Update for the Week

Probably the only post for the week, but wanted to pass along some updates.  As I look back at the process I have been going through to get the brewery open, I remember sitting on the other side looking in following other blog's about opening breweries.  On multiple occasions I thought to myself "man, it doesn't seem like they are really doing much" or "you would think they would be open by now."  I am working my ass off to get this going, but at times even to me it looks like nothing is happening.

The much talked about building permit is very close, in fact I could have had it by now, the problem is that I question everything.  I didn't agree with an assessment they gave me, talked through it with them and they are going to take a look at it.  In the end, I lose some days, but might save some money; worth it as long as the assessment doesn't go up for some reason...please no.  I expect to have some awesome jackhammering pictures up early next week.  Most of the work is should take about two weeks (four +) and there are six weeks until my equipment arrives, so I am feeling okay about it right now.

I attended the Boise BeerFest on Friday, I enjoyed it except the part about the car getting towed.  That is an entirely different rant though.  The complaints about the crowds that I heard prior to attending were a non-issue on Friday.  Probably just the right amount of people there from an attendees perspective, never had to wait in line, had plenty of space to walk around and talk with people.  It was great to hear a lot of people who probably don't drink craft beer get excited for different beers and get exposed to a bunch of different breweries, great for the industry.  Call me a snob or whatever, but personally it wasn't the type of festival that I like attending, more the type of festival that I would like to serve my beer at and talk to people about beer.  The festival was great for what it was, which sounds like a total slight, but I assure you that is a compliment.  I already like the sound of my own typing too much and now is not the time for me to write a dissertation on beer festivals.  Reading back over what I wrote, I sound very critical, but I did think it was a great event and should shut up and be happy we have a great festival here.  Thanks to Rick at Brewforia and everyone else that helped for putting the work into the event, can't wait to pour beer next year.

Night of the Living Ales

A week back, I got the chance to take in a beer festival up at Goose Island Wrigleyville. The festival was the Night of the Living Ales, an event with 41 cask conditioned beers from 21 different breweries mostly from the area with a few from California and Oregon. Cask Ales, often referred to as Real Ales, are beers that go through a secondary fermentation in the vessel they are served in (cask). These beers are naturally carbonated in the cask, generally with the addition of some priming sugar. The beers are not filtered or pasteurized, so there is still yeast in the beer, which consumes the priming sugar and created CO2, which carbonates the beer. It is sort a throw back to a time when that was the only method to carbonate beers. Cask conditioning results in a beer that is less carbonated and usually served at cellar temperature, that is why many people who visit England say the drink their beer warm. That is partially true but they also drink plenty of beers that aren't cask conditioned. Americans also have been conditioned by certain big breweries to think that beer is suppose to be served really fricking cold. The English are in my mind arrogantly proud of their "real ales," but I found all of the foreign instructors at Siebel to be condescending about beers that weren't made their way. I think it comes down to making good beer, cask conditioning may or may not make the beer great.

As for the festival, Matt and I tried all 41 beers, so I think I am an authority on which beers were good and which weren't (regardless that my ability to taste beer 30-41 was greatly diminished). Brewers generally go for "big beers" in festivals to try to stand out from the crowd and it worked for at least one brewer, they made a ShamRock Stout. It tasted like an Andes Mint. I didn't totally agree with the awards, but I feel I have no room to talk because I didn't vote. I would have, but I was busy drinking. Another thing I noticed is that the "cult following" thing I talked about in my Three Floyd's post can make you a shitload of money. The Three Floyd's and Dogfish Head collaboration beer, Popskull, was there and had a lot of people going there right off the bat. All I have to say is that those two breweries are talked about as the holy grail of breweries and that was a very mediocre beer.

As usual, the wheels were turning throughout the festival. I obviously hope that I can someday be a brewer at a cask festival and I think that I have a name that will win awards without people even drinking the beer. I will preface this by saying that cask beers are filled through the "bung hole" and closed with a "bung." You may have an idea where I am going with this, I want to have a beer called "T.P. for my Bung Hole" and just to complete the joke, my other beer will be "The Great Cornholio." The best thing about beer festivals, everyone is 21, so there are no kids to offend.

Winter Beer Festival

I have always believed that one goal of Payette Brewing is to be the purveyor of everything beer in Boise and with that comes festivals. While other ones will come out of the woodwork as we move forward, I want to get some recent thoughts about a winter fest down. **Other ideas include a St. Patrick's Day Festival, a Summer Festival and Rocktoberfest (rock and beer, two of my favorite things). I am all for trying to combine these festivals with the IYF as charity events. The most important thing that these festivals provide for the brewery is exposure not income, so making them charity events just adds to the appeal.

In the spirit of the pop can tree, PBC could host a contest for the best post-consumer waste holiday thing. I dont want to restrict it to just Christmas trees because I would give special points to anyone who comes with a Festivus pole, even if it would be the easiest thing to make with empty beer cans. So basically anything winter holiday related made out of post-consumer waste would be accepted. There would also have to be rules mandating the use of some amount of beer products (preferably PBC) and there would have to be proof (pics/video) that those beer products were consumed by the entrants.

This contest could be tied in with a winter beer festival where people could come and enjoy seasonal beers from any breweries willing to come to Boise, local brewpubs included. While enjoying the beers, it would work like the festival of trees where attendees can check out and vote on all of the entries. Winners get a keg or something like that, minor details that can be figured out some other time. To me this would be a fun and unique addition to the standard winter beer festivals that go on all over the place. Doesn't need to compete with the festival of trees, more so another option.

These were just some of my initial thoughts, be sure to add any of you own ideas in the comments.