Blog

One of the coolest things about our industry is the level of camaraderie between different breweries and their brewers. We really enjoy talking and hanging out with each other and exchanging information. When we were in the planning stages of opening up Joyride, many different breweries were very open with their information in order to help us out. To this day, most brewers willfully give up just about any detail about a beer that I’m curious about. Hopefully, everyone will…

While our Irish Stout is produced and released with St. Patrick’s Day in mind, an Irish Stout can be, and should be, so much more than just a St. Pat’s Day treat. That being said, I certainly had my fair share of Stouts last night. But we shouldn’t let the word “stout” scare us off. A lot of people bunch all styles of stout together in one group, assuming they are all super thick, syrupy, boozy and in your face.…

There’s an old and famous saying in the wine industry that “It takes a lot of great beer to make great wine.” Russian River Brewing Company in the heart of California wine country even makes a beer named that. The reason is that when workers on the vineyard are sweating in the sun, they’re usually reaching for some brewskis instead of a bold Cabernet. If it takes a lot of great beer to make great wine, then it must take…

I’ll admit it, when I first got into craft beer, I didn’t give lagers, especially Pilsners, much respect. To me, the word “lager” was synonymous with with the bland, yellow, fizzy stuff I was trying to move away from. It certainly didn’t help that German and Czech lagers actually are yellow and have higher carbonation levels. However, as I matured as a craft beer drinker, I learned that “lager” wasn’t a dirty word at all, it has just been bastardized…

We were already working on a recipe for a new lower alcohol pale ale when we heard of David Bowie’s passing. Although I have never been a Bowie superfan, I respected him and his work. One of our assistant brewers, Nathan, suggested we make a Bowie tribute beer. I knew that the new pale ale I was making was going to exclusively use Simcoe hops, so I racked my brain for an appropriate tie in. Finally, I thought of Ziggy…

Saison might have been the first beer style that made me go “whoa.” I had drank a lot of American craft styles, such as Ambers, Browns, Stouts, Pale Ales and IPAs, but hadn’t ventured into the Belgian styles yet. I think my first Saison was probably Ommegang’s “Hennepin” or Boulevard’s “Tank 7.” Once I got my hands on one, I was obsessed. It almost immediately became my favorite beer style (for a time, at least). To this day, it is…