Beer saves the World

Did you catch the new special on Discovery Channel called "How Beer Saved the World"? If the answer is yes, you probably know what I am going to talk about. If not, do yourself a favor and either find someone who saved it, or catch a rerun. Do yourself a favor though, if you haven't seen it, do so before you continue reading, as I don't want to spoil anything for you.

Now that you've seen the show, it's safe to talk about it. To think, the beer that many people love helped create so many different things! In the large scheme of things, that's a pretty amazing feat for one beverage. (I know, there's different types of beers. That's not the point.)

According to this show, beer is the basis for civilization as we know it. To think, men decided to domesticate because of this beverage, Nomads (hunters/ gatherers) stumbled upon beer by accident after leaving out barley during a rainy season. One lucky nomad was bold enough to taste the first beer. Oh man, what a treat that would have been! After tasting this, it was decided more needed to be made, so man decided to stay in one place for more than just a few days.

According to Discover, beer then becomes one of the most precious, if not the most precious things for man; people work for it, trade it for other goods, and drink it to get their nutrition. Beer does it all! In fact, beer was so important, that beer was used to help give man the energy to build the pyramids. Each person building was alloted a gallon of beer a dar when building the pyramids with the average pyramid needing over 3 million  gallons of beer to be consumed for it to be built. (I don't know about you, but I've done work for beer before; certainly not a gallon of beer though). Beer was so precious that it was used as currency for the ancient Egyptians.

Civilized man ran in to an unforeseen problem though, they began to contaminate their water supply with garbage and animal by-products. This contamination lead to many folks getting sick in the middle ages. The solution to this problem was, of course, beer. These folks realized that by using the water to make beer, they were making it safe to drink. They did not realize that boiling water killed the bacteria, but rather thought that  something in the beer made it safe. This meant that, in order to be healthy, one must consume beer. This included men, women, and children. Everyone drank beer! (What a fun concept, although life in the Middle Ages was very tough). During this time, beer was life blood.

Simply by looking at what beer was believed to do during some very tough times, but beer was also responsible for revolutions! When America's fore fathers came to America, they decided to land where they did because they had run out of beer. To think, things in our history books could have been very different if they just had more beer! Then, to make things more interesting, the revolution really gained momentum over pints of beer in the local taverns. No beer, probably no revolution!

This show really showed what beer has done for man and civilization. An even crazier idea is that beer was the root of capitalism and commerce. The idea that because of beer, many inventions, such as math, are rumored to have to have been invented!

I tell you all this because I thought the show was very well done. Some folks may have already known some of this information, but now the masses now know some of these awesome beer related facts! Beer has played a tremendous role in man kind and I imagine it will continue to play a significant role.

Bockfest

If you live in Cincinnati and love beer, you need to visit Bockfest. If you simply like visiting historic parts of Cincinnati, then you should also come visit Bockfest.

If you're not familiar with Bockfest, here's what it's all about: Bockfest is an annual celebration of Over the Rhine and it's history, especially it's brewing history. According to their website, Bockfest is the oldest event that celebrates bock beer. It's a great event with beer lovers and history buffs coming together to celebrate.

The even will begin this year on March 4th with a parade. The parade, of course, celebrates bock beer, and as beer lovers may know, bock means goat; you can probably figure out who leads the parade from there. I have never been to the parade, but I imagine it is a great time.

The rest of the weekend includes beer, beer, beer and of course sausage. The event takes place in several venues, with most of the action taking place in the Bockfest Hall. This year's Bockfest Hall is at the site of the new Christian Moerlein Brewery downtown. Being in the site of a brewery of course means that the beer will flow. Local homebrew group, the Bloatarians, are also on hand to award a winner in their homebrew competition. There is also the awarding of the Sausage Queen.

Probably the coolest thing about Bockfest isn't the beer though. The fine folks at the Over the Rhine Brewery District have put together an awesome tour of historic Over the Rhine breweries. The tour takes you through some of the many buildings that used to house breweries before prohibition. In some cases, the tour even takes you under ground to view lagering tunnels, or even tunnels used during prohibition. It's truly a tour worth taking.

For those who are true History Buffs, there is also the Church tour. This tour takes you through some of the most historic and most sacred places this city has to offer.

If you can make this event, you should get there. You won't regret it. For more information, visit www.bockfest.com

I also just got word that this Friday is the revealing of this year's Bockfest poster. Click here for more info.Bockfest Poster Event

Pretzelfest Thoughts

This past weekend was the Pretzelfest event that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. The event took place Friday night at Venue 222 in Over the Rhine. Upon arriving, I could tell this was going to be a fun event.

The event featured several different pretzels from several restaurants. However, despite the event being called pretzelfest, the pretzels did not steal the show. This event was rather unique as it brought it so many different people. Personally, I enjoy beer and I love Bockfest, so I figured this would be a good way to support both. I also talked to folks who were simply there to support the Over the Rhine community, which is certainly a good thing. It was cool to see beer lovers, community activists, and community members all in one building. You had young and old there in an effort to support the area.

During the event you got a chance to try as many pretzels as you wanted. Like I said already, the pretzels didn't steal the show; in fact, some of the pretzels were already gone when I arrived at 6:30 (event started at 5 and went to 10), so I was a little disappointed there. However, there was plenty of Christian Moerlein to go around and they even shared this years Emancipator Dopplebock, which tastes very good this year. These weren't just samples you got to try, but rather the whole bottle.

The event was great and I even got to share my knowledge of brewing history in Over the Rhine with a very nice couple who were curious. I look forward to supporting Bockfest again in March.

Here are 2 pics I took at the event. Sorry for the quality, I was using my phone to take them.

Beer Review - Bell's Hopslam

If you check out lots of beer blogs or visit other beer websites, you've probably been reading about Bell's Hopslam. This time every year, beer fanatics are abuzz about this yearly release of a delicious Imperial IPA. If you haven't tried this one yet, you really should do yourself a favor and try it.

I was lucky enough to grab some of the 2011 release and had this review of it:

The beer poured golden in color with a nice white head. The aroma was strong with pine, pine and more pine. If I was walking through a pine forest, I wouldn't have smelled more pine. However, the pine wasn't overpowering, but rather refreshing to smell. The taste was a lot of the same, pine, but with some citrus and grapefruit. Again, the flavor was far from overpowering, in fact it was quite refreshing. The beer is 10% abv, but you can't really tell with everything else going on. If you like hops, you need to try this beer.

Pretzel Fest - Bockfest fundraiser

If you've ever been to a beer fest, you've probably seen the guys (and gals) who show up to drink with a necklace made of pretzels. I am not quite sure that the pretzels actually make you drink more, or sober you up after you've had quite a few at said beer fest, but we'll debate the practicality of that some other time. Regardless of you views of the pretzel necklace, one thing is for sure, pretzels and beer just go together. Who doesn't enjoy getting a nice mug of beer and scarfing down a pretzel, especially if it's freshly baked?

That being said, January 21st is the Over the Rhine Pretzel Fest. This event promises freshly made pretzels as well as beer. You'll get to try several beers from local establishments and try several beers, all for one cost. Best part is, all proceeds go to benefit Bockfest, which is March 4-6 this year.

Here's more of the specifics directly from the Bockfest Facebook event page:

Over-the-Rhine Pretzel Fest, an official Bockfest 2011 fundraiser will feature Keg Tapping of the Emanicpator Doppelbock, the official Bockfest Beer.

WHEN: Friday January 21, 2011, at Venue 222 (222 E 14th St).

All proceeds go toward the costs of Bockfest 2011, Tickets can be purchased at:http://www.bockfest.otrbrewerydistrict.org/Pretzelfest.htm

Admission is $35 and includes a unique sampling of freshly baked pretzels from local restaurants and bakeries, FOUR drink tickets, a brat, and a chance to win the Ultimate Bockfest Weekend. (Additional food and beverage will also be available.)

The event is a fundraiser to cover a portion of costs of the nineteenth annual Bockfest. Bockfest 2011 will take place from March 4 – 6, 2011. The “Cincinnati Dancing Pigs” will perform live - local bakeries and restaurants will showcase unique pretzel creations.

Bockfest is also raising funds necessary through two raffles, the Arnold’s Bathtub Raffle and the Ultimate Bockfest Weekend Raffle.

Arnold’s Bathtub Raffle: Arnold’s Bar & Grill is Cincinnati’s oldest saloon, founded in 1861 and celebrating its 150 year anniversary in 2011. The bar legendarily remained open through Prohibition, and stories about bathtub gin make the bathtub that remains in a second floor dining room a symbol of Arnold’s and its history. The bar owns a motorized bathtub that is always near the front of the Bockfest Parade, to be held on March 4, 2011 at 5:30PM. Driving the tub has traditionally been a rare honor. This year, Arnold’s is letting the privilege be raffled to help support parade costs. Chances are $5 each. Tickets can be purchased online at www.bockfest.com <http://www.bockfest.com/> or by contacting Bockfest organizers at Bockfest@otrbrewerydistrict.org. Arnold’s is located at 210 East 8th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Ultimate Bockfest Weekend Raffle: The Ultimate Bockfest Weekend Raffle offers ticket holders two chances to win luxury Bockfest accommodations. The Grand Prize winner will spend Friday, March 4, 2011 and Saturday, March 5, 2011 in a two-bed, two-bath penthouse in the Garfield Suites Hotel; and will receive $250 in food and drink voucher to be used at Café Martin within the hotel. The secondary prize includes Bockfest accommodations in a standard (but still spacious) suite and $100 in food and drink. Tickets can be purchased online at www.bockfest.com or by contacting Bockfest organizers at Bockfest@otrbrewerydistrict.org.

To see more, click HERE

Beer Review - Ridgeway Brewing Lump of Coal

So, Christmas has come and gone, but that doesn't mean I can't share a lump of coal I was privileged enough to receive with everyone. So, Santa didn't actually leave this for me instead of presents (actually, this beer was given to beersupporterjt and he was kind enough to share) but it sure fit the bill tonight as it has been snowing all day here. That being said, we figured it was time to share another winter beer.

The beer poured dark brown with a nice, slightly off white head. The smell of this beer was of chocolate, raisin, and a bit of butterscotch. The smell wasn't very powerful, but it led me to think that I was going to greatly enjoy this beer. The taste, however, was not quite what the smell led me to believe. Taste certainly did have chocolate, but it also added a touch of coffee, but I could not find the raisin taste that I smelled. I also noted that this beer seemed to taste hot as I could definitely taste a bit of alcohol burn as I drank.

In all, this beer was ok. If you have a bottle of this sitting around, it'll make a decent drink for a snowy day, but I wouldn't go out of your way to find it.

Arnold's 1861 Porter

About a week or two ago I had a post mentioning that Arnold's was celebrating their 150th Anniversary this year and to celebrate, they decided to throw a birthday party last night. Well, Christian Moerlein also wanted to share in their celebration of 150 years in Cincinnati, so they decided to brew a beer in honor of this accomplishment and I was there to check it out.

Before I share my thoughts on the beer, there are some things to note. This beer was the first beer that Christian Moerlein brewed in  Over the Rhine! This is fantastic news because it brings them one step closer to getting their brand new brewery fully operational (it's still going to be a little while, but they're working on it). Also, because this beer was brewed in the new brewery that isn't full of fermenters and mash tuns, there was only so much of this beer to go around at the party. The event started at 6:00pm and the beer was gone by 7:00pm. I believe that this says something about Cincinnati's rising beer scene, but more on that on a different day.

On to my thoughts:

This beer pours a dark brown, with a thin, tan head. The smell is of a coffee and chocolate beans and was very nice. The taste was much the same, roasty, coffee, and chocolate. The more I drank, the more the chocolate starts to come to the front. The beer had light carbonation, but it was a nice drink. The taste was a little softer than I was expecting it to be, but it was definitely enjoyable.

If you had a chance to try this beer on New Year's Eve or on New Year's, what did you think? Do you agree with my assessment?