Meridian featured in the 2012 Craft Brewers Conference Symposium Ale, Yippee!

The buzz is building. Meridian has crossed the Oregon border. Our friends down in San Diego at Karl Strauss have just bottled up a hop bomb, exploding with flavor, to welcome the thousands of brewers who will celebrate all things crafty at the 2012 Craft Brewers Conference.

This bad boy, tongue-in-cheekily monikered as a ho hum “San Diego Pale Ale, which is sort of like calling an MX missile a “bottle rocket,” comes in at a burly 10.2% ABV and 95 IBU. Welcome to San Diego, where it ain’t beer if it doesn't sprout a fully loaded hop vine.

A few months ago we sent a brewers cut of Meridian to Paul Segura, the master brewer at Karl Strauss. He took one whiff and spontaneously uttered whilst the eye lids fluttered: “We have got to dry hop our Symposium Ale with this beauty.” And he did, along with his righteously motivated brethren within the San Diego Brewers Guild.

This afternoon Chris Cramer, Karl Strauss’ preternaturally cheerful CEO, ordered me to “get down here now” and taste this beauty. Words like “floral,” “aromatic,” “incredible,” "tropical fruity," and “unique” burst forth like fireworks exploding on the Fourth of July.

We can’t wait to see our little darling perform on the Big Stage. To be sure, all glory to our friends in Yakima, who furnished the Columbus and Citra for this ruthlessly hopped special release. Indie Hops is overjoyed to have provided the Crystal and Meridian.

A funny sidenote – the press release on the San Diego Pale Ale on “The Beer Spot” blog identifies our contribution as “Columbia.” This, my friends, is an honest and totally understandable mistake – we thought it was Columbia too until we did a whole lotta digging, testing, evalutating, measuring, and musing.

Here’s a picture of the Symposium Double IPA wolf in sheep’s clothing.

And here’s a picture of the commemorative poster, including Indie Hops, the little engine that could… Note that the Hops logo (the circle with the cultivars: "Columbus, Citra, Crystal..." also misidentifies our Meridian as "Columbia." Honest mistake, nobody's perfect.

Let’s toast to the glory of hops, malt, water, yeast and TLC! Make sure to stop by our booth. Jim, Matt and I may be short on most of our 2011 inventory, but our 2012 harvest is only months away. We appreciate your support and friendship.

RGW
4/27/12

note:  photos courtesy of:
http://www.thebeerspot.com/news/article/2012/04/karl-strauss-s-2012-craft-brewers-conference-symposium-ale

Indie Hops Supports Amgen Breakaway from Cancer Walk, Race and Fundraiser

IH is teaming up with our friends at Amgen, Sierra Nevada, and Karl Strauss to support the Breakaway from Cancer (BfC) Dana Point Grand Prix and cancer research fundraiser.

The BfC fundraiser will be held at the Dana Point Yacht Club on Saturday, April 30th. All net proceeds will benefit cancer research and bicycle advocate charities. For details on the fundraiser, and how you can participate, click here.

On Sunday, May 1st, Indie Hops will co-sponsor the Dana Point Grand Prix, which consists of a series of pro-am races criterium races. The highlight of the day, in addition to the kids races, will be the Breakaway Walk. The Walk is open to all cancer survivors, caregivers, and advocates. Far from being a downer, this event will give cancer survivors and loved ones something to cheer about as we celebrate the strength, courage, skill and teamwork it takes to keep cancer at bay.

Speaking of knocking cancer to its knees, as you probably know hops may play a role. Hops contain two major polyphenols, xanthohumol and quercetin. Both “flavonoid” compounds have been shown in benchwork research to induce cell death in various cancer cells in test tubes (in vitro), as well as being strong anti-oxidants.

A bevy of regulations prevent (and rightly so) brewers from touting their beer as a nutritional bulwark against cancer, but there is plenty of research to support the hypothesis that xanthohumol, extracted from humulus lupulin, may have cancer fighting properties.

Note to the gullible – this doesn't mean you can escape cancer by pounding your favorite brew daily. I think you’d have to drink about a keg daily to get a meaningful XN dosage but at that regimen cancer would be the least of your worries. It would be cool, however, to breed a hop high in XN and try to brew a “healthy” beer that actually tasted good.

Go online to the PubMed database and enter “xanthohumol” and “cancer” and 58 articles will pop up which examine xanthohumul’s potential role in guarding against various forms of cancer. Am I saying that we would be better off taking a concentrated capsule of xanthohumol daily? No. But if there was such a capsule, I’d probably take one, just as I take a daily dose of resveratrol, the bioflavonoid from the skin of grapes, another strong anti-oxidant with potential anti-tumorigenic properties.

Whether it’s to support bike racing, a healthy lifestyle or just to celebrate life and have a good time, come on down to the BfC Dana Point Grand Prix. I’ll be working the mic and I may even don the skinsuit to run with the bulls in the masters race.

Thanks again to our friends at Karl Strauss and Sierra Nevada for donating truckloads of beer for the fundraiser and bike racer. On race day, our buddies at the 5th Marine Regiment from Camp Pendleton will be manning the beer tent. Portions of the sale of beer will be donated to the 5th Marine Regiment.

Support Cancer Research, Ride Bikes, Walk the Walk, Drink Hoppy Beer or Die!

RGW
3/21/11

Good Times at Karl Strauss’ 22nd Anniversary Party

San Diego. Let’s deal with it: most of us are afraid of stouts. Not because of the taste – in fact, we recoil from the darkish, kawfeeish hell’s brew in spite of the taste. Once we get past the word’s connotation – stout, burly, thick, fire hydrant-ish – and actually taste it, all doubts tends to disappear. Like going into a scary neighborhood and coming out with a new best friend.

I admit to such a bias. Never a fan of the stouts. But then I took the leap (I was pushed) and – Eureka! – I found it. I may have graduated, but not my Darling Wife. She’s cold on kawfee. And she of course assumed dark malted beer tasted like espresso. And then there’s that whole weight thing: drink this and your buttons will pop and your bra will snap.

So it was with great pleasure – like perhaps watching a problem child graduate with honors – that I watched my bethrothed belly up to the Stout line more times than I could count. Thank you Karl Strauss: you’ve shown another lost soul The Light and The Way. And still that girlish figure!

A big shout out to my friends Chris Cramer, Matt Rattner and Paul Segura down at Karl Strauss. We were fortunate to get through the velvet rope for a sampling of KS’ latest barrel aged stouts. Paul is truly breaking out with exciting new recipes that dazzle and delight. We sipped the bourbon barrel blended and unblended vanilla imperial stout and found ourselves inside our favorite confectionaire in Bruges, aglow in the creamy warmth of chocolate, raisins, vanilla and – yes! yes! – coffee.

Turns out the DW can enjoy coffee as long as it’s buttressed with vanilla beans, malt, hops and bourbon barrel aged!

As the band played and strangers became friends and the delicious hors dourves slowly disappeared, it occurred to us that we were having a peak moment inside what amounted to an unheated industrial warehouse. The only pretense of glamour was a red carpet, which was more parody that fashion. The stark surroundings drove home the cliché that great friends, food, beer and music make a great party, not a fancy ballroom or chic nightclub.

And yet… there is talk of remodeling the Karl Strauss brewery, building out a tasting room, adding a patio, and making the brewery a destination spot. As much fun as we had in the unvarnished brewhouse, just imagine the joy of tasting KS’s finest with old and new friends around a fire pit after a walk on the beach or exhilarating bike ride. The brewery is located smack dab on one of the most popular bike routes in San Diego.

I see potential.

RGW

2/7/11

West Coast Hop-A-Bout 2010: We love your pellets, we’re grateful for your investment, we admire your passion, but….

You load sixteen tons an' what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt.
St Peter don't you call me cause I can't go.
I owe my soul to the company store.
-- Jimmy Dean, hop dealer unknown

The setting: eager new hop merchant on hop-a-bout up the West Coast stopping off at craft breweries to field test big fat fresh 100% uncut Oregon-grown hop pellets. After six days and over a dozen brewer rap sessions, a dialogue blueprint has taken shape.

The dialogue goes something like the below. Note, this is a work of Rogue IPA induced fiction and none of the rhetoric is meant to be attributed to any particularly disgruntled brewer; as a whole brewers tend to be a "don't let the bastards grind you down" lot, as the happy-wappy snapshots attest):

Click here for more.

Indie Hops Celebrates Beer, Bikes, Kids and Good Health!

What a day!

Under gunmetal grey skies with a chill wind blowing off the Pacific Ocean, the action on the clean streets of Dana Point was red hot. We saw and felt it all: the thrill of fierce competition, the joy of cheering on children pedaling with all their heart, the pride of a community rallying to support noble charities, and the grief of honoring the life of Jorge Alvarado, a young racer killed before his prime a few days before by a street-racing motorist in Redlands.

It was a banner day. Over 800 cyclists in 10 categories raced their butts off for over $30,000 in cash and prizes. Even better, at least 300 children, ages 4-15, lined up in multiple age group categories to thrill the crowd and tv audience with their spirit, speed and happy faces. All proceeds from the race will be donated to charity, including the Boys and Girls Club of Capistrano Valley and the 5th Marine Support Group.

Indie Hops is proud to associate with quality beer and a salubrious lifestyle. Salubrious! Check it out: it means "enhancing well-being" or promoting the good life. Cycling is a perfect platform for trumpeting the virtues of a well-hopped malted beverage. In order to maximize what their bodies can put out, cyclists in general are very meticulous about what food and drink they put in -- it's got to be good, real good.

Quality over quantity. I always say that if I'm going to limit my beer intake to one-a-day, it better deliver on all counts. It better have plenty of nutritious malt and anti-oxidant rich hop oils and tannins. It needs to emit an aroma that whispers: relax and enjoy, you've earned it. And of course it needs the right amount of alcohol that can help liberate you from any festering deadweight that may be holding you down.

I want to thank my good friends at Karl Strauss. KS delivered big time. They donated several kegs of Woodie Gold, Amber lager, Pintail Pale Ale and Red Trolley to the beer tent, the proceeds of which will be donated to the 5th Marine Support Group out of Camp Pendleton. Hoo-rah!

And a special shout out to Chris Cramer, the CEO of Karl Strauss. He delivered several cases of muscular Big Barrel Double IPA to the race VIP event and later that night we toasted to their Gold Medal winning Red Trolley over a few bottles of Belgian-Style Anniversary Ale. I broke my one-a-day rule to pieces but it was worth it -- the bewitching brew transported me to the rolling hop fields of Poperinge, Belgium (saving a fortune on air fare!) and that night I slept like a baby.

In June, Indie Hops will be sponsoring the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic in Portland, Oregon. We will be inviting all the local brewers to join in the fun. Our long term vision is to work with Oregon State University in conducting single hop variety brew sensory panels in conjunction with major bike races. Imbibing hopped up beverages in the name of science! Who knew data collection could be so much fun?

A big thanks to the Dana Point Community Cycling Foundation, the City of Dana Point, and all the sponsors and volunteers who made the 4th Annual Indie Hops Dana Point Grand Prix a great day for sport, family and quality beer. I had a blast on the mic and can't wait to do it again.

For an excellent video of the race in all its glory (and savagery), click here.

For stories and video footage of the race:

Cantwell Wins!

The Crash in the Pro Race

Roger Worthington
4/13/10

Here is my interview with Cox Cable. Gnarly!