Brewer’s Blog

One of my favorite all-time Simpsons characters has to be Groundskeeper Willie. Between his appearances in the annual “Treehouse of Horror” episodes, his overall surliness and catch phrase, it’s hard to find a Simpsons fan out there who doesn’t appreciate ol’ Willie. According to the internet (so it has to be true), Willie’s character was originally just supposed to be an angry janitor. Dan Castellaneta, who does the voice, originally tried out the character in a Spanish accent, secondly as…

Last month, I wrote to you about the importance of early detection as our best defense against breast cancer. Today, I’m spreading the same message, but this time for the guys. According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the 2nd most common cancer among men (skin cancer is first). Over 2 million men in this country are prostate cancer survivors, so it can be successfully treated if it is detected early enough. In recent years, men’s health has…

The first smoked beer I ever had was Alaskan’s Smoked Porter. I remember going gaga over it, remarking several times how much it tasted like smoked salmon. I later learned that it didn’t actually taste like salmon, but the alder wood that is typically used for smoking salmon is the same wood used for smoking the malt of the porter, and my mind made an taste association. Since then, I’ve tried to buy the annual edition of that beer every…

Although I’ve never been to England (in fact, I’ve never left North America, something I intend to change soon), I’ve wanted to brew an English IPA for some time. I’ve always been a fan of English hops, especially East Kent Goldings, and the delicate and delicious flavors they provide. My favorite English example of the style is probably Bengal Lancer by Fullers, and my favorite domestic example is probably anything from our friends down the street, Hogshead. If anything, it’s…

Pretty…. One of the things that helped me get deep into craft beer when I moved to Colorado was the variety of different beers I found at some of my local liquor stores. I was always impressed that I could find a brewery I had never heard of before, and try a beer from an old favorite that I never had the chance to try before. The selections that were available to me helped me slide down into the rabbit…

    Fresh Nugz in various stages As I believe I’ve stated before, I love fall, and I especially love fall beers. I also like hops. I mean, our slogan is “Hop On!” after all (even though the slogan doesn’t just apply to hops themselves but more applies to inviting others to join you). But we do enjoy hops and hoppy beers here at Joyride. I try my best to not just brew hoppy beers and to cater to the…

  Can you guess which one is which? It may still technically be summer for another 2 weeks or so, but it is looks a lot like autumn inside the brewery right now. Last week we released Touchdown Brown and earlier this week we released our Autumn Seasonal, Scarecrow Pumpkin Ae. Both of these beers were brewed last year, so they’re not “new” per se, but they are new for this calendar year. And since I haven’t written a blog…

I personally think that my love of California Commons and San Francisco go hand in hand. After finishing college, I went on a road trip with a good friend along the west coast and into the mountains. At the end of the trip, I had decided that I was going to move from Chicago to either Denver or San Francisco. I ended up getting a job offer in Denver, and the rest is history. But if I had received an…