Great Taste Eve 2013 (Madison, WI)

Beer row: Maduro in foreground, The Rigby
and Argus.  Tipsy Cow to right. 

In August of 2007 on the Eve of Great Taste, my first three drafts of the night were Bell's 6000, 7000 and 8000 at Maduro in the heart of downtown Madison. Truly a top ten highlight of beer groupings I've done. Now, the Eve gatherings are all organized at the Great Taste website. In the old days, a beer geek had to hit the BeerAdvocate forums to find out what's where and when. The night before festivities have become legendary; my wife and I have even considered just doing the Friday night and head to Chicago for the weekend.

Sunset reflection on way to Brickhouse

For our first fest in 2001, we didn't go early at all.  For a few years we hit a single pub the night before like JT Whitney's (now closed) and The Great Dane. My database shows 2006 as the first multi-pub Friday night, which I continued each year until 2009 when I took a break from Great Taste. Over the years, a range of Madison bars have made the Friday crawl: Ale Asylum when it first opened, Wonder's for Dark Horse, Dexter's for two beers one year with friends, a vague recollection of late night pizza at Glass Nickel, Brasserie V for Stone's introduction to Wisconsin, Alchemy for two year old Surly Darkness once and a night of Dogfish Head at Jordan's Big Ten Pub, an unremembered stop that exists only in the database.

The Rigby: Lakefront drafts of Wisconinsite
and Maple Vanilla Doppelbock

Of the various bars, Maduro has been the start of nearly every Eve. The aforementioned "Night of 1000s" is partially responsible but also because they start a bit earlier than most of the other parties with their annual Bell's tap takeover. So this year, I brought my wife to Maduro for the first time. The only drawback of Maduro is that it is a cigar bar.  But the Bell's tap takeover rarely disappoints; however, tonight, the big name beers were out by the time we arrived around 4 pm. Maduro definitely isn't a secret anymore and it seems the time one needs to arrive has moved up. Gloria was happy with the Sparkleberry and a Wedding Ale, and I ended with the Deb's Red, which was malty with a strong and sweet caramel background and a floral hop nose that leads into a lingering bite off the back. 

Tipsy Cow

This tiny "Main" Street of Madison is a pub crawl all by itself.  Taking our free shuttle from the Best Western Inntowner, we hit (after Maduro) in the same block The Rigby for Lakefront, Argus for Three Floyd's and dinner, and then to the Tipsy Cow for New Holland. For all being in the same block, each was very different. While Maduro was packed with a friendly group of locals and beer geeks, The Rigby was a quiet bar with a younger crowd and basic bar food. My wife happily sipped on the Maple Vanilla Doppelbock. I enjoyed a Wisconsinite, a summer weiss beer; Wisconsinite is an indigenous Wisconsin beer is made with all in-state ingredients, including locally harvested yeast: head fell immediately over a hazy orange ale; fruity and spice nose with a hint of sour; more sour on the tongue with fruitiness and a dry finish. I found the beer refreshing and an interesting balance of flavor. Looking at the reviews on BeerAdvocate, I seem to like the beer more than most; maybe a testament to drinking at the brewery's party and/or the Rigby's presentation.  

Six oz pour In the Name of Suffering

We had dinner at the Argus because of the more veggie friendly menu but were disappointed by the food, throngs of hopheads, extremely loud music and tiny full price pour of Three Floyd's In the Name of Suffering, a black ale that was excellent on site last June during my Chicago visit. On to a busy Tipsy Cow where the excellent service kept the New Holland taps flowing. Dragon's Milk on cask wasn't as amazing as I  hoped (based on a GT sample at the cask tent in 2007) but still excellent. However, the Barrel Aged Night Tripper was mind blowing: pitch black with no head; very hot alcoholic nose and sophisticated blend of chocolate, molasses, assertive roast and light hop spice to pull it together; nose follows to tongue with a sweetness, oak and hop bite. Sublime until it warms and the alcohol pushes it a bit out of balance. If earlier in the night or at home in the winter, it would be perfect. From here, we walked to Brickhouse BBQ, bumping into Pete and Mike of Town Hall fame on the way. We never made The Beer Spot party in the back of the Brickhouse because we ran into Jeff and Bonnie Luskey, MN homebrewers and Jeff is a brewer at the new U4ic Brewing, so we spent the rest of the evening chatting with drafts of Short's and Central Waters to end the night.

If you are lucky enough to get tickets for Great Taste, pony up for the extra night of hotel and plan your way around the heart of a very pretty downtown Madison. The bus system can be difficult to navigate but Google Maps gives pretty good directions from place to place on public transit.  Waiting for a bus the next morning, a college student said there are apps to help but, evidently, harder to find and for more local use at the moment compared to cities like Chicago and San Francisco that have readily downloadable metro apps. Usually, I've taken the bus from the hotel to downtown and then walk or take cabs from there. Cabs tend to be easy to get, fast and relatively cheap, especially with a group. Or, just stop in on Friday night before the fest and have fun—ticket or no. Great Taste Eve is easily one of the best beer parties on the planet.

Muddy Pig Festival of Hops 2013 (St. Paul, MN)

The Muddy Pig brings back its Festival of Hops again, and it's as fun as ever.  With 50+ taps full of hoppy goodness, for me the test is how many new drafts are ready to pour into my taste database.  To my surprise (or arrogance), I found nine new brews—a pretty amazing number for any stop.  Three samples for $10 is a fairly affordable way to taste these high hop beers.

Let's start with tips for a successful fest at the Muddy Pig:

• Order by number.  With so many beers, the names are just a confusing mess for the servers.  Say each number clearly, in order.  The beers are served in order with a ticket to remind you what is in each glass.  
• Every sample has a lace.  The MP does a great job of serving samples, so be confident that what is being tasted is what was meant by the brewer.  It's very tough to wash and serve in sample size glasses, but MP does it well. 
• Show up early.  I was a bit after the dinner our and plenty of seats were left on a Tuesday night.  I chose the back because it's lighter and away from the commotion, and most were empty in the back but it filled up quickly
• Free WiFi.  Ask for the code and get some monkey work done.  I was able to productive doing relatively mindless tasks with internet access, and could also research my samples on the fly and take notes.  I found it fun to have my full beery resources available while tasting.  
• Be prepared.  Walk in, find the numbers, order when you get a chance, including water immediately.  The servers work hard, but its a popular place and hesitation will cost valuable drinking time. 
• No Pints.  I didn't try this, but the table next to me ordered a pint and was rebuffed; evidently, they were only serving samples for the fest.  Happily, I was able to find enough to keep me entertained for the evening, so it didn't matter.  I fail to see the reasoning for no pints, but I'm guessing there's some pragmatic reason.  

I optimistically started to review each sample, but became distracted with other concerns.  My first set of samples started well, took a dip and then finished well.  I started with Two Brothers Revelry, a copper ale with an off white lace.  Spicy hop and caramel nose that leads to a solid bite.  Listed as a red ale, it packs a punch.  Good start.  Next was Bell's Roundhouse, a dark golden ale with a wispy lace and the nose of a fresh hop ale—fruit and grass, followed by a biting taste that is completely expected from the nose.  Listed as an amber ale on BA, I would call it a bruising APA that makes up its lacks in subtlety with an amazing bite.  Finally, I couldn't resist the Lucid Foto IPA, a hazy copper ale with white tightly bubbled head.  Elegant nose of grapefruit-orange juice, fresh bread, spice, and pepper underneath.  Spice seems to be a combination of hop and yeast, but not sure.  Nose is more promising that the than taste that seems a bit muddled.

Round Two: Lake Superior Black IPA, a midnight black with no head, nose and taste is unexpected, and oddly unbalanced.  Off fruit taste and its elements fail to meld.  Very disappointing.  A bit busy at school lately, so I have tried a Pour Decisions brew yet. My first was their Maroon and Bold, Imperial Red IPA; it's a maroon beer to match the name with a full lace, heavy malt and caramel nose with hops fighting to the top, and some hop in the taste but the sweet base overwhelms.  Adequate, but I'm not in love with the beer in spite of being in love with the name of the brewery.  Lift Bridge Hop Dish IPA was next, but my mushroom and onion pizza interrupted the sampling, so I need to try it in full draft to give it a proper chance in spite of my initial positive impression.

After dinner, I tried Boulder Nitro Flashback, Fulton The Ringer, and Mendocino Double IPA, but, as mentioned before, lost track of writing up each.  Strong finish and especially looking forward to visiting Mendocino during our summer trip.  As I'm finishing my last rack of samples, a group of youngster professionals were chatting away and oblivious to the hop fest.  Not of the bitter persuasion, they, sadly, had to resort to drinking bottles of Amstel light.

Well worth the effort, I've been to several of MP's fill-the-tap festivals and have enjoyed each one.  Low key but MP festivals provide a unique combination: good value for beer quality, excellent presentation of samples and a selection that can wow even a hardcore geek.  Pick a night, settle in and drink and learn.

Hopslam (Bell's Brewery, Kalamazoo, MI)

Saw Hopslam popping up on several feeds for local beer stores, so took a chance on a snowy evening with bad roads that my local liquor store would have some so I wouldn't have to drive across town. In short, I got mine!  My local store isn't up to the standards of the Four Firkins, but they are starting to do a nice job.  In fact, checking my list, I've gotten Hopslam from Arbor Pointe Liquors for two years in a row.

In the interest of accuracy, I'm writing about the second bottle of the night. Honey fueled 10% alcohol isn't apparent in the taste--just the in feel.  Like Bell's says, it's a "remarkably drinkable rendition of the Double India Pale Ale style."  Poured down the center, a fluffy, not quite white head grows on top of the burnished copper ale.  Lace is thick and luscious down the side of the glass.  Incredible nose with big grapefruit and spice. Smells like a fresh hop ale without the grassy, green element.  From Bell's description, there's six hop varietals in the beer with a "massive" Simcoe dry hop, making it one of the best smelling beers on the market.  Sharp bitterness in the mouth lingers and builds over the course of the session.  Slightly green taste, especially as it warms, with a sharp fruitiness over a bready sweetness and peppery spice that creates a light, drinkable ale without making it thin.  My only criticism is that I wasn't smart enough to buy a second six pack.

The Oracle (Bell's Brewery, Kalamazoo, MI)

The Oracle is a dark gold double IPA that has a bright white head. Massive nose--grapefruit, citrus, peppery spice, pine and a nice malt and earthy blend. Makes the beer simply fun to drink in small sips to maximize the number of times your put your nose in the glass. Oily resin and pine--my fav in a DIPA--in the taste--and a pleasantly blistering bite that lingers to the point of just about but not quite overwhelming the taste buds. Dry aftertaste. Get this one if you haven't yet. Two months in the fridge and still going strong. Patience is your friend--let this one warm up in a snifter through a football game on a Sunday afternoon, and you may even be able to tell you're future--another glass!

Serving type: bottle

Reviewed on: 11-18-2011 03:52:27