Archive: Author: Thom

Beer, a lovely beverage enjoyed by women…

This Sunday is Mother’s Day, so we wanted to offer a great big “Thank You!” to our mothers, our wives, our partners, our daughters and our female friends!  We couldn’t do it without you.  As part of our salute to the women in our lives, we wanted to take a look at women and beer, because a lot of women love beer (a societal perception that is changing… thankfully!), and a lot of women have been influential in this still very male dominated industry.

Ask the Brewer

How long have women been involved in the beer industry?

While the current beer industry is very male dominated, the earliest brewers were women with documentation going as far back as 3500 B.C.  The women of Sumer brewed low-alcohol beer both for religious ceremonies and for daily consumption. These Sumerian brewers enjoyed tremendous respect, in part due to the likelihood they served as priestesses of the revered beer goddess, Ninkasi (so that is where that brewery got their name). Sumerians believed Ninkasi oversaw the brewing process and “worked” as head brewer to the gods, who’d gifted beer to humans to preserve peace and promote well-being. Their reverence is illustrated in the Hymn to Ninkasi, history’s oldest written beer recipe.

There is also compelling evidence that women were the ones who invented straws for drinking beer in Babylon between 1900 and 1600 B.C. (probably to get through the fermentation scum that formed on top of the earliest brews)  By 800 A.D., brewing had spread to Europe, and Germanic women were brewing in the clearings of the forests.  In 1150 A.D., the German Abbess Hildegard recommended hops as a preservative, and from 1600 to 1800 women in America were serving “small beer” to their families.  With the advent of the industrial revolution and commercial brewing, women were forced to take a step back from their traditional roles.  However, with Prohibition, many of them revived old recipes, and went back to brewing in their kitchens.  When Prohibition was repealed, beer was back in business, in large scale, with men at the helm.

It wasn’t until 1986 that things began to change, with Mellie Pullman helping launch Wasatch Brewery; becoming the first female brewmaster in Modern American history, and ushering in a new era of women working in the beer industry.  From there, women have become more and more involved, with Carol Stoudt of Pennsylvania becoming the nation’s first female sole proprietor (and brewer) in 1987, and Barbara Groom and Wendy Pound opening Lost Coast Brewing in Eureka, California, in 1990, as the first female ownership team.  In 2008, the Pink Boots Society was formed by Portland-based craft brewer Teri Fahrendorf.  The Pink Boots Society is dedicated to mentoring and supporting women working in all aspects of the beer industry.  In February of 2011, Barley’s Angels was founded, providing a forum for women who love craft beer.  Barley’s Angels focuses on creating a safe space for women who “respect beer and brewing, have a thirst for education, enjoy beer responsibly and act appropriately at all times.”  And, in 2013, Minnesota got it’s first women owned brewery in Urban Growler, founded and owned by Deb Loch and Jill Pavlak.

Taproom Tidings

Brewer’s Choice being tapped on Friday, May 6th is Andrew’s Maibock. This German substyle of Bock (shocking, right?!) is a stronger, yet paler lager that is more hopped than it’s cousin and is traditionally served at Spring festivals.

On Friday, May 6th we welcome the return of Crepe and Cake with their delicious French crepes, and on Saturday, May 7th we are excited to be joined for the first time ever by the Salsa Spot, serving authentic Mexican cuisine on wheels.

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Raj-Agni IPA, Parched Lime Shandy, and Maibock on Friday
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills (no growler or grumbler fills after 8pm on Thursdays)
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

Beer festival season is only a few weeks away. That means we are getting ourselves ready to start slinging beer here, there and everywhere in between!

To start the season off, the City Pages Beer Fest will continue with its tradition of kicking off summer in the Twin Cities on May 21st.  One of longest running events of its kind in the Midwest (24 years and counting!), this outdoor festival has become a yearly tradition for beer aficionados who can enjoy a variety of brews, food vendors, live music featuring Free and Easy, hammerschlagen, accordionist Bill Koncar and the ever-popular Brian Boru Irish Pipe Band!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

The Reinheitsgebot (i.e., German Beer Purity Law)

This past weekend marked the 500 year anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot (i.e., the German Beer Purity Law) and multiple articles and opinions on it have been circulating throughout the beer community as a result. This brings us to our…

Ask the Brewer

…where we ask “What the heck is the Reinheitsgebot, anyways?”

The Reinheitsgebot dictates that only 4 ingredients are allowed to be used in making beer.  Those ingredients are water, barley, hops, and yeast.

Preliminary versions of beer laws were passed in Augsburg in 1156, Nuremberg in 1293, Munich in 1363 and Regensburg in 1447.  Most of the laws focused on either preventing the addition of harmful ingredients to beer as either flavorings or preservatives (such as pitch, soot or henbane) or limiting brewing to using barley so that wheat and rye were reserved for bread.  In 1487 the direct predecessor to the Reinheitsgebot was passed in Munich by Duke Albrecht IV.  This law stated that only barley, water and hops could be used to make beer.  In 1516 this law was expanded by Bavaria’s Wittelsbach Duke, Wilhelm IV, to cover all of Bavaria.  Yeast was not added to the list until centuries later, when it’s role in brewing was discovered and understood.

The Reinheitsgebot matters because it is still in active use.  There are over 5,000 different beers (primarily produced in Germany) that still adhere to this law and carry it’s seal.  Many brewers in Germany feel that this law represents the purity and high quality of German beers, and is enough a part of their cultural heritage that it should be part of the UNESCO World Heritage List, as are the Argentinian tango, Iranian carpet weaving and French gastronomy (all considered unique and worth protecting).  While many German Brewers are being more creative with their beers by using more aromatic varieties of hops while still holding true to the Reinheitsgebot, other German Brewers feel that it is outdated and restrictive.

Under the Beer Purity Law, beer made in Germany with anything other than the approved ingredients cannot be labelled “bier”.  This stance is being challenged by German breweries, such as Klosterbrauerei-neuzelle, which has been brewing the same beer recipe since 1410, but falls afoul of the Reinheitsgebot because they add sugar to their brew.  Small brewers like Neuzelle, who produces 6 million pints a year, and a growing number of craft beer producers who are keen to experiment with different ingredients such as fruits and spices, say the purity law stifles creativity and innovation.

As gluten-free brewers who can’t use traditional ingredients, but who also re-create traditional beer profiles, we can see the value of both points of view.

Taproom Tidings

We still have a partial keg of Raspberry Pyro on tap for Thursday, but will be switching that out for the Belgian Dubbel on Friday, April 29th. For those who don’t know, a Belgian Dubbel is a mid-strength Belgian style beer with slight spicy notes.  The style was originally brewed in the Trappist Abbey of Westmalle in 1856. (updated 4/30/16)

Food on Friday, April 29th brings us the Native American flavors of the Tatanka crew, and Saturday, April 30th we are joined by Signature Cafe, and their unique take on American classics.

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Raj-Agni IPA, Parched Lime Shandy, Raspberry Pyro on Thursday and Belgian Dubbel on Friday
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills (no growler or grumbler fills after 8pm on Thursdays)
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

There are two events going this weekend, join us at either.

For those who like to keep it local (as in, your neighborhood local), we will be at Yarmo Liquor in Highland Park doing a tasting on Thursday, April 28th.  They specialize in local and unique craft beers, and their Thursday tastings (from 4 to 6pm) are a chance to try something new.

On Saturday, April 29th we will be at the SNIT of MN.  This event hosted by the St. Michael’s Lions Club at the Fox Hollow golf course runs from 7 to 9:30PM, and features only Minnesota breweries, distilleries and wineries.  Why SNIT, well our understanding is that a Snit is the little glass of beer, served next to your Bloody Mary – who knew!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

One heck of a good reason to celebrate Earth Day!

This Friday, April 22nd, is Earth Day. At Burning Brothers, we feel this holiday is important because it helps to focus attention on our society’s use of natural resources, including one of the most important for beer which is water. Good beer requires good water, so, on Friday, we’ll be raising a glass to Earth Day, abundant clean water, and great beer!

Ask the Brewer

How important is water to the brewing process?

Considering that beer is 90% water (or more), the quality of the water is incredibly important.  While you can’t brew a good beer with bad water, it is also possible to brew a bad beer with good water!  Good water comes in a wide range of hardness, alkalinity and mineral content, and all of these can affect how a brewer in one location can brew a specific style of beer successfully, while a brewer in another may not.

One simple truth when it comes to brewing is there is no one water that is ideal for all beer styles. That is why you end up with certain regions that are known for producing a specific style of beer really well.  For example, water in Dublin, which has high alkalinity, is best suited for brewing stouts and other dark ales, while in Pilsen, the water has very low mineral content, making it perfect for Bohemian Pilsners.

Here in St. Paul, multiple factors came together in the mid 1800’s to fuel a beer boom.  There were lots of German immigrants, with a love of “bier”, and the knowledge necessary to brew it well.  There was fertile soil for growing the necessary ingredients, sandstone caves for cold aging lagers, and a well balanced water profile, especially suited to lighter beers.  The water was also plentiful.  This wonderful congruence can be seen in the fact that breweries have existed here in one form or another since the mid 1800s.

Taproom Tidings

Back by popular demand… (no, really, we get asked about it all the time) our brewer’s choice for this weekend is our Raspberry Infused Pyro. We’ll be tapping it on Friday, April 22nd, so plan to stop in, have a pint and grab a growler before it’s gone.

Food options on Friday, April 22nd brings us our first seasonal visit of Crazy Puppy G.W. and their Gluten-Free fair food.  On Saturday, April 23rd, Signature Cafe will be here with their unique take on American classics.

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Raj-Agni IPA, Parched Lime Shandy, and Raspberry Infused Pyro
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills (no growler or grumbler fills after 8pm on Thursdays)
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

There are three (count them, 3) events going this weekend.  We would love to see you at any or all of them.

On April 23rd, we have both the MN Craft Beer Fest and the Second Annual Arts & Crafts. The MN Craft Beer Fest benefits Habitat For Humanity, while the Second Annual Arts & Crafts benefits COMPAS.  Whichever one you are going to, you can drink beer and listen to music while supporting an organization that provides housing for all, or arts for all!

On Sunday, April 24th the second ever gluten-free beer dinner pairing Burning Brothers Beers with Signature Cafe foods is happening.  Seats are still available, so call Signature Cafe at 612-378-0237 to make your reservation!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

Beer garden… I do not think it means what you think it means

Goodbye Sprinter. Hello Spring!

This weekend is going to be absolutely lovely, which of course makes us think of being outdoors and of course, beer drinking weather! (If you think about it though, is there a time, atmospherically speaking, when it’s not beer drinking weather? Just sayin.)

Whether it’s getting together with family or friends, running errands or even getting your hands dirty in the yard, you should definitely pick up some  beer to enjoy outside.

Ask the Brewer

What are some good uses for beer in the garden?

Not one… not two… not three… but four! Four awesome uses for beer in the garden.

First and potentially most commonly known, is the use of beer as a slug and snail killer. Both are as attracted to beer as we are (it’s too late for you to deny it), so setting out a dish of it is a great way to catch and eliminate these garden pests, without the use of pesticides. Make sure the dish is deep enough for them to drown in.

Our second way is to use beer as food for butterflies. (Yup, they like beer too!) For this, you can use a pint or two of flat beer along with the following:

• 1 pound sugar
• 1 or 2 pints stale beer
• 3 mashed overripe bananas
• 1 cup of molasses or syrup
• 1 cup of fruit juice
• 1 shot of rum

Mix all of the ingredients together and then put it in a butterfly feeder or paint it onto flat rocks, trees, fence posts or stumps.

Our third use for beer in the garden is as a fertilizer and growth accelerator for those brown spots in your lawn. Supposedly, the fermented sugars in beer can stimulate plant growth and kill fungi. So, if you have leftover beer in your glass that has gotten too warm, you could just pour it out on your lawn.

King Gambrinus – Patron Saint of Beer!

We keep waiting for serious beer drinking weather to get here, and it keeps sliding from spring back into winter, (like this upcoming weekend) but we know it will warm up sooner or later.  In the meantime, we thought it would be good to celebrate yet another beer based holiday, which brings us to this week’s edition of…

Ask the Brewer

What’s a good day to celebrate beer in April?

While today (April 7th) is National Beer Day, we decided to go with a more obscure, lesser known beer holiday. (Although, there is nothing stopping you from celebrating both!) King Gambrinus Day is celebrated on April 11th and it honors Gambrinus, the supposed King of Flanders, who, in the late 13th century is credited with first adding hops to beer. As such, he is considered one of the “unofficial” patron saints of beer.

A look at the history behind this suggests that the addition of hops can be ascribed to either John the Fearless, AKA Jean Sans Peur (1371-1419), otherwise known as Ganbrivius, or, earlier in history, Jan Primus – John I (around 1251).  Either name can plausibly have evolved over the centuries into Gambrinus, the King of Beer.  While John I was a scion of the burgundy line of princes, neither he nor John the Fearless was a king.  However, when you look at how important beer is to human development, nothing less than king-hood can be bestowed on this man.

Taproom Tidings

We are down to our final keg of Cranberry Shandy for the season. We know many of you may be sad about this, but don’t worry, we’ll have it back before long. (It is the Midwest after all, and winter is coming… I swear I saw snow this morning… WTF?!) Come on down to the taproom and help us kill the keg so that we can make room for tapping Dane’s latest version of our American Lager. This version is a little drier than our last, so the hop flavor is more pronounced.(Updated 4/9/16)

This weekend also brings us a brand new food truck on Friday, April 8th with the arrival of Patacones and their enticing Colombian Street Food. Saturday, April 9th we’ll be featuring Tollefson Pork Farm and their fusion of farm fresh offerings and pork deliciousness. (per usual, both menus are exclusively gluten-free, but you’re not really surprised by that…)

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Cranberry Shandy, Raj-Agni IPA, Parched Lime Shandy, and American Lager
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills (no growler or grumbler fills after 8pm on Thursdays)
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

While we have no events running this weekend, we want to mention that there is an upcoming event that people may want to check out.  Our second ever gluten-free beer pairing dinner in partnership with the Signature Cafe!  This event is occurring on Sunday, April 24th, and will feature Dane pairing five of our beer styles against five gluten-free dinner courses prepared by Signature’s own Derek Grams. If you were on the wait list for the first dinner, give Signature Cafe a call, 612-378-0237, as you will have preferred placement for this second dinner!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

2 years and still making great beer!

April 4th of 2014 was the opening day of our taproom, and it seems like so much has happened since then!  We have met so many interesting and wonderful people, served so many delicious beers, participated in so many great events (trains, buses and festivals, oh my!) and eaten some awesome food from so many food trucks.  We hoped to throw a party, but alas, we’ve been up to our eyeballs in making beer and obviously we need to keep our priorities straight.

We’ll try not to get too sappy here, but we would like to pause for just a moment and say thanks. You all make this crazy adventure worth while. Cheers!

-Dane & Thom

Ask the Brewer

What are some fun books for brewers?

With April 1st being April Fools Day (i.e., a day for fun), it seems only right to celebrate the fun that is beer!  There are many jokes, songs, and limericks about beer that celebrate the humorous, but here we’re going to focus on books today.

Goodnight Brew: This “children’s” book is a delightful way to introduce beer and brewing to the next generation (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) or for adults who love beer so much they want it as their bedtime story.

Beer is the Answer… I don’t remember the Question is a book full of bar jokes, quotes and cartoons – over 1,000 of them, collected by the publishers of Bartender Magazine!

Beer & Philosophy: The Unexamined Beer isn’t Worth Drinking: The contributors to this volume present intriguing and often humorous arguments for how complex philosophical concerns are intrinsically linked to something as prosaic as quaffing a pint with friends.

B is for Beer is as charming as it may be subversive—B Is for Beer involves readers, young and old, in a surprising, far-reaching investigation into the limits of reality, the transformative powers of children, and, of course, the ultimate meaning of a tall, cold brewski.

The Comic Book Story of Beer: No boring, musty, historical text here!  An informative and humorous mix of words and pictures to please the beer lover and comic book geek alike.

Taproom Tidings

With the arrival of spring, we are happy to be bringing our Parched Lime Shandy back to the taproom!  For those of you still clinging to the Ides of March (or the rest of the winter season), you have one last weekend to get your fix of our Cranberry Shandy before it takes a well deserved break.

Foodwise, on Friday, April 1st we will have the Tatanka Truck crew with us slinging their native American deliciousness, and on Saturday, April 2nd we’ll our friends from the Soup Coupe bringing you their hearty varieties in a bowl.  Nothing goes better with a cold pint on a cool spring evening than hot food! (except maybe another pint?)

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Cranberry Shandy, Raj-Agni IPA, and the return of the Parched Lime Shandy
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills (no growler fills after 8 on Thursdays, cause, rules!)
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

We have two events running this weekend! On Saturday, April 2nd, Thom will be at Jackpot Junction for the Jackpint Beer Tating.  This is a chance to get acquainted with the beers and brewers of some of the delicious beverages produced right here in Minnesota.

Our second event is our gluten-free beer pairing dinner in partnership with the Signature Cafe!  This event is occurring on Sunday, April 3rd, will feature Dane pairing five of our beer styles against five gluten-free dinner courses prepared by Signature’s own Derek Grams. Unfortunately, tickets are completely sold out.  However, a second dinner is being planned for April 24th.  If you were on the wait list for the first dinner, give Signature Cafe a call, as you will have preferred placement for the second dinner!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

Malt of different roasting levels

While many people celebrate spring, or Easter, around this time of year, we celebrate Daniel Wheeler Day! On March 28th of 1817 Daniel Wheeler received a patent for his malt roaster. This roaster allowed brewers to consistently and efficiently roast pale malts to create a darker brew, paving the way for the modern porter.

Ask the Brewer

How were Porters colored prior to roasted malts?

Slainte!

Every year on March 17, the Irish and the Irish-at-heart across the globe observe St. Patrick’s Day. What began as a feast day for the patron saint of Ireland has become an international festival celebrating Irish culture with parades, dancing, special foods and a whole lot of green.

Why green? Well, blue is purported to be the first color associated with this day, however, that started to change in the 17th century, right before the time that Irish immigrants in America held some of the first St. Patrick’s Day parades. During this same time period, St. Patrick’s revelers thought wearing green made one invisible to leprechauns, fairy creatures who would pinch anyone they could see (i.e., anyone not wearing green). People began pinching those who didn’t wear green as a reminder that leprechauns would sneak up and pinch green-abstainers.

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, the Irish heritage running through our families and the Twin Cities, we are tapping our Irish Red Ale on Thursday, March 17th. We hope you will come down and join us in the taproom for a pint or two!

Ask the Brewer

What are some good beer limericks?

Nothing like a beer… and a good book about beer!

Our first ever beer dinner in partnership with the Signature Cafe has officially sold out! The restaurant has created a wait list in case of cancellations, and we are discussing doing a second dinner in the near future. As always, we will make sure we post information about any future events on-line and in the taproom.

Ask the Brewer

What are some good books to give a beer lover?

While there are lots of excellent choices out there for beer lovers, we decided pick one from each state that we are distributed in.

For the beer lover in Minnesota, you can’t go wrong with Land of Amber Waters. This beautiful book by Historian Doug Hoverson explores the rich history of brewing in Minnesota. It starts with the state’s first brewery in 1849, and traces the rise and fall of the beer industry up into the modern resurgence of the craft beer scene.

Wisconsin’s Best Beer Guide is jam packed with updated information on Wisconsin breweries and brewpubs. The book, written by Kevin Revolinski, has a companion Facebook page that features upcoming events, news and even recipes.

For North Dakota, we venture into the realm of quirky autobiographies.  There is a Road in North Dakota: The Adventures of a Dakota Budman, by Sam McQuade, chronicles his life, from growing up Catholic, to his travels and adventures in France, to joining his father in the family beer business.

For South Dakota, while it is not a book per se, The Ramblin’ Guide to Rapid City, SD – From the Badlands to Rushmore!, by the Constant Rambler, is an excellent on-line read.  Not only does it feature great spots to stop for beer and food, it highlights local attractions throughout this area of South Dakota.

The most recently published in our list is from Nebraska, by Tyler A. Thomas, Nebraska Beer: Great Plains History by the Pint just came out this past October and chronicles the development of Nebraska’s beer scene from the 1800’s onward to the thriving craft movement of today.

So, when the spring weather turns cold and rainy, pick up your favorite beer and a good beer book for a long read in a cozy location!

Taproom Tidings

This weekend features a continuation of our Roasted Too Ale, an experimental brew the demonstrates how slight changes to a recipe can result in dramatic flavor changes.

Food options for this weekend include Signature on Wheels on Friday, March 11th and Soup Coupe on Saturday, March 12th.  Two days of deliciousness!

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Cranberry Shandy, Raj-Agni IPA & Roasted Too
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

This Saturday, March 12th, we are participating in the Wings & Brew Fest. Held at Treasure Island Resort and Casino and sponsored in part by KWNG, this festival features beer from over 40 breweries, and wings from area restaurants. The 99 Bottles of Beer raffle held during the festival benefits Gillette Children’s Hospital. We hope to see you there!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!