or…Why Spend 18 Months Oak Aging When You Can Spend 18 Seconds?

It’s a concept inspired by Randall the Enamel Animal, Dogfish Head’s organoleptic hop transducer module, which runs beer through a water filter packed with fresh hops to wow the drinker with hop sensation.

I’ve been doing a fair amount of oak aging over the last couple of years, splitting batches, experimenting. Being artistic. Being your typical homebrewer, I guess. The wheels are always turning, and one day Randall and bourbon-soaked oak chips clicked in my mind.

Darrell began very simply: oak chips in a plastic bag. I ran stout through the bag and into my glass, having good confidence that the process would strip off bourbon, but less sure about what degree of oakiness might be pulled down into my pint. I tested it out a few weeks back when my Beermapping Buddy, BahHumBrew, stopped in for lunch and a couple of Iowa beers.

Holy crap; it worked!

There is no rocket science here, no involved contraptions. I picked up a piece of PVC, threaded so I could screw in a screen (the kind that you can put in the bottom of your sink to catch debris). That is all.

In go the chips. Through pours the beer. On goes the smile.

No more tying up fermenters because I want to bourbon barrel a couple gallons of stout or pinot-ify a half-batch of wit. I just have my stash of variously flavored chips at the ready. Pour-sip-smile-repeat.

The improvement comes in the appearance department, which is just gonna have to wait. I have ideas beyond simply pouring beer through my didgeridoo, but no time to fool with it just now.

Anyway, dear readers, I give you Darrell the Barreler. Give it a try

I mentioned a while back that I had more movie tidbits to share than the part about our restaurant’s shirts and signage being selected for an upcoming film (The Crazies, set to release in February of 2010–I even play an MP with a badass gun and a HAZMAT suit).

The tidbit is our plan for Electric Burrito’s second anniversary is to launch the Rural Iowa Film Festival. You can find the full call for entries press release on our Burrito Blog.

A cultural outreach project of Electric Burrito and Prairieland Yoga, Rural Iowa Film Festival (RIFF) is a three-day festival which will include five screening sessions and an awards ceremony, as well as beer and wine tastings, yoga workshops and a showcasing of the many sites, shops and art that Corning and The AC have to offer.

Rest assured, there will be beer involved in this multi-faceted cinematic shindig, this celebration of food, film, family and friends. That’s why I’m telling you. You might be or know and love a filmmaker. You might know that I’m partial to beer content. You might be looking for something to do in May of 2010.

Shine on, you crazy diamonds. Beer and movies on the horizon. Cheers!

….where no man has gone before, I think.

RAGBRAI (c) is set to wheel as many as 20,000 bikers right past our doorstep in a little over a week, and I don’t know how much beer to get.

This seven-day bike ride begins at the Missouri River and heads eastward to the Mississippi each July, and features Iowa towns, pork chops, ears of corn, and lotsa pie and beer.

But nobody’s done what I’m doing, and there’s not much advice to be had. If I served Bud, all I’d have to do is ask my distributor and they’d say, “Yep, Wilson, you need to order seven kegs in this situation.” Unfortunately, I’m the only guy in a town of two thousand selling almost exclusively Iowa beers during a RAGBRAI passing through as the lunch stop.

It is bold to not cave, and sell Bud for ease, acceptance and assured profits of a certain amount. But I don’t feel very bold as I guess wildly at how  much to stock. We’ll be doing our regular taps of Millstream’s John’s Generations White Ale and Raccoon River’s Stonecutter Stout. And we’ll be adding Millstream’s Iowa Pale Ale and margaritas (thanks to my homebrew kegs, if ever I can get another one emptied) on draught for the day.

There are a couple of beer-related cycling teams that put together beer guides for the week’s route, and I’ve been contacted by both, and have received emails and read on forums excitement for what we’re doing. That’s encouraging, but how much is enough?

Will we have enough? Will we have too much? Will it rain and crap on even the best-laid plans? Stay tuned…

As I mentioned last quarter, I became curious about how many beers I get through in any given year after taking a look at some of the outlandishly intense resumes submitted for Wynkoop’s Beer Drinker of the Year competition.

So I’m attempting to log all beers consumed for 2009. It’s been difficult to stay disciplined and record everything, and it’s possible at this point that a few have been left off the list, but I’d say it’s a pretty good breakdown of what I’ve actually consumed.

Q1: 123 different beers tried, including 40 new-to-me commercial beers

Q2: 76 different beers tried, including 47 new-to-me commercial beers

Total at the halfway point: 199 beers tried; 87 new beers

My numbers dropped  a little for the second quarter, largely because I had judged at a competition in the first quarter. However, I tried more new beers in the second quarter, which I’d attribute to the trip (and beer buying frenzy) that Kyle and I took to Madison back in April.

Glenn’s right on target with his prediction of 400.

The third quarter is already looking good, as we’re headed to Colorado for some barstool mountaineering in late July, and then Madison again for The Great Taste of the Midwest in August.

Pretty much no way of not sounding like a sore loser on this one, but the fact is: I was robbed.

Who else wrapped their hot dog in bacon? Who else utilized ancho and chipotle chocolate shavings? Who else used good mustard? Who else paired their hot dog with an ‘07 Duck-Rabbit Wee Heavy? No one but me.

And still, I was not most appetizing, most creative, funniest or best overall. Those accolades were reserved for the inedible “angel” hot dog, the “porcupine” hot dog and the “palm tree dog leaning against a hot dog log” hot dog. I won’t even mention some of the others. The shame in them is that they didn’t beat some of the pathetic winners, because Jake’s “clam sticking his tongue out dog” was actually pretty cool.

Black Eyed Peas said it best: “They don’t want music.” It is hard to be an artist in a land of rednecks. I must remember that competition in art is silly. I’m proud of my hot dog, so shoot me for my necessary rant.

Though there was a mighty storm well before the film came out, I found it pointless to chime in, as I hadn’t seen it and didn’t know what I was talking about. After all, “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”

Thanks to the Hallmarkian Father’s Day, I now have a copy of Beer Wars (and some yummy bacon chocolate) and recently sat down to give it my attention. Basically, I thought it was a pretty good movie. It told the tale, and was a well-made documentary. This would be the kind of info that we’d want more and more people to see. Many of us in the Beer Geek Crowd are already familiar and sympathetic to the craft brewers’ plight, to some degree or another. But there’s a huge segment of our population that knows as much about beer as it does about processed cheese slices.

So why all the pre-release bitching? Press releases were sent out, and many bloggers posted info of the then-upcoming film. There was anticipation and dialogue. What’s wrong with that? Filmmaker Anat Baron would have been a fool to have not tried to generate interest and momentum. Her efforts worked, and it was not only beer bloggers that passed along her information, but also mainstream media. The latter, far more important, I’d wager.

There were also press releases from other sources. Rhonda and Moonshot, for example. She also would have been a fool not to have taken advantage of this opportunity to garner a little attention for her product in this situation.

A blogger has freedom. One can utilize these press releases. Or not. There are a number of beer blogs that rely heavily on these for content. I don’t. That’s not to say I don’t from time to time. I do, ever so occasionally. Does it massage my ego to know that I’m getting press releases in my inbox and samples at my doorstep? Yes. That’s pretty cool, but I’ll sleep at night if they don’t come.

I mentioned months ago that Beer Wars was coming. I didn’t mention Moonshot. Why not Moonshot? Because it sounds stupid to me. To me, it’s a niche product heading in the wrong direction, grasping at the coattails of craft beer’s rise. Have I ever tasted it? No. I would, but even if it tastes good, I probably wouldn’t drink much of it. I don’t drink much soda, and I’m not anti-caffeine, but I just think this is a lame idea and an inappropriate juxtopositioning of product, bad for our scene. I choose to drink beers of integrity, and to spend my money carefully. I don’t support McDonalds, Wal-Mart, Budweiser or Prozac, and this beer would have to be pretty incredible to win my dollars. I think it’s a gimmick to make money.

Is it horrible that Baron used this story in her film? Flatly, no. The film took on two stories from the start, and you never know how events will play out in a film of this nature. Rhonda had a successful beer story on her resume (Sam Adams), so would have been a good person to follow. To put together a good story, whether a novel, movie or campfire tale, one needs a good guy (Sam), a bad guy (August), and it never hurts to have a bonehead (Rhonda).

The special features of the DVD include the live panel discussion that followed the premier back in April, and it made for fun watching. One question that came via twitter struck me (and I paraphrase): At what point does craft beer shift from Underdog to The Establishment? The important answer came from Stone’s Greg Koch: “as long as we don’t change our fundamental philosophy” [this won't happen]. Greg spoke of intent as the difference in macro and micro earlier in the discussion. Terribly important point, but I thought this question lent a missed opportunity: while I like being the underdog and a part of this tasty movement, what would be wrong in a shift of what “The Establishment” is? What would be wrong with having flavor and artisinal products shift from 5% of the market to 75% of the market? Films like this can plant seeds to make that happen. And so can you.

Before and after the release of the film, I read comments of the “preaching to the choir” ilk. I find it appalling that these folks didn’t realize that they have a job to do. Get out of your comfort zone and bring someone to the screening. Invite someone to watch your DVD. Not your beer buddies, but your macro-drinking friends. Get off your duff and make war. Promote beer. Have tastings for friends. When I heard the film was coming, I said on my post: “Tell your friends. More importantly, tell your enemies.” Anat can’t do it alone. And we don’t help her by bitching about a press release or Ben Stein or Mike’s Hard Lemonade before the film even hits the screen. Or after.

Critics are good and a healthy component of society. But there is a difference between offering constructive criticism and simply complaining and tearing someone down. Human nature must be resisted if credibility is to be had. I am reminded of a post I wrote many moons ago, on Armchair Brewer Syndrome. I’d encourage you to read it, and then ruminate a little on the idea of Armchair Filmmaker Syndrome, which is pretty much the same.

To criticize then, and briefly: Beer Wars is an important story, well told. It is a helpful contribution to the beer canon, and one we can only hope the masses will eventually see (and then act on).

I personally would have preferred if Baron’s introduction of herself would have used the term beverage (not beer) industry to describe her familiarity with the beer aisle. Mike’s Hard Lemonade certainly must fight for shelf space like Dogfish Head does, but it’s a mildly related alcoholic beverage. Her credibility for making the film lies in her small business experience.

The meat was in the middle. Compelling, insightful. Made me thirsty, so I grabbed a beer.

And then, It was over. I thought the film would have been complete with a more structured conclusion. It just sorta stopped. And the credits came. And I felt like there was just a little something missing.

A good flick, but useless if the Good Beer Army doesn’t utilize it as a tool to win the war. It’s a foot in the door, a kick in the pants, a line in the sand about more than just beer. Artisan product versus commodity. It’s about the cheese we eat, the meat we eat, the bread we eat, the veggies we eat, the hardware store we support, the car we drive. But some won’t notice that. Beer Wars is a multi-faceted challenge.

Yep, that means you have a job to do. Are you doing it?

Brother Glenn pointed out that perhaps I should take the unappreciated “stained glass” from my home to decorate our restaurant. Alas, I’m way ahead of him, though utilizing my favorite tequila bottles, rather than the beery sort:

These, she likes the looks of as they adorn all the dining room windows. Unfortunately, Cabo just changed their bottles, and the cool blue ones are no more.

She may be a Wonderful Beer Wife, putting up with yeast on the ceiling, allowing vacations to be planned around brewery tours and whatnot, but she doesn’t seem to like my recent tendency to create “living” stained glass art in the kitchen window.

She’s complaining again. Time to “clean up.”

According to the London Telegraph, there really is a church after my own heart.

Of course, there are the expected detractors, and the approving bishop uses the term “downmarket” to compare beer to the wine they serve for communion each week. But it’s a practical way to bless fathers, coupled with a challenge to do their fathering well.

And beer isn’t the only way identified to drum up church attendance. There are also the churches now serving bacon!

Mmmmmm…..bacon.

Iowa’s laws make it fairly difficult for a small dairy girl to get a cheese operation into the commercial realm. So she maintains a massive garden, milks her cows and keeps herself stocked in fresh butter and a variety of cheeses. And she gives good Christmas presents to her family.

Thankfully I know her. And she will trade cheese for beer!

A week ago, we coordinated our schedules and hooked up for a bit of a tasting. And trade. Boy, are my buds happy. She pulled out fresh queso blanco and mozzarella, as well as aged parmesan and colby. I brought along Millstream’s Iowa Pale Ale and Schild Brau, Hub City’s Olde Browne Porter and Viking’s Big Swede. There was also a bottle of chianti sitting on the table, which I tried to confirm that Garrett Oliver is right about red wines sucking with cheese, generally (prolly not a direct quote).

It did suck, but the beers worked quite nicely, and I specifically found myself pleased with Hub City’s Porter.The HC beers all maintain a very restrained level of carbonation, and the porter I always look at as good, but not great. However, it was right fabulous on this day, most likely because it had had an opportunity to warm to a reasonable serving temperature. I must admit that if I happen to pull one out of the cooler, it’s because I’m thirsty and not planning a drink in advance. And don’t warm it up. That cooler is quite cold, so the beer is seldom at its potential.

But it was this day, as were the cheeses and the company.