1001 Beers

Beer No: 59
Page No: 243
Category: Amber

As you can see, I had this one on tap at The Bruery.  But it wasn't just your run-of-the-mill tasting session, it was The Bruery's 2nd Anniversary party!  I obtained tickets for the first of four sessions, running from 12-3pm on Saturday and had been looking forward to this for a while.  After hearing all the different beers they'd have on tap, I just couldn't miss this one.  I showed up just a few minutes before the 12pm session was about to start, quickly got my tickets as they were handing them out to those in line and we were all let in promptly at 12.  We were each handed a glass on our way in and the party was ready to get started.

Our group immediately headed for the Strong Ale counter where I was itching to get some more DBJW in my system.  After spending my first ticket on a meager pour of DBJW (it is quite rare - a wonderful blend of White Oak and Papier - I had sampled it previously at their Reserve Society Initiation Party and thought it would never see the light of day again), I then went back for another pour of DBJW.  Those tastings were then quickly followed with samples of Melange No. 3, Melange No. Sechs, Bourbon Barrel Aged Coton, and regular Coton.

After we had exhausted about half of our tickets, we decided to go grab some food which was catered by Beachwood BBQ.  They had an amazing spread that consisted of fried green tomatoes, fried pickles, sausage, chicken, corn on the cob, beans, pretzel rolls, and 6 different sauces, all made using The Bruery's beers.  I opted to skip the chicken and load up on sausage which was quite good - very spicy, but it was just great.  The corn on the cob was amazing though - perfectly cooked, sweet, and succulent.  We found four empty seats at a table that just so happened to be occupied by Claire from The Kitchy Kitchen.  She was taking pictures of all the goodness and her video of the event is posted below.  She also loves to experiment with various Bruery brews as evidenced with her Mischiefelada and Saison Reuben (which I still really need to try and make myself).

We headed back inside after we finished as much as we could of Beachwood's spread and continued on with our beer drinking - going for some Oude Tart, Humulus Lager, and Humulus Gold.  And even though we had eaten dessert before our lunch, now is as good of a time as any to talk about it.  It was a delectable dessert plate filled with a Belgian waffle, three artisan cheeses, and chocolate covered bacon.  The waffle really stole the show though.  It was perfectly made, had just the right amount of sweetness and crunch, and was enjoyed by all.  The cheeses were hit and miss for me.  I enjoyed the Cana Becabra, but thought the Bleu Des Causses was just way too salty and the Gouda was good, but a bit on the salty side for me as well.  I enjoyed the chocolate covered bacon, but it didn't get rave reviews from all.  Grant was hoping for something a bit "crisper" as if it had just been fried and then dipped.  But because they had to cook up so much bacon and dip it all before hand, there's not much more you could have expected.

All in all, it was a wonderful anniversary party, everyone had tons of fun, and we all wish The Bruery the best of luck for many years to come.  So without further ado, here's Claire's 2nd Anniversary video and my review of Saison Rue is below.

My review, cross-posted at RateBeer.com:

The Bruery Saison Rue from The Bruery

Aroma: 7/10
Appearance: 3/5
Taste: 7/10
Palate: 3/5
Overall: 13/20

Rating: 3.3 / 5.0

Had from bottle and on tap many times, recently on tap at Bruery’s 2nd Anniversary party. Pours golden orange with a nice off-white head. Aroma is heavy on malts, spices, and hints of hops and herbs. Tastes of citrus, spices, and rye. A drinkable beer, good carbonation and satisfying finish, but just not my favorite from The Bruery. Saison de Lente one-ups Saison Rue easily.

This is why I love Amazon.com.  I have their Prime membership and everything ships with 2 day delivery free (well, I pay for Prime...).  But I ordered 1001 Beers You Must Taste Before You Die yesterday at 9:01am and it arrived today while I was at lunch.  How wonderful is that?  Next day delivery even though it was supposed to come tomorrow.

But the book, in short, is beautiful.  It is gigantic with 960 full color, glossy pages and the beers are organized first by type, then alphabetically.  It breaks beers up into the following categories: Amber, Blond, White, Dark, and Specialty.  After the preface, they have an Index of Beers by Country and then at the end, after a short glossary, they have an Index of Beers by Brewery.  This makes it especially easy to pick out beers that will be included in the beer.  For example, I figured the Aprihop wouldn't be in the book, and looking at the index, I find these are the only beers from Dogfish Head Brewery: 90 Minute IPA, World Wide Stout, Midas Touch, and Raison D'Etre.  Similarly, I can go to my favorite brewery at the moment, The Bruery and see that they have two beers listed: Orchard White and Saison Rue (I'm assuming this book went to print before both Black Tuesday and Oude Tart were released - especially Black Tuesday since Three Floyd's Dark Lord Imperial Stout made the list).

But either way, I'm immediately going to go make a photocopy of the beers by brewery, shrink it down to a wallet size, and then carry it with me wherever I go to make sure that if there's a beer on tap, in a bottle, or in a can that is on the list, I'm going to try it.  I will try beers I know I won't like (Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier) and then try everything else I hope I will like.  It'll be tough to track a lot of these down I reckon, but with some determination and hopefully trading via the Internet, I will find a way!  It is my destiny!