Publicanista! … September 1, 2005.

In this edition of Publicanista!:

Cask-conditioned NABC Bob’s Old 15 B on Friday, September 2.

NABC Hoptimus & Stumble Bus -- and brewery expansion soon to be under way.

More recent readings from the Potable Curmudgeon’s beer blog.

Harvest Hop fest approaching (Oct. 7).

Current draft beer lineup.

Bottle board news: Oaken Barrel Saison.

Events and miscellany – we’ll be closed on Monday, Sept. 5 for Labor Day.

I. CASK-CONDITIONED ALE THIS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2: NABC BOB’S OLD 15 B.

The award-winning homebrew recipe by Bob Capshew, now a medium-bodied Brown Porter. Mid-5’s abv.

For more information on cask-conditioned ale:
Horse Brass Pub (where Biscuit works)
Campaign for Real Ale

II. NABC BREWERY NEWS: HOPTIMUS PREVIEW, STUMBLE BUS FINALE, AND THE BREWERY EXPANSION PROJECT NEARS KICK-OFF.

Coming tomorrow: A preview of NABC Hoptimus, which will reappear in October at Lupulin Land harvest Hop fest. Hoptimus is brewed with Simpson's Golden Promise malt, Northern Brewer, Fuggles and Cascades hops, and London yeast. Dry hopping with Fuggles and Cascades lends a West Coast feel to a powerful 8.5% ale.

Take note: On Tuesday, September 6, the next to last remaining keg of Stumble Bus goes on tap. The final keg will be aged for release at Gravity Head, 2006.

You’ve heard it before – now read it again, except this time it’s actually happening.

NABC to expand brewing capacity to 1,000 barrels per year.

Here’s a bit of archival information about beer and brewing in New Albany:
Neighborhood brewing once thrived in New Albany.

III. RECENT NEWS AND ARTICLES AT THE POTABLE CURMUDGEON’S BEER BLOG.

Here are four recent articles posted at http://potablecurmudgeon.blogspot.com/:

Now more than ever, absolute power corrupts Big Red Liquors absolutely.

Westvleteren 12 or Rochefort 10? The Curmudgeon casts his ballot.

Road trip, anyone? Warrior hop experiment night at San Francisco's Toronado Pub.

A glimpse at the storage room at Rich O's.

IV. LUPULIN LAND HARVEST HOP FEST IS ON THE HORIZON.

Our fourth celebration of bitterness in all its wonderous glory begins on Friday, October 7. For lineup details and other tidbits, read the whole article:

4th Lupulin Land Harvest Hop Fest at Rich O's begins Friday, October 7.

V. DRAFT BEERS: OUR LIQUID, DAILY BREAD, ON TAP AT RICH O’S AND SPORTSTIME.

Our NABC beers.
Brewed in New Albany by NABC’s Jesse Williams, with assistance from Jared Williamson.

Beak’s Best … English ESB named for world-famous traveler, scholar and drinks aficionado “Beak” Barry. Standard strength.

Community Dark … A dark-colored, light-bodied English Mild, and the ideal place to begin overcoming unfounded fears of the dark. 4.5% abv.

Croupier IPA … Brewed with French 2-row malt, Nugget, Fuggles and Cascades hops, and Jesse’s most crowd pleasing formula thus far.

Non-Gravity guests from near and far.
Market pricing.

Alpha King
Arrogant Bastard
Bell’s Two Hearted Ale
Celebrator Doppelbock
Delirium Tremens
Founders Dirty Bastard
Gold Label Bock (Terre Haute Brewing Company)
Guinness Stout
Hitachino Kiuchi Nest Real Ginger Ale
Lindemans Framboise
Pilsner Urquell
Ridgeway Espresso Grande Stout
Rogue Dead Guy Ale
Schneider Weisse
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Smithwick’s Irish Ale
Spaten Premium Lager
Schlenkerla Marzen
Schneider Weisse
Sprecher Root Beer (non-alcoholic)
Upland Wheat
Weihenstephan Hefeweissbier Dunkel (our featured summer Hefeweizen)

In the bullpen:

Spezial Rauchbier

VI. CHECK THE CHALKBOARD FOR ROTATING BOTTLED SELECTIONS: OAKEN BARREL SAISON.

Remember to check the chalkboard in the front room at Rich O’s for bottled specials and seasonals. These are the bottled beers not carried on the everyday bottled list, and represent a wide variety of flavors and textures for your tasting enjoyment.

From Ken Price, brewer at Oaken Barrel Brewing Company, comes an excellent bottle-conditioned Saison, which I recently enjoyed on tap at the pub in Greenwood in the company of a smokehouse combo of ribs, pulled pork, baked beans and corn on the cob.

Ken’s Belgian-style Saison is clean and subtly fruity and finishes dry, with the requisite peppery notes. It is more complex in the bottle than on draft, with much to tease and tempt the palate, and a better complement to garlic-laced barbecue with a thick, sweet and tangy sauce is difficult for me to imagine … unless, of course, the meal were served in Belgium, not Greenwood.

Bottles are $11.00 (carry-out price a few bucks less) … and next week, we’ll have a keg of this excellent ale.

Described previously and still in stock:

Cassissona – cassis-infused sparkling beer from Italy.
Panil Barriquee – Flemish-style sour red ale aged in cognac barrels. A classic.
Rogue Chipotle Ale – mildly peppery, mildly smoky amber ale.
Shipyard Pumpkinhead - pumpkin spices are mild and balanced.
Stone Imperial Stout (2005) - massive is the best word to describe this great personal favorite.
Stone Vertical Epic 5/5/5 (2005) - cellaring is recommended for the latest in a series of releases designed to be put aside for future reference.
Uerige Doppel Sticke – special strong Alt bier, malty and delicious.

VII. EVENTS, HOURS AND RELATED FACTS.

We will be closed on Monday, September 5 for Labor Day.

General business hours:

Sportstime Pizza opens at 11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday. Rich O’s opens at 3:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and at 1:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. We are not open on Sunday except during special events. The same food and beer is available at all times in both rooms, so you may have lunch and a beer in the Sportstime Pizza dining area during those hours when Rich O’s isn’t open. The brewery is available for a look-see if one of us is around and we’re not busy.

2005/06 events:

Lupulin Land Harvest Hop 2005
Begins Friday, October 7.

Saturnalia! 2005
Begins Friday, December 16.

Gravity Head 2006 (Vol. 8)
Date TBA announced. It is possible that the date for this edition of Gravity Head will be moved forward two weeks into the end of February.

Credits:

Readers who aren’t as familiar with our business should go to http://www.newalbanian.com/ and http://www.richos.com/ for more information.

NABC is a member of the Brewers of Indiana Guild: http://www.brewersofindianaguild.com/

Questions or comments about editorial content should be directed to Roger A. Baylor: potable@richos.com.

Questions or comments about the web sites or mailing list should be directed to Christopher M. Spellman:
chris@newalbanian.com.

THE END.