Monday, January 20, 2020
6 Things I Learned at the 2020 Big Beers Festival
Once again, the variety and complexity of flavors poured at this year's Big Beers, Belgians and Barleywines Festival - which celebrated its 20th anniversary last weekend in Breckenridge - were awe-inspiring. But this year's masterpiece of a festival from Laura and Bill Lodge felt distinctly like it was not just about what has been produced by some of the most experimental brewers in America but what will be coming from the industry's boundary-pushers for years to come.
New styles, new flavors and new brewers abounded - a trend exacerbated by the number of cutting-edge beer makers who asked to come out and pour this year, adding to the geographical and taste diversity in the hall. And if one walked away with a few predictions as to what more brewers will be doing after tasting their noteworthy brethren, here is what I dare say they would be.
1) Bold adjuncts in stouts are once again on the rise
If there was a standout beer of the festival, it was Wiley Roots Brewing's Du Hast Cake, a 12% ABV bourbon-barrel-aged German chocolate cake imperial stout that tasted every bit as lusciously desert-like as it sounds - but without a hint of alcohol residue, making it both scrumptious and dangerous. And while pastry stouts have become one of the scapegoats of the "beer doesn't taste like beer anymore" crowd, the only pushback I received when proclaiming this the best beer was from folks who argued Outer Range's Timber from Vanilla Imperial Stout imbued even more awakening flavors.
Indeed, Fremont Brewing's Coconut Edition B-Bomb Imperial Winter Ale and 4 Noses Brewing's Toasted Coconut BMF Imperial Stout proved also how much unique flavor could be added to otherwise big and boozy beers by throwing in something that snubs the Reinheitsgebot. And New Holland Brewing's Dragon's Milk Reserve Oatmeal Cookie tasted of vanilla, cinnamon and brown sugar - not at all of its 11% ABV holdings.
2) Fruit in a sour? How about vanilla, or an Asian soy add-on?
There were, as always, a profusion of both pucker-worthy and smooth-settling sour ales on display at the festival, but there was nothing as remarkable as Purpose Brewing's Itadakimasu #032, which infused the sour rice wine Ponzu into its body and created an entirely new flavor profile. Partly salty and thicker in body than most sours, this is not a beer that will appeal to everyone but absolutely was the gutsiest and most high-risk/high-reward offering of the festival for those willing to drink a beer and mull over it for a significant time, and Purpose owner/brewer Peter Bouckaert (shown below listening to Black Project owner James Howat at a festival seminar) should be commended for his boldness.
Slightly less edgy but no less satisfying was the Language of Origin Sour Ale from Speciation Artisan Ales of Michigan, aged in gin barrels with strawberry, hibiscus, vanilla and lemon. That radical combination melded, and also allowed its ingredients to stand out in alternating turns as it rolled over your taste buds, and it created something that went far beyond the standard definition of a sour ale.
.
3) If going traditional in your sour adjuncts, ignore the typical barrels
Wine, whiskey and other traditional barrels will continue to be used, and for good reason, in aging specialty ales. But Big Beers showed exactly what one could do by reaching further afield for a supply of aging vessels.
Broken Compass Brewing of Breckenridge poured a Port-Barrel-Aged Foreign Export Stout that used tart cherries to impart a pleasantly acidic nose into a sweet and dark body with a pointedness that was lacking from other adjunct ingredients. Meanwhile, Transient Artisan Ales of Michigan put out an Absinthe Anachronism Wild Ale that gave a cherry sweetness to a funky beer without any pucker and made you think twice about its process.
4) The hazy/tropical IPA is about to get doubled
Big Beers is not as much of a showcase for hop bombs as other festivals, but after sucking down 11% ABV imperial stouts for much of the day, you certainly get to know which IPA offerings can break through even the most overused of taste buds.
Oskar Blues Brewery, which produced arguably the most eye-opening beer of 2019 with its Can-O-Bliss Tropical IPA, ramped up the alcohol in its new Double Can-O-Bliss but still managed a creation that focuses on Polynesian fruit without the burn that sometimes accompanies higher ABV. Meanwhile, Outer Range Brewing of Frisco doubled the dry-hopping in its DDH Leave a Trail IPA and made a beer so juicy and bursting with melon hops that it created a new sub-genre: A hazy for people who like big hazies.
5) Clean saisons and gueuzes are the new experimental
For all the giant, genre-expanding beers poured at Big Beers, some of the subtlest standouts remained cleaner beers of Belgian origin that serve as a reminder why the country's influence should be honored so passionately.
Take, for example, the Atom Brewing 3-Year Blend Anniversary Wild Ale, which not only impresses with its smoothness but with the brewery's ability to find just the right examples of beers that meld into creations that are better than their stand-alone origins. Similarly, Referind Brewing's Le Differend Gueze is wonderfully tart but is more a better version of something that's been made for hundreds of years than a new category of the style.
6) Your journey no longer ends at the exit sign at Big Beers
One of the most brilliant strokes the Lodges came up with this year was the idea of raffling off boxes of 12 beers donated by festival participants. That allowed visitors to take home beers that aren't able to be found in their states - and for the non-profit event to raise more money for groups like the Breckenridge Mountain Rotary.
I won one of those boxes (shown below) after buying a lot of raffle tickets to support the cause. I've been working my way through beer from the likes of Mad Fritz Brewing, Side Project and the aforementioned New Holland Brewing, among others. And it's an idea, for tasting and charitable purposes that a lot of beer festivals should consider.
Once again, the variety and complexity of flavors poured at this year's Big Beers, Belgians and Barleywines Festival - which celebrated its 20th anniversary last weekend in Breckenridge - were awe-inspiring. But this year's masterpiece of a festival from Laura and Bill Lodge felt distinctly like it was not just about what has been produced by some of the most experimental brewers in America but what will be coming from the industry's boundary-pushers for years to come.
New styles, new flavors and new brewers abounded - a trend exacerbated by the number of cutting-edge beer makers who asked to come out and pour this year, adding to the geographical and taste diversity in the hall. And if one walked away with a few predictions as to what more brewers will be doing after tasting their noteworthy brethren, here is what I dare say they would be.
1) Bold adjuncts in stouts are once again on the rise
If there was a standout beer of the festival, it was Wiley Roots Brewing's Du Hast Cake, a 12% ABV bourbon-barrel-aged German chocolate cake imperial stout that tasted every bit as lusciously desert-like as it sounds - but without a hint of alcohol residue, making it both scrumptious and dangerous. And while pastry stouts have become one of the scapegoats of the "beer doesn't taste like beer anymore" crowd, the only pushback I received when proclaiming this the best beer was from folks who argued Outer Range's Timber from Vanilla Imperial Stout imbued even more awakening flavors.Indeed, Fremont Brewing's Coconut Edition B-Bomb Imperial Winter Ale and 4 Noses Brewing's Toasted Coconut BMF Imperial Stout proved also how much unique flavor could be added to otherwise big and boozy beers by throwing in something that snubs the Reinheitsgebot. And New Holland Brewing's Dragon's Milk Reserve Oatmeal Cookie tasted of vanilla, cinnamon and brown sugar - not at all of its 11% ABV holdings.
2) Fruit in a sour? How about vanilla, or an Asian soy add-on?
There were, as always, a profusion of both pucker-worthy and smooth-settling sour ales on display at the festival, but there was nothing as remarkable as Purpose Brewing's Itadakimasu #032, which infused the sour rice wine Ponzu into its body and created an entirely new flavor profile. Partly salty and thicker in body than most sours, this is not a beer that will appeal to everyone but absolutely was the gutsiest and most high-risk/high-reward offering of the festival for those willing to drink a beer and mull over it for a significant time, and Purpose owner/brewer Peter Bouckaert (shown below listening to Black Project owner James Howat at a festival seminar) should be commended for his boldness.
Slightly less edgy but no less satisfying was the Language of Origin Sour Ale from Speciation Artisan Ales of Michigan, aged in gin barrels with strawberry, hibiscus, vanilla and lemon. That radical combination melded, and also allowed its ingredients to stand out in alternating turns as it rolled over your taste buds, and it created something that went far beyond the standard definition of a sour ale.
.
3) If going traditional in your sour adjuncts, ignore the typical barrels
Wine, whiskey and other traditional barrels will continue to be used, and for good reason, in aging specialty ales. But Big Beers showed exactly what one could do by reaching further afield for a supply of aging vessels.
Broken Compass Brewing of Breckenridge poured a Port-Barrel-Aged Foreign Export Stout that used tart cherries to impart a pleasantly acidic nose into a sweet and dark body with a pointedness that was lacking from other adjunct ingredients. Meanwhile, Transient Artisan Ales of Michigan put out an Absinthe Anachronism Wild Ale that gave a cherry sweetness to a funky beer without any pucker and made you think twice about its process.
4) The hazy/tropical IPA is about to get doubled
Big Beers is not as much of a showcase for hop bombs as other festivals, but after sucking down 11% ABV imperial stouts for much of the day, you certainly get to know which IPA offerings can break through even the most overused of taste buds.
Oskar Blues Brewery, which produced arguably the most eye-opening beer of 2019 with its Can-O-Bliss Tropical IPA, ramped up the alcohol in its new Double Can-O-Bliss but still managed a creation that focuses on Polynesian fruit without the burn that sometimes accompanies higher ABV. Meanwhile, Outer Range Brewing of Frisco doubled the dry-hopping in its DDH Leave a Trail IPA and made a beer so juicy and bursting with melon hops that it created a new sub-genre: A hazy for people who like big hazies.
5) Clean saisons and gueuzes are the new experimental
For all the giant, genre-expanding beers poured at Big Beers, some of the subtlest standouts remained cleaner beers of Belgian origin that serve as a reminder why the country's influence should be honored so passionately.
Take, for example, the Atom Brewing 3-Year Blend Anniversary Wild Ale, which not only impresses with its smoothness but with the brewery's ability to find just the right examples of beers that meld into creations that are better than their stand-alone origins. Similarly, Referind Brewing's Le Differend Gueze is wonderfully tart but is more a better version of something that's been made for hundreds of years than a new category of the style.
6) Your journey no longer ends at the exit sign at Big Beers
One of the most brilliant strokes the Lodges came up with this year was the idea of raffling off boxes of 12 beers donated by festival participants. That allowed visitors to take home beers that aren't able to be found in their states - and for the non-profit event to raise more money for groups like the Breckenridge Mountain Rotary.
I won one of those boxes (shown below) after buying a lot of raffle tickets to support the cause. I've been working my way through beer from the likes of Mad Fritz Brewing, Side Project and the aforementioned New Holland Brewing, among others. And it's an idea, for tasting and charitable purposes that a lot of beer festivals should consider.
Labels: Atom Brewing, Big Beers, Broken Compass Brewing, Fremont Brewing, Oskar Blues, Outer Range Brewing, Purpose Brewing, Speciation Artisan Ales, Transient Artisan Ales, Wiley Roots Brewing
