Monthly Archives: August 2012

August 30, 2012 · 4:45 pm

Harvest East End: Good weather, good wines, good memories

The scene at Harvest East End in Bridgehampton on Aug. 25, 2012.

All that’s left of Long Island’s Harvest East End wine and food event are memories. To be sure, good ones, the result of lovely weather, a roomy tent, delightful nibbles and, particularly, many good wines.

The Aug. 25 charity event, organized by the Long Island Wine Council and Merliance trade groups and held on the grounds of the Hampton Classic equestrian show in Bridgehampton, brought out 1,200 wine aficionados, and generated charitable proceeds of $42,000 for the Group for the East End, the East End Hospice and the Peconic Land Trust.

I suspect the crowd would’ve been even larger if ticket prices had not been geared to wine aficionados who luxuriate in the Hamptons. Tickets were priced at $150 for three hours of tasting and $250 for four hours, including VIP access to library wines Yes, I’m aware this was a fund raiser and for the participating wineries and local restaurants it never hurts to have deep-pocketed potential customers trying your wares. Full disclosure: as a member of the media I was admitted gratis.

With 39 wineries participating, the place – a tent the length of a football field — was awash in fine wine, including for me, some from producers I’d never before had a chance to sample, among them One Woman Wines & Vineyards and Reilly Cellars.

Among the most memorable wines, however, was one that won’t easily be found: Pellegrini 1997 Encore. Poured at the event’s library wine counter, this red blend produced by winemaker Russell Hearn was soft and velvety and as fresh and fruity as if it had been recently bottled. Simple proof that Long Island wines have the ability to age. The wine was listed with a price tag of $70.

Other enjoyable library wines included the lovely, soft Castello di Borghese 2007 Reserve Cabernet Franc ($44) and the lush One Woman Wine’s 2008 Estate Reserve Merlot ($48).

Mark Tobin, owner of Mattabella Vineyards, pours a sample.

Back around the tables, the Shinn Estate Vineyards 2009 Estate Merlot ($26) was a charmer and the just-released Reilly Cellars 2003 Merlot ($18), made by Jim Waters of Waters Crest Winery, showed plenty of fresh fruit nine years after harvest. The McCall Wines 2008 Merlot Reserve ($24) also was a winner among the reds. A trio of reds from Mattabella Vineyards, all merlot based blends, showed a soft, easy drinking style. They included the non-vintage Famiglia Red ($17), and Old World Blend from the 2007 ($35) and 2008 (#30) vintages. Another soft, easy drinking red, 2008 Red Label Lot #4 was offered by Peconic Bay Winery.

The Grapes of Roth 2010 Dry Riesling was a standout among the whites with notes of slate and lime (no price listed, but the 2009 is $22). Other whites of note, Palmer Vineyards‘ racy 2011 Albariňo ($25 for 500 ml) and the well balanced, refined Pellegrini 2011 Chardonnay ($19).

Sparkling Pointe owner Tom Rosicki and his Blanc de Noirs

I also enjoyed a terrific new sparkler, albeit one of limited production (235 cases), the 2008 Sparkling Pointe Blanc de Noirs ($75), an elegant blend of pinot noir and pinot meunier that showed notes of berries and nuts. Another good sparkler, The Old Field Vineyards 2005 Blanc de Noirs ($42), also was delightful with velvety cherry notes.

Among the dozens of dishes available for sampling, the North Carolina style pulled pork from Maple Tree BBQ of Riverhead was a standout among the gazpachos, shell fish, duck  and tomato concoctions offered by other purveyors. I also was quite taken with the usual twist on gazpacho – made with beets – from Brooklyn’s Mile End Delicatessen. Alas, chef James Merker did not serve his signature smoked meat, a Montreal version of Jewish-style pastrami.  Another unusual bite, fried, boneless duck tongues from First and South of Greenport.

Those involved in the big show, of course, were happy with the outcome.

“The venue, food, wine and organizations all worked together to deliver a delightful experience that really showcased the character and quality of the East End’s bounty and raised money for three worthy causes,” said Tom Matthews, executive editor of the Wine Spectator, the event’s presenting sponsor.

“Harvest continues to grow and achieve new heights for Long Island wine,” said event chair Roman Roth, who also is executive vice president of Merliance and vice president of the Long Island Wine Council. “It was a star-studded night with attendees like singer Shontelle, star chef Philippe Haddad and hometown heroes like WPPB’s Bonnie Grice, our mistress of ceremonies. We are thrilled that our local wines can attract such a world-class, wine-loving audience. And we’re proud to be able to raise funds for causes that help sustain our East End way of life.”

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August 28, 2012 · 10:19 am

Long Island wines, home brews will compete at Long Island’s ‘County Fair’

The Long Island Fair at Old Bethpage Village Restoration

Commercial wines from Long Island and homebrewed beers will be judged along side pies, pickles, guinea pigs and needlepoint this year at the annual Long Island Fair.

The fair, Sept. 27-30 at the Old Bethpage Restoration, is one of the oldest county fairs in the nation – the first was held in 1842. This year it will include a Long Island wine competition for the second time, and, for the first time, a home beer, mead and cider making competition. There also will be a competition for the best beer labels.

Long Island’s first homegrown commercial wine competition at last year’s fair didn’t get any entrants, because of the organizers’ failure to distribute information in a timely fashion, said Kerri Kiker, assistant fair manager. This year, she said, she hopes things will be different.

The Long Island Fair is the only county fair for Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties and is the official New York State fair for those counties. The Agricultural Society of Queens, Nassau & Suffolk Counties, one of the oldest agricultural societies in the United States, sponsors it.

Entry forms for the wine and beer contests are due by Aug. 31 and products must be delivered in person or via UPS from Sept. 17-24.  Forms and guidelines can be found in the fair’s Premium Book, which is available online.  ‘

‘The wine competition is open to commercial wines made on Long Island, said Kerri Kiker, assistant fair manager.  Wines will be judged by industry experts for presentation; color and clarity; bouquet, flavor, balance and quality. The first prizewinner will receive $150, second $100 and third, $50.

So far, no wines have been entered, said Lisa Loiopioci, the wine competition’s organizer. She cited the newness of contest and the current busy time at East End wineries as  factors. Nevertheless, She said organizers will be flexible about the entry deadline.

Wine competition entrants are limited to two entries per class: red dessert, white dessert fruit wines; pink wines, merlot, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon and white wines. Wines entered must be commercially available and bear government approved labels showing a New York State AVA. Four bottles of each entered wine must be dropped off or sent via UPS between Sept.17 -24 to the Old Bethpage Village Restoration.

For more information, phone the fair office on Mondays or Wednesdays at (516) 572-8406.

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August 25, 2012 · 2:45 pm

Croxley’s Smithtown location opens with 80 taps and something different

 

Croxley’s partners, from left: Ed Davis, Joe Mendolia, Chris Werleand Jeff Piciullo inside the new Smithtown location.

Croxley’s Ales, the mini chain of craft beer bars, has opened the doors to its fifth location in Smithtown, Long Island.

Started 20 years ago in Franklin Square, Long Island, with an English pub theme, Croxley’s owners have taken a slightly different direction at their newest location. They’ve devoted a draft tower to German brews. Currently on offer are Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest, WarsteinerLager, Warsteiner Dunkel Lager, Warsteiner Oktoberfest and Hacker Pschorr Dunkel Weiss. The German brews are served in half liter and full liter steins, the Weiss beer in a 23 oz. vase.

Beer tower featuring German brews at Croxley’s Smithtown

Moreover, the new Croxley’s is the only one in the group to offer German culinary specialties on the menu, including wursts, sauerbraten, Wiener schnitzel, kessler ripchen, potato pancakes and a pretzel imported from Bavaria.

Behind the Teutonic accent is the newest Croxley’s outdoor beer garden, which is awaiting permitting and completion, co-owner Chris Werle told me as he watched over the filled-to-capacity bar and dining room on Friday night. Tables to be installed in the beer garden formerly were used by Paulaner in the brewery’s Oktoberfest tent in Munich.

The newest Croxley’s opened with little fanfare on Aug. 17. Just a week later patrons faced an hour’s wait to secure a table. The location seats 120.

The bar scene at new Croxley’s in Smithtown

To be sure, not all the draft beers are German. In fact, Werle said, they expect to devote 15 taps to beers from Long Island, from Brooklyn to Montauk.  Currently on tap are brews from Blue Point, Barrier, Long Ireland, Port Jeff, Greenport Harbor, Brooklyn and Sixpoint.

Croxley’s Smithtown came about at the behest of Suffolk County customers who patronized their bars in Nassau County and a query from the owner of Arthur Avenue, the Smithtown bar that Croxley’s replaced, about their interest in the site, Werle said. “It’s a great spot,” he noted.

The bar, tucked into a slope on the north side of West Main Street, adjacent to the railroad trestle, is not easy to spot. The only sign, for now, is one of vinyl facing west.

Meanwhile, there’s more going on in the Croxley group.  The Manhattan outpost, at 28 Ave. B, soon will double in size with addition of a neighboring building. And construction is underway at a sixth site, 63 Grand St., in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

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August 20, 2012 · 9:47 am

Long Island’s biggest wine fest Aug. 25 at Hampton Classic, Bridgehampton

The scene at last year’s Harvest East End

Long Island’s biggest wine bash gets underway in just a few days.

Harvest East End, a tasting festival featuring 39 Long Island wineries and almost as many restaurants and food marketers, takes place in Bridgehampton on Aug. 25, the eve of the Hampton Classic horse show.

This is Harvest East End’s third annual festival, a fund raiser for three local charities, East End Hospice, Group for the East End and the Peconic Land Trust, and the first to tie into the Hampton Classic.

“Harvest is shaping up fantastically,” said Roman Roth, technical

director at Wölffer Estate Vineyards and chairman of Harvest East End. “It’s the height of the summer [in the Hamptons] … It will be a full house.”

 

Tickets, $150 each, have been selling briskly and $250 VIP tickets, which provide attendees with an extra hour of tasting and access to library wines, are already sold out.

Roman Roth at 2011 Harvest East End

Last year, the event, put on by Merliance and the Long island Wine Council, both trade groups, attracted 1,000 wine aficionados, half of them attending only the festival. (A gala dinner followed last year, but is not part of this year’s program.) Merliance executive director Donnell Brown Stires said the sponsors are anticipating 1,200 attendees this year.

The lineup of culinary offerings, an array of locally sourced produce, meat, fish and fowl, includes treats from many of the top toques on the East End, including Tom Schaudel of A Mano Osteria,  Mattituck; Noah Schwartz of Noah’s, Greenport; Kevin Penner of Cittanuova, East Hampton; Keith Luce of Luce & Hawkins, Jamesport; and Starr Boggs, among others. They’ll be duck, tomatoes, tuna and lobster in many guises, as well as cheeses and sweets.

Among the 39 participating wine producers (only two East End wineries, Paumanok Vineyards and Lenz Winery, are not participating because they’re not members of the Long Island Wine Council) are numerous well-established producers as well as a few new ones. Award winning bottles, new releases and barrel samples will be among the approximately 200 wines available for tasting.

The wineries and restaurants participating do so on the expectation that people who taste the wines and foods will follow up with visits to the various wineries and eateries.

There’ll be more than wine and food under the big tent. The sponsors will be selling tickets to a luxury raffle. Prizes include three nights in Barbados, a selection of 19 Long Island wines in magnums and two tickets to one of three 2013 Wine Spectator Grand Tour tastings. There will also be a silent auction. Lots will include hands-on wine and food experiences, golf, and even yodeling lessons from Roth.

There’s more. In the several weekends following the event, Harvest will sponsor a series of invitation-only “10 Mile Dinners” in private homes, wineries and gardens, each limited to 10 guests. Two of the dinners already are sold out.  Invitations to the dinners, which feature foods and wine sourced from a 10-mile radius, can be requested by email.

 

 

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August 16, 2012 · 11:57 am

A Widmer beer dinner: 4 beers, 4 courses, $40

Four courses, four Widmer Brothers beers, $40.

Lobster hot dog

Buffalo chicken wing cakes

It was an irresistible deal: the latest monthly themed drinking and dining event at The Good Life gastro pub in Long Island’s Massapequa Park. The kitchen showed flair with the inventive fare served to an Aug. 14 sell-out crowd over 2 1/2 hours while Jeremy Kieffer, a brewery representative of the Portland, Ore.-based Craft Brew Alliance introduced each of the four unusual Widmer beers that were served on draft.

The Craft Brew Alliance is an amalgam of Widmer, Red Hook Ale Brewery, Kona Brewing and Goose Island that is publicly traded and almost a third owned by Anheuser-Busch Interbev. The beers are sold through Budweiser distributors.

Marionberry Hibiscus Gose

Shaddock IPA

Up next was the misnamed Widmer W’12 Dark Saison. More of an Abbey-style single with its amber hue, candy-sugar notes and fruity esters than a Belgian farmhouse ale, Kieffer suggested that marketers and brewers weren’t quite on the same page. Still, a nice beer. And a good foil for our next course, a meatloaf with added Gruyere cheese and wild mushrooms, a tomato-molasses glaze and crunchy deep-fried pearl onions.

W12 Dark Saison

Raspberry Russian Imperial Stout

For round two, we received Widmer Shaddock IPA, a limited release brew with a powerful grapefruit nose, the result of a blend of alchemy and citra hops as well as grapefruit peel. It’s named for the sea captain who introduce grapefruit to the West Indies. Big-time bitter and a sourish finish, it needed more malt for balance. Even so, it paired nicely with The Good Life’s reconstructed Buffalo chicken wings, in which wings were braised, the meat deboned and shredded, blended with hot sauce and served with blue cheese foam, watermelon, carrots and celery.  A delight.

Fried bread pudding

Meatloaf

Alas, the grand finale was not so grand. Our beer, Widmer Raspberry Russian Imperial Stout 12 was alcoholic (9.3% abv) and as bitter as Turkish coffee so that whatever raspberry flavor might have been there was obscured. Alas, dessert, fried bread pudding, read better on the menu that it tasted. Crusted with crushed almonds and cornflake crumbs and served with thin slices of grilled peaches and a dash of chocolate ganache, it consisted of dry triangles resembling French toast. Not enough sweetness here, and certainly not enough to balance the bitterness of the beer.

Be that as it may, Good Life owners Peter Mangouranes and Paul and Anthony Oliva and their staff get an A for effort and their inventiveness.  I can’t wait till next month, when the Good Life dinner will feature the beers of Bavaria’s Weihenstephan, including some previously never available beers brewed by students at the nearby Weihenstephan Science Center at the Technical University of Munich. Hey Pete, please hold a seat for me!

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August 14, 2012 · 1:15 pm

Luc “Bobo” Van Mechelen: The face of Chimay in the United States

Chimay brand ambassador Luc “Bobo” Van Mechelen at New York City’s the Beer Authority

For many beer-loving Americans, Luc “Bobo” Van Mechelen is the face of Chimay, the celebrated Belgian Trappist beer.

It’s a cheery face, covered by a full, largely gray beard and accented by tortoise-shell eyeglasses over twinkling eyes.

Belgian by birth and wide of girth, Van Mechelen, is the U.S. brand ambassador for Chimay, the best known of seven breweries worldwide that produce Trappist beers.  Chimay’s beers are produced by the Cistercian Trappist monks at Chimay, a monastery also known as Notre-Dame de Scourmont near the French border in Belgium’s Ardennes region. Chimay was the first of the Trappists to brew commercially, according to the late Michael Jackson, a British beer writer and author of “The Great Beers of Belgium.”

Van Mechelen’s official title is special projects and regional sales manager of Manneken-Brussels Imports, the Austin, Texas-based U.S. importer of Chimay his job is to promote the brand through his travels around the U.S. Recently, he stopped by the Beer Authority in New York City to mark the brewers’ 150th anniversary.

Born in Leuven, some 20 miles east of Brussels, it seems, he says, he was born to beer. Leuven is Belgium’s uncontested beer capital. Its first breweries were established in the 15th Century, about the same time as the city’s Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, home to Belgium’s well-known brewing school. “If you wanted to be a brewer you went to Leuven,” says Van Mechelen. The city also is the world headquarters of Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s largest beer company.

Van Mechelen ties to beer are strong. His family owned a pub on the city’s main street for more than a century.  Before coming to the U.S. in 1979, he worked for his grandfather at the bar and also sold Lindt chocolates to pastry makers and bakeries.

As a younger man in Leuven, he got to know two American students who studied in Brussels and partied in Leuven:  Bob Leggett and Lanny Hoff. After their return to the U.S. in 1978, the two Americans established a company to import Chimay, Manneken-Brussels.

It was 1979 when Van Mechelen decided to seek his fortune in the U.S. He looked up his old friends in Austin and decided to stay. He opened a Belgian-style café and bistro called Gambrinus, which he operated until 1990, when he started working with Belgian brewer Pierre Celis (of Hoegaarden fame) on a microbrewery project in Austin. In 2000, Miller Brewing bought Celis Brewing, closed the Austin brewery and sold the brand to a Michigan brewer. Subsequently, Van Mechelen joined his friends at Manneken-Brussels and in 2005, when Chimay took complete ownership of the company he was asked to stay on.

As brand ambassador for Chimay, Van Mechelen’s life is spent largely on the road and on his feet. On average, he says he spends four days a week traveling on behalf of the importer.  He does, however, take four or five weeks off a year, occasionally returning to Belgium.

He carries a pedometer.  New York “is a hard city,” he says.  “Yesterday I walked 7½ miles. Today, I walked 6½ miles.” He complains climbing the stairs at the Beer Authority that all the walking has taken a toll on his knees, but he confesses that the problem is due to his weight.

Van Mechelen’s efforts to promote Belgian beer have resulted in his being knighted by the Chevalerie du Forquet des Brasseurs, the Belgian Brewers Union. The recognition seems well earned. Chimay has never had a down year in the U.S., even during the economic crisis of 2008-2009, Van Mechelen says.  Last year, he said, sales rose 11 percent. “We only sell 380,000 cases of Chimay in the U.S. Not bad for a monastery,” he says, noting that the figure represents a third of the brewery’s annual production.

And selling Chimay, he says, keeps him happy – and alive. “I’ve always been a salesman. Put me in an office and I’ll be dead in a week.”

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August 7, 2012 · 5:03 pm

Champion English beers add some ‘flavour’ to Olympics viewing

I’ve been catching the Olympics games from my home, not London, but I’ve added a bit of across-the-pond flavor as I sipped some British brews each night as I watched Michael Phelps and Gabby Davis go for the gold.

Inspired by my beer-writing colleague John Holl, who wrote about British brewers recently in his Beer Briefing blog, I stocked up with a number of classic English ales for the games.

I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed these traditional brews with their biscuity malt, fruity esters, gentle bitterness and, on occasion chocolaty notes. Indeed, when the craft brewing scene in America was emerging almost a generation ago, many of us cut our teeth, so to speak, on the likes of Young’s, Samuel Smith, Fuller’s and Bass.  Alas, Bass is now produced in a Budweiser brewery near Syracuse, NY, and is a shadow of its former self.  And while there’s been consolidation over the years in the British brewing industry that has resulted in brewery closures and labels changing hands, there are still many fine beers being exported to the colonies.

In my search for Olympic brews, I had hoped to snag some British beer champions. Each year, the Campaign for Real Ale, a consumer group advocating for traditional ales, selects a Champion Beer if Britain at its annual Great British Beer Festival.  (This year, the festival gets underway on Aug. 13-17.) The beers judged champions usually are strictly draft – or is it drought – beers.  But some do get bottled.

I had hoped to find an old favorite, Coniston Blue Bird Bitter, the 1998 champion, which I first had on draft at New York’s Gingerman, and later in bottle. Unfortunately, it appears to have vanished from these shores.

Triple XB (XXXB), a classic English bitter from a Lincolnshire brewery that’s been around since 1874. It’s is a hazy amber brew with aromas of malt, hop resins and wine and a palate bursting with notes of biscuits, yeast and dried fruit leading up to a spectacular earthy, malty finish.

One of my biggest surprises was a realization of how much I missed Fuller’s ESB, or Extra Special Bitter, a genuine classic with its golden/copper hue, firm head, malty/biscuity nose with its crisp palate punctuate with notes of fruit and caramel all in perfect balance.  The beer took top GBBF honors in 1978, 1981 and 1985.

I also was able to find a bottle of Summer Lightning, a 2001 silver-medal winner, from the relatively young Hopback Brewery of Salisbury, England (founded 1986). This golden ale, almost reminiscent of a pilsner, albeit a tad hazy, offers a hoppy aroma and palate, which also exhibits sweet malt. It finishes crisp and dry. Not a typical English ale.

Robinson’s Old Tom, at 8.5% abv, is what’s known as an English Strong Ale. Named by CAMRA as Supreme Champion Winter Beer of Britain three times, it has a deep copper in color with a dense tan head. This Manchester brewed beer has a rich sweet nose followed by a mouthful of silky malt with flavors of fruit, chocolate and treacle and a pleasant dry finish.

Some of the beers I sampled, though not festival champs, were absolutely terrific.

The copper-hued Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery Pale Ale was an enjoyable classic brew with its firm tan head, malty nose and a smooth mouthful of malt, fruit and toffee balanced with a touch of resin.

Also quote good was a deep-russet colored Theakston’s Old Peculier, with caramel and fruit in the nose and treacle, dried fruit and winey notes in the palace.  Soft, round its finished nicely dry.

Burton Bridge Brewing’s Empire India Pale Ale also proved to be a winner.  This hazy amber beer, from a brewery established in 1982 in what was then the home of Bass, Marston and Boddington’s, among others, has a dense rocky head, grassy hops and malt on the nose. On the palate, there are notes of caramel and raisins. It’s nicely bittered for a lip-smacking finish.

JW Lee’s Manchester Star Ale, a strong hoppy porter based on an 1884 recipe revived in 2002, reminded me a bit of Oloroso sherry. Dark brown and opaque with a cocoa-hued head and great lace this brew had a huge malty nose and on the plate notes of molasses, chocolate and raisins on the palate. There were hints of alcohol, no surprise for a 7.3% abv brew and a bittersweet finish.

Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout, another favorite years ago, remains just as enjoyable today. Ebony brown with aromas of roasted grain, chocolate and raises and oily chocolaty palate that culminated in an outstanding bittersweet finish.

Young’s Double Chocolate Stout, from a brewery that started in 1533, provided a taste of another style, milk stout. Opaque and with a tan rocky head it offers a nose of roasty chocolate nose and rich chocolate espresso character on a silky palate.  Young’s original Ram Brewery was shuttered in 2007 for development of its valuable property and its brewing operations were combined with those of Charles Wells.

There are many more English beers that remain untried and the Olympics still have almost a week left.  So there’s time for more. Hope you’ll raise a mug to Old England. Cheers!

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August 1, 2012 · 1:13 pm

Sweetwater Brewing wins top honors in US Open Beer Championships

Sweetwater Brewing of Atlanta was named Grand National Champion at the 2012 U.S. Open Beer Championships  in Atlanta.

Sweetwater received the title by winning three gold, three silver, and a bronze meda at the competition, which was sponsored by  Beer Connoisseur Magazine and BeerInfo.com.  Boston Beer Co., makers of Samuel Adams, took second place honors, and last year’s winner, Deschutes Brewery of Bend, Ore., took third.

For the first time in the competiton’s three years, a group of home-brewers won a gold medal. The winning group, which took honors in the barley wine category, included Michael Habrat, Chris Bartik, Brett Goldstock, and Suzy Pessutti. all of San Diego

“This competition is significant because it accepts entries from breweries around the world and allows national winning home-brews to compete,”  Dow Scoggins, director of the championships., said in announcement.

The competition included professional breweries and award-winning home-brewers. More than 1,650 beers in 65 categories were judged.

The list of top winners included Ontario, Canada’s Niagara College Teaching Brewery, which finished 6th, winning 2 golds and 2 silvers. The brewery also sells its ales and lagers through local  stores and restaurants. This year, more than 20 international breweries competed. Breweries from Canada, Belgium, Iceland, Germany, Mexico, and England medaled.

Competing beers were judged in 65 different beer style categories. In addition to beer style awards, prizes also were awarded in such categories as organic beer, gluten-free beer, session beer and root beer.

This year’s judges were from England, Canada and the United States.

The top 10 breweries based on the number of beers placing first (3 points), second (2 points) or third (1 point) were:

1. Sweetwater Brewing, Atlanta, Ga.

2. Boston Beer Co.,  Boston, Mass.

3. Deschutes Brewery, Bend, Ore.

4. Cigar City Brewing, Tampa, Fla.

5. Black Tooth Brewing, Sheridan, Wyo.

6. Niagara College, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

7. Full Sail Brewing, Hood River, Ore.

8. Sprecher Brewing, Glendale, Wisc.

9. Morgan Street Brewing, St. Louis, Mo.

10. Maui Brewing,  Lahaina, Hawaii

Judge’s Awards for the top 10 most creative beer names also were presented.  The winning names were:

1. Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale

2. Bolshevik Bastard Imperial Stout

3. Drafty Kilt Scotch Ale

4. When Helles Freezes Over Munchner Helles

5. Nude Beach Summer Wheat

6. Phlux Capacitor Strong Ale

7. Smokey the Bear Rauch

8. Honey, I can explain Ale

9. Hazed & Infused Dry Hopped Ale

10. Rudolph’s Red Nose Barley Wine

Below you’ll find the complete list of winners (without the spelling errors we found in the press release) and links to each of the winners:

2012 United States Open Medal Winners  

Golden or Blonde ale 

Gold: Metolius River Yellow Sally Blonde Ale, World Brews
Silver: Sweetwater 420, Sweetwater Brewing
Bronze: Golden Feather Extra Pale Ale, Feather Falls Casino Brewing

English Summer Ale
Gold: Twilight Ale, Deschutes Brewery
Silver: First Draft Ale, Niagara College
Silver: Sisters of the Moon, Mother Earth Brewing

English Pale Ale
Gold: Hurricane Reef Pale Ale, Florida Beer Co.
Silver: Schooner Pale Ale, Port Jeff Brewing Co.
Bronze: Hooligan English Pale Ale, Sprecher Brewing

IPA
Gold: Inversion IPA – Deschutes Brewery
Silver Full Sail IPA, Full Sail Brewing
Bronze: Naughty Native IPA, Feather Falls Casino Brewing
Bronze: Buzzsaw IPA, Arbor Brewing

Imperial IPA
Gold: Humulo Nimbus, Sound Brewery
Silver:  Hopasaurs Rex, Steelhead Brewing
Bronze: Pugsley’s Signature Series XXXX, Shipyard Brewing
Bronze: Incredible Hop Imperial IPA, Fort Collins Brewery

Bitter
Gold: Butler’s Bitter, Niagara College
Silver: Arkell Best Bitter, Wellington County Brewing
Bronze: Neustadt Bitter, Neustadt Brewing

ESB
Gold: Bitch Creek ESB, Grand Teton Brewing
Silver: Stone Pale Ale, Stone Brewing
Bronze: Crown Jewels ESB, David Motter (homebrewer)

English Mild Ale
Gold: Taps Mild Ale, Tapps Brewing
Silver: Bear Ass Brown, Silverton Brewing
Bronze: Original, Box Car Brewing

English Brown Ale
Gold: Samuel Adams Hazel Brown, Boston Beer Co.
Silver: Tilburg’s Dutch Brown, Konlingshoeven
Bronze: Saddle Bronc Brown, Black Tooth Brewing

Porter
Gold: LoneRider DeadEye Jack, LoneRider Brewing
Silver: Exodus Porter, Sweetwater Brewing
Bronze: Black Butte Porter, Deschutes Brewery

Stout
Gold: Stumpy Ridge Stout, Black Tooth Brewing
Silver: Happy Ending, Sweetwater Brewing
Bronze: Jefferson Stout, Lazy Magnolia Brewing

Oatmeal Stout
Gold: Buffalo Sweat Stout, Tallgrass Brewing
Silver: Alaskan Stout, Alaskan Brewing Co.
Bronze: Young’s Oatmeal Stout, Wells & Young’s Ltd.

Imperial Stout
Gold: Stone Imperial Russian Stout, Stone Brewing
Silver: Arcadia Imperial Stout, Arcadia Brewing
Bronze: Bolshevik Bastard Imperial Stout, Nickel Brook Beers

Old Ale
Gold: Sweetwater 15, Sweetwater Brewing
Silver: Iron Duke, Wellington County Brewing
Bronze: Fuller’s Vintage Ale, Fuller Smith & Turner

Barley Wine
Gold: Nevral Rust – Michael Habrat, Chris Bartik, Brett Goldstock, Suzy Pessutti (homebrewers)
Silver: Church on a Hill, Cigar City Brewing
Bronze: Cerial Killer, Arcadia Brewing

Scottish Ale
Gold: Bomber Mountain Amber, Black Tooth Brewing
Silver:Wee Heavy, Maui Brewing
Bronze:  Scottish Pale Ale, Neustadt Brewing

Strong Scottish Ale
Gold: Loch Down, Arcadia Brewing
Silver: Old Chub Scotch Ale, Oskar Blues
Bronze: Harvest Ale, 16 Mile Brewing

Irish Red Ale
Gold: Samuel Adams Irish Red Ale. Boston Beer Co.
SIilver: Grizzly Red, Big Bear Brewing
Bronze: Irish Red Ale, Four Horsemen Brewing

American Amber / Red
Gold: Epicenter Amber, San Tan Brewing
Silver: Red Banshee, Fort Collins Brewery
Bronze: Kentucky Ale, Alltech Lexington Brewing
Bronze: Metolius Amber Ale, World Brews

American Pale Ale
Gold: Roadside Pale Ale, Mother Road Brewing
Silver: Sweatgrass APA, Grand Teton Brewing
Bronze: Devils Ale, San Tan Brewing

American IPA
Gold: Sweetwater IPA, Sweetwater Brewing
Silver: Bootjack IPA , Icicle Brewing
Bronze: Deviant Dale’s IPA, Oskar Blues Brewing

American Brown Ale
Gold: Fresh Sticky Nogs, Sweetwater Brewing
Silver: Savannah Brown, Coastal Empire Brewing
Bronze: 10W30 Brown Ale, Neustadt Brewing
Bronze: Flashback India Brown Ale, Boulder Beer Co.

German Alt
Gold: Samuel Adams Boston Ale, Boston Beer Co.
Silver: Alt, Kent Shultz (homebrewer)
Bronze: Frankenheim Alt, Privatbrauerei Frankenheim

German Kolsch
Gold: Polar Light, Big Bear Brewing
Silver: Kentucky Light, Alltech Lexington Brewing
Bronze: Khos Kolsch, Icicle Brewing

German Wheat
Gold: Tucher Kristall Weizen, Tucher Brau
Silver: Bayern Dragon’s Breath, Bayern Brewing
Bronze: Bayern Face Plant, Bayern Brewing

German Hefeweizen
Gold: EOS Hefeweizen – Nebraska Brewing
Silver: Ayinger Ur-Weisse, Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkammer KG / Brauerei Aying
Bronze: Shell’s Hefeweizen, August Schell Brewing

French / Belgian Saison Ale
Gold: Red Hare Saison, Red Hare Brewing
Silver: Raspberry Saison, Stevens Point Brewing
Bronze:  Golden Cap, New Holland Brewing

French / Belgian Ale
Gold: St. Feuillian Tripple, Brasserie St. Feuillien
Silver: Tripel Karmeliet, Brouwerij Bosteels
Bronze: La Trappe Tripl, Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven

Belgian Abbey Ale
Gold: Belgian Tripel, Sound Brewing
Silver: Belle Star, Lone Rider Brewing
Bronze: Velvet Rooster, Tallgrass Brewing

Belgian Lambic
Gold: The Dissident, Deschutes Brewery
Silver: Samuel Adams American Kriek, Boston Beer Co.
Bronze: Sprecher Kriek Lambic, Sprecher Brewing Co.

Belgian Witbier
Gold: Witty, Chameleon Brewing
Silver: La Perouse White, Maui Brewing
Bronze: Fu Man Brew, Monday Night Brewing

American Light
Gold: Kraftig Light, William K. Busch Brewing
Silver: Schell Light- August Schell Brewing
Bronze: Evans Light Lager, Evans Brewing Co.

American Lager / Pilsener
Gold: Bruce County Lager, Neustadt Brewing
Silver: Cable Car Lager,World Brews
Bronze: Tiger Crystal, Tiger Brewing

American Premium Lager
Gold: Session Premium Lager, Full Sail Brewing
Silver: Special Lager, Stevens Point Brewing
Bronze: Evans Original Lager, Evans Brewing

American Amber/California Common
Gold: Southern Lager, FullSteam Brewing
Silver: Firebrick, August Schell Brewing
Bronze: Winter Skål, Capital Brewery

Bohemian Pilsener
Gold: Golden Pilsner, Morgan Street
Silver: Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Boston Beer Co.
Bronze: Red Hook Pilsner, Red Hook Brewing

Geman Lager / Pilsener
Gold: Cameron’s Lager,  Cameron’s Brewing Co.
Silver: Soaring Eagle Pilsner – Feathers Falls Casino Brewing
Bronze: Bayern Pilsner, Bayern Brewing

Munchner Helles
Gold: Helenboch Beer, Niagara College
Silver: When Helles Freezes Over. Morgan Street Brewing
Bronze: Full Sail LTD 3, Full Sail Brewing

Munchner Dunkel / Dark
Gold: -Session Black Permium Dark Lager, Full Sail Brewing
Silver: Capital Dark, Capital Breweing
Bronze: Winter Brew, Sprecher Brewing

Marzen / Oktoberfest
Gold: Dirty Face Amber, Icicle Brewing
Silver:  Samuel Adams Octoberfest, Boston Beer Company
Bronze:  Point Octoberfest, Stevens Point Brewing

Schwarzbier
Gold: Black Bavarian, Sprecher Brewing
Silver: B3K, Wynkoop Brewing
Bronze: Land Ho!, Heavy Seas Brewing
BronzeL Ligero, Cigar City Brewing

Bock
Gold: Bayern Maibock, Bayern Brewing
Silver: Capital Mai Bock, Capital Brewery
Bronze: Bucking Bock, Rahr & Sons Brewing

Dopple / Strong Bock
Gold: Sprecher Dopple Bock, Sprecher Brewing
Silver: Regulator,  Rahr & Sons Brewing
Bronze:  Deviator, Cameron’s Brewing

American Cream Ale
Gold: Cameron’s Cream Ale, Cameron’s Brewing
Silver: El Toro Cream Ale, Fullsteam Brewing
Bronze: Hop Cream , Capital Brewery

American Wheat
Gold: Honey Wheat Lager, Morgan Street brewing
Silver:  Indian Summer, Lazy Magnolia Brewing
Bronze: White Water Wheat, Grand Canyon Brewing

American Specialty Wheat
Gold: Tallgrass Halcyon, Tallgrass Brewing
Silver: Haystack Wheat, Left Hand Brewing
Bronze:  Circus Boy, Magic Hat Brewing

Fruit / Vegetable beer
Gold: Samuel Smith’s Apricot Ale, Samuel Smith’s Brewing
Silver:  Sobre Humano Palena’ole – Maui Brewing/Jolly Pumpkin
Bronze: Mandarin Gold, Big Island Brewhaus
Bronze: Spring IPA with Kumquats, Fullsteam Brewing

Herb and Spice beer
Gold: Yule 2011, La Cervecería Calavera
Silver: Coconut Porter, Maui Brewing
Bronze: Fire Side Chat, 21st Amendment Brewing
Bronze: White Mountain Porter,  Big Island Brewhaus

Chocolate / Cocoa Beer
Gold: Honahpu’s Impertial Stout, Cigar City Brewing
Silver: Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock, Boston Beer Co.
Bronze: Banana Split Chocolate Stout, Thomas Creek Brewery

Coffee Beer
Gold: Big Shot Espresso Stout, Twisted Pine Brewing
Silver: Espresso Porter, South Street Brewing
Bronze: Drip Dry Coffee Stout, Maui Brewing

Baltic Porter
Gold: Kalevipoeg Baltic Porter, Cigar City Brewing
Silver: Black Eagle Porter,  Black Tooth Brewing
Bronze: Big George, Icicle Brewing

Rye/Roggen
Gold: Rich and Dan’s Rye IPA, Harpoon Brewing
Silver: Rye Pale Ale – South Street Brewing
Bronze: Emerald Rye ,August Shell Brewing

Wood / Barrel aged beer
Gold: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale, Alltech Lexington Brewing
Silver: Innis & Gunn Original, Innis & Gunn
Bronze: Barrel Aged Porter, Port Jeff Brewing

Wood / Barrel aged strong beer
Gold: Utopias 2011, Boston Beer Co.
Silver: Bertwell Barrel Aged Barley Wine, Niagara College
Bronze: 2010 Old Guardian Barley Wine, Stone Brewing

Smoked / Rauch beer
Gold: Lava Smoked Imperial Stout, Olvisholt Brugghus
Silver: Samuel Adams Cinder Block ,Boston Beer Co.
BronzeL Smokey the Bear, Big Bear Brewing

Specialty / Anything Goes
Gold:  Honey, I Can Explain,South Street Brewing
Silver:  Golden Sabbath – Big Island Brewing
Bronze: Allies Win the War, 21st Amendment Brewing
BronzeL Leviathan Red Squared, Harpoon Brewing

Out of Bounds Pale Ale
Gold: Silverback Pale Ale, Wynkoop Brewing
Silver: Headstock IPA, Nickel Brook Beers
BronzeL Indian Paintbrush Ale, Black Tooth Brewing

Best of Show Organic
Gold: Foret Organic, Brasserie Dupont
Silver: Baba, Uinta Brewing
Bronze: OB1, Snake River Brewing
Bronze: Steemer Summer, Orlando Brewing

Gluten Free
Gold: Brunehaut Amber, Brunehaut Brewing
Silver: Brunehaut Blond, Brunehaut Brewing
Bronze: Gluten Free,  Nickel Brook Beers

Experimental
Gold: Orange Avenue Wit, Coronado Brewing
Silver: Chocolate Orange IPA,Thomas Creek Brewing
Bronze: Anniversay Ale, Terrapin Beer Co.

Session Beer
Gold: Bitter American, 21st Amendment Brewing
Silver: Easy Rider,Terrapin Beer Co.
Bronze: Samuel Adams Belgian Session Ale, Boston Beer Co.

American Black Ale
Gold: Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale, Stone Brewing
Silver: Back in Black, 21st Amendment
Bronze: Hop in the Dark, Deschutes Brewery
Bronze: Dubhe, Uinta Brewing

Baltic Porter
Gold: Kalevipoeg Porter, Cigar City Brewing
Silver:  Black Eagle Porter, Black Tooth Brewing
Bronze: Big George, Icicle Brewing

Wood Barrel Aged Sour
Gold: Window Pane Blackberry, Mother Earth Brewing
Silver: Framboozled, Arbor Brewing
Bronze:  Samuel Adams Stony Brook Red, Boston Beer Co.

Wood Barrel Imperial Stout
Gold: Love Craft Beer, Cervecería Calavera
Silver: Dragon’s Milk – New Holland Brewing
Bronze: Black Betty Imperial Stout – Nebraska Brewing
Bronze: Silent Night Imperial Stout – Mother Earth Brewing

Root Beer

Gold: Saranac Root Beer, F.X. Matt Brewing

Silver: Mount Angel Root Beer, Mt. Angel Brewing

Bronze: Permium Root Beer, Stevens Point Brewing

Bronze Steelhead Root beer,  Steelhead Brewing

 

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