Ein, Zwei, Drei! Ok2berfest!

I had a rockin' good time at Two Roads' first Ok2berfest. There was music, food and beer - lots of beer. There were männer in lederhosen, frauen in dirndl and others in facsimiles thereof.

It wasn't hard to decide where to start, of course. The first thing I did when I got there was a grab a beer.  And then it was off to grab a pulled pork sandwich made with the happy pigs who fed off the spent grains from the brewery.  That was some mighty fine pork! There were loads of other food vendors, but there's only so much food you can eat when there's so much beer to drink!





The head brewer, Phil Markowski, brewed up two beers for the festival - Ein and Zwei.

I got the opportunity to speak briefly with Phil to congratulate him on making some mighty fine brews. I also chatted with Two Roads partners, Clem Pellani and Brad Hittle, to compliment them on the success of the festival.

In fact, I was in the middle of a conversation Brad when he asked which beer I was drinking. When I said I was drinking a Drei he was like, "Wait! What?" I don't think I got through the whole explanation before he turned tail and took off to get himself one of these marvelous concoctions.  Yeah, it was nice talking to you Brad! Tee hee.

It's all good. It's all about the beer. I understand these things.

I also took the time to talk to a several of the brewery staffers and a few of the festival goers to get their opinions of the Ok2berfest offerings. It was pretty much an even split between the two beers. It was actually one of the beertenders who clued me into the Drei. I like that guy!

Ok2ber fest was super fun. What did I think of the beer?






Ein (5.8% ABV) is a traditional Marzen/Oktoberfest style beer.

The color is a clear coppery amber with a bright white fluffy head that leaves behind nice clingy lace.

It has a classic beer aroma; roasty and malty. This what I think of when I think about what a beer smells like.

The taste is, again, what a beer should taste like.  Loads of malt with just enough bitterness to offset the sweetness with a crisp finish.

It has a nice mediumish mouth feel with lots of carbonation.  Smooth drinking and über quaffable.

Overall: very good






Zwei (5% ABV?) is a golden lager of Phil's own invention. It is a barely hazy golden color with a full white head and leaves loose lacing behind.

The aroma is bright and hoppy with and undercurrent of malt.

The taste is big on citrus hops, almost like a pale ale, with pale malts. This is a clean, crisp brew that finishes dry with lingering bitterness.

The mouthfeel is light to medium with nice effervescence.  This is an easy drinking beer.

Overall: very good.







Drei wasn't on tap per se.  If you asked for a Drei, like I did, then you'd have gotten a stein mixed with half Ein and half Zwei. 

The two mixed together ended up being a slightly hazy amber gold brew. The aroma was malty with citrussy hops.  The taste is an a good balance between the two beers.  Not as sweet and malty as Ein and not as bitter and dry as as Zwei. Still Oktoberfesty and impressively tasty. NOM!

Spaten Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest was on tap at my favorite spot for hot wings and cold beer.  It's almost that time, so why not?

Although Spaten has been brewing beer for over 600 years, Oktoberfest brewed was first brewed 1872 and is notably the world's first Oktoberfest beer. It irks me somewhat that this ancient brewery is now owned by Anheuser-Busch.  Oktoberfest is a far cry from craft beer but it's still a classic.

Oktoberfest (5.90% ABV) was served in a shaker pint. It is a deep coppery amber with a small but thick head.

The aroma is what I think of when I think what beer smells like.  It's a little bready and hints at sweet malts with a spot of hops.  A very little spot of hops.

The taste is mostly of gently roasted malts and grain. There is a gentle bite of hops that simply rounds out the flavor without taking over.  Oktoberfest is well flavored but relatively light tasting which makes it hugely quaffable.  The finish is crisp and dry.

The mouthfeel is medium and smooth with soft carbonation.

Oktoberfest is a classic. It tastes like fun. Love it!

Overall: very good.

Strange brew and a smoke

I was invited to a Memorial Day picnic.  Like most picnics there were tables loaded with food, a grill piled high with burgers and coolers full of beer.  

My buddy, knowing my love of good craft brew, handed me a Bigfoot barleywine.  Hmmm, okay.  Off to a good start.  Sweet!

Next he handed me. . . wait, what?? Was ist das??

Kirkland Signature brand beer.  Huh? Costco brand beer? Really?

As I suspected, the beer isn't actually brewed by Costco, it is contract brewed.  But by who?  The bottle says it's brewed by New Yorker Brewing Company in Utica, NY. Who are they?  You might be surprised to know that New Yorker Brewing is also known as Matt Brewing Company who is best known for brewing Saranac beer.  I have to say that I was surprised to discover that F.X. Matt Brewing Company is the second oldest family-owned brewery in the United States (D. G. Yuengling & Son is the oldest).

In my experience, Saranac beer is average craft beer.  Not bad but nothing special.  

At the time, I didn't know who was actually brewing the Kirkland beer but I was still very curious about the quality of the brew and how it would taste.  For $19.99 a 24-pack, these things are worth knowing.


Since I was at an outdoor party, I drank them all straight from the bottle so I can't tell you what they look like or give you a good description of the aroma.  So, I'm going straight for the flavor.  

India Pale Ale (6.50% ABV) A decent tasting IPA.  Actually, a pretty good middle of the road beer.  Not too hoppy, not too malty.  A good balance of grapefruity bitterness and caramel malts.  A lingering bitter aftertaste. Good mouthfeel; somewhat light with nice carbonation.  Overall: good. 

Pale Ale (5.40% ABV) The sweetness of caramel hops combined with bready grains and the mild bittering of hops.  Actually pretty good. The light mouthfeel and lively carbonation makes this beer very drinkable. A good refreshing beer.  Overall: good.

Amber Ale (5.70% ABV) Malty and relatively sweet. But I couldn't get past the metallic taste, so that ruined it for me right off the bat.  I didn't like it. Overall: blah

German Lager (5.50% ABV) A decent pilsner style beer.  A good representation of the style.  Light, mildly bitter, goes down easy and very drinkable.

For all of the beers, I'd say they're a bargain for the money.  They're not fantastic craft beer, but they're not bad either.  For the money, they are spot on or better.  

These are way better than macro brews in the same or higher price bracket.

I'm not a beer snob.  There's a time and place for almost every beer. Sometimes money is something to be considered.  I wouldn't be ashamed to serve Kirkland beer at gathering.  

Cheers!

And since my buddy was kind enough to give me a cigar, I'll review that, as well.  In fact, he's been saving this particular cigar just for me.  

My Uzi Weighs a Ton made by Drew Estate is a 60-gauge cigar. Nicaraguan leaf filler with a Connecticut wrapper.

This is a big cigar.  Bigger than I usually smoke when I puff the occasional cigar.  I was thinking it was going to be harsh.

I was pleasantly surprised.  This is a remarkably mild smoke.  The wrapper has a spicy flavor and adds nice character.  

The tobacco is packed tight.  It's got an easy draw and an even burn.  The ash is nice and dense.  

I'm no cigar expert but this was a pleasant tasting cigar with a nice long smoke. I liked it.  Thanks, James!