New England Brewing Co. Gandhi Bot

Well, it has certainly been a while!  Let's get back into business with CT's best Double IPA, the magnificent Gandhi Bot by New England Brewing Co.

Gandhi Bot on Tap at Prime16 in New Haven

Saison with Ommegang Aphrodite Yeast Blend

Ommegang Aphrodite (also see here) is a very special beer brewed with raspberries, pears, grains of paradise, and fermented with a blend of Ommegang's house and brett yeast to give a slight earthy funk.  Wait, wait...  Belgian and brett yeast blend??!?  Let's brew a saison!

Left to right: Amarillo, Styrian Goldings, and Czech Saaz

Relic Brewing Company, Plainville, CT

I visited this small, up-and-coming brewing company two weeks in a row, and can't wait untill I am able to make it back!

Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

A review of one of the most sought-after IPA's.  As the cap indicates; proceed with caution...

Saranac Blueberry Blonde Ale

I'll admit it; I'm a sucker for a good blueberry beer!  Saranac's (Matt Brewing Company) blueberry blonde ale, which is released currently as a limited summer seasonal brew, really hit the spot as a refreshing, crisp, fruity beer.

Whiskey Barrel Aged Scottish-Style Ale

I am a big fan of liquor barrel-aged and oaked beers.  Needless to say, when the opportunity presented itself to purchase a once-used 5 gallon whiskey barrel from farmhousebrewingsupply.com, I simply had to buy one and run some beer through it!  

Sorachi Jade Saison

Saisons, or farmhouse ales, were first brewed by farm workers in Belgium and France during the summer months, which is where the word Saison, or "season," comes from.  These beers were created from simple ingredients and fermented at very hot temperatures due to lack of temperature control in the living quarters of the farm workers.  Additionally, these beers became inoculated with wild yeasts giving them a funky, earthy flavor synonymous with true saisons and genuinely sought after to this day!

Brewing a saison with the Japanese sorachi ace hop is not uncommon, and for a good reason!  While the hop is not found in true saisons of the region, the lemony-ness of the sorachi ace hop blends perfect with the spiciness and dryness produced from true saison yeasts.  I decided to dry hop my take on Brooklyn's Sorachi Ace Farmhouse Ale with pacific jade in addition to sorachi ace to add more pepper notes.  The result was a beer that turned out crisp and refreshing, with a HUGE aroma and flavor of lemon with a touch of spice from the pacific jade.

The key to this beer is attenuation.  Saisons are traditionally very dry, leaving them crisp and allowing hop character to shine through.  The grain bill I used was traditionally simple, with no addition of spices.  Belgian candi sugar was added during the boil, and the grain was mashed at a low temperature to increase fermentability of the wort.