Thanksgiving

And so in the morning, after calling upon God for direction, we came to this conclusion: to go presently ashore again. For we could not now take time for further search or consideration, our victuals being much spent, especially our beer.

- William Bradford, 1620, writing aboard the Mayflower, explaining why the Pilgrims were putting ashore at Plymouth Rock instead of at their planned landing further south.

May Thanksgiving find us all able to give thanks for those things and those people who have given us life, love, joy, protection, advocacy, and inspiration.

Oakham JHB - a review

I'll start this by saying that the usual caveats apply, that is, by working for Legends, Ltd., I sell Oakham JHB.

That being said, I sampled a pint from a CASK of freshly tapped Jeffery Hudson Bitter (JHB) from Oakham Brewery of Peterborough, UK, Thursday evening at Sean Bolan's in Baltimore.

Oh my, what a REAL ALE!

At only 3.8%, this straw-colored bitter packed a wallop with tropical fruit overtones, a hint of sweet malt, American-ish hop character, and a long-lived hoppy and drying finish. It was
zymurgical alchemy that such a small beer could be so complex and satisfying.

Maybe the only demerit would be for a faint veil of haze. But who's picking nits? This beer travelled from the UK, where it placed tied for third in the bitter category in the GBBF, and
arrived at Sean Bolan's Thursday evening with most of its delightful caskability intact. In 2001, JHB was selected as the Supreme Champion beer of Great Britain.

Autumn Saké Ball

Autumn Saké Ball
at The Yin Yankee Café
in Annapolis, Maryland

Tuesday, November 19, 2002

Welcome -
Peruvian purple potato mash with plantain chips and Flying Fish Roe, served with Czechvar Lager from the Budvar Budweis Brewery in Czech Republic

and then:

A young man and his young beer

I hadn't been by Ellicott Mills for awhile so I stopped by a few Wednesdays ago to taste whatever was on cask. (Wednesday is cask night at the pub.)

Brewer Jim Stevens' house-brewed cask that evening was an IPA. After one sip, I knew it was special: a delicious young cask ale using British and NZ hops. There were no Cascades or other C-hops in this IPA (not that there's anything wrong with that). I believe that Jim, instead, had hopped the beer with Target and Northdown (and NZ Hallertau?).

Many more sips ensued.

The cask was gravity dispensed, resting on the bar, open to atmosphere, and at cellar temperature. Jim was there and, much the trooper, answered all my beer geek questions.

Wednesdays are definitely worth the visit.

Hard Times for Christmas Chili

Hard Times College Park, Maryland continues to impress as a humble yet fulfilling stop for the thirsty beer sojourner. Residing therein is good inexpensive food (chili, hot or not), good beer with the occasional megabrand lurking in the shadows, and friendly, attentive service. Just remember to ask for an unchilled glass!

Monday, 4 November 2002 the Cafe hosted another of its occasional beer tastings, this one devoted to autumn and winter beers. The wonderful lineup included Victory's Festbier and V10, Wyerbacher's Autumn Fest, Black Radish from the Weeping Radish, Octoberfest from the Old Dominion Brewing Company, Heavyweight's Perkuno's Hammer, 90 Minute IPA from Dogfish head, Ale Mary from RCH Brewery (Dorset, England), Redhook's ESB, Negro Medelo, and Scots Pine Ale from the Heather Ale Brewery (Glasgow, Scotland).

Owner Bill Swint and GM Becky Duney's twist on the expected tasting agenda is to have each beer described by its representative before ANY of the beers are served. Then all the beers are served one at a time and the patrons are asked to identify the beers according to the earlier oral descriptions. Prizes and applause-heavy recognition are awarded to those who correctly do so.

It was a lot of fun. But not for the table of us beer 'experts' who downed pints of Perkuno's Hammer and Something Red (White Marsh Brewing) and became befuddled. Perkuno's Hammer was such a delicious and potent brew from Heavyweight that we gladly suffered the wrath of the Baltic God of Thunder!

Representatives of B.U.R.P. [Washington D.C. metro area homebrew club, Brewer United for Real potables], on the other hand, showed again why that homebrew club is one of the premier such clubs in the nation, by correctly identifying all of the beers.

My personal surprise was the quality of the Redhook ESB. Tasting it blind removed many of my prejudices against it. I bought a 6-pack the next day.

Hard Times College Park
4738 Cherry Hill Rd
College Park, MD 20740
301-474-8880

(next to Shoppers, near Home Depot & Starbucks, just south of I-495, off of Rt. 1S to College Park).

Yours for good fermentables,
Thomas Cizauskas