Check out both their reviews!

Beer Buddha

NOLA Beer Bitch

Just goes to show, different strokes for different folks. (Whatchoo talkin’ about, Willis?)

1) Saturday’s Krewe du Brew release of seasonal favorite Flambeau Red with accompanying pub crawl.

2) NOLA Brewing’s new tap handle for their newest beer, which is HELLA COOL.

Also, go support the launch of Lucky Town Brewery by going to Kickstarter and pledging! They are so close to being half way there!

For the second year, The Avenue Pub has taken the first week of Mardi Gras to line up some great beer events. This is the weekend that the balcony is open to the public. They, of course, want their best beer customers up there and the best way to get them to show up and watch the parades with us is to line up some great beers. Drinking the beers will get you access to the balcony for the parades (first come first serve of course). There will be lots of industry people in town for these events and they sound awesome!

Friday Feb 10th
Saint Arnolds night: Divine Reserve 11 & the rollout of their newest beer: Bitter Belgian.
Krewe of Oshun parade start 6pm, by the pub by 8pm
Click here for more info and to RSVP

Saturday Feb 11th
Stone Brewing & NOLA collaboration rollout:”Pour Me Somethin’ Mistah” on cask and in draft. Plus a couple of other goodies that Stone is sending and a special cask of NOLA’s wheat with grains of paradise (a combination inspired by the Beer Bitch herself!)
Krewe of Ponchatrian parade Start 2pm, by the Pub 3:30pm
Krewe of Sparta parade start 6pm, by the Pub 7:30Pm
Krewe of Pygmalion parade start 6:45pm, by the pub 8:30pm
Click here for more information and to RSVP

Sunday Feb 12th
Sierra Nevada Releases Torpedo on Draft!
Krewe of Carrollton parade start 12 noon, by the pub 1:30pm
Krewe of King Arthur parade start 1pm by the Pub 3pm
Click here for more information and to RSVP

Wednesday Feb 15th
Abita night!
Rum Barrel Aged Abbey Ale & Double dry hopped Jackamo on cask.
Krewe of Druids parade start 6:30, by the pub 8pm
Krewe of Nyx, parade start 7pm, by the pub 8:30.
Click here for more information and to RSVP

You can read more about it here.

This is great, and super helpful to the downtown economy during a fairly quiet time.  And, a quick cab ride to the Avenue Pub and/or Stein’s Deli!

My notes, less coherent as the night went by...

So, the first Boucherie-Swedish beer dinner was on Monday.  Pretty amazing, especially when you consider the chef hadn’t even tasted the beers before planning the menu.  I did a writeup of it here. Mark your calendars for February 6, when Chef Nathanial is gonna do it all over again with the same beers but with a completely different menu.  Also, this time, he’ll have actually tried the beers in advance!

Tonight, the Avenue Pub is hosting a Meet The Brewers event on the Balcony with the folks from Sierra Nevada.  There will be the newest Bigfoot Barleywine on tap as well as the new seasonal Ruthless Rye IPA (which I love) and a couple of bottles of the Sierra Nevada-Dogfish Head collaboration Life & Limb.  The Sierra Nevada guys often bring glassware, etc, to give away and they are very nice folks, so come on out if you can!

Saturday is the big Stein’s Beer Day event as originally mentioned here. You can also read more about it here.

If you’re on the North Shore or don’t mind travelling there, the Barley Oak is having a Spiegelau/Abita Glassware Seminar on February 1.  Give Vanessa a call at 985.727.7420 or email her at vanessa@thebarleyoak.com to see if they still have spots available. Last I heard, it was filling up fast.

Stormaktsporter

First things first:  BIG UPS to The Avenue Pub- owner Polly Watts and her amazing staff – Stene Isacsson, owner of Akkurat Bar & Restaurant in Stockholm, and Shelton Brothers Distributors for all their hard work to bring this event to not only New Orleans but to Louisiana, the South, the US. Nothing like this anywhere else in the country- this was totally a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am grateful to everyone’s role in making it happen.

On Tuesday, the Avenue put on the Oppigårds Golden Ale and I gave that a try- a very pleasant, slightly hoppy, balanced, and drinkable beer. Delicious!

I couldn’t make the Wednesday night tasting, but I did go back on Friday night and enjoyed several of the Swedish offerings, both upstairs and downstairs.  The Balcony also had Cantillon Mamouche on draft as a special keg for a special weekend.  Downstairs had a Jolly Pumpkin Maricaibo Especiale to enjoy.

I started with the Närke Slättöl, an American style pale ale.  I wanted to start light and move through the spectrum.  The Slättöl definitely qualified, it was probably the cleanest and lightest beer I had over the weekend. I enjoyed it, especially since it was my first beer after biking over. Next I tried the Oppigårds Amarillo Spring Ale which was probably one of my favorite beers of the Swedish offerings (though that’s a tough call, since –SPOILER ALERT!– they were all really good.) Great hop-forward aroma and taste, and it was definitely delicately hopped- not too bitter, but the hop presence was there. Anchored in a subtle maltiness with spicy notes.  Really complex  and, more importantly, delicious.  I followed it up with Nils Oscar Hop Yard IPA, which was darker and maltier than the Amarillo Spring Ale. Had a surprisingly high ABV as well, at 7.3%. I liked it, but it definitely suffered by comparison to the Amarillo Spring.  But it was beautifully balanced, dry finish; a very well brewed ale.

I moved upstairs and tried the three Swedish beers on draft up there (along with a Cantillon Mamouche; OK, two): the Nynäshamns Bedarö Bitter, which I could have drunk all night quite happily; Nynäshamns Sotholmen Extra Stout, which I bought at the same time as the bitter, and let sit out to warm a bit; and Oppigårds Single Hop Ale, a nice contrast to the dark and complex stout, as it was light and quaffable. I then went downstairs and enjoyed a Jolly Pumpkin and a Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye IPA. Damn, that was a delicious night.

Deliciousness continued on Saturday! I arrived at around 11am to get on the list to go upstairs with the first group of ticket holders. While waiting in the downstairs bar, I tried the Närke InternationAle, which was well made, balanced, and very nice to drink; the Nynäshamns Tjockhult Tjinook, a Chinook hopped lager, pretty subtle- not the most exciting beer, but a good solid effort all the same; and the Nils Oscar Kalasöl, a truly special beer in the Oktoberfest style with German malts and a variety of international hops. Really different from the other Swedish beers I’d tried up to that point. A great drinking. beautifully amber ruby red beer.

We were sent upstairs shortly after I ordered my Kalasöl, so I brought it up with me and enjoyed it out on the balcony. It was an absolutely glorious day, as well. Just perfect for drinking great beers with fellow beer geeks and enjoying one of the most gorgeous, sunny, and mild January days this native New Englander has ever experienced. While waiting for the two “special” beers to be available at 3pm (the Närke Konjaks Stormaktsporter 2010 and the Nynäshamns Bötet Barley Wine) I tried some more distinctively Scandinavian beers: the Nils Oscar Julöl, a Christmas ale/wee heavy and surprisingly drinkable on an 80 degree day, and the Närke Tanngnjnost & Tanngrisnir, which was based on a traditional style called a Goittlsandricka. Very smokey in taste and aroma. Tasting notes mentioned juniper berry, but I didn’t catch those notes (it may be something new and unfamiliar to my palate, in beer). It took a couple sips to get used to, and I don’t think I could drink more than 6 ounces. but I was glad I tried it.

Then it was time, time to try the famous and fabled Stormaktsporter. It’s an imperial stout that has only been brewed once.  Supplies are limited, and Polly’s Swedish counterpart basically sacrificed one of his (very few) kegs to send it over to her.  It was intoxicating to the senses, deep, dark, ephemeral, smooth drinking, flavorful, hella complex, a dream to drink. So honored to drink this. (I even ponied up $11 later for another 6 ounces of it.) The other special beer was the Bötet Barley Wine, which is probably the best barleywine I’ve ever had. Smooth drinking, not hot at all, complex in flavor, just sooooooo delicious.

I just didn’t want the happiness to end. It was such good beer, with good folks, on a great day, and a fantastic vibe. It was beautifully organized and executed, and again, my thanks go out to all who had a hand in this event. You made many people very happy.

One week from today, Boucherie, continuing their support of the craft beer industry here, is hosting the first of two beer dinners that are inspired by (and served with) the special Swedish beers that are being spotlighted this week.

Here’s the menu!

Malts for "Pour Me Something, Mister!"

The beer will be brewed with a grain bill of: pale chocolate malt, Caramello 55, Halcyon, Midnight White, and Munich II.  It will be hopped with Centennial, Nugget, and US Golding and dryhopped with Citra hops (YUM.) They will also be brewing it with dried satasuma peel and fermenting with Steen’s molasses.  It should weigh in at around 8%.

So, west coast hop profile + Louisiana satsuma and Steen’s = potential for significant awesomeness.

Go to the Avenue Pub  tomorrow (Tuesday, 1/17) from 5-7pm to talk about this exciting collaboration with the brewers from both NOLA and Stone. See you there!

Here’s the dirt!

• Stein’s Deli will be holding its annual Beer Day on Saturday, January 28.  There will be brewing demonstrations, tastings, discounts, and general awesomeness.
• Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele has rescheduled his visit to New Orleans and at the Avenue Pub (originally scheduled for Monday, 1/9) to this upcoming Tuesday 1/17.  Come Meet The Brewer at the Avenue starting at 5pm on 1/17.
• The American Homebrewers Association is holding their 33rd Annual National Homebrewers Conference and Homebrew Competition in Seattle on June 21-23, 2012.  Registration opens on February 1.
• Also on the homebrew front, New Orleans Homebrew shop Brewstock is celebrating its third anniversary today!  Way to go, y’all!
• There will be a cask of NOLA at the Avenue Pub on Friday (1/13), Hopoutoulas IPA dry hopped with Willamette hops
• Cochon in Lafayette will be holding a Bayou Teche beer dinner on Wednesday, January 18. If you’re in the area, it sounds awesome! (Man, I gotta get me some of that Courir de Mardi Gras)
• Waiting on the final draft of the Swedish Beer tasting dinner at Boucherie on Monday, January 23.  Keep a look out and for god’s sake, make your reservations ASAP!  There will be a second dinner 2 weeks later with all new dishes and pairings. Stay tuned!