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brookpub · 2 years ago

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Best Winter Pub Food and Craft Beer Pairing

When the cold weather sets in, there's no better place to be than in a toasty bar with friends. The delicious pub food, warm glow of the fireplace, and inviting atmosphere make for the ideal winter evening. Craft beer is the missing link that completes this experience to the next level.

Here at The Brook Pub in Cambridge, we've taken great care to choose a variety of craft beers that not only pair well with the seasonal dishes on our menu but also shine on their own. Indulge your taste senses and elevate your meal with these professional recommendations for Best Winter Pub Food and Craft Beer Pairing.

What is a Craft beer?

Craft beer, often known as independent or small-batch beer, is a beer brewed by breweries that emphasises flavour, aroma, and brewing processes from the past rather than the present. They tend to be smaller than commercial beer producers and place a premium on experimentation and originality in the brewing process. Craft beers are generally characterised by their flavour profiles and a wide variety of genres, ingredients, and brew methods.

Some craft beer traits:

Privately Held and Managed:Independent ownership and management is a hallmark of the craft beer industry; the breweries that produce it are rarely part of a bigger, multinational conglomerate.

Stress on Excellence:Most craft brewers use traditional brewing techniques and high-quality ingredients because they place value on flavour over output.

Creative Problem Solving:Craft brewers are noted for their inventive beers that result from their desire to experiment with ingredients, styles, and brewing methods.

Targeted locally:It's not uncommon for craft breweries to be deeply rooted in and committed to supporting their nearby neighbourhoods.

Multiple Flavour Combinations:From hoppy and bitter IPAs (India Pale Ales) to rich and malty stouts, sour ales, and everything in between, craft beers provide something for everyone's palate.

Craft beer can be enjoyed in many spaces and occasions:

Complementing Dishes:When coupled with the right food, craft beer is a great way to up the ante at any meal. Craft beers' wide range of aromas and tastes makes them an ideal pairing with food of many kinds.

Events for Socialising:Craft beer is a wonderful addition to any get-together, whether it be a formal dinner, a casual picnic, or a backyard BBQ.

Beer Tours and Samples:Those interested in learning more about beer production and sampling a wide range of craft brews can do so in any number of taprooms or tasting rooms that are available at many breweries.

Seasonal Occasions:During the year, craft brewers release a variety of limited-edition and seasonal beers to celebrate the many holidays and seasons.

Appreciation and Inquiry:Indulging in a variety of craft beers is a way for beer enthusiasts to learn about and appreciate the art and science that goes into the brewing process.

Leisure and Pleasure:Beer, like any other beverage, can be savoured for the mere purpose of bringing about a moment of relief and pleasure.

Craft Beer at The Brook Pub: A Symphony of Flavors

Craft beers are an essential component of the dining experience at The Brook Pub, not just an after thought. Each beer was selected for its ability to complement and amplify the varied flavours found throughout our winter menu. Know more about the Best Winter Pub Food and Craft Beer Pairing

Delicious Stouts with Hearty Food

Beer Pairing Suggestion: The Brook's Velvety Stout

During the colder months, nothing beats a stout with its substantial flavours to warm you up. To complement the rich flavours of Guinness-infused beef stew or a traditional steak and ale pie, try The Brook's Velvety Stout, which features hints of dark chocolate and roasted coffee. These meals' deep, savoury flavours harmonise beautifully with the smooth body of this stout.

Intense Flavours, Crisp IPAs -

Beer Pairing Suggestion: Cambridge Cascade IPA

If you're looking for a hoppy beer to pair with your hearty winter supper, look no further than our Cambridge Cascade IPA. When paired with fatty foods like loaded nachos or a platter of hot chicken wings, this IPA's bright citrus undertones provide a welcome counterpoint. This beer's effervescent, refreshing taste is a vibrant counterpoint that elevates the meal.

Brown and Amber Beers, Two Classic Comfort Drinks -

Beer Pairing Suggestion: Autumn Ember Ale

When paired with roasted or grilled meats, amber beers and brown ales shine thanks to their caramel and toffee undertones. When paired with a luscious rack of ribs or a juicy burger, our Autumn Ember Ale really shines. There's a nice balance between the malty sweetness of the lager and the charred flavours of the meat.

Wheat Beers, the Healthier Choice -

Beer Pairing Suggestion: Cambridge Abbey Blonde

Wheat beers, thanks to their airy, delicate character, are a great match for seafood and other light pub foods. When paired with food like beer-battered fish and chips or a fresh citrus salad, our Cambridge Abbey Blonde shines with its subtle fruitiness and delicate spice overtones. The crisp, clean aftertaste of this brew pairs beautifully with the dish's fresh flavours.

Conclusion:

The Brook Pub, right in the middle of Cambridge, is more than just a place to eat; it's an institution. When you combine the dishes from our winter menu with our carefully picked craft beer selection, you get a harmonious blend of flavours that will have you craving more. The friendly service and warm decor add to the sense of being at home.

So, please drop by The Brook Pub in Cambridge with us this coming cold season. Take in the finest examples of both artisan beer and fine cuisine. Feel the welcome, taste the food, and enjoy the company that only a real pub can provide.

Here's to fantastic meals, refreshing cocktails, and lifelong recollections at The Brook Pub!

#Best Winter Pub Food and Craft Beer Pairing #refreshing cocktails #brook pub drinks #brook pub food #best food and drinks #cask ale week in cambridge

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aboutcaseyaffleck · 5 years ago

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BOSTON BY CASEY AFFLECK

October 25, 2020 For the record, what follows is nostalgia, false memories, and generalizations. But it’s all true. I grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, across the Charles River from Boston proper. Cambridge was one of the most diverse, multicultural cities in America. It was a beautiful, colorful, vibrant place. People from all over the world lived there, all mixed-up together. It is the place I was born and will return to, God willing. It is the city with the smells and sounds and tastes and people I love the most. Despite how much I loved it, when I look at old photos, I often look like this:

I’m in the front in the blue shirt. My best friend was Michael, the tall kid in the red shirt, whose family came from Barbados. Through the middle school years, anytime we weren’t in school we were roaming the streets like Dickensian urchins.

In the ‘90s, Cambridge got rid of rent control. Families who had lived there for four or five generations were squeezed out. Now the city is gentrified; but when I was growing up there, it was scrappy and beautiful. It was mostly working people, except for West Cambridge—where wealthy families lived, where professors lived. Where Cornel West, Yo-Yo Ma, and the Governor lived. East Cambridge was working-class Portuguese families, butcher shops, funeral parlors, and tow yards. Cambridgeport, where I lived, was mostly poor, Italian, Black, Greek, and Irish families. North Cambridge had some big housing projects and the school where my mom taught fifth grade—in a gigantic cement structure called The Tobin School that felt like it was far away because I would have to take a train AND a bus to get there. In reality, it’s like three miles from where we lived.

This is me hanging out in her classroom:

As people and places evolve, the past always reveals blemishes unseen at the time. However, Massachusetts manages, as time unfolds, to be a place that was so often on the right side. Not always, but often enough that I am proud to be from Cambridge, Massachusetts, no matter what.

From Massachusetts came the first national publication denouncing slavery, America’s “first feminist”, and The Cambridge Woman’s Suffrage League, which formed in 1886. My high school had the first girl to play tackle football in that division. Cambridge voted-in the first openly gay African-American mayor in our country. Right now our mayor is a very popular and forward-thinking Muslim woman who immigrated from Pakistan named Sumbul Siddiqui. We have marvels of architecture, science, and tech. It was in Cambridge that the very first email was ever sent (and received). And every year the Red Sox stand up to the wealthier bullies from the Bronx. These are all things we are immensely proud of, but nobody is resting on these laurels.

I am going to tell you about the places I remember fondly, whether they are still there or not.

Luckily, the city’s history isn’t going anywhere, and it hasn’t lost all of its charms. It is a place best seen by walking. So just walk. It’s also seasonal. Different activities for different seasons. But if you can hoof it for a few miles do this: start at the Old North Church and go by Paul Revere House, through Faneuil Hall, by The Old State House through Boston Common, through the Back Bay, go left and pass through Roxbury, another left, and go through South Boston till you hit the water and go left till you hit the Children’s Museum. Sit down and relax. If you just want a path, walk that. Map it or wander around. The city is full of little back streets with lots of character.

MY BOSTON FAVORITES

When looking for things to do and see in the area, you can ask ten people and get ten different answers. You will get a long list of historical buildings, or you will get names of some of the country’s prettiest parks, or you will get pointed toward the campuses of some of the very best schools in the world. But for every Bunker Hill, there are ten other places you haven’t heard of. So I am going to tell you about the places I remember fondly, whether they are still there or not. The thing about Boston is you can miss all the best stuff, and you will still leave thinking it is one of the best cities on Earth. Have fun.

Pinocchio Pizza, Harvard Square. I asked my son to describe it. He says, “the food is good but the vibe is fire, old school; whatever, just get a slice and sit on the ground. That’s why I like it.” I have no idea why he wants to sit on the ground, but I guess that’s part of the charm of the place. We’re both vegan so we both scrape the cheese off and eat bread and sauce. That should tell you something.

Oleana Restaurant on Hampshire Street in Cambridge. Chef Ana Sortun is a baller. The food is Turkish inspired, and it is delicious. Always. Friendly people, pretty inside, and it is in a nice residential neighborhood. My dad lived in an apartment a few blocks away behind a Store 24 until he was evicted back in 1989.

Maharaja, Harvard Square. Incredible Indian food. And it has one of the only third-story views of Harvard Square.

Veggie Galaxy is great diner food. It is vegan. It has breakfast, lunch, dinner, milkshakes and other deserts. All day and all night food that is filling and really good.

Life Alive Organic will serve you the healthiest and heartiest meal you can find anywhere. It’s across the street from City Hall, the post office, and the oldest YMCA in the country.

Cantab Lounge, where my dad was a bartender, and then a janitor when he was too drunk to be a bartender. I drank six thousand ginger ales, sitting in the corner at a sticky table while he worked. Forever it was a bar for postal workers that opened at 10 am, where alcoholics ate hard-boiled eggs from jars that had been sitting on the bar top for two weeks. A couple of days after initially writing this, I got an email from the owner. It is being sold after tens of thousands of years. I don’t know why I care because I don’t exactly have any fond memories from the place, but seeing the brick-and-mortar of your childhood torn down is a kind of mid-life, coming-of-age moment. Life is change.

Darwins Ltd coffee shop and attached mini-grocer and sandwich spot. If you get a coffee and then walk west two blocks on Mt. Auburn St. you will discover on your right a nice little park with a fountain to hang out. It is called Longfellow Park. Or you can look to your left and you will see the Charles River, and you can stroll there.

Fomu for dessert.

Zhu Pan Asian Cuisine and True Bistro for good vegan food.

Newbury Comics is famous and cool.

Million Year Picnic is for comic connoisseurs. They are both great. And they were both plagued by roving bands of middle school thieves in my day. The most notorious was named Mathew Maher. He is now a well-known theater actor on Broadway and appeared in the comic book movie Captain Marvel. But back then he stole shit.

Harvard Coop is the best place to browse for books. Especially the kids section. We spend hours there and nobody kicks us out.

After the game ended everyone would come out and buy sausages [from me] on their way home, then I would clean up and go into a bar outside the park, where my boss was drinking and I’d wait till he was done so I could get a ride home. I was 12 years old. A couple of years ago I threw out the first pitch. Life is change.

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is my favorite museum in town, maybe anywhere. It was once her home and it features an indoor garden that is perfect. It also has a great collection of art from around the world. Back on March 18, 1990, two famous paintings were stolen from the museum. As I remember it, a couple of guys showed up in the morning in police uniforms and the guard let them in. They tied the guard up and took a dozen paintings—Vermeer, Rembrandt, Degas—and vanished. The FBI never found them and never found the art. There are two plaques below two empty spaces on the walls to this day. On some days, classical musicians perform in random rooms while you walk around. You won’t want to leave.

Fenway Park. Greatest professional sports arena of any kind. I used to sell sausages in front of the Cask ‘N Flagon, a bar behind The Green Monster.

It is the best baseball bar in the country. When everyone was in the park watching the game, and there was nobody buying food, I would go in and find a seat and watch the game with whoever I was working with; I have seen hundreds of games from every part of the park. After the game ended everyone would come out and buy sausages on their way home, then I would clean up and go into a bar outside the park, where my boss was drinking and I’d wait till he was done so I could get a ride home. I was 12 years old. A couple of years ago I threw out the first pitch. Life is change.

Plimoth Plantation is a living museum in Plymouth, which is 40 minutes from Boston. It is amazing. The actors working there are some of the best I have seen anywhere. If you are even mildly interested in history you have to go there.

Fresh Pond is where you can go running or biking. Two and a half-mile loop.

Or you could hit The Emerald Necklace which is a great run that hits many of the best green areas, Franklin Park included. When we were young we would hop the fence and swim in the water. That isn’t done anymore ever, and everyone has grown up and leading better, more responsible lives.

John Weeks Footbridge is a very pretty, very old, brick walking bridge that spans the Charles River. Watching the Charles Regatta from here is awesome. That is in the Fall. But it’s also great any night.

The King School is a grade school not too far from there. It has maybe the best playground in the city. If you are there in the summer you can just walk on. When I was a kid, the King School is where a girl went who I was head over heels in love with. I finally got a shot at winning her heart in my early twenties and blew it.

Mount Auburn Cemetery is beautiful if you like that kind of thing. Lots of cool people are buried there, and the trees and stones are really nice. It’s a maze but just walk uphill. You will reach a monument with a great view of the city.

The American Repertory Theater puts on good plays. I grew up going there cause a friend of my mother’s directed many of the shows and could sneak us in the back. I wasn’t the adult making that decision; had I known better I would have scraped together the ticket price and supported the arts.

Boston Common is beautiful but you have to avoid all the shopping around it. If you have to shop go to:

NOMAD on Mass Ave in Cambridge is a store that you shouldn’t miss. In a world lost to chain stores and general homogenization of everything, Nomad is the real deal. Deb Colburn has been curating this place since I was ten. It is her store, and she has been trying to wake people up to folk art from around the world since Reagan was in office.

Bodega is a hidden high-end sneaker and casual wear store that must be entered through an unmarked door inside a bodega on a nearby side street. It’s cool how they have done it. Great presentation. Kids will like it.

KIDS ACTIVITIES

There are lots of things you can force your kids to do—things they won’t like the sound of at first, but will ultimately enjoy.

IMAGE CAPTIONS, LEFT TO RIGHT

On a rainy day, hop on the T and ride around town all day reading comics. Then stand outside in the warm rain (kids from LA don’t get this much).

Looking at murals. Cambridge has great murals everywhere. They are old and, incredibly, not vandalized. This one has been on this wall near the river since I was a kid. The child is mine and he is sick of walking around Cambridge.

If you feel like a pilgrim hit the gift shop at Plimoth Plantation.

Playing chess at Leavitt & Pierce Tobacco. You can inhale the scent of pipe tobacco without smoking it, and rent a chess set, clock, and table for $2 an hour in a beautiful old, wood-paneled shop with great ambiance.

Going to the oldest YMCA in the country.

Kayaking on the Charles River. You can get your kayak on Soldiers Field Rd. Take it east under all the bridges until you get to the inlet at Kendell Sq. It will all be clear. It will take about an hour.

Climbing the stairs at Harvard Football Stadium.

Reading books at the Harvard Coop.

NEARBY BOSTON

If you wanna go a little farther, go out to Gloucester for the day. Swim, eat, walk around, go back.

Whale watching sounds like a lame tourist trap but seeing whales up close will change the way you think about life on Earth.

You can take the ferry from Downtown Boston to Provincetown. It is a great place to visit or stay a few days while in town. Ptown is the eastern-most point on the continent. I might be making that up, but it’s close. It’s an arm that sticks out into the Atlantic. It’s really lovely there with a great vibe all around. You can’t have a bad time and everyone is super happy to be there. The beaches are all beautiful. Sharks mostly only eat the seals and won’t come any closer to shore than two feet—but if you want to see a great white up close, we can make that happen.

Cape Cod has some great flea markets. If you plan on spending time on vacation with your family you can find some essentials, like a medieval battle helmet, at the flea market.

SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS

30 minutes on the local train line from downtown. Made famous by the Salem witch trials; a fun place to visit and walk around for about 128 minutes. Newburyport and Rockport lines, which depart from Boston’s North Station, stop at the Salem station. You can go into the homes of people who lived during the witch hunt.

The House of the Seven Gables, made famous by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne‘s novel The House of the Seven Gables, is a 1668 colonial mansion in Salem, Massachusetts named for its gables. The house is now a non-profit museum, with an admission fee charged for tours, as well as an active settlement house with programs for children. It was built for Captain John Turner and stayed with the family for three generations.

The Jonathan Corwin House in Salem, Massachusetts, known as The Witch House, was the home of Judge Jonathan Corwin. It is the only structure still standing in Salem with direct ties to the Salem witch trials of 1692, thought to be built between 1620 and 1642. Corwin bought it in 1675 when he was 35, and he lived there for more than 40 years. The house remained in the Corwin family until the mid-19th century and is located in the McIntire Historic District.

A MECCA FOR ARTISTS

Lastly, for centuries, Cambridge has been a mecca for artists, especially writers. Here are some spots to see if you like that kind of thing:

The corner of JFK Street and 1390 Massachusetts Avenue. This is a good spot. Here is why: America’s FIRST PUBLISHED POET was a woman named Anne Bradstreet who died in 1672 and lived on this spot! It went through lots of changes, and 300 years later, by the time I was walking around, it became a great burger place called THE TASTY. In 1996 or whatever, The Tasty appears in the movie Good Will Hunting in the scene when Matt Damon kisses Minnie Driver. It might have also appeared in the film Love Story back in the 70s. I mix them up. Now it is a CVS. God help us.

The Longfellow House. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow lived at 105 Brattle Street. The great poet taught at Harvard and lived in the Georgian mansion from 1837 until his death in 1882. Before the author, George Washington used the house as his headquarters during the Siege of Boston. The house is open to the public, and it is where I had my eighth-grade graduation ceremony. The mayor attended and forgot the name of our school in his address to the kids. I heard people mutter that he was drunk. I can’t blame him. I had my first drinks hours before that ceremony.

71 Cherry Street, Cambridge. The woman considered to be American’s FIRST feminist, Margaret Fuller, was born and lived here.

Henry and Alice James lived at 20 Quincy Street. The house was knocked down in 1930 and the Harvard Faculty Club was erected there.

W.E.B. DuBois lived at 20 Flagg Street. The writer and pioneer of civil rights rented a room in this Cambridgeport home from 1890 to 1893. This is blocks from my childhood home. He was the first African American to receive a degree from Harvard.

Robert Frost lived at 35 Brewster Street. Frost, who attended high school in Lawrence, Massachusetts, lived in the West Cambridge home from 1943 to 1963.

T.S. Eliot lived at 16 Ash Street.

E.E. Cummings lived at 104 Irving Street. He was an innovator. He also wrote a poem about “Cambridge Women”. He lived at the Irving Street home from 1892 until about 1917.

Also you can find homes of the genius Nabokov and the great and beloved Julia Childs if you look around.

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#casey affleck #quote #feature #boston

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thebrookblog · 5 years ago

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Best Beer Garden in Cambridge to enjoy some great Cask Ales and Pub food, Best Pub in Cambridge, Best Sports Pub in Cambridge

British society has seen a lot of development in every walks of life. They have some of the best Universities in the World, best fashion brands, and Pub culture. Pubs have become an essential part of British people’s life. They are over 60,000 pubs in the U.K, most of the pubs have two bars, one being a quiet bar than the other, many of them also have a garden where people can sit in the summer. Today customers head to the pub to not only enjoy alcohol and food but also for relaxation and spending a good time with family and friends. Some Pubs also love to entertain their guests with Live T.V screens showing up their favorite sports.

Thinking of such a place to enjoy a great pub atmosphere then you must head over to our Brook Pub in Cambridge near Mill road. This place has everything you ask for from alcohol to food and entertainment. We serve the best Cask Ales, Finest Wines, Spirits, and great pub food. Our range of Gins is served with superior Fever-Tree Tonics. Customers who wish to go lite on drinking can opt for low alcohol drinks, soft drinks as well as enjoy a hot coffee or taste our special teas.

Summer is the best time as we see most of the customers heading down to pubs and bars to enjoy a cool beer and soak in some sunshine. The Brook Pub in Cambridge has the best beer garden to entertain its customers in summer. Kids love to spend their time in the open air while others love to enjoy their drinks with family and friends. In Winters we have the perfect indoor space for our customers to be cozy and keep warm by the fire. Let it be any season the Brook Pub is here to make good memories for its customers.

The Brook Pub is also known as a Sports Pub in Cambridge where local community people and students often visit us. They like to watch their favorite sports in action on our 5 large T.V screens that are placed in our Pub. The positive vibration from this place creates a great atmosphere to spend their time with beer, food, and friends.

We like to keep our guests well entertained throughout the week. Every Wednesday we have an acoustic music session, Karaoke on Fridays, exciting Poker games on Sunday’s and new Comedy nights on Thursdays. We always keep updating our Facebook page with our next upcoming events.

Pub grub food has always been popular with British people. Our Menu at the Brook Pub serves some of the best starters, steaks, burgers, chicken wings, lasagna, Sunday Roast, yummy deserts and we have a special menu for the kids. You can find great food offers, where you can get any Burger plus a Drink for 9.99 pounds and any Curry plus Drink for 9.99 pounds. This offer is available from Monday to Friday from 5-7 pm. Our Sunday menu includes Sunday Roast and we have requested the customers to call in to book a table or arrange a takeaway between 12-5 pm. Our food is prepared with fresh local produce that is sure to leave a good taste to your taste buds.

The Brook being the best beer garden has a lot of student customers who love to be here for lunchtime or for an evening drink with friends. Our Pub is located in the heart of the city and near to some great Universities. This makes us happy to welcome students to enjoy our food and relax with their friends after their classes.

Next time you are in Cambridge for business or for a holiday, do drop in at our Brook Pub to enjoy our best services and to sample our diverse range of drinks. Do not forget to check our Facebook page for our promotions and events. We are a team looking forward to seeing you all at The Brook Pub.

#Best beer garden #Pubs in Cambridge #pubs and bar #Beer garden in Cambridge #Bestsports Pub #Sports Pub

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beerandpresentdanger · 8 years ago

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A Night on the ‘Town

I can still pinpoint the exact moment I really got into beer. It was 2005, winter, and I was looking for something to do with a group of friends, when we wandered into a seasonal beer festival organised by CAMRA and Cambridge RAG. I still remember every sound and image from that evening - the fug of steam after walking in from the cold drizzle, the hiss of waxed jackets from the heaving crowd, and the vermilion slop of chilli being ladled onto baked potatoes the size of my fist. Then there were the beers. Row upon row of metal casks, arranged around the hall, with strange, evocative names taped to the front in clear plastic wallets. I was so stunned, I even called my dad to tell him where him was, as if still seeking approval or praise. Then I proceeded to order halves of every strong stout they had and got crushingly, irredeemably drunk.

Things haven’t changed that much, if the Beavertown Extravaganza is anything to go by. At least, they haven’t changed for me - 12 years, several jobs, one wife and child later, and I’m still over-ordering strong stouts and ruining the next morning. In every other sense, things have changed massively, and the Extravaganza - #BeaverEx17 as the hashtag had it - is the perfect way to record and chart just how far things have come for beer in the UK.

I missed the Friday session and resigned myself to watching on Twitter, never a fun way to experience any major event, whether a football game or a terrorist atrocity. I watched complaints crop up - running out of beer, excessive lines - and resigned myself to spending a Saturday being mildly disappointed. But I still got there 30 minutes before it even opened, because I wanted to believe.

I was right to. After we got in to the Printworks, a huge industrial space a few hops on the Overground from Beer and Present Danger HQ, we were ushered into a cavernous holding space where we picked up an adorably lilliputian glass, and were faced with two choices - go left, and enjoy one of the many food trucks, or go right, and get in line for two hours before being let in to the bars.

We chose the queue. We were right at the front, while the crowd swelled and jostled behind us, with lines of sight and time to formulate a plan of attack. Dart left to line up up at Other Half for quick hit of juicy Double Citra Daydream, then swerve across the hall to Omnipollo for a pour of the viscous, almost unbearably sweet Yellow Belly Sundae. Then a quick scurry to the second room to grab anything Three Floyds were serving, before Trillium, before Cigar City, before, before, before, before… We felt the hordes mass behind us. The security staff warned us to walk, not run, to our chosen stands. The clock ticked closer to 1pm. The atmosphere was electric, There was movement from the guards and suddenly we were loosed - straight into another queue.

Yeah, so it turned out that they’d second guessed our super keen rampage, and we’d have to wait another 15 minutes while the crowds filed in and queues built at all the stands. There would be no optimised Supermarket Sweep style speed dash for us. But as it turned out, that didn’t particularly matter.

Throughout the day, we queued for several of the most sought-after breweries, and even if they seemed daunting, the queues never seemed to last for longer than 15 minutes at a time. And frankly, that was time well spent, because I needed some buffer between the incredible brews that were on offer, especially given my preferences (I mentioned the strong stout thing, right?) I got my Yellow Belly Sundae, as rich and unctuous as a peanut butter caramel brownie. I got my Cigar City Hunahpu’s, the rare imperial stout out of Tampa that was a deep and raisin-wrinkled treat. I got Three Floyds Dark Lord de Muerte, one of the rarest beers in the world, that smelt of Marmite and tasted of just about everything. Oh, and Trillium Affogato (pure espresso), Firestone Walker Parabajava (sherry and fruitcake), Dugges Speyside Cacao (the name says it all), Alesong Bailey’s Joy (the name doesn’t begin to cover it), and many, many more. 100ml pours were more than enough. When you’re using DIPAs to cleanse your palate, you know something is either going really right, or really wrong.

The whole day was a wonderful, slightly hallucinatory affair - after we’d done a lap or two, the scale of it unfolded and we realised this was as close to being trapped in Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory as we were ever likely to get. It was beer Comic Con, minus people cosplaying as Saint Gambrinus or Tim Martin. It was beer Glastonbury, without the mud. Even the toilets were nice - no signs of amateur brewers hanging out in the cubicles doing lines of purest lupulin powder off the top of the cistern.

It wasn’t perfect of course - given the ambition and the fact it was the inaugural event, there were bound to be teething issues, though these seemed to be as a result of the punters as much as the organisers. There was a lot of “Oh hey, how’s it going!” queue jumping when a particularly good keg came on, and it seemed that more than a few people had helped themselves to more than one glass at the beginning in order to double up their intake. And by the end of the day, quite a few gentlemen (and it was always the gentlemen) could be seen looking slightly tired and emotional, head lolling over a bench. I couldn’t find any bottled water and had to keep heading outside to get sips from the enormous tanks, and, the biggest issue, which I’m sure will upset many people, was that the beer really did mostly run out almost an hour before it finished, with bars switching to Gamma Ray and Neck Oil if they offered anything at all. But by that time, it was hard to bring yourself to care - if you hadn’t had enough, you hadn’t tried hard enough.

Oh, and there was no wine for the wives. But that’s another issue.

On the whole, the day felt like a huge success, and given what I’d pay for even a sniff of each of the individual beers I had, the ticket price was incredible value. It also felt like a real special moment, an accumulation of people and moods that shone with positivity and possibility. Here we were in south London, next door to a Decathlon, with some of the best beers in the world, and people like Sierra Nevada’s Steve Grossman pouring them himself. In a few weeks, I’m sure half the breweries there will reveal the collaborations that were dreamt up when all these people got together to make beautiful, boozy babies.

I didn’t even have time to see more than 10 minutes of impressive-sounding seminars, or pay more than a passing visit to the gallery of label art. I did get to sit on the bus, however. That was good.

12 years since my first beer festival, and they still leave me reeling. Maybe I should stick to the session ales next time.

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gessvhowarth · 7 years ago

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London's Most Interesting Gastropubs

The North by Northwest pub. Hitchcock game: strong. London's gastropubs are so many and varied you can have lunch in a repurposed 1930s cinema, dinner in an old gin palace and dessert presided over by Hitchcock. And empty your bladder to the sound of Blackadder. Visit the Londonist Best Pubs guide for more inspiration. Duke of Cambridge Though the pub itself is nice in a really Highbury-ish way -- with big windows, hefty wooden tables and lots of family dining at a weekend -- it's their kitchen-model that sets it apart from nearby pubs. They're in partnership with Riverford, of fruit and vegetable box fame, but that's just the start of their organic credentials. Fish is sustainably-sourced in Cornwall, venison and game come from Rhug Estates, and 100% of the ingredients they work with are organic, making them the first entirely organic pub in London. If that conjures up images of limited cooking and a restricted menu, think again. As you'd guess with somewhere focused on the organic and seasonal, the menu changes regularly but at time of writing you could be sitting down to dishes of sriracha Cornish crab on toast, and braised wild rabbit leg with polenta. And the desserts are proof they aren't about to sacrifice indulgence -- they might be an almond brownie or orange-rich bread and butter pudding. 30 St Peter's Street, N1 Source Riverford @ The Duke Source Riverford @ The Duke The Angelic The decor might earn this pub a place in this article, with intense wallpaper, carved wood and guttering candles lighting the way to the bathrooms. It's friendly. It's spacious. It has a rococo bar upstairs. And we've never had less than great food there. But we've chosen it for one, important reason: they have the audio for Blackadder playing over speakers in the bathrooms. Every time. Different visits, different seasons of Blackadder, but the same joyous experience. We don't know why Rowan Atkinson chastising Baldrick over the soundwaves while you're in the toilet feels so right. It just does. 57 Liverpool Road, N1 Source The Angelic Source The Angelic The Warrington Swirls, whirls and organic curls decorate every millimetre of this outrageously gorgeous pub. Mosaics, stained glass, tiled columns... you'll want to lick the decor. A set of nubile nymphs, playfully lacking in wardrobe, gaze down from the bar canopy, perhaps a nod to the venue's former reported use as a brothel. According to their site, the word 'randy' was invented here, thanks to the pub's close proximity to Randolph Crescent. Today, it's a bustling place with plenty of room to spread out and an impressive range of beers. There's also a good food offering -- the place used to be owned by Gordon Ramsay, but the food focus has been continued (we think maybe improved on?) by current owners Faucet Inn. And they've recently relaunched the hotel rooms above the pub in show-stopping style. We stayed the night in the Gamekeeper's Room and can confirm it's got the four poster bed, ceramic deer head statues stuck to the wall and enormous copper freestanding bathtub in the middle of the bedroom to compete with the downstairs pub for strange splendour. 93 Warrington Cres, W9 Source faucetinn Source faucetinn Balham Bowls Club Affectionally known, and cheekily logo'd as the BBC, Balham Bowls Club is one of the most original pubs around. It was one of the first venues to get the Antic Pubs treatment: requisition a tired old building with some character -- this was an abandoned bowling club -- and turn it into something special. On entering, a series of bar areas can be found to the left, a function room known as the Presidential Room sits to the right, and through the back lies a vast dining hall. The poor cleaner has his or her work cut out, for there's a capacious space known as The Ballroom upstairs — used for private hire (including weddings) and film screenings. There's even a beer garden should you need to stretch your legs out even further. No shortage of patrons keep the space full, and you'd be lucky to get a table if you arrive at 12.30 pm for their (great) Sunday lunch. It would be easy to assume that the BBC, with its ironic subverting of a traditional community space, might be populated with trendy young things, but this isn't so. The pub houses a mix of ages, with family diners crammed in among the couples and elderly gentlemen. 7-9 Ramsden Road, SW12 Source londonist Source londonist Princess Victoria This pub was a gin palace in another life and comes with all the gilt, carvings and chandeliers -- and gin -- you could ask for. After a while as an unkempt local, the Princess Victoria was recalled to its statelier roots a few years back as one of Shepherd's Bush's most handsome gastros. A stately island bar is offset with wood-panelled walls and a rounded skylight. To label it a gastropub is a bit unfair. There's a division between dining room proper and the wider pub, with plenty of space for those who just want to drink. It's so spacious, in fact, that this has become a firm favourite with families -- plenty of kids running about, even on our Monday night visit. If you want to escape it all, there's a diminutive beer garden through the back of the restaurant area. Deliveroo now from Shepherd's Bush 217 Uxbridge Road, W12 Source The PV Source princessvictoria The Ivy House The recent history of The Ivy House pub in Nunhead's a fascinating story of people power against the march of corporate-sponsored gentrification. London's first community-owned pub is Grade II listed, with original 1930s features. Despite that -- and also the venue’s clear cultural significance and the fact that CAMRA nominated it to be listed -- in 2012 the umbrella company that owned The Ivy House decided to give the tenants just five days’ notice to pack up their peanuts and get out. The pub was saved from developers when locals clubbed together and set the place up as a co-op, securing the future of the pub and getting it listed as an asset of community value. These days it's impossible to walk through the Ivy House without a massive grin on your face. It's so convivial, you'll want to take it home to meet your parents. Or maybe just enjoy one of their burgers as you watch an act on their small cabaret stage. 40 Stuart Road, SE15 Source The Ivy House The Churchill Arms This pub's instantly recognisable, the exterior a mass of hanging baskets and flowers almost entirely covering the front. Inside, too, there's little hint of the fabric of the building, with pots, pans, porcelain commodes, sporting gear, lamps, royal memorabilia, bunting and assorted Churchillian gimcracks hanging from the ceiling. The back room echoes the outside with more plants than Homebase. To awkwardly paraphrase Churchill, 'Never in the field of pub decoration has so much been displayed to so many, in such a tight space'. It claims to be the very first London pub with a Thai restaurant -- over 25 years ago these trailblazers knew the city was ready to pair a pad Thai with an ice cold lager, and opened their conservatory -- complete with tiny waterfall and real fish -- in which to do it. For other secrets about this pub, read the full article here. 119 Kensington Church Street, W8 Source churchillarmskensington Source churchillarmskensington Well & Bucket There's a genuinely sinister edge to this pub's interior, including the crumbling glazed tiles rescued from the pub's previous incarnation, and huge skull portraits. The Well & Bucket is one of the East End's oldest pubs, but also one of its newest, pouring pints from 1818 till 1989. For the following quarter-century it traded as a restaurant and later a wholesale shop. Now it has reopened thanks to Barworks and it's tempting to declare this the best pub in this corner of London and be done with it. Let us count the reasons: - Great ale selection, with rotating casks and a big range of bottled beers- Exceptional food. Who'd have thought a spelt salad could be the dining highlight of one's week? More-ish sliders come highly recommended- A small beer garden- A candle-lit basement cocktail bar - from the 5cc bar group, with venues in the basement of the Singer Tavern and the attic at the Exmouth Arms Needless to say, it can get very busy — but being a little further from the working population than nearby rivals, you should get a table if you get here early enough. 143 Bethnal Green Road, E2 Source londonist Source londonist Mirth, Marvel & Maud After decades of sad decline, we're pleased to see Walthamstow’s historic EMD Granada cinema opened up again, partially-restored and now serving as one of the most atmospheric pubs in East London. The Grade II listed picture house, frequented by Alfred Hitchcock as a young boy, dates back to 1930, while the site itself was screening all way the back in 1896, the year cinema was officially born. The hugely characterful building, with its chandeliers and William Morris inspired décor, has been renamed by new managers, the Antic pub chain. The head of the company Anthony Thomas explains the odd moniker: “We wanted to bring Mirth back to the Foyer, which is in itself a Walthamstow Marvel. My Great-Aunt Maud took me to a similar space as a child, hence our chosen name.” The vast entrance foyer opens into a three-storied drinking palace. The first of the two bars is an octagonal booth just inside the doors serving cocktails, the second a bustling basement where you can try beer from Wathamstow natives Wild Card Brewery. Vintage tables and benches contrast the faded but still gorgeous interiors. The double height ground floor features soaring mirrors and ornate Ionic pilasters in turquoise and gold. Then up the sweeping staircase you’ll find a long, low-slung barrel-vaulted upper level with freshly painted and papered walls and rich red carpets. Just watch out for the ghost rumoured to flit between the projectionist’s booth and the cinema upstairs -- said to resemble a rotund, bald man. 186 Hoe Street, E17 Source Mirth Marvel & Maud Source Mirth Marvel & Maud The North by Northwest Pub If you've ever visited The Alma in Canonbury, you're in for a similar experience at North by Northwest, under the same management. The pub opened in early 2016, replacing the North Pole. Despite enjoying a complete refit, the place feels comfortable, even lived-in. The long drinking space is punctuated with numerous tributes to Alfred Hitchcock. (The great director began his career just south of here at Gainsborough Studios, now turned to residential blocks surrounding a giant Hitchcock head.) The bar serves a good range of ales, they do decent, two for one pizzas from Monday to Wednesday -- and a small beer garden at the back gives al fresco options. Just watch out for the birds. 188-190 New N Road, N1 Source No®thByN??rthwestPub Source No®thByN??rthwestPub

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spladebeforn38 · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

Regarding the shortage of CO2 reported in the Guardian over the last week, it does not lead to a shortage of real beer – only of the ersatz versions such as lager and the like. I have seen no shortage of proper beer here in West Somerset. Real ale, whether bottle or cask conditioned, needs no extra input of CO2 as it creates its own. Perhaps now is a good time to extol the virtues of real ale as opposed to Eurofizz! Alan Bond Watchet, Somerset

• Re The NHS at 70: what has it got better at? (Journal, 2 July): diagnosis of bowel cancer in the over-60s. Do the postal test, send it off, and (fingers crossed) you’re clear for two years. But if you’re not, you’ll have an op within 18 weeks. Thanks to all who treated and supported me. Margaret Waddy Cambridge

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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subjecould58 · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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louiseholdenne · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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spold198027 · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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storturly31 · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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thatedge41 · 7 years ago

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No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

Real ale | NHS at 70 | Vaginal treatments | Morris cars | Hiding valuables

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#No lack of real beer due to CO2 shortage – just Eurofizz | Brief letters

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brookpub · 2 years ago

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Cask Ale Week in Cambridge | Bars and Pubs in Cambridge

In the United Kingdom, they have a festival every year called Cask Ale Week to celebrate the history of cask-conditioned beers. Beer lovers, barkeeps, brewers, and locals all get together at this annual celebration to honour beer's rich history and delicious flavours. Let’s check out the celebration of Cask Ale Week in Cambridge.

What is Cask Ale?

Cask ale, often known as "real ale," is a specific variety of beer that goes through secondary fermentation in the cask (or other container) from which it is served. Cask ale is also sometimes referred to as "proper ale." Natural carbonation and serving without adding gases give cask ales their distinctive and often fuller flavour than kegged beers.

Importance of Cask Ale Week:

Keeping the Tradition Alive:

Cask Ale Week is an annual celebration in the United Kingdom that pays homage to the traditional Cask Ale brewing techniques that have been esteemed there for many years. Cask ales are served directly from the cask. It fosters an appreciation for this more conventional method of brewing while also contributing to preserving the skill of making true ale.

Contributing to the Success of Local Breweries:

This event allows regional and independent breweries to display their cask ales and compete for prizes. It helps cultivate a feeling of community and encourages customers to investigate and show their support for the wide variety of beers brewed in the UK.

Celebrating the Wide-Ranging Varieties of Flavours:

The remarkable range of flavours and styles that cask beers can offer is brought to the forefront during Cask Ale Week. There's a beer out there for every taste, from hoppy, light ales to dark, deep stouts and everything in between.

Pub and social gathering promotion:

As the primary meeting venue for those passionate about beer, pubs are essential to celebrating cask ales. Cask Ale Week is an annual event that encourages people to frequent their neighbourhood pubs, which helps communities develop a stronger feeling of community.

Consumer Education and Engagement:

This event offers attendees the chance to learn more about cask ales, including the production process of these beers and the variety of available kinds. With this information, customers are better equipped to make educated decisions and recognise the skilled labour that goes into each pint.

Who Likes Cask Ale Week?

Those Passionate About Beer:

Cask Ale Week is a dream come true for beer enthusiasts who genuinely care about the beverage. It enables students to experiment with various flavours and styles, broadening their understanding of beer and their palate.

Owners and Managers of Bars and Taverns:

Cask Ale Week is an opportunity for business owners of pubs to attract customers enthusiastic about drinking high-quality beer. It has the potential to bring about greater foot traffic and enhanced client loyalty, both of which are beneficial to their businesses in the long run.

Brewers and Staff at the Brewery:

It is an opportunity for brewers to demonstrate their skill and earn acknowledgement for the time and effort they put into crafting cask ales of the highest quality. In addition to this, it allows them to communicate directly with customers.

Members of the Community:

Cask Ale Week is an annual event that draws people together and fosters community within their areas. It encourages people to communicate with one another, which helps create a lively and welcoming environment in local bars.

Cask Ale Week 2023: Participating in the Event

Encourage Participation:

Pass the word around! Informing your customers that you will participate in Cask Ale Week can be accomplished through your social media platforms, website, and other types of local advertising. Create some buzz about the upcoming unique cask ales, special events, and promotions you will offer.

Create a Remarkable Collection of Cask Ales:

Display the breadth of flavour of cask ales by compiling a unique weekly collection. Include a variety of styles to appeal to a wide range of consumers' preferences, ranging from light ales to dark stouts and everything in between.

Tastings & Meet the Brewer Sessions:

By holding sampling events or "Meet the Brewer" sessions, you may encourage your customers to interact more deeply with your products and services. It paves the way for specialists to learn about the brewing process and acquire insights into your creations by providing a forum for such learning.

Food and Cask Ales:

The dining experience may be taken to the next level by providing best food pairings with the cask ales. Include suggestions for pairings on your menu, or organise special tasting sessions where customers can learn about the many delicious ways beer and cuisine may be combined.

Encourage Responsible Drinking:

Please remind your consumers to drink cask ales responsibly. Provide beverages that do not include alcohol, make alternate modes of transportation available, and educate your personnel to recognise the warning symptoms of overindulgence.

Community Engagement:

Initiate activities that bring community members together, such as pub quizzes, concerts, or fund-raising events for charitable organisations. Encourage customers to take pleasure not only in the beverage but also in the company of others when they are in the pub.

Brook Pub Cask Ale Week 2023:

The Cask Ale Collector Card Is Finally Revealed:

We thank you for being such faithful customers by presenting you with the Cask Ale Collector Card. When you purchase a cask ale, you will receive a stamp on your card. If you collect seven stamps, your eighth pint will be complimentary. To express our gratitude for your membership in the Brook Pub family, please accept this gift.

Why Should You Opt for Brook Pub's Cask Ales?

Diverse Selection: Explore a hand-picked selection of cask ales, ranging from dry bitters to hearty stouts, all available for your drinking pleasure—our variety appeals to various tastes, guaranteeing something here for everyone.

Crafted with Care: Cask ales, each of which we provide, are made by hand, giving careful attention to detail and being brewed with a great deal of enthusiasm. Feel the difference that comes from drinking a real beer that was made the old-fashioned way. Best food and drinks served made of fresh ingredients from local produce that tastes like home-cooked food.

Pairings that Delight: Take your tasting experience to the next level with our thoughtfully chosen food pairings, created to match the one-of-a-kind flavours of our cask beers.

Community and fellowship: The Brook Pub near Holiday Inn Express is more than simply a location to enjoy excellent beer; it is also a meeting place for friends, family, and other people who share a passion for the same activities. Come hang out with us for lively conversation, unique events, Open Mic night, Best Karaoke Night and live music.

How to Participate:

Visit Brook Pub during Cask Ale Week from September 21st to October 1st, 2023.

Enjoy our delectable cask ales and collect stamps on your Cask Ale Collector Card.

Reach 7 symbols and savour your 8th pint free!

Brook Pub Cask Ale Week provides a great chance for pubs and brewers to engage with their customers, promote their craft, and celebrate the thriving world of cask ales. Cask Ale Week takes place annually in the first week of September. You can make Cask Ale Week 2023 a memorable and successful event for your establishment by creating activities, curating unique selections, and cultivating a sense of community among your customers. I hope you all have a wonderful time celebrating!

#Cask Ale Week in Cambridge #Best food and drinks #best food pairings with the cask ales #traditional Cask Ale brewing techniques #Brook Pub Cambridge #Brook Cask Ale Week

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miamibeerscene · 8 years ago

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Solera Brewing: American Brewers Explore an Old World Brewing Style

December 19, 2017

Solera brewing is a beer-making process that dates back hundreds of years. In the last decade or so, it’s a method a number of American brewers hungry for experimentation, complexity and speed are beginning to explore.

The creative, efficient Solera system of mixed fermentation has been in use since it first was devised by Portuguese sherry producers in the late 1700s. Now it also is being used for making port, whiskey (think Glenfiddich 15-Year-Old Solera), brandy, balsamic vinegar, and, more recently, American craft beer.

Will Meyers got the idea about a modified solera brewing system after talking to a winemaker. (Credit: Cambridge Brewing)

The Solera system, also called “fractional blending,” was first used in a U.S. craft brewery in 2003 at Cambridge Brewing, the brainchild of renowned Head Brewer Will Meyers. Meyers ironically got the idea during a conversation over a beer with a friend who was the owner and winemaker at Sutton Cellars vineyard.

Meyers describes his classic approach by relating it to the original sherry system but is using it for beer (parentheses added): “essentially a number of casks that contain identical liquids of consecutive ages. In the case of sherry (or beer), a quantity of the style is drawn off at intervals throughout the year, and the cask is refreshed with a slightly younger wine (or other liquid) of the same style. The younger wine (or beer) will gradually take on the character of the older wine (or beer), and after several months, the wine (or beer) in the cask becomes virtually indistinguishable from what it was before.”

(READ: The Evolving Role of Women’s Contributions to Beer)

Aged Qualities in a Fraction of the Time

For sour beer, a single stage system now is used by most Solera breweries and has been found to be an excellent way to continuously make the beer more quickly than conventional barrel aging, with greater depth, and with a wild culture mixture that slowly evolves over time. The tapped beer is replaced by the house base beer which is brewed separately and moved to the Solera.

Basically, the untapped part of the Solera cask acts as a jump starter, like the sourdough bread starter that many families have used and passed around. (We called our sourdough starter Herman.)

Jason Kahler, the brewmaster and co-owner of Solera Brewing in Parkdale, Oregon, tells us, “My intention was to have a constant flow of complexly layered, acid-forward beers without the long wait. Initially, I was thinking of the mixed cultures residing in the barrels. It was more of a way to keep bacteria and yeast alive in barrels that I wanted to duplicate, but quickly realized that not only was this a simple way to feed and keep the critters active, but also produce a beer that had some aged qualities that could be achieved in a fraction of the time.”

(READ: Understanding the Three-Tier System: Its Impacts on U.S. Craft Beer and You)

Boston Beer uses a Solera process to make their Kosmic Mother Funk (KMF) series. Jennifer Glanville, the brewer at Boston Beer, has three 130 barrel foeders used for making the various KMF beers, with the one for their Grand Cru aging at least 24 months before tapping. Glanville asserts that, “The process gives a different depth of flavor than with blending.”

Nathan Zeender, the head brewer at Right Proper Brewing in Washington, DC, notes that, “We are able to get the finished beer much more quickly. The beer also continues to evolve and develop its own character.”

Classic Solera Brewed Beers

Records show that a Solera-type brewing process has been used in the past for brewing beer, but not for many years. One such beer was the classic, but sadly no longer made, Gale’s Prize Old Ale. Another is the famous Burton Ale from the Ballantine Brewery. The oldest Solera beer barrel still in use is a 200+ years old Walloon Old Ale barrel, first used in 1806. The cask is owned and has been maintained by the Gedda Family in Sweden and is tapped once every two years.

Since Cambridge’s then-innovative system for brewing beer, quite a number of other breweries have developed their own distinctive Solera system, with variations to fit each of their unique needs. These range from widely-distributed craft breweries such as New Belgium to extremely small enterprises like Duncan’s Abbey with only four souring barrels.

(READ: 12 Beers of Christmas)

Meyers created his very traditional Solera brewing system in the low-ceilinged dirt basement of the brewery’s refurbished 125-year-old mill. He is dogmatic about keeping it traditional and “remaining true to the Solera spirit.” Their Solera has grown to 15 former Bordeaux and Burgundy wine barrels of about 60 gallons each with the addition of five barrels in 2008 and another five in 2015.

Essentially now Cambridge has a Solera and two nurseries called criaderas. Each year, the Solera is tapped only once to make their Cerise Cassée, a sour ale made with tart cherries. The Solera, usually tapped in the late autumn, produces about 200-250 gallons of Cerise Cassée. Meyers hopes that the increased Criadera size will allow a limited bottled release.

Beers Made Using “Aging and Time”

Brewing with a Solera system is more an art than a science. The barrels in the system used for blending age at different rates depending on elements such as the aggressiveness of the cultures in the barrels or foeders, weather, temperature and other factors. Those cultures and the wort they are working with can be modified over time by changing the malt profile, re-inoculating or changing the culture mix, modifying the fermentation and temperatures, determining when time is ripe to draw from the foeders, and how these various factors work together in blending a final product, all of which only comes from experience.

“All batches are related to one another and the latest is related to the first.” Chase Healey, American Solera

Two relatively new breweries have Solera in their name, American Solera in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Solera Brewing in Parkdale, Oregon. Both are among numerous breweries using modifications of the traditional Solera system to make sour ales.

Chase Healey, the brewer and owner of American Solera, says he is simply using “aging and time” to make their beers. He likes that, “All batches are related to one another and the latest is related to the first.”

Each Solera batch is aged for four to six months and then drawn down by one-half to two-thirds and fills 20-30 barrels. Healey checks to see what is available for mixing or blending such as peaches, berries or grapes and sometimes dry hops the resulting barrels. Refilling the Solera with his base farmhouse beer he describes as “pulling and replenishing.”

Solera Brewery is Built on Experimentation

Solera Brewery has a spectacular view of Mt. Hood towering over its back patio. Brewmaster Kahler relates that, “One of the things that attracted me to this technique was all the years I’ve spent brewing in other breweries the same damn beers day in and day out. I’m not sure I could ever do that kind of brewing again. Experimentation has always been the goal of this brewery. I think many of our customers understand our philosophy.”

(READ: A Sour Pickle in American Brewering: Can Brewers Better Define this Style?)

At present, Solera Brewery has 25 barrels stacked two high using chocks. Kahler’s goal is “not to duplicate but to create.” He artfully relates that, “The wort that’s used to replace what has been drawn out is dictated by the remaining beer in the barrel. Does it need the acidity cut? Does it need more acid, color, or body?”

Kahler describes the draw on each barrel, saying, “The barrel will tell you. I’ve had barrels that were in their first generation for three or four years, while others as little as three months. It also depends greatly on what you plan to do with the beer. Are you blending with it or serving it straight?”

“Consistently Delicious … Not Consistently the Same”

Zeender, like many others, started with Solera brewing as a homebrewer. When Zeender set up the Right Proper brewery he was able to acquire three 38-barrel foeders. Two of the foeders are used for souring and one for other beers.

“The original mixed fermentation culture was derived from two saison yeasts, two types of Brettanomyces yeasts, and a Lactobacillus strain,” Zeender says. “Brettanomyces is the focus, and it develops over time from months to years.”

Zeender’s two primary mixed fermentation beers are made in their own foeders. One is the flavorful Baron Corvo, a Rustic biere de garde, while the other is the White Bicycles Rustic Witbier. Both also are bases for other beers such as an aged farmhouse ale and a foeder beer on cherries.

(READ: Should We Wait in Line for Beer?)

The Solera beers, Zeender notes, are “consistently delicious but not consistently the same.”

Other brewers using modified Solera systems agree that their beers vary some due to the evolving yeasts, changing weather, and a host of other factors. Often customers truly enjoy checking the small variability of each handcrafted version.

How frequently Zeender’s foeders are tapped depends on demand but usually every four to six weeks. About one-half to two-thirds of the beer is removed on average and refilled from a base beer brewed in stainless steel tanks before being subjected to the alchemy of the mixed fermentation colony residing in the oak foeders.

Solera Method at Duncan’s Abbey and Fermentery Form

Two small Solera breweries have interesting wrinkles with their system. Duncan’s Abbey is a local brewery in an 1890s building in Tarrytown, New York, at the New York end of the Tappan Zee Bridge. It has a mere four souring barrels, stored in the building’s old stone cellar, which are used for the Solera. Owner and Brewer Justin DiNino believes, “People are looking for originality and these are unique.”

DiNino also believes in brewing using only local ingredients including hops from Tarrytown and the nearby area. More intriguing is his local yeast. Natural wild yeasts, that vary each year, are captured in the spring and fall in two half barrels placed outside the brewery. After fermenting to a desirable alcohol level, depending on how active the yeasts are, these barrels are tapped by one-third to one-half and are racked and the Solera refilled. The results tend to be fruity early and evolve to more acidic toward the end. If the yeasts dry the ale fully, DiNino may set aside a barrel for blending as part of their Flanders-style Rockefeller Red Ale.

(READ: Brewery Rescues Ugly Fruit from Landfills)

Fermentery Form’s Ethan Tripp experiments with a variation of Solera brewing. (Credit: Fermentery Form)

Philadelphia’s new Fermentery Form brewery opened this past July and with a different twist. Leaving the wort production to a contract brewery with spare capacity, they are a barrel-only brewery. According to Lead Fermentationist and jack-of-all-trades Ethan Tripp, like Zeender a former homebrewer, focusing solely on fermentation both saves a major expense and gives the brewery more flexibility and more time to experiment. The house mixed fermentation culture is about 10 years old dating back to those homebrewing adventures and the focus of he and his partners on balanced sour brews and barrel aging. Many of their beers are variations of farmhouse ales.

The brewery acquired 56 very old red, white and dessert wine oak casks in various states of disrepair and unusable for wine anymore. Essentially, Tripp, the jack-of-all-trades, added being a cooper to his other duties. The 56 barrels are arranged in two stacks with about 10-12 on each bottom and a similar amount on a second tier.

Tripp says there are about 20 Solera barrels on the bottom of the two stacks, a small variation from the classic Solera idea. They are filled from the second tier barrels as is traditionally done.

Only a few of the barrels have been tapped and refilled thus far, each time drawing about one-half to two-thirds of the contents and refilling from the second tier.

(READ: Explore 75+ Craft Beer Styles)

The Future of Solera Brewing?

The original American sour beer, New Belgium’s La Folie, first was made 20 years ago in their wooden foeders which, until three years ago, used a modified Solera system of partly emptying and refilling according to then Head Brewer Peter Bouckaert. The current forest of foeders has grown to 65 foeders ranging in size from a bit over 20 barrels to almost 190 barrels.

Two have been especially helpful in blending of their sour brews, the light lagers from foeder Oscar and the dark lagers from foeder Felix. Over these 17 years, there were various experimental changes such as using different malts and fermentation temperatures. The forest of foeders is in the care of Lauren Limbach, the Wood Cellar Director & Blender at New Belgium, who says, “My job is to keep the foeders happy.”

Peter Bouckaert, former head brewer at New Belgium Brewing. (CraftBeer.com)

(READ: The History of the American Pale Ale)

Three years ago Limbach and her colleagues made a momentous discovery. They found that the benefit of brewing a relatively consistent beer using the modified Solera system could be achieved by completely emptying the foeder rather than a partial drawdown and refill. The cultures in the foeders evolved, reaching a steady state where the culture mixtures now reside in the wood and can regenerate themselves after being emptied. Essentially, the wood has developed a life of its own.

As Limbach describes it, “Over the years, we saw opportunities to improve overall flavor profile and found solutions to do so. This happened with years of testing and step by step working towards a new process. These foeders have had our cultures in them, penetrating the wood over many, many years … (this system) seems to be successful in our very specific need.” Ninety percent of the beer now is emptied for use and the remaining 10 percent is drained to minimize brewing maintenance issues. The foeders are then refilled within 12 hours and “within a week it has started reproducing.” Limbach proudly reports: “This absolutely works.”

The Solera process for brewing has been around for at least 200 years. For at least one brewery, it has evolved over time and perhaps others may able to follow the New Belgium lead. If not, the tried and true system still has numerous benefits and produces excellent beers.

The Brews Brothers

The Brews Brothers journalism team has focused on craft beers since shortly after the first shots were fired early in the ‘craft beer revolution.’ Publications and writings include American Brewer; Mid-Atlantic Brewing News; the Gazette Newspapers where we wrote monthly craft beer columns for 23 years for the metropolitan Washington, DC area; and Beerhistory.com. We also give lectures and host beer tastings. Steve likes classical music, the gym, walking my dog Barley on the C&O Canal and beercations. Arnie enjoys jazz, drinking craft beer and beercations.