We are fortunate to have the priveledge to pour Ryan’s recent GABF Gold Medal Award winning Saison Vautour. We are also getting a French Dark Lager session-y type beer that Ryan was very excited about. If you’ve ever met Ryan, you know that if he appears excited, it must be pretty damn good stuff! Look for it before the week is out (or early next week at the latest).
Cheers!
Later this week, The McKenzie Brewhouse joins us as the third Brewer in Residence at the General Lafayette Inn. Our friend and McKenzie Head Brewer Ryan Michaels is a regular fixture at the GLI bar. I’m not sure if he likes our beer or it’s just convenient – we’re on his way home to Mt. Airy from Malvern. Either way, we’re always happy to have him. (I’ll share a story or two about Ryan before his “stay” is over). We’re excited to welcome his beer and sample some of his fine Belgian-inspired creations (and anything else he’s willing to share with us). McKenzie’s will be the first brewpub we’ve had the pleasure of hosting. Both Phila. Brewing Company and Sly Fox we’re kind enough to provide us with some of their less mainstream offerings (Fleur de Lehigh from PBC; Grisette and Dunklewiezen from SF), which fit in well with our beer program. It should be interesting to see what type of collaborative beer we develop with Ryan, and what specialties of his we get to sample.
Speaking of collaborations, we haven’t forgotten about our Sly Fox beer. Scheduling delays have pushed the target brew date to the second week of October. However, the beer Brian O’Reilly and I developed is a “beer for all seasons”, so the delay is simply a complication trying the patience of our eager patrons. Look for our hybrid English/German pale ale/lager sometime around Halloween. This is appropriate, as it’ll be something of a “Franken-brew”. There is still some SLy Fox Pilsner on tap, so come in and polish it off.
Cheers!
The prototype Prism Beer Company “Bitto Honey IPA” is now on tap at The General Lafayette Inn. Before giving you my impressions, Rob DeMaria wants you to come in and give him yours. Because this is not the final version, here is an opportunity for the public to have some input on a soon-to-be available craft beer. Did you ever wish “they had used more Cascade hops in the middle” of your not-so-favorite IPA? Here is an unusual chance to have no regrets when you finally get to see a beer on tap at your local pub and say, “I helped design that beer”. Certainly, we’re only talking about tweaks in the recipe at this point, but there will be some changes made to the final product. Stop in, have a pint, and fill out a comment card regarding appearance, flavor, aroma, mouthfeel, overall impression; what you like about it, and what you would change if you could (wait, you might actually be able to influence that!).
Without giving too much away, I’ll tell you the beer is approximately 6.5% ABV and 65 IBUs. Technically, it is a very dry beer. Whether that translates in the glass is up to public interpretation. Whether that’s even a desirable characteristic is the type of input Rob wants. I believe it is – but I’m just the guy who brewed it.
As someone who instinctively dissects every beer I taste (I never seem to “drink” beer unless I’m in a foreign country – don’t ask), I’m neither the most objective nor the most typical consumer. I believe I’m too close to the project to be able to give Rob input that will help him with the subjective aspects of the beer. What I want in an IPA is not necessarily what he should be offering. I’m trying to keep in mind that my job is to provide him with the beer he wants to brew, without letting my own personal tastes interfere. Anyone who knows me will understand that this is not that easy for me. Brewing “someone else’s beer” is something I haven’t done in more than 10 years. Even after they offered to “sponsor” a beer by paying for the ingredients, I still steered our homebrew (GLUB) club’s brew into something that I found more appropriate for my draft lineup. I do plan on brewing them the Witbier they wanted, but not until next spring. So, the challenges of contract brewing, for me (and Russ) are more emotional than I had thought they would be. I feared the flow of beer through our tiny brewery would be the biggest hurdle. I was mistaken. Russ seems to be having an even more difficult time accepting and adapting to our new role than I am. Of course, I look at our books every day. Wait until we brew the next Prism Beer. It’s an intriguing concept, but nothing the General Lafayette Inn would ever brew. I guess that’s the point. We’ll make it the best it can be given Rob’s specs, and leave our own beer designing agendas out of it. My desire to be true to myself artistically while being responsible to the needs of the business have never clashed quite like this before. Hey, times change, tastes change, and the competition hasn’t stood still. Anyone who looks at our P&L can see that. If we don’t adapt and act proactively to survive in this tempestuous economy, my artistic integrity will be good for wiping my ass and not much more.
I’ve gotten to know Rob DeMaria fairly well during this process. He has an incredible mind for marketing and does know a good beer when he tastes it, or brews it – his beers will be based on his own homebrews. I’ve tasted a couple. He uses non-traditional ingredients (not my style), but in ways that compliment the flavor profile, not overwhelm it. I respect that, as it is consistent with my overall brewing philosophy. I think that is why he chose us to help him develop his brand. I have an underlying desire to produce nothing other than what meets my standards, regardless of the beer style. I believe that is a solid foundation for any brand.
So, this entry started out as an invitation to help Prism with the final design of their new beer. I, of course, choose to make about it my emotional and philosophical angst. While I have never hid the fact that this blog began as a marketing ploy, its essence is to allow the reader a look into my world. So, in the end, it’s all about me anyway. That being said, Rob does truly want input on his IPA. In its current form, the beer is clean and VERY drinkable (and the tap handle is quite fetching!). I urge you to come in and help him design the final product. More input from outside will give me less incentive to interject my own thoughts and help Rob develop his perfect beer.
Cheers!