28 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz - 28 Sep 2012 - Spaten Oktoberfest

WILK Friday BeerBuzz - 28 Sep 2012 Spaten Oktoberfest

WILKFridayBerbuzz8It’s not often that I find myself acting traditional.  For me some traditions are meant to be honored, and some are meant to be questioned.  This philosophy certainly holds true for the WILK Friday BeerBuzz and especially for my beer choices.  Think back to when I chose to feature a big Belgian Dark Ale in mid-summer, and flash back just one week when I decided to feature an ale from a brewery known for lagers.  Tradition in the beer world is sometimes meant to be stretched, and I’m the guy to stretch it.

With that said, it is with a profound sense of confusion that I announce today is different.  Not only did I choose to feature a beer style that is meant for this very week, but also a brewery that carries with it a significant tradition for this very style of beer.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock or you’re currently too busy drinking in Munich, you know that Oktoberfest started in Munich on Saturday and will continue on for the next 16 days.  With that in mind, take a guess what style beer I chose to feature….go ahead…I’ll wait.
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OK time’s up!  Today I chose to feature a traditional Oktoberfest beer and it comes from the brewery that claims to have brewed the World’s First Oktoberfest beer….Spaten!

Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu comes to us from Munich, Germany and the name actually means “Spade” as you can see in their logo…and it’s not just a spade but a malt spade.  The brewery dates back to 1397 and they have been brewing traditional German styles ever since.

Spaten Oktoberfest is a very typical Marzen-style beer.  Marzen is German for March and it’s used for this style because the beer is traditionally brewed in March and served in Sept for Oktoberfest.  Spaten Oktoberfest comes in at 5.9% ABV and 23IBU and believe it or not, it only has 180 calories in a 12oz bottle.  Spaten Oktoberfest is brewed to the standard of the Reinheitsgebot or German Beer Purity Law of 1516 which states it only contains, water, malt, yeast & hops.


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As one of the Munich-home breweries for Oktoberfest, Spaten not only lays claim to brewing the World’s First Oktoberfest beer, but they also supply beers to the many of the largest tents during the Oktoberfest celebration in Munich…one even featuring 10,000 seats!

Celebrate Oktoberfest with a Spaten Oktoberfest and you’ll see why it has become such a popular Marzen-style beer.  This traditional German lager has been around for hundreds of years and I suspect it will be around for hundreds more.

Thank you to 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

26 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz - 28 Sep 2012 The Teaser

WILKFridayBerbuzz8Last week we featured a beer that while it is not available yet in Northeastern PA, is clearly a favorite among my readers.  Check out the comments form last week’s posting and you’ll be surprised how many locals enjoy Shiner beer.  We really enjoyed Shiner Wild Hare and best of all, we had a great time talking to brewmaster Jimmy Mauric while we sampled it.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint:  This week we’ll do something rare for me…feature a traditional seasonal beer during the correct season.  

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)

21 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz 21 Apr 2012 - Shiner Wild Hare w/Jimmy Mauric (Video)

WILK Friday BeerBuzz - 21 Sep 2012 - Shiner Wild Hare w/Jimmy Mauric

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There’s a special little town just outside of Houston TX where very special beer has been brewed for over 100 years.  Dating back to 1909 when

the Shiner Brewing Association started brewing Bavarian-style beers for the families of fellow immigrants, the brewing traditions run deep in Shiner, TX.  In 1914 Kosmos Spoetzl was appointed brewmaster and the Spoetzl Brewery was born…and while many people may not be familiar with the name “Spoetzl,” beer lovers worldwide are very familiar with Shiner Beer.

Throughout the south, Shiner is known for their best selling Bock, and also for their classic Bavarian lagers, and whether it is a Dark Lager or a light Helles, Shiner has made a name brewing classic-styled lagers.  Of course on the Friday BeerBuzz we love featuring the best breweries & brewmasters, but we also like mixing things up a bit.  In that name I chose a unique Shiner beer that is NOT a lager, and is in fact their very first Pale Ale.
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Shiner Wild Hare Pale Ale is a classic American Pale Ale and a really easy-drinking beer.  At 5.5% ABV and 32 IBU, Wild Hare carries the malt-heart of a Pale Ale with the hoppy nose and taste of a hop-forward Pale Ale.  The malt bill includes Munich & caramel malts, and they are balanced with Bravo and US Goldings hops for a clean, crisp fresh hop balanced flavor.  This is a perfect beer to celebrate the breweries 103rd anniversary and it’s a beer you should try for yourself.

We were also lucky enough to be joined by Spoetzl Brewmaster Jimmy Mauric to help us sample Wild Hare.  Jimmy has been working at Spoetzl Brewery since 1978 and after attending Seibel Institute, he took the Brewmaster helm in 2005.  It was fun hearing about the history of Spoetzl Brewery from someone who has been a part of the brewery for so long…and even more fun hearing what the future holds for Spoetzl Brewery.  Having personally tried almost every beer coming out of the little town of Shiner, I can tell you that Jimmy knows his stuff and all of the Shiner beers are first class…especially Wild Hare.  Stay tuned as Shiner beers work their way closer and closer to NEPA and be sure to try Wild Hare (and the others) when they do.

Thank you to Jimmy Mauric from Spoetzl Brewery

, Joe, LA & 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

19 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz 21 Sep 2012 - The Teaser

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Last week we brought you the premier of Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin Cider and also your first look at Woodchuck Fall 212 cider.  These were both fantastic fall ciders and we had a great time talking to cider maker John Matson while we sampled.  John knows cider and these were two perfect examples.  Thanks again to John Matson & Nate Formalarie for helping us with the show and for hooking us up with some great Woodchuck cider.

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: This week we welcome a very special guest with a very special beer.  The beer is named for the town and the beer celebrates a very special anniversary AND new style of beer.

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.com)

14 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz 14 Sep 2012 - Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin Cider w/John Mattson (Video)

WILK Friday BeerBuzz - 14 Sep 2012 Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin w/John Matson

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It seems like just a few weeks ago, but back in Nov 2011 we featured three different ciders on the WILK Friday BeerBuzz.  Our guest was Woodchuck President & CEO Bret Williams and our ciders were Woodchuck Crisp, Amber and Winter.  The ciders were great and it was an amazing contrast to be able to sample them all side-by-side.  For anyone who may still think all ciders are the same…try the Woodchuck blends and you’ll see they are each very unique.

A few weeks ago mybeerbuzz.com broke the news that Woodchuck would be bringing their famous Private Reserve Pumpkin Cider to Pennsylvania.  The story is here from just a few weeks ago, and much to our pleasure, the Private Reserve Pumpkin Cider was in the studio today for us to sample.
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I was really curious to taste a pumpkin cider, and I’ll admit I had a lot of preconceived notions about what it would taste and feel like.  It just seemed to me that cider and pumpkin didn’t seem to be a natural combination…but boy was I wrong.

Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin is a wonderful balance of fall pumpkin flavors and the light dryness of a traditional cider.  As Woodchuck states, “This is not a pumpkin spiced cider. This is a cider born from real pumpkins. When that natural pumpkin character is balanced against a crisp apple backdrop, the resulting cider is truly one of a kind” and I’ll agree with every word.  This is a really nice blend and a really tasty cider so be sure to try it for yourself before it’s all gone.

It was a lot of fun talking to Woodchuck Cider-Maker John Matson today.  John really knows a lot about the process of making and blending ciders so he was a really interesting guest.  It was also very exciting to hear John explain that Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin was never available in PA prior to this year because the ABV of 6.9% was too high for PA law.  We should all be thankful that Bret and everyone at Woodchuck brewed two entirely different batches of their Private Reserve Pumpkin this year.  One at 6.9% ABV and another batch at 5.5% ABV for PA and Tennessee.

Be sure to get out and try Woodchuck Private Reserve Pumpkin Cider as well as the rest of their great line-up of ciders TONIGHT @ KRUGELS!!  Look for Woodchuck Private Reserve & Amber BOTH ON DRAFT, with some cool giveaways from Woodchuck @ Krugel’s Georgetown Deli & Beer tonight!.  I’ve found some new favorites and I suspect you will too.

Thank you to John Matson from Woodchuck

, 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

12 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz - 14 Sep 2012 - The Teaser

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So how cool was it welcoming out pal Mitch Steele…brew-master from Stone brewing for the THIRD time last week?!  Mitch not only woke up at 5AM to sample Stone 16 with us, but he was also nice enough to give us details on the upcoming Stone/Evil Twin/Stillwater Artisanal Ales co-brewed “The Perfect Crime” but he also gave us details on the upcoming Stone 12-12-12 vertical Epic series beer (Think Belgian Xmas Ale)..thanks again Mitch and congratulations on your new book!

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: This week we welcome back another previous guest to feature and exciting new beverage!!

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)

07 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz - 7 Sep 2012 Stone 16 w/Mitch Steele

WILK Friday BeerBuzz - 7 Sept 2012 - Stone 16 w/Mitch Steele

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We’ve welcomed some pretty special guests on the Friday BeerBuzz….from as far away as Hawaii, to just down the street, our guests have been generous and simply a lot of fun to drink a beer with….BUT…none have gone to the lengths to join us as consistently as today’s guest has and none have been more fun each time.

Today we politely asked our pal Mitch Steele to wake up at 5:30AM once again to join us on the Friday BeerBuzz from California for the 3rd time…and once again he happily joined us!  Mitch sampled Stone 14 with us in 2010, Stone 15, in 2011 and in case you didn’t guess yet…..today’s beer was Stone 16…but first…

I was excited today to wish Mitch Steele congratulations for the upcoming release of his book…”IPA: BREWING TECHNIQUES, RECIPES AND THE EVOLUTION OF INDIA PALE ALE “  I haven’t had a chance to get my hands on a copy yet, but I’m really looking forward to checking it out.  I’ve been following along for several years as Mitch pieced together this IPA compendium, and I know how hard he’s worked to get it out so I can’t wait to see it for myself.  Congratulations on he book Mitch and of course congratulations to everyone at Stone on their 16th Anniversary.

On to the beer….Stone 16 is not only a wonderful beer, but also a tribute to the 16th Anniversary of Stone Brewing Co.   Each year Mitch joins with the team at Stone to craft a new anniversary beer, and each year it seems to get better and better.
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Stone 16 is a unique anniversary beer…and a very unique DIPA.  Not only is this beer loaded with citrusy notes of Peach, Mango and tropical fruit, but Mitch and the team have introduced a new ingredient that I think is perfect for an IPA….Lemon.  Now you would think they would simply add Lemon to the mix…but no sir…Stone 16 uses Lemon Verbena….an herb grown at the Stone Farms that as Greg says is “more lemon than lemon.”  Stone 16 is not only a team effort of brewing talent at Stone, but also a team effort of unique ingredients and flavors.  Try Stone 16 for yourself and you’ll see what I mean.

It was also a ton of fun talking to Mitch about the growth and expansion of Stone Brewing.  It’s been a few years since my last visit, and I suspect the Stone Brewery will continue to grow even more before I get a chance to visit again.  And of course we asked Mitch about the new Stone “Enjoy By 09.21.12” and what this means not only to the craft beer world, but also to the Northeastern PA market.  We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again…if you want to see Stone “Enjoy By” in NEPA…make some Twitter & Facebook noise!

One additional GREAT update from Mitch…when I asked about what Stone Vertical Epic 12-12-12 might be…Mitch simply replied “Think Belgian Christmas!”….so stay tuned for more info on the final release of the Stone Vertical Epic series.

Thank you to Mitch Steele from Stone 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

05 September 2012

Friday BeerBuzz - 7 Sep 2012 - The Teaser

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Last week we welcomed Goose Island into the PA market by sampling some wonderful Goose Island Pepe Nero and some amazing Bourbon County Stout 2012 with brewmaster Brett Porter.  Not only does Brett have the perfect name for a brewmaster, but he’s also a lot of fun to sample beer with.  Thanks again Brett!

So what will we be sampling this week? Hint: This week we’ll be waking up a 3-time guest to say Happy Anniversary!

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)

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