The next event of the Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club.

When: Friday, April 10, 2009
Cost: $20
You must be a member of the club to attend. Go to the Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club to sign up and RSVP.

Hops! Humulus lupulus. The bitter and spice of beer. First mentioned for brewing in 1079, once banned in England as a “wicked and pernicious weed”, hops only slowly triumphed over the herbal mixtures called gruit once used to bitter beer. Their various acids and oils provide bitterness to balance the sweetness of malt and give beer many of the flavors and aromas that many people identify as “beery.”

For this meetup we’ll focus on hops. We’ll taste beers that highlight the fruit of the “bine” in all of its variety, from the sublime perfume of Czech Saaz in the Bohemian Pilsner to the subtle grassy/floral notes of an English Bitter and the grapefruit and pine of the American IPA. We’ll push the bounds of bitterness with the palate numbing Double IPA and maybe even take on a specialty beer or two.

This is the second in a series of three meetups in which we will explore the main ingredients in beer, malt, hops, and yeast. At each session we will taste beers that highlight one ingredient over the others to develop a better understanding the flavor and aromatic contributions of each ingredient.

There is still time to sign up!

There is still room and time to sign up for the Malty Beers event of the Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club. This is the first of three events that will focus on the flavor contributions of individual beer ingredients. This month the ingredient is Malt. We’ll be tasting malty beers from Munich Lagers to Scottish Ales to Bocks, Porters, and maybe even a specialty beer or two…or three.

Click for details.

The next Perfect Pint Beer Club event.

When: Saturday, March 21, 2009
Cost: $20
You must be a member of the club to attend. Go to the Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club to sign up and RSVP.

Malted grain is the backbone of beer. Next to water it is the primary ingredient. Malt is the source of the sugars that are fermented by the yeast. It is a major contributor to every sensory quality of beer including flavor, aroma, mouthfeel, and alcohol level. Malted grain gives beer that wonderful sweetness and rich bready, toasty, roasty, nutty, caramel, coffee, and chocolate notes that make beer lovers swoon.
For this meetup we’ll focus on malt. We’ll enjoy the bready goodness of southern German lagers. We’ll taste the tantalizing toasty notes of the Bocks and savor the sweet caramel of Scottish ales. We might even revisit last month to revel in roast.
This will be the first in a series of three meetups in which we will explore the main ingredients in beer, malt, hops, and yeast. At each session we will taste beers that highlight one ingredient over the others to develop a better understanding the flavor and aromatic contributions of each ingredient.

Second Meeting of the Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club

The Twin Cities Perfect Pint Beer Club met on Friday the 13th for celebration of porters, stouts, and other black beers. What better night than Friday the 13th to delve into dark brews. Appropriately enough, thirteen people were on hand at the home of club member Kevin Butler to sample an array of eight inky ales and lagers. The evening started with Guinness Stout. Although this beer has become ubiquitous, you just can’t talk about porters and stouts without including Guinness. And besides, it’s a darn fine beer. Next was the first of two black lagers, the malty Kulmbacher Mönchshof Schwarzbier. More toasty than roasty, with touches of caramel and a crisp dry finish, this beer was a favorite of the group. We followed that with another classic, Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout. Rich and creamy with a malty sweetness and coffee roast, this beer remains one of my all-time favorites. Next was the Cygnus X-1 Porter from St. Paul’s Flat Earth Brewing. I like to support the local brewers at events, and the Cygnus porter with it’s deep coffee roast and hints of rye spiciness is one of my favorite locally brewed beers. Those who have been agreed that the Thursday afternoon growler sales at Flat Earth are worth checking out.

After the Flat Earth we moved into the realm of big beers with Lion Stout from Sri Lanka. The second lager of the night, this beer exhibited loads of dark fruit flavor under a thick roast malt center. While some found it too roasty for their taste, it was a winner for most. From there we moved on to an even bigger stout, Storm King Imperial Stout from Victory Brewing of Pennsylvania. I find this beer to be more drinkable than many imperial stouts. While full of flavor, it has a light body for the style and a relatively high hop presence. The group was about evenly split on this one, with many finding it to be too bitter for their taste.

Finally we entered the realm of specialty black beers with Smoke Jumper form Left Hand Brewing. An imperial smoked porter that weighs in at 9.2%, this beer melds coffee and chocolate roast, licorice, and a pronounced campfire smoke into what I found to be a delightful beer. The reaction was somewhat mixed, with many finding the smoke to be too much. To paraphrase one participant, “I didn’t dislike it as much as other smoked beers I have had.” Finally it was on to desert with Choklat from Southern Tier. Like bittersweet chocolate syrup in a beer bottle, this one was a real crowd pleaser. Those who did not care for it at first changed their minds once we added a scoop of vanilla ice cream to their glass. A chocolate stout float is one of the truly great desert experiences. The last black beer of the evening was Bell’s Expedition Stout. I had wanted to bring this for the event, but was unable to find it. Kevin, our host for the night, was generous enough to share two bottles from his own cellar. Thanks for that.

Thanks to everyone who came. It was a great evening. Everyone learned. Everyone tasted great beer. Sharing great beer with good company can’t be beat. Be sure to keep an eye out for the next event.