Off Tap: December/ January

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2018

WHAT’S BREWING P.2

Ballast Point

P.4

Spirited Beer

P.5

Sailfish Brewing Co.

P.6

Mull It Over

P.8

Sam ‘76

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Meghan Guarino Editor Allie Smallwood Contributing Editor

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BIG FISH IN A SMALL TOWN:

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BALLAST POINT BREWING COMPANY M E G H AN G U AR IN O

Copper Kettle

The 2010 census boasts a population of 2,557

quality, consistent beers that range from dark

for Daleville, Virginia. That’s 130 times smaller

porters to light blondes and everything in between.

than Tampa. The city’s Wikipedia page ends before

With a robust research and development program

the scroll and cites a permanently closed Japanese

that brews 128 beers each year, the team is highly

school in its education section. Daleville is about

collaborative, innovative and excited about what

three hours west of Virginia’s capital, Richmond,

they do.

and about four hours southwest of the nation’s

If you’ve never tried Ballast Point before, start with

capital. The town is small, but it has gorgeous

their Sculpin IPAs. These highly hopped beers

scenery and, as of June 2017, is the site of Ballast Point’s largest brewing facility to date.

“One of the main reasons we chose Virginia, be-

are award-winning and available is several styles, Ribbon Cutting

including pineapple and grapefruit. Grapefruit Sculpin IPA boasts several honors, including a gold

sides access to water and freight lines, is that it’s a

medal from the 2016 US Beer Open, and shows

very inviting state,” James Murray, VP Brewing Op-

tart grapefruit on a citrusy, hop-driven palate.

erations explained. “I have been with the company

Continue with Ballast Point’s IPAs to taste Even

for 13 years and have built basically every brewery

Keel Session IPA, Manta Ray Double IPA and Fath-

with our team, and I have never seen a city or state

om IPA, the newest year-round beer in their line-up.

so welcoming and helpful in getting us the permits

This 6% ABV beer is a classic West Coast IPA with

we need. They’re supportive and the community

notes of orange and pine with a hint of malt. As the

is great.”

At 285,000 square feet, the newest facility more than doubles Ballast Point’s Miramar, California,

name suggests, Fathom IPA has depth of flavor Tour

location and sits on 87 acres of land. “It gives us

and surprising refreshability.

For lighter flavor, try Longfin Lager or Wahoo White.

For deeper complexity, seek their Victory at Sea

room for expansion,” Murray said. “We have quite

Porter, The Commodore American Stout and Sour

a few programs here in San Diego that are kind of

Wench Blackberry Ale. This limited Berliner-weisse

scattered. We have a brewery that just does sour

shows a gorgeous purple color with blackberry

beer, we have a brewery that does barrel-aged

flavors and aromas throughout. It’s great with goat

beer, we have a brewery that just does R&D, and

cheese and holiday parties.

they’re scattered around Southern California which

Find Ballast Point beers at your local ABC Fine

makes it difficult for transporting goods. That 87

Wine & Spirits today! You can stock up on even

acres of land allows us to build a barrel-aged program or an offsite sour program, but on our land.”

Tasting Room Patio

Ballast Point’s Virginia location was largely funded

Sunset at Ballast Point

fresher beer from this coast-to-coast brewery.

by the brewery’s parent company, Constellation.

Although the acquisition of craft breweries is a hotly debated topic, Ballast Point has yet to see negative impacts stemming from the decision.

most part, Constellation has been a support group for us. They’re here to allow us to follow our dreams and not have any road blocks in the way... They’re not trying to mess up the secret sauce. They’re here to support it... It’s important for consumers to realize that it’s still the same knuckleheads making great beer. We’re still the same Ballast Point, we just have a bigger support system around us.”

And great beer they do make. “We have a great culture of work hard, play hard. And that resonates in our beer,” Murray said. Ballast Point touts high

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“I can assure you that hasn’t happened. For the

December/January 2018

company, things are for the worse,” Murray said.

Page 3

“People seem to think that because of our parent

Sp i r i t e d

Be e r

A L L IE SMALLW OOD

Mixing spirits and beer isn’t a new concept, and the combination has risen in popularity over the last few years. The boilermaker is different from bomb shots in that it doesn’t have to be, well, bombed into the beer glass. It’s a more refined, less rowdy way to combine two wonderful ingredients into one delicious drink. We’ve come up with some seasonal favorites for you to try!

Caramel Apple

The Pumpkin Boiler 8 oz Southern Tier Pumking 1 oz Vanilla Vodka Fill a glass with the beer. Gently pour the vodka in, give it a quick stir and enjoy your boiler straightaway!

Peppermint Mocha Latte

8 oz Hard Cider ½ oz Butterscotch Schnapps Fill a highball glass with the cider.

Pour butterscotch schnapps into the pint. Drink right away.

The Gingerbread Man

12 oz Young’s Chocolate Stout or favorite chocolate beer

8 oz Guinness

½ oz Peppermint Schnapps

Fill a tall glass with the beer and float the liqueur on top, then...

Drink! Finish it fast, it’s the gingerbread man!

½ oz Patron Café XO Fill a highball glass with beer. Mix Patron and schnapps in a shot glass and float into glass for immediate enjoyment!

½ oz Dom Canton Ginger Liqueur

SAILF ISH BR EW I NG CO.

A L LIE SMALLW OOD

Nick Bischoff started brewing beer at home

Their Lionfish is a great example: it’s a jala-

in his garage circa 2011. As most love stories

peño lime and cilantro pale ale. Then you’ve

go, he’d had a long crush on craft beer and

got their Ladyfish Wit, which is a wheat beer

wanted to tell the world. This love story has

made with lavender, lemon and coconut. “It’s

become what we now know as Sailfish Brew-

amazing,” Al said. They do a Dragon Blood

ing Co. A chat with their former brew master

every year for Halloween with dragon fruit and

and current marketing coordinator, Al Beltran,

jalapeño; they’ve even done white peach and

revealed a lot more about this coastal brewery.

thyme in a red saison called Matter of Thyme.

“Nick wanted to bring the [craft beer] scene.

It’s clear there’s no shortage of flavor innova-

He felt like there wasn’t anyone making good beer on the treasure coast and they wanted to have people learn about it,” Al mentioned.

Sailfish was actually the Treasure Coast’s first

tion. “We have a local farmer that we work very closely with, Brown Family Farm, his name is Bradley Brown. We’ll give him a call once we get inspired with ingredients and he’ll shoot

brewery. “They wanted people to realize, hey

out a list of what’s in season,” Al explained.

man, you can have something better than

The future holds even more tanks for Sailfish,

what you’re already drinking.” He began

Al said. “The market is steady growing and

brewing in his garage on a 25-gallon system

we want to stay ahead of the curve. We just

(or 1 ½ barrels).

started canning so that will add to our footprint

Within the first year, the demand grew to be

across the whole state. We want to get really

more than what they could supply, so they

involved in a lot of can releases and specialty

increased production. To say that they’re used

small batch cans from our taproom.”

to quick expansion is an understatement. Al

The moral of the Sailfish story: Their beer is

went on to explain that “just a year later we

so good that they’ve been forced to keep

had to get a few 180-gallon tanks, and then

growing. You can find select Sailfish brews in

the next year we got into talks of building the

ABC Fine Wine & Spirits from Melbourne down

big brewery.” And on the corner of 2nd Street

to the Keys on the east coast, Sarasota and

and Marina Way in Fort Pierce, you’ll find their

Naples on the west coast and in Orlando.

biggest brewery to date: 20-barrel system with

Al said, “We’re very traditional and really but at the same time we add our own touch to

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it.” Which are oftentimes way outside the box,

December/January 2018

respect the history and the culture of the beer

Page 5

a capacity of 620 gallons of delicious beer.

using ingredients that people wouldn’t think go well together. “Yea, we like to keep a sense of awe coming out of our beers. Every time people come to our brewery we want them to experience something new and special,” Al explaned. “That’s why we brew so many, different styles all the time.”

MULL

IT

OVER M E G H AN GU ARIN O

I know that seasonal beers take centerstage this time

A more common winter drink, mulled wine, has a storied

of year. How could they not? They’re only available for

history—references are made to the spiced beverage

a short amount of time and for some of us—myself in-

throughout literature, including Charles Dickens’s A

cluded—seasonals are on your list of all-time favorites.

Christmas Carol in 1842. Gluhwein is the German name

Which is why I was hesitant to approach even the idea

for it, and glogg the Swedish. The idea of a warmed red

of mulled beer. Warm beer? In Florida?! When we’re al-

wine is completely accepted worldwide. So why not

ready blessed with seasonal beer bliss?? I relish the few

beer? After all, warm cider is certainly common, Dickens

cold days we get during the winter months and prefer

makes a reference to mulled beer in The Old Curiosity

to go the traditional route with hot chocolate and whis-

Shop in 1941, and it’s a common winter drink in Poland,

key-spiked toddies. Until I tried mulled beer.

where it is called grzaniec. The difference between the

two is the base. While mulled wine should always be

weird aftertaste.

made with red wine, mulled beer can be made with

The true favorite—and the style I’d recommend for

either lager or ale.

mulled beer—was the basic lager. The beer had a very

Mulling beer takes out all the carbonation, but heightens

simplistic palate that could easily handle additional

flavor and aromas—especially when you add spices and

ingredients. When warmed with the honey and spices,

honey to the mix. Most recipes call for a lighter beer so

it gave off aromas of baked apples. The palate showed

that you can be willy-nilly when adding your spices. With

each spice in turn. Because of that, you should be care-

a more flavorful base, you’ll have to be a bit more scien-

ful not to add too much of one so the flavors glide easily

tific and add spices that complement the beer’s innate

to the next.

flavor profile. The style you choose is totally up to you,

If you like mulled wine or are looking for a warming

as are the ingredients and the amount of each you add.

winter drink, you’ll like mulled beer. In a taste-test of the

Like any great recipe, this one is hard to mess up. Below

three different styles, the biggest hang up for most peo-

is a basic recipe for mulled beer.

ple was the knowledge that they were drinking warm,

1 bottle Beer

flat beer. But mulled beer is so much more than that.

6 tbsp Honey

It’s a cozy cup of winter flavor that can be enjoyed with

1 Cinnamon Stick (more for garnish)

friends and family on a chilly evening. This recipe can be

1 tbsp Ginger

seamlessly swapped for your usual hot apple cider.

5 Cloves

If you’ve never tried it before, mull it over. It may end

Pinch Nutmeg

up on your list of favorite seasonal beers.

Orange or Lemon Slices Pour beer into a saucepan and add spices and honey.

Heat slowly but do not boil. Add additional spices to taste. Serve in mugs with a slice of citrus or an additional cinnamon stick.

beer, like the UFO Winter Blonde, proved to be difficult to successfully create a harmonious palate. With competing flavors on an already carefully crafted palate, UFO Winter Blonde was more a cacophony of flavors with the additional ingredients and was not ideal for mulling. It was the same for the Brooklyn Sorachi Ace. This saison is an incredibly made beer that shines alone.

Added spice made for a strange palate with a particularly

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UFO Winter Blonde. Adding spice to an already flavorful

October/November 2017

styles: a basic lager, Brooklyn Sorachi Ace Saison and

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For my initial experiment with mulled beer, I tried three

SAM ADAMS

SAM ’76

One of the larger breweries that still retains its independent craft label is Samuel Adams. This Boston-based beer company has paved the way for craft breweries all over the US with their collaborative mindset, innovative products and consistent quality.

They’ve done it again with the latest addition to their lineup: Sam ’76.

This light-bodied lager shows aromas of citrus with a balanced, crisp body. It’s a refreshing palate cleanser for days when you’re too tired to think about your beer. Simple, flavorful and smooth, Sam ’76 is designed to become your new go-to brew.

ABV: 4.7% GLASSWARE: Pint glass PAIRINGS: Pigs in a blanket, bacon cheeseburgers, and grilled hotdogs