Delaware Visit

Nov.2-4 was Parents Weekend at the University of Delaware where my daughter Bryce is a freshman majoring in Women's Studies. Audrey and I left Friday morning with our first stop the Dogfish Head Brewery in Milton, Delaware. Not being on expert on Delaware geography I mapquested the trip; when it came up 4 hours from my Brooklyn home it seemed impossible. Delaware is not a large state in area but i had made a miscalculation. Since i'm used to going to Florida et al via Delaware and just visiting my daughter at Newark, I forgot about the rest of the state leading to its' beaches(Rehoboth being the most well known). When we crossed into Delaware from NJ we realized we would have to step up our pace to make the 3:00 brewery tour. The main road Delaware 1 was fortunately a 65 MPH expressway through the capital Dover and we were able to go 80 MPH in spots arriving at 2:58. The tour people were friendly and engaging and stalled at the beginning waiting for stragglers before taking us around the place. It was a matter of fact tour viewing all the equipment; the amount of growth at this brewery founded in 1995 is astonishing. Some of its' earliest brewing apparatus has been cast off making way for a modern microbrewery with unlimited potential. Following a question and answer session by the bottling plant, our group of approx. 100 descended on the tap area to quaff some of their fine products.

The 1st selection was its' flagship brew 60 Minute IPA. It had a citrusy hop character and was typical of East Coast IPA's(6%ABV).

The 2nd selection was Pangaea a spicy ale made with crystalized ginger and other unique ingredients(7%ABV).

The 3rd selection was 90 Minute IPA. This was more of an Imperial IPA with 9%ABV a malty character supporting its extreme hoppiness.

The last selection was a major disappointment to me. It was Worldwide Stout with an 18%ABV. Touted as the world's strongest stout it was too sweet by my standards.

We then drove to UDel located in Newark about an hour and a half drive. Day 2 of the Suds tour was Saturday evening at the Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant in downtown Newark. Audrey began with her favorite seasonal Pumpkin Ale. I chose to have a Sampler for $6 which includes eveything they are brewing at this time. Expecting the 4 regular beers on their menu and 2 seasonals, I was shocked to get 9 selections put in front of me. With 4 ozs. of each i would have plenty to determine how they stacked up.
Iron Hill Light Lager- Not unique but not objectionable-"a girlie beer"
Anvil Ale-A British type copper colored ale hopped with English hops-it was my second favorite having good hop character and an enchanting taste.
Lodestone Lager-I will elevate this a bit over standard lagers.
Ironbound Ale-This pale ale hopped with 4 American hop varieties was by far my favorite. The hoppiness combined with the easy drinkability made this a fine example of a an American pale ale.
Pig Iron Porter-My least liked beer of the 9 i found this porter to lack consistent taste. The description says well-balanced bitterness and i must beg to differ.
Raspberry Wheat- Very good example of this type.
Pumpkin Ale- My wife preferred the Pumpkin Ale brewed by Heartland Brewery in NYC but she thought it was quite good. I enjoyed it as well.
Alt- I truly enjoyed it. The final bonus selection was worth waiting for.
It was a cask conditioned version of the Pig Iron Porter. Some of the roughness of the porter was smoothed out-it was very good indeed. Our evening was concluded over a leisurely dinner among family. All in all Delaware beer consuption weekend a big success.
I also drove across into Pennsylvania acquiring a case of Vermont's Magic Hat Hocus Pocus.

Winter Stoutfest & Tasting 12/20/07
Awaiting our delivery of sparkling wine from Manhattan I developed a thirst for a beer tasting. Stouts are generally among the hardest to get a group to rate so the Beer Baron springs into action. 2 Domestic Stouts from the Northeast will go head to head.

Here goes:
Sam Adams Cream
Color-Dark brown/ yellow tinge Nose-Molasses First taste-Back throat Fizziness-Slight head; bubbles Where brewed? Boston, Mass.
Observations-Adequate smoothness Cost-$1.00 Aftertaste-Slight Rating-6.75

Saranac Oatmeal
Color-Dark brown/ red hue Nose-Clean First Taste-Intense Fizziness-Frothy head; bubbles Where brewed? Utica, NY
Observations-Robust even keel Cost-96 cents Aftertaste-Long lasting positive Rating-7.50

FINAL THOUGHTS: Cream seems to signify smoothness which it attains; Oatmeal creates stronger lasting taste!!!