The central PA discussion

[Shakedwnst]

I haven't had Saison Hands for a couple of years, but ******* have they dialed that beer in. It is so much better than I remember it being.

New recipe and all of it goes through the oak foudres now. I had some yesterday too and it was much better than I remembered.

 

[RLD]

Apparently Al's is tapping another bourbon barrel stout tomorrow.

 

[tommyguz]

ill see if i can dig the resource up but there is documentation and lab analysis that proves its a chemical reaction that occurs in beer with the presence of coffee beans that have been lightly roasted. the same beans with a heavier roast do not contain the same chemical compound when added to beer.

it creates an interesting situation because when you over-roast coffee, you lose the nuance of the bean itself and all you taste is the roast. basically what i got from the research indicates that the type of coffee used and how its added to beer matters much less than the level of roast

What kind of person even buys light roast coffee? That's for old folks who drink it by the pot and reheat what's in the pot for 2 days in the microwave before making a fresh one.

 

[stakem1]

What kind of person even buys light roast coffee? That's for old folks who drink it by the pot and reheat what's in the pot for 2 days in the microwave before making a fresh one.

I dont even know how to respond to this.

 

[MooseLang]

What kind of person even buys light roast coffee? That's for old folks who drink it by the pot and reheat what's in the pot for 2 days in the microwave before making a fresh one.

I think you need to revisit good, light roast coffee. I love medium-to-dark roast coffee, but a well done light roast can be delicious.

I used to be in the "darker the better" camp, too, until someone showed me what light roast can bring to the table.

 

[MooseLang]

Also, it sounds like you're confusing people making "weak" coffee with coffee that has been lightly roasted. Comparing apples and dildos.

 

[tommyguz]

I think you need to revisit good, light roast coffee. I love medium-to-dark roast coffee, but a well done light roast can be delicious.

I used to be in the "darker the better" camp, too, until someone showed me what light roast can bring to the table.

No no, I was just joking all around. I've come around to lighter roasts after also being in that said camp of darker the better

 

[tommyguz]

I dont even know how to respond to this.

I don't even know how to respond to your avatar. T-Bone M? Doesn't make any friggen sense.

I miss your face though. That I know.

 

[JulianB1]

Al's Of Hampden
52 mins ·

heres the ******** template letter you get when a business owner doesnt have enough balls to just call you up and has someone send a letter instead. But they sign it from "sam"

(i make a ******* motion repeatedly that you cant see right now)

 

[lazerviking]

I just can't believe how poorly this guy handles all his PR and social media. The email from DFH was extremely professional and understanding. "Call him up"!! He has no grip on the realities of owning a business or enforcing a mark. I wish Terry would get the hell out of there.

 

[stakem1]

I just can't believe how poorly this guy handles all his PR and social media. The email from DFH was extremely professional and understanding. "Call him up"!! He has no grip on the realities of owning a business or enforcing a mark. I wish Terry would get the hell out of there.

Its a good thing Al and Terry dont personally know you or you would be shunned for making this post and/or having an opinion that differs from theirs.

 

[owlsfan]

they deleted it. lol.

 

[PepeSylvia1]

Anyone hear anything about the Permasmile release???

 

[RLD]

I would expect later this month or early February

 

[bvdubn1]

Anyone hear anything about the Permasmile release???

I think they just labeled it last week. It needs a few weeks still to clean up in the bottle. Mid to late February is probably a safe bet.

 

[holldy01]

Had Spring House Dean aged in Port Barrels with Brett. Holy hell was it bad. Opened with practically no carbonation. Then it hits the tongue with no flavor which quickly changed to plastic and vinegar. It smelled like cheep communion wine. Just a hint of funk on the nose but no brett character in the taste. I know saisons arnt their forte but it tasted nothing like regular dean, just plastic, vinegar and water aged in port barrels.

 

[bvdubn1]

Had Spring House Dean aged in Port Barrels with Brett. Holy hell was it bad. Opened with practically no carbonation. Then it hits the tongue with no flavor which quickly changed to plastic and vinegar. It smelled like cheep communion wine. Just a hint of funk on the nose but no brett character in the taste. I know saisons arnt their forte but it tasted nothing like regular dean, just plastic, vinegar and water aged in port barrels.

I pretty much lost all faith in Spring House after their disastrous barrel program. Although I did hear big gruesome is now in cans which is pretty cool.

 

[holldy01]

I pretty much lost all faith in Spring House after their disastrous barrel program. Although I did hear big gruesome is now in cans which is pretty cool.

It was the first BA beer of theirs that I have had and Im perfectly ok never having another one of their BA beers. Ive only had their beer on draft at the taproom and although its never been great its been passable for the most part. But this was far from passable and about $25 overpriced(I think it was only $20 but really they should be paying me at least $5 to take it off their hands)

 

[tommyguz]

I pretty much lost all faith in Spring House after their disastrous barrel program. Although I did hear big gruesome is now in cans which is pretty cool.

That program was a waste of money

 

[holldy01]

I pretty much lost all faith in Spring House after their disastrous barrel program. Although I did hear big gruesome is now in cans which is pretty cool.

That program was a waste of money

Why was it so bad?

 

[stakem1]

Why was it so bad?

Because they had no clue what they were doing and used patrons money to learn the process of barrel aging. Most, if not all, of the things they sold were at a premium price and showed fundamental flaws or were grosely infected. The one true gem of a beer they released was not even part of their exclusive barrel room reserve series, it was the apology freebie bottle.

 

[stakem1]

Here is a quick summary of what I remember about the barrel reserve brews:

Big G and Kerplunk had little to no noticeable barrel character and were overcarbonated to the point where you couldnt even taste the base beers.
Jalapeno Bloodlust was pepper vinegar and puke (they apologized for how bad this was and gave replacement beers)
Habanero Bloodlust actually wasnt bad but wasnt good either, it was less spicy than the jalapeno version which was strange.
Bloodlust with coffee had no barrel character and tasted like green peppers and decaying vegetal matter.

It was suppose to be a 6 month club membership but ended up being over a year (i think?) until all the beers came out. Throughout the duration, their communication was pretty bad and the information they did give about the beers was laughable. They stated the port barrels they aged their saisons in were what was responsible for the sourness but claimed it wasnt infections... they also cited using specific strains of brettanomyces as reasons the beers were intentionally sour. However, the strains of brett they mentioned were not sour producing strains.

There were also rumours that some of the barrels they used had sat emtpy for months if not years prior to being filled. So, its no wonder so many of the beers ended up infected.

You could tell that after they promised the replacement beers for the first terribly infected bottles, they just wanted the nightmare to be over. They offered members a free out and refunds. It was a real learning experience...lol

 

[bvdubn1]

Why was it so bad?

The barrel aged stouts had little to no barrel character. The rum jalapeño bloodlust was infected. They replaced the infected bottle with Pappy Bloodlust so that was cool. The double ipa never carbed then they rebrewed it and by the time it carbed it was a month old. Then came the Dean variants and they tasted like vinegar or solvent. I think one of the last bottles they release was port bloodlust and by that time I was so fed up with them that I didn't buy any of the last two or three bottles that they released. They couldn't have paid me to join their society for a second round.

 

[tehzachatak]

Moving to Central PA midsummer-ish. Will likely be looking for drinking partners. Figured I would put out feelers now...

 

[PepeSylvia1]

I am close enough the central PA, and I like drinking...

 

[ForkAndSpoonOperator]

Moving to Central PA midsummer-ish. Will likely be looking for drinking partners. Figured I would put out feelers now...

Whereabouts are you landing?

 

[tehzachatak]

Whereabouts are you landing?

State College... So not close to anything. At all.

 

[ForkAndSpoonOperator]

State College... So not close to anything. At all.

Poor bastard.

 

[bvdubn1]

State College... So not close to anything. At all.

Is that still considered central PA? I live in just outside of Harrisburg and I tell people I live in central PA.

 

[tehzachatak]

Is that still considered central PA? I live in just outside of Harrisburg and I tell people I live in central PA.

****, I don't know. I just looked at a map and it was in the middle. I guess after living in Maine for four years I should realize "central" doesn't necessarily mean what it seems like it should mean.