Monday morning musing: Beer gaining ground

Having spent much of three days in airports, airplanes and a moving car (a new project I’ll write about here sooner than later) I’m in serious catch-up mode this morning, but early on noticed a post at Miller’s Brew Blog indicating the sales balance between spirits and beer may be beginning to swing back beer’s way.

Makes perfect sense to me since I used my airplane time to breeze through “The Business of Spirits,” which “describes how clever marketing, innovative production methods, and a booming market for luxury goods turned small, family-run business into huge global corporations.”

This could be one of those magazine cover curse things &#151 once a trend turns up on the cover of a prominent magazine (or this case a whole book is devoted to it) that means it has crested. After all, demand for spirits has always been cyclical.

Of course if that is the case then we should start worrying about “craft” beer given the attention that growth in the category is getting. (Today’s Wall Street Journal has a story about Bell’s Brewery and its distribution dispute in Chicago – subscription required.)

An interesting book, although one I’d suggest grabbing out your local library than adding to your own collection. And for fun, one quote:

Soon, says Dave Pickerell, Maker’s Mark master distiller, your drink may become spicy. “The American palate is migrating to the more sweet and will move on to savory,” he says. “The next coming down the pipe is spices.” People usually start with sweeter flavors but as their palates get more experience and mature, they begin gravitating to more bitter and complex tasting spirits. (The same process usually happens with people who eat a lot of chocolate. They started out eating sweeter milk chocolate, and as their palates get more refined, they begin gravitating to increasingly darker and and often more expensive chocolate.)

Back to play catchup.

The Session #10 roundup posted

The SessionTed at Barley Vine has posted his roundup for The Session#10: “Let it snow, let it snow.”

Thirty-one bloggers joined in, and tasted a heck of a lot more than 31 beers (made me feel like a slacker).

Ted writes: “I know that I learned a lot about winter beers, and its given me an even longer list of beers that I want to try.”

Expect an announcement about The Session #11 soon.

The Session #10: Great Divide Hibernation

The SessionWelcome to The Session #10, hosted this month by Ted at Barley Vine. The theme “Let it snow, let it snow, Winter Seasonal Beers” does not leave us wanting for choices.

Lest there be any doubt: Don Russell offered a combined history lesson/shopping list last week, a Baltimore Sun panel tasted a whopping 52 winter beers, and you’ll find many more lists on the Internet (here, here and here – for starters).

Clearly there isn’t enough time to drink all the beers, and we should accept that it is a good thing so many are local and will be drunk not far from where they were brewed. But I do sort of miss the days when it was sport just to find enough “Christmas beers” to keep us interested through the season.

The choice for today isn’t the winter beer we’ll drink most of &#151 that would be Sierra Nevada Celebration &#151 nor is it one that is so hard to find or expensive, say De Ranke Père Noël, that we’ll likely have just one during the season. Great Divide Hibernation is a favorite and a regular, one we associate with full winter season because for several years we had to wait until January and a trip to Colorado to play in the snow before we could find it.

Great Divide Hibernation AleOnly in the last couple of years has been Hibernation been available in New Mexico, although other Great Divide beers have been around since we moved here in 1998. But there still wasn’t a year we failed to track some down.

It’s arrival in New Mexico pretty much coincided with the attention afforded beers such as Titan IPA, Hercules Double IPA and Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout. A little “beer cred” never hurts.

At 8% abv, Hibernation is no small beer. It’s won awards as a Strong Ale/English-Style Old Ale and is described at the beer rating sites as an American Strong Ale. I think calling it a Winter Warmer and spending zero time fretting about style suits it fine.

It’s equally enjoyable when it first becomes available (Great Divide brews it in July but doesn’t release the first batch until November) or after a year in our “cellar” (no bottle has made it to two years). My first thought is always the same: “How is this different than last year? It is, I think, but that was a year ago, and I’m not going to worry about it.”

Despite its heft, Hibernation is brewed with the same sensibility &#151 call it continental restraint, or appreciation of balance &#151 I find in all the Great Divide beers, even the ones coveted by those chasing “extreme beers.”

It’s at its best in a small tulip glass or snifter, because it’s a beer to linger over and new aromas will emerge as it warms. Lots of chocolate and spice early, with roasty character (both nuts and hints of coffee beans) on the nose and in the mouth. Caramel and dark fruits, also, their sweetness are nicely balanced by an earthy/husky mouthfeel.

Ted promised extra credit for a food pairing or recipe. Quite honestly, we like this beer on its own, maybe with a fire. But after active day in the snow (and at altitude) Hibernation and a plate of cheese (be sure to have a nutty gouda in there) make a dang fine dinner.

A good night’s sleep is guaranteed.

Beer Fantasy Dinner #10: Eric Delia

Eric DeliaFor more about what this is part of look here.

Eric Delia may be be relatively new to blogging, but has some interesting things to say — check out the post titled A Disturbing Trend. I’m hitting the road for a few days, but had to post this first because . . . Levi Stubbs and Bell’s Kalamazoo Stout, how brilliant is that?

You find the full length Fantasy Dinner here, but Eric also has a slightly shorter version for us CliffsNotes types.

In case you forgot, the questions are: If you could invite four people dead or alive to a beer dinner who would they be? What four beers would you serve?

1. Bernardo O’Higgins – One of the leaders of the Chilean War of Independence that was fought against colonial power Spain. Seems like an interesting and controversial historical figure that would be worth having around, if only to give his perspective on the time period and his struggle to defeat an imperial army. Since I’m somewhat of a history buff, I think he’d be a fine candidate for this soiree.

Beer: Kross Stout, modeled on an Irish Stout and made by a microbrewery in Chile, which I think would suit this guest’s tastes, seeing as how he’s half-Irish.

2. Bill Shankly – Liverpool FC’s most famous manager, who triumphed to bring the team from the lower rungs of the Second Division to the top of the First, and brought a slew of championships during his tenure as well. Shankly came across as a tough but stand-up guy who loved the game of football (soccer) and had an honorable and admirable approach to it, too. The table needed a prominent sports figure, and he’s one that immediately came to mind.

Beer: Traquair Jacobite, in honor of his Scottish roots and because it’s an all-around damn good beer in the first place, something I think Bill would appreciate.

3. Levi Stubbs – Lead singer of the R&B group The Four Tops, whose ability to sing out of his range lent the group’s songs a sense of urgency and liveliness. He’d bring vivacity to the conversation, plus a bit of cool and some culture to our group. I’m also a fan of all different kinds of music, so it was tough to pick one person to sit in that spot, but Levi was one of the first that I thought of. I think he’d be a great guest.

Beer: Bell’s Kalamazoo Stout, seeing as how both he and the beer are from Michigan, and I just think cool people would naturally migrate toward a quality Milk Stout like that. Either that or a Sam Adams Boston Lager; simple yet satisfying, with a laid-back flavor profile that the cool crowd would also enjoy, I guess.

4. My paternal great-grandfather – An immigrant from Croatia (then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire), he came to America in 1901 and worked on the Pacific Railroad. Made it all the way out West, into Washington (prime hop country) and then to northern California. He owned a small farm where he made my grandfather walk to the market with eggs or produce to sell. Back on the farm, they would make their own homemade wine, even during the days of Prohibition.

Beer: Victory Prima Pils or Budweiser Budvar. I picked the two because I think a German or Czech Pilsener would suit him well, even though he was more of a wine guy. Something crisp and refreshing may remind him of time in Europe as a young man, perhaps getting a hold of a Bohemian offering or two in his day. Nevertheless, to be able to talk to this man about the trials and tribulations he faced by starting a whole new life in a completely different country would be fascinating to me. Sure, many families may be able to tell a similar tale, but that’s what makes this quintessential American success story a classic.