This weeks Desert Island Beers features Jeff Rosenmeier, the founder and owner of Lovibonds Brewery of Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. Jeff caught the brewing bug back in the mid 1990’s after tasting a friends homebrewed stout. His successful career in software engineering gave him the opportunity to move to England. The job entailed traveling all over Europe, giving him a further opportunity to sample many of the great European beer styles during the week and at the weekend Jeff would then be busy cloning them in his garden shed.

Finally, the hobby put a strain on household resources (not enough water pressure, not enough electric phases) and Jeff packed in his successful career to start Lovibonds in his adopted home of Henley-on-Thames. Lovibonds is one of only a handful of craft brewers in the UK that kegs 100% of its production, despite disapproval from the consumer rights group, CAMRA.

Jeff Rosenmeier

A castaway classic?

Orval and cheese

Cheeky La Chouffe

The Beers

Hello Jeff! Which five beers would you want to have with you if you were stranded on a desert island, and why?
Read the rest of this entry »

This week’s Desert Island Beers features Fal Allen the Brewmaster for Anderson Valley Brewing Company in Northern California. From 2000 to 2005, Fal worked as General Manager and Head of Production for Anderson Valley returning in 2010 as Brewmaster.

Between 2005 and 2010 Fal was the Brewmaster and brand ambassador for Archipelago Brewing Company in Singapore (a division of Asia Pacific Breweries). During that time he developed many new and unusual beers brewed with local South-East Asian spices and other ingredients.

Fal started brewing professionally in 1988 for Red Hook Brewery in Seattle and in 1990 moved downtown to Pike Place brewery where he was the head brewer for 8 years. In 1998 he was awarded the Brewer’s Association’s Russell Schehrer award for innovation and achievement in craft brewing.

He has spoken internationally on a range of brewing subjects from cask conditioned beers to QA/QC procedures, to brewery installation. He has been a beer judge at the Great American Beer Festival for the last 12 years and has judged several times at the World Beer Cup. He has also judged beer internationally in New Zealand, Singapore and Japan.

Fal’s writing credits include co-authoring the Brewer’s Association’s book on Barley Wine, a four part series on microbiology and lab procedures and more than 40 articles in periodicals including American Brewer, The New Brewer, Zymurgy, Master Brewer’s Technical Quarterly, The Malt Advocate, The Scandinavian Brewer’s Review and The Washington Law Review.

Fal holds degrees from both the University of Hawaii and the Siebel Institute of Brewing Technology

Fal Allen

A devilish beer choice

Anderson Valley

Eastern influence?

The Beers

So Fal which 5 beers would you want to have with you if you were stranded on a desert island, and why?
Read the rest of this entry »

Daniel Carey owns and operates the New Glarus Brewing Company in New Glarus, Wisconsin which he founded along with his business partner and wife, Deb in 1993.

Dan has an extraordinary brewing pedigree. He shoveled out his first mash tun in 1979 at the age of 18, in Helena, Montana, while earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Food Science at UC Davis. Dan was Valedictorian of the Siebel Institute Course in Brewing Science and served his apprenticeship at the Ayinger Brewery nr Munich. In 1992 he became the first American since 1978 to pass the Master Brewer Examination of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling in London. He then spent time as an engineer for brewery manufacturer JV Northwest where he built or consulted on the breweries for many of the 1980s craft-beer pioneers.

He has also been a Production Supervisor for Anheuser-Busch. Dan won the Association of Brewers 2003 “Small Brewer of the Year” Award, the 2005 and 2006 “Mid-Size Brewer of the Year” Awards as well as the 2006 Russell Schehrer Award for Innovations in Brewing.

New Glarus Brewing Company brewed their first beer in October 1993. The brewery began in an abandoned warehouse with used brewpub equipment. In 1997, Dan removed a copper kettles from a brewery in Germany that was slated to be demolished. When the retiring brew master learned his beloved brew kettle might live on, he sold all of his equipment to the Carey’s for its scrap value alone.

In May 2006, New Glarus Brewing Company broke ground on a new $21 million facility on a hilltop on the south edge of the village of New Glarus, Wisconsin. The new 75,000 sq. ft. facility increased production to 100,000 barrels. The new facility was designed to look like a Bavarian village and is also now a popular tourist destination. They are now rated as the 21st largest craft brewer and 32nd largest overall brewing company in the U.S.A.

New Glarus produce a spectrum of beer styles that have garnered the acclaim of the international brewing community. Perhaps most notable of New Glarus’ repertoire are the Belgian and Germanic beers that add to the rich European heritage of the area. The brewery’s Wisconsin Belgian Red is a tart and sweet Kriekbier brewed with whole Montmorency cherries, Wisconsin wheat, and Belgian roasted barleys. The household standard though is Spotted Cow, a session-able farmhouse ale brewed with flaked barley and Wisconsin malt. With a sweet, crisp flavor profile, this brew is today Wisconsin’s #2 most consumed draught beer behind Miller Lite!

Dan Carey

Spotted Cows

Another vote for Pliny

The Perfect Landlord

This week we have a friend coming to stay on our desert island. Welcome Leigh Linley!

Born and bred in Leeds, Leigh has been writing about beer and food on his blog, The Good Stuff, since 2005, which makes him one of the longest serving food and beer bloggers in Yorkshire. And he sure knows his stuff.

Leigh Linley of The Good Stuff

In conjunction with Dough Bistro (and soon also the famous Beer Ritz beer shop in Leeds) Leigh hosts beer and food evenings, as well as contributing to Leeds CAMRA’s Full Measure magazine and editing the ‘Tavern Tales’ section of Culture Vulture, which looks at pubs and pub Life rather than the beer in the glass.

Having witnessed Leigh once get on a train to Leeds only to realise it was actually a train to Sheffield, we can attest to the fact he’s a solid drinking companion (that’s what a Twissup session will do to a man!).

When not drinking and writing about beer and circumnavigating Yorkshire’s railways he writes fiction, watches Leeds United (through his fingers) and causes minor havoc on the streets of Leeds with his border terrier, Wilson.

The Beers

So Leigh, which five beers will you be taking with you?

1. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (U.S.A – 5.6%).
   “My gateway beer, as it happens. From this one American icon my obsession with beer – enough to make me want to do as much as I can to help the industry – was birthed. It still tastes so good today, although Torpedo takes some beating. For me, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale has the perfect balance of sweet and bitter, and it’s a taste that still hasn’t been replicated.”
2. Magic Rock Brewing Co. Human Cannonball (Huddersfield, U.K. – 9.2%)
   “For my stronger beer, Human Cannonball just fits the bill so perfectly at the moment. My current obsession, Human Cannonball hides the ABV so well amongst all that sweetness, but the bitter finish makes it so finely poised. Ruinously drinkable.”
3. Rooster’s Wild Mule (Knaresborough U.K. – 3.9%)
   “For a refreshing taste of home in the desert heat.”
4. Buxton Brewery Co. Black Rocks (Buxton U.K. – 5.5%)
   “One of the best – if not the best – Black IPA I’ve ever tasted. Wonderful stuff.”
5. Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout (U.S.A. – 10.0%)
   “Another beer that I think still has no serious rival. And it satisfies my sweet tooth.

And which beer (of those selected) do you regard most highly? Read the rest of this entry »

This weeks Desert Island Beers features the founder and owner of Maui Brewing Co, Garrett Marrero. Talk about brewing beer in paradise, for Garrett founded Maui Brewing in Lahaina, on the island of Maui, Hawaii in 2005.

When asked how he got started and why Maui, he says it was pretty simple — he loved good beer, was an investment consultant in California and came to Maui on a vacation and fell in love with the spirit of the island. From there it was simply figuring out how to be there. Being that there was nothing like Maui Brewing Co. in the state, he saw an opportunity.

Garrett Marrero Maui Brewing Hawaii

Garrett says there are clearly challenges to brewing in such a remote location, principally shipping; with fuel and utility costs constantly on the rise and insurance, labour, and taxes all substantially higher in Hawaii than anywhere else in the U.S.A. (other than possibly Alaska!!)

Garrett also chose cans instead of bottles. He says this was for several reasons principally he believes the can is a better vessel to protect beer! He says it’s not that canned beer is automatically better—the bottle, can, or keg, are merely vessels to transport the beverage, but that a poorly brewed beer is not going to get better by being in any one of those packages; but a can will protect high-quality beers better than a bottle. Also he is able to source cans locally as there is a can making plant on Maui and as big supporters of buying local and supporting local labour this was also an important factor.

The Beers

So Garrett, which five beers will you be taking with you?

1. Maui Brewing Co. Mana Wheat (Hawaii, U.S.A. – 5.5%)
   “I know I know…its one of mine, but it’s a great go-to beer for anytime of the day. The addition of Maui Gold Pineapple adds just a hint of fruit flavor and killer aroma. A beer for anytime of the day, especially in the heat!”
2. Brouwerij Girardin Gueuze Girardin 1882 (Belgium – 5.0%)
   “The first beer I had in Belgium and it has always stuck with me. Takes me back to Ghent and a meal of local salami, mustard, and cheese. Fond memories.”
3. Port Brewing Co. Pizza Port (Ocean Beach) Foam Ball (San Diego, U.S.A – N/A)
   “This is a lesser known beer, not packaged so maybe my island has growlers, but its brewed by Yiga at Ocean Beach Pizza Port, an English style Pale, very well-balanced and clean. The Port guys are good friends so again, good memories. I figure being stuck on an island you’d need memories to hang on to.”
4. Gasthaus & Gosebrauerei Bayerischer Bahnhof Leipziger Gose (Germany 4.6%)
   “Crazy beer, low alcohol, tart, slightly salty, coriander, refreshing and complex at the same time. Very unique and offers quite a bit of flavor to hold you over.”
5. Pabst Brewing Company Pabst Blu Ribbon (Illinois, U.S.A. – 4.7%)
   “Tall boys, sorry, I know you said beer, but I’m assuming the water might not be good to drink and PBR is probably the next best thing to stay hydrated, sometimes you just need water with a bit of alcohol. IF I was going to drink a domestic lager, this would likely be it.”

All hail the canned ale!

And which beer (of those selected) do you regard most highly? Read the rest of this entry »

Meet Søren Eriksen, a nomadic Dane who, like most red-blooded Kiwi’s loves playing poker with the boys and making home-brewed beer. The only difference is that Søren indulges both passions with the scale and skill most can only dream about: Søren is a two-time New Zealand poker champ (2009/10) and founder and head-brewer of critically-acclaimed craft label, 8 Wired Brewing Co.

8 Wired was recently announced at The Brewers Guild of New Zealand Awards as Champion Brewery for 2011. 8 Wired contract brew at Renaissance Brewing in Blenheim: contract brewed in the sense that 8 Wired does not own its own equipment but rent Renaissance Brewing’s. The beer is brewed by Søren, whose day job is a brewer for Renaissance.

For all non-Kiwi’s, No 8 Wire is a specific gauge of wire originally used for electric fencing. In New Zealand it’s use though is widespread, Kiwi’s having used it to fix just about anything. Over the years it has become a symbol of Kiwi ingenuity so Søren chose the name because he thought it fitted his company pretty well.

Soren Eriksen 8 Wired Brewing. Photo by Jed Sloane.

Søren has always been a big traveller and says he was always interested in the local beer, in which sense he was always a beer geek, but nonetheless by his own admission all he did was seek out the same style of bland lager with a different label. That began to change in 2005 when living with his now wife, Monique, in Perth, where he was finishing a master’s degree in biochemistry. They were frequent visitors to the Little Creatures brew pub in Fremantle when Søren started to realise there was a lot more to beer than the usual fizzy yellow stuff.

For Christmas that year, Monique bought him a Cooper’s homebrew kit: basically a plastic bucket, a can of malt extract and some yeast. He was hooked. After moving to New Zealand in 2006 he became more serious and got in to all-grain home brewing. However it wasn’t until 2008 his thoughts really took shape as along with Monique he did a road-trip through the USA and stopped by every brewpub they passed and that’s when he decided he wanted to give professional brewing a go.

In September 2008 he quit biochemistry – he was researching Kina (sea urchins) at the University of Auckland. The initial plan was to open a brewpub on the upper North Island and to get commercial experience they moved to Blenheim where Søren had landed a job with Renaissance Brewing Co. The plan was to stay for three months but years later they are still in Marlborough.

The Beers

So Søren what five beers will you be taking with you?

1. Russian River Brewing Co. Pliny the Elder (U.S.A – 8.0%)
   “The best IPA ever made and I love hops!”
2. Russian River Brewing Co. Consecration (U.S.A – 10.0%)
   “The best sour beer ever made and I love sour beers!”
3. 8 Wired Brewing Co. Batch 18 Barrel Aged Imperial Stout (New Zealand – 12.5%)
   “The best Imperial Stout I have ever tasted, if I may be so modest.”
4. Ardbeg Distillery Single Islay Malt Scotch Whisky -10 year old (Scotland – 46%)
   “Whisky is distilled beer right? This is my favorite of the mainstream malts and on my regular duty free shopping list.”
5. ???????????
   “After all that I’m gonna need something quaff-able. Maybe an Epic Pale Ale, Little Creatures Pale Ale or an Emersons Pils.”

And which beer (of those selected) do you regard most highly?

“Russian River Consecration. This is the most difficult beer to make of the selected and it is just perfect. It pushes the boundaries right to the edge but maintains perfect balance. A work of art and truly inspirational.”

Pliny the Elder Russian River

Russian River Consecration

Ardberg limited edition - Soren's Xmas Pressie!

8 Wired Barrel Aged Imperial Stout

The Meal

You can also take one meal to go with your beers, what would it be?

“I reckon I can catch my own fish on the island (which I would eat marinated raw, Pacific Island style) so I’d bring something a bit more sturdy: A great burger perhaps. Awesome but unpretentious.”

The Books

You might be waiting a long time on your lonesome on the desert island, so we will automatically allow you a few books to keep your mind busy. You can pick between two beer books and two tomes: ‘The Brewmaster’s Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food’ by Garrett Oliver, or ‘Beer’ by Michael Jackson; plus The Bible, or another appropriate religious or philosophical work

“Brewmasters Table. One of the best beer books I have ever read. Food and beer. Two of my favorite subjects. And The Bible. I’ve never read the real thing, the most published book of all times. I have to see what the fuss is all about.”

And a non-beery book?

“I used to read a lot but haven’t had time or interest lately. I like to read books that are entertaining but also have some grounds in reality and teach the reader something about life, science or history. A book by Dan Brown or Khaled Hosseini perhaps.”

The record

You have a CD/mp3/long player but you can only take one album. Choose wisely!

“Only one? Pink Floyd The Wall. Hours of listening pleasure that also have a story to tell.”

The Luxury Item

And finally, what luxury item would help make your stay on the island bearable?

“Apart from beer and food? Season 6 of Seinfeld. Best season of the best TV show ever made without contest.”

Thanks to Søren for stopping by our desert island (and for the pics from his interesting twitter feed!), we know he is busy!
Borrowing kit from Renaissance can’t always meet demand for 8 Wired’s beer so recently the most popular brew, HopWired, has been outsourced to Steam Brewing Company Brewing Co. 8 Wired currently export to the United States, Australia, Denmark and the UK (where the aforementioned Batch 18 Barrel Aged Imperial Stout is available).

This article syndicated with All Gates Brewery blog as part of our ‘Desert Island Beers’ collaboration.

This weeks Desert Island Beers features the owner and founder of The Lagunitas Brewing Company, Tony Magee.

I asked Tony for a brief bio. and this was it!

For a bio I can only tell you a few things with any certainty…
1. I was born at a very early age…
2. I live in Point Reyes Station, CA, USA…
3. I started Lagunitas Brewing on my kitchen stove in 1993….
Anything that I might write down beyond this would be pure conjecture….

Chairs to you and yours!

Tony Magee
Sea Eeefukin Owe
Lagunitas Brewing
Petaluma, Lyydikandiiic, and the World

Anyway after some research I can tell you that Tony did indeed found Lagunitas in 1993 in Forest Knolls, California and moved it a year later to nearby Petaluma, when they quickly outgrew their original West Marin premises.

Tony Magee, Lagunitas Brewing

Lagunitas are best known for iconoclastic interpretations of traditional beer styles, and irreverent descriptive text and stories on their packaging. Their flagship, IPA, is consistently the best-selling IPA in the state of California and Lagunitas is one of the fastest-growing craft breweries in the United States, increasing production from 27,000 barrels in 2004 to 106,000 barrels in 2010 when they were the second fasting growing brewery in the country, behind Dogfish Head. The brewery announced a $9.5 million expansion in 2011 which will increase brewing capacity to 600,000 barrels. Read the rest of this entry »

With only two sleeps to Christmas Day, this week’s Desert Island Beers is a real coup for us as it features none other than Santa Claus; who has found the time to answer our questions in the run up to his busiest week of the year. Thanks Santa. Read the rest of this entry »

Rob Tod’s interest in brewing began when he worked for Otter Creek Brewery in Vermont after graduating from college. While working at Otter Creek he sampled many styles of beer and was struck by the inventiveness and depth of Belgian beers. Though Belgian styles were scarcely heard of in the US at the time, Rob knew that if people could experience them, they would love them.

In 1995, Rob founded Allagash Brewing Company and began his venture with the release of the award winning Allagash White, which is modeled after the traditional wit beers of Belgium. From a humble first year of 120 barrels Allagash now brew over 20,000 barrels of beer a year including barrel aged beers, four philanthropic beers and a selection that use Allagash’s own proprietary brettanomyces yeast strain.

The state-of-the-art brewery includes a coolship room, which has allowed Allagash to experiment with traditional, Belgian style spontaneous fermentation. Today, they continue to grow and remain committed to brewing inventive, high quality beers in the Belgian tradition. In 2010, Allagash brewed approximately 23,445 barrels of beer (726,795 gallons). Read the rest of this entry »

Established in May 2003 by former chef Dave Hughes and his wife Judi, Acorn Brewery is located to the east of the Pennines in the village of Wombwell.

Having worked for Barnsley Brewery as Head Brewer for two years, Dave decided to go it alone, purchased a ten barrel brewplant from the Forester & Firkin brewpub in Stafford and moved it’s the edges of the town.

Following a lot of hard work by Dave and his assistant brewer Steve Bunting, and despite some initial set backs, the brewplant was commissioned and production of Acorn Brewery Barnsley Bitter began on 4th July 2003, using the same yeast strain as the original Barnsley Brewery, founded in the 1850′s.

The Beers

Hi Dave, thanks for holidaying on our desert island! So, which beers do you want to enjoy during your stay, and why? Read the rest of this entry »