Category Archives: Halftime Pint

The Halftime Pint: Goose Island Mild

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Goose Island Mild, Goose Island Brewing Company, Chicago, Illinois

The Pub: The Owl Farm, on 9th Street and 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, New York.

The Story: Goose Island was founded on the North Side of Chicago in 1988. Founder John Hall was the pioneer of the “on-premises” brewpub that we’ve become accustomed to in the hearts of many cities across the nation (think Heartland or Birreria in New York, Triumph in Philly, Cap City and District Chophouse in DC).

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The Halftime Pint: Breckenridge Agave Wheat

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Agave Wheat Ale, Breckenridge Brewery, Denver, Colorado

The Pub: The Black Swan, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York

What You Need to Know: Breckenridge Brewery was founded in 1990 out in Denver.  It’s a classic “homebrewers doin’ it for themselves” story, with founder Richard Squire, a self-described “ski bum,” homebrewing well through the late 80s before getting the bug to do it professionally.  The gamble paid off, as Beckenridge today runs five pubs and produces 52,000 barrels of beer per year.

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The Halftime Pint: Avery Ellie’s Brown Ale

20130226-093136.jpgOne of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Ellie’s Brown Ale, Avery Brewing Company, Boulder, Colorado

The Pub: The Black Swan, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York

What You Need To Know: Avery Brewing Company is one of the linchpins of the vibrant Boulder scene, which also counts among its number hombrew guru Charlie Papazian and a few other excellent breweries. Avery was founded in 1993 by Adam Avery, and has continued to produce its excellent range of ales and lagers to considerable acclaim. Continue reading →

The Halftime Pint: Fuller’s London Porter

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Fuller’s London Porter, Fuller’s Griffin Brewery, London, United Kingdom

The Pub: The Black Swan, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York

What you Need to Know:  Did you know we like porters in this column?  I’ve covered the history of the porter as the original beertail ad nauseum since we’ve been writing about beer.  Fuller’s London Porter is pretty much in line with a basic English Robust Porter.

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The Halftime Pint: Bronx Pale Ale

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Bronx Pale Ale, The Bronx Brewery, The Bronx, New York

The Pub: The Black Rabbit, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn

What You Need to Know: The Bronx Brewery is a new addition to the burgeoning NYC brewing scene, launching in September of 2011. The brainchild of former Red Hat engineer Damian Brown and ex-Heineken consultant Chris Gallant, they’ve released three beers thus far: a Pale Ale, Black Ale and Rye Pale Ale.

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The Halftime Pint: Carton Brewing Decoy Winter Warmer

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One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Decoy Winter Warmer, Carton Brewing Company, Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey

The Pub: Bar Great Harry, Brooklyn, New York

What you need to know: The Winter Warmer is a classic English style of seasonal brew.  A variation on the classic Old Ale, it’s a beer of moderate strength heavy on malt character. Spices are used occasionally to add to the “winter” flavor. Though there’s no “divining line” from when the style originates, the classics tend to be English and Belgian- think Sam Smith and Samichlaus.

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The Halftime Pint: Newcastle Brown Ale

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Newcastle Brown Ale, Newcastle Brown Ale, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, UK (Now owned by Heikenken and brewed at John Smith’s Brewery)

The Pub: The Football Factory at Legends, on 33rd St. in New York

What You Need to Know: I corrected a grievous error by reviewing a brown ale last week; Newcastle is the most famous of the Northern English Brown Ales. As I recounted when reviewing the brewery’s Founder’s Ale, the signature beer was first introduced in 1927 by Newcastle Brewing Company’s Lieutenant Colonel Jim Porter, himself a third-generation brewer.

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The Halftime Pint: Monty Python’s Holy Grail Black Knight’s Reserve

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Bartenders tend to like me.

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to day drink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith

The Beer: Monty Python’s Holy Grail Black Knight’s Reserve, Black Sheep Brewery, Masham, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom

The Pub: The Queen Vic, in northeast DC

What You Need to Know: We covered Black Sheep Brewing’s history in the Yorkshire Dales previously in this space. In 1999, the brewery was contracted by the famed British comedy troupe to recognize their 30th anniversary year. Holy Grail Pale Ale was the result, and soon after the brewery added a Black Knight’s Reserve, a “Dark Yorkshire Ale (read:brown ale).”

Oddly enough, we have NOT reviewed a basic brown ale here. We have done its precursor, the mild, however. According to Brooklyn Brewery Brewmaster Garrett Oliver’s excellent The Brewmaster’s Table, brown ale was originally the workingman’s beer, as brown ale malts were cheaper to produce than a typical pale malt. Oliver continues, “In northern England, where people imagined themselves made of stronger stuff than affluent southerners, a hefty version of the style developed.” The split between Northern and Southern brown ales still does cut similarly along flavor profiles, with Northern a little drier and stronger than its sweet Southern cousin.

So, About this Beer: Pours deep brown with an ecru head. Tropical fruit and mineral on the aroma. Light carbonation and medium mouthfeel. Nutty roast flavors dominate, with just a soupçon of dark chocolate. Nice mineral snap on the back end, with little to no hop bitterness.

The Verdict: It’s a delightful beer, and would be so even if Becky at the Vic didn’t give me the special vessel pictured. Definitely give it a try.

The Halftime Pint: Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout

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A Perfect Pint for Breakfast Time

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to daydrink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith.

The Beer: Oatmeal Stout, Samuel Smith’s Brewery, Tadcaster, England

The Pub: The Queen Vic, in Northeast DC

What you Need to Know: Samuel Smith’s Brewery was founded in 1758. The brewery, well-known as one of the most bare-bones breweries in the world, is also famous for its fermentation vessels, which are large open square slate tanks (as opposed to most breweries’ closed cylindrical/conical stainless steel or copper fermentation tanks). The “Yorkshire Squares” impart a snappy, mineral flavor to the beers. Samuel Smith’s was also one of the first and most well-known to proudly tout its organic grains, as its lager has been labeled as “Organic” for as long as it’s been made. Continue reading →

The Halftime Pint: Lump Of Coal Stout

One of the greater things about watching football in America is that most matches, especially those of the EPL, are early in the morning American time, giving people an excuse to daydrink. This is part of our series discussing exactly what to drink when you’re at the pub, presented by our resident homebrewer, Keith.

The Beer: Lump Of Coal Stout, Ridgeway Brewing, South Stoke, England, United Kingdom

The Pub: The Queen Vic, in Northeast DC

What you need to know: Ridgeway Brewing is a “gypsy brewery,” meaning that brewer Peter Scholey travels around to different breweries, uses their equipment, and then affixes the Ridgeway name and label on it.  There are quite a few breweries that operate this way, and put out consistently good product.  Stillwater Artisanal Ales, out of the Baltimore region, operates this way (though they just got a “permanent” space at the newly opened Of Love and Regret), as does Mikkeller out of Copenhagen.

The style, a Foreign Export Stout, is a “traveling” version of the classic stout.  It’s typically bolder, roastier and more alcoholic, so to better survive long trips on cargo ships.  It’s not as strong as the Imperial, but then again, it never had to satisfy Catherine the Great. Continue reading →