| February 5, 2012 2:00 PM | to | February 6, 2012 12:00 AM |
Yes, we will be open this year on Super Bowl Sunday! Doors open at 2:00pm, enough time for you to get settled in for the game, starting at 5:00pm. We’ll have $12 pitchers of Rational Beers all day.
| February 1, 2012 | ||
| 4:00 PM | to | 11:30 PM |
Recently we tapped their Dugana IPA; it was a big hit and didn’t last long. For this week’s special tap, we’ve got a fresh keg of the original- the big brother if you will. And it’s big alright! At 10.2% ABV and 102 IBUs, this is one of the hoppiest beers that’s available. Avery mightily hops it with Simcoe, Columbus, Centennial, and Chinook hops, for what they describe as “tangy, vibrant, and pungent.” They even agree with people that say that it’s not well balanced, saying they set out to create a “monster hop bomb” that pushes boundaries. Come in and try this limited release, and decide for yourself.
| February 8, 2012 | ||
| 4:00 PM | to | 11:30 PM |
This is no ordinary barleywine stlye ale. As widdershins means “counterclockwise,” they’ve crafted this ale contrary to the direction of the American style barley wine. Ingredients include “Left Hand custom” malt, peated malt, red wheat, 5 different kinds of hops, and Belgian Candi sugar. Half the batch was aged 11 months in whiskey casks for complexity and smoothness, then dry hopped for 2 months prior to kegging. The end result is 9.1% ABV, 70 IBUs, and according to the brewery, it’s a “deceptively complex beer with notes of caramel, cocoa and apricot, finishing dry and bitter with hints of tannic whiskey wood.” With all that effort, it’s understandable that they only release it every two years in very small quantities. A brewery rep. will be in the co-op with swag for this special tapping. Don’t miss this one!
| January 30, 2012 | ||
| 4:00 PM | to | 11:30 PM |
Keep this elegant German weizen glass when you order their Dunkelweiss (German for “dark wheat”). This authentic rendition of the style should assuage fans of Live Oak’s Primus Weizenbock, a seasonal brew that will be gone until next winter.
| January 25, 2012 | ||
| 4:00 PM | to | 11:30 PM |
After 2 weeks of big barleywines as our Wednesday Special Tap, we’ll change it up this week with an authentic Belgian-style Quadrupel- a strong, deep amber-colored ale known for its smoothness and complexity.
This is the first time Sierra Nevada has released this beer, but if it’s nearly as good as the Dubbel or Saison from their Ovila series, we’re in for a treat! From the brewery, “This silky ale is rich, mahogany brown in color with a velvety malt aroma, spiked with hints of dried cherry, fig, raisin, and plum notes. A full and creamy body offers layers of flavor including a perfume-like wave of intense dark fruits and caramel-like maltiness. Rich and warming, this complex ale should be shared among friends in the true spirit of the season.” 10.4% ABV
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this beer will go toward the restoration of the historic Ovila chapter house building, on the grounds of the Abbey of New Clairvaux. This medieval chapter house was begun in 1190 near the village of Trillo, Spain.
First off, thanks to everyone for playing. Now for the results:
1st Place: Independence Stash IPA
2nd Place: Sierra Nevada Celebration Fresh Hop Ale
3rd Place: Black Star Co-op Vulcan
4th Place: (512) IPA
The results from the Final Round were especially close, and came from 66 scorecards.
Runners Up: Real Ale Lost Gold & Green Flash West Coast IPA
(these placed second in their round, but not enough votes to go to the Final Round)
And for those wanting to know which samples were which beers, here was the order:
Round 1 (Sun. Dec. 4 – Sat. Dec. 10):
A: Hops & Grain Pale Dog Pale Ale
B: Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
C: (512) IPA
D: Sierra Nevada Celebration
Round 2 (Sun. Dec. 11 – Sat. Dec. 17):
A: Real Ale Lost Gold IPA
B: Stone Arrogant Bastard
C: Independence Stash IPA
D: Thirsty Planet Buckethead IPA
Round 3 (Sun. Dec. 18 – Sat. Dec. 17):
A: Austin Beerworks Fire Eagle IPA
B: Black Star Co-op Vulcan
C: Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA
D: Green Flash West Coast IPA
Final Round (Mon. Dec. 26 – Mon Jan. 2):
A: Sierra Nevada Celebration
B: (512) IPA
C: Black Star Co-op Vulcan
D: Independence Stash IPA
| January 16, 2012 |
This beer is the wonderful, subtle English malt of Double Dee, cask conditioned with a touch of whole leaf Willamette hops and further infused with fresh, black truffles. What the what?! The truffles impart an earthy, fruity, funky complexity that only a $250/lb fungus rooted by pigs in the French countryside can do.
| January 9, 2012 |
We’re excited to host a launch party for Austin’s newest brewery (and we never get tired of saying that)! The folks from Adelbert’s Brewery will in the Co-op to tell you more about their Belgian-style ales, including their first two beers, Rambler Ale and Scratchin’ Hippo. And we’ll have some their stemmed glasses for you too, while supplies last. Their Rambler is a Belgian-style Blonde Ale, 5.3% ABV, light and dry, very drinkable, yet with pleasant subtleties you’d expect from a fine Belgian ale. The Scratchin’ Hippo is Biere de Garde, a malty farmhouse-style ale not commonly found in Texas. Adelbert’s version is 6.8% ABV and has earthy and nutty flavors with low bitterness.
| January 4, 2012 |
Avery loves hops. This beer really displays that. Word has it that they developed this, first for their employees, as a more sessionable version of their Maharaja Imperial IPA. Dugana uses a relatively simple malt bill for an ale that’s 8.5% ABV, and then copious amounts three big Pacific Northwest hops, Chinook, Centennial, and Columbus, for a result of 93 IBUs. Hopheads will love they describe as a “brutally bitter, dank, piney and resinous ale designed for those seeking a divine hop experience.” It’s now released twice a year in limited amounts.
| January 18, 2012 |
Brooklyn’s Brewery’s winter seasonal is an English-style Barleywine, and a dangerously drinkable one at that.
In their own words:
“Brooklyn Monster Ale is a classic barley wine, a style of ale originally brewed by the butlers to the English and American aristocracy. It is brewed from three mashes of heirloom British malt and spiced with aromatic American Willamette, Cascade and Fuggle hops. After four months of aging, it has a magnificent burnished copper color, an aroma redolent of sherry, citrusy hops and fruit, a soft, warming, complex palate, a spiritous finish, and a strength of 10.3%.”