India Pale Ale: Explained

I had someone ask me where the "India" in "India Pale Ale" comes from.  Well, the IPA dates back to 17th century pale ales; which were made with pale malt (naturally).  The East India Company, which got its start in 1600 and came to prominence by the 1800s as India's most powerful political and economic force had a bit of a taste for beer.  English sailors/exporters found that the water they took on the long trips to India would go bad, so beer was the drink of choice on their ships.  It just so happened that the duration of their voyages was the optimal 'conditioning' time for the beer.  Upon getting word of this "English beer" the powerful East India Company made sure that their "factories" (think trading post) were well stocked with this beer.  It is said that in July of 1716, the civil servants/workers at the Company's base consumed a total of 74 dozen bottles of wine, 24 dozen bottles of beer, 42 gallons of Madeira, 164 gallons of toddy, and a bunch of arrack (distilled alcoholic drink made from either coconut flowers, sugar cane, grain, or fruit).  By 1750, it is said that almost 1500 barrels of beer were being exported from England (to "Asia"), and by 1800, that number had jumped to 9000 barrels.

So where did this beer come from?

The Bow Brewery (brewer George Hodgson) was lucky enough to be located close to the docks where these voyages commenced.  He was sending both porters and "October" beer on the trips, and it was this "October beer" that the East India Company liked so much.  Typical for the times/ingredients/style, this beer needed roughly 2 years to cask and bottle condition, but (as I mentioned before) the rocking motion and gradual temperature changes during the 4-6 month trips decreased the amount of time needed for proper 'maturation'.  Apparently this was like candy to a child!  They couldn't get enough of the stuff, and as it turns out, by 1900, the British expat running the "factories" as well as commanding the 3 private armies had basically made this the primary beer in India.

In an effort to keep this entry somewhat short, basically at this point some shifting of brewery locations went down, and some realizations on how water chemistry affected the beer made with it.  Not one to miss out on a good ole time, Samuel Allsopp, a brewer from Burton upon Trent decided to try his hand at the pale ale from the Bow Brewery.  To his surprise, his beer took off like wild-fire (water rich in calcium sulfate makes GREAT pale ales).  This beer took the place of the Bow Brewery's success in India, and after more Burton breweries jumped on board, the "India Pale Ale" found solid ground in the 1800's beer industry.  Now that you've had your history lesson, your homework is to go to your local beer cooler and buy up a 6-pack of IPA!

Upslope Oak Aged Dry-hopped IPA

Get it while you can; it's damn good!

Barley vs. Grapes

As I'm sure you've probably heard, there has been a fair amount of attention given to the latest "Beer Revolution" and the fact that you are now seeing more and more "Beer Pairing" dinners pop up than those of their non-carbonated, grape juice variety.  This brings up a good point, to you, which do you feel goes better with food, beer or wine?  Now, as far as 'tasting' alcoholic beverages goes, I will say I got my start on wine back in college.  Of course I had my nights out slamming Mickey's, and competing in foosball tournaments with an O.E. 40 in hand, but after spending 2 summers in Silicon Valley, I can say that my palette had been 'refined'.  Yea, "whatever," right?  Since then, I've moved to Boulder, CO and taken in the abundance of local beer and as a result, my taste has yet again been altered from those foosball days of college.  So, what do you think?  Does wine go better with food or beer?  You know what my opinion is...

Here's an article I found talking about the same thing, so chew on that if you care to read.  If not, then just go ahead and attend the next beer pairing dinner at your local eatery; I promise you, you will NOT be disappointed!

Another Denver Brewery!

Just in time for the late-summer/early-fall patio season, a new 'patio oriented' brewery has opened in Denver!  The Denver Beer Co. has rolled open it's garage-style doors and is serving 7 different styles of beer from a "Kaffir Lime Wheat" to a "Stormy Summer Stout".  Stop by for a taste and enjoy the last warm days of summer on their patio!

Denver Beer Company
1695 Platte St.
Denver, CO 80202
303-443-2739

Babies and Beer

Yea, so obviously they shouldn't mix; as in, one shouldn't consume the other. BUT, when they're teething, they just MIGHT go together, kind of.  Since I'll be having a little girl of my own in a few weeks, I saw this and figured there just might be others of you out there in the same or similar position.

from an MSNBC.com article,
Teething toy, drool catcher… is there nothing beer cannot do?
I let my infant soothe her teething gums with a cold beer bottle. She sits in my lap with me holding the bottle and she rubs her gums on the opening of the bottle. It's an empty bottle that I keep cold just for her. It's her favorite teether and a great drool catcher.


mmmyea, that sounds pretty sweet to me!!!

You didn't know?

Denver's Newest Brewery

For those of you in the Denver area or who will be visiting soon, go check out the city's newest darling.  Renegade Brewing Company.  A husband and wife duo who had been homebrewing for a bit decided to jump in with both feet and are now in the craft beer industry!  Let's hope they hit the ground running!