Home Brew Keg Party!!

Last month I was invited to a keg party hosted by my buddy Chuck, who is an avid home brewer and a previous bartender at The Sugarbowl.  While working at the Bowl, we would often talk about the process of making beer and hear about Chucks adventures in home brewing.  Everyone knew Chuck liked his beer, but nobody had ever tasted his product....until now.

A few months ago Chuck started renting a heated garage and set up his micro-micro brewery, even going so far as to buying an old fridge and turning it into a 2x20L keg fridge with the two spouts coming out the side.  Sitting on two batches of beer just for himself can take a while to work through, and the longer it takes to cycle through a batch the longer it takes before he can play and experiment with new brews.  To combat this problem Chuck decided he would hold a monthly keg party, invite all of his friends to the garage and charge a minimum $5 donation to help pay for the cost of the product and a little left over to keep things going.  Well the idea was genius, and the parties are a huge success!

The Brewmaster
enthusiastically explaining the brewing process

The first kegger featured a delicious IPA, and a mind blowing Pumpkin Ale.  The IPA was crisp, fruity, and balanced extremely well.  From what I remember, Chuck calculated an IBU rating of 120 or something...if that was the case, it didn't show in the final product.  It was bitter, but a fine malt finish helped keep the extreme pucker at bay.  On the nose it was unlike any IPA I've ever experienced, smelling heavily of peach juice and other stone fruits.  An absolute delightful drink, along the same lines as the Raasted Grilløl....sharing similar flavor profiles.  The Pumpkin Ale, on the other hand, was out of this world.  Brewed with the pulp from a whole roasted fresh pumpkin and an appropriate amount of spices to warm it up, this beer was fantastic.  The pumpkin flavors were right upfront, without becoming too sweet or overpowering.  I've had a couple of other pumpkin ales that tasted almost synthetic, this was absolutely real.  The spices gave it a delightful pumpkin pie burst, ginger being a noticeable but savvy addition to the brew.  It was a clear golden amber color, quite viscous with a full flavor and decent hop aroma. Compared to any of the other Pumpkin Ales I've tried over the last couple of years, this one wins gold in my books.

Big ol'sack of two row malt

Yesterday was kegger #2, featuring an Irish Red Cream Ale and an imaginative Peated Malt Baltic Porter.  The porter was definitely the star of the evening, with the 20L keg drained in little over two hours. A round and rich roasted malt base and subtle hop profile, the smoke from the peated malt was barely present but still noticeable.  It added a unique flavor to the beer, leaving you wanting more.  I could have done with more smoke flavor, I'm pretty sure Chuck was looking for more smoke as well but played it safe with the first batch of this experimental brew.  Drinkability was dangerously high, and an 8% ABV made this fantastic beer a hit with everyone at the garage.  The Irish Red poured a rosy red hue, with a delicate frothy head.  Very smooth and a creamy texture brought on by using a small percentage of rice in the mash.  This beer was delicious and enjoyable, details at this point are fuzzy at best.  After a few of each, its hard not to feel pretty happy and carefree.  The great thing about these parties is the amount of people totally into beer and what goes into the beer.  Having like minded individuals, with equal if not greater love for the brew, to completely geek out with and not feel like a super nerd is such a fantastic atmosphere to be in.  I look forward to future keggers with Chuck and the gang, and I'll do my best to spread the word. Cheers!

Magpie - Big Rock Brewery

Big Rock Brewery, situated in Calgary Alberta, is probably Alberta's most successful "craft" brewery.  Every Albertan has swilled on pints of their Traditional Ale or Grasshopper Wheat Ale at some point in their lives, as these two beers have infiltrated almost every bar in the province.  Their roster of beers has grown over the years to include many different styles, some much better than others.....but most still not very good.  I've been told the beer used to be quite good in the early days of the breweries life, but as the popularity of the brewery grew, and the size of the brewery grew, the quality of the brew quickly began to wear thin.  New recipes, and cost cutting solutions have brought Big Rock's reputation to a stand still, putting them on par with the likes of Molson and other big adjunct beer producers (my opinion here, just saying).  But then word hit the streets that they would be re-releasing a discontinued hit from their past, beer geeks were getting stoked, and I had high hopes that maybe....just maybe, Big Rock could produce something worthy, perhaps even enjoyable.

Finding information and history on the Magpie is difficult.  It's a rye ale brewed by Big Rock ten years ago, back when "craft" was still the name of the game.  It seems to have made a quiet debut on the scene as their is still zero info about it on the website, as well as beer advocate.  As far as I know the only places in Edmonton to serve the Magpie is the Druid, and now for the month of December we're pouring pints at The Sugarbowl.  I've had a few pints in the last week or so, trying to get my head wrapped around this stuff.  Some of my beer geek friends were very excited about this product, and had great things to say about it....although these fond memories are at least a decade old. Here's to hoping.

The pint pours a light amber color, the head full of large dissipating bubbles and zero lacing.  On the nose it had a sweet undertone, pleasant hop character but that strange Big Rock smell is in full force.  I find all the Big Rock products to have a similar smell and taste, must be the water...I don't know. Either way it's not an overly enjoyable addition to the beer.  The flavor is sweet and malty, not sure what I'm looking for in a rye profile.  The only other rye beer I've tried is the  He'Brew Lenny's Double Rye IPA, which is fantastic and probably one of my favorite beers this year.  The Magpie I found to be a bit astringent on the tongue, thin and watery, and overall experience very tipical of a Big Rock beer.  If they're trying to coax experienced beer drinkers into buying in to this product, or any of their products for that matter, their going to have to start brewing a lot better than this. Nice try Big Rock, but your beer still sucks (my opinion here, just saying).