More like: "Inaugural Colorado Crap-I'm-Broke-Because-I'm-Going-To-The-Mountains-For-The-Weekend-So-I-Can't-Go-To-All-The-Ridiculous-Colorado-Beer-Week-Events-This-Week Week."
All joking aside, that's actually a lie. I already went to a Colorado Beer Week event. I attended (what I believe to be, even though Colorado Beer Week didn't officially start until Saturday) the inaugural event of the inaugural Colorado Beer Week. I went to Great Divide's Triple Beer Release Party on Friday night, and it was awesome! It was a celebration fit for Craft Beer Lords and Ladies hailing from the farthest reaches of the state! It was a pretty sweet shindig.
Great Divide was, as mentioned in last week's Tewsday Brewsday post, releasing fresh batches of three beers: their farmhouse ale, Colette (an awesome summer poolside sippin' beer); a special seasonal version of their imperial stout, Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti (the favorite of both Robin and myself); and an oak aged double IPA of the same recipe as last years anniversary ale because it was so wildly popular and darn good that they decided just to brew it again, 17th Anniversary Ale (also delicious, a beer to have a philosophical discussion over). Not only were three beers being released for the first time this year, but they had food, too, included in the price of admission! Gastro Cart Denver provided the grub, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Robin didn't care for it quite as much, but....more for me! Not only were beer and grub included in the price of admission, but they had live tunes, too! I can't seem to find the name of the band that was playing, but they had an upright bass and two acoustic guitars, with all three members singing. They were pretty good, they were having a lot of fun, which definitely rubbed off on the crowd. It was a good time, and I'm glad Robin and I went.
(Note: So I'm trying to get back into this whole "writing every week" thing, and I'm going on week two, but I forgot to sit down and write down thoughts about what I wanted to put in this post. Incidentally, here comes a very jarring segue to the next topic.)
Man, you know what I see all over the place at breweries now? Stranahan's barrels. That is, empty Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey barrels. Breweries are snatching them up like it's going out of style. Great Divide has an entire stockpile of them, no doubt with yummy yummy beer in them. Another local favorite of mine, Dry Dock Brewing, has a dozen or so of these barrels, too. Due to their expansion at the end of last year, these barrels (also no doubt with yummy yummy beer in them) are a part of the decor of their new and expanded sitting area.
Speaking of Dry Dock (hope that wasn't too jarring), they tapped a beer last Thursday that truly inspired me, and redefined for me what beer can be. What was this liquid ambrosia, you ask? It was an Espresso Milk Stout. That was the name of it. "Espresso Milk Stout." That's what it tasted like, too. They used a pound of custom-roasted espresso beans per barrel of coffee, and added a generous amount of lactose (milk sugar; imparts body and mild milk-like sweetness) to the beer as well. The end result is a black, viscous stout, with a beautiful aroma of freshly made espresso, and a flavor like of one of the finest mocha-latte-cappuccino-chocolate-milk concoctions you've ever had, with a mouthfeel of rich, luscious chocolate milk.
Now, there are plenty of beers out there that warrant a fairly similar description, to be sure. I'm sure there are beers out there (and/or in my cellar) that will earn even greater favor from me. The thing is, all of those beers usually pack a whallop; they're usually what I would consider to be "sipping beers," dessert beers, which you almost certainly have to share with someone else, lest you take a coffee-infused nap after drinking an entire bottle to yourself. Espresso Milk Stout, from Dry Dock, is a mind-bending....wait for it....4.3% abv. That's only just over 1% abv higher than O'Douls and the like, and the same alcohol content as Guinness Draught. What's that you say? Guinness Draught has a rich, full mouthfeel, too? Well, that's because Guinness Draught is served on Nitrogen taps. Nitrogen, being a heavier gas than Carbon Dioxide, gives any beer a much fuller and heavier mouthfeel. Next time you're at a bar where this is a possibility, get two samples (or pints, if you prefer) of the same beer, one on nitro, and the other on CO2. Compare them side by side, and you'll see and taste what I mean.
Espresso Milk Stout is not served on nitro, it is served with regular ol' CO2. That's another thing that was so impressive and inspiring to me. They crafted a very beer with the flavor, body, mouthfeel, and overall presence of a much more potent beer without giving it the normally accompanying sobriety-melting alcohol content. Drinking this beer ignited something inside me. I want to, nay have to, explore the possibilities that this beer presents. Imagine an intensely-hopped yet powerfully malty Imperial IPA, with an alcohol content of just over 5%. That's just one example of the many, many more that I want to try and create. I don't even know if all, or any for that matter, will be possible, but my path has been set; I am going to try.
It all comes down to the simple, one-word question:
Why?
I'll tell you why: I'm tired of having to drink beers that nullify my legal ability to drive after just one pint in order to get the kind of flavor that I crave. I drink beer because it challenges my palate and opens my mind. I drink beer because, within its realm, it contains a universe of flavors and aromas which are only accessible through the opening of a brown glass bottle. There is nowhere else you can go, nothing else you can do, nothing else you can eat (edit: there actually is food that I like more than beer... Thai food!), and nothing else you can drink, that will allow you to experience the unique sensory immersion of a truly great beer.
But I'm tired of being subjected to the associated inebriation that comes with it every single time. That is why I want to explore the possibilities. I hope that someday soon, I can share the fruits of my journey with all of you. That is my dream.
Until next week, beer on and beer often! Cheers!
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