By Amy Tindell

Over the holiday, my parents brought me to a 97 year old Colorado Springs elementary school building in order to explore an 18 year old brewery. Ivywild School closed to students in 2009, but community members Joe Coleman, Mike Bristol, and Jim Fennell breathed new life into the neighborhood’s centerpiece with their vision of linking commerce and community through a focus on local businesses with sustainable practices, all thriving under one roof. This reincarnation of the elementary school continues as a community project, reflected in the garden beds waiting just outside, painted by camp classes at Millibo Art Theater located in the church across the street. The architects insisted that the repurposed space maintain its identity as a former elementary school, leaving intact its old-style, wide hallways, children’s art lining the walls, and the art teacher’s murals painted in the bathrooms.

Bristol Brewing Company, Ivywild’s anchor tenant, has been a presence in Colorado Springs since 1994. The brewery believes strongly in contributing to local communities and does not distribute outside Colorado. Bristol crafts ales from only natural ingredients and strives to create beer that brings to mind “quality, purity, and sanity” in its imbibers. Bristol’s Community Ale program donates 100% of its proceeds to support local causes that improve lives of Colorado Springs citizens.
The move to Ivywild allowed Bristol to expand its operations to a new 34-barrel brewhouse custom-made by BrauKon in Bavaria, Germany. In addition to the brewhouse and fermentation room, Bristol maintains a pub with a growler station, an outdoor patio, a barrel-aging room, and behind the old elephant doors from the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, an event area called “The Wildcat Room” in honor of Ivywild’s mascot.

My parents and I chose a table at the pub, ordered some brats from the deli down the hall, and settled into a flight of Bristol’s five flagship beers – Laughing Lab Scottish Ale, Beehive Honey Wheat, Mass Transit Ale, Red Rocket Pale Ale and Compass India Pale Ale – along with the seasonal Christmas Ale. Laughing Lab, having won nine medals since the founding of the brewery in 1994, currently stands as the most decorated Colorado beer at the Great American Beer Festival. It boasts the slightly sweet, nutty, roasted flavors common to Scottish Ales, and feels smooth going down.

We all agreed that the Red Rocket Pale Ale and the Christmas Ale were the other standouts of the bunch. The pale ale starts and finishes with bitter hoppiness, but I enjoyed the grassy hop aroma and bready, earthy malt profile. The brew is quite light in the mouth, and almost watery in feel. As intended, the Christmas ale smells and tastes like Christmas. Bristol incorporates cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves and molasses with 2-row, Crystal, Chocolate, and Black malts and Chinook hops into this beer. Its light body balances the diversity of ingredients to create a more drinkable brew than most holiday ales.

In addition to Bristol Brewing Company, Ivywild is home to Fennell’s architecture group, three of Joe Coleman and the Blue Star Group’s food-centered projects, and other like-minded ventures.

The Blue Star Group’s new ventures occupy the south wing of the school, focusing on local, handmade specialty offerings, including The Meat Locker, The Old School Bakery, and The Principal’s Office, a craft espresso/cocktail bar, which serves Bristol’s beers at night. At the Principal’s Office, a repurposed chalkboard forms the bar, and chains from playground swings support the wine racks hanging from the ceiling.

In between the brewery and the Blue Star Group, Hunt or Gather offers local fresh seasonal meats, cheeses, milk, produce, honeys, jams and other treats. Supported by the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, it seeks to rebuild the local food economy through educational programs and providing access to these goods to the surrounding community. Downstairs, where my mom once taught kindergarteners, The ModboCo school for the arts, founded by the Modbo art gallery in downtown Colorado Springs, will offer classes and workshops designed to “bring integrity, joy, and purpose to those who seek to learn about art.” Filling the last available space at Ivywild at the front of the former school, Bicycle Experience encourages cyclists to grab a snack and a brew while enthusiast co-owners Todd Hood and Bubba “Blaze” Hayes tune up their bikes.

The Fennell Group, the architecture firm behind Ivywild’s transformation, occupies a space just down the hall from the Blue Star Group ventures. Also known for its projects at Air Force Space Command and the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, the firm describes the new Ivywild as “a neighborhood multi-use infill development that is highly sustainable, promotes pedestrian activity, and revitalizes the identity of a neighborhood in decline.”

The architects envisioned attaining these goals through symbiosis, “the free exchange of byproducts among the various users in the proposed district that creates efficiencies for the benefit of everyone in the district.” For example, spent grains from the brewery will find a home at the bakery, which in turn will produce delicious breads and pretzels to be served at the brewery’s pub. Other brewing by-products, including grains and greywater, will contribute to irrigation and fertilization processes in the greenhouse at Ivywild and the community garden plots outside. Heat from the brewing process and the greenhouse will circulate to warm the building in winter months. This strategy of converting one venture’s waste into a neighbor’s resource is thought to reduce operating costs and energy demands, thus maximizing efficiencies for all at the Ivywild site.

At Ivywild, these businesses and their sustainable practices certainly live up to Bristol Brewing Company’s emphasis on quality, purity, and sanity in their lifestyle and their products. I’m pretty sure we can all use a little more of all three, so if you find yourself in the Colorado Springs area, make a point to take advantage of all that this feel-good destination has to offer.

By Amy Tindell

You’ve been so good this year: you got a raise at work, you supported your family and friends, and you started your holiday shopping early. Indeed, the only remaining entry on your shopping list is that crazy beer friend, and a six-pack just isn’t going cut it. Fear not, for you can finish off that year of “good” with a bang.

*** She needs her beer right now. ***
Does your beer aficionado always want things right away? Might she be a tad bit impatient? Then try the Corkcicle Chillsner Beer Chiller, so she never has to wait for a cold beer.

*** He’s a slow drinker. ***
Are you sometimes three drinks in, while your buddy continues to nurse his first beer? Do you also secretly believe that a beard would add some dignity to his look? The Beerd Can Beer Cozy is sure to make both of you happy.

*** She combines her hobbies. ***
Does your friend balance her beer consumption with trips to the gym? Does she already own one of these? Make sure she is prepared for her next “booze cruise” with a beer cycling jersey!

*** He likes the science-y part of beer. ***
Does your beer sipping friend regale you with endless tales of his laboratory prowess? In his free time, does he muse about microorganisms and optimal fermentation temperatures? Reward his scientific curiosity with the Brooklyn Brew Beer Making Kit.

***She wants to learn more about agri-brewing. ***
Have you ever heard your friend talk lovingly about the garden on her fire escape? Does she also brew her own beer? Give her a head start on her next brew day, with the Grow It Beer Hops Kit.

*** He documents his drink. ***
Have you ever caught your friend furiously writing notes about his beer on a napkin? Might he need some guidance in properly recording his deep thoughts on mouthfeel and aroma? Gift him with the Moleskine Beer Journal, and he’ll never forget a beer again.

*** She prefers her soap to be naturally beery. ***
Does your fellow malt imbiber constantly scan product labels for natural ingredients? Does she like to support craft breweries? Support her in achieving both lofty goals with this beer soap.

*** He plays games. ***
Is your hophead part of your Monday night trivia team? Does he obsess about beer minutiae? Feed his nerdgasm with the Beer Nerd Trivia Game, and your team will thank you for it.

*** He likes to have all the proper accoutrements. ***
Have you ever noticed that your friend has the right tool for everything? Does he always use the correct fork at fancy dinners? Make sure he’s drinking his beer “properly” with these beer glasses.

*** Her dog likes beer too. ***
Would your friend prefer to drink in the company of her trusted canine companion? Do you get jealous when she chooses to stay home with her dog instead of drinking beer with you? Next time, invite Fido along, but make sure you are prepared with Brew Bones.

There you have it. Don’t be a Mad Elf – instead be Santa’s Little Helper. Who knows what rewards will come your way just for being good?

By Amy Tindell

Watch out hops: yeast is about to become beer’s new darling. More commercial breweries, and home brewers, are experimenting with this living part of beer. Yeast wranglers are making a name for their trade, and inspiring scientific creativity in producing signature flavors in beers.

One yeast that seems to be drawing renewed attention is Brettanomyces. Brettanomyces, nicknamed Brett by those who work alongside it, is a non-spore forming genus of yeast in the family Saccharomycetaceae. In the wild, Brett lives on the skins of fruit, and when grown in the lab with large amounts of glucose, can produce acetic acid. Some know it as “wild yeast;” I know it as the “Belgiany” part of Belgian beers.

Brett was discovered in 1904 at the Carlsberg brewery. An employee identified the yeast as a potential cause of spoilage in English ales, forever relegating it to be known by the Greek term for “British fungus.” Indeed, brewers traditionally avoid Brettanomyces as a contaminant and source of unwelcome flavors. In particular, Brettanomyces produces three compounds with high sensory profiles – 4-ethyl phenol, 4-ethyl guaiacol and isovaleric acid– as it eats the sugars in the brew. 4-ethyl phenol is the culprit behind those “band-aid” and barnyard aromas that some beers feature, and 4-ethyl guaiacol gets credit for the bacon, smoky, spicy, and burnt wood smells. Isovaleric acid and its esters produce a fruity quality in a beer at best, but in certain quantities can lend sweaty, barnyard, smoky, or cheesy/rancid qualities to the brew.

Brettanomyces may be used alone or in combination with other microorganisms in the fermentation process. Lambics and Flanders red ales, for example, are fermented with a traditional brewer’s yeast like Saccharomyces along with Brett. Saccharomyces performs most of the heavy lifting, eating most of the sugar, and finishes its work early. In contrast, the wild yeast Brett evolved to eat wood sugars, and thus can process more complex sugars, working slowly. Thus, Brett does not require great quantities of sugar, and in a controlled environment where it will not dry out the beer over time, can produce some unique and desirable flavors.

100% Brett fermentation continues to be an experimental practice with less predictable results than fermenting with traditional brewing yeasts. Because Brett will consume almost all the sugars in a beer, surviving for months or years in the fermenter or in a bottle, the brew has the potential to become very dry. Brewers also use Brett, a capable CO₂ producer, to bottle condition beers. However, brewers must use caution because that continued activity of Brett can increase carbonation over time, risking the creation of “bottle bombs.”

In addition to the more traditional styles of Cantillon Rosé de Gambrinus, Liefmans Brown Ale, and Duchesse de Bourgogne, all brewed in Belgian breweries, American breweries including Port Brewing Company, Russian River Brewing Company, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, and New Belgium Brewing Company have all fermented beers with Brettanomyces bruxellensis. Those who appreciate Brett’s work describe these beers as slightly sour and earthy in smell and taste; others may highlight the “barnyard” or “wet horse blanket” characteristics. To find out where you fit in, try one of these beers: you, too, may embrace the “British fungus.”

By Amy Tindell

When a barley wine is on tap, the bartender inevitably fields the question, “Is this a beer or a wine?” more than once. A good bartender will be able to explain the differences between the two beverages in interesting and accurate detail. I, on the other hand, was prepared only to reply something along the lines of: “Well, it’s made with grain, and not fruit, so I’m pretty sure it’s a beer.” While accurate, the explanation left a lot to be desired, so I promised to investigate the matter further.

In brief, barley wine is a sweet, malty ale with an alcohol strength between 8-14% by volume and brewed with specific gravities as high as 1.120. Barley wines are not hoppy and feature flavors of dark fruits, sweet malts and sherry, and may acquire woody notes from barrel aging.

“Barley wine” originated in England in the nineteenth century, coined by the Burton brewery of Bass, Ratcliff, and Gretton as a label for its Bass No. 1 Ale. Rumor has it that Bass and others developed the ale for British aristocrats who had developed a taste for strong alcoholic beverages, but were deprived of French wine due to the many conflicts between England and France during the Second Hundred Years’ War. The aristocrats kept barley wine to themselves for years, but it was eventually marketed by Bass to all alcohol lovers. Unfortunately, shortly afterwards, Great Britain decided to tax higher-gravity beer at a higher rate, thus reducing the number of breweries that could brew a barley wine and continue to stay in business.

While the ingredients, equipment, and process of brewing a barley wine are essentially the same as brewing a typical ale, a brewer uses different quantities of ingredients and applies different techniques to certain process steps. For example, to get that strong malt character and ABV, a brewer adds 3-4 times the normal amount of malt per gallon to the brew. Also, the boil time for the wort is usually longer, concentrating it to achieve that high gravity.

Further, most brewers recommend using an especially strong, healthy yeast that can survive the high-alcohol environment and pitching 2 to 2.5 times the regular yeast pitching weight for a typical American Pale Ale, which has ~1.050 original gravity. Due to the large quantities of sugar and yeast, the active fermentation step must be tracked carefully, adjusting temperature and even stirring the brew if necessary to rouse the yeast. Once the active fermentation is complete, the barley wine should be left at a fermentation temperature of between 66 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit for 1-3 weeks. During this period, the yeast eliminates undesirable fermentation by-products such as diacetyl, which adds a “slippery” mouthfeel and buttery taste. Then, a brewer will chill the brew to 34-38 degrees, for 90 days to a few years. Sometimes, this “cold storage” step takes place in wooden barrels to impart more complex flavors on the brew.

In the late 1960s and 1970s, the concept of beer experienced a revival, and the barley wine style benefitted from this renewed interest. In the U.S., both Anchor Brewing and Sierra Nevada in California began brewing barley wines in the mid-1970s. Today, with the proliferation of craft beer, there are many more choices, and the upcoming winter months create the perfect environment to cozy up with a barley wine. Locally, you might seek out Pretty Things Our Finest Regards, Smuttynose Barleywine Ale, or Berkshire Brewing Company Raspberry Barley Wine Style Ale… Just remember that the high ABV might prevent you from venturing too far after the indulgence, so grab that nice glassware, start the fire, put your feet up, and make a night of it.

By Amy Tindell

The Portland that’s beloved by those of us on the East Coast is the land of lobsters and chowder (though not necessarily pronounced as spelled), lighthouses, and in more recent years, breweries. The beer scene has grown sufficiently to support an entire Beer Week, complete with running tours, a beer bus, and a scavenger hunt.

I recruited a Portland resident wise in local businesses and politics, and lured a survivor of my springtime NoVa Brewtopia Weekend across the Mason-Dixon line, to join me in this celebration of New England hops and malt concoctions. Upon arrival in Portland, our first move, naturally, was to fortify ourselves with seafood chowder and a lobster roll at Gilbert’s, followed by a delicious dark chocolate & sea salt treat from The Holy Donut. The taps at Gilbert’s incorporate the nautical theme of the chowder house and feature beers made within a 5 mile radius of the city.

Our bellies prepped, we decided to focus on Rising Tide Brewing Company, open since 2010 and now brewing in the diverse East Bayside neighborhood. The brewery is family-owned and specializes in artisanal ales brewed in small batches, all unfiltered, unpasteurized, and bottle conditioned. Having beaten the brew bus to the bar by mere seconds, we quickly ordered our tasting flights, which included Ishmael, Armada, Daymark, and Ursa Minor.

Rising Tide identifies Ishmael as an “American Copper Ale,” but some may call it a German-style altbier with American hops. The nose and taste are similar, with caramel, grain, and malt notes, starting off slightly sweet on the tongue and finishing a touch on the bitter side. I found it lighter, in mouthfeel and in flavor, than some altbiers I’ve tried recently. The second taste, Armada, is the brewery’s American Brown Ale, with a strong malt flavor balanced by a bitter finish, and also on the light side in mouthfeel.

Halfway through our flights, we decided to re-fortify with snacks – and to create some distance from the newly arrived running tour – by venturing to the foodtruck parked outside. Rising Tide invites foodtrucks every Saturday to complement its beers, this week featuring El Corazon, which offers locally sourced taquitos, tamales, and burritos. We displayed our best manners, dining with one hand holding the food and the other tossing sandbags.

Rising Tide’s Daymark, the third brew of our flight, is its flagship American Pale Ale with a rye twist. It pours in hazy golden tones, with scents of flower and citrus hops. The Columbus and Centennial hops add a citrus bite to the flavor as it hits the tongue, but the flavor transforms with the peppery bitterness of the rye. These more aggressive tastes are balanced by earthy malts that add sweetness to the brew. Rising Tide takes pride in sourcing the rye from local farms and malting it at artisanal Valley Malt in Hadley, Massachusetts.

The final taste came in the form of a Weizen Stout called Ursa Minor. The brew appears smooth and black-brown in color, with aromas of dark fruit and roasted malts. The taste also has dark fruit notes, but features in addition coffee, chocolate, and sweet roast flavors, with only a small wheat bite. This Weizen Stout is thinner than you’d expect, but I did not find that to be a bad thing. Ursa Minor was interesting and much more drinkable than I’d anticipated… I’d like to try it again, in fact, because I was distracted during the tasting by the equipment that made it – a custom-built fifteen-barrel brew system that produces about 120 barrels per month.

Our flights drained, we completed our journey with T-shirts and a few bottles to enjoy later. Happily for Rising Tide, we started a merchandise trend with the bus tour and the running tour – what is beer week about if not spreading the love?

By Amy Tindell

I optimistically inquired of Google where a girl might find some adventure in Newark, NJ prior to a recent business trip there. Google showed me only sites advertising establishments that had closed within the past two years, or advising me to take the 12-minute train ride to NYC. In case I had doubts about Newark’s coolness, Selena Gomez was to perform in Newark the night I arrived.

Not quite dissuaded, I ended up at the Dinosaur BBQ downtown, conveniently located between my firm and the hotel. Indeed, there were two (2) beers that I had not yet tasted, both from the Garden State itself. If that is not adventure, I don’t know what is.

My first order, eliciting a smile from the bartender, who had just served 6 Bud Lights, was for a Flying Fish Hopfish. Flying Fish Brewing Company was founded on the Internet in its early days, around 1995, as a “virtual brewery.” It seems that the Founder, Gene Muller, used the website to advertise the brand and raise money for the brewery, before producing his first beer in September 1996. Muller’s idea was to “give beer lovers a chance, via their computers, to roll up their cyber-sleeves and … help select and name beers, design t-shirts and labels, volunteer to be a taste-tester and even apply for a job as a brewer.” IRL*, Flying Fish is located in Somerdale, NJ and now the largest craft brewery in the state.

Flying Fish produces four full-time beer styles, in addition to its seasonal beers. It prides itself on balance, a quality much appreciated by a non-hophead ordering an IPA in the US. Hopfish does feature a healthy hop bitterness, but as advertised, this IPA is balanced by a healthy, slightly sweet, malt backbone that marries American, English, and German malts. The finish has a floral, citrus quality thanks to extensive dry hopping with 22lbs of Nugget Hops. Though not meant for a West Coast hophead, this tasty IPA certainly contributed to the night’s adventures for this (balanced) American girl.

My next adventure (read: order), copied by my now-intrigued tablemates, was a Kane Overhead Imperial. Kane Brewing Company was built in Ocean Township, NJ, and got its start in 2011, after its Founders spent years in B-school, wearing suits, and touring the world’s breweries. The brewery specializes in American- and Belgian-style ales, sold only in central and northern NJ. The Overhead Imperial pours a dark gold, slightly amber color, and thanks to several hops additions (Columbus, Amarillo, Simcoe, Centennial), smells of citrus and tropical fruit. The aroma does not mislead, as the taste fronts with a heavy dose of tropical and citrus fruits and bitterness, but the brew is balanced by sweet malts, caramel and pine notes, and a pronounced grapefruit and alcohol finish. Overall, it was a very enjoyable DIPA (Double India Pale Ale).

So there you have it: even in Newark, one may find hitherto unknown tastes. And who knows what further adventures await on the walk home?

*IRL = in real life

I couldn’t help but notice that the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, which regulates breweries new and old in this country, is one of many government agencies facing furloughs. According to the U.S. Treasury Department’s website, only 35 of 483 employees will continue to work, until Congress does its work. Those 35 employees are those “necessary to perform activities necessarily implied by law” and those “necessary for protection of life and property.” Notably, those 35 employees are not ones who participate in “processing of permits, [and] certificates of label approval.” Thus, the upshot of the government shutdown for the beer industry is that the government won’t be issuing any new permits for new breweries. It also means that there will be no new certificates issued for new beers or new imports. Amendments to current licenses will also be restricted, so any brewery with expansion plans will be stalled for the time being. Thus, for now, beer lovers can buy only existing beers on the market, provided their labels haven’t changed … a serious limitation for experimental types. Interestingly, “processing of tax returns” and “maintaining minimum staff necessary to perform accounting functions” are considered “necessary for the safety of human life or protection of property.” Therefore, the agency will continue to collect money from the beer industry, without providing any of the services that allow breweries to begin, maintain, or grow their businesses. In the face of these obstacles imposed by the government shutdown, breweries seem to be maintaining their collaborative spirit, at least with furloughed (“nonessential”) government employees: Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, MD is offering free tours for furloughed government employees. I like to imagine that the
employees from the TTB may be eligible for further beer-oriented benefits.

Last week, Clown Shoes and Brash Brewing teamed up for a tap takeover at Sunset Grill and Tap in Allston. With Sunset featuring over 100 taps and almost four times as many bottles, Clown Shoes and Brash faced heavy competition, but they still managed to win the night. Clown Shoes offered fifteen different brews, from their light, summery Clementine White Ale, to their Swagger Hoppy Red Lager, to some very serious stouts. Brash, recently exiled from its home state of Texas due to the state’s three tier alcohol distribution laws, and brewing again alongside Clown Shoes in Ipswich, brought five different beers, including its Cold Ass Honky Hoppy Saison and Texas Exile Imperial Oatmeal Coffee Stout.

Luckily, the Craft Beer Crew made the journey to Sunset to help the Allston regulars make their way through the Clown Shoes and Brash kegs. Highly seasoned amateurs, the Craft Beer Crew understood that there’s not much choice when faced with such a tap takeover other than to indulge in a beer flight. Joining the fray, I ordered three Clown Shoes beers – the Very Angry Beast, the Bombay Berserker Indian Chai Stout, and the Pecan Pie Porter – and one Brash beer – the Bollocks Double IPA

As its kind is wont to do, the Very Angry Beast made me quite happy, with its up-front assault on the taste buds and a complex follow-through of different flavors. Clown Shoes brands this Beast as an American Double Imperial Stout, but there’s more to it than that. What hits you first is the woody, vanilla flavor imparted by the Four Roses Bourbon barrels that aged this brew. Then, it offers deep chocolate and espresso undertones, supported by a solid, roasted malt backbone. The 11.5% ABV of this brew is apparent in its aroma and taste. Clown Shoes made only five kegs of this Very Best beer of the night.

The Bombay Berserker is also styled as an American Double Imperial Stout, but it falls on the chai side of beers, if such a side exists. Indeed, it smells and tastes of chai tea, cardamom, ginger and cinnamon… but it comes in stout form. I was not as enthusiastic about this combination, but it cultivated a solid following that night. The Pecan Pie Porter is Clown Shoes’ Fall seasonal beer, with the reasoning that “everyone else does pumpkin beers.” While I didn’t perceive much pecan pie taste, it is a noticeably nutty porter, with a slightly buttery taste that plays well with the roasted malt notes.

My second favorite beer was Brash’s Bollocks. Brash accurately notes: “At 12% ABV and 110 IBUs, it’s the liquid equivalent of Lenny in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Gently tending rabbits then suddenly … snap, it’s a whirlwind of crazy.” There’s nothing I like more than a whirlwind of crazy (aside from a Very Angry Beast), and Bollocks did not disappoint. The focus of the aroma is citrus-y fruit, malt, and booze. There’s a solid background of bitterness to the taste, but on top of it floats hops in the guise of citrus and pine, sweet caramel malts, and alcohol heat. For me, this DIPA was definitely an attention-grabber, and its complexity did not distract, but instead contributed to its deliciousness.

Small breweries are experimenting more and more with different beer styles. Keep an eye out for style debuts and tap takeovers at your local establishments – your taste buds will thank you.