30 December 2011

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–30 Dec 2011 Philadelphia Brewing Co PA Pale Ale w/John Rehm–The Video

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–30 Dec 2011 Philadelphia Brewing Co PA Pale Ale with John Rehm

WILKFridayBeerbuzz2XmasThe holidays are always a special time, and the craft beer industry is no different.  We toast our friends and family, we share our beverages, and in a holiday tradition, we always try to think locally, buy locally and drink locally.  We’ve supported our local breweries over the last few weeks with Penn Brewery, Breaker Brewing Co and this week I wanted to end the year on that same note.

wilkToday we chose Philadelphia Brewing Co Pennsylvania Pale Ale as our beer of the week.  Pennsylvania Pale Ale, or as many call it PA Pale Ale or even PPA is a great easy drinking LOCAL Pale Ale.  This great American Pale Ale is brewed just down the pike in the Kensington section of Philadelphia.  Philadelphia Brewing Co is in a brewery that dates back to 1885 (Weisbrod & Hess Oriental brewing) and it was re-opened in 2001 by Bill & Nancy Barton.  One of the things I really love about Philly Brewing Co is their commitment to supporting the local community.  From their support of local farming to brew Harvest from the Hood, to their support of XPN radio with their Broadcaster Brown, PBC is a local brewery, heavily involved with their local community…and I think that speaks well of any brewery.

It was very exciting to have Chief Brewer John Rehm join us to sample PA Pale Ale.  John gave us some great insight about what goes into brewing this citrusy-hopped pale ale, and also explained how it gets that wonderfully balanced flavor.  John also talked about how the brewery was designed to be environmentally friendly and even how PBC has been recognized and being one of the top 5 sustainable breweries.

Be sure to check out Philadelphia Brewing Co Pennsylvania Pale Ale (or as I like to call it Philly Brewing PPA) for yourself.  This is a great Pale Ale and one that is brewed locally.

Thanks

to John Rehm from Philadelphia Brewing Co, Nancy, John & Joe for yet another fun Friday. 

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together.

As always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE.

28 December 2011

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–20 Dec 2011 The Teaser

WILKFridayBeerbuzz2XmasWe had a fun and festive pre-Christmas show last week, and it was lots of fun welcoming Andy Rich, Head Brewer from Penn Brewery, on to the show to help us sample St. Nikolaus Bock.  This is a wonderfully malty seasonal lager that will be a perfect beer to toast in the holiday season with family & friends….so be sure to get out and try some for yourself.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: The name of the beer includes the name of the brewery of a recent Friday BeerBuzz guest, and of course it’s another local brewery & brew master!

Tune in at 8:30AM and see what beer we sample on the Friday BeerBuzz on WILK…bringing good beers and good people together. (103.1FM or wilknewsradio.com).

24 December 2011

WILK 2011 Friday BeerBuzz Over-Extended Holiday Spectacular The Video Part 1–Alesmith Yulesmith

WILK 2011 Friday BeerBuzz Over-Extended Holiday Spectacular–The Video Part 2

WILK 2011 Friday BeerBuzz Over-Extended Holiday Spectacular–The Video Part 3

WILK Friday BeerBuzz Over-Extended 1-Hour Holiday Spectacular !

WILKFridayBeerbuzz2Xmas
A Big show demands a big graphic….and today we certainly had a BIG show.  In fine WILK Friday BeerBuzz tradition, we present to you our Over-Extended 1-Hour Holiday Spectacular BeerBuzz.  Every year on Christmas Eve & New Years Eve we over-stretch our resources and bring you a show featuring multiple guests, multiple beers, multiple posts and multiple opportunities to mess up…
Winking smile

Our show today was 1-Hour long and featured 4 segments and a ton of different traditional (and non-traditional) holiday beers, along with some great food, and some really great guests.  A big thank you to Rocky Rhodes from KRZ for joining us for all four segments, as well as Mrs. BeerBuzz, BeerCam & my pal Tom….cheers everyone!

WILKXmas1Segment 1:  Up first was a segment I like to call “warming up.”  They always tell you to stretch before you exercise, and this non-traditional holiday beer was a stretch.  In fine BeerBuzz tradition, our first segment is always hoppy (like last year’s Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale) so today we featured AleSmith Brewing  YuleSmith Holiday Ale.  Yulesmith is brewed twice a year featuring a lighter Summer version and today’s Holiday Version.  This big 8.5% ABV Imperial Double Red Ale was a perfect way to start the show and a perfect way to stretch our taste buds.  This beer is readily available so try it for yourself.

WILKXmas2Segment 2:  After our first segment, the timing was right to have a little snack, so today we welcomed chef Tony Graham from Madison’s in Nanticoke.  To call Tony’s treats a “snack” was a tremendous disservice to all the time and effort Tony put in to feeding us today.  I presented Tony with the challenge a few weeks ago, to create food based on our featured beer AND feed a mixed vegetarian/non-vegetarian crowd (OK I was the ONLY vegetarian!) and he definitely rose to the occasion with some great food.  Our beer for segment two was a classic winter seasonal from one of my favorite Mid-Atlantic breweries and one of our most well-versed master brewers.  For Segment 2 we featured Garret Oliver’s classic Brooklyn Brewing Black Chocolate Stout.  This big 10% ABV Imperial Stout is a winter & holiday classic and it paired incredibly well with Tony’s food.  Once again Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout is readily available, and more importantly so is the food Tony prepares every day at Madison’s on Washington St in Nanticoke….be sure to stop by and try some of Tony’s amazing entrées.

WILKXmas3Segment 3:  We have another tradition on the Over-Extended Holiday BeerBuzz, and we held true to it again this year.  Every year we feature one of the brews from The Bruery’s 12-days of Christmas series.  Last year we did 3 French Hens and this year we featured Patrick Rue’s Four Calling Birds.  This big Belgian Strong Dark Ale comes in at 11% and it was the perfect step up from our previous beers.  Four Calling Birds is the fourth beer in the series and while it is meant to be aged until the end of the series in 2019, it still tastes wonderful today.  This one had notes of gingerbread and holiday spices and I definitely recommend you get out and try this one now.

WILKXmas4Segment 4:  I always try to finish big on our holiday show, and today that really worked out well.  Our guests for segment 4 were Chris Miller & Mark Lehman from Breaker Brewing Co.  It was fun to get an update on the progress of the new Breaker Brewpub & Brewery opening on Northampton St in Wilkes-Barre Twp., but even more fun sampling what I’m calling the Belsnickler Surprise.  We’ve tested the theory that this big Belgian Quad ages well, but today we took that even further not only tasting multiple vintages of Belsnickler, but also a very special Oak-aged Belsnickler…and they were all fantastic.  A big thank you to Mark & Chris for sharing their time and some really rare (and limited supply) vintages of Belsnickler.

By the time we were done, we definitely set a new indoor record for cup-usage, but  In the end it was a great Friday BeerBuzz Over-Extended 1-Hour Holiday Spectacular.  The food, beer, chatter, friendship & fun are what make the holidays special, and today I think we really had a special Friday BeerBuzz.

Thanks

to Mark & Chris from Breaker Brewing, Tony Graham from Madisons, Rocky Rhodes from KRZ, Mrs. BeerBuzz, Tom, Nancy, John, Joe & Katie for yet another fun Friday.

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together. There is a TON of video footage for this show & BeerCam footage so a

s always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE

WILK Friday BeerBuzz - BEER CAM - 24 Dec 2011

23 December 2011

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–23 Dec 2011 Penn Brewery St Nikolaus Bock w/Andy Rich

WILKFridayBeerbuzz2XmasThere’s always something special about the holiday season, and sharing a great beer with family & friends to toast the season.  This is my favorite time of the year for seasonal craft beers, and what better way to celebrate the Christmas-Eve-Eve Friday BeerBuzz than with a great PA state brewery.

Penn Brewery is Pittsburgh’s oldest & largest brewery, and one of my favorite.  They produce a wide variety of beers, but they are well known for their authentic German styles.  Penn Brewery also is proud to brew within the Reinheitsgebot beer purity traditions using only barley, hops, water & yeast to create their classic lagers.

imageToday we we enjoyed a classic Münchener Dunkel Bock Bier from the Pennsylvania Brewing Co called St Nikolaus Bock.  St Nik is a winter seasonal that uses traditional 2-row barley and German hops to produce a wonderful seasonal bock beer.  This beer is dark, with lots of body and some big malty flavor, perfect for a cold winter’s night and even better to share as a holiday gift or Christmas toast.

It was a pleasure for all of us to welcome Andy Rich, Head Brewer at Penn Brewery on to the show to help us sample St Nik Bock.  Andy has an extensive brewing background and it was no accident that we chose to sample Andy’s favorite Penn Beer, St Nik Bock.  Andy gave us some great insight as to what goes into brewing St Nik, and many of the other beers coming out of Penn, and also told us some great stories about the early days of Penn brewery.

St Nikolaus Bock is a classic holiday bock and a great beer to share with friends and family as you toast the upcoming holidays.  Happy Holidays to all of our listeners, readers, viewers, friends and families for helping us bring good beers and good people together.  We love doing the show and we couldn’t do it without all of you.

Thanks

to Andy Rich from Pennsylvania Brewing Co, Nancy, John, Mrs. BeerBuzz & Joe for yet another fun Friday. 

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together.

As always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE.

21 December 2011

Friday BeerBuzz–The Teaser (23 Dec 2011)

WILKFridayBeerbuzz2Xmas

As we wind down the holiday gauntlet, I look back on the year and think how fortunate we’ve been to have some of the greatest craft-beer guests join us for some delicious seasonal and holiday craft beers.  Last week we had a fantastic time talking beer (and Arabic translations) with Paul Kavulak from Nebraska Brewing.  Paul joined us to sample his 2011 GABF GOLD award winning Melange a Trois and I’m excited to report that Melange has already become one of our all-time favorite show brews.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: Our guest this week joins us from the big city, and he’s bringing a Saint with him.

Tune in at 8:30AM and see what beer we sample on the Friday BeerBuzz on WILK…bringing good beers and good people together. (103.1FM or wilknewsradio.com).

AND don’t forget….our Friday BeerBuzz Overextended 1-Hour Holiday Special.  The first holiday week airing will be 11AM on Christmas Eve (12/24)  Mark your calendar!!!

16 December 2011

WILK Friday BeerBuzz The Video–16 Dec 2011 Nebraska Melange a Trois w/Paul Kavulak

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–16 Dec 2011 Nebraska Melange a Trois w/Paul Kavulak

WILKFridayBerbuzz7The Friday BeerBuzz on WILK knows no boundaries.  We’ve been reaching out to Massachusetts, California & Oregon in the previous weeks…so why not Nebraska…and this time it’s not just the state where our brewery calls home, but also the name of the brewery.  Nebraska Brewing has leapt on to the craft beer scene, and not only generated excitement locally, but also here in PA.  We’ve sampled Hop God and several other Nebraska brews, but today we wanted to sample their Melange a Trois.



wilkMelange is a Belgian-style ale aged 6-months in Chardonnay Wine barrels, but it’s way more than just that.  The Melange of three characteristic; dry on the tongue, sweet on the palate and wine-like in it’s finish, make for a very special and unique beer.  Flavors of white grapes, oak and perhaps even coriander make for not only a complex beer but an elegant one at that.

It was also exciting to have Nebraska Brewing President & Brewer Paul Kavulak join us to talk about the origins of the brewery and Melange.  It was also exciting to sample a beer that just won he 2011 GABF Gold Medal in the 2nd most competitive category at the Great American beer Festival—Wood & Barrel-Aged Strong.  This is a great beer and one you should seek out and try for yourself when it is released in a few weeks.

Thanks

to Paul Kavulak from Nebraska Brewing, Nancy, John & Joe for yet another fun Friday.

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together.

As always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE.

14 December 2011

Friday BeerBuzz–The Teaser 16 Dec 2011

WILKFridayBerbuzz7I’ll admit that Rogue Ales hold a special place in my craft beer world, so it was a lot of fun to welcome Brett Joyce, President of Rogue Ales on to our show last week.  Brett is a great spokesman for not only Rogue, but also craft beer in general.  Our thanks again to Brett for waking up early to join us while we sampled Santa’s Private Reserve.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: We’ll AGAIN be waking our guest up early this week, but this time only 7:30AM, tune into see what state we’ll be visiting and why the number 3 is significant. 

Tune in at 8:30AM and see what beer we sample on the Friday BeerBuzz on WILK…bringing good beers and good people together. (103.1FM or wilknewsradio.com).

09 December 2011

Friday BeerBuzz–The Video 9 Dec 2011 Rogue Santa’s Private Reserve w/Brett Joyce

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–9 Dec 2011 Rogue Santa’s Private Reserve w/Brett Joyce

WILKFridayBerbuzz15Back in Oct 2010 we were lucky enough to have Sebbie Buhler from Rogue Ales join us on the Friday BeerBuzz to sample the beer that carries her image on the label, Chocolate Stout.  It was a very special show, and a wonderful beer. 

Back when Mrs BeerBuzz & I were first dating, the very first beer we shared was a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar, and it was no surprise to anyone that for our wedding, we had a custom labeled Rogue beer for our guests….so as you can see Rogue is a very special brewery for me personally.

Leap forward to 2011 and I was absolutely committed to getting another Rogue beer and guest on our show, and what a wonderful combination to feature:  Rogue Santa’s Private Reserve, and Brett Joyce, President of Rogue Ales.

wilkSanta’s Private Reserve is what I would certainly term a non-traditional holiday ale.  Anyone familiar with the St Rogue Red that Santa’s Private Reserve is based on will know it is decidedly hoppy; in fact is is a double dry-hopped version of St Rogue Red.  I also think it is funny to note that brewmaster John Maier uses a mystery hop called “Rudolph” in Santa’s Private Reserve, and even Brett was sworn to secrecy.

Brett is a great spokesman for Rogue Ales and I think that comes from his background at Rogue.  Brett’s father Jack Joyce was driving force in the creation of Rogue Ales in 1988, and Brett has been with the brewery for a long time, starting out washing kegs and working his way to become their president.  It was very exciting to talk to Brett not just about our beer of the day, but also some of the other ventures Rogue has undertaken from distilling to micro-barley malting.  I was a big fan of Rogue Ales over 15 years ago, and that fondness for their craft continues today.

Thanks

to Brett Joyce from Rogue Ales, Nancy, John & Joe for yet another fun Friday.

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together.

As always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE.

07 December 2011

Friday BeerBuzz–The Teaser 9 Dec 2011

WILKFridayBerbuzz15I’ll admit last week’s beer & guest were both very special for me.  Back in the 1980’s when I was first learning about craft beer, I always remember Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale as one of the very first brews that made me excited about craft beer, and I thank Mark Carpenter for not only brewing the beer, but for getting up at 5:30AM to talk to us about it.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: We’ll AGAIN be waking our guest up this week at 5:30AM to talk holiday beer, and this one is VERY familiar and very non-traditional for a holiday ale. 

Tune in at 8:30AM and see what beer we sample on the Friday BeerBuzz on WILK…bringing good beers and good people together. (103.1FM or wilknewsradio.com).

02 December 2011

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–The Video 2 Dec 2011 Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale w/Mark Carpenter

WILK Friday BeerBuzz–2 Dec 2011 Anchor Christmas Ale w/Mark Carpenter

WILKFridayBerbuzz8Back in my early days of exploring craft beer, brother-beerbuzz was always nice enough to share his yearly beer-gift from Fritz Maytag.  Back in the early 1980’s Anchor Brewing was fairly rare on the east coast, and their Christmas Ale, even more so.  Year after year, I’ve sampled and enjoyed Anchor Christmas Ale, and it has honestly been one of the brews that excited a passion in me for craft beer and the wide varieties of brewing techniques used to brew it. 

Each year starting in 1975 Anchor Brewing has brewed it’s now famous Christmas Ale, but rather than brewing the same beer every year, the guys at Anchor took a risk and changed the successful recipe every year.  Each year the beer includes not only a different specie of tree on the label, but an even more intriguing “mystery” ingredient.  I remember studying Anchor Christmas Ale year after year, obsessed with conclusively identifying the mystery ingredient and even more obsessed with the beer itself.

imageJump forward to 2011, and it was not only fun to sample Anchors Christmas Ale 2011, but also a real honor to sample it with master brewer Mark Carpenter.  Mark gave us some great insight on what goes into Christmas Ale and also the unique brewing process Anchor Brewing uses in all of their beers.  Clearly there is a rich history in brewing at this San Francisco brewery and Anchor still stands as not only one of the earliest west coast craft breweries but one of the very first US craft breweries.

We really enjoyed Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale and I really thought once again I had identified the mystery ingredient (juniper berries), but only Mark will know for sure.  Try this one for yourself, and see what you taste.

Thanks

to Mark Carpenter from Anchor Brewing, Nancy, John, Joe, & Bosco for yet another fun Friday.

The Friday BeerBuzz…bringing good beers and good people together.

As always you can check out the video on-line at the WILK Friday BeerBuzz page by clicking HERE.

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