DEIFIED [Home]Brewing

In place of doing a full-on brewery tour like we did a few years ago to Washington and Oregon, I am going local with craft and breweries!

Brewdog Ellon - June 9, 2016

AUCHENTOSHAN - Glasgow - June 10, 2016

It is only about a one hour train ride from Edinburgh to Glasgow. Unfortunately for us, since it took us longer than we wanted to catch our trains, it also takes just under an hour to get to Auchentoshan by car or train. We panicked and took a cad since our Ubers werent working out, and ended up paying a LOT. Oh well. 

We arrived to do "THE ULTIMATE AUCHENTOSHAN EXPERIENCE / 135MIN”. We toured the grist mill, the kettle, washbacks, stills, warehouse, etc. We tried a sample of the fermenting wort from one of the giant wooden washbacks. It was 8%, the final gravity that they are shooting for. It tastes much like a young, un-hopped, blonde beer. Very grainy, and a lot of flavour still from the yeast. After the washbacks it goes to the stills. 

Triple stills =  Triple distillation. Including sampling their regular range of whisky, once we went through their barrel warehouse we were also treated to sampling straight from a cask. I got to pull a sample for all of us from this cask-strength (59%) sherry butt. I really liked this one. I don’t think they sell anything like this, definitely not cask-strength, maybe sometimes they released ones aged in sherry. All in all, great tour of our first visit to a distillery, let alone single malt Scotch distillery. My poor wife though...

Brewdog - Ellon , Scotland - June 9, 2016 - Part 2

The very first thing we were greeted with when we arrived at the tasting room was a glass poured from the fermenter by the head brewer! Even better still was the fact that this beer was the initial stage of their latest batch of End of History, which hasn’t been available for what must be at least 5 or 6 years. https://www.brewdog.com/lowdown/blog/the-end-of-history  What we were treated to was an intensely hopped saison that was about around 10%. The saison could still be detected through the hops, which were only so intense as to make their presence known once the beer was ultimately frozen and concentrated like an Eisbock. This freezing and chucking out the frozen water will make a syrupy and super-ABV beer in the 50% range, or 100 proof! They will most likely not barrel age this one like their super rare Death or Glory beer, and most likely wont be bottling these in taxedermied animals like the last End of History batch.

We then embarked on an hour tour through the entire brewery, which was literally pumping out 75% of its output only towards Punk IPA. Their flagship beer is the most purchased craft beer in the entire UK, and thankfully what pays the bills and allows them to do so many crazy and intense specialty beers at a breakneck pace. After the tour we sat down with out Cicerone-certified tour guide, who led us through almost all of the available draft choices. It wouldn’t be until a few days later in Brewdog Edinburgh (RIP Edinburgh Bottledog) where we would sample a lot of the latest high ABV concoctions available in bottles and cans only. We did however sample Sink the Bismark, finally completing the pair of insame ABV beers – Tactical Nuclear Penguin = 32% and Sink the Bismark = 41%

Brewdog - Ellon , Scotland - June 9, 2016

Brewdog is quite a ways from Durham. It is even a long trip from Edinburgh. So while visiting the brewery has always been on my mind ever since I became a shareholder over three years ago, it has been out of reach. I really wish we weren’t as busy in London as we were while the Annual General Meeting in Aberdeen was happening, but this tour made up for it.

ABSTRAKT 20: TIRAMISU OATMEAL MILK BARLEY WINE

I finally updated my EFP card from my original that I received in 2012. The Equity For Punks program from Brewdog has been one of their money generating sources for their new brewery and other expansions. They will be raising money to put towards their $300 million valuation of their US arm of Brewdog, including their new satellite Columbus brewery.

My latest Brewdog get after a month of not drinking…

Black Jacques - came out in 2014, found a UK beer store online that still had one! Paid too much for it, but cannot wait to try it one last time.

Dog D - been trying them all, looking forward to this iteration.

Albino Squid Assassin - Imperial Red Ale, hope it is as hoppy and malty as it is strong.

I was on the Brewdog forum looking for details regarding their upcoming AGM festival, and saw this first time homebrewer’s question. Yes, that is a box of mac and cheese in a glass. #Kraftbeer

My latest Brewdog order came in the mail...More details to come. Info from Brewdog.com.

BLACK EYED KING IMP CANS

Black Eyed King Imp returns in this Vietnamese coffee edition of an epic barrel-aged imperial stout.

Oh. And this is the world's strongest ever canned beer.

At 12.7% ABV, Black Eyed King Imp is a super intense and twistedly complex brew, with intense notes of sweet vanilla, rich espresso, smooth molasses and bitter chocolate barely contained by the metal wrapped around it. We've ransacked the barrel store to blend some of our favourite aromas and flavour infusions into this massive monster of a beery beast!

#MASHTAG 2015

#MashTag fuses beer and democracy; every part of the beer & brewing process is voted on by the general public. They chose wisely. This brooding black Barley Wine is bold, bitter and boozy.

A blast of fruity hop aromas is quickly followed by an undercurrent of coffee and pine. Waves of chocolatey warmth crash through and envelope your palate, leading into the long, dark, mysterious finish.

The #MashTag 2015 label was designed by Mark Green.

HINTERLAND

Step into the Hinterland and lose yourself in the darkness...

This pitch black oatmeal stout is as rich and complex as they come, but as smooth as chocolate milkshake.

Smoky, coffee and cacao aromas lead into rich chocolate ganache, bitter espresso and cocoa powder, with a warming plum brandy hit and a roasty bitter finish that balances out the chewy sweetness, while a liquid honeycomb mouth-feel lifts the bitterness and lets the vanilla shine through.

ALICE PORTER

2015 welcomes in the triumphant return of Alice Porter.

Weighing in at 5.2% ABV, Alice Porter hides a huge complexity behind her modest strength.

Roasty and smooth with fruity, rich coffee character.

Alice Porter takes a sudden twist in an unexpected direction; a blend of hops that add a light, balancing citrusy twist and a subtle spiciness.

LIZARD BRIDE

Lizard Bride will sweep you off your feet and take you to a place that only a lucky few ever traverse - the razor’s edge between bitter and sour. 

Treading carefully, this experimental prototype harnesses the acidity and tartness offered by berries, and couples it with the furious bitterness of an American IPA. 

Flavours of sour cherry and blueberry mix with tropical fruit and resin, followed by a long bitter finish.

COCOA PSYCHO 

Welcome to the world of Cocoa Psycho, a liquid dimension where pure indulgence reigns.

Originally brewed some 250 years ago to celebrate the Russian Royal Family, this 10% Imperial Russian stout borrows from the decadence of the time with its extravagantly smooth blend of crushed coffee beans, cocoa nibs and dark malts.

But continue to dig a little deeper, past the infusions of vanilla pods and toasted oak chips, and eventually you'll come face-to-face with the madness required to make this beer; a kind of insanity that would have made Rasputin himself proud.