June 2021 – The Tap Takeover

Draught Diversions: Brewery Ommegang Visit

Draught Diversions is the catchall label for mini-rants, think-pieces, and posts that don’t just focus on one beer here at The Tap Takeover. We hope you don’t grow too weary of the alcohol alliterative names we use…

I’m going to change up the formula just a little bit for this Draught Diversions installment. Often, when I write about breweries, the breweries are somewhat smaller, not nationally distributed, and “hyper-local.” Brewery Ommegang isn’t exactly small, they are one of the iconic American breweries, and I’ve written about them quite extensively in the past. For this installment; however, I’ll be writing about the visit and experience, while spotlighting the delicious beers, and skip the history of the brewery which typically comprises a significant portion of these posts. Chances are, if you are reading this beer blog, you have an inkling of Brewery Ommegang’s history, or you can check out my write up on the American Craft Beer Classic Abbey Dubbel, which goes into a bit of the brewery’s history.

Ommegang_TapHouse My wife and I decided to take a trip for our 21st anniversary. We hadn’t gone on an overnight trip in years because of our beloved dog Sully, but sweet Sully passed away on May 4 at 11 years old after a long fight with various health issues. We miss her every day. But enough sadness…

We figured we had the opportunity to travel since the pandemic is slowing, and we are both vaccinated so it made sense. We are both huge baseball fans and Leslie wanted to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame for many years and I hadn’t visited in about 20 years. The Baseball Hall of Fame is in Cooperstown, NY, which is also the home of Brewery Ommegang. No brainer, right? Right.

The first noticeable thing about the brewery is that its location could be described as “just West of the middle of nowhere.” That is not a knock by any means because the setting and location is absolutely gorgeous, one of the most comforting and beautiful brewing facilities I’ve had the opportunity to visit. Leslie and I took to the outdoor café to soak in the relaxing atmosphere and were greeted by Samantha, our charming and lovely server/waitress. I knew a couple of the beers I wanted to sample (Idyll Days Pilsner; Double Barrel Dubbel, and Super Kriek), but I needed some guidance on filling out the flight. Samantha suggested the Rose Cider, and on the whole, it was a fantastic flight. Idyll Days was a delicious pilsner with some of the Belgian yeast character. Second sample was that Cider and it was a great taste for the beautiful day. Third up was the barrel aged Abbey Dubbel, a complex, rich take on their classic Abbey Dubbel with the barrel hints and for some reason, hints of coconut; all welcome in an already delicious base beer. I finished off the flight with Super Kriek (2021), which is cherry Lambic-Style ale, sweet, tart, and delicious.

OmmegangFlight

The food we ordered was savory and deliciously crafted. My wife had the pork belly sandwich and I had one of the best Chicken and Waffles meals I ever had. I know Leslie’s pork belly sandwich was out of this word because I tried a few bites! My flight was over, and Samantha came back to check on us. She had earlier recommended Apripeche, a fruited sour with Peach and Apricot as a great summer beer. Well, it was summer, so I took her advice and boy howdy was I pleased. Apripeche is one of the most refreshing fruited beers I’ve had. Sometimes the atmosphere and timing of having a beer helps the enjoyment, and sitting in this gorgeous brewery, with my beautiful wife, and perfect day only increased how great the beer was.

Ommegang_Apripeche — Apripiche is the perfect summer beer, I’m hoping to get some for my poolside cooler this year.

We were winding down out time at the café (we did drive about 3½ hours to get to Cooperstown, after all), and as we moseyed on out, I decided to have a full pour of Idyll Days Pilsner, because it was such a fantastic and different pilsner than I’d had before.

Ommegang_IdyllDays — A full pour of delicious **Idyll Days Pilsner**.

We strolled through the gift shop and I decided to grab my favorite Game of Thrones beer to go, Valar Doheris, which is a Belgian-style Tripel. I enjoyed splitting the bottle the following day with a good friend. I was reminded, upon pouring and enjoying the beer, that Valar Doheris is one of the best Tripels I’ve ever had, hands down. Rich, potent Belgian style yeast with esters evoking hints of clove and banana make for a world-class take on the renowned Belgian style. Simply an out of this world beer.

Ommegang_ValarDoheris

As I mentioned in one of my early blog posts, Brewery Ommegang had been near the top of my bucket list breweries to visit. To say that the visit – on every single level – far exceeded my expectations is an understatement. Gorgeous location, world-class beers, some of the most welcoming people I’ve met working at a brewery, and sumptuous food, make Brewery Ommegang, and their Tap House and absolute must visit.

Ommegang_InstagramCollage

Beer Review: Last Wave Brewing’s Dawn Patrol

Beer Review

Name: Dawn Patrol
Brewing Company: Last Wave Brewing Co.
Location: Point Pleasant Beach, NJ
Style: Sour – Fruited Gose
ABV: 5.2%

“A brewery in one of NJ’s great Shore Town has a take on a classic German style that is sure to please.”

From Last Wave’s “Our beers” page:

Sunsets are kind of a West Coast thing. We look for the Sunrise on the East Coast, signaling another day. This beer honors those that forgo a little extra sleep to chase their passion and rise with the sun. Dawn Patrol is a light, tart beer that gets its flavor from a simple grain bill, a light souring, pureed pink guava, and like most great things from the Jersey Shore—a touch of salt. It’s a refreshing brew that’s fruity, a little funky, and ready to go for your next summer get-together—no matter the time of day.

I’ve been wanting to try one of Last Wave’s beers for a while now, especially since I’ve been seeing their beer in distribution in my area. Well, let me revise that statement. I’ve had a beer which was a collaboration with Icarus Brewing, so I wanted to sample their “solo” brewing efforts. Warm weather is a good time for fruited Goses so here we are with Dawn Patrol. Last Wave is based on one of NJ’s great Shore Towns, Point Pleasant Beach, so many of their beers (like this one) have a beach/ocean themed name.

”But what about the beer, Rob?” readers typically ask at this point. Let’s dive into it, then.

The beer pours quite cloudy, which is largely on par for the course with Gose beers. Not much color from the guava, maybe a very slight tint of pink? The aroma is a little funky, which is to be expected from the style. So far, so good.

My first impression of the taste is a little tart, a little sweetness, a slight hit from the salt on the finish. Again, pretty much in line for the style. The sweetness, of course, comes from the Guava and is a nice balance to the inherent tartness of the style. The guava isn’t too overpowering, it brings a welcome element of refreshment to the beer. I’ve got fond memories of freshly squeezed guava juice from when my wife and I spent our honeymoon in Hawaii and the guava elements in this beer definitely stoke the flames of those memories.

One of the characteristics of a Gose, compared to many other sours and fruited sours in particular, is the salinity. The Gose style of beer originated in Leipzig, Germany, a region noted for water high in salinity. As such, brewers have tried to evoke that salty/balanced finish when crafting beer in the Gose-style. That saltines is present here in Dawn Patrol and of course evokes the saltiness one might feel and taste in the air on the beach, so on many levels, Last Wave has done something quite nice with this beer.

While I thoroughly enjoy this beer and can imagine it being perfect on a warm day, I think I would like Dawn Patrol even more if the hallmark elements of the beer and style would be a little more assertive. A slight increase of the tartness and salty finish would elevate a very good beer to a great beer. Like I said, I’m nit-picking because I like the beer quite a lot. This beer is be perfect for drinkers who may be averse to sour styles because of the approachability and overall flavor profile of Dawn Patrol has the elements of the style, but not to amped up monstrous levels. In other words, I’d say this is a “successful” beer for Last Wave Brewing Co.

I’m not sure how widely Last Wave is distributing within New Jersey, but I suspect one would only have success finding this beer within the Garden State. What Dawn Patrol has done for me is this: I’m intrigued to try more beer from Last Wave Brewing.

Recommended, link to Untappd 4-bottle cap rating.

Pucker Up (Level 21)

A Sour beer on Untappd is any beer with a style of the following: American Wild Ale, Lambic, or Sour.

Right about now you’re feeling your face tighten and your taste buds explode. The full pucker is quickly setting in and you can’t get enough. This is the wonder of the sour.

Beer Review: Lawson’s Finest Liquids’ Scrag Mountain Pils Salt & Lime

Beer Review

Name: Scrag Mountain Pils Salt & Lime
Brewing Company: Lawson’s Finest Liquids
Location: Waitsfield, VT
Style: Pilsner – Czech
ABV: 4.8%

“The Vermont brewery known for hoppy IPAs has crafted a slamming, refreshing Lager perfect for Summer.”

From Lawson’s Finest Liquids’s landing page for Scrag Mountain Pils Salt & Lime:

This special version of our traditional Czech Pilsner, known affectionately as “Scragarita,” is infused with lime juice and sea salt for a well-balanced dance of crisp and tart.

For this review, I’m covering another beer that works perfectly in the Summer, and sure, I feature quite a few Lagers here at The Tap Takeover, but this is the first Pilsner I’m reviewing in almost a year. While Lawson’s Finest has become a Vermont brewing institution in recent years, the brewery has NJ roots. Owner and brewmaster Sean Lawson grew up in New Jersey before heading up to Vermont.

While Lawson’s Finest Liquids built its reputation hop-forward beers like the renowned Sip of Sunshine, all the styles they’ve brewed have essentially been “hits.” They took their popular Scrag Mountain Pils and added Salt and Lime, to both evoke a margarita (or “Scragarita” as it is called by Lawson’s) and a popular Mexican lager that is known for people adding a lime to the bottle.

Let’s get to the beer itself, shall we?

In the glass, it looks exactly like I’d expect a Czech Pilsner (or any classic Pilsner) to look – clear, yellow, with some bubbles, and a little bit of head. As I bring the glass to my nose, the lime aroma enters my senses. Not tart and overpowering lime, but definitely present.

That first sip is great, it hits the notes of refreshment I was hoping to get from the beer. The crackery/bready elements of the Pilsner are there, the lime comes in for some refreshing tartness, and the salt on the finish balances out the whole beer extremely well.

This is the kind of beer I want cold and in my hands as soon as I’m finished yard work or sitting by the pool. In fact, the second time I had the beer I did exactly that, finished mowing the lawn and cooled off in the pool with this beer. As it turns out, the opening sentence of this paragraph was written shortly after my first experience tasting the beer. There’s something to be said for taste and timing in general. In specific for Scrag Mountain Pils Salt and Lime, this beer was *perfect* for that post lawnmower refreshment while relaxing in the pool (as in the picture at the top of this post).

Quite a few breweries over the last couple of years have been “Liming up their Lagers.” Yes, I just made that up! I had two beers last summer with the name “Tan Limes,” and even right now in the refrigerated aisles of beer shops in NJ you’ll see a couple of Pilsners and Lagers with Lime or Lime and Salt added. In other words, it is a smart move by Lawson’s Finest especially since what they produced with this beer is indeed a finely crafted Pilsner.

I’d say that Scrag Mountain Pils with Salt and Lime is a must have for the summer. The beer should be available throughout the Northeast where Lawson’s Finest is distributed and is well keeping in rotation for the short amount of time the beer is available in the months of May and June. I’m hoping to try the base version of the beer, but I’d be happy to keep this in constant rotation in the poolside cooler.

Highly Recommended, link to Untappd 4.25-bottle cap rating | Untappd 4.5-bottle cap rating.

Crisp as Day (Level 20)

bdg_pilsner_lg — Light and crisp, a Pilsner is all you need to make your day great. Though, perhaps another one would make it even better.

Beer Review: Bradley Brew Project’s Summer Friend

Beer Review

Name: Summer Friend
Brewing Company: Bradley Brew Project
Location: Bradley Beach, NJ
Style: Kellerbier / Zwickelbier
ABV: 5.3%

A tasty, refreshing summer Lager from one of the fine breweries along the NJ shore.

From the untappd page for the beer:

dry-hopped kellerbier

Bradley Brew Project has been crafting beer for about three years now, and over the past year or so, they’ve increased their output and distribution footprint. I’ve been seeing a few of their beers in local shops, so when I saw a Summer themed Lager, I figured it would be a logical follow-up to my 2021 Summer Six Pack from a couple of weeks ago and an opportunity for me to finally try one of their beers.

Bradley Brew Project categorizes this as a Dry Hopped “Kellerbier.” Most kellerbiers are essentially unfiltered Helles Lagers or pale lagers. So, with that starting point….

After opening the can, a golden hued beer with a bit of cloudiness fills my beer glass. Not the cloudiness level of a Hefeweizen, but the beer is clearly (pun intended) unfiltered. The aroma … there’s a little bit of the malt associated with lagers, but more pronounced is the smell of the hops.

I get some good lager vibes at the outset of the taste, a little bit of malt and a lot of thirst-quenching characteristics. I like it and that alone puts this in great “warm weather” beer. The finish brings the hops with a potent smack. Dry-hopping adds a significant punch of hop flavor and aroma. The flavors evoked from the hops are somewhat citrusy and a little piney. The hops used in the brew process aren’t listed, but I’d guess Citra is one of the hops utilized (it is probably the most popular hop at the moment) and maybe Mosaic? I only say Mosaic because of the mild aftertaste form the hops, because the can and description give minimal hints of what makes up this beer.

So what do we have here in Summer Friend? In one sense, it has the lager characteristics of the crackery/bready malt. In another sense, the hop finish gives of IPA vibes. Altogether, though, it works quite well for what it calls itself, a “Summer Friend,” which to me says a beer for warm weather and beach/poolside relaxation. What I found to be unexpectedly pleasant was that the beer was still quite tasty and refreshing when it warmed up to room temperature, not what I’d predict in a lager.

I’ll also give a little shout out to the can art, which is simple, whimsical, and quite effective. Light blue with beach balls, beach umbrellas, and beach chairs is a nice, eye-catching encapsulation of summer fun.

Summer Friend is a well-made beer that should appeal to both lager-leaning beer drinkers and hop-forward beer drinkers. I would really, really like to try a version of this beer without the dry-hopping element. For my palate, the hops are a little more pronounced than I typically enjoy in a lager, but I can recognize the beer is well made. That said, it seems the theme of the blog this year is that Rob enjoys beers the second time more than the first time, because the second can a couple of days after the first one worked better for me (thus the 2 ratings). Again, I think I had an idea of what to expect when I had the second can and appreciated it more, compared to trying to figure out what flavors were working together on my first can of the beer.

Draught Diversions: May 2021 Six Pack

Draught Diversion, Monthly New Brews

Draught Diversions is the catchall label for mini-rants, think-pieces, and non-review posts here at The Tap Takeover. We hope you don’t grow too weary of the alcohol alliterative names we use…

May was a month for a plentiful amount of new beer. I was fortunate enough to enjoy so many good new beers that I had a tougher time choosing six than I have in quite a few months. A nice mix of styles, a brewery or two appearing in the Monthly Six Pack for the first time or first time in a while. This marks the third month in a row with a Barleywine, third month in a row without an IPA, and first time in a two months without a new Pilsner. Only one of these beers was purchased a liquor/beer store (the lone non-NJ beer), the other five were purchased directly at the brewery, with four of those enjoyed at the brewery. Is that too granular of an analyzation?

Saint Alphonsus (Bull ‘n Bear) | Belgian Dubbel | 4 Bottle Caps on untappd

BullnBear_StAlphonsus

Had a meet up in Summit, NJ on the first day of the month and we had time before our restaurant reservations so of course we stopped at the neighboring brewery. This is the 3rd beer I’ve had from Bull ‘n Bear and each style has been very tasty. This Dubbel is a very impressive interpretation of the style from Bull ‘n Bear.

Vanilla Maris (Timber Ales/Horus Aged Ales/Mindful Ales) | Barleywine – English | 4.50 Bottle Caps on untappd

Timber_VanillaMaris

Here I am again with the third beer I’ve had from a brewery…what a fantastic Barleywine this beer is. The English Barleywines are more malty and sweet compared to their hoppy cousins from America and often exhibit hints of toffee in the flavor profile. This beer does indeed have that element to it, which plays wonderfully with the vanilla beans on which the beer was aged. Another standout from Timber Ales.

Morning Bean 2020 (Kane Brewing Company) | Porter – Other | 4.5 Bottle Caps on untappd

Kane_MorningBean

With the world slowly emerging from the Pandemic, a couple of friends and I decided to visit Kane’s Biergarten. Morning Bell is a superb Coffee Porter and they release variants every year. I missed out on the bottle release of this one, which takes the beer and conditions the liquid on Bourbon Vanilla Beans. This beer is an unbelievably delicious porter.

Paddy’s House Kölsch (Source Brewing) | Kölsch | 4.75 Bottle Caps on untappd

Source_PaddysKolsch

…and after Kane, we visited Source, which was a first for us. A beautiful setting, a warm day, and a cold beer with friends. Well, I saw good things about this beer on untappd and I was not disappointed. The is beer is the winner of a homebrew contest, and there’s no question of the quality. Of the 30 beers on untappd I’ve had categorized as “Kölsch,” this is at least the best American version and maybe the best period. This was zlow-poured to allow the flavors to express themselves even more potently, some malt/breadiness with a crisp finish that has some hops and a wonderful mouthfeel. This is everything I want in a beer.

Blackberry Frukt (Conclave Brewing Company) | Farmhouse Ale – Other | 4.25 Bottle Caps on untappd

ConclaveBlackberryFrukt

I took a quick drive to Conclave to grab one of the very limited bottle releases (likely to be mentioned in next month’s six pack) and of course had to have some freshly poured beer. I was glad to see this beer still on tap because it was absolutely perfect for warm weather enjoyment. Conclave calls this a “Norwegian Farmhouse Ale” because of the Kviek yeast which brings fun flavors to the beer, but they went further and finished the beer on fresh blackberries for a really special beer.

Triple 5 Phat Crispy (Twin Elephant Brewing Company/Five Boroughs Brewing Company ) | Lager – American | 4.25 Bottle Caps on untappd

TEB_TriplePhat5

Twin Elephant is celebrating their fifth year this year and they’ve canned a few beers, including this one, the first Lager they’ve packaged. Brewed in collaboration with Five Boroughs Brewing, this beer is just about everything a fan of flavorful Lagers could want in a beer. Refreshing, tasty, a delicious crusher. A contender for my favorite beer from the folks from Chatham, NJ.