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Sampling Unfamiliar
"Seers At "Sreiw Test
^ Classic City Brew Fest was a fun time,
v- Here's my 10-cent synopsis, written on
my new laptop. The weather couldn't have been
more conducive to an afternoon's merriment: even
though the event was held inside at The Classic
Center, the sunshine and general springtime
feeling elated everyone. The assignment, as I saw
it, was not to see how much good beer I could
drink, but what I could report on: that which I
had not sampled before. To those ends, I recon-
noitered the entire booth array before settling
upon a first stop at the table of an out-of-state
brewery that has yet to sell in Georgia. It proved
to be a prophetic choice.
This small micro, Thomas Creek Brewing, is
located in Greenville, South Carolina. Although
their brews have not been sold hereabouts before,
permission was obtained to bring the products in
for trial. They were pouring draft samples of six of
their portfolio of nine products: some year-round,
some seasonal. There was not to be a disappoint
ment in the lot.
Thomas Creek Pilsner—This was decent
enough: hardly really characterful, but far better
than anything from the major nationals.
Thomas Creek Red Ale—A nice, mild, inoffen
sive top-fermented brew with a slight "roasty"
taste imbedded deeply within.
Thomas Creek Amber Ale—A little bolder;
something I could drink copious quantities of with
a very large smile.
Thomas Creek Marzen—"This is LUSCIOUS!" I
wrote in my trusty pad. It was stunning enough
that I returned to drink another sample three
more times, and each time I was gladdened
beyond words. A real winner. Available only on
draft in its home market. My highest rec
ommendation.
Thomas Creek Doppelbock—
'That's WONDERFUL!" I wrote.
"There's a niiiice burntness there
that I didn't expect." This also is
a draft-only offering. Highly rec
ommended.
Thomas Creek I.P.A.—An
acceptable but unremarkable version
of the beverage, neither a disappoint
ment nor an elation.
I strolled around to French Broad River
Brewery's table. This is the smaller of two micro
breweries in Asheville, North Carolina.
Goldenrod Pilsner—Decent and crisp; per
fectly acceptable.
Watershed Bock—Nice and roasty; a really
fine product.
From there, my next stop was at Asheville
Pizza & Brewing Co. This brewpub is located in a
former theatre on Merrimon Avenue, on the near
north side of the city. I had visited the premises
when it was known as Two Moons Brew & View
some years ago. (The other Asheville brewpub,
Green Man Brewing, was not able to attend.) It is
located on Patton Avenue, three blocks or so west
of Pack Square, downtown.)
Rook Porter—A nice London (as opposed to
robust) style: little "bitiness" under the tongue,
but plenty of warmth.
Shiva I.P.A.—Speaking of bite, this turned out
to be a fine "bitey" example of an American India
Pale Ale. I need to sail up and have a few on draft
as soon as possible.
My next destination ended up being New
Mexico Beers of Albuquerque. Two breweries,
independent of each other but co-distributing,
debuted their product lines. All samples were
bottled.
Rio Grande Desert Pits—It'll drink, especially
in a hotter climate than this.
Rio Grande Outlaw Lager—Another decent
"hot climate" beer. A tad bolder than the above.
Rio Grande Pancho Verde Chile Cerveza—Oh,
my! This is living proof that chiles can flavor
beer! This is not a novelty brew, folks: it's plumb
stunning, just the perfect balance of heat and
flavor, as in the perfect barbecue sauce. Me gusta
mas! Highly recommended.
Cabezon Kristall Weizen—It'll drink, but
there are no surprises and little clove or banana
flavor, either.
Cabezon Sunchaser Ale—Light and inoffen
sive: another decent beer for hot, hot desert
weather.
Rio Grande Elfego Bock—Famed New Mexico
character Elfego Baca was known as a bit of an
outlaw, a bit of a revolutionary, and a noted
lawman in the varying eras of his 80-year life.
This beer, brewed in the Vienna style of Dos Equis
Dark, is something as honest and forthright as
was the man. (There won't be any books written
about the beer, though.)
Cabezon Stout—Nicely roasty and drinkable.
I wandered by Hops Gwinnett's table next.
There are several Hops brewpubs in the Atlanta
area (and in other cities). This particular one is
in Duluth.
Clearwater Light—As empty as I expected. A
national-brand-style beer (but honestly a tad
better) that you can drink there in a bona fide
brewpub setting.
Hammerhead Red—Redder than I expected.
Ah, me, almost as empty as downtown East
Point. No flaws, though, except that of over
inoffensiveness.
The Harpoon booth alerted me. Although I had
tasted everything else they offered, there was one
newbie. Harpoon Brewing is located in Boston and
sells widely in Athens, by the way.
Harpoon Hibernian Style Ale (Irish Red)—A
decent product; not terribly assertive, but less
empty and vacuous than many brews of this style.
Across the way, the table of Cannon
Brewpub of Columbus, Georgia sat
unattended and vacant. Sniff. Guess
I'll have to wander down to
Broadway to try Special Ops I.P.A.
Right nearby, Blue Ridge
Brewing Co. of Greenville, SC was
my next destination. This long-
established brewpub is located on
North Main Street in the heart of
downtown. Since it has been awhile
since I tasted their brews on-site, I went
through everything.
Pale Ale—Lightish, but nicely balanced.
Rainbow Trout E.S.B. (Extra Special Bitter
Ale)—A very nice example of the style: as good as
eating a freshly-caught rainbow trout.
Kind Ale—Kind and decent; not too crisp.
This organic brew is contract-produced by French
Broad River in Asheville, NC.
Kind Porter—A decent London example with
just a tad of burnt-under-the-tongueness.
Produced as above.
Hurricane Hefeweizen—The hooves are
gently cloven. Not intense, but good. Has some
nice esters present.
One more never-had-it product struck my eye.
This turned up at the Warsteiner table.
King Ludwig Weiss—Entirely drinkable. Not
mad, however: only the actual king was this.
On the way back around, I made another
stop—this time at Normal Brew Shop's table.
Their offering was superb.
Ridiculously Light Ale—No nose, no color, no
taste. I could drink this forever! "Ort," John Gayer
chuckled, "that's an empty keg." I stared balefully
at my cup. "No wonder this stuffs so light," I
admitted sheepishly.
You will note that I did not visit the tables of
those places whose beers I can obtain readily or
with which I was already familiar. This may be
seen as a flaw in my reporting, but what I wanted
to do is learn for myself, so that I might teach
you at least a little something.
Prosit!
William Orten Carlton * ORT.
Special Correspondent For The Flagpole
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