Misc News – Sept 21

• Crown Brewing American Red – I had the second glass and the absolute freshness is evident. Dark ruby. To BCJP's American Amber style but is much hoppier.
• Crown Town Brown – Maris Otter and Fuggles make it a Southern Brown. The 4% ABV makes it a session ale. Don't worry, there's plenty of bitter balance.
• Three Floyds Barrel-aged Behemoth Blonde with cherries. It's Behemoth, it's barrel aged, it certainly has lots of dark cherries. It shows in the cordovan color. It shows in the overpowering tart cherries. It's 10.5%. It has 80 IBUs.  It's not normal. There must be a way to get this much cherry in a beer and wouldn't you know they'd find it.
• Three Floyds B-aBBw/C & Drunk Monk Hefe – Still strong cherry with much less funk in the aroma. All hefe in the mouth.
• Three Floyds Arctic Panzer Wolf IPA – Nope, IIPA. "Will leave your palate it's hapless victim. Scorched earth is our brewery policy. 100 IBU, 9% ABV". I actually covered my mouth in astonishment after the first plunge. The orange/grapefruit bitterness entering my nose should have warned me. Caramel malt is present but basically just sits on the side watching the show.
• Pizza Port Chocolate Stout – Oh Yike. This has nothing to do with beer. It's a chocolate cordial in liquid form. The Lewis Black of chocolate beers. Unsweet bakers chocolate with alcohol and bitter citric finish. Forced rather than balanced.
• Brigand Belgian Ale – Strong Belgian from Van Honsebrouck. Hazy copper orange. Yeast taste that cuts through the 9% alcohol content sets it apart.

Crown's Oktoberfest will be unveiled at their Oktoberfest party this Saturday. Their replicales (both Indiana's Alt and Chicago's Wit) are on their last cask. They might be around Saturday if you arrive early.

The Three Floyds brewpub on a normal Saturday night has become an "in" stop for the beautiful people. OK, maybe not celebrity types but waiting 30 minutes or more at the door doesn't bother anyone. Not something the non-Chicago crowd at the Heorot or RichO's would tolerate. 
The Indy Star says Put Sunday liquor issue on ice. "As with the celebrated Beer Baron battles of two decades ago, this alcohol-induced brawl involves high stakes for special interests and little value for the consumer-taxpayer each side claims to have at heart." . . . "Here is an instance in which it will do no harm to do nothing."
Sam Adams, not satisfied by the Imperial series, is planning a Barrel Room Collection in 750s starting with an "American Kriek". article
Bells Oarsman Ale will be going into bottles this time around. As opposed to the Oarsman lager, it's a sour mashed wheat at 4% ABV.