|
|
Brewing ales
in Britain back in the 1800s was a rustic, laborious process. Cool
cellars provided the only refrigeration. Fermentation vessels
were made of wood. Ales were carbonated from carbon dioxide gas
produced by residual yeast inside sealed wooden or metal casks called
"firkins." This old-world method of production and carbonation
produces what has come to be known as cask-conditioned ale (also called
cask ale or real ale). Surprisingly, these traditional beers are
making a comeback. Why is cask ale so special? In the sealed
firkin, yeast produces soft, light carbonation and complex, mellow
flavor components before settling to the bottom of the container. After
a time in the cask, special porous pegs are used to vent any excess
carbonation, and a serving tap is hammered through a spout on the front
of the cask. Traditional real ale is served without
pasteurization or additions of artificial carbon dioxide or other
gasses.
The 2008 Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting showcased 20 traditional
cask-conditioned ales. After a morning judging panel,
the free public
sampling session was held 4-7
PM. Everyone was impressed with the
flavors and excellent
quality of these sample cask homebrews.
The energetic Celtic music from Póg was also a
hit. It was a special evening centered around unique,
flavorful beer. Thanks to Sweetwater Brewery and all our
attendees and volunteers for making this special event possible!
Text by Owen
Ogletree / Photos by Gail Graves and Kerri Allen - Posted January,
2008
|
|
|
Chris Lady & John Pinkerton accept the 1st place award.
|
Dr. Chuck Chambers won 2nd place for his Mild Ale.
|
Terrapin's Spike Buckowski claims 3rd prize.
|
Dave Weil of Atlanta Brewing accepts the award for HM.
|
Nick Nock of Sweetwater gathered the most votes for People's Choice.
|
Cask Ales at
our
2008 Event:
SECOND PLACE
01 - Two Ponds Gunstock Mild
exhibits a dark mahogany color, light tan head and a nutty, caramel,
toasty, chocolate malt aroma and flavor with hints of raisins and
molasses. Lightly balanced with English hops and the fruity
flavor of classic English yeast. A session ale with more flavor
than would be expected from its 3% ABV. Brewed by Dr. Chuck Chambers of Watkinsville,
GA.
02 - Mountain Brown is a
refreshing and well-balanced brown mild ale that is dry-hopped in the
cask in the English tradition. The hop aroma comes through, but
the hop bitterness is very low - making this a wonderful session beer.
Brewed by Bob Carlton, who
owns Beer Necessities Homebrew in Alpharetta and brews for Dahlonega Brewing Company.
03 - Kaiser Hefeweizen. This
is a wonderful Bavarian-style wheat beer with clove and banana notes
along with a little tartness for balance. Made with the fine
malts from Weyermann. Brewed by Brian
Hampton who produced test batches for Cold Nose Dave's in
downtown Athens, GA.
04 - Edgewood Ale is an 8.1%
ABV Imperial Blonde Ale made from two-row malt, Fuggles and Cascade
hops (75 IBUs). Brewed by Hank
Standridge, who works for Cannon Brewpub in Columbus, GA.
05 - Copperhead ESB is a deep
copper colored Extra Special Bitter brewed with Maris Otter malt and a
blend of honey and crystal malts, then dry-hopped with an English and a
northwestern US hop variety for a West Coast "bite." There is an
earthy, fruity aroma followed by rich caramel, spicy flavors.
Brewed by Glen Sprouse, who
brews for the original 5 Seasons Brewing Company in Atlanta.
HONORABLE
MENTION
06 - Brown Ale is a classic
example of the American Brown Ale beer style. It shows a complex
palate of oranges, chocolate and hints of fruit. Brewed by Garrett Oliver of the Brooklyn
Brewing Company.
HONORABLE MENTION
07 - Barrel Select is a strong English
Brown Ale that has been aged for 100 days in an oak bourbon barrel and
then conditioned with grade A maple syrup for 120 days. This 8.8%
ABV brew has complex vanilla, bourbon and phenolic tones. Brewed by Dave McClure who works for Atlanta
Brewing Company.
08 - Caldera Strong Oak is a
warming, potent ale aged in an oak barrel before being blended with a
beautiful Chardonnay from California's Central Coast. Made by Jordan Fleetwood, who brews for
Twain's Billiard and Tap in Decatur, GA.
THIRD
PLACE
09 - Rye2 Reserve allows light
and dark oak chips soaked in Woodford Reserve Bourbon to create magic
in this cask of Imperial Pale Ale. The resulting beer is warming
and well-balanced with hints of vanilla, wood and bourbon. Brewed by Brian “Spike” Buckowski of Terrapin
Beer Company, Athens, GA.
10 - Belgian Strong Dark Ale.
This brew has been aged in a Woodford Reserve barrel for almost one
year. It's a big beer made with five malts and five hops and
comes in at 55 IBUs, 25 degrees Plato OG and 10% ABV. Brewed by Crawford Moran, who is a partner
with 5 Seasons Brewing North in Alpharetta, GA.
11 - Wild Horses IPA is a big
IPA with pine notes up front, citrus in the finish and firm malt in the
middle. It is hopped to nearly 80 IBUs with Columbus, Simcoe and
Cascade. Crafted by Jamie Ray
of Montgomery Brewing, Montgomery, AL.
12 - Double IPA has six hop
varieties and 9.5% ABV. Cascade, Centennial, Millenium, Simcoe,
Galena and Columbus hops are used in a whole leaf hop mash and first
wort hopping to produce an amazing hop character. Brewed by Jamie Bartholomaus, who works for
Foothills Brewing in Winston-Salem, NC.
PEOPLE'S
CHOICE
13 - Jack ass Barleywine was
brewed in a single batch topping off at 25 degrees Plato, and
generously dry-hopped. After racking into an oak barrel and aging for
five months, it was transferred to the cask and introduced to a copious
amount of fresh Simcoe flowers. Brewed by Nick Nock, who works for Atlanta's
Sweetwater Brewing.
14 - Old 320 weighs in at 10%
ABV and has a full body and malt character rich with caramel and raisin
notes. An aggressive hopping rate featuring Brewer’s Gold, Cascade and
Ahtanum hops gives this beer a long, satisfying finish. Brewed by John Roberts of Max Lager’s American
Grill & Brewery in Atlanta.
15 - Winter-Piedmont Porter is
a rich and creamy brew, deep brown to black in color, with a delicious,
full-bodied chocolate-like malt flavor and a smooth, lingering
finish. Brewed by Brian
Campbell of Atlanta's Park Tavern.
16 - Daddy-O Porter is a
sinfully rich, chocolatey Robust Porter brewed with a portion of rye
malt and dry-hopped with English Fuggles. Brewed by Linus Hall, owner of Yazoo Brewing
Company in Nashville, TN.
17 - Pulchritudinous Porter.
A full-flavored, strongly hopped and oak-aged Robust Porter with a
proper bitter finish. With its charcoal brown color, distinctive malt
taste, and special combination of double hops, this special brew is
sure to please. Brewed by Tom Davis
of Thomas Creek Brewery in Greenville, SC.
FIRST
PLACE
18 - Little Chocolate Doughnuts
is a Porter with an appealing, semi-sweet, not-so-bitter, chocolate
malt character. This beer was actually "dry-doughnut-ed" in the firkin
for a little touch of "HOT NOW' goodness! Brewed by John Pinkerton & Chris Lady of
Moon River Brewing Company in Savannah, GA.
19 - Espresso Stout.
Brewed with fresh roasted coffee beans, this 5.8% ABV ale has a
wonderfully roasty palate and a seductive aroma balanced by a full,
silky body with malty highlights and a dry finish. Aging on heavily
toasted oak chips produces delightful vanilla tones. Brewed by Matt Buley, who works for Copper
Creek Brewing Company in Athens, GA.
20 - English-style Imperial Stout is
rich and dessert-like and exhibits powerful malt flavors and hints of
dark fruits. Large amounts of roasted malts give an opaque black color
and a velvety texture suggesting unsweetened cocoa. Dry-hopped with
East Kent Goldings and aged for three months in cask. Brewed by John Stuart of Green Man Brewery in
Asheville, NC.
The 20 casks are
set for serving.
|
Judges sort through all 20
beers, deciding on which are the most
accurate and flavorful, based on BJCP style descriptions.
|
|
The judging was conducted
as a "best-of'show" competition.
|
Judges check the clarity
and color of the beers.
|
Beer judging is hard work.
|
Don "Dr. Brewski" Beistle comments on a pale ale.
|
|
Terry and Kerri work their way through the samples. |
Volunteers from the Atlanta Humane Society accept donations. |
|
Thel, Nick and Dean pour samples of the cask ales. |
The happy crowd enjoys the cask ales. |
|
Terrapin dudes mug for the camera. |
Gordy, Nick and Pasha tend the casks. |
|
Energetic Celtic music
from Póg pleases the crowd.
|
Special thanks go to Sweetwater
for hosting this event!
|
|
