Marin Brewing Co: Hoppy Holidaze

Happy Holidays everyone!

Sorry for that. It's not even remotely close to the holiday season. In fact it almost hit 100° in my neck of the woods this week. Despite the hot weather, a spiced beer sounded tasty so I picked one up at the liquor store.

I went with Marin Brewing Company's Hoppy Holidaze: a powerful ale spiced with nutmeg, mace, orange peel, cinnamon, and vanilla. There is a lot going on in this beer and spices hit the palate hard on every sip. Sloshing through all the flavors it becomes quite clear that the nutmeg dominates. A slight orange flavor is present but I couldn't detect any cinnamon or vanilla. After the beer warms and the bubbles fade, some hops emerge along with a hint of booze. Believe it or not, the alcohol really compliments this beer as it is hard to distinguish the booze flavors from the nutmeg and mace tastes. I'm glad the nutmeg works well with the alcohol, as this ale tops out at 7% abv. Without the strong spices, it could be more difficult to drink.

Overall all the flavors fit together quite nice. While 'Hoppy Holidaze' is a clear play on words for a beer to match the strong flavors of a holiday feast, it's not the hoppiest beer in the world. If I worked for Marin Brew Co's marketing department I might have gone with "Naughty or Spice" and focus on the intense spices instead of emphasizing the hops. Either way when the holiday season comes you should give this brew a try. Or don't wait and try it now. It worked for me. Cheers.

Marin Brewing Co: Albion Amber Ale

My first review on this blog was Marin Brewing Co's IPA. That was a long time ago, and I wasn't really sure where this blog was going at the time. Well this post is number 99 which means we are 1 more post away from reviewing 100 beers. I'm pretty satisfied with the work and effort of all my friends who have contributed to this blog.

I'm also happy that the first beer I reviewed was a Marin Brewing Co beer. As you've probably noticed, I like to try to hit at least two beers from the same source so as not to make a snap decision on a brewery before sampling a couple of their craft. After trying Marin's IPA, I moved on to their San Quentin Stout and I'm finally trying their amber ale. While I forgot to review the stout, I'm here now with the amber.

And I must say, this ale is quite tasty. On the back of the bottle, the brewery mentions that the crystal malts are roasted longer than normal. And I really like this effect. This beer is pretty malty and has great caramel malt flavors. The continued roasting also brings out some stout like flavors and I taste a little bit of chocolate and coffee in the malts. It's a nice touch and makes this beer quite smooth but still complex. With little hop flavor, it's not very powerful and very easy to drink making this a silky and somewhat of a lighter brew. Overall, I enjoyed it thoroughly.

And to be honest I would have never had the opportunity to drink and enjoy this beer without this blog. Writing about beer makes me want to sample more often and explore the complexities of each brew and the offerings of each brewery. I hope you all have enjoyed our posts and recommendations as we've tried some fine beer. Cheers.

Marin Brewing Co.: IPA

So this is a duel post.
Covering both for "cask conditioned" Ales and for "Marin Brewing Company's IPA".

If you frequent beer bars in the US and England regularly you may start running into cask conditioned ales. With thousands of micro-breweries out there, brewmasters are stretching the boundaries of ingredients and temperatures to brew a beer that is unique and distinct.

As many of us know, there are some beers out there that are close to perfect as is. Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, many brewmasters are going back into history of brewmaking in an attempt to bring back some great tastes that have been forgotten.

You might be thinking, "Hey Mattie, what is a cask conditioned ale?" Good question. I didn't know myself until recently. My favorite SF beer bar, Toronado, serves 4 varieties of cask conditioned ales on tap. They change out the different types once a week and I felt like I was missing out on some good bers. So I decided to inquire about the hand pumped beers and ordered a handful the other night.

Most bars won't carry cask conditioned ales because they spoil very quickly. Hence why someone invented the modern keg and CO2 pump. The tap on a handpump looks very similar to the modern apparatus, except when you pull down on the handle you are actually pumping the beer out of the cask. The bar tenders have to forcefully pull down to draw the beer out and some of them even lean on the tap to pump out large quantities.

The best analogy I have to a cask conditioned ale is to beers that undergo a second fermentation in the bottle. Think of Habo's brew kit. A cask conditioned ale also undergoes a second fermentation but instead of in the bottle its in the barrel. Normally, draft beer is dispensed by forcing CO2 into the keg and pushing it up through the draft lines. This method adds carbonation to the beer. Since casks are not designed for a CO2 line, the beer must be dispensed by a hand pump, which acts just like an old-fashioned water pump. Because the beer is undergoing a second fermentation as it's being poured, it creates its own carbonation.

Hand pumped cask conditioned ales have three distinct features.
First, they are warmer than a normal draft beer. I'm not sure exactly how this occurs. I believe the increased temperature is either due to the friction during the pumping process or the fact that cold CO2 is not being pumped in. Either way the temperature makes hand pumped beer distinct. It's still refreshing and isn't warm enough where you feel like you are sipping on a wounded solider the next morning.
Secondly, hand pumped beer is less carbonated. The second fermentation does not produce as much CO2 as the modern method and is also clearly reflected in the taste. This is highly preferable to a modern keg system and great on your stomach if you want to down 8-12.
Thirdly, and most surprisingly the beer tastes "thinner". This is a hard sensation to explain to others who haven't tried a cask conditioned ale, but the beer almost melts across your tongue in your mouth. When you take a swig, the beer almost splits and rolls off your tongue to both the left and right of your mouth. Its a very smooth feeling. Its as if you are drinking a light beer, but no flavor is lost. This is why so many people believe cask conditioned ales taste fresher.

As for the Marin Brewery Co. IPA, it holds up very well in the cask. I thought it would be fitting to tie a Marin beer to this post, as it was my birthplace. The Marin IPA has the nice hoppiness you want from an India Pale Ale but it is definitely not overwhelming. I think IPAs are good beers to get hand pumped due to the "thinness" effect I was explaining above. It also has a "treey" taste, kinda like a little aftertaste of a forest. If I knew more about trees I could be more specific. But when you sip it, I think you'll understand.

Anyway, be on the lookout for cask conditioned. They be tasty.
Cheers