28

Aug 2015

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Beer Blind Tasting Goes Mobile!

I hope some of you made it out to the Asheville Wine and Food Festival last weekend.  It was amazing!  We had a blast at the Metro Wines booth.  We got to meet a lot of new faces and some familiar ones, too while we were selling wines as the retail outlet for many of the wines featured at the Grand Tasting.  Andy also hosted two rounds of Wine Blind Tasting, and I hosted one round of Beer Blind Tasting with the help of Brewmaster Jeff Irvin of AB Tech's Craft Beverage Institute of the Southeast. You may remember Mr. Irvin from a previous post, but if not, let's just say the event was not dull!  My cheeks hurt at the end of it!  I really enjoyed taking our monthly Blind Tasting League event out into the world.  
 
We had thirty seats that filled up quickly, mostly with people that had never heard of the Blind Tasting League, but really had a good time exploring the contents of their glass.  If you have never tasted beer this way, it really is a lot of fun.  We pour four beers, hide the packaging away, and take you through assessing the visual, aroma, and flavor clues to identify which grains, hops, and yeast were used.  We roll all of that into determining what style the beer is. It really is the best drinking game ever! If you would like to learn more about the Blind Tasting League, visit our website here. 
 
We owe a huge thanks to the Asheville Wine and Food Festival, Skyland Distributing, Brewmaster Irvin, and the breweries that provided beers for the event.  Now that the big reveal is all done, I can tell you what we poured and thank those breweries properly. Here they are in the order they were tasted: -
 
 
 
 
 

Oskar Blues, Brevard, NC

Mama’s Little Yella Pils

Mama's Little Yella Pils is an uncompromising, small-batch Pilsner with 100% Pale Malt, German Specialty Malts, and Saaz hops.

 

 

 

New Belgium, Fort Collins, CO
(Coming soon to Asheville!)

Ranger IPA

This clear amber INDIA PALE ALE beauty bursts at the starting gate with an abundance of hops: Cascade (citrus), Chinook (floral/citrus), and Simcoe (fruity) lead off the beer, with Cascade added again for an intense dry hop flavor. Brewed with pale and dark caramel malts that harmonize the hop flavor from start to finish, Ranger is a sessionable splendor for all you hopinistas

- See more at: http://metrowinesasheville.com/brew-blog/entry/beer-blind-tasting-goes-mobile#sthash.N3bmDViY.dpuf

 

 

 

Hi-Wire Brewing, Asheville, NC
Bed of Nails Brown Ale

Our brown ale is crafted as an ode to the traditional English brown. It’s delicate body allows the flavors of caramel and toffee from our specialty malts to come to life.

- See more at: http://metrowinesasheville.com/brew-blog/entry/beer-blind-tasting-goes-mobile#sthash.N3bmDViY.dpuf

 

 

 

Higland Brewing Company, Asheville, NC

Black Mocha Stout

Highland’s most robust beer, having a very malty body with a large, roasted chocolate flavor, all achieved solely through the use of special roasted barley grains. It is black in color with a very clean finish and moderate hop flavor.

Grains: 2 Row Brewers Malt, Munich, Roasted Barley, Caramel 40, Caramel 60, Chocolate, Extra Special Malt & Malted Wheat

Hops: Chinook & Mount Hood

- See more at: http://metrowinesasheville.com/brew-blog/entry/beer-blind-tasting-goes-mobile#sthash.N3bmDViY.dpuf

 

Anita Riley studies Brewing, Distillation, and Fermentation at The Craft Beverage Institute of the South East at AB Tech. She holds the title of Certified Beer Server through Cicerone, USA, and is a native of WNC. - See more at: http://metrowinesasheville.com/blog/blogger/anita#sthash.sX9r7BaF.dpuf

- See more at: http://metrowinesasheville.com/brew-blog/entry/beer-blind-tasting-goes-mobile#sthash.N3bmDViY.dpuf