The second annual Cleveland Beer Week is fast approaching. October 15 through October 23 will be a week long celebration of all things beer! Starting with the Celebration of the Hop festival at Fat Head’s Brewery & Saloon on October 15th, and culminating with the Brewzilla monster beer tasting at the Galleria at Erieview on October 23rd. In between are literally hundreds of events at locations all around Cleveland, including beer tastings, beer dinners, special keg tappings, beer and food pairings, guest appearances by brewers, pub crawls, and more! Check the website for details and schedule of events, www.clevelandbeerweek.com
The Ohio Craft Brewers Association and Cleveland Beer Week are releasing a collaborative 12 pack of 6 mixed beers from twelve breweries in Northeast Ohio, believed to be the largest collaboration to date packaged together for your beer enjoyment. Breweries working together include the following: Great Lakes Brewing and Cellar Rat Brewery collaborating on a barrel-aged strong ale, Thirsty Dog and Indigo Imp, a smoked black lager, Buckeye Brewing and Cornerstone, an alt bier, Brewkettle and Willoughby Brewing, a rye Kolsch, Fat Head’s and Black Box, a wet-hopped Cascade infused IPA, and Hoppin Frog and Rocky River, an imperial American porter. This will be a limited release so look for it the second week of October and draft will only be available at the breweries during Cleveland Beer Week and at Brewzilla.
At this year’s Cleveland Octoberfest, Fat Head’s won four of five awards. Fat Head’s Guden Hoppy Pils won the German Pale Lager category, their Gogglefogger Hefeweizen won the German ale category, and Head Hunter IPA won the non-Germanic category. Best of show went to Head Hunter IPA and the People’s Choice award went to Ohio Brewing Co.
Fat Head’s will be having a Harvest Festival featuring Fall beer selections, live music, and barbecue on October 8 and 9. And, get your tickets now for the Celebration of the Hop Festival the following weekend. There will be rare IPAs and double IPAs from all over the US, and tickets will likely sell out. You’ll get 15 tasting tickets and a souvenir glass for your $30 advance ticket.
During Cleveland Beer Week Fat Head’s brewer Matt Cole will be doing a collaborative brew with brewmaster Mitch Steele from Stone Brewing Co. He’s not sure what they’re brewing yet, but says their mission is to push the envelope and create a new style. So look for something completely off the hook! Watch too, for Fat Head’s Head Hunter and Christmas Ale to be available in bottles soon.
Thirsty Dog Brewing Company won the gold medal for best traditional Oktoberfest with its Barktoberfest beer at Cleveland’s recent Oktoberfest in Berea. Thirsty Dog’s tasting room bar will open on Saturday, October 2 with an open house tour (3-8 pm) of brewery and a ceremonial tapping of our first cask of Pumpkin Porter, a cask conditioning of their Old Leghumper and their Pumpkin Ale at 3:30 pm. Check out thirstydog.com for tasting room hours and special brewery only releases and casks.
The brewery completed the expansion of fermentation last month and has also expanded distribution to include South Carolina and Massachusetts. Pumpkin Ale made with 5 varieties of locally grown squash and pumpkins will release on October 2 and will be on tap at the Winking Lizards on October 15. Christmas Ale will officially be tapped on the Cleveland Beer Week train October 22nd and on October 23rd at Brewzilla.
The Buckeye Beer Engine has a packed agenda for Cleveland Beer Week. As an example, they will have the “Avery Experience on October 19. The founder of Avery Brewing will be on hand to present 15 beers paired in threes with food. October 20th is the annual Red Carpet event. There will also be a Buckeye/Brewkeeper reunion at the Winking Lizard Party Center in Bedford Heights. On Sunday, October 17 they will present breakfast with Dark Horse. Later that day, Bill Metzger of the Brewing News will be on hand to host Name that Beer and Beeriodic Bingo. And post CBW, on the 24th there will be breakfast with Founders. Visit the CBW website for details on all events. Tickets must be purchased at the Beer Engine for all listed events.
I recently stopped by Maumee Bay Brewing Co in Toledo. Of the nine beers on tap, the highlight for me was the Coconut Stout. I spoke with the beer’s creator, Justen Pelton. He’s been a homebrewer for about 7 years and has won many competitions locally for his beers. The coconut stout was the best of show at the Lucas County Fair last year and he and Jon Koester, Maumee Bay’s brewer brewed a 6 barrel batch using 50 pounds of toasted coconut. There may not be any left by the time you read this, but it was so good that I think they just might continue to make it.
Weasel Boy Brewing Company will be releasing their much anticipated Das Frettchen Oktoberfest. Brewed using European Munich and Vienna malts and German hops, Das Frettchen is a traditional Oktoberfest and weighs in at just over 5% abv. October 30 brings the third annual Fright Night at the Brewery. Full costumes are the norm and special beers from the cellar will include two year old Anastasia Russian Imperial Stout and a special dry hopped firkin of Bitter Sable Imperial Black IPA.
The fourth week of November brings the second annual Harvest Week Celebration. Live music and special beer releases every night will highlight the week. Harvest Week releases will include bourbon barrel aged Anastasia Russian Imperial Stout tipping the scale at almost 10% abv, barrel aged Brown Stoat Cherry Stout and the 2010 version of Snow Ermine Holiday Ale. This years Snow Ermine is a honey/vanilla/chocolate porter, just right for the crisp autumn weather. Visit www.weaselboybrewing.com for details.
Hoppin’ Frog is working on some new beers that are still on the drawing board, but for now, Frog’s Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale is available, and Fresh Frog RAW HOP Imperial Pale Ale will be available mid-October, and the Frosted Frog Christmas Ale will be available November 1.
Jackie O’s October beers will include, Barking Pumpkin, a 7.8% abv pumpkin ale made with local organic pumpkins, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, coriander, and allspice. Burnin’ Hill , a 6.5% abv red ale brewed with peat smoked malt, local honey, and local maple syrup. November brews will include: Dark Apparition, a 10.5% abv Russian Imperial Stout, Black Betty, a 9.5%abv Imperial Raspberry Vanilla Porter, and possibly their Belgian style ales will be ready sometime in November!
Watch their website for news of their November “One Funky Evening” that will feature 12 to 14 sour ales from their cellar along with a bottle release. On December 4th, they will have their 5th Anniversary Extravaganza, and all 38 taps will be filled with Jackie O’s beers and a large bottle sale will coincide.
Ohio Brewing Company will soon be brewing at their new location at 451 S. High Street in Akron. They hope to eventually add a tap room, but for now, they will have regularly scheduled tours (and others by appointment). Three of their beers are available in bottles at your local good beer outlet (Verich Gold, Cardinal Ale, and Ohiofest). Soo they will add O’Hoppy All, Alt-ernative Amber, Steel Valley Stout, and their Holiday Ale to those available in bottles.
Ohio Brewing has joined with Rockne’s to have their beer featured at their pub in Cuyahoga Falls. And, the plans are to eventually have an OBC Grille featuring Ohio Brewing beers in the Merriman Valley.
Lastly, don’t forget to get your tickets for the 13th Annual Microbrew Extravaganza! Held again at Massimo da Milano in Cleveland, it features local breweries, food, live music, and all to benefit the Cleveland Free Clinic. (www.thefreeclinic.org )