Notice

As of June 10th, 2017, this blog has been migrated over to a custom domain, and may henceforth be accessed at beer511.com.

A bit of Peru beer history

This is an image that I came across online.  It's an early advertising poster from the Backus & Johnston Brewery Company in Lima, from back when telephone numbers in the city could be counted in the double-digits.

The poster remarks that the brewery -which started as an ice company- possesed a "magnificent" ice facility imported from the U.S.A., and that it's beer-making equipment was "the best and largest in South America."

Most notable, however, from a consumer standpoint is the variety of beers made by Backus & Johnston back then: Pilsen, export, lager, märzen, stout, and a dark beer labeled "Gato Negro" (black cat).

Decades later, their production had grown massively, and the company itself had expanded into a near brewing monopoly -the Union de Cerverias Peruanas Backus & Johnston- having absorbed other breweries throughout the country.   At the same time, despite the expansion in the number of the company's brands and volume, the beer variety shrank. By the turn of the century the only ones that had survived were the pale lager and a dark lager.  

In the past decade, however, the company has started to break out of that straight jacket, albeit cautiously.  It has used its Cusqueña brand to float a few "special" beers: Cusqueña Trigo (pale lager made with a percentage of wheat), Cusqueña Quinoa (made, obviously, with some quinoa), and Cusqueña Red Lager.  It has also dipped its toe into the "top shelf" market with Abraxas, a beer it describes as a "super premium" and sells for 400% of the price point of its regular beers.

Brüehol Brewing (Benicia, CA)

Today I made my way over to Benicia to try the offerings at Brüehol Brewing.

Brüehol Brewing was established in Benicia in 2014 by Mark Keller, Mark Ristow, and Steve Nortcutt, but opened its tap room only three weeks ago. I was eager to get there because Mark R. and Steve used to be homebrewers in the same club as I -the Diablo Order of Zymiracle Enthusiasts (DOZE).  Both of them are highly skilled brewers, and it shows in the beers they are producing at Brüehol.

It is relatively rare for small craft breweries to produce lager beers.  In part it is because of the time involved --while a lager rests -i.e. lagers- it takes up valuable fermenter space that could be turned to producing a couple of ales.  However, it is also because lagers, specially pale lager styles, are unforgiving of mistakes. They don't have the roasty, malty flavor character or hoppiness to counterbalance any flaws.  

It takes a bit of courage to make a lager a part of one's brewery's regular line up, and Brüehol offers two of them: a Gold Rush Helles Lager, and Old Capitol Pilsner.

Both beers are very good.  The helles was light and clean, and the pilsner was appropriately malty while maintaining the lightness of body that characterizes the style.  I dare say that they are two of the best craft lagers that I've tasted in the area.

The other beer I tried was the 5W-30 Black Ale.  It has hints of caramel or toffee in the nose, and coffee and chocolate in flavor.  Despite its looks, however, it is not a stout, but truly just a black ale.  Like the other beers its name is an homage to Benicia, in this case to its history (and present) as a refinery town.

Currently, Brüehol is producing about 10 barrels a month, running double batches on a 3-barrel brewing system.  Steve told me that in a few months, however, they expect to expand their output by gaining the ability to brew and ferment on a 10-barrel system.  That would also free the guys up to be able to produce more special occasion or one-off brews on their pilot system. There are plans to add a couple of ciders, and several more ales to the taps.

If you're in Benicia Brüehol is well worth looking up -just be aware that the tap room is not downtown but over on the east end of town.

Brüehol Brewing
4828 East 2nd St
Benicia, CA

www.brueholbrewing.com

Triple Rock Brewery & Ale House (Berkeley, CA)

I recently visited Triple Rock Brewery in Berkeley for the first time.  Considering how long I've lived in the Bay Area, how much time I've spent in Berkeley, and that the brewery has been around since 1986 -making it one of the earliest modern microbreweries in the area- it's just ridiculous that I had never made it there before.

The main taproom is a pretty inviting place -dark wood, classic-style booths and furniture, and friendly staff- and the brewing process can be observed through a large window that looks in on the brewhouse.  There is also a larger space off of the main room, which was opened last year. It has more of modern feel, with more stained cement instead of wood and several large TV screens.

I arrived at lunch time, just as the place started to get busy for the lunch crowd.  As I enjoyed my food and beer I chatted with the fellow sitting next to me at the bar. He'd moved to the Bay Area in the 1988 and had been a regular at Triple Rock whenever he had found himself living in Berkeley ever since.

I ordered myself a flight of samplers, the selection of which I left to the server's choice. She poured me Mildly Politic (Pale Mild Ale, 4.5%), Belgian Spring Bier (6%), Oatland Ace (IPA, 6.7%), Black Rock (Porter 5.4%), and Finnegan's Whistle (Dry Irish Stout, 4.5%).

They were all good, but I've got to say that Oatland Ace was my favorite of the flight (at center in the above photo). It's made with oats three ways -flaked oats, golden naked oats, and oat malt- and big taste of Mosaic hops. Just lovely.

Also deserving special mention is a tasty, chewy Old Ale: Her Majesty's Crush with Figs (pictured at top of the post).

This beer -brewed in collaboration with Moylan's Brewing Co.- comes in at 9% and is warming without evident alcohol, and the fig character comes in nicely. I just really liked it.

After all that time, I finally made it there, and I'm glad that I did.

Triple Rock Brewery & Ale House
1920 Shattuck Ave
Berkeley, CA

www.triplerock.com

Musings on 12 Rounds' CEO Resigning

Today, Daniel Murphy, co-owner and founder of  Twelve Rounds Brewing Company in Sacramento, announced on the brewery's FaceBook page that he is stepping down as CEO of the company and that he and his wife, Elle Murphy, will be divesting from the brewery.

As you may recall, Murphy drew much public ire (and some support) when he criticized the Women's March on Washington on his personal FaceBook page, saying he was "disgusted" with those who supported that "divisive event."  That drew attention to previous posts on his page in which he reportedly made anti-gay and anti-Muslim statements and accused President Barack Obama off being some sort of crypto-Muslim and a promoter of hate. Those posting led to calls for a boycott of Twelve Rounds, and protests outside the brewery. 

 Although early newspaper reports stressed that the taproom was full, and that many there expressed support for Murphy's views, or at least his right to express them, it seems that that early surge did not hold up.  Sure, he had many expressions of support from out of state, but out-of-state supporters don't pay the bills.  People in the taproom do, and Murphy had clearly alienated his home constituency. Despite an apology from him, the incident cost him clients and, ultimately, tap handles as bars and restaurants around town declined to serve his beer or to be associated with the Twelve Rounds brand.

From what I've seen, the response on social media to his and his wife's divesting from Twelve Rounds has, by and large, been one of "Seeya!". 

Although I have no sympathy for his views, I feel bad for the Murphys. Opening a brewery is no easy or short process. It takes years of work and dedication. They poured their hearts and treasure into starting the brewery, and now they're having to step away from it.

At the same time I can't but think what a rookie, dumbass move on his part, to lambast Muslims, gays, feminists, and liberals (In California!) when one is in a business that depends on making people feel welcome and included.  And, especially in one in which so much depends on the brewers' reputations and the customers' relationship to them. In that sense, Murphy's reaped what he sowed.

I just hope that the brewery can shake off the controversy and that the workers and partners that remain can make a go of it.

Why do we celebrate National Beer Day on April 7th?

Why is April 7^th “National Beer Day”?   Well, it’s because it was on that date in 1933 that the production and distribution of beer became once again legal in the United States.

On March 14, 1933, Representative Thomas H. Cullen introduced House Resolution 3341, which would amend parts of the Volstead Act, which was the legal basis for Prohibition. The bill passed the House it that same day, and made its way to the Senate, where it was introduced by Senator Pat Harris, and passed on March 16. The final, amended, version of HR 3341 was approved by the Senate on March 20, by a vote of 43 to 35 (with 15 abstentions) and agreed to by the House on March 21.

On March 22, 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed HR 3341 into law, with his famous –though perhaps aprocryphal- quip that “I think this would be a good time for a beer!”

The Cullen–Harrison Act, as it became known, after its sponsors, made it legal in the United States to sell beer with an alcohol content of 3.2% (by weight), and wine of similarly low alcohol content, which were thought to be too low to be intoxicating, effective April 7, 1933.  The Act, however, did not in itself end Prohibition when it came to beer or wine, as it was still illegal to produce or transport such beverages into any state or territory, or into the District of Columbia, unless it had passed similar legislation to legalize sale of those low alcohol beverages in its jurisdiction.

Nonetheless, throngs gathered at breweries and taverns for their first legal beer since 1918.

April 7, 1933, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Del Cielo Brewing Co.

I got some pretty exciting news a few days ago: my friend Luis Castro's brewery project is a go, and he already has a lease on a location in downtown Martinez (CA).

On Friday, I got to check out Del Cielo Brewing Co.'s future digs at the corner of Escobar St. and Estudillo St.  It is an ample wharehouse, with high ceilings, and plenty of natural light. It seems a perfect space for an open floor-plan brewpub.

Of course, Luis still has a ton of work ahead of him, and there is no expected opening date in sight, and  --as anyone who's been involved in anything so simple as a home remodeling knows-- there are innumerable issues than can pop up to cause delays. However, the first, big, step has been taken.

Del Cielo Brewing Co.

701 Escobar St.

Martinez, CA 94553

www.delcielobrewing.com

Beer Review: Two Evil Pachamama Porter

In September, I reviewed Muy Malvada Porter, a collaboration brew between Lima's Cerveceria Barbarian, and the Two Roads and Evil Twin breweries. 

Muy Malvada was the test brew for a beer which was to be brewed and released in the US this Fall or Winter by Two Roads and Evil Twin.  That beer, which is available now, is Two Evil Pachamama Porter.

According to the blurb on the can, Pachamama Porter was created after a trek to Peru. In Andean cosmology the life-giving Earth is known as Pachamama, literally, "Mother Earth". The brewers felt that, "since our ingredients were provided by Mother Earth," they would name the beer after her. (Unfortunately, the trade name "Pachamama" was already trademarked in Peru, so the Peruvian version bore a different name.) and that it would be made "using local ingredients." Pachamama Porter is brewed with sweet potato, and Peruvian panca chiles and purple corn.

The Peruvian version was brewed using jora, the malted corn that is used to make traditional chicha corn brew, however, in Pachamama Porter, Two Roads and Evil Twin have substituted it with the purple corn used in making the non-alcoholic drink chicha morada. It might have been a flavor preference on the part of the brewers, but  I suspect it was due to the relatively easier and cheaper access to Peruvian purple corn over jora in the US.

Pachamama Porter has the deep brown color that is the hallmark of a porter, and plenty of body. There is a very pleasant earthiness, doubtlessly imparted by the panca chiles, and a very slight pepper note at the back end, and a light sweetness.  It is a complex and very tasty beer.

It clocks in at 6.5% abv, and although it lists no other specs on the can (nor on Two Roads' website), Muy Malvada came in at 20 IBUs, so it may be safe to surmise Pachamama has a similar amount.

I'm quite glad to have found it.

San Francisco Beer Week 2017

SF Beer Week, the West Coast's premier beer fest, is fast approaching.  With well over 100 breweries in the greater Bay Area, there will be no dearth of events to choose from, including many pre-fest events in the coming weeks, and additional unofficial ones during the fest week itself.

The official schedule of events can be read here:  https://www.sfbeerweek.org/schedule/

Arequipa's "Cerveceria Alemana"

Another piece of brewing memorabilia that I recently acquired is a 111-year old cancelled invoice from the Cervecería Alemana (lit. "German Brewery"), which was located in the southern Peruvian city of Arequipa.

The attached voucher is dated 23 August of 1905, and is for 1 dozen bottles of Märzen beer, 1 dozen bottles of Pilsner beer, and the deposit on two dozen bottles.  The voucher was issued by Donato Lister, and was made out to José S. Monje.

The cancelled invoice itself is dated 31 August 1905.  The price for the beer is listed as s/. 6.40 and the price for "2 dozen boxed bottles" is s/. 5.60, but either through a math error or giving a customer a break, the price charged to Mr. Monje was just s/. 10.

The Cervecería Alemana was one of Peru's earliest large-scale breweries.  It was established in 1898 by Ernesto -or Ernst- Gunther, a German immigrant, recently arrived from Bolivia.

When Gunther and and his business partner, Franz Rehder, opened the Cervecería Alemana there were several other small breweries in Arequipa: Cervecería Germania, Cervecería Arequipa, Cervecería Gambrinus, Cervecería Teutonia, Cervecería Francesa, and one other.

The brewery was originally located on Mercaderes street, but in 1900 Gunther travelled to Germany, returned with new German equipment, and moved the expanding brewery to 177 Calle de La Merced, into the plant of the closed Cervecería Francesa. The Cervecería Alemana soon outpaced competitors, and in 1908 a second brewery was established in Cuzco. 

The Cervecería Alemana was renamed Companía Cervecera del Sur, S.A., in 1935, and consolidated as the CERVESUR corporation in 1954.  For years it dominated the beer market in southern Peru, with its two flagship brands: Cerveza Arequipeña and Cerveza Cusqueña.

The company was finally acquired by the Union de Cervecerías Backus & Johnston brewing empire in 2000. However, both, Arequipeña and Cusqueña continue to be made, and the latter can sometimes be found in US markets.