¶ Exploring Nebraska's Unique Craft Beers
Grab a beer and pull up a chair . Welcome to the Northwoods Beer Guy Podcast . Hey , ladies and gentlemen , and welcome back to the Northwoods Beer Guy Podcast . This is Mike , the Northwoods Beer Guy , and once again I'm joined by Jim . Hey , buddy , how are you doing ? I'm doing good man , how are you doing ?
Another wonderful day in paradise .
There you go . It'd be even more wonderful if Mother Nature would decide if it's going to be winter or spring . I know it's still winter , but the temperatures have been all over the board . It seems like .
Yeah , the temperature has been up and down . You just don't know what's going to be from day to day .
No exactly , and it just makes it difficult because it looks nice out and you want to do stuff outside , and then you get outside and it's either really cold wind or whatever .
Or I think we recently had some rain . Oh yeah , you don't get rain in the wintertime usually .
Usually not . At least it didn't turn into ice , yes , but it's like you just don't know .
It's like you can't plan for anything . Exactly you got to stay inside and drink craft beer . Well , put it that way it's . I'm glad it's doing what it's doing , then , and we're just the guys to maybe help everybody out there through this difficult time exactly so this week , uh , we decided to visit nebraska .
Where nebraska ? Visit nebraska so to speak .
That's a long trip , so to speak , so okay , all right , what do you mean ? Because suzy had brought back six beers for us from nebraska nice , all right so we're gonna crack into those and this is so are you saying we're gonna have to get on a road trip to go to nebraska ?
nope , we're gonna do it right from the comfort of the studio here . Perfect , I'm all for that .
I was a little worried there when you said because that's not , that's not , that's like a day trip that's a longer trip .
yeah , so she was down there watching our daughter play basketball and brought back some beers for us . So , have you had all these ? There's one brewery in here that we've had one beer from before , but I mean not these . All these beers . We've never had these , I've never even heard of these beers before .
All right , and the other four we've never had a beer from those other four breweries Sweet . There's three breweries , right ? Yeah , there's one , two , three . We have four different breweries . We've got two beers from two breweries and then one apiece from two others , and they're all across the board . So it's really just kind of .
So the only theme is they're from Nebraska , they're all from .
Nebraska Well .
I guess that's a good thing . I think , isn't it .
Well , I think so Again . I kind of enjoy trying beers from other states or areas we've never had from before , just to see how they do stuff . And some of these may not be the greatest ones to try and figure out how they do stuff , because some of them are a little different style .
So how many of these are ? We got some heavy-duty , barrel-aged ones right Right in our wheelhouse . Yeah sure , oh , that didn't sound very confident it depends on how high you're expecting .
Oh , all right . If you're thinking anywhere from like 4% to 6% , 6.5% percent , then yep , right in your wheelhouse okay , well , so what we're looking for in these is probably more flavor , it's more flavor is what I'm thinking that's a good way to put it . I think this is going to be , even though we still look for flavor .
On the barrel aged beers , these ones are not barrel aged . All right , and it's going to be interesting . Uh , that's all I can tell you all right .
Well , should we try one ?
Yeah Well , do we want to go ? Should we go on ABV order ? Abv order , we could do that , I guess , and then that kind of gets rid of one of them I'm a little concerned about right off the bat .
Oh , and you know what the good thing is too .
What's that ? Did you hear that you found questions on these places ? Yes , I did .
I found all kinds of stuff that's going to keep you edumacated .
I've got to try and tell you what we're going to use later in the week . I think or something , maybe I don't know .
Alright , so what do you got for first ?
The first one that we have is by Zipline Brewing Company . I'm going to look on the can here to see if it says where Lincoln , Nebraska . So when I looked , it actually .
I think on the website it had four different locations . Oh , okay , but it didn't have like this is our main place .
Sure .
So I didn't put it down because I wasn't sure . But I'm like well , it's Nebraska , but there's four different spots . So I guess on this can I'm sure they put on the can where they bought it .
Right . So I'm just going to say Lincoln , perfect , we're going to go with that . This is their Spicy Pickle . That would be Spicy Pickle , yeah . When Susie had asked me if I'd ever had it , I said no , let's try it . It sounds interesting because we've had other pickle beers .
We've had a Spicy Pickle beer before , yes , and that one is pretty spicy , the one from Distal .
So just FYI , when I looked on untapped , every picture of this was in a Bloody Mary .
Okay , because we've talked about that before . Where all these pickle beers ? I think you have to have them with a Bloody Mary . Unfortunately , we don't have a Bloody Mary with us , so we're just going to Right .
So I didn't see any pictures of just a glass of beer , Right . So I guess we need to strap into this one , because this Well , here we go , all right . And I think the only thing I could find is this one sentence that said a delightful combination of dill and tantalizing heat for a flavor explosion .
So I think you said 4% ABV , so it's not high , but but it didn't say on the website what kind of pepper or anything right , nothing , just that one little sentence . That's all it says on the can too . So I was just looking at that Very light colored , kind of like a pilsner color , I can smell it from here .
You can smell the pickle , I can smell it from here . You can smell the pickle and it is very , very light in color .
Yeah , like I said , like a pilsner , yeah , I mean that's kind of a light , light , see-through color Bubbly , I think I've actually seen urine that's darker than this .
Mm-hmm , oh boy , that's got an aroma . That's not too bad .
I mean it's , that's weird . The pickle is there .
I mean , you can taste the dill pickle must be . You definitely get a saltiness from it but I think the aroma is a little bit more scary than the bite . Yeah , flavor I mean I will .
I'm trying to think of what . When you you drink because it's fairly fair amount of carbonation , and when you drink it , when it kind of foams , you get kind of a boy . I don't even know how you describe the flavor . It's a different , I hate to say it .
It almost tastes like Alka-Seltzer when you drink that and it's that really foamy carbonated stuff and I don't know . It's not bad . I wouldn't buy a six-pack and drink a whole six-pack of it by any means . Now , maybe in a Bloody Mary would be all right .
Right , I mean the way that they lead us to believe by their marketing I was expecting jalapenos and like fire and lightning coming out of it , and it is not that at all . I mean because I don't really like the spicy pickle stuff . I mean I don't even like the pickle beers Yep , like the spicy pickle stuff . I mean I don't even like the pickle beers yep .
And this is the aroma is probably the most pickles . Yeah , I've had out of a pickle beer , but the flavor is not over the top .
So no , and like you , shouldn't be scared of this one no , like you said , I was expecting it to be hotter pepper wise . Yes , you know , because , like that , the one we had , that other spicy pickle we had was by distal and that one was spicy , yes , yes , you know , and it was like wow , and this is not anything like that . So what are you thinking ?
Um , you know , again , it's it's . You can't rate a pickle beer real high , you know , um , I'm gonna say I'm gonna go at 2.3 , I don't think it's bad . Uh , I think the pickle , pickle wise , it's not over the top like some of them we've had , right , and then the pepper is not over the top .
But I again , I just , I couldn't just sit and just drink a pickle beer . Oh , you know , I mean , yes , in a bloody mary this would probably be fairly decent , but I think you almost want something a little spicier at least I do in a bloody mary , you know to kind of give you a little more of that , that heat .
But uh , yeah , I like it , it's not bad and to echo I mean , I feel the same way , like right now , what I'm feeling a little bit and I think it might be the pepper , like you said in the back of my throat , just a little bit of a burn .
Nothing that's bad , nothing that's going to make me go for a glass of water , but that's probably the only thing that I have for a finish is that little bit of burn ? Yeah , which bit of burn ? Yeah , which it's ? That's not bad , that's that really shouldn't scare you .
Uh , I was gonna go at 2.2 .
Okay , so we're in the neighborhood right , just a little bit lower . Um , nothing like I mean it's .
The aroma is really that deceiving yes , it smells , very strong pickle smell yes but the flavor itself isn't that over the top , right , you know . So yeah , it's definitely interesting . Like I said , we've had worse , for sure we've had better , but it's not bad for a pickle beer .
So I do have a couple questions for you . Are you ready ? Sure , did that , whet your whistle to get you .
Got my thinking gears going possibly .
All right . Well , so since we're , some of these questions are maybe more geared towards , like the state itself . Okay , Because when I had the crack research team looking for info , it looked like their craft beer is made pretty much the same way as every other state . Sure , nothing unique about Nebraska . So , with that said , what is the capital of Nebraska ?
Lincoln isn't it .
All right . Is that the largest city in Nebraska ?
Hmm , that would be a twist there , because one of two things is going to happen . I'm either going to overthink it or it's not . So I'm going to say no , it's not . And what is the largest city in Nebraska ? Man , I am drawing a blank , and once I tell you , you'll be like oh , oh yeah , I know I'm going to be kicking my I don't know what is it .
Omaha . Oh man , See , these are hard questions .
No , I should have had that .
Right , so that was an easy one yeah Minus 500 . Yeah minus 500 .
Somebody got it right out of head zero .
Right right Dang it , omaha , I should have known that , so here's another one , because I know that you are very interested in politics . Okay one , because I know that you are very interested in politics . Okay , so , but I'm gonna try to keep this like a generic politics question .
Okay , so did you know let's see if I can phrase this as a question that nebraska is the only state that does ?
this for their uh , their elections . I think I know what you're talking about . What's , what's that called ? I don't know the name of it , but it's where they can have , uh , you can win like I don't want to say a district , or uh , because you can , they . Usually it'll be like nebraska one , nebraska two you know where both candidates could actually end up .
You're actually answering . The second question was dealing with the electoral college oh so the electoral college is not a winner take all right it's based on districts okay , so , but you want to know just the election itself . Right , the political party stuff .
So it's called unicameral , oh Okay , which means you don't have to be affiliated with any political party to get elected . Okay , and it's the only state in the nation that does that .
Really , I did not know that . I did not know that either . I was thinking you were talking about , like , the electoral college .
Right . So that was another thing too , that they're the only state that does not assign all their votes as a state . Yep .
It's not a winner . Take all situation , and it's always been , it's been that way for a while , and it's always weird because it's like , oh , this person could win this , this one , or then the other person wins the other one , right , I mean ? And or they could , you could .
You've seen it where they've one person , one of both , but you know it's , it is different to see that , so that's , that's pretty wild right , so let's , let's we have another beard . I'll save some other good questions , right yeah , I want to get uh , maybe get that pickle out of my mouth .
¶ Tasting Nebraska Brewing Company's Beers
So the next one we've got here is a 4.7 percent abv , 20 ibus , and this is Brunette Nut Brown and this is by Nebraska Brewing Company out of La Vista , nebraska . I do not know where La Vista ?
is ? I do not know that either .
Oh , yeah , okay . So on the can , it has our version of the classic English-style brown ale . Exudes rich aromatics from the beautifully blended malts and brings to mind nut-like and toasted bread aspects in this excellent seasonal ale . Embrace the flavor .
Yeah , and the only other thing I could find is that coffee , toffee , caramel tend to come to mind when this excellent Saison ale . You mean Session ale ? Oh , it's not a .
Saison no , Saison is a different type . This Session means it's lower ABV .
Oh , for this Session . Let's keep it low then .
It looks like a nut brown . You know kind of that tannish color . It's definitely got a little more color .
A little more color than for sure , the pickle one .
The can , of course , has a lovely brunette and like a little kind of some kind of dress on there and it's all in a brownish . Yeah , like a tan , light tan Color scheme . I guess you could say that , yeah , dark cream maybe . I don't know the smell isn't too bad .
It's not too bad . No , it's not going to scare you away .
No , and I know we've talked about it in the past before where a lot of brown ales don't have a whole lot of flavor , you know , I mean not a lot that stands out and this . I think this is kind of there as well , but you do get a little bit of that kind of a nutty type flavor , more kind of a roasted malt .
You know it's really . I mean , especially when they said there's going to be coffee , toffee and caramel .
Yeah , I'm not getting that .
I'm not getting that . And then what ? What do they use ? Brown Brown , nothing .
That narrows it down a little bit . They're kind of I'm not going to say it's nondescript , but it's like a tick above nondescript .
Could you drink this ? If this was ice cold on a hot day , you probably could .
Probably could Drink a can , but I don't know if you can do more than one . No , you'd want it to be ice cold as well , you know .
And this is low abv 4.7 . I mean 20 abus . I think that's like 20 times too high . Yeah , yeah , there's not . I don't have any hop bitterness , I mean it's , it's not bad , but it's just there's not much flavor there right , correct .
I agree with you very faint . Like I said , it's I . I hate , I always hate to say something's really nondescript but it's . And this isn't nondescript but , like I said , it's just one step yeah but one hair above .
Yeah .
Because it's just not and it's and I don't think it's this in this one in particular because , like I said , a lot of the brown ales are like that , right , unless you put something else in it . But yeah , I could drink a can of it more so than I could that .
But I think for me , unfortunately , I'm actually going to rate this a little bit higher , or maybe a little bit lower , because the first one did have flavor .
Oh sure .
Yeah , this one . You've got to really search to get some flavor Right . I'm actually going to go one tick below the spicy .
I'm going to go a 2.1 on this one 2.1 . Okay , yeah , I agree , I think we pretty much an easy drinking one . Yes , but you're going to be like , once you get done , I think you'd be like okay , what was it I was supposed to taste ? Yeah , you know .
What am I missing ? What did I forget ?
Yeah , I agree . So I think that one is where it's at , yeah .
So oh boy I out in the interwebs if there's anybody that's collating a lot of information . So when a brewery makes a comment , we're the first to do this . How , I don't know if I could confirm it . I don't know if you can confirm it yeah right . You know .
So one of the things I found , I'm sure we could be corrected , but the place that we just had Nebraska Brewing .
Nebraska Brewing Company .
They said and this is their , their , uh comments that they're the first brewery in the united states to barrel age , a craft beer , in a wine barrel . Okay , huh , I don't . Yeah , I could be , it could be , yeah , but I I don't even know if they could , nobody , could anybody discount ?
right , right . Yeah , that's a good question , because who knows ? I mean , I think it'd be easier to say we're the first in nebraska , right ? Or the first in our town , right ? You know , then you can claim it , but right .
But to say the first anywhere , that's , that's a bold statement and it's in the middle of the united states where there's not a lot of wine country . Yeah , right , I would have thought maybe something out west or whatever .
Huh so I'm not even gonna ask , make that a question frank , because I I can't confirm that . Right it seemed like well interesting ?
Yeah , if they are , that's an interesting factoid .
Right , maybe they would send us something and let us know , because we didn't find that bear .
Right , yeah , we did not find that one .
The wine cask one , so that would have been actually good .
Yeah , so I agree . Makes it good . Yeah , so I agree .
Speaking of . I think we may have asked this question before . Okay , but while you get the next one ready , do you know what is the thirstiest country in the world ?
I'm just going to go out on a limb and say Germany so close .
You were so close . What was it ? The Czech Republic ? Ah , the other style that we Right . So the key part to the way I phrased it was China drinks more craft beer because they have a larger population , right , yep . But the Czech Republic based on .
So , like per capita , you're talking , yes , okay . They average 418 12-ounce bottles per person per year . 418 ? Yes , well , those are just amateurs . See , I did ask you the question about how many .
Yeah , well , those are just amateurs , see , I did ask you the question about how many . Yeah , see , that would have been Wow , that's pretty impressive . So here's see if you get this one right . All right , how many consecutive years have they been number one , probably a lot yes it is .
But how do we say ? I'm going to say 25 years , 26 .
That was oh 26 . Oh , that was 100% . Guess you were close .
Wow , 26 straight years . They're the drink in this country , huh .
Right Per capita . So Czech Republic is a birthplace of Pilsner Yep , but also there beer costs less than bottled water .
Really . So that's what I mean . Well , now it makes sense , yes , see .
I didn't know if you knew those little pieces of infrasol no that is cool Again educate while we entertain . I mean , we're trying , we're trying , we might be the best at it , but Cheaper beer is cheaper than bottled water . That is amazing . Well , hey man , yes , so what is next on tap ?
Well , the next one is by a brewery that we have had one beer from before . Okay , one beer , one beer .
And this is Kincaid . Do you remember how that one tasted ? You can either confirm or deny .
I can neither confirm or deny , because I can't remember for sure .
It was around Christmas time , I remember it was one of the Christmas beers , so did it really stick out in your mind ?
What stood out in my mind was at first I thought the name of this brewery was Kinkrator . Oh , but it's Kinkater .
Oh , there you go . So I do apologize . A little high-end words there . Yeah , okay , the way it was written , I was like , oh , that's kind of weird Nice .
So what do we ? Got Devil's Gap , jalapeno Ale , nice , okay , and this is a 5% ABV and 10 IBUs . Okay , now I don't know if on the can , if it says where they're out of .
I think this is another one where it had multiple locations .
Oh , okay .
It didn't have . Definitely in the state of Nebraska , just not sure which brewery was making it Okay .
Now I will say the artwork is pretty cool . Yes , it sure . Which brewery was making it ? Okay , now I will say the artwork is pretty cool . It's like a cowboy looking guy with a surest badge on , but of course the guy's a skeleton , yes , uh , and fire and such around it . So this should be an interesting . Uh , were you able to dig up some ?
so I got a little bit on this . Okay , why don't ?
you read that all right .
So one of the things I did find was apparently for the kinkader brewery . This is like their number one seller .
Really that is kind of wild . Who would have thought that a pepper beer would be somebody's number one ?
Right , so they've had a couple of different variants of this . Yep . So it says . Our best-selling Jalapeno Ale gives you an intense jalapeno flavor with a slightly heated finish and aroma . The perfection in this beer will please both heat seekers and flavor chasers . It's the beer that truly has something for everyone to enjoy .
So then , once we take a drink , the next part is actually about the guy in the can .
Oh yeah , now I can smell the jalapeno for sure . You get a strong jalapeno aroma . Yes , right from the get-go .
you get it without even taking a little sip , that's not bad . I mean , the flavor is the jalapeno . This kind of fills your mouth with the jalapeno flavor , that flavor , but the heat .
When they talked about the heat , I was expecting more . Right , this has really good pepper flavor .
Yes , I mean , I think it almost tastes just like if you're like if you're cutting up peppers that you're going to put in a meal . That's kind of what the aroma smells like like a fresh pepper , yeah , yeah , but not over the top power or intensity .
Now remember the Central Waters , one we had .
That was habanero yeah .
But still that was hot . This one reminds me one of Susie's nephews . He had brought back a beer from I think it was the Dells area .
Nah , he may have got it in the Dells , it was from Wisconsin but it was a pepper like a jalapeno ale , and it reminds me of this , where it was a really good flavor of the pepper and not a whole lot of heat , so that was pretty impressive . And flavor of the pepper and not a whole lot of heat , so that was . That was pretty impressive .
And this is . This is not bad , and I mean the finish .
There is a little bit of heat on the finish a little bit not terrible , not bad , I mean it and it quickly goes away . A little bit more than the spicy pickle , right , but not not bad . It lingers just briefly and then it's gone yeah , this is definitely not bad this is better than I was . I thought I was expecting it to be . I thought .
I might have to get an ice cream to sit on or something , right , but this is not bad at all . No , I think it's pretty decent . I mean , you shouldn't be scared away by the way that it's labeled Devil's Gap .
Yeah , jalapeno , ale Well , and like you said , what you read , it was like oh , it's Heat Seekers . I thought uh-oh , but this is good , I like it . So what are you thinking of the score ? I think I'm going to go like a 2.7 .
Wow , because I think You're going to jump right up there .
Yeah , I think I like this because I like the flavor of the pepper . You do have a little bit of burn , but it's not .
You can stand it you know what , but the flavor's the right way and the flavor is really good , so , yeah , I like it . Yeah , I would have to say this is one of the better jalapeno beers I think that I've had , personally , because it's not over the top .
They're not trying to burn my lips off my face , right , they're just trying to give me a good flavor , yep . So I really appreciate that . That central waters once the scale kind of tips where it's super hot . Then it's like do you really want to drink more of it , right ?
you know , because then you're like well , if I take another drink it's not going to cool my mouth , this is going to make it even hotter where this doesn't have that same .
I mean , the flavor is just good all the time yep so kudos to them . I think I'm gonna . I was following right in line . I was gonna say 2.7 as well okay oh that , that's a very yeah it's definitely better than I thought .
Now . You said you had some more info on the guy on the can .
Yeah , so what it says is the legend In 1878 , cattle kingpin , prince Olive and his posse made their way from Texas into the Sandhills . The Olive gang ran folks off their farm far and wide Okay off their farm far and wide . Okay . Finally , two brave , unfortunate souls stood up to the outlaw and were set ablaze in what folks now call Devil's Gap .
A short time later , the kingpin came up against a gun quicker than his and died in a blaze as well A blaze of gunfire .
Oh , so I think that's where the guy so that's the guy on the can is that legend ?
Yes , okay .
Well , that's the guy on the can , is that legend ? Okay , well , that's cool . I mean , there's a backstory , that's neat , right , a lot of artwork . You don't get that , you know .
Right , and it's cool then that they can tie into their brewery with you know , some local folklore from their area Yep , and spread that throughout the country . I mean that's cool .
Yeah , that's neat . I think that's cool , all right
¶ Craft Beer Storage and Tasting Notes
.
So , while you get the next one ready , so the next oh , you have questions . I got a couple for you . All righty , I know you like a lot of trivia In the sequencing of you know when states actually came into the union .
What number is Nebraska ? I'm 27 .
So close , 37 . Oh .
One number off . One number off , just the big number . Right Dang it , you're doing better than I thought I was like wow , you're like , are you boning up on your questions ? No , no , I'm just getting lucky on some guesses . That one wasn't very lucky , though . That was too far off .
Since we are talking about craft beer , how should you store your craft beer ?
How should you store it ? Yes , well , I store mine in my basement , where it's cooler , and then when I get ready , then we put it in the fridge and not in direct sunlight , right , so keeping it out of direct sunlight ? Yep , so that's one . Yep , okay , did the cooler thing . Not so much , didn't really matter .
So the tie-in is room temperature .
Okay , so yeah , it's .
Yeah , so what's the last one ?
How do you have them now Sitting out ?
No , upright , oh , upright , oh okay .
They said keep them upright , okay , well , yeah , I guess that makes Nothing tricky , just yeah , that's different so hopefully , if you have a bunch of craft beer out there and you don't have it , a space in your fridge and you got a place in your basement yep , I've gotten them in boxes that are just standing upright , and you know , in the boxes , and then I
got them right on there all right , so I'm doing everything right . Good , you're right on spot on good . Good , I'm glad to hear that . Yeah , so what do we got next ?
well , the next one we have , j Jim , is a variant of the last one that we just had . So this is again by Kincader , and this is their Devil's Gap Raspberry , raspberry , yep , 5% ABV and 7 IBUs .
So lower IBUs Lower .
IBUs , which the last one . I didn't taste any IBUs anyway . There was no hoppiness or bitterness On the can . It has sweet and heat , our best-selling jalapeno as you said with crushed raspberries for a subtle sweet and spicy flavor , Wow . So I wonder , do you think this is going to be red , A reddish tinge , or will it ?
be , I'm guessing . Yes , that's my guess .
Okay , I'm going to say no , but I'll probably be wrong . So we'll see A light , red , a light yeah , it's not going to be .
It's not going to be like pour out ketchup .
Not a little bit , I guess . It's a little , maybe a little darker than the first one .
I think it's closer to you saying no than it is to me saying I think so . When you look at a distance , it does have a little different color than the first one , but not much , no , not a lot .
Boy , you can smell raspberry .
Wow , and the jalapeno .
Both , which is Boy . That's almost a confusing smell , isn't it ?
I don't think I've smelled anything like that .
You can smell both of them Right and distinctly , very distinctly . Wow , well , here goes nothing . Wow , that's different , different . Neither of them are overpowering . Again , I think you get about the same heat as the first one , yep , and the raspberry you get kind of a faint raspberry flavor . It's not way too much . No , I get the tartness of the raspberry .
Yes , yes , on the finish . Yep , that's different , it's not bad .
No , I think either one of these I could definitely drink . I guess I was maybe Not a six pack .
Oh , right , right , I was kind of maybe expecting a little more sweetness . Maybe I don't know , I mean , because I've had raspberries , just the fruit itself .
Right , and we've had a lot of raspberry beers and they're usually very sweet Right .
This is definitely not sweet , but it's not bad . No , I mean , if somebody's scared about drinking a beer with a jalapeno , this would probably be the next step in that , because this is not over-the-top jalapeno . The raspberry's really cut down on the—compared to that first one .
Right , yep , yeah , I agree . Like I said , when I smelled it , the first thing I smelled was the raspberry , yes , and I thought , uh-oh , it's going to be really fruity , yes , but it's not .
Definitely not bad , I guess . For me it's just that tartness , right , just a little bit . Maybe for me just a little bit too much . Not seeing as bad . Just if they could have toned that a little down , just a crack , I don't know , but I don't know how you turn the knob Right . How do I turn ?
You put one less raspberry in or what you know Interesting .
I was worried about , about these two , because I thought they were going to be burn your guts out hot you know , and they're not bad .
So we've had three spicy ones now , yeah , and they're all okay . You know , I mean definitely not , we've had worse .
So yes , I mean this . It's not bad . I mean I think I'm gonna go . I do like the first one . First , I'm gonna give this a 2.6 , okay what are you thinking ?
yeah , exact same . I was gonna say , just a tick lower , that I do like the raspberry , a little addition of the raspberry . It does add that tartness . Maybe they're on that line , because I think if they had put a little bit more in then I'd have been complaining they put too much in . Yes , you know , but it's very interesting .
It reminds me a little bit of having like a jalapeno popper with like that whatever bit of having , uh , like a jalapeno popper with like that , that whatever , like the sweet , oh , whatever you know , you know that sauce I'm talking about , um , that jam like that .
Well , you can use jam .
Yeah , it reminds me of that , but like strawberry jam , of course . Right , but uh , they have . There's some sauce that's out there that's like like a almost like a sweet sauce or whatever . That's red , okay , and I think that's strawberry and it kind of , but it's kind of vaguely reminds me of that combination a little bit .
Yeah , I mean it's definitely good . I mean , yeah , kudos to them . I think they got something good going there yeah , I agree because you don't find those around here and the fact that that's their best .
Now I understand , I guess , why it's their best seller . You know , I I never would have guessed , like I said earlier , that a jalapeno ale would have been a brewery's top seller . But those are good . I can understand why .
Yeah , I mean that's really good . All right , we're getting down around questions .
How many beers do we get left ? We got two beers left , two beers .
All right , let's see here what kind of easy question I can bring up for you , since your glass here , if you hold it up so that listeners can see it , there you go , it's empty .
Oh yeah
¶ Craft Beer Tasting Notes and Trivia
.
What is the fear of having an empty glass called ? I know you've asked me this before .
It's a super long name , I believe , and I don't remember , I made some goofy remark like thirstophobia or empty glassophobia , something like that .
I don't remember the name of it , so you did get the phobia right . Oh yeah , yeah , yeah , so it's senosilicophobia .
Just remember that now . Oh yeah , yep , the fear of having an empty glass . An empty glass , that's a serious condition .
Oh yeah . I'm just saying If you notice that our glasses are empty .
And you look kind of fearful .
Yeah , so what do we got ? What is next then ?
Well , the next one we have is actually 6% . Uh-oh , we're stepping it up , yep , a little bit . And this is by Zipline Brewing , and they're in Lincoln , nebraska , as well . Oh , we had . That was the spicy pickle , was the same one , and this is their Oatmeal Porter .
Okay , what's the ? What's the ? Does it have a fancy name ?
Uh , nope , zipline Brewing and Oatmeal Porter . So we don't have the we don't have a fancy like devil's gap or anything like that . This is just straight beer , straight to the point , all right . And it says . It says , uh , all the dark chocolate and coffee notes you expect from a porter with locally sourced rolled oats delivering an uncommonly silk smooth finish .
So this should be . It's been a while since we've had just an oatmeal . I guess this is a porter , but yes , you know , an oatmeal porter , even just an oatmeal stout , because we've , of course , it's been our barrel aged , uh , marathon oh , look at that , that's dark .
I wonder if this is our only dark beer for this episode . I would guess .
Yeah , because the last one's an IPA , the last one's an IPA , and if that one's dark , there may be an issue .
Even the head on this is even kind of a dark brownish that smells like a porter . Yes , it does , for sure , that's definitely a porter , definitely a porter . That's not bad , it's smooth . Yeah , to me it kind of helps my throat right now it gets rid of , but that's not bad . I mean , that's really good , that tastes just like a very solid porter .
I mean just , you know , being oatmeal sometimes I think that does smooth stuff out a little bit . I like it . I think this is a good example of an oatmeal porter .
Yeah , it's not bitter . You know , like some porters are a little bit bitter with their malts , this is really smooth . I don't know if it's the oatmeal part of it , but it's really helped it very good . I like that they did a good job on that .
Yeah , that's , that's uh , maybe not the best quarter , but it's up there . Oh yeah , right , it's up there yeah I'm not saying that it's you know , oh my gosh , that's the best porter I've ever had . But it's the best porter we had today . Oh wait , that's the only part of it today . But no , this is good . I like it .
I think they did a really good job , but again I don't really know all the things that are in it . I couldn't find a lot .
Right , yeah , that's the one thing I noticed too .
All it is is chocolate coffee notes and rolled oats , yeah .
Is that all of it ? Or I mean , I definitely get the . You can get that malty , the oat type flavor Coffee , I guess , kind of Chocolate , kind of yeah .
Very , very minor amounts .
Yeah , yeah , like I said , I think it tastes . This is a good example . If you've never had a porter , try it . Yeah , because I mean this is very good flavor .
It won't scare you away . I mean , the finish is smooth , it doesn't linger , it doesn't have a bad aftertaste . Yep , you're exactly right . I mean , you could definitely drink a can of this , oh yeah . Yeah , because it's only 6% as well , so it shouldn't scare anybody away .
No , yeah , I like that . I think that's a pretty good beer Score-wise . I think I'm going to go . I'll go a 2.8 .
I'll do that , yeah , because I think so far this would be the first one that I would say yeah , I'll have a couple of them that we've had so far , because , like the jalapeno ones , I think after a full can of it I'd probably get tired of the pepper a little bit . Right , but this one's good , I like it .
And you got the exact score . I was going to say a 2.8 as well . Same with you . I like this one Just a touch better than the jalapeno ones , yep , but it's a really good representation of a porter .
I agree , I agree . I think Zipline did a really good job , job . So if you get a chance , you got to try that one for sure . Yeah , um , very smooth , I like it . So we got one beer left there , jim , you got it , I got one . One more question question for you .
I think , okay , well , maybe if you get this one right , there's two questions . Okay , all right . So which country in the world produces the largest quantity of hops ?
which country ? Oh boy , um , I think I know . Okay , it just popped in my head New Zealand Close . You were really close .
It's not Australia , though .
What is it ?
It's Germany .
Oh man , I was way off . So what was the second part of ?
that question , if I got it right .
Wow , For whatever reason , I thought we had talked about that one time and it was New Zealand , but I guess not but guess not so . Your second question is where did the term rule of thumb originate ? Rule of thumb , yes , uh at . In germany , at the hop farm , they had to measure the hop plant .
If it's as big as your thumb , then you could pick it close .
You're , you're getting , you're really close was I yeah , so it's from brewers who would stick their thumb into the mix to see when the temperature was right to add yeast .
I wasn't even close .
Oh , I'm trying to make you feel good . Well , thank you .
I appreciate that , did that help , yeah , so they'd put their thumb in when it was cooking .
Right to see what the right temperature was . Huh . Interesting , I will guarantee my brother's probably going . How did you not ?
know that I don't know , see , no , but so next time you have all this , now I'm wealth of knowledge . Yes , yes , all right , so we're on to the last one . All right , so we're on to the last one . And this one is from bottle rocket brewing in seward , nebraska , and I don't know where . Seward is Juicy Burst IPA and this one is 6.5% ABV , 68 IBUs .
That's possible , being bitter .
Okay , let's see . So , on the can , they've got Okay , so they got some other information . A little bit of information about the brewery . Oh , a little bit . Come visit us in the Fourth of July City . Okay , bottle Rocket Brewing Okay , makes sense . Yep , we are located in Seward , Nebraska , a town nationally recognized for its 4th of July celebrations .
Oh , this hazy IPA is bursting with juicy hop flavors and aromas . Hops added to the Whirlpool and Fermenter produces an array of citrusy flavors , including peach , melon , apricot , orange and mango . Wow , the combination of the malts with addition of oats also adds a soft mouthfeel . What scares me is when people list all these different things .
A lot of times we don't pick any of them up .
Right , and I will say on the website it's like all red , white and blue Really yeah it's all patriotic . Okay , that's cool , I like that . So I did not know all the background to that , though . Oh , she's got some .
She's a little foamy , I'm going to try and pour yours . Did you shake it up ? I'm going to try and pour yours a little better than I did mine . You didn't shake them , did you ? There's some head on it , though there's some froth in there . Yeah yeah , I got to see if I can get some more beer in mine . I can smell some
¶ Nebraska Craft Beer Review
hops . Oh yeah , so 68 . But it's a juicy . It shouldn't be real hop bite to it , right . So well , if I can wade through the foam here , all right , it's not bad .
It's definitely not a bite to it . 68 , in my opinion , is high Right .
Oh yeah , what it tastes like . I mean , I don't think , yeah , it doesn't taste like it's that high .
If people read those numbers and try to hold the beer to it , they're going to get scared and think , oh , this is going to be bitter . That's not bitter , no , I mean it's just like a juicy apiation .
Oh yeah , yep , you're 100% right there . I'm trying to pick up what were the fruits . I can taste citrus stuff , peach , melon , apricot , orange and mango , but that's a lot of fruit , there's a lot of fruit , that's a lot of fruit , and it's hard to .
So are you saying that I could have this in the morning for breakfast ? I think so and get all the fruit that you need for the day Well , all the fruits you need for the day .
Well , you may need . We'd have to see how much fruit is in there to see if it reaches 100% of what you're supposed to have . You may have to have a couple oh before work .
You never know Before you go to work .
Yeah , there you go . You may have an early day , depending on where you're working .
But if you have a nap , you'll sleep good . I mean , this is not bad , not , is not , not bad , not bad . It's just like you said . I don't pick up each of the individual fruits . No , I there's the citrus flavor , but I don't .
I can't differentiate all the different fruits , you know . When you said you can taste like a lot of citrus or type , I taste that , but , like you said , I can't pick out the individual right , so it's but I mean it's , and as an ipa , I mean I mean it's even hard .
I mean the ipa part for me is the aroma . Yep , other Other than that I don't think it's . That it's not bitter , it's not hoppy . There's no grapefruit flavor , so I mean like a juicy IPA . I think it falls right in line with those Yep .
Yep , I agree . Score-wise I'm going to two and a half . I think it's just kind of average for a juicy IPA . For a juicy IPA Right in the middle , right in the middle , yeah .
Yeah , I think I was going to hit the same score , I think . Unable to pick up each of those flavors , it's not bad . I just can't tell you what each flavor is .
Yeah , and , like I said , you know , it just reminds me of your normal juicy IPA where you don't get that hot bite at all and they're a little sweeter typically . And this one , like I said , you can tell there's some kind of fruit in it , but I just can't distinguish them right . None of them stand out , which is probably good , you know .
But I'm sure some people probably will taste them and be like , hey , I can definitely taste this or this or that . I just think they all kind of meld together .
Yeah , I mean it's not a bad flavor , it's just . I think we always talk about do you need to put all the fruit in there ? Than if you can't pick out each one , right , yep .
I agree , Well cool .
So Nebraska's not bad .
No , yeah , I mean for the small sampling that we got and , like I said , these were definitely all across the board . And my wife actually went into I think she said it was like a Hy-Vee or something Okay A local grocery store at the town that she was in and this was all in their build-your-own six-pack . Oh nice , that's not bad .
Basically , she called and was asking me have you ever had this , have you had this ? And I'm like no , no . And there was a few other ones that she had picked up that didn't sound kind of eh , some of these I thought like the jalapeno well , got to try it .
And if you're want , you might as well get the raspberry one you know , Right , and she did say , yeah , she goes . I looked and there's no barrel aged stuff or anything like that there , at least in the build your own six pack , you know . And I was like , okay , no problem .
So these , like I said , were really all different styles , four different breweries , you know . But I think they did , they showed that they know what they're doing , you know , and some of them surprised me . Surprised me , I mean , you know . My number one , well , I guess both of ours was the porter . Yep , I thought that was very well done .
I did really enjoy the , the jalapeno that surprised me , you know . And and the raspberry one . They're neck and neck , right , you know . I thought they did a really good job . Uh , the other ones were all . They're all very good . I mean , none of them were terrible by any means . I would say , on these , anybody , anybody could try .
If you have never had a craft beer before , you could have tried any of these . Yes , I believe so . You know , so I think they showed that there's breweries all across the United States which we have known for a long time , that they all know what they're doing .
But , like I said , I do enjoy trying some of them from different areas that we've never had a beer from before , just to see you know , do they know what they're doing or not ? And yeah , all these places know what they're doing .
Yeah , I mean I 100% agree . I mean this is a good cross section of different breweries from Nebraska , different cities , different breweries , different styles . So I mean we can definitely say that we're not like honed in on one , like barrel aged or anything like that .
So I think you know it's got to be interesting too where you're in the middle of the United States but you're getting a lot of these fruits and vegetables that may not be from your state , so you're getting some good quality materials to make their beer too . Oh yeah , yeah . So I mean that's kudos to them . They're doing a good job .
All of them , I mean , like you mentioned , are really close together , right ? I mean nothing is way really good or nothing's really bad .
Yep , they're all in the middle and I think which then , like you , hit on just about any , whether you're a novice or an experienced craft drinker you could try any one of these and not get scared away and not going away like , oh , I should never try that . These are all good .
They're all solid examples . Yes , yep , awesome , well , cool man , thanks for agreeing to take this quote-unquote trip to Nebraska with me .
Yes , and it was a lot less driving time today , a lot shorter than you thought . Yeah , I thought we were going to be in the car for a long time . Right , I'm going to try to drive back after having a six-pack .
Yeah , I like the way we did it , all right .
Well , next time you can bring me along anytime .
There you go , we will do that . Awesome . Well , hey , ladies and gentlemen , thanks for listening and hopefully you'll get a chance to try any one of these breweries from Nebraska , because they are definitely worth your time and , like we always say , we hope your campfire is always warm and your beers are always cold . See ya , bye .
Thank you for listening to at northwoodsbeerguy . At gmailcom , you can also find us on Facebook , twitter and Instagram . If you're on untapped , look up Northwoods Beer Guy and send a friend request . Until next week , I hope all your campfires are warm and all your beer is cold .