Omnivore Atlanta

Our friend Hardy Wallace, AKA Dirty South Wine, is on a mission to get hired by Murphy-Goode Winery for what is basically a six-month party in wine country. If they’re looking for some snobby, boring blogger who will continue to alienate the masses with “ooohhh, wine is so fancy” wine-speak, then Hardy is probably not their guy. But if they’re looking for someone with a sense of humor and some genuinely interesting things to say, as well as an inventive spirit for how to present wine to the public, then they have found their dude. My understanding is that the winery is looking to see how much excitement hopeful bloggers can drum up ahead of time, so help support Hardy by checking out his new blog dedicated to the project at www.goodetobefirst.com, and follow him on Twitter: @goodetobefirst. Go Hardy!!

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French Broad Altbier

French Broad Brewing Company
Asheville, NC
5.5% ABV

Once a rarity, Altbier seems to be coming into its own lately, with the classic German Uerige more widely available and quality American versions coming from Victory, Otter Creek and Southampton. Altbier is a German ale found primarily in the Düsseldorf region. It is fermented at ale temperatures, but cold conditioned like a lager, for a clean, crisp character. Unlike the other German ale style, kölsch, altbiers are malt-forward and slightly sweet, rather than spicy and dry.

French Broad Altbier pours an orangey-gold, with a rocky, off-white head. Damp, earthy aroma and some floral notes in the nose, along with a bit of estery, ripe apple. Toasted Munich malt dominates the flavor, with its distinctive graininess and bready character. Grassy, herbal, tea-like hops provide a subtle counterpoint, but this one is all about the malt. Smooth and soft on the tongue, with a gentle carbonation and easy drinkability. A welcome break from the current hop-bomb trend. Try this with a grilled burger and corn-on-the-cob at your next cookout.

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May Flowers. The month of May promises to be one of the biggest in recent memory for Georgia beer lovers: Craft Beer Week, two new Terrapin releases, the opening of 5 Seasons Westside, and the Georgia debut of Bell’s and New Belgium. Look for more details here in the coming weeks on all of these events. Then, toward the end of the month, the East Atlanta Beer Festival kicks off the Atlanta festival season. The fest takes place on Sat., May 30, from 1-6 p.m. at the corner of Moreland and Metropolitan avenues in East Atlanta. Over 120 craft beers will be featured and proceeds benefit community projects. Buy your tickets today (Apr. 29) to save $5 and avoid the long lines. They will be $35 at the gate.

French Broad spotted in Atlanta. No, not Carla Bruni. Asheville’s French Broad Brewing Company has begun distribution in the Atlanta area. The small brewery (about 2,500 barrels in 2008) opened in 2001 and has pursued a goal of creating classic European style beers with an Asheville twist. Recently they have been stepping up production, expanding into Virginia, Eastern Tennessee, and now Georgia. “We’re a little stressed here at the brewery right now,” says marketing director Matt Barnao. “We’re on a pace to triple our production from last year.” To keep up with orders, beers are brewed during the day on the company’s 15-barrel system, then the night shift comes in to bottle on a semi-automated bottle filling system. (more…)

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The Perfect Meal?: Mussels and frites with an Oude Geueze at Blega Cafe

While George W. was waging the War on Terror overseas, he failed to notice a foreign invasion right under his nose. The dingy Irish pubs and wood-paneled taverns of D.C. are being replaced by sophisticated Euro-style gastropubs and brasseries serving up mussels and frites with a side of homemade mayo or thin-crust artisan pizzas to pair with Flemish sours and American IPAs.

The District has always had a European feel, thanks to Pierre L’Enfant’s broad, diagonal boulevards and open spaces, and the height restriction on buildings that has shut out the glass and steel towers of the typical American city. But the high cost of living in the city has taken its toll on neighborhood saloons, where working stiffs rubbed elbows with government wonks and power brokers. Suddenly, the upwardly mobile are gaga over rabbit loin roasted in framboise or a terrine of veal cheeks, quail egg, frisee, and truffles, served with a $20 bottle of Cuvée du Keizer Grand Cru.

No less than three of these Belgian brasseries are located in the vicinity of the capitol. In addition, a wide selection of Belgian ales, on draft and in bottles, can be found at any number of slightly less expensive restaurants and bars serving everything from wood-fired pizza to nachos. (more…)

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The original Superbier: Westmalle Tripel

The Belgian-style tripel ale makes a great springtime beer, savored on a breezy patio with your trusty laptop, or paired with fresh spring salads. Spring tends to make me feel a little bit drunk, so I have to be careful of the velvet hammer of the tripel’s strength, typically 8-10%, especially since they are so easy-drinking. The monks of Westmalle Abbey in Malle first to brew the tripel in 1934, dubbing it “Superbier.” The current name refers to the use of three times the malt of a standard abbey-style ale.

Tripels are characterized by a relatively light color, fruity flavors, and a flowery, spicy character being more prominent than hop bitterness. Candi sugar (dextrose) is typically used to increase the alcoholic strength while keeping the body light. Belgian yeast strains contribute to the style’s complex aromas and flavors. Fruity esters of orange, banana and pineapple are commonly present. White pepper and clove spiciness from the yeast is complemented by floral hop aromas. Here are three excellent examples of the style, all widely available, one each from Belgium, Canada, and the United States. (more…)

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Moor Better: Claymore Wee Heavy Scotch Ale

Great Divide Brewing Company
Denver, CO

Named for a famous sword, this beer is a tribute to the “Wee Heavy” ale, the rich, strong version of Scotland’s traditional malt-forward ales. Hops were historically hard to come by in Scotland and were regarded with some disdain since they had to be imported from England. Malted barley, on the other hand, was a staple, so these beers are loaded with cereal goodness.

Great Divide’s version pours a deep mahogany brown with some ruby highlights around the edges. The aroma is peaty and slightly smoky, and leans toward woody, rather than sugary notes. The taste follows suit with deep, charred caramel, mild coffee, and earthy hops. That smoky peat comes through on the back end, suggesting a cozy hearth. A bit of brown sugar sweetness, cocoa powder and nutmeg spice linger on the lips in the semi-sweet finish. Medium-bodied, with some leggy alcohol, Claymore is best enjoyed at cellar temperature like a good Scotch, where the malt can really shine.

Photo by Jeff Holland)

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DOH! The secret beans revealed

My first food industry job was as a barista. I grew up cooking and enjoying eating, but that job, at a coffeehouse in suburban New York, was the start of my culinary obsession. In the weeks before the coffeehouse opened, my boss and trainer had me pull thousands of shots of espresso and steam hundreds of pitchers of milk. Everyone fixated on the flavor, mouthfeel and balance of each drink. This ritual, of aiming for perfection over and over, delighted my detail- and pleasure-loving nature. I didn’t know it at the time, but that job was the true beginning of my career.

America’s enthusiasm for coffee runs on parallel tracks with its growing foodie culture. Coffee is, for many, the gateway drug — the first step toward heightened standards when it comes to matters of taste. Good coffee, or at least better coffee, was available to the masses long before many cities had decent gourmet markets.

In the last five to 10 years, coffee’s made huge leaps in quality thanks mainly to roasters and baristas. A competitive barista culture has emerged in Atlanta out of the Westside coffee shop Octane, where baristas face-off during its Thursday Night Smackdowns. This weekend Atlanta hosts the World Barista Championship, where 49 baristas representing their countries will compete. While latte art and sugary drinks still make up a portion of such events, more emphasis is being placed on extracting perfect espresso, and the complex flavor profiles of different origins and roasts.

At Octane and at Decatur’s new coffee shop Method, you’ll find baristas so passionate, hearing them discuss coffee is like listening to a star sommelier.

We also have roasters and growers to thank for the coffee revolution. There are now a number of local roasters in Atlanta, as well as access to a selection of highly specialized national brands. Roasters are becoming active players in everything from educating the public to advocating for the farmers whose coffee they buy. Counter Culture, a relatively new company to enter the Atlanta market, is making huge changes to the lives of farmers they buy from in South and Central America, says Octane’s owner, Tony Riffel. “They are getting these farmers to taste their own coffee, for the first time ever,” Riffel says. “That’s huge.”

So what makes good coffee good? And what’s available in Atlanta? In an effort to guide folks, Atlanta photographer and coffee aficionado Joel Silverman offered to host a CL blind coffee tasting panel. Silverman set the whole thing up, buying the beans, making the espresso, and establishing parameters for the tasting. I invited Riffel, Greg Best, mixologist at Holeman & Finch (who, in my opinion, has one of the best palates in the city), and Jennifer Zyman, CL Cheap Eats writer and food blogger extraordinaire to take part.

Continue reading “A guide to Atlanta coffee”

(Photo by Jennifer Zyman)

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Terrapin Beer Company doesn’t need much of an excuse to celebrate, but this April is very special for the Athens,GA brewery. It was 7 years ago at the Classic City Brew Fest that Terrapin introduced its Rye Pale Ale, and since that time, its reputation for great beer has continued to grow. In fact, the Brewers Association recently reported that the company’s revenue went up 53% last year. It’s too bad this is not a publicly-traded company because here is a company that is certainly bucking the trends. After much delay, Terrapin finally moved into its own brewery in Athens early last year and hit the ground running, increasing its production by 37%, adding a wheat beer and an India Brown Ale to its year-round portfolio, and launching its Side Project series of limited edition beers. (more…)

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Liquid Candy: Weihenstephaner Vitus

Brauerei Weihenstephan
Freising, GER
7.7% ABV

This weizenbock is new to Georgia, thanks to the dedicated efforts of Beer Advocate and Sandy Springs resident Justin Michels, who rallied like-minded beer lovers to lobby the Georgia distributor of Weihenstephaner beers, Georgia Crown, to add this beer to their portfolio. For Georgia Crown, it was a simple matter of adding Vitus to its order from Total Beverage Solutions, the South Carolina importer that was already bringing the beer into the U.S. Just goes to show what some good old-fashioned agitation can accomplish. Show your appreciation by picking up a few bottles.

Vitus might be described as an imperial version of Weihenstephan’s world-class weissbier, packing more body and more flavor into a fruity, tart and refreshing Bavarian wheat beer. A huge, fluffy head of cotton candy-like foam sits atop the orange-gold beer, rising a full inch above the rim of the glass without falling over, eventually settling to a finger of off-white foam that you could probably use as shaving cream. Beautiful.

The traditional banana and clove aromas from the yeast are off the chain, combining with a distinct lactose note that conjures a banana cream pie from Picadilly. Banana haters need not apply. The initial taste is of sugar cookie and grainy wheat, followed by a Juicy Fruit center of banana, pineapple, and bubble gum. Just when you think you are drinking candy, a solid hit of tangy, slightly lemony yeast and spicy hops cleans up the palate. Coriander, clove, and sage linger in the long, mildly sour finish. As would be expected from a wheat beer, the mouthfeel is creamy, but with a slick almost oily character that is perfectly balanced by the active carbonation that holds that foamy cap all the way down.

Although the flavors beg to be savored, Vitus goes down as smooth as the mellowest hefeweizen. The alcohol is well hidden, with only the sweet slickness hinting at the high gravity. A remarkable beer that really has no equal that I have had. It would pair nicely with any number of foods, from salad to dessert.

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On the case: Kraig Torres stocks his beer store, Hop City, for its April 2 opening

The Westside is looking more and more like a beer Mecca. Hop City, a craft beer and wine specialty store, will open this week across the alley from the soon-to-open 5 Seasons Westside in the Brickworks complex on Marietta St. Along with beer and wine, Hop City will also stock beer-making supplies, a rarity in Atlanta.

Owner Kraig Torres will host a Grand Opening party on Thursday April 2 at 5 Seasons that will feature nine craft brewers, including local favorites Terrapin, 5 Seasons, Sweetwater, and Atlanta Brewing Company. There will be free beer samples, food and live music from 6-9 p.m.

Torres is the self-proclaimed “beer guy” in the operation, with his general manager, Doug Schaller, handling the wine side of the aisle. Torres will stock about 1,000 varieties of beer, along with about 800 wines. The store will have a 12-door cooler for beer, as well as a chiller on hand to prep those large, single bottles of American craft beer and Belgians.

(more…)

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Terrapin Beer Company
Athens, GA
9.8% ABV

Terrapin brewer Spike Buckowski has jumped into the Belgian ale wave with both feet with Volume 5 of the Side Project Series. Monk’s Revenge is described as having the hop profile of a double IPA, with the malt and yeast of a Belgian tripel. Six kinds of malt and six hop varieties, dextrose to replicate the Belgian candi sugar, and a yeast copped from one of the 7 Trappist breweries (Spike is mysteriously vague about which brewery) all contribute to a wonderful complexity in both aroma and flavor.

Floral and spicy hops greet the nose, along with a faint resiny note that clues you to the beer’s American heritage. Sweet, biscuity malt and the unmistakable ripe fruit of Belgian yeast are also evident. The taste starts with the smooth, mild tropical fruit sweetness of pineapple and banana, followed quickly by a tingly hop bite of grapefruit, white pepper, pine, orange, and mint. The sugary base carries warm buzz of kirsch and amaretto into the strong, drying finish. The banana and clove esters of the Belgian yeast become stronger as it warms, as does some solventy alcohol.

The balance here is fantastic, with all of the malty, fruity, hoppy, and tangy notes getting their chance to shine, but the overall effect seems a bit raw. The bottle-conditioned beer has a dullish carbonation that might lively up itself with a bit more time, and the hot alcohol suggest that this would be a good candidate for cellaring, although the hopheads might object that the fresh hop aromas and flavors would suffer. I’d have a couple fresh, then put a couple away; that way, you get the best of both worlds.

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War documentaries are perhaps best made by outsiders who are able to show the nobility and suffering on both sides of the conflict. Anat Baron brings such neutrality to Beer Wars: Brewed in America, a documentary film that explores the goings-on behind the scenes of the world’s largest and smallest breweries as they struggle to win the minds and palates of America’s 115 million beer drinkers. Anat is allergic to alcohol, so she’s never tasted the beers that are at the center of the conflict.

“I think that [not drinking] has helped me in making the film because I don’t cast judgment over one or the other group,” Baron says. “I am certainly the last person to tell you what to drink or what not to drink, but beyond that, the actual war does exist in the business of beer, and that is more what the film is focused on; it is far less about the two different types of consumers, and whether Bud drinkers think beer geeks are elitist.”

Baron’s 90-minute film will air simultaneously in 440 theaters across the nation on April 16 and will be followed by a 30-minute live discussion with a panel of brewers and beer experts hosted by know-it-all pundit Ben Stein. The panel will be answering questions generated in advance from the live audience. “They have a digital network in the theaters that can accept satellite feed,” Baron says. “It’s just a really cool idea, I think, that all these people across America are going to be watching something happen simultaneously. I wanted to get people talking, and this seemed like a better way to do that than the traditional way of rolling out a few theaters at a time.” (more…)

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Take the local: Brooklyn Local 2

Brooklyn Brewery
Brooklyn, NY
9% ABV

This Belgian-style strong dark ale joins the Local 1, a strong saison, in Brooklyn’s regular lineup. This is good news, indeed, as brewer Garrett Oliver is building a nice portfolio of Belgian-inspired ales. Local 2 is brewed with honey and citrus peel and is refermented in a beautiful imbossed 750-ml cork-and-cage bottle. The Diet Coke-brown color and equally cola-like, quickly-dissipating head leave the impression of a fizzy dark lager, but appearances can be deceiving. There’s plenty of heft to this baby. Burnt sugar, roasty malt, and brown bread yeastiness dominate the aroma, with a hint of herbal spice and nose-tingling alcohol in the background. These flavors carry over to the taste, which is sweet, and slightly roasted, with notes of mild coffee, toffee, chocolate, cherry, raisin, and licorice candy. Herbal hops, the tang of Belgian yeast, and the drying alcohol complement the sweet malts and honey, which only seems evident in the slick, smooth mouthfeel. The body is a bit thinner than might be expected from strong dark ale, but the bright carbonation and clean, dry character are plenty satsifying, as is the flush of alcohol that warms all the way down. A fantastic interpretation of a Belgian ale that should satisfy both purists and extreme beer lovers.

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Green beer is for tourists and frat boys. Please show some respect; after all this is a religious holiday. Here’s a list of places to enjoy some authentic Irish spirit this St. Patrick’s Day, along with beer brewed with the same love that the Irish pour into every thing they do.

In Decatur you can bar hop between festivities at several local watering holes. The Grange Public House, which took over the location of The Angel on West Ponce, is run by the Irish ex-pat Comer family and has a homey, authentic vibe. The beer selection is above average and the menu has plenty of Irish favorites. On Tuesday they will have live music starting at 3 p.m., as well as Irish dancers at 8 p.m. The Guinness girls will be on hand starting at 8:30 with Guinness giveways. The Brick Store Pub will have the usual properly poured pints of Guinness Stout, live Irish music, and traditional Irish dishes like corned beef and cabbage, lamb stew and shepherd’s pie. Festivities begin at 1 p.m. Finally, mosey down the street to Twain’s where brewer Jordan Fleetwood will be serving a cask of cream stout aged on Jameson-soaked oak chips. The folks at Twain’s know their corned beef (it’s the home of the Atlanta chapter of the New York Corned Beef Society after all), so if you haven’t had your fill, Twain’s will also be serving corned beef and cabbage. (more…)

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Morningside Baptist wants to quench your thirst.

(Photo by Cliff Bostock)

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The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), which took over federal regulation of alcohol from the ATF in 2003, has proven to be a constant annoyance to the craft beer industry. It has frequently denied names and labels based on oblique drug references or other seemingly innocuous associations(they recently made Ommegang change the name of its presidential tribute beer, Ombamagang). Now the TTB’s dubious requirement of one small brewpub in San Luis Obispo to secure its brewing tanks behind a locked wall to prevent terrorist tampering further calls into question its understanding of its own regulations. The San Luis Obispo New Times reports on the absurd story of government ineptitude.

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Rx for Beer Blahs: Mama

Take two and call me in the morning

Oskar Blues Brewery, makers of Dale’s Pale Ale and Ten Fidy Imperial Stout, have released a Czech-style pilsner called Mama’s Little Yella Pils that should prove popular this summer. The Lyons, Colorado-based Oskar Blues has made a name for itself as one of the first craft breweries to sell their beer in cans rather than bottles. Cans are easily recyclable, more easily handled, require less energy to produce, and can be taken many places where glass bottles are not allowed, such as the park, the beach, or the pool.

Mama’s Little Yella Pils is modeled after the classic pilsner from the Czechoslovakian region of Pilsen that inspired the original Budweiser. A generous amount of pale malts and German specialty malts give this interpretation a firm, grainy body, while the Saaz hops provide a fresh, floral aroma and a crisp, dry finish. The modest 5.3% ABV keeps it in the realm of an everyday quaffer. Yella Pils is available now in 6-packs of bright yellow cans. Unfortunately, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau rejected their tagline on the can, “Take two and call me in the morning.” Don’t ask me why.

Firkin Saturdays at the Brick Store Pub

The Brick Store Pub will be tapping a fresh cask of real ale every Saturday at noon, just in time for sidewalk season. The first offering this past Saturday was the Russian Imperial Stout from Thornbridge Hall Country House Brewing Company, an amazingly rich, smoky stout with a dark-fruit tang and notes of chickory and bittersweet chocolate. If you weren’t there, you missed it, since the firkins only last a couple of days and this was the only one shipped to Georgia. Coming soon will be Gwatkins Yarlington Mill Cider, the CAMRA Gold Medal Champion Cider of Great Britain in 2002. (more…)

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Savor, the popular gourmet grocery and sandwich shop, has added panini to its menu, according to Brad Lapin, my perennial Friday lunch companion. …

Cafe Lapin (no relation to Brad) has opened in the same shopping center. You can order breakfast, lunch or dinner there (no dinner on Sunday). …

AJC critic Meredith Ford Goldman’s review of La Pietra Cucina is due out this week. Brad and I lunched there Friday (surprise!) on arancini (below) suffused with marjoram and a seafood risotto (above) turned velvety black with squid ink. It contained snapper, rock shrimp, mussels and calamari.

Members of the Atlanta chapter of the Accademia della Cucina Italiana ate at La Pietra recently and grilled Chef Bruce Logue within an inch of his life, since his cuisine neither complies with usual notions of authenticity nor regionality. He calls his cooking “progressive Italian,” since he must depend on locally available ingredients. …

Serpas has begun serving Sunday brunch, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.: “Menu items include New Orleans beignets with confectioner dust, house made granola with yogurt and fresh fruit, cast-iron sunny-side up eggs with hashbrowns and andouille, raspberry marscapone-stuffed French toast with crispy bacon, slow-roasted pork loin with smoked cheddar grits and creamy collards and fried oysters-eggs benedict with Tabasco hollandaise.”

(more…)

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Toasty: Weyerbacher Fireside Ale

Weyerbacher Brewing Company
Easton, PA
7.5% ABV

It will probably soon be back up to a balmy 65 degrees, but I had to pick up this smoked ale for the snowy weekend. Weyerbacher’s Dan Weirback has shown great respect for malts while many of his craft beer compatriots in the United States have been pushing International Bittering Units to the max with high-alpha American hop varieties. Fireside Ale has the unmistakable aroma of toasted malts and a hint of smokiness that is comforting and homey. Woody malts and a caramelly fire-toasted marshmallow dominate the malt profile, with a semi-sweet center of maple, cocoa, and nut contributing to the campfire vibe. Clove-like spice, tingly alcohol, and flash of citric and piney hops gently balance the malts. The finish is somewhat dull and undercarbonated, but the silky smooth body makes for pleasant sipping. Enjoy it in front of your fake fireplace.

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No Green Beer: The Distillery in Savannah, GA

In less than two weeks an estimated 400,000 revelers will descend on Savannah for the second largest St. Patrick’s Day celebration in the United States. There will be parades, Irish music, and green beer, but it will be hard to find a Guinness stout, much less a top-notch American craft beer. The proprietors of The Distillery, which opened in November across from the Savannah Visitors’ Center aim to change that.

Michael Volen purchased the building that houses the Distillery in 2004, but was unable to find a satisfactory tenant until his son Ben suggested a bar dedicated to craft beer. Ben Volen got bitten by the craft beer bug while a student at Pace University in Westchester County, New York, where he drank the local craft beers from Captain Lawrence Brewing Company in Pleasantville. After finding that the “craft beer scene was non-existant in Savannah,” he convinced his father, a teetotaler, that a first-class taproom could succeeded there. Ben and his friend Chris Hubbard, who serves as the reaturant’s general manager, came down to Savannah last summer and began renovating the century-old building that was once home to the Louisville Distilling Company, named for the Louisville road that begins across from the site. (more…)

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OK, so I get a ton of products that come across my desk every week, and in general I ignore them. But this one is too awesomely bad, in so many respects, I couldn’t resist sharing. Get this: it’s an anti-energy drink called Drank. Their slogan? “Slow your roll with Drank.”

I had to try this stuff. It’s hard to imagine how something that lists high fructose corn syrup and sucrose as its second and third ingredients (after water) would relax you, but I was willing to be a human guinea pig. It also contains melatonin, valerian, and rose hips. It comes in a big can, and is fizzy and purple. It basically tastes like grape Cisco (for those of you who were young and delinquent in the early ’90s) – a very sweet grape flavor with an odd, medicinal edge. I drank about half the can (each can holds two servings, and warns that you shouldn’t drink more than those two servings in a 24 hour period), and waited. About 10 minutes later, I did start to feel strangely…calm. Sleepy, almost. A half hour after that, I was wide awake again. Now I’m doing my usual thing, which is to stay up way too late staring at my computer. But I can imagine if I had drank Drank right before I planned to fall asleep, it might have helped.

But really, is a big, sugary beverage with a crazy purple can aimed at folks who want a more natural way to relax than Xanax? I can only imagine it will be popular amongst the revelers who drink it after a long night of too many…uh…Red Bulls.

(Image courtesy of Drank)

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RING THE ALARM: Occupying prime real estate in the 100-year-old Engine 11 firehouse on North Avenue, this laid-back tavern — formerly the Spotted Dog — maintains its antique charm. Grand mahogany accents, dimly-lit lamps (made out of copper-plated fire extinguishers) and two large arched windows give the dining room and patio some common ground. The space upgrades to the present with three large plasma TVs broadcasting the latest games

HOSE ‘EM DOWN: The fully stocked bar houses 16 beers on draft, with most of the focus on domestic favorites. A few gem craft beers include Kona’s Fire Rock Pale Ale from Hawaii. There’s a small wine list, but beer and straightforward mixed drinks are the main draw for the after-work crowd.

STOP, DROP AND ONION ROLL: The menu features the usual bar fare as well as a few stand outs, including meat loaf and “Flashing Lights Shrimp” — fried shrimp with a trio of dipping sauces. If you really plan to chow down while throwing back a few, your best bet is to go with the juicy Engine 11 burger.

Engine 11 Firehouse Tavern, 30 North Ave. 404-873-3473. www.engine11atl.com. Mon.-Thurs., 11 a.m.- 3 a.m.; Sunday 10:30-midnight.

(Photo courtesy Engine 11)

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So, after a hiatus, I am back to drinking for a living. Sorry for the interruption.

This week’s wine find is a tad on the pricey side – I said I’d try to keep them under $20, but this one came in at $20.99. There’s a couple of reasons for that – one is that I shopped this week at the Wine Gallery and Market in the shopping center on the corner of Piedmont Road and Sidney Marcus Blvd. That place ain’t cheap! A great place to go for a really special bottle of wine, but not much that looked super appealing to me in the under-$20 range. The other reason is that I actually think this wine is a good value for the price.

Domaine de la Mordoree 2005 La Dame Rousse, Lirac, France

I’m sad to say that this wine has nothing to do with some French Lord Of the Rings evilness. The Rhone blend (50% granache, 50% syrah) is bursting with black cherry, but is medium bodied and extremely well balanced. Many wines I’ve had from the Lirac AOC tend to be quite soft, but this exhibits more boldness. It finishes dry, with some liquorish and black pepper lingering. Great food wine, great drinking-without-food wine, and far more elegant than you’d usually find a French red at this price.

Next week I’ll get back in recession mode.

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A trusty old dog: Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale

Smuttynose Brewing Company
Portsmouth, NH
5.7% ABV

Dogs seem to be a frequent inspiration for brown ales, as evidenced by Abita Turbodog, Avery Ellie’s Brown Ale, and the new-to-Georgia Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale. This beer pours a clear, glowing chestnut that is just about the same color as Olive (R.I.P.), the Smuttynose mascot that graces the label. A volumionous, rocky head sits atop the body and pops and crackles down to a thin cap, leaving some fine lacing. A moderately sweet, toasted malt aroma fairly explodes from the glass, suggesting brown bread crust with an earthy spice note. There are some fruity notes of apple skins and orange, as well. The toasted bread continues in the flavor profile, along with soft crystal malts, steeped grains and a faint nutiness. A flash of juicy sweetness in the center hints of maple syrup, cocoa and toffee. The hops are subdued and vaguely tea-like, with a bit of steely tang of alcohol and a chocolately orange in the clean, dry finish. Round and smooth, with a decent heft to the body, this is a delicious take on an English brown ale, wth its emphasis on malt complexity. A perfect accompaniment to beef or sharp cheese.

(photo by Jeff Holland)

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Recession busters: Good beers at a good price

We’re all watching our pennies these days, but if you’re like me, you’ve come too far in your beer taste to go back to The Beast. But that doesn’t mean you can’t save a little coin on your beer purchases and still enjoy a well-crafted brew.

The price of all beer has gone up, so there is only so much you can save without joining the Carrie Nation. The sooner you accept that fact, the sooner you can be enjoying a beer. And remember that a dollar or two savings on a 12-pack of Busch Light evaporates faster than you think – you’ll find yourself going through 4 or 5 in a night vs. 2 or 3 of a more flavorful beer.

Here are a few things I picked up at Tower and Green’s recently that were relative bargains. I tried to balance price and overall enjoyment. All prices are for a 6-pack of 12-oz. bottles except as indicated. (more…)

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