this trend. The heat, beer, and lack of sleep worked it’s magic and I ended up falling asleep on the train to Readercon. I will try and post about the other days we spent in Boston soon.
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10:47
Beer At Joe’s Hits Boston
» Beer at Joe'sI am off to Boston tonight to pick up Jasmine from writer camp and of course explore the food and beer of Boston. Not a lot of beer stuff planed but I am going to try hard to get to The Publick House & Monk’s Cell and The #1 American Owned and Operated Brewery. If you have any other recommendations please comment here!
Be back in a few days.
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9:27
In Bruges
» Beer at Joe'sIf you haven’t seen In Bruges yet and like funny-hitmen-running-around-killing-people type movies, then make sure you rent it. It does have a beer angle but not much. There is one funny beer conversation that goes something like this:
Ray: Can’t we just get a beer already?
Ken: They have over 300 types of beer.
Ray: Well I just want one type and now!
(pic found on [www.syracuse.com])
The rapport of the two main guys is what makes the movie. Another scene has Ray and Ken drinking. Ray gets the beers and hands Ken what he calls “a gay beer” while he has a real beer. You can’t really tell what they are, but the regular beer is in a pint glass while the other one is in a wide mouth glass. Overall the movie is pretty cheeky (I think that is officially my first use of cheeky in a blog).
I wasn’t drinking while watching the movie, but I was thinking about what beer I would pair with it if I was. I mean it should probably be from Belgium. Maybe a Fantôme La Dalmatienne - had one two weeks ago at LaTrappe - awesome beer. Of course Fantome is two hours away from Bruges - oh well.
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9:46
A trip to my local good beer store
» Beer at Joe'sI went out with a friend last night, drank a good bit, ate some awesome pizza, and then took a bus home. The bus drops me off right in front of my local good beer shop, and it wasn’t too late, so of course I had to “check in” and see if they had anything new. Coit Liquor in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco is mostly a wine shop. Despite this fact, they have two and a half coolers full of pretty good beer plus some more beers on the shelf and in back. The beer guy at Coit, Jon St. Vincent, has been working really hard to bring more and more good beer to the shop. When Russian River barrel aged beers came in, he snagged a bunch of them. I can always find a special beer or two there. All of this of course helps me! It’s close to my house and is pretty much on my way home.
Last night was a particularly good score - check it out:
Oh and I hear that they might have Pliny today!
Beer Links:
Blind Pig - Russian River, La Caracole Saxo, and Koningshoeven Bock Trappist Ale
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23:24
Thirsty Hopster throws an IPA Tasting Party
» Beer at Joe'sJJ, The Thirsty Hopster, threw a great IPA tasting last week.
Here is her wrap up.
Instead of going through everything that JJ already goes through (great wrap up - make sure to check it out) - I will just add a few things:
Number of IPA tasting intro videos recorded by Joe: 1
(Please open the article to see the flash file or player.)
Number of times Joe makes annoying sounds while video is being recorded: 2
Number of beers tried at the tasting: 12
Favorite beer tried that I have had before: Dogfish Head 90 Minute
Favorite beer that I had never tried before and want more of: Allagash Hugh Malone
Who is Hugh Malone? Pioneer of all things hop related - I had no idea
Cool beer people met: A whole bunch - It was especially nice to meet - JJ, Gail and Steve from Beer By Bart, Austin and Neal - two homebrewers that live out by the beach - and pretty much everyone else too - very cool group of people.
Number of homebrew beers drank after tasting: 3 samples - tasty
Can’t wait for another one of the Thirsty Hopster’s tastings - And now a few pics:
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12:38
Session #17: Drinking anti-seasonally
» Beer at Joe's“The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco.”
(not said by Mark Twain)And so we have Joe’s-anti-seasonal-bacon-egg-cheese-stout breakfast:
(Please open the article to see the flash file or player.)
Thanks for hosting Rob!
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23:10
A Deschutes Good Time
» Beer at Joe'sLast Friday two events came together very nicely. At work we decided to finally throw a BBQ. We all cooked a bunch of food and got two grills going. So with food all figured out and the weather cooperating, the big question was what are we going to drink. Enter in my coworker Peter. He recently took a trip up the coast of Oregon, and stopped at both Mt Shasta Brewing Company and Deschutes Brewery. He is a very good beer scout, not only did he bring me back a new opener, but plenty of Oregon beer. I have always enjoyed Mirror Pond and Inversion but to get to try a bunch of new beers was a great treat.
The highlight for me was definitely the Twilight Ale from Deschutes. This is not an everyday summer beer. Full flavored but not that sweet, an ale for the outdoors. Sounds like a commercial maybe but really it was a perfect beer for the moment. I paired the ale with tandoori chicken marinated for a few hours then thrown on the grill (thanks Sachin!). The other beer I really enjoyed was Shastafarian Porter. A pretty standard light porter that had good balance of richness and bitterness. And hey it was brewed in Weed, CA!
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16:37
Ok beer - surprise me
» Beer at Joe'sLately I have been getting a little lost in my beer tasting. Lots of good brew, but things are getting a bit muddled. That is probably just my fault, too much of the same or maybe just a laziness when it comes to tasting. But there have been some surprises over the past few weeks. One of those beers was Liberty Ale by Anchor Brewery. I drink Anchor Steam all the time and I like it a lot. Old Foghorn is a favorite too when I can get it. But Liberty Ale I have only tried a few times.
I even remember trying it in bottles awhile back and not being blown away. Recently I drank a few at Epic Steakhouse and boy did it work with the meal. It’s a little sharp for an ale, I like that bite. The hops go great with a hearty meal at a steakhouse. It worked with our food and continued through dessert.
Talking about dessert - a few weeks back - I went to One Market. Excellent meal - I recommend everyone check it out. For dessert I paired a Chimay Red with a great strawberry cream parfait. The sugars in both worked great together and it was a perfect end to the meal. Maybe that is why a surprise combination works so well - you don’t expect it at all.
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9:52
We will not be going to the Great Taste of the Midwest
» Beer at Joe'sSo it looks like a Great Taste of the Midwest ticket is like the French Laundry reservation of the beer world. Hmm… maybe I should look on craigslist (looks like a lot of people wanting tickets and nobody giving them up - smart Midwest beer drinkers).
Note: If any of our Wisconsin friends or family have an extra ticket or can get one, email us!
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10:26
The Endless Feast
» Beer at Joe's
There is a good thread over at What’s on Tap about beercentric TV. First William Brand talked about Three Sheets on MojoHD and then Mario recommended a better show (I agree) called The Thirsty Traveler. I love that show and have probably seen every episode, or at least the ones the DVR picked up in the last year.Another show that people might want to try out is The Endless Feast. It isn’t really beercentric but does have some beer moments and is overall a well done show. The premise is a meal put together with local ingredients by a different chef in each location. The meal is shared with guests, farmers, brewers, and other purveyors, in a field or other outside venues. It is a public television show (on KQED in the bay area) and looks great in HD.
The best beer moment in the show, that I have seen so far, happened in the Red Hook, Brooklyn episode. They paired an urban garden feast with Sixpoint Craft Ales’ beer. The chef that episode, Laurent Saillard, took beautiful pork and shoved the braising pan under the tap (I can’t remember the Sixpoint beer he used - guess I have to watch the episode again) and filled it so it was just covering the meat. I imagine after a some time cooking that was some fine beery pork.
The other beer moment was much subtler but it made me happy. It was in the New Hampshire episode I saw yesterday. It was a beautiful day in an apple orchard. Everyone was enjoying the fresh cheese and wine. And then I saw a few beers on the table. They didn’t really mention it, but it was great to see beer playing a part in the feast. They were drinking Shoals Pale Ale, from Smuttynose.
I haven’t seen all the episodes so hopefully there are more beers to be had with The Endless Feast.
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9:17
Supplication
» Beer at Joe's
Cracked open a Supplication from Russian River the other night. I have tasted this beer only once before and I instantly loved it the first time. I think it might even be the first Russian River beer I ever tried. It is a beer that both challenges and excites. It’s sour but the cherry and pinot flavor draw you in. Crisp but still sweet enough, it is an elusive brew and rather addictive. Just writing this I want to go out and get another one. But I won’t just yet, this is a beer to ponder and to save for just the right time. -
9:28
Keep-your-keg-cold-cozy
» Beer at Joe'sWhat a simple and potentially great idea - KegWorks Insulator
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5:53
Lost your beer in NYC? Use Beer Menus!
» Beer at Joe's
I just came upon a new site out of nyc that for me is not a “I should of thought of that” idea but instead a “oh crap i thought about that but never did it” kind of idea. BeerMenus.com has launched and it looks pretty nifty. Search for a beer that you like and find out what bar serves it. The interface is real simple and clean. They have a place to add beers as a beer drinker in that city would want to do. I bet they try to manually verify those additions. They also have a section for owners to update their own bar. I bet they use a email validation for that to make sure that really is the owner. I love this kind of mashup and think more and more of these types of sites will come up. So check it out and see what you think.
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10:12
Musings on Gin and Tonic from Per Se
» Beer at Joe's
It’s a no beer week for me (see the last post) and so my brain has turned to remembering some other fond drinks. One that I don’t think of much but was probably the finest cocktail I have ever had, was the gin and tonic from Per Se restaurant in New York City. We had already dined there once before. It was a magical meal that I will remember for the rest of my life. On this occasion though, we just stopped in for a drink before having dinner. It was wonderful. A elegant yet accessible start to the evening. The gin and tonic at Per Se was created by Brian Van Flandern. It was around $17 and not a drink I usually like. But I went for it in a kind of “ok try and make me like gin and tonics” way. And boy was I surprised. It was a revelation. I do not remember all the components of the drink unfortunately but overall it was a standard gin and tonic. The secret was house made tonic water made at Per Se using raw quinine powder. I might be embellishing on the memory but I remember the bartender (potentially Brian himself) telling us he sources the powder from a small village somewhere in South America. The drink was everything I have ever wanted out of a gin and tonic. Not brassing or too sweet - subtle and classy even. It even came with a very snazzy silver stirrer. Check out an interview with Brian where he talks a little about the decision to make the drink. -
16:23
Kosher for Passover Beer
» Beer at Joe'sNow for something different:
From the Ramapo Valley Brewery site:
“Our blue ribbon Honey Beer, the Passover Honey Lager is a unique honey-based, gluten free, brew using dedicated equipment that insures the integrity of the beer. People with celiac sprue who normally cannot tolerate glutens in their diet can enjoy this brew without any risk of discomfort. Nevertheless, the great, refreshing flavor can be enjoyed by anyone. This innovative brew is made with neither barley, nor wheat. The main fermentable is amber honey. Molasses is used for flavor, nutrients and color. Bright golden in color, the taste naturally has notes of honey and hop. Noble hops add a touch of bitterness to balance the honey sweetness. This beer is Kosher certified for Passover.”
Doesn’t do very well on Rate Beer.
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16:40
Thanks Mom
» Beer at Joe'sShiny new Beer at Joe’s pint glasses:
