Oliphant S'more Talent Imperial Stout (and part two of Wisconsin breweries 2020)

It's September, and Ed and I are in Wisconsin. It was high time to return to Oliphant, who I had not visited since before this current mess we're in. Seating was available outside, as well as limited seating inside, though some changes were made, of course. The bar was not available for use, and was cordoned off by a wall, decorated by some of Jeremy's spooky designs

One server, in this case Rhiannon, took orders at one side, and another handled the pouring, handing it off to the customer on the far end of the bar. A set-up very similar to how Wild Mind is doing it. 

When Wisconsin originally opened up, it was premature and bar-goers acted like it was all over, burning masks and using no social distancing. Because of things like this, we're all still in it, and Wisconsin is trying to reconcile, even doubling down, forcing establishments to operate at 25% capacity. Oliphant has been exemplary in this, not opening for several weeks after the re-open, while most of Dairyland bellied up with abandon. They're taking it seriously and playing safe. Look below for pictures from this visit. 

There weren't a lot of new beers to me on this stop, but I made sure to get them checked off the list. A month later, my memory is foggy and the phone was losing power, so I only checked into Samurai Karate Guy. Why not take notes, Al, with a pad and pen? Oh, I've gotten out of the habit of that. They certainly don't fail like technology does. Perhaps I need to start anew.

Anyway,  I started with Spooky Squishy, since reviewed from a can, and moved on to S'more Talent, the latest in the "talent" series of imperial stouts, this one based on that popular snack, the s'more. Ed says to me, "I thought you hated marshmallows in beer." I shrugged. "So, you make exceptions for your favorites?" Me: "What are you going to do?" 

And here are notes from a can, consumed safely at home: 

Oliphant S'more Talent Imperial Stout.

10 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI. 

Imperial Stout with graham crackers, marshmallows, cacao nibs, and vanilla. 

Stygian-hued, complete opacity, lush brown head, soon to settle. 

In the nose: Roasty/toasty. big time sweetness, chocolate a-go-go. Rich, thick, crazy. The sum of the parts seems to be in this aroma. 

In the mouth: Huge chocolate hits the palate first, rich and delicious. Nearly over-indulgent with the cocoa. Getting some impressions of the graham cracker, maybe I'm picking up the marshmallow, can't really be sure. Dark, sweet, rich, toasted and roasted. Full-bodied, but rather easy drinking, despite the high ABV. Not nearly thick. Maybe it's the marshmallows. ...sigh...marshmallows...In 2020, we put marshmallows in beer like it's not deeply, unmistakably weird. 

So, I like this. But, let's not make this a thing, okay? 

Oliphant Brewing's 6th Year Anniversary imperial stout brewed with marshmallows and graham crackers then rested on cacao nibs and vanilla.

Oliphant Mind Talent Imperial Stout (brewed with cookies, cacao nibs, lactose & natural flavors)

Oliphant Mind Talent Imperial Stout (brewed with cookies, cacao nibs, lactose & natural flavors).

10% ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI. 

And it happens once again. Normally, I scoff at stuff like this. Everybody's getting in on the act, and it's no longer novel. I'm breaking my ban on lactose beers, too, although I generally excuse Oliphant's experiments. (Ah, ha, see it's a milk & cookies beer!) What the hell. But I'm not going to make this a thing. Just so you know. 

Solid blackness, completely opaque, with a rich brown head, that slowly crumbles. 

In the nose: Much malt, with oncoming sweetness. Cocoa's coming, too. The cream and the cookies, it's all falling into place. 

In the mouth: Rich and sweet from the start, almost sickly sweet. Treacle. Large malt, big chocolate, and then the Oreos hit. Yep, you taste the Oreos. The cookies, and the cream. Full bodied, fairly smooth, but this is not my go-to choice for an Imperial Stout. I like the realer ones. And I don't want the dia-beet-us.

Cookies & Cream Imperial Stout

Oliphant Funtalented Imperial Stout w/Raspberry and Peanut Butter

Oliphant Funtalented Imperial Stout w/Raspberry and Peanut Butter.
10 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

Solid blackness, under a nicely roasted/toasted tan head, leaving lace.

In the nose: Fruit is first, berry-licious, followed by the massive malt. Peanut butter creeps in and takes over. Very nice.

In the mouth: Bitterness hits the palate first, then tart fruity flavors, then dark, rich malt. Quite complex. Nicely roasted, with the peanut butter mixing with the jelly. Whoa. They did it. A PB & J Imperial Stout. Little bitter, little sweet, then more sweet, and well-balanced deliciousness.

funtalented

yet again, this one is not about ghosts. they say, jeremy, “enough with the ghosts”, and thens i say, “enough with you!”. then it is another time out for me, but little do they know, i just treat it as a nap.

russian imperial stout w/ raspberry and peanut butter. 10% abv

Oliphant Supertalentfragilistic Imperial Stout with coffee, sea salt, & chipotle peppers

Oliphant Supertalentfragilistic Imperial Stout with coffee, sea salt, & chipotle peppers. 9 Percent Alc./Vol. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, Wisconsin.

It's been a few months since I've made the trip to Somerset and stocked up on some Oliphant beers. I miss them so, and yearn to return. But, luckily, I don't have to cross the St. Croix to get their stuff. More and more of their beers are being crowlered with new, amazing Jeremy Hughes artwork and being taken over the border to find a place on local shelves. It's only a handful of stores, though, so you've got to get out there. This can was purchased at 1010 Washington in Minneapolis, which is located guess where. Zipp's. Stinson, Minnehaha Lake, Elevated and a few others...very convenient, but it's not the same as going to the source.

Solid ebony, under a slim brown ring of foam.

In the nose: Cocoa, coffee, cream, and then the peppery heat. Cinnamon? Quite a mix going on, here.

In the mouth: An explosion of flavors, starting with the big malts and bursting out with the peppery heat. Typical coffee/cocoa, rich malt aplenty, then the chipotle makes a big splash on the palate. The heat and the sweet are keeping perfect time, here, with the spice at an extra edge on it.

Big malt, smooth chocolatey/coffee flavors, all smothered by the chipotle. And I don't mind it.

supertalentfragilistic

next up in a series of never ending madtness. this is the flavor of a parking lot full of bargain hunters and the lonely, joining collective hive minds. savings equals power, power equals hunger, hunger equals thirst. you can almost hear them buzzing with dealzzzzzz.

russian imperial stout w/ coffee, chipotle peppers, & sea salt. 9% abv

Oliphant Jeremy's Got Talent Imperial Stout with bananas and vanilla wafers

Oliphant Jeremy's Got Talent Imperial Stout with bananas and vanilla wafers.
10 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

Normally, I would shy away from something like this. Bananas? Vanilla wafers? What? But it's Oliphant, so I have to try it. Like back when I was a Marvel zombie. I had to have them all in my collection. The No-Prize Book. The Fumetti issue. All the What Ifs. US-1. Secret Wars 1 and 2. Dazzler. Crystar, Crystal Warrior. That one Marvel Team-Up where Aunt May became the Herald of Galactus.
 Let's drink it and complete my collection.

Thorough blackness. Slim brown head, settling swiftly.

In the nose: Dark malt. Cocoa and ....it's missing many of the usual suspects, perhaps supplanted by whatever 'nanas and 'Nilla provides...if anything. In time, they file in: smoke, char, chocolate.

In the mouth: there they are, the richness of the dark, chocolate malts. a slight sweetness, minor hops, and wonderfully warm feeling on the palate. Sweetness comes through, and surely the bananas and wafers have something to do with it. Okay, the bananas are opening up now. Not too shabby. I'm digging it now. Digging it big time.

who has talent? jeremy has talent. but that’s not to say you don’t. i just got a really good deal on it and had to horde most of it. i hope you understand.

imperial stout w/ banana and vanilla wafers. 10% abv

Oliphant Medium Talent Imperial Stout

Oliphant Medium Talent Imperial Stout. 9% ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, Wisconsin.

Utter blackness, beautiful cocoa-tinged head, leaving lace.

In the nose: soft, malty, slightly sweet. Cocoa/ toffee, coffee, earthy. Nice.

In the mouth: deep, rich, malty. Coffee, chocolate, anise & more. A little bit of spice. An enticing combination. Not as rich and full-bodied as other RISs, but there ain’t nothing wrong with that.
Quite tasty. I’d even say malt-tastic.

The name gives away the fact that this is no thick and thunderous, balls-to-the-wall powerhouse. (Or does it? We don't really know, now.)
But does everything need to be? This one has it’s own thing going on. And I quite like it.

medium talent

some say a medium’s talent is medium talent. who says that and in what reference is that to?. grab you qwegee board and ask away!!!!!

imperial stout. 9% abv

Minnesota Breweries One by One #21: Big Wood Brewery, White Bear Lake

One of the unfortunate traps of this project that we've embarked upon is that we end up passing by our favorites, the breweries and the beers we know we can count on and love to give our support to. We could be comfortable and satisfied, instead of forcing down bizarre experiments by clueless brewers. Well, it's an adventure, and adventures are risky. We know what we're in for, but there is always that twinge of regret. I could have been drinking a Masala Mama IPA instead of sucking back a band-aid soup!

So, we were missing Dave's BrewFarm, as well as Oliphant, and Jason wanted to go this past Sunday.  (Last Sunday, actually, 3/13.)It had been almost a month to the day. But, how could we squeeze a Minnesota brewery visit into the day's journey and keep up the pace? That's why we ended up pulling into White Bear Lake and popping into Big Wood Brewery.

White Bear Lake, population 23,769, is a North-Eastern suburb of the Twin Cities which is named for the lake that's also named for an Indian legend of a Sioux in love with a Chippewa and the ivory ursine that tore them asunder. (I think that's how it goes, apparently Mark Twain told the tale differently in Life on the Mississippi.) It's also 90% full of white people. It's been home to Big Wood Brewery since around 2011/12-ish. I know they won an award at the Autumn Brew Review in 2011 for their coffee stout, Morning Wood, but weren't producing anything on a commercial level for some time. I have four reviews of their canned beers here in the Nib, and they're all from 2013, 2 of them unlabeled samples from the distributor. The next two years found me unmotivated to go out of my way to try any of their other beers. And now, two years after they opened their taproom, we're going just a little out of our way to 2222 4th St., downtown White Bear Lake.

This place is all about the wood, and we must always strive to admire the material and not to lay down in the mire with the inevitable innuendo. It's hard not to, since their first big hit was Morning Wood, which is a big, ol' dick joke. Do all of their beer names need to be suggestive? Does there have to be a "bro" mentality? Really? It's important to set that stuff aside, but it's fairly inescapable. If you look at the review of Morning Wood, you will see that I presented an image from the packaging of a crowing rooster. You could see it simply as indicative of mornings, or as, to put it bluntly, a cock.

Thank heavens, then, that these insinuations don't occur with every beer name, or anywhere else in the place. And a pleasant place it is. A well-wooded room, clean and comfortable, with the unique decorative touch of the bar lights covered by growlers from other breweries. There's a small stage for DJs or musical performance or trivia masters, whatever they've got going on. I'm sure there could be quite a raucous scene here in the heart of White Bear Lake, but we're in early on a Sunday, and it's quiet as can be.

We were able to cover the gamut of offerings at the brewery this time, with Jason taking one flight and I another. I picked flight #2, which featured the least number of beers I tried before: Amigo

Grande Mexican Lager (had it on tap at Acadia last summer), Thrice Shy Belgian Strong Golden Ale,  Black Anvil Imperial Stout, Bad Axe Imperial IPA (reviewed here), and Nitro Udder Stout. I had a range of opinions here. Amigo Grande is decent, but not for me. Thrice Shy was smooth, sweet, and strong, like you'd expect from the style, but with a bit too much bubblegum, in my humble opinion. Black Anvil was rich and malty, with flavors of anise and molasses, but too thin for an Imperial Stout. Bad Axe I like, it really delivered. My notes from the can of years back show me liking it, while getting turned off by marketing and packaging. Devoid of that, with just a beer in front of me, I enjoyed it tremendously. Nitro Udder was perfectly fine, though I hate the name to pieces.

Flight #1, the one Jason ordered, starts off with three that have been in this blog before, Jackpine Savage Pale Ale, Bark Bite IPA, and Morning Wood Coffee Stout, then finishes with two new to me, Li'l Red Riding Wood Amber / Red Ale and Fine! IPA. Li'l Red was a sweet, malty thing, perfectly acceptable, and Fine! was a nice surprise. Nice and crisp, delightfully bitter nose, and highly drinkable. We both preferred it to the Bark Bite.

In fact, that would have been the one I would have taken home in a growler, if I'd thought to bring one with me. Also, I knew I'd be buying more at Oliphant and Dave's, and sure enough, that was nine days ago, and I still have 2 of those yet to consume. I found some consolation in learning that this IPA will be released in bottles soon, and eventually kegs to the market, as part of a Taproom Series.

We were content with the output at Big Wood, in all. There is nothing seriously wrong with any of them, though some may not be up to the demands of our critical palates. (He says facetiously.) Straight-forward interpretations of well-known styles, well-done. Can't argue with that. (Though we wish we weren't always reminded of erections, of course.)

This was one of the visits where we stuck to fights and didn't order a single full pint, though I considered it. The only reason I did not choose to spend more time with a pint of ale in my hands was that the road beckoned us, and there were more new beers awaiting us further on down the line.

Oliphant A Dog's Permbus Bourbon Barrel-aged Imperial Stout with Banana and Vanilla Wafers

Oliphant A Dog's Permbus Bourbon Barrel-aged Imperial Stout with Banana and Vanilla Wafers.
10 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

Something tells me this is Jeremy's Got Talent aged in bourbon barrels provided by Zipp's Liquors of Minneapolis, one of two Minneapolis liquor stores that collaborated with Oliphant in this fashion.
(I didn't need to travel all the way to East Franklin Avenue to get this one, I got it in Somerset.)
The other was A Risk of Cats, with 1010 Washington. I'm stumped about what movie inspires this beer's name and illustration is spoofing. Maybe it'll come to me later.

Complete and utter blackness, fully opaque, with a slim, roasted tan head on top.

In the nose: Dark malts, deep flavors, soon revealing the banana, the vanilla, but not yet the barrel. It's coming, though, slowly but surely.

In the mouth: Big, full, & rich. Massive malt flavors. Bittersweet, but balanced. And underneath the cocoa and the char, emerges hints of banana and traces of vanilla. Just enough sweetness from the adjuncts to shine through the darkness. Everything is in correct order here, nothing dominates or overpowers. Pretty smooth, while remaining quite yum a dum dum. That's all there is to say.
Just yum a dum, dum.

Now it's time to read that copy on the side of the crowler. And I don't feel like transcribing it. Can't someone else do it? It's funny, though, and makes little sense.

Alright, no takes, huh? Here goes: Daniel, the labradoodle you know and love, is enjoying sweet success as a mobile dog perm operator. All of his friends and family get to try out his new dog doos and tell him if they are doo doos! or doo nots! 
and so on, and so forth, it's too long, I can't do it, even in quarantine!

Oliphant Just Horseplay Barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout

At it's very essence, this blog is just a place where I write about the beers I've had. I can't guarantee that your experiences will in any way resemble mine. There are instances where the beer I write about may no longer be available. Why am I telling you about it if you can't have it? Go to the first sentence of this paragraph.

This is one of those beers. I was lucky enough to have a crowler socked away by a certain friend at the brewery, and picked it up a few weeks ago. There are no more to be had. You may not be able to go there, or anywhere else, and find it, and drink, but at least you'll come away with a different understanding of one of my favorite little breweries and perhaps make the trek to Somerset, and you'll become an acolyte of Oliphant, like me.

And that's cool with me. So, on to it:

Oliphant Just Horseplay Barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout. 10% ABV. Ale aged in Woodford Reserve bourbon barrels. Brewed by Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

The label is a contour line poem by Jeremy Hughes, depicting the horseplay from the title, between Matt and Josh one day. Or was it night? Or morning? Did Josh really pin Matt to the ground and release his soul? That's what Jeremy seems to be saying, and no one else was there.

Utter blackness, perfectly opaque, rich ring of brown foam above. Beautiful.

In the nose: Big & Rich, deep and delightful.  All sorts of dark associations creep in: chocolate, molasses, brown sugar, coffee, and more. Dark rum. Whiskey.

In the mouth: A lot of sweetness, a ton of malt, full and rich. Ah, mmm, yum. Heavy-bodied, and fully mouthfeeled. Viscous, thick, slick, sticky. A cosmic ton of luxurious deliciousness.

This was an I'm taking my time with this and definitely sleeping in tomorrow, AKA later this morning, or maybe afternoon, kind of beer. The kind of beer that makes you ponder. Ponder what? Ponder lots. Just lean back and ponder the day away. What were we pondering about? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? How many roads must a man walk down before he gets to the other side? Who put the boom in the boom sh-boom sh-bop? Who knows, ponder some more.

story: mattwallace
art: jeremy hughes

while josh tries to slot the keycard into the lock, matt startle-jumps him into the door -- his perfect hands are crushed! mangled!

beyond-belief!

screaming,  his eyes wild and hoggish, then snorting,  his jaws locked and boarish, josh torques his body to face matt. his legs were still facing the door! and josh one-hand grabs matt under his armpit and pitched him into the room over his body. 

pink balloon lettering formed the onomatopoeia "aieieeeeeee!!" in the air following matt's thrown body.



fat globs of sweat streak from josh's pores as he stomps into the hotel room that has become filled with a red, pounding mist. it oozed from the doorway and into the hall over my shoes.

matt's body contorts between the bed and the floor with a leg akimbo in the air and both arms pretzel-twisted somewhere near his torso.

the mist laps a gentle shore over matt's body; josh is pleased and i saw him rub his mangled hands together like a chunky preying mantis. 



using his red-headed stephen king powers, josh picks matt up using only his mind and the muscles in his arms and legs and back. "it's a choke slam! it's gonna i'm choke slammin' you now! now!?" and grasping matt's throat and underjaw he lifts him,  with some effort, and gravity -slams him forcibly onto the bed. 



panting, with one eye larger than the other, josh towers over matt and rains down a steady beating of passive-aggressive "sorrys" and "i'msosorries!" with each blast blood spurts, matt's face is pulped burger -- i saw 30 gallons of blood ejaculated out of his mouth! it broke the hotel window!



i thundered by josh and yell "what's the meaning of this!?this!?thisthisthisthis" and i can visibly see the words echo into their ears. 

shrugging matt and josh looked at me and responded, "it's just horseplay!" 



...just "beyond belief," is what i thought. 

Oliphant Last Year's Talent Imperial Stout

Oliphant Last Year's Talent Imperial Stout. With Coffee, Almond, and Cacao Nibs. 9% ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

Solid blackness, thick and rich brown ring of foam on top, lasting long, and looking lovely. Fits the part for the style.

In the nose: cocoa. coffee. Rich, dark malts.

In the mouth: More richness, deep cocoa. Warm, lush, full of dark malty goodness. A little anise, a touch of pepper. Loads of coffee and cocoa. Yum, -um, -um. A dum. dum. I can't emphasize this enough: you-u-um. So easy. So malty. So chocolatey, espresso-y. So, so, very, very. So very smooth and so very tasty.

I was quite delighted to find this one at a local store recently. Thought it was long gone and I'd never get to taste it. Oh, happy day!

Oliphant Practitioner of Duck Arts Bourbon Barrel-aged Imperial Stout

 Oliphant Practitioner of Duck Arts Bourbon Barrel-aged Imperial Stout. 9 and 18 month barrel blend.

13.5 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, Wisconsin. 

Black as the darkest night, fully opaque,  tight tan head. 

In the nose: dark and rich, molasses and char, cocoa and hints of cherry. Beastly bourbon barrel business.

In the mouth: more chocolate, more thick, more viscous. Plenty of bourbon on the palate. Just sweet enough, and plenty boozy. Well-balanced and over-the-top at once. This one’s got the goods, sure way to send me off to slumber. A right good nightcap. 

This one is the real deal. I’m going back for more.

Oliphant Brewing's The Kindness Trap a Barrel-aged Stout Inspired by True Events

Oliphant Brewing's The Kindness Trap a Barrel-aged Stout Inspired by True Events.
10 % ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, WI.

So, I made it back to Oliphant last Sunday, for the first time in over 5 months. It was very important that I return before year's end to get the rest of my "free" beers from my Smug Club membership. Time was running out. At last, Jason and I found the right Sunday afternoon to step in and see the taproom before 2019 ends. And I brought my empty growler, although there were only two beers on that I'd never had. One would come home with me in a crowler, but the other, a bourbon barrel aged imperial stout? Would they growler that? They would and they did, and now I am drinking it.

They were also crowlering it, so I got the label to slap on my growler, as seen in accompanying illustration.

Solid blackness, under a thin ochre ring. Looking perfect for the part.

In the nose: Depth and richness abounds. All the high gravity pressures of chocolate, coffee, anise, molasses, and more. Dark fruits, fig, raisin, date.

In the mouth: It's a bomb. Boom! Unmatched deliciousness. First the flavors found in the aroma, and next come all the big, bourbon-y associations. Vanilla pops in, cherries and berries, chocolate, espresso, leather. At times sweet, later dry. Full bodied, long malty finish. All kinds of delicious. Yum, in fact, a dum, dum.

Almost full of farts but surprisingly balanced.

Oliphant Undiscovered Worlds

Oliphant Undiscovered Worlds Russian Imperial Stout. 9.5% ABV. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, Wisconsin.

This is one purchased some months ago, and left in the fridge until now. Should I have saved it longer? Maybe next time, I just had to taste it. If I remember right, though, I did try it on tap on the day of purchase, and I recall enjoying my glass quite a bit. Now, to crack the mini-growler.

Dark as sin, roasted brown head above.

Spills out the darkest aromatics, teeming from the glass. On closer inspection, roast and toast, cocoa, coffee and cream, lush and delicious in the nose.

Now, to drink it up: Nicely even-ly balanced RIS. Not too overboard, fine and mellow. Full-bodied but not over-powering. Plenty of malt, but not too boozy. A mere 9.5%. A pushover. Some smoke and tobacco.

This one can be safely called a middle-of-the-road RIS. Not too big, not too little. Yeah, you could wish it to be bigger and ballsier, but it is what it is, and what it is is just fine. Although, yeah, I'm yearning for just a bit more, here and there. I picture this one as a preamble to something greater on the horizon.

Undiscovered Worlds as sampled at the taproom.

Like many of the beers at Oliphant, the name comes from a sketch out of the Wareheim and Heidecker ouvre, the same one as Tittleman's Crest and Graumann's Center. They're calling this the Universe Series.

La Dona Cerveceria El Reyna IPA ( and part one of Minneapolis Breweries 2020)

One thing has been missing from this blog lately, and you know what it is. Individual write-ups about visits to breweries, rather than simple reviews of their beers. I've seen many breweries and not written them up here, and I can offer no excuses or explanations.

In addition to this, I wanted to accomplish the task of doing brewery reports of Minneapolis first, close the circle on it, so to speak. At year's beginning, I began a project of hitting up brewery taprooms until I got through a certain number, all through the year. Well, you know what happened. But now, the breweries and taprooms are re-opening, and I still haven't gone back to work full-time. As good a time as any to try, try again.

In the logo for La Dona Cerveceria, Minneapolis' Latinx-themed brewery at 241 Fremont in North Minneapolis (it's practically outside Downtown), we see very prominently the number 2016. This is one of those cases where that number does not reflect the year that they opened, but the date of their inception, the time they decided to start doing something, maybe the date they formed their LLC. If they'd opened in 2016, I might have written about them sooner.

In fact, they opened in late 2018, and I put off visiting them until May of 2019. This is when they first appeared here, after bringing home a couple of crowlers from my Monday stop. I'd been hearing from friends who'd been there, and raved about their brown ale or their Mexican lager. That wasn't good enough for me, I had to see if there was more to them.

You walk in and see the Mexican-themed art is everywhere. There's a long bar, surrounded by all kinds of other seating, with televisions all around. Past the bar is a small restaurant area that's been occupied by various enterprises. It wasn't open that night, and I'd just missed the night's event, a lesson in Spanish. Other advertised events included Latin dance lesson, DJs, and bands. Outside, a miniature futbol field, definitely the only one of it's kind attached to a Minnesota taproom.

I had three beers that time, and took no notes. They included Bromista, an American Pale Ale, El Rey, an American IPA, and Xipe, a Mosaic & Simcoe IPA. I was pleased with all three, found them all refreshing, tasty, and being indicative of their respective styles. Perhaps I should have gone outside my usual comfort zone, and tried different styles, but that's just the way I was feeling that night. Two crowlers came home with me, and they were hits with my palate, too: an Azacca DIPA and a Coffee Brown Ale. I didn't want to only praise their lagers, as one might suspect that a Latinx brewery would be best known for lagers, and wanted to make sure there were other treats
available.

Now I have to ask why it took me so long to return. One theory might be that in order to get there from where I live, one would need to pass Sisyphus Brewing, and would I really want to skip them.?Also, no buses will take you there, you'd need to walk a mile from the area near Sisyphus, and in winter, do I want to do that? No excuse for when I'm on bike, though. No excuse at all.

In the before times, we used to gather.

And so it came to be that my second visit was on a Sunday night in March of this year, when I was at Sisyphus, near closing time. Sam was going to go there for some televised futbol after closing, and offered to give me a ride, so that was that. A large crowd had convened to watch the local Loons kicking around the Soccer ball in Portland, OR, much larger than the 30-some that the management had anticipated. I saw my futbol-loving friend Steve at the bar and squeezed in between the stools. My super-fan friend Rich, who had gathered all these fans there for the occasion, saw me and uttered, "Al! You're at a soccer game?" "No," I told him, "I'm at a bar." "But, you're watching a football game!" "No, there's a game on, where I'm drinking beer." Silly.

I had two beers while there, first, one of their standard IPAs, La Reyna, which you will hear more about below. I followed that with Cuauhtil, a Russian Imperial Stout. Which you will hear about when I crack open a bottle. They were both served in plastic, due to the larger number of patrons than they suspected. It seemed that they were doing a good job of keeping up with cleaning the glasses, though, and I spied the back-up snifters sitting dry on a shelf. Asked if I could get my imperial stout in one of those, instead of plastic, please. Nope, only plastic while the game is on. But it's right there, I think, but don't say. Okay, whatever, I won't argue. I took my leave and Ubered home.

I wished that I could have brought crowlers home from that visit, but it was after 6 pm on a Sunday, and that wasn't allowed. Too bad. This was nearly the last taproom visit of 2020, until recently. I'd done a Wisconsin trip to see Oliphant & Dave's BrewFarm, after,  and a pop-in to Town Hall, before it all came crashing in, and the world shut down. So many things seem like ages ago. The carefree feeling of standing/sitting next to people. Crowds. Being able to walk in without worry. I won't say "freedom" because that makes me sound like certain other people.

We're slowly opening up. Now, at last, I made my third visit to La Dona, on a Saturday afternoon, again biking south after seeing Utepils. And there's no fuss about reservations. We can take glassware outside. Plenty of room for "social distancing". They ask that patrons wear masks while indoors, and everyone complies. Jason and I moved our table to the shade, and just enjoyed spending the time. I was delighted by the 3:17 to Cologne kolsch, which hit all the right notes. Next up: the Dona Fria lager, a style I typically skip, but was perfect for the weather at the time. I finished up with Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, a kolsch/IPA hybrid that didn't knock my socks off, but I enjoyed, nonetheless. In the middle of the beers, I had a chorizo taco ($4 each).

This time I was able to pick up crowlers/bottles, and I went with 2 of each. One of which is reviewed below.

La Dona Cerveceria El Reyna IPA. 6 % ABV. 73 IBU.
La Dona Cerveceria, Minneapolis, MN.

Clear, bright golden hue, larges, lasting, lace-leaving ivory head. Looking good.

In the nose: Slight sweetness swiftly subsumed by hop aromatics. Resiney, piney, some citrus.

In the mouth: Starts out bitter and bridges over to juicy and hoppy. Ending on a dry note. Big bite of citrusy hop flavors, a touch of tropical on the side. Long, bitter finish, that I love. Medium-bodied, and easy-drinking. A splash of sweetness continues to counter the brittle, bitter side.
Juicy, bitter, dry, cha, cha, cha.

I like this one. My kind of IPA. I'll drink it again.

North meets South as Simcoe and Mosaic hops create a duet of piney and tropical fruit aromas and flavors.

After three visits, I haven't found a La Dona beer that I didn't like. And I'd be a fool to not return with more urgency. I just have to see every other Minneapolis brewery first. Maybe. We'll see.

Here's how they describe themselves, by the way: We are the nation's first Latino-influenced for-benefit beer company, supporting and accentuating the Latinx communities of Minnesota. Inspired by our upbringings, our goal is to provide quality craft beer to anyone who appreciates beer with purpose, culture and heart. We are fusing Latin and local Minnesota culture, one cerveza at a time

Come for the waste elimination, stay for the art!

Oliphant Party On Wayne (and more reflections on my obsession)

Oliphant Brewing Party On Wayne Blonde Ale. 7.4% alc./vol. 32 fluid ounces crowler. Somerset, Wisconsin.

If you'd care to take a glimpse into my mind, I don't mind peeling a bit back to show you behind the scenes. Here's the admission that I think you've already figured out: I have a bit of a mania, that I keep fairly in check. It is that collector's ambition to be a completist, and to have made claim to having had them all, whatever they may be. It's been a part of me ever since I starting collecting comic books in my youth, and continues as I collect beers, and beer experiences.

All the beers, and the beautiful chalk-work of Jeremy Hughes.

Part of the struggle inherent with this obsession is acknowledging it's futility. Take, for example, Surly Brewing Company. I was able to sample and document all of their beers at the beginning, but as they grew, and especially after the Destination Brewery opened and more taproom-only beers were produced, it become difficult, if not impossible to try them all. I would have to be single-minded in my devotion to visit them and taste every new ale they execute. But being so focused and determined in that one pursuit keeps me away from tasting the wares of others. And so it goes, and I can only try what I can try, and tamp down that sadness that comes from not conquering that unconquerable goal.

Cheers, Matt!

Here's the difference between collecting comic books and collecting beers and beer experiences. The comics are physical objects that exist in a form that one can find. I can get that missing issue of Marvel Two-in-One, it's out there somewhere. They are not of such limited quantity that it is impossible to locate one, for the most part. It's a matter of money, sometimes, or perseverance. The beers on tap at a taproom can be another pickle. They may appear but once for a brief time, and then never again. If you're not there at the right time, you'll never unlock that achievement. Oh,
well, so sad, life goes on. There are some breweries for
whom the desire to "try them all" is more powerful,
and all-consuming, like the hunger of mighty Galactus.

Some time in 2015

I've been enjoying the beers of Oliphant Brewing for over two years now, starting just months after they opened, and I only get out there once every couple of months. How I wish I could see them every week, but, see above. (And of course, they are 40-some miles away, not 4. You'll see many more reviews of beers in the 4-mile radius from my domicile.) (Actually, I have to stretch that domain out some. Four miles only covers three local breweries. Town Hall is 4.8 miles away from where I currently reside, and Sisyphus 5.1.)

I just got back from a visit, my first in a couple of months, and I looked back on their presence here. Reviewed 25 of their beers on the Nib, and according to one source, Untappd, they've brewed 143 beers. (And I've checked in 73 times, it tells me.) And I suddenly feel like an abject failure. I look back at the pictures of the chalkboard and my check-ins and I think to myself: Why didn't I bring back 3 growlers instead of one? Why did I only pick up one crowler that time? Why in the name of Xuul didn't I get this beer, that beer, the other one? What Was I Thinking?

So, with a renewed sense of purpose, I brought home 3 crowlers today, and immediately thought to myself: Why not 4? And one of those is one that I have never reviewed (and I always try to bring back ones I've never reviewed, of course) that I've seen many times before on the chalkboard, but passed over. Why? Because, blonde ale? Just not my style. Same reason I always pass up C.H.U.D.weiser. But the collector/completist urge rages within me, and that Beast must feast...and so, Party on, Wayne.

Clear, pale golden color, thin white head atop.

In the nose: soft, semi-floral, lightly hoppy, mostly malty, cereal grains and such.

In the mouth: This is tasty. Light bodied, crisp, clean, super smooth. More of a malt flavor, somewhat grainy, coming through, and very little from hops. This is exactly what a blonde ale should be like. It's what you want to put in the hands of the "just a beer" crowd. "What's your lightest?" There's one every time.

And it's a good blonde ale, and you can drink it. It doesn't thrill me because it doesn't go where I want to go, but it's there for the people who can dig it.

And that is in the essence why I've passed this one over again and again, because I know it's not going to give me what I want, like a Gobias or a Gaer Bear or an Ancient Bone Saber of Whosawhatzis. And now it's time for a bourbon barrel imperial stout. And my next Oliphant beer will be much more interesting.

Dangerous Man Blueberry Milkshake IPA

Dangerous Man Blueberry Milkshake IPA. 7.3% ABV. Canned on 6.20. Purchase 6.29. Notes taken 7.6. And published on 7.13, because.

If you read this post about Oliphant I'm A Righty Pooster, then you know about my first encounter with a "milkshake IPA." Well, the first I wrote about. I'd gotten a taste of Modist's version just before the final keg kicked. That Oliphant post was the first time I struggled with understanding this style.

A few weeks back, I stopped at Dangerous Man to get some crowlers for my birthday celebration the next day. I was hoping to get a taste of this beer, but it was off tap. In the crowler store, though, I was glad to see a few left in the cooler. I opened one and shared with  a gathering friends, but didn't think too hard about it. It wasn't that kind of birthday party. No notes, no swirling, no sniffing. Just drinking beers with good friends.

Almost a week later, I sat down at took notes, and that's when I put my thinking cap on. A week later, I finally share them with you:

Thoroughly hazed, oddly crimson coloring, nearly purple....blue-ish red? with a pinkish head above. Right from the gate, weird.

In the nose: Soft and sweet. Fruity. Yeah, blueberries. Creamy. Milky. Huh. Just as advertised. But...but....it's totally like a smoothie, or yogurt, for christ's sake. What?

In the mouth: Smooth and easy, creamy and fruity. Smoothy-y, yogurt-y, milkshake-y, but where's the IPA, and why???

Medium-bodied, long, fruity finish, low bitterness. How is it an IPA? Not sure. Label of the crowler reads: "Blue Milk IPA", and I think they're just trying to make a Star Wars reference. (Visit the crowler shop for nice view of Star Wars stuff.) It is tasty, but I just want to reject the concept outright, as being anti-beer. This is not what I signed up for when I joined the craft beer crusade. I want bitter, I want strong, I want roasty and deep and dark and impressive, and not a soft drink or a yogurt or a smoothie in a glass. My soul dies a little if I consider actually enjoying this. I can drink it, and it tastes good, but it doesn't feel like beer. Is anyone thinking: "We made beer better, by adding lactose and fruit!" I suddenly find myself in the shoes of those who rejected or questioned beers that I've enjoyed in the past, like lambics or barrel-aged brews, over-proof beers, crazy stuff like that. Through it all, bourbon barrel barley-wines, hot as hell Belgian crazies, thick as heck Imperial Stouts, I said, YES!, this is beer, what's your problem?!?!

This stuff, though? I'm thinking, Are you improving beer, or just, you know, warping it? There's not enough bitterness to call it an IPA, and the smoothie/creaminess is great, but very not beer. (What about cream ales, you demand of me, do you hate those, too? Well, yeah, I'm not that big of a fan, but they don't have milk in them, either.)

Am I a hater? Am I not on the bandwagon? Am I old and in the way? This is the second "milkshake IPA" from DMBC, after the boysenberry version, which I missed out on, and I remember a recent exchange on Facebook where one friend mentioned having this beer, and another friend who is very active in brewing asked "Do they still make beer there?" I got a good laugh out of it, but when the place has to keep up pace with the chocolate milk stout, the coconut milk stout, and the peanut butter porter, it seems pretty true.

Stop the gimmicks, before it gets way out of hand. Or is it too late?

 I'm a little worried that DMBC is pleasing the wrong people with beers like this. We shouldn't, they shouldn't be promoting and propagating weird not-quite-beers like this to a gullible, not-quite-craft-beer drinking public.  If this was all the rage at a brewpub populated by hard-core, heavily bearded beer geeks, and it got no further, that would be one thing. But DMBC draws a larger crowd and they have different demands. It echoes further, and I worry that people will soon think that all beers should have peanut butter and blueberries and milk and what have you. That you're nothing without your apricot and bacon beer. That you'd better have your year-round caramel apple kolsch or you're nothing.

These are the things that keep me up at night. It could be worse.

So, I sat on that for a week, and wondered if I should publish my late night ramblings as is, or edit them, or reconsider them. Answer: yes, no, no. I will not agonize over this stuff any longer. The next time I encounter a "milkshake IPA", I'll either skip it or keep my mouth shut.

Edit: I did edit it. A little. I'll add one thing: This is a well-made beer, it's just not for me.

In Praise of the Wonderful Mini-Growler ...and notes on Town Hall Hopfen Ublich

Seen here, my first mini-growler from Town Hall, with a pour
of Hopfen Ublich at it's side.

In Praise of the  Mini-Growler (with notes on Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Hoppfen Ublich double pilsner)

Hey, everybody. Let's go back in time a bit. In 2003, a law changed here in the state of Minnesota, and our breweries and brewpubs were finally able to sell growlers. Can you imagine the time when they didn't exist, when it was illegal? At long last, we could take home beer from our favorite brewpubs, like Town Hall, Rock Bottom, Fitger's, Great Waters, Barley John's and more. Only brewpubs did growlers at first, for there weren't many breweries small enough to do them then, and the ceiling was set at 3,500 barrels per year. (I may be wrong about some matters here, as I'm admittedly metro-centric. At some point in time, Brau Brothers was doing growlers, and maybe others that I'm forgetting.) In late 2006, Surly began doing growlers, around the same time they started canning their beers. And the next year, they started selling something else that became legal along with growlers: 750 ml/1 pint, 9 ounce, aka 25 oz. "bombers." That would be Darkness in 2007 and '08, and a certain bottle near and dear to me, Surly Two. )(For these reasons….)

The option to do 750's was not exercised very often. Fitger's does it, and Rock Bottom's done it, and for one year, Town Hall offered their Barrel-aged series in that format, but never again. I used to pester them about releasing more of their beers in 750's, but there was no interest in that. Was it because they didn't want to deal with bringing in new equipment and technology? Not sure, it would be speculation on my part, but it seems likely based on recent events. (Again, if I'm wrong and missed a fact or two, don't crucify me, folks, I don't know everything.)

Some brewery taprooms like to decorate with growlers from
other breweries, such as Excelsior Brewing does here.

So, growlers have been king for over a decade now, but not everyone likes them. Their size makes them ideal for sharing at parties and tastings, between two people or ten. If you're drinking solo, however, that may not be in your best interest. Personally, if I have an evening to myself, I have no problem putting back the equivalent of 4 pints by my lonesome. If we're talking about stronger stuff, and if there's less time at my command, we start scoring in the negative column. Other people who aren't me just don't want to commit to that much beer. They may only want one pint a night, and there's the problem. A well-filled growler can last months, even years (yes, it's true, I have story to tell you some time) unopened, but once opened, they will be no good after two days. If you don't want to, or can't drink two pints a night, two days in a row, you're wasting good beer and good money.

Enki Brewing, too, has a comprehensive and growing
collection. we're all one big happy family, it says.

Another reason that some have been anti-growler is that until recently, our Minnesota laws said that you could only get a growler filled with a glass vessel provided by the brewery filling it. If you get my meaning. You couldn't take one from Town Hall and get it filled at Great Waters. That's a no-no. Why? Oh, ….reasons. Some of them noble, but none of them necessary.

Dangerous Man Brewing Company has a most impressive collection of growlers, and this is only
a glimpse. You can see more arranged throughout the room. 

Because of this, if you, like me, enjoy taking home the beers of Minnesota breweries, you end up getting one or more from each of them that you visit. In my case, you end up with a lot more. Back in '03, I started trading growlers with folks around the country (chronicled here), and through these trades gathered up some from breweries and brewpubs I'll probably never visit in my life. (I've been retired from this for years, and will probably never return to it.)Some were donated to Town Hall when they started a growler collection (now vanished), some sold to the owner of the Growler magazine for display at the St. Paul store, and my Surlys all sold to collectors. Last year, I cleaned all my growlers and collected them in one place, and posed them for a photo. It was an astonishing 52! That was before the stack collapsed and a few fell to the ground, breaking, winding up in recycling, lessening the numbers a little.

A few months ago, I sorted them out again and had a new count…again, 52! When people say they have too many--10! or 8, or 6, I have to laugh! Ha, ha, I say.

Here was my collection in March of last year, before they came a-tumbling down.
I counted 47, but then I found some more. 

Currently, I have 4 each from Town Hall and Dave's Brewfarm and Fitger's (and I've only been there once), 3 each from Hammerheart and Dangerous Man, 1 each from just about every brewery in the state, and many from out of state. Some no longer have labels and I have no idea where they came from, or how I got them.

This growler display was curated and installed by yours truly on a slow Sunday at the Harriet Taproom. A stuffed puma guards it from above, while a hop-owl keeps watch below.

Four went away when the law finally changed and breweries could now fill any other brewery's growlers, and I returned my Harriet growlers to the brewery, as they were one of the few to embrace this change. The others, so far as I know: Bauhaus Brew Labs, and the one I work for now, Eastlake craft brewery. There are many and various reasons why other breweries do not fill other brewery's growlers, and I respect them all. Probably the best reasons is that these breweries have been filling their growlers by the brewers using a specialized system for many years, and they don't want to turn the job over to bartenders to fill when they might be too busy to tie up a draft line so that one customer can take 64 ounces home at a lower price. They might not have time to do, or to take the time and effort to do it correctly.

One way to lessen them is to return them for credit, which some do and some don't. I have multiples from several and need to check with them about their policy so I can pare it down to just one from each, or even two, if I desire. How about Town Hall, they sometimes give a credit …or…what about ….the mini-growler?

Did someone re-interpret the 750 ml bottle allowance and turn it into a 25-oz. growler? Or was that option always there? I know for a fact that the first to do so locally was Dangerous Man, earlier last year, but for some reason I thought it was a half growler, 32 ounces, never realizing that the law was so strict that it really meant you could only fill two sizes of bottles, 64 ounces or 25. Why not 32, or 44, or 22 or 16, or 56, or anything? I just don't know. It's the Minnesota way, that's why.

Sisyphus Brewing became the next that I know of to do a 750 ml growler, a few weeks ago, and they chose the smaller size vessel due to their smaller sized brew house. And this brings me to monetary value. Smaller growler sizes are not always particularly cost effective, but I excuse them due to the brewery's (usually) smaller size and quality. Dave BrewFarm's 1 Liter growlers sell for $10. I normally eschew a $20 2 liter growler fill, but in the case of the BrewFarm, the uniqueness and rare quality of the beer, and the small size of the brewery qualifies the higher cost. The 32 oz. growler I got from Oliphant a few weeks past cost me $9. Would I have paid $18 for a 64 ouncer from a larger brewery? Only if I knew the beer's quality was high.

Bringing us to: the arrival of the mini-growler at Town Hall. This is how they will fill the barrel-aged offerings this year. A tiny amount were filled of the Russian Roulette chocolate Imperial Stout (5!) yesterday, and I forgot to call them and have them reserve one for me. (If only I'd been like Frank!, who picked his up today, while I sat at the bar.)So, I went to the brewpub with 2 empty Town Hall growlers, of my four (!), thinking that I'd fill one and return the other, until I got to thinking…are all of their beers being filled in the mini-size? Yes! Then it dawned on me…what about those beers I want to take home, but don't really want to drink 64 ounces of? They're in the mini-growlers! But what about monetary value? I chose to get a 64 of one, and a 25 of another, one that I wouldn't necessarily want 64 ounces of,….and that smaller growler? After the deposit is subtracted, merely six dollars. That's it, I'm sold.

What are  the pro's  of the mini-growler? They're lighter and cheaper, for two. It's a pint and a half, easy to drink in one evening. Their smaller size means that I can fit more of them in the fridge, and don't need to drink them right away. They can hang out with the milk and the orange juice. I can think, "yeah, it's a beer and I can drink it, when I don't need, or want,  to drink 4 pints in one night."

My current plan is to still trade back two of my four TH growlers, and hang on to two minis, or even one. I no longer need worry about how much of my drinking time in the week will be occupied by the growlers I take home, and how long I have to wait until I can get to the bottles in my fridge.

So, now I get to the first TH beer I brought home in the mini-growler (Growlette, some call them, and I've heard Growlito.), Hoppfen Ublich, which is a beer they've made for a few years now. Why didn't I take it home and write about it earlier? Because I didn't think I would want to drink 64 ounces of a double pilsner. I didn't find any info on it on their current website, but found a lot on Cal's blog entry from 2012. I'll share that at review's end.

Hopfen Ublich double pilsner. 6.7% ABV.

Appearance: clear, bright golden coloring, head as white as the pure driven snow, leaving some lace, looking utterly lovely.

Aroma: Delightfully floral nose, slightly spicy.

Taste: Crisp and clean and wonderfully hoppy. Nicely spiced, with some citrus fruit character, and floral notes. Light bodied. Exceptional drinkability. Smooth and just short of sweet. Just plain ol' tasty every time I bring it up to the lips and let it slide down. A little sweet, a little spicy and plenty of hops.

Here's why I usually don't care for double pilasters: they too often come across as slightly rarified malt liquors. Lots of booze, and not enough flavor. The head rush comes in too quickly, boom, boom, boom! The opposite of what's happening here. It's nothing but smooth and nice and utterly all right.

Here's what I grabbed off of Cal's blog post from 2 years ago:

"Roughly translated - "Hops Traditional"

A very special double lager! We gained access to some of the only Floor Malted Pilsner available. The Floor malting process is way old school and a very traditional method of grain modification. This is extremely high quality barley used in this beer.

The hops are Hallertau Mittelfruh, one of the German Noble hops (very traditional to Hallertau region of Germany.) We used massive amounts of this hop in leaf format (our system is designed for pelletized hops) that created a challenge in the brewery.

The result is a beautiful pale double lager/pilsner that we are very pleased to be serving."