Hops & Malt 2
December 11, 2020
Tasting notes: Gathering Place Spezial
The brewery describes this beer as a 'rustic Franconian lager', which was surprising, because it did not prepare me for the strong presence of what to me seemed like citrus hops. The further description as 'slightly bigger than a helles' puzzled me even more. 'Franconian', although not a style in itself, indicates Bavarian, and 'helles' clearly refers to a style, namely Munich Helles. The ingredients should be lager yeast, continental Pilsner malt and Bavarian Tettnang- or Hallertau-type hops. Those beers are generally on the malty side, and this one is not.
The reason, as I found out when I asked the brewery about this, is that they are using Michigan-grown Zuper Saazer hops, a more potent version of the traditional Bohemian Saaz with almost twice the amount of alpha acids, for aroma and flavor.
Gathering Place, by the way, hints at the uncharacteristic hops by noting 'floral hoppiness' in its description of the beer. In an email to me, Joe Yeado, the founder and president of Gathering Place, also pointed out that he came to 'love the local lagers and how much variance there is from town to town' when he visited that part of Germany. In other words, this is another, perfectly acceptable variance. Except that I prefer Bavarian hops in my Bavarian-style lagers.
All that said, Spezial is a good beer. The aroma is dominated by floral hops notes with a slight metallic hint. The color is stunningly clear orange/amber. The floral hops unsurprisingly also have a strong presence in the flavor, although the malt balances that out quite effectively. The mouthfeel is refreshingly light and the finish pleasantly dry. Overall, it is a well made, drinkable beer that easily asks for more. And for the numerous beer aficionados out there who think that Pacific Northwest hops are God's gift to St. Arnulf, this could very well be a bridge beer towards more subtle flavors. Alcohol: 5.4% by volume; bitterness: 22 IBU.
UK covid rules: (Scotch) egg on the government's face
Among the many confusing and arbitrary covid-19 rules affecting the hospitality industry, some of the more bizarre have been invented by - no surprises here - the British government. It has divided the country up into three tiers, depending on the severity of the outbreak. In tier-three areas, pubs and restaurants are only allowed to serve take-out, whereas in tier-two areas, only those that serve food are allowed to stay open. And in those establishments, only customers who eat a 'substantial meal' at a table are allowed to drink alcohol, but only to accompany their meal, and they are not allowed to order another drink after they are done eating.
But what constitutes a 'substantial meal'? A government spokesperson defined it as a dish that could serve as the main meal of the day. That definition was significantly broadened by Environment Secretary George Eustice who suggested that a scotch egg could qualify. Downing Street quickly disagreed, but according to the daily newspaper The Sun, 'The British Meat Processors Association backed Mr Eustice, saying: “The minister is quite right, a scotch egg makes a cracking meal alongside a pint of beer”'.
The British are nothing if not resourceful, and publicans throughout the country have put their own interpretations on the government's rule.
Following the Environment Secretary's lead, the Southampton Arms in London advertises its £4 vegetarian scotch egg as a 'government-approved substantial meal'.
The Caxton Arms in Brighton meanwhile didn't wait for the government to clarify the matter, and renamed one of its tap beers 'Substantial Meal' (pictured).
A bar and restaurant in Norfolk, the Number 29, started offering a free scotch egg with every drink (and received visits from the local 'covid marshals' - yes, that's what anti-viral enforcement agents are called - after somebody complained online to the local council).
The King's Head pub in Essex and The Castle Inn in Tring, Hertfordshire, added a 'Boris Menu' to their food offerings with starters like garlic bread and soup for 99p, and main dishes like baked beans on toast for £1.99.
The Lord John Russell in Southsea and the Yates Southampton in Southampton offer 'all-day bottomless wings and chips'.
The Admiral Nelson in Northamptonshire advises customers on how long the different substantial meals take to prepare and eat - in the number of cocktails and beers that can be enjoyed during that time (pictured).
While it is understandable that public health authorities and governments try whatever measures they think can reduce the spread of covid-19, the distinction made in many countries, states, counties and cities between restaurants and bars does not make sense. Either people can spread and catch the virus or they can't, whether they eat or drink or serve. Physical distancing, wearing masks and proper sanitation measures have nothing to do with an establishment's business model, and the virus probably doesn't care either.
If I were a conspiracy theorist I would venture that neo-prohibitionists are at work here. In Great Britain, by the way, customers in tier-two pubs don't need to have a 'substantial meal' if they consume non-alcoholic drinks. They can stay in the pub as long as they want, which could indicate that it really is more about reducing alcohol consumption than the spread of the virus.
Dane County's distinction between restaurants and bars, while less obviously neo-prohibitionist, is no less arbitrary.
Madison area news
The Free House Pub in Middleton is temporarily closed as a precautionary measure due to a positive covid-19 case.
The Essen Haus in Madison is doing a silent auction to raise money to get it through the winter months.
An increasing number of taverns and restaurants are trying to raise money through GoFundMe-pages, including: Buck & Badger (State Street, Madison), Cafe CODA (Willy Street, Madison), Cask & Ale (State Street, Madison), Daisy Café & Cupcakery (Atwood Avenue, Madison), Enrique's Grill (Cahill Main, Fitchburg), Genna's Bar (Capitol Square, Madison), Harmony Bar (Atwood Avenue, Madison), I/O Arcade Bar (Willy Street, Madison), (The) Irish Pub (State Street, Madison), Ivory Room Piano Bar (off Capitol Square, Madison), Longtable Beer Café (Hubbard Avenue, Middleton), Meze Grill (Main Street, Sun Prairie), Mickey's Tavern (Willy Street, Madison), Monona Bakery (Monona Drive, Madison), Mother Fool's (Willy Street, Madison), Nick's Restaurant (State Street, Madison), Ogden's North Street Diner (North Street, Madison), (The) Old Fashioned (Capitol Square, Madison), Osteria Papavero (E. Wilson Street, Madison), Paul's Club (State Street, Madison), (The) Plaza Tavern (Henry Street, Madison), Saints Madison Juice Co. (Willy Street, Madison), Shamrock Bar & Grille (off Capitol Square, Madison), Thai Noodles (McKee Road, Fitchburg), Tutto Pasta (State Street, Madison) and Whiskey Jack's Saloon (State Street, Madison).
Middleton-based Capital Brewery has released several flavors of its 7 Barrel Series beers in 12-ounce cans: Eternal Flame (Imperial stout), Coffee Dark (Munich-style dunkel), Appleanche (Doppelbock), Kölsch and Witbier (Belgian-style wheat ale). They are available for purchase at the brewery in Middleton Wednesday through Friday between noon and 5:00 pm.
Select Madison area tap lists
(December 11 - Please note that tap lists are subject to frequent change)
Dexter's Pub, Madison
Central Waters: Rye Barrel Chocolate Porter
Central Waters: Salted Maple Stout
Dogfish Head: Punkin (Pumpkin ale)
Epic: Big Bad Baptist (Imperial coffee stout)
Founders: Blushing Padre (Fruit ale)
Good City: Motto (Pale ale)
Good City: Oktoberfest
Goose Island: Lost Palate (New England IPA)
Hinterland: Oktoberfest
Hinterland: Packerland Pilsner (German-style Pilsner)
Hop Haus: Magic Dragon (IIPA)
New Belgium: Honey Orange Tripel (Imperial oatmeal porter)
New Belgium: Oakspire (American strong ale)
New Glarus: Strawberry Rhubarb (Wild fruit ale)
Odell: Oktoberfest
Odell: Sippin' Pretty (Sour fruit ale)
Potosi: Cave Ale (Amber ale)
Sierra Nevada: Celebration (IPA)
Third Space: Unite the Clans (Scotch ale)
WarPigs: Salmon Pants (APA)
Working Draft/Lake Louie: Swamp Thang (IIPA)
Victory: Java Latte (Imperial milk stout)
Free House Pub, Middleton
Temporarily closed
Longtable Beer Café, Middleton
Dovetail: Pêche (Wild fruit ale)
Dovetail: Vienna Lager
Eagle Park Brewing: DDH Goon Juice (New England IPA)
More Brewing: Monogatari (Gose)
OEC Brewing: Aether (Sour)
Saugatuck Brewing: Double Dramanatrix (Stout)
St. Bernardus: Abt 12 (Belgian Quadrupel)
St. Bernardus/Brasserie V: Belgian Blonde
Malt House, Madison
Andechs: Doppelbock
Bell's: Two Hearted Ale (IPA)
Chouffe: N'ice Chouffe (Belgian strong dark ale)
Delirium Noël (Belgian strong dark ale)
Delta Beer Labs: Session IPA
Deschutes: Black Butte Porter
Full Mile: Vaternacht Dunkel (Dark lager)
Lakefront: Riverwest Stein (Amber lager)
Lindemans: Framboise (Fruit lambic)
Raised Grain: Queen's Dessert (Raspberry cocoa stout)
Revolution: Anti-Hero IPA
Sierra Nevada: Celebration (IPA)
Sierra Nevada: Dankful (IPA)
Summit: Keller Pils
St. Bernardus: Christmas Ale
Sport Bowl, Middleton
Capital: Winter Skål
Central Waters: HHG Pale Ale (APA)
Central Waters: Mudpuppy Porter
Deschutes: Fresh Haze (IPA)
Fox River: Red Bobber (Red ale)
Miller Lite
New Glarus: Spotted Cow (Farmhouse ale)
Stone Brewing: Tangerine Express (IPA)
Tyranena: Sheep Shagger (Scotch ale)
A thousand bottles of beer on the truck …
In the last six months, delivery trucks have spilled tens of thousands of bottles of beer on German roads. Among them:
A semi lost its cargo of beer cases near Dresden (Saxony) on July 14.
On July 21, a beer truck lost its cargo of Krombacher at the Westhofener Kreuz interchange in North Rhine-Westphalia (with almost 190,000 vehicles daily, one of Germany's busiest interchanges).
On August 12, a truck lost almost 300 cases of beer (and some kegs) in Regensburg (Bavaria).
A truck lost over 2,500 bottles of beer on September 12 in downtown Neuenmarkt (Kulmbach, Bavaria).
On August 24, a truck lost its cargo of bottles (not all of them beer) in Sinsheim (Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg).
On August 28, a truck lost about 200 cases of beer in Ahlen (Warendorf, North Rhine-Westphalia).
On September 28, a truck lost 200 cases of Mönchshof beer in an on-ramp turn to the A70 near Neudrossenfeld (Kulmbach, Bavaria). This on-ramp is locally called 'the beer curve' because beer trucks losing their cargo are a regular occurrence there. Similar crashes happened at the same location in January 2016, July 2017 and May 2018.
On October 12, a delivery truck lost part of its beer cargo near Freiburg (Baden-Württemberg).
About 100 cases of beer (out of 1,300 total) fell off a truck onto the A45 near Hagen (North Rhine-Westphalia) on October 13.
On November 19 a truck lost 11,000 bottles of beer in a roundabout near Plech (Bayreuth, Bavaria).
Earlier this week, on December 8, a truck lost its cargo of (empty - phew!) beer bottles (Bitburger) around 5:00 a.m. near Prüm (Rhineland-Palatinate).
That same day, at 11:00 p.m., another truck lost its beer cargo only a couple of miles away.