The Holidaze hangover...

Hey all,

So the holiday weekend is always a blur for me. Went to my parents house for x-mas eve then drove to my fiancee's parents house x-mas afternoon. Then we got stuck in CT for an extra night because of the "Blizzard of 2010". Connecticut did get around two feet of the white and fluffy. That translated to NH snow is about ten feet! Though over all Santa was a good to me this year.

So with all the hustle and bustle that I experienced it still didn't keep people away from the Portsmouth Brewery. I returned to work to find the Saision l'hiver and the Holidaze Porter both gone, and the Scotch and Black Cat stout about to kick. So with some scrambling, fancy footwork and a little bit of magic here are the new beers on tap.

We have the Milk Stout on replacing the Black Cat. The lactose sugar really rounds out the acrid flavors and sweetens this beer up very nicely. We put on a Dunkleweizen to replace the Holidaze Porter. No smoke malt in this dunkel so you get a little bit of rostyness to play with the clove flavors of the Hefe yeast we used. Now that the Saison l'hiver is gone (sad face) we brought out our Winter Weizen. This winter version of our summer Hefeweizen has the nice banana and clove flavors in it with a bigger body and more alcohol. Last, but not least, the Scotch Ale is gone and we brought in a couple of kegs of Aged Wheat Wine (brewed in March of 2010) to tide us over to let the Black IPA finish conditioning.

Whoa! Try to say that all in one breath. I am exhausted just thinking about it.

cheers to a great 2010 and a better 2011!

Tyler

Winter Rye time...

Hey all,

So I just realized that i hadn't mentioned anything about the Winter Rye yet. So here it is. The Winter Rye is the bigger bolder (winter) version of our medal winning Rye Not. We bumped up the abv to 7% so to keep the balance in this beer we added some more crystal malts to to mix. This slight increase of malt sweetness turns the red apple flavor that you got from the Rye Not into a much more candy apple flavor, but you still get that nice rye malt tartness/crispness in the finish. Yumm.

The cask is Scotch ale with Lagavulin Oak. Nothing pairs better with a Scotch Ale then some peaty Islay single malt Scotch.

Ok, I got to get back to mashing in the Flanders Red...One of my favorite beers to make just because of the challenge of souring a mash in a single temperature infusion mash tun. Danger is my middle name!

Cheers,
Tyler

Its I.P.C.P.D.

Hey all,

Its Imperial Pint club's party day! Hope all you guys have a great time and enjoy the surprise beer we have for you. :)

Thanks so much for being a part of our Imperial Pint club.

Cheers,
Tyler

A Wee Heavy is not a Wee beer...

Hey all,


Our Scotch Ale is on tap replacing Smutty's Robust Porter. Scotch ales have categories according to the alcohol level, light (under 3.5% costing 60 shillings), heavy (3.5-4% costing 70 shillings), export (4-5.5% costing 80 shillings) and Wee Heavy (over 6% costing 90 shillings) Our Scotch Ale weighs in at around 9.5% abv so with some back of the napkin math you are going to have to pay 125 shillings for our Wee Heavy Scotch Ale.

Don't forget you shillings

Cheers,
Tyler

4 pepper blend

Hey all,

A new cask went on today. We have our Saison l'hiver which we added a four peppercorn blend to. We used Green peppercorn, Black peppercorn, White peppercorn and Pink peppercorn (which is actually not a peppercorn but looks like one, hence the name). The additions of the peppercorns add a nice peppery note on the nose and an amazing mid palette pepper flavor. Don't order it though, because I want to save it for myself :)

cheers,
Tyler

Saison L'Hiver brings on the Wintertime

Hey All,
It is that time of the season that we bring on the saison for winter; our Saison H'liver. This winter version of Saison is sure to please with a fuller body and all the spiciness associated with the farmhouse style. Weighing in at 7.5%abv and a good amount of hop balance this saison is a palate's delight! Enjoy this holiday season with a Saison l'hiver. Cheers! Todm

Rauchbier.. Ja!

Hey all,

Smutty pumpkin kicked and we replaced it with our Smoked Dunkelweizen. We home smoked 50#'s of malt for this beer using Crab Apple wood. This wood give a very unique smoke character to the beer. The traditional Rauchbier's use Beech wood smoked malt with give a very harsh and dry smoke flavor/aroma. With the Crab Apple wood you get a little of the fruitiness and some nice woodsy/earthy smoke flavor in the aroma and in the after taste. What better beer pairing for a herb roasted turkey... Or a smoked holiday ham... Or a apple cider and clove brine roasted Turkey... I think this list could go on for ever!

cheers,

Tyler

Cel-e-bra-tion beer is on... It's a celebration

Hey all ,

Sing the tittle of this blog post to the tune of "Celebration" by Kool & The Gang and it will make much more sense. Also this means that we have Sierra Nevada's Celebration on tap. This is one of our favorite beers that Sierra puts out every year and if you been coming to The Portsmouth Brewery for a while you know we try to get some every year. It is their winter seasonal but it isn't the normal winter beer that you think of all malty and spiced out. It is a hoppy beer that is well balanced out with some great malt flavors. A Super Pale Ale would be the description of the beer if you asked me.

Cheers,
Tyler

I was a little slow on the uptake..

Hey all,

I apologize for not keeping the blog updated for the past few days. We have been brewing Kate the Great, which is a very time consuming brew and leaves little time to do anything other then brew Kate the Great :)

So the tap line up changes:

Milk Stout has kicked and been replace with the Black Cat Stout

5 C's IPA is gone and we brought in some Smuttynose Pumpkin. I know what you are all thinking, "Sam's Winter is out, why put on a Pumpkin beer?" Because Thanksgiving hasn't even happened yet! The rush to put out the next seasonal drives me crazy. What will taste better with Thanksgiving dinner, a nice medium bodied ale spiced with pumpkin flavors, or a big malty beer that wont complement anything other then the dessert. You tell me.

Now for the Dunkel Gose, It went on Monday. If you got to try the Gose this summer you have an idea of how this is going to taste. Gose is an ancient German sour wheat beer that is brewed with coriander and salt. We get the sour characteristic from a partial sour mash rather then using the Pedio in the secondary. In the Dunkel version we bumped up the malt profile and added some caramel malts to give some color and a little malt sweetness. To compared it to any other beer is hard because I only know of one Dunkel Gose being brewed in the world (if you know of any others let me know), Goslarer Dunkel Gose brewed in Goslar Germany. Compared to that beer, ours is a little darker and a bit higher in alcohol (5.5% vs. 4.9%). Leave it to an American to take a traditional European beer style and bump up the body and alcohol.

Cheers,
Tyler

Last drops out of the carton...

Hey all,

I just checked the volumes in the serving tanks. Milk Stout is most likely going to kick today. So if you haven't tried it come in for lunch before the last drop of Milk is gone.

Cheers,

Tyler

Welcome back my old friend...

Hey all,

The Bottle Rocket IPA is back!!!! The Rye Not kicked last night, which i am sad to see go. Though it was replaced with our famous Bottle Rocket IPA. Now we have a hop heads dream of three IPA's on at the same time. Drink with cautions, because who knows how long the 5 C's IPA is going to last.

cheers,

Tyler

New 2011 Kate Day Information

Howdy, folks. Peter E. here. A lot of people have written us with questions and suggestions for 2011's Kate Day, the day we release our famous Kate the Great Russian Imperial Stout. This year, we'll be managing the release differently than in years past, especially our procedure for bottle sales. 


Here are the highlights, in Q & A format:

• When will Kate Day take Place in 2011?
Kate Day will take place on Monday, March 7, 2011.

• How much Kate the Great will be brewed?
We will brew the same quantity as in years past: ten barrels, divided equally between draught and bottles. Approximately 900 bottles will be available for purchase.

• How much do bottles of Kate cost?
After holding the line on price for the last four years, in 2011 the price of 22-ounce bottles of Kate will increase to $15 apiece.

• Will growlers of Kate be available?
No.

• What time are you going to start passing out calendar pages to people who wish to purchase bottles?
We are not going to use calendar pages this year!

• WHAT? If you're not going to use calendar pages, how are you going to handle bottle sales?
We're glad you asked! This year, we are going to organize bottle sales using custom-printed scratch tickets. Ten thousand tickets will be available, with nine hundred "winners" mixed randomly among them. These tickets will be sold at the Portsmouth Brewery for $2 apiece starting six weeks prior to Kate Day, until they run out. All of the revenue generated by the sale of these scratch tickets will be donated to a non-profit of our choice. Sale of scratch tickets will be limited to ten per person per day. Scratch tickets must be purchased in person at the Brewery. None will be sold by mail.

• If I don't live near Portsmouth, how will I be able to purchase a ticket?
This is where you become resourceful and ask your Aunt Tillie in Kittery or your BA trading partners to help out and buy tickets for you.

• So I've bought a winning scratch ticket, now what to I do?
A winning scratch ticket has no cash value - it merely entitles the bearer to purchase a single bottle of Kate at his or her convenience any time from March 7 through April 15, 2011. An individual can purchase as many bottles of Kate as he or she has winning scratch tickets. Winning scratch tickets become invalid after April 15, 2011.  Any bottles of Kate remaining unsold after that date will be made available to the general public in our retail store.

• So no camping out on the sidewalk in front of the Brewery the night before?
Not for people wishing to buy bottles of Kate - that will no longer be necessary.

• How is draft Kate going to be released?
We've made some changes here, too, compared to years past. The Portsmouth Brewery will open its doors for business at eleven on Kate Day. We will let people into the building in groups of 50, spaced 15 minutes apart, until the restaurant is fully seated. This is to assure that service (and beer) flows smoothly, enabling us to provide the best hospitality throughout the day. The official tapping of Kate will take place around 12:30-ish.

So that's the general shape of our next Kate Day. We will provide more details over the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

Dirty Blonde can't jump

Hey all,

The Dirty Blonde has no Hop in it any more. I am definitely cutting him from my fantasy Basketball team. We are back to our traditional Dirty Blonde. I hope you guys had a chance to try the Dirty Hop Blonde and enjoyed it.

cheers,

Tyler

Winter Weizen JA!

Hey all,

It is our first winter beer of the year is on tap, winter weizen. Well...the truth is we don't really have a fall weizen, technicalities. So The winter weizen is a bigger version of our hefeweizen. We added some crystal malts as well as more malts in general. This give you a beer that has the banana and clove characteristics that you love in the hefe, with more malt sweetness, more body, a bit more color and more alcohol then your summer time hefe's. Like the St. Bernard dog with a small barrel of whiskey around his neck. The alcohol with help warm you up for the colder days to come.

cheers,

Tyler

PS where can you get those little dog sized barrels? You could make individual oaked aged pints of beer.

Pull the cord... Arrow spins.. "And the Cow says, 'Mooooo'"

Hey all,

It is Milk Stout time! This is one of our stouts we rotate through. With the addition of Lactose Sugar (which is a long chain unfermentable sugar) you get a nice sweetness in the glass. This milk sweetness helps round out the harsh roasty edges that would normally be found in a stout. So much so that the chocolate and sweet coffee flavors are the bulk of what you are tasting. Yummy! I am sipping on my morning coffee wishing it was a Milk Stout right now! Come on in a try the GABF Bronze Medal wining beer.

cheers,
Tyler

Not messing around

Hey all,

You we not messing around finishing up the Pumpkin. I guess you were all excited for the Rye Not, and "rye not" be excited it is a delectable beer.

Rye malt has an extreme high Beta-glucans (long chain/branched starch molecules) content. These beta-glucans are extremely hard for the enzymes in the mash to break down. Thus leaving behind a lot of unfermentable sugars as well as shorter chain beta-glucans. Both of these are what give the Rye not such a unique mouth feel. Very close to the mouth coating character of say a Oatmeal stout, but with a totally different malt flavor.

Man, re-reading my previous paragraph I geeked out on you guys for a bit. I guess what i was really trying to say is that you need to come on in and try one.

Mmmm, Glayvin!

Tyler

Last wet hop beer of the season..

Hey all,

We put on the Dirty Hop Blonde on Sunday. This beer is almost the same recipe as the regular dirty Blonde. Though we took out the whirlpool hops and replaced them with 13#'s of freshly picked hops from Strawberry Banke. They have had these hops growing on their property for who knows how long as an ornamental plant. We just found out about them last year too late to use them, so we made sure to keep an eye on them this year. John Forti was nice enough to get a bunch of the employees from Strawberry Bakne to join him in the picking party, and he ran them over as soon as they were done. They are very similar to the hops we used in our Hop Harvest I, an old school British hop grown in the US for many years. They add a nice hoppy earthy resin flavor to the Dirty Blonde. Defiantly worth a try.

Other news the Pumpkin and the Le Chat Noir are both getting very low. They are going to be replaced by the Rye Not and the Milk Stout respectfully. These are the same recipes that we won our medals from GABF this year. So keep and eye out for those going on tap!

Cheers,
Tyler

I'm Back!

Hey all,

So, I am back to work. The two weeks on the couch made me miss this place so bad. I'll be gimping around the brewery on a cane for a couple more weeks and going to PT twice a week. Hopefully I'll be feeling half-way back to normal after that. Time will tell though.

Ok i need to go figure out what happened here in the last two weeks I have been out since Tod is on a much deserved couple of days off.

Go Go Gadget Brain!

Cheers,
Tyler

As the leaves fall......

Greetings beer lovers,
As the post implies it is Fall and as the leaves fall so do the levels of our favorite Fall beers.... Ocktoberfest, Hop Harvest 1 and Hop Harvest 2. If you have not had a chance to taste these fine Fall classics you'd better get in here soon as they are almost gone. A little more than a keg of each. But don't sweat. We've got a Bock, a Hefeweizen and our Pumpkin Ale to get the line up back to full strength. We are serving Smuttynose Big A IPA (YEA!) as a help out to get us thru the dwindling stocks! Hope you are enjoying the Fall and get ready for some of our Imp. IPA that we are brewing today and tomorrow and should be ready in about a month. Cheers! Todm

HHII...

Hey all,

No, those are not Roman numerals. HHII stands for Hop Harvest II, which is on! Come on in and give it a whirl then let me know what you think of the Citra hops. The Citra are a new hop variety for us and we used 120 lbs of wet Citra's in a 14bbl double batch. Oh ya!

Cheers,
Tyler

Hop Harvest I is on...

Hey all,

Thats right HH1 has made it on tap replacing the Whipper Snapper. Sad to see that beer go, but excited for the HH1. this years Hop harvest one is made with an locally grown east coast hop called MX-1. Our hop farmer says that he can trace the linage of this hop to the orgigal hop that the Pilgrims brought over from england with them. So it is very much like the earthy british hops you might be thinking about. But the hop resin flavor sticks with you loooooong after the swallow. It the best way i can think of describing it is a Super ESB.

The Citra Hop Harvest II is almost ready so keep an eye out for that you hop heads out there.

cheers,
Tyler

2 medals at GABF for P-brew!!

Greeting beer lovers,
We just received great news from Tyler, from Denver, that we garnered two medals at the Great American Beer Festival!! Horray! The Rye beer took a silver and the Milk Stout took a bronze. We are very excited about this news. I know we will be brewing the Milk later in the fall and we'll be rethinking our brew schedule for another batch of Rye. We were playing with the idea of brewing a bigger version of the Rye,,,,, like perhaps a Rye Wine????? or maybe just our Winter Rye. Who knows. Maybe we'll put in Rye just like the one we won with. Anyway, we are quite pleased with this news. Come on in a raise a glass to the hard working boys who made it thru the summer and still found the where-with-all to get some bling at the big dance. Cheers! Todm

Kate Day 2011 Announcement

Howdy all,

Even before the dust settled on this year's Kate Day, we started getting inquiries from folks who wanted to know when next year's Kate Day is scheduled to take place. Here, finally, is the date we've selected for the release of Kate the Great Russian Imperial Stout:

Monday, March 7, 2011.

There will be some significant changes to the way we manage the sale of bottled Kate, and we'll release details about that in a few weeks. Stay tuned!

Cheers,

P-

A new week brings new beers...

Hey all,

We lost the Summer Rye and Weizenheimer over the weekend. We replaced the summer Rye with the Witt^2, which is the imperial version of our Wit. We have a couple of lagers in the works, so we thought we would try to hold on to summer as long as possible by putting on a few kegs of Smuttynose's Summer Weizen. This American Wheat beer has a late kettle addition of Chamomile. So soothing, like Sleepy-time tea. Come on get a pint while summer is still here!

Also i am gearing up for the trek to Denver for GABF (Great American Beer Festival). I am leaving early Thursday morning and will be back late on Sunday. I haven't been out to GABF since 2007, when i brought back the medal for the Wheatwine that is hanging in the up bar. We will have to see if i bring back anything this year?

Cheers,
Tyler

Its almost firkin Friday!!!!!

Hey all,

Just wanted to remind you of the firkin Friday with the Big A at 4:00. I can't wait! Plus for you hop heads check out the what's in the works section ;)

Cheers,
Tyler

Sept 10th @ 4:00...

Hey all,

We are having a Firkin Friday on Sept 10th. But it isn't one of our beers, we are having a guest firkin tapping by Dave Yarrington, D.B.O. at Smuttynose. What is he tapping you ask? Only the best American beer (so voted by the GBBF) Big A IPA!

Check it out here
http://gbbf.camra.org.uk/700

Be here or be square.

cheers,
Tyler

WOW! IPA Bomb in an out fast!!

Greetings Beer lovers,
That was a super fast IPA hop Bomb but they usually are! Gone in less than 24 hrs! So, Tyler played with his Gose and dry herbed it with some fresh rosemary..... and it is firkin' awesome. Do check it out on cask before it is gone. All it needs is some hops!!(Yuk-Yuk!) The Rye,Weizen,Whippersnapper and Gose are all tasting nice. Have a great EARL and even better Labor day. Cheers! Todm

Beers are going out the in door...

Hey all,

So four of our lines changed over this weekend. Beers on tap are rotating like Balkie in a revolving door in the opening scene of Perfect Strangers. I am not sure why that old sit-com came into my head. Stranger things have happened though. So here are the changes.

Dunkleweizen was replaced with our Summer Rye. We had this one on earlier in the summer and really enjoyed it. We are sending this batch to GABF this year. The Hefeweizen was replaced with the Gose. Again this beer was on earlier in the summer and we decided that i needed to go to GABF as well, so we brewed up another batch. The Milk Stout has been replaced with the lovable Black Cat Stout. Plus, all you Bottle Rocket IPA fans will be happy to hear that we have our Bottle rocket back pouring.

OK i am just almost to kettle up so i have to run.

See you all soon!

Cheers,
Tyler

Just back for Ebeneezers.

Hey all,

Sorry for not keeping the Blog up to date for the past couple of days. Tod and I went up to Ebeneezers Pub for the Belgian Beer Fest. We saw a few of our patrons and some of the staff up there too. Great time if you have never been.

So on the beer side of the world. We still cant make Bottle Rocket IPA fast enough for you guys so we are going to have Smuttynose IPA on for a few days to let the next batch finish out. The Dunkelweizen is getting low so we will be putting the Rye ale on to back that up coming up in the next few days. Tod and I are going to taste the Witt2 here before we head home, but i am guessing it is getting very close to being ready to go on tap. Keep and eye out for that too.

Cheers,
Tyler

Bluebeery season is upon us...

Hey all,

Bluebeery season is here! The the annual double batch of Bluebeery just went on replacing the Smuttynose Summer Weizen. Since we made 14 bbls of this beer I hope it will be on tap for a few weeks for you guys to enjoy.

The 5 C's is now officially gone. You guys hit up the beer engine hard last night. The 5 C's dryhopped with centennial cask went on and kicked before I could even blog that it was on! So we have a Milk Stout cask dryhopped with EKG's on now. You would be correct by assuming that if we have a Milk Stout cask on that means that the Milk Stout on draft is soon to follow. The Oatmeal Stout is getting low and will probably change over to the Milk Stout tonight at some point.

Cheers,
Tyler

5 C's gone

Hey all,

The 5 C's kicked last night and is being replaced by out Hefeweizen that i am transferring right now into a serving tank. This batch has a very nice clove flavor to it.

To all you Bluebeery fans out there. Make sure to keep your eyes on the blog. It is getting close to Blueberry time!

cheers,
Tyler

How about this HOT weather?

Hello Beer Lovers,
Well, I hope you all like steamy hot weather during your workdays and beautiful cool awesome weather during the weekends 'cause that's the pattern we're in! And I like it!! So, we gave you the 5 C's and apparently you like it, too, cause it is almost gone!! :{(. But we'll try to keep the beer flowing because it is prime beer drinking weather. So, get outside and enjoy this fine New England weather before it turns on us. Cheers! Todm

The aftermath...

Hey all,

One Keg of Kate sends ripples through the brewery. I want to congratulate the person who got to try Kate for the first time. That is really why we do the surprise random release of a keg here and there. To give some one who has never tried it the out of the blue chance to give it a whir, and of course to let the locals beable to enjoy a glass sitting at the bar and relaxing like the old days. So, along with the Kate kicking in the 2.5 hours is lasted on tap, the Wit and the Bottle Rocket IPA kicked yesterday too.

So here is the new beer line up. Bottle Rocket was replaced with one long of Smuttynose Robust Porter (while it lasts) and it will soon be changing to the Smuttynose IPA. The Wit changed to the Weizenheimer. Plus we put on 5 C's IPA to replace the Kate line. So if you haven't been here in 24 hours we have almost a full change on the beer line up!

Cheers,
Tyler

Kate is Gone..

She comes then she goes, tis the way of Kate.

cheers,
Tyler

Kate is on...

Hey all,

The title pretty much sums it up. The Sierra Kegs kicked last night so we had one keg of Kate that we thought we would put on. What better to follow and Imperial Stout then an Imperial stout.

Happy hump day.
Cheers,
Tyler

Some beer to tide you over...

Hey all,

So the Summer Rye (aka Rye Not) kicked yesterday. So we decided to pull some kegs that we had hanging around out for you guys. We put on the Sierra Nevada's Imperial Helles Bock. It is the second collaboration beer for Sierra's 30th anniversary. Amazing to see a lager come out of Chico for one. Plus its hop character is so subtle and well balance. Very interesting beer. Behind that we have some of the Sierra's 30th anniversary Imperial stout for you guys to enjoy once again. So come in and enjoy one of these beauties off the tap.

Cheers,
Tyler

The IPA paradox

Hey all,

Summer time here at the P-brew is always and exciting time and since you guys are in love with the Bottle Rocket IPA I felt i need to explain the paradox.

We brew double batches (14bbl) of this glorious elixir to try to keep it on tap all the time. A batch of IPA takes at least 14 days from brewing to being ready to serve on the taps. This give us 2 serving tanks worth of IPA for service, and allows us to brew a new batch of IPA.

So here is our dilemma, The first serving tank of the IPA that is on tap is almost gone and it has been on for 6 days. The back up IPA always has less in it since that is what we bottle off of to keep the 22oz in the store. Since we are brewing the IPA today it is going to need 14 days to be ready. With the second serving tank of Bottle Rocket IPA going on soon I am not sure how long it is going to last.

So long story short, we are most likely going to have to have some Smuttynose IPA on tap in the near future to let the Bottle Rocket that we are brewing today finish. I mention this because of all the comments on Facebook about us having Smuttynose IPA that happened the last time we put it on. I agree with you that I would rather have our Bottle Rocket on too! But I felt that I owed all you loyal P-brew fans an explanation so you know what is going on when you see Smuttyones IPA come back on tap.

Cheers,
Tyler

P.S. The Black Cat Stout kicked last night and now we have Oatmeal Stout on. Yumm!

It's Firkin Friday!

Hey all,

It is the day you all been waiting for. Firkin Friday! We will be tapping a firking of out Black Cat Stout dry hopped with Columbus at noon. Yumm! Come on in and enjoy a pint poured right off the bar.

Cheers,
Tyler

Dunkelthaizenweizen.P.A

Hey all,

So I invented a new drink. You blend the Dunkelweizen, Thaizenheimer and Bottle Rocket IPA in one glass. I call it the Dunkelthaizenweizen.P.A.

The truth is that I really didn't try to blend them together. It most likely wouldn't taste that great. But if you really want to you could blend them since all three of those beers are now on tap here at the P-brew. Tod's Professional opinion, "I wouldn't suggest it. I would try one of each on their own"

Don't forget Firkin Friday is coming up this Friday! So get get ready for some tasty gravity poured pints served right off the bar upstairs.

Cheers,
Tyler

Firkin Friday is a coming!

Hey all,

So if you are up at the VT brewfest you probably already know that Portsmouth Brewery couldn't make it up this year. Tod had an important family gathering and I blew out my ACL. So this means that we have a extra Firkin of beer that we were going to serve there. So we decided to serve it to you guys!

So get in here next Friday for lunch, or after work, or come in for dinner and enjoy Firkin Friday.

Cheers,
Tyler

Thank you for the Good wishes

Hey all,

Thank you for all the love via the blog/e-mail/facebook and such. I am here a couple days a week helping our the best I can and as my strength in my knee continues to grow I will be able to do more. Got to keep making the beer for all you out there.

8 Days to drink the the Blueberry! Wow, you guys love that beer.

Cheers,
Tyler

See you in August!

Hello beer lovers,
Not anyone in particular.... but the Bluebeery ale will be back in August. This batch went away in 8 days! Hey, slow the pace down.... it is tough to keep up when and ale takes 14 days to make and only 8 days to drink up! We are seeing empty tanks in the serving room with little beer to replenish them. Guest beers perhaps? We do have some Hefeweizen and Dunkelweizen getting ready as well as some of our Rye... so there is no need to worry.....yet! See you soon. Cheers! Tod

WHOA! HOT WEEK!!

Greetings Beer Lovers,
It has been a long time since I've posted a news update. For all of you without Facebook we've had a bit of bad news as of late and that is Tyler blew out his knew playing Ultimate disq. ACL, Menicus and whatever else!! How this happens in a non contact sport (yuk-yuk!) OOPS!! blows me away but we have to deal with it, as does Tyler. That said, we are trying to keep the beers on tap and we've got some great beers on now and coming up. The Bluebeery has been well received and is flying out the door. Looks like there is just a bit less than 1.5 BBLs left so if you haven't had your fill you better get in cause it won't last too much longer. However, we'll be brewing a double batch in late July for an August arrival. The Red is holding up well as is the Wit, which btw, is tasting outstanding!! We've got back up Wit in process as well as Hefeweizen, Dunkelweizen and Rye. So there is nothing to worry about now that Tyler will be recuperating during the busiest time of the year and Tyson, our bottler, will be filling some big Crocs! Hope you are all enjoying this ridiculously hot weather and have some time to come in and enjoy some cool beers and great food. Cheers! Todm

Wheat beers = Summer

Hey all,

We have a slew of wheat beers on right now. We have; Hefeweizen, Belgian Wit, Weizenheimer and the Wheatwine on. Though they all definitely taste much different from each other, I just thought that was interesting. The Wheatwine is getting low and not sure how much time is left for it to be on tap. Hopefully it will last until Friday but time will tell.

Had a good time up at the New England Brewfest this weekend in Lincoln NH. "Good to see you", if i saw you up there. Now we have to start to get ready for the Vermont Brewfest, which is always a great time. So come over to the tent if you are making up to Burlington this year.

See you all soon!

Cheers,
Tyler

PS The new menu looks great! It is up and running today!

Summer time and the Wiezen is tasty...

Hey all,

The Wiezenheimer is back on tap here at P-brew. A great, easy drinking, American wheat ale. Perfect for a sunny day like this weekend is bringing. As you can see from the in the works section we have the Murphy's law RED our Belgian Wit (WHITE) and the Bluebeery (BLUE) all in the works. I wonder when they are all going to be on tap together?

Yes, it is true. We are working our our beer line up for the 4th of July. But i hope to see you in here for a pint before that!

Cheers,
Tyler

Happy Market Square Day!

Hey all,

The threat of rain hasn't seemed to effect the mood of you all. The streets are filled with such a positive energy. We can help that with a pint or two to keep the good times rolling. I'm here brewing away on a Saturday so there is even a show at the Portsmouth Brewery for you to enjoy. See ya soon for a pint.

Cheers,
Tyler

Gose by any other name...

Hey all,

We are putting on the Gose right now (pronounced "Gose-uh" as in "rose" plus "uh"). This beer is an ancient German recipe that traces its origin to Leipzig, the capital of the German State of Saxony. It is a partial sour wheat beer brewed with coriander and Salt. Salt in your beer! My Grampa and Pepe are looking down and smiling I am sure. I remeber them both shaking a bunch of salt in their Plisners when i was growing up. The Leipzig area of Germany is know for there salt mines, so the water in the area has a naturally high salinity. So to replicate it we had to add salt to our water. We did a partial sour mash for a small portion of the mash for 3 days, and added some coriander towards the end of the boil.

Now i know what you are thinking Sour/Salty/Spicy beer; that sounds really weird. But like all of our beers it is really well balanced and all the flavors are very subtle. I am sure if I didn't just spill the beans you would have to wonder for a long while to figure out what all the flavors you were getting out of this beer. So why not ponder life's questions with a pint of Gose.

See ya soon.

Cheers,
Tyler

Pils von Faust vom Fass

Hey all,

Come try the Pils von Faust from the tap (basically what I was trying to say in the title of the post). This is the Pilsner that Tod and Cornlius Faust brewed together here a the P-brew. the closest I have ever had to a fresh traditional German Pilsner. I'm sorry its only double hopped, unlike that "lite" beer from SAB Miller which is triple hopped. You be the judge, and let us know which one is a better Pilsner.

Cheers,
Tyler

Brew for a Day winner picked

Greetings beer lovers,
We just picked the winner for "the Brew for a Day" raffle. And that winner is: Brendan Vesey of Portsmouth. A local! I hope everyone enjoyed the American Craft Beer Week. I want to thank all those behind the scenes that enabled us to pull off a good week featuring food and beer pairings, great food, beer and a fun social. Thanks Chef Todd, Brennan Rumble (GM) assistant managers Ben and Kieran and Liz as well as Q.P. and my assistants Tyler and Tyson. Special thanks to Peter and Joanne for allowing us to pull this week off. Did anyone get any of the Kate we allocated for this week? Turns out there may even be some more Kate sightings later in the summer,fall or even early winter. We'll just have to see what happens. Cheers! to all those who attended the brewery events and had some fun in doing so. Have a great week. Cheers!Todm

Congrats to the Grads...

Hey all,

I want to congratulate all the recent graduates. I know my brother graduated from Plymouth State today as well as my alumni UNH having their ceremony. Great day for it too.

On the beer side of the world we have been having a great time here at the Portsmouth Brewery during American Craft Beer week and hope you guys have been too. Kegs and Eggs was fun this morning. So amazing to see what our talented chef's can make for a brunch menu. Don't worry though, we didn't bring in a keg of light American pilsner like a frat house. We paired all the brunch dishes with the Wiezenheimer. If you come in for dinner tonight all the specials are paired with the Wiezenheimer too. Give one a whirl. The cask changed to Milk Stout dry hopped with Sterling last night, so it is super fresh and tasty right now. Is anyone still reading my rambling or are you all wondering when the last Kate log is coming on?

Jimmy Lapanza Lounge, 7:00pm. Be there or be square :)

Happy American Craft Beer Week!

Cheers,
Tyler

Sierra Nevada XXX Anniversary Ale

Greetings beer lovers,
As we work into American Craft Beer Week we are paying homage to two pioneers in the industry. Fritz Maytag of Anchor Brewing Co. and Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Known as "Fritz and Kens Ale" this first ale (in the Anniversary Series of which there will be 3 other anniversary ales to come out later this year) is a big bold Imperial Stout with roasty notes and a very dry finish. There is a touch of smoke in the background along with a light caress of hops. We are putting on this beer during lunch and it should be available throughout the day. be sure to get some of this as there is a very limited quantity of this ale as we only we able to procure two logs of which the first one went on Monday and the last one goes on today. It is a honor to present this fine beer to our locals in praise of two greats in the industry. To Fritz and Ken. Thanks for making my job so enjoyable! Cheers! Todm

Beer Social Tonight!

Hey all,

Hope to see you all at tonights beer social, downstairs in the Jimmy Lapanza Lounge 6-8pm. I tried a bite of the Tamales this morning which were great. I am excited to try the rest of it tonight.

Here's the menu:

Hot Smoked Salmon Platter with garnishes and sourdough crisps.
Beer pairing - Dirty Blonde Ale

Jonnycakes with green apple and Maine Crab Salad.
Beer pairing - Weizenheimer

Corn and clam fritters.
Beer pairing - Smuttynose Old Brown Dog

Peppered Bison Skewers with Huckleberry Demi.
Beer pairing - Black IPA

Warm Apricot-Stuffed Tamales.
Beer pairing - Aged Wheat Wine

Cheers,
Tyler

You guys are quick.

Hey all,

Sorry to say that the second log of Kate has kicked. It only lasted 35 min this time on. Wow, you guys must have been hitting refresh all day long for this one. Keep and eye out for the last keg release later this American Craft Beer Week.

Cheers,

Tyler

Hump Day

Hey all,

It’s Quitting Time!!! Man I think we all need something to get over hump day. Something rich, dark and delicious. How about some Kate? I think it’s just about that time to bring the second of three logs out today…. say around 5:07ish….


Cheers,

The Brew Crew

Was that Kate the Great?

Hello again, beer lovers,
Yes, Kate made a quick appearance, on at 11:37 gone by 3:37. Such is life. Perhaps there is more...... perhaps there isn't more. You'll have to stay tuned to the blog to find out. There is, however, some of the 30th Anniversary beer from Sierra Nevada. It is dry, roasty and smokey not to mention quite tasty. Do sign the declaration and do check in on what is happening here during American Craft Beer Week. Cheers! Todm

American Craft Beer Week Starts Today!

Greetings beer lovers,
This is a big week for Craft Beer as it is American Craft Beer Week. We have quite a few things happening around here that can be seen on the blog. But, the biggest thing going on as of 11:37AM will be from the heart of American Craft breweries; the collaberation between the founder of the craft beer movement Fritz Maytag of Anchor Brewing Co. and the carrier of the torch Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. This beer known as Sierra 30th anniversary beer is an Imperial stout with a complex flavor profile including some smoke! To try and top this magnificent beer we are pulling out a sixtel (5 gallons)of Kate the Great Imperial Stout. Both beers will be served in 8oz. pours and available until they run out. I know this is short notice but..... that is the way some things shake out. Enjoy and do sign our poster declaring your independence of Craft Beer! Cheers! Todm

Summer is here...

Hey all,

I am not talking about the 45oF morning we are all experiencing. I am talking about the Weizenheimer going on tap. It replaced the Imperial IPA rather then the Stone IPA as i had mentioned in my previous post. If you read Tod's Saturday message you know that the Wheatwine is tasting a bit young so we got a few more kegs of Stone IPA in so we could let the Wheatwine age properly. Did someone say vintage Wheatwine?!? Yum!

So we are hoping that putting on the Wiezenheimer will bring back the warm weather for American Craft Beer Week. See you all soon for a pint.

Cheers,
Tyler

Saturday Greetings

Greetings beer lovers,
Tod here on a nice mellow Saturday. Some items that are going on around here are we brewed a strong golden Belgian ale with our friend from Smuttynose Brewing, Charlie Ireland. We're trying to get a name together for this beer and we're playing with the Goulden type theme. Perhaps we'll run a "name the beer contest" for American Beer Week (see further down the page) Other brewing news is the India Black Ale is conditioning nicely and quite tasty already although it is only 7 days old! The Pils we brewed with Cornelius Faust is now in conditioning, too, and is so crisp and bright!I am going to let it mature for another 4 weeks...... patients is essential with lager beers. We put in another batch of Milk Stout on Thurs. The Wheat Wine is still tasting a bit young so we'll be waiting for it to come around. But we do have a wee bit more of the aged Wheat Wine to bring out for American Craft Beer Week. Speaking of American Craft Beer Week, we have a few things we'll be doing to promote what it is we do here. For example we'll be having a raffle to brew with Tyler and I for a day. We'll also have daily food specials paired with our beer and perhaps some interesting older beers might make appearances! We'll be having brewery tours every day at 1:00 and 3:00 PM And lastly we'll be having a beer social where we can meet and greet with some delicious food and beer pairings. Totally casual and flexible. Be sure to sign our "Declaration of Beer Independence" poster sometime during the week of May 17th thru the 23rd (right around the bend!). That's about all I've got for now so do drop in during American Craft Beer Week to show your independence and individuality.Cheers! Todm

The wait is over...

Hey all,

I know that you have been asking your bartenders over and over when the 5 C's is going to be out. Well the wait is over, it is on! For those out there that are new to this blog, the 5 C's IPA is our version of a west coast IPA. The west coast IPA's are much more hop forward and more often then not big citrus hop flavor and aroma. I have yet to pull the 5 C's through the beer line, but I am sure this batch wont disappoint.

I'm going to be Crystal clear on this. You can hold me under Cascade-ing water but i am not going to give away what the 5 C's stand for since it usually becomes a trivia question for the Jimmy Lapanza Lounge (JLL). I am holding on to my information until the next Centennial starts. I would only divulge the information if Christopher Columbus came in to give me a Chinook salmon. So if you can ever figure out what the 5 C's stand for you could get the trivia correct tonight.


So, we are only going to have 4 IPA's on for a day or two. We are on our last keg of Stone IPA. So it could kick today or tomorrow at some point. But when it does summer can officially start. We are replacing it with the first batch of Weizenheimer. This is our summer wheat ale. Easy drinking, crisp and refreshing. A great hot summer day thirst quencher. Our sous-chef, Jon Hebert, is very excited since he has been asking for this beer since Sam Summer came out. Which was, oh, about 3 months ago. You know their "summer" seasonal comes out in late February, makes total sense.

Cheers,
Tyler

Blend-a-rifica...

Hey all,

Yes it was time to put on the Aged Flanders Blend. This is another very limited beer where we are not bottling or selling growlers. So you are going to have to come in to the P-Brew to try some of this. This is a blend of this years Flanders Red with a three year old Old Brun, two year old Flanders Red and a one year old Flanders Red. All the aged beers have the addition of a lambic yeast strain to at the start of the aging cycle. Plus we added some tart cherries. It is as close as we could come to making a true Kreik Lambic. Most definitely worth a try.

As i mentioned earlier it is a very limited amount, so I might not wait until the weekend to come give it a try. Because like the Black IPA it might go very quickly.

Cheers,
Tyler

PS On the Black IPA train of thought. Since the small amount I made when Tod was on vacation went over so well, we are going to brew a full batch of it on Friday.

One more IPA...

Hey all,

The Bigfoot kicked last night and changed over to Stone IPA. So we do have a few IPA's on right now. Ebeneezer's just started their Hop Fest on 4/20 so why not have a few IPA's here at P-brew for you to try. The Stone IPA is a relatively well balanced IPA for a west coast brewery. It still has that huge citrus flavor but almost has enough malt to balance it out.

The cask changed as well to the Le Chat Noir w/ Grand Marnier Oak. I was looking forward to this cask making on line, and it doesn't disappoint. It has a nice oak flavor as well as a almost orange peel flavor that blends so nicely with the roasty/chocolate flavors of the Le Chat Noir. Enjoy it while it lasts.

cheers,
Tyler

Lots of changes..

Hey all,

So even though the weather doesn't feel that way, summer is coming. One of the signs i look for is how often our tap line up changes, and it is happening quickly. So here is the run down.

The 09' Wheatwine changed over to Sierra Nevada Bigfoot that we were sitting on for 6 months or so. We only have a couple of kegs so be ready for a switch on that line sooner then later.

The Cream Ale is now gone and was replaced by a Black IPA. "Black IPA? What is that?" Well i am glad you asked. There is this great German malt called CaraFa II. It is a dehusked, high roasted malt that gives great color with out the roast flavor. So add some of this to our IPA recipe, changed the hopping slightly. BAM! You have a dark beer with the body and hop character of an IPA. Again I made a small batch of this just to see how it would be received.

To keep the IPA trend alive, the Whipper Snapper was replaced with the Imperial IPA. The Imperial IPA is on the other end of the IPA spectrum from the Whipper. Big, bold and hoppy. enjoy.

Cheers,
Tyler

PS I almost forgot to mention that if you missed out on some hop rhizomes we have them back in stock in the store. We have Centennial, Cascade and Glacier that you can grow at your house.

Thoughts from Sanibel

Greetings Beer Lovers,

Tod here from southwest Florida while on vacation. Touché to Tyler for his blog about our guests, Cornileus Faust from Miltenberg, Germany and Horst Dornbusch from the US. Horst brought up an interesting point during our international brew session. The point was: how would the two beers we brewed be received by two very different audiences. Beer culture in Germany is very traditional and the United States beer culture is very inquisitive. Whereas the Germans readily accept traditional beer styles, such as the hefeweizen, dunkel, pils, or helles; American beer drinkers are looking for more experimental beer styles. I'm pretty sure the 5 C's and Pils we brewed will be anticipated with baited breath here in NH. On the other hand, the German beer audience is used to traditional beer styles and will probably not be accepting of a dry-hopped, hopped-forward beer, like the 5 C's because it does not adhere to the German purity law, the reinheitsgebot. So, that's what I was thinking about today while I wasn't supposed to be thinking about work.

Anyway, I will sign off anticipating two very wonderful beers.

Cheers,
TODM 

German aproved

Hey all,

We just said goodbye to Cornelius Faust, the Head brewer of Faust Brewery (Brauhaus) in Miltenberg Germany. When Tod was in Germany he brewed with Cornelius at Brauhaus Faust, so we thought we would return the favor. Luckily, Horst Dornbush, a brewer turned journalist and long time friend of Tod, was showing Cornelius around New England before he had to head back to Germany. Cornelius spoke really great English, but some brewing terms didn't translate that well. So Horst helped with that plus was one more head in the mix for Thursdays brew. Which was helpful.

But first, on Tuesday Cornelius brewed his first IPA ever when he helped us brew the 5 C's IPA. He loved the smells coming out of the kettle and hop back. They were totally different then the traditional German hop aromas he is used to. He took copious notes and I wouldn't be surprised if you see and IPA style coming out of Brauhaus Faust soon.

Then on Thursday we got to brew one of his recipes. The Faust Pilsner. This gave us the challenge of doing an upwards infusion mash, on a system that really wasn't set up for it. But with the four heads working, of brewers from both sides the the Atlantic, we were successful. We made a very traditional German Style Pils that is just starting fermentation now but should come out to be around 4-4.5% ABV. Yes, it is a lager, so you all are going to have to wait about 7-9 weeks for this one. But it will be worth the wait.

Cheers,
Tyler

Let the sun shine in

Hey all,

Winter must be over because we kicked the Winter Weizen. We brought back the '09 Wheat Wine kegs again to tide us over until the Imp IPA is ready. So enjoy the '09 Wheat Wine while you can.

The Belgian Dubble also went away. So we replaced it with another Belgian style beer, our XX Bitter. The XX Bitter has the malt and hop profile of an ESB but we ferment the beer with a Belgian yeast strain that brings out the malt sweetness, and you get the Belgian fruity flavors as well. Another of our "hybrid" beers that we make here at Portsmouth Brewery.

Cheers,
Tyler

Oui Oui..

Hey all,

It's true the Stout has changed to Le Chat Noir, ah oui oui. It is our Black Cat stout but we used a Belgian yeast strain to ferment it vs our traditional house ale strain. It is so amazing to see the changed between a beer with only one ingredient changed. Though the yeast is a BIG one to change. It has much more fruity flavors that help mellow the coffee note quite a bit and smooths the beer out. Come on in and give one a try!

Cheers,
Tyler

No April Fools Joke here

Greetings Beer lovers,
Thursdays post was no joke! We are really bringing back the Cream Ale! We brewed 7 BBL. for opening day with the Bronx bombers! So get yourself a seat at the bar, either upstairs or downstairs in the Lapanza Lounge, order up a Cream ale and have at it like it was 2006! This offering is a very limited engagement with the Cream, so when it's gone..... you know the saying it's gone. Who knows if and when it will return. In any event we hope you enjoy it. Cheers! Todm

Happy April Fools Day

Hey all,
We have been asked so many times so we thought we would do it.
For Opening Day we are bringing back the luck of 2004.
We brewed a batch of Cream Ale and and putting it on!

Go Red Sox Go!

Cheers,
Tyler

Whip it.... more like smack it down!

Hello out there in breweryland.
Looks like we killed another beer.... Murphy's Law Red and are replacing it with some aged Wheat Wine. Oh Yea! This one is smooth and silky with some serious toffee and cotton candy like flavors. It will pair well with some sticky desserts and heavy steaks. Enjoy and be aware of the RAIN! Looking forward to warmer and sunnier days. Cheers! Todm

Whip it...whip it good

Hey all,

No we are not listening to Devo in the brewery today. But it was the first whipping reference I could think of since the Tripel kicked and was replaced with Whipper Snapper. The Whipper Snapper is an American Mild ale. So it is a sort of hybrid beer where is has the light body and low alcohol of a British Mild. Though it has the color and hop characteristics of an American IPA. So at 4.5% abv it is a session IPA. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Tyler

April Showers bring...

May flowers. Then what do Mayflowers bring?.........Pilgrims!

Hey all,

Just a little joke i still remember from kindergarten. Hope all of you got cleaned up and fixed all the problems from the last storm before this one hit. I want to hug the man who invented the sump pump! Amazing little invention.

Anyways, the beers are still flowing here at the P-brew, even while it pours outside. I apologize for not keeping the "What's on Tap" a little more updated last week but the last few time i tried the program froze up on me. But it is accurate now. As i mentioned in my previous post the Murphy's Law replaced the Imperial Porter. Plus the Black Cat Stout replace the Oatmeal Stout.

We are ramping up our stock pile of beers to get ready for the warmer weather. All you seem to come in a lot more often when the weather is nice. So we are trying to make sure you have some delicious libations waiting for you.

See ya soon for a pint!

Cheers,
Tyler

It's Magically Delicious...

Hey all,

The Imperial Porter has kicked off the taps, we do have a couple of Casks, so if you missed out on this years Impy Porter come get a hand pulled pint before it is completly gone. Now you can count your lucky stars because the Murphy's Law Red Ale is now on, just in time for St Pattie's Day. Unlike the Irish Red you are all thinking about that is brewed by Coors. The Murphy's Law is an ale. It has a nice malt forward flavor and a little more body then the other Red. Though it doesn't hang on your tongue leaving a nice clean finish. Come on in and have a pre-pint for St. Pattie's Day!

Sláinte!,

Tyler

No Sour, No Cry...

Hello All,

We are listing to a little Bob Marley down in the brewery today to ease our minds. I need to let you know that we are taking off the Flanders Red today and replacing it with the Belgian Double. We going to do some blending with the rest of the Flanders and bring it back at a later date, so keep your eyes open for that.

The Double is the little brother of the Triple that is on right now. It has a little less alcohol, at 7% vs the 9% of the Triple. The Double has more malt sweetness vs the clean candy sweetness of the Triple. Though it has a similar fruity/bubble gum nose. Yumm.

Cheers,
Tyler

Kate Day + 1...

Hey all,

First off i want to thank everyone who made it out for Kate Day. It was just as crazy, if not more so, then last year. I hope that everyone had a good time even if you were not one of the few that got a bottle this year.

With all the people through here for the weekend leading up to Monday and the flood of people here on Kate Day you would be correct in thinking that there had to be some changes to the tap line up.

The Sierra was taken off for Kate on Monday that lasted until about 5:30pm on draft. So I cleaned the beer line this morning and put on our Belgian Triple. The conditioning time we gave this beer really helped the alcohol burn mellow, letting all the Belgian fruit flavors really come through.

The Milk Stout kicked yesterday and was replaced by our Oatmeal Stout. Along with the draft line the cask changed over to the Oatmeal Stout as well. Oatmeal stout on cask is my favorite way to enjoy this brew.

Hope you are all recovering nicely.

cheers,
Tyler

More Kate Day Information

Over the last few weeks we've been following with interest the online chatter regarding our upcoming Kate Day, such as this one on Beer Advocate. We've resisted the temptation to weigh in, until now. There are a couple of items I wish to address here: one is a misconception that I need to correct before it grows into an Urban Legend worthy of Snopes; the other is in response to a concern that a growing number of people have written to us about.

First, the misconception. The Portsmouth Brewery does not have a two-drink limit on Kate Day, or any other day for that matter. The number of beers we serve is dictated by our longstanding practice of responsible alcohol service. In other words, we will not serve a single drink to an individual if in the opinion of our staff that person has been drinking elsewhere and has already had enough. On the other hand, we may serve a customer more than two if he or she is drinking responsibly and is not approaching a state of intoxication. That said, it would be nice if those who participate in Kate Day are respectful of the people waiting in line behind them and voluntarily place limits on themselves so that everyone has a chance to come in and enjoy some beer.

On a related note, a number of people have written asking us how we plan to deal with individuals who intend to cut in line or hold places for other people who are not in line. While it is not up to us to police people's bad behavior or rude manners outside of our own premises, we do want to make sure Kate Day is a fun event for everyone who attends. (We are in the hospitality business, after all.) The only way I can see addressing this is to change the time when we start handing out the calendar pages that people use to hold their places in line. We have let people know that we'll start handing out pages at seven in the morning. That is no longer the case.

We will start handing out calendar pages much earlier in the morning, possibly as soon as people begin to assemble outside. We will only give out one page per person, and if someone is not present when we pass out a page, they will not get one until they are. We will also stamp people's hands when they get a page in order to prevent people from going to the back of the line to collect an additional page. I will not say here what time we'll begin to pass out pages. We'll make that determination on the spot. There will always be those individuals who try to game the system, and frankly, we can't put too much energy into obsessing about them. It's good enough to know that life has a way of sorting that stuff out in the end.

We believe that the best thing about Kate Day isn't the beer; it is a friendly, sociable event that draws people from all over who share a common interest and discover new ones. When it ceases to be that, we will not host it anymore. Let's all do our part to keep Kate Day is fun, safe and sociable.

Cheers,

Peter Egelston, Proprietor

The Portsmouth Brewery

Tod Talks about the Portsmouth Brewery's Upcoming Kate Day

Happy Birthday G. Washington!

Hey all,

apparently great people were born on February 15th, myself included!

This weekend has been a busy one here at the P-brew, today not excluded. Which you might know if you came in looking to get some good food and beers at any point. So with all the people here there had to be a few changes to the beer line up. The Milk Stout is on replacing the Black Cat Stout. The Milk Stout is a sweet stout. The addition of the unfermentable milk sugar, lactose, gives the beer a nice creamy sweetness. It tastes slightly like a carbonated iced coffee. A tasty beer.

The Belgian Triple needed a little longer to condition so we brought in some Big foot to back up the Celebration. The Serria Nevada Big Foot is their Barleywine. It has a nice malt sweetness up front and finishes with the traditional Serria hop profile. We only got a couple of kegs here so enjoy it while you can.

The Cask changed as well to the Imperial Porter Dry hopped with palisade. We went through the first Porter cask yesterday before I could even blog that it was on! The Impy Porer on cask is so nice. So if you havn't had one yet, you should!

Cheers,

Tyler

Sweet n' Sour

Hey all,

No I'm not talking about the new soup that is on. I'm talking about the Flanders Red that went on this morning. Good bye to the Imp. India Brown Ale, i know that is a big sad face to a lot of you out there. But, a happy face on my end now that my fiancee wont ask me, "Is the Flanders on yet?" every time i get home.

This years Flanders had enough time to mellow slightly, so it is not as in your face sour as when it first went on last year. No bugs in the full batch. Perhaps a keg blend later on? Time will tell :)

Cheers,
Tyler

Imp Porter

Hey all,

I was congratulated a few days back by a friend for making a Scotch Ale since she wasn't able to get it from Smuttynose this year. I took the complement but made sure to let her know that the Scotch Ale was getting close to kicking and she should run in to the brewery to get some. Hopefully you listened Martha!

So it is true, the Scotch is gone. We replaced it with the Imperial Porter. This style is also know as a Baltic Porter. This beer almost a month old and just starting to come into itself. It has a nice chocolate front that fades to a sweet coffee, then finishes clean with just a hint of alcohol flavor. Though at 9% you might expect/want a little of that alcohol flavor just so you know what you are getting yourself into.

Go Saints!!

Cheers,
Tyler

Good by Old Friend...

Hey all,

The Barleywine has gone away for another year. She was tasting great for her last few weeks of life.

Now with the open tap we could put on the Imperial India Brown Ale. This beer is crazy hoppy. It is calculated at 60 IBU's but it tastes way more then that with a huge resin character coating the mouth after the swallow. Of course you have the dark crystal sweetness of a brown ale up front but then the hops take over. At 9% abv all you Hopheads be careful. This beer drinks like a brown ale with the alcohol/hop kick of an Imperial IPA.

Give one a whirl.

Cheers,
Tyler

Biere de Garde

Hey all,

The Munich Dunkel has gone away to be replaced with our Biere de Garde. This beer was cold conditioning for 4 weeks before it went on. Which really smoothed out the finish on this beer. It has some flavors of fruit and a sweetness that you would expect from a Belgian beer. Even though we didn't use a Belgian yeast strain! We are magicians down here in the basement :) I hope you guys enjoy this beer.

And for those of you who are still itching for some Munich Dunkel, we just taped our last cask of it yesterday night, so there should be some around for a little while longer.

Cheers,
Tyler

Going, Going, Gone!

Hey all,

I hope everyone listened and got one last 5 C's before she was gone. Since the 5 C's went away in record time once again, we put the Sierra Nevada Celebration back on to let the Biere de Garde finish out completely.

The cask of 5 C's kicked as well and we had an Oaked Barleywine cask that we had been holding on to for a bit that we thought i would be a good time to put it on. The oak we used was a medium toasted oak, giving a bit more of the tannic quality and less just raw wood flavor. Plus, there is a hint of the vanilla in there as you would expect. Yumm...

Cheers,

Tyler

Anti-velvetization :)

Hey all,

The cask has changed from Stout to 5 C's IPA dry hopped with Simcoe. Thank you to all who gave their two cents on my cask question. The 5 C's on tap is getting low though, so if you haven't had a change to try it come on in and get a pint before she is gone.

I also updated the upcoming beer list so take a look. We have a good line up of beers coming, to back up the good line up of beers we have now at the P-Brew.

Keep you eyes open and your thirst ready for quenching.

Cheers,
Tyler

Take a breath

Hey all,

The Holiday season is over and it is time to take a breath and have a quiet pint.

It looks like everyone is enjoying the 5 C's IPA once again. The bartenders tell me that almost every other beer they are pouring lately is the 5 C's. So all of you hop heads out there keep and eye out for the Imperial Brown we have coming out soon. Charlie over at Smuttnose wanted to brew a batch here at the P-brew. So he came up with the recipe and brewed it here, using a whole bunch of hops. You are going to have to try it when it comes out.

The cask changed to the Black Cat Stout dry hopped w/ Saphir. I feel the stout casks always last longer then most casks we have here. Do you guys not enjoy the Stout on cask as much as a Stout off nitro tap? This is a random question i had in the back of my head, so I thought I would ask.

OK need to get back to it.

Cheers,
Tyler