Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Stillwater Artisanal Ale Dinner

The Stillwater Beer Dinner
With Special Guest Brian Strumke
Monday, June 28 | 5 Courses + 7 Beers | $76

Join us at Birch & Barley on Monday, June 28th as we host Gypsy Brewer Brian Strumke, and pair seven of his delicious and rare brews with a five course tasting menu artfully prepared by Executive Chef Kyle Bailey and Pastry Chef Tiffany MacIssac.

Brian will lead us through the dinner, shedding light on his fantastic beers as they compliment Chef Bailey's menu. This is an extremely unique opportunity to taste some never-before seen Stillwater beers and to meet the man behind the brews. This will be Brian’s first Beer Dinner in DC, so don’t miss out on a truly special Craft Beer experience!

The menu is still being written and we'll be sure to publish it asap - but we know we'll be featuring the following Stillwater Artisanal Ales:

JUNGLE DE RUS (Draft) This is the first time this brew will be featured in Washington, DC! The brew is a collaboration between Stillwater and Voodoo Brewing Company from Pennsylvania. A sort of Black Belgian Wheat Ale, it is brewed with pureed raisins, hibiscus, juniper, rose hips, and Schisandra berries.

RED 33 (Cask) Another Washington, DC debut! This is one of Brian’s prototype beers that has yet to be released to the public, and we hear it is incredible. It is a sort of Flemish Red Ale, brimming with fruit and wonderful acidity.

STATESIDE SAISON (Draft) Stateside Saison pays homage to old world tradition while celebrating new world innovation. Naturally brewed with the finest European malts & fresh aromatic hops from the United States & New Zealand, it is then fermented using a classic farmhouse ale yeast. The outcome is a beer of unique design and exquisite taste, showcasing some of the best attributes of modern-day craft brewing.

STATESIDE SAISON (Cask) w/ Chamomile in the Cask The same base beer as above, but creamier and more aromatic from the firkin. Chamomile adds a nice floral note to an already complex nose.

CELLAR DOOR (Draft) Stillwater’s summer seasonal is a refreshing and light Saison. The same proprietary farmhouse yeast is employed to guarantee aromatic complexity, and white sage is added for a cleansing finish.

CELLAR DOOR (Cask) w/ French Oak & Dry-Hopped with Citra hops in the Cask The same base beer as above, also creamier and more aromatic from the firkin. French oak lends some vanilla notes and a touch of acidity, while the bouquet gains citric, herbal aromas from the dry-hopping.

THE CHANNEL-CROSSING (Draft) A knockout collaboration between Stillwater Artisanal Ales and Pratt Street Ale House in Baltimore. It is an English Strong Ale with full malty flavor and drying, earthy hops. Stillwater’s farmhouse yeast adds a grassy, spicy and citric array to the nose. Excellent!

About Stillwater Artisanal Ales

Stillwater Artisanal Ales is the nomadic brewing venture headed by Baltimore native, Brian "Stillwater" Strumke. A former internationally renowned techno DJ and producer who has extensively traveled much of the US and Europe, he returned home in 2004 to delve into a new passion, brewing. Brian rather quickly made his mark in the homebrewing community for his often odd concoctions and unconventional brewing methods. "I look at brewing as an art form, creating a beer to me is like painting a picture. There are virtually an infinite amount of variables that can be manipulated and my approach to brewing very much parallels how I went about creating my music."

Brian eventually cut his teeth by ranking in some local homebrew competitions, which eventually led to wins in the Sam Adams Longshot and Holiday Competitions, as well as the AHA (American Homebrewer’s Association) Nationals. These accolades were surprising given that Brian’s beers rarely fit into BJCP (Beer Judge Certification Program) categories; even the more "traditional" beers he made would have some sort of twist. "I am not really into this to reinvent the wheel (or Pale Ale for that matter), so you can definitely expect something fresh and new." These competitions often yielded wins in the more esoteric categories and his intricate use of herbs, spices, wild yeasts, and anything else he could get his hands on often came to judges with both intrigue and enjoyment.

In 2010, after about 5 years of backyard brewing, Brian has taken Stillwater Artisanal Ales to the public. Wary of startup costs for a full-blown brewery, Brian now travels to various breweries in the US and Belgium, hand-crafting small-batch, authentic ales.

Details: Stillwater Beer Dinner at Birch & Barley on Monday, June 28 at 7 PM. $76 plus tax and gratuity for the 5 course menu and 7 Stillwater Artisanal Ales. Please call Call Birch & Barley at (202) 567-2576 to reserve your seats today.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Celebrating Savor: A Huge Week's Worth Of Events

Tonight: East Coast Craft Cask Ale & Draft Rarity Beer Night
ChurchKey | June 1 | 6 O'Clock

Join us at ChurchKey tonight for the first of many big nights this week as we rev it up for this weekend's huge Savor event. We're kicking things off this evening with the beautiful beers of five amazing East Coast Craft Breweries. We will be pouring a bunch of draft rarities, handing out glassware, and featuring a cask from each of the breweries on hand! It's all happening tonight, so grab your gang and join us at the bar!

The Breweries

Harpoon Brewery
Heavy Seas Brewery
Dogfish Head Craft Brewing Company
Flying Dog Brewery
Peak Organic Brewing Company

The Cask Lineup

Harpoon Summer Beer dry-hopped w/ Willamette hops
Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron
Heavy Seas Red Sky at Night
Flying Dog Raging Bitch
Peak Organic IPA

Featured Drafts

Harpoon Leviathan Big Bohemian Pilsner
Harpoon 100 Barrel #31: Single Hop ESB (DC Debut!)
Flying Dog Barrel-Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter
Flying Dog Coffee Porter
Heavy Seas Letter of Marque: Rye Porter
Dogfish Head Fort

Details: East Coast Craft Cask Ale & Draft Rarity Beer Night at ChurchKey. Tuesday, June 1 beginning 6 o'clock. No admission fee. Beers will be priced individually.

Tomorrow: Washington DC Launch of Anchor Humming Ale
Featuring Anchor Brewing Company’s CEO John Dannerbeck
ChurchKey | June 2 | 6 O'Clock

Join us at ChurchKey as we welcome John Dannerbeck, CEO of Anchor Brewing Company, as well as a rarely seen offering from the brewery: Anchor Humming Ale. This will be the first time this wonderful, nuanced American Pale Ale will be available in DC! Originally brewed in 2009 as a commemoration of the opening of their new brewhouse (way back in 1979), this is a sessionable beer brewed with the amazing Nelson Sauvin hop from New Zealand; this hop offers delicious notes gooseberry and grass, and imparts an earthy, drying bitterness to the brew’s finish. We’ll be handing out a limited amount of free glassware as well.

Featured Drafts

Anchor Humming Ale
Anchor Steam
Anchor Liberty Ale
Anchor Old Foghorn

Details: Washington DC Launch of Anchor Humming Ale & Meet & Greet with Anchor Brewing Company’s CEO John Dannerbeck. Wednesday, June 2 beginning 6 o'clock. No admission fee. Beers will be priced individually - free glassware while supplies last.

Friday Night: Sierra Nevada Happy Hour
Featuring Founder Ken Grossman
ChurchKey | June 4 | 4 O'Clock

ChurchKey is delighted to welcome American Craft Beer Pioneer Ken Grossman and his crew for a Happy Hour/ Meet & Greet the night before Savor. We will be giving away Sierra Nevada glassware and pouring a bunch of Sierra Nevada drafts, including barrel-aged rarities and brews hardly ever seen outside of Chico, California. And we will also be showcasing authentic Sierra Nevada cask ales as well as handing out a limited amount of free glassware.

The Casks

Sierra Nevada Porter
Sierra Nevada Stout

Featured Drafts

Sierra Nevada Best Bitter
Sierra Nevada Barrel-Aged Porter
Sierra Nevada Hellraiser Imperial Stout: infused w/ Cocoa & Chilies
Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary Ale: Charlie, Fred & Ken’s Imperial Helles Lager
Sierra Nevada Summerfest
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot

Details: Sierra Nevada Happy Hour with Founder Ken Grossman. Friday, June 4 beginning 4 o'clock. No admission fee. Beers will be priced individually.

Next Wednesday: BrewDog Meet & Greet with Cofounder and Head Brewer James Watt
ChurchKey | June 9 | 6 O'Clock

Join us at ChurchKey for a night of “Beer for Punks”! BrewDog is Scotland’s most cutting edge craft brewery and we will be displaying a bevy of their boundless brews. James Watt will be in attendance telling us about his beers and proclaiming his mantra that “beer was never meant to be bland tasteless and apathetic”.

The Drafts

BrewDog w/ Stone Brewing Company: Bashah
BrewDog w/ Mikkeller: Devine Rebel
BrewDog: Tokio
BrewDog: Punk IPA
BrewDog: Zeitgeist
BrewDog: 5AM Saint
BrewDog: Dogma

On Cask

BrewDog Hardcore IPA
BrewDog Paradox Smokehead
BrewDog Paradox Isle of Arran
BrewDog Paradox Springbank

Details: BrewDog Meet & Greet with Co-founder and Head Brewer James Watt. Wednesday, June 9 beginning 6 o'clock. No admission fee. Beers will be priced individually.