DuClaw Brewing Company

We are almost done applying labels to our Pax Nemesis and Black Jack Stout bottles.  They should ship to the distributor this week and will be hitting retailers shelves next week.  I am sure most of you are familiar with Black Jack, but only a few got to taste Pax at the last year’s BAM Octoberfest. So with that in mind, I am going to give you my thoughts on the beer.  First lets start with some facts:  1) it is an Imperial Alt Ale, 2) it is 11% alcohol 3) it is named after the Greek goddess of divine balance.  I have attached our information sheets so you can get the low-down on what an Imperial Alt is.

Now, my opinions.  I have never tasted a beer that is so drinkable with an alcohol content 8% or higher.  The malt flavor is mellow, not sweet or overpowering, with a slight caramel hint.  The hop presence is there, but just enough and certainly not overly pronounced.  It has a clean, slightly crisp overall flavor with subtle ale esters.  And all in all, you will be hard pressed to find that 11% alcohol. All this provides and amazing balance to this high alcohol beer (hence the reference to the goddess).  This is why we chose to use the Altbier as a base to make an imperial.  We were attempting, and I think succeeded, to make a sublimely drinkable imperial ale.  So, even though Nemesis is 11%, don’t expect it to be massive and in your face.  But be careful, because even though this is easy to enjoy, karma will catch up (most likely the next day around 8am).

The email touting the release is not scheduled to go out until mid next week, so you blog readers have the jump.  Not sure how quick it will get from the distributor to the retailers, so you might want to call them to see if they have it, or better yet tell them to get it.

Pax Nemesis Info Sheet
Black Jack Stout Info Sheet

We have a brawl on our hands, as our gracious patrons are conducting a comment war on the blog.  It seems our tie breaker policy has people worried.  Click here to see the footage of our last tiebreaker pit fight between our customers.  But please, make sure no children or weak stomach people are nearby when viewed!  And remember, fight for your right for Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack Stout.  Get out and vote!

Ok, here is the deal. The festival mistakenly forgot to put our final keg of Bourbon Barrel Aged (BBA) Black Jack on tap. So now we have this extra keg in our way, and we need to get rid of it. So Bo, Jim and I had a meeting on what to do with it.  After a few diligent hours of drinking, we decided that we should really make a decision. So, after a couple more beers one of us came up with the great idea to put it on tap at one of our stores for Cinco de Mayo!

At first we were glad that the strenuous act of making a decision was over.  But, as Jim was leaving work around 1pm , after a hard day of watching Bo brew, Bo reminded us that we only have one keg…..and we have three stores.  It was at this point we realized that we have even a tougher decision to make.  It also became quite clear to Jim that he was not going to make it home in enough time for his 1:30 nap.  But, we had to decide what restaurant would get our only keg of Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack Stout. After an intense debate, a few more beers and a grueling match or rock, paper, sissors; Jim, Bo an I came to a conclusion.  And that is…..we are too scared to make any real tough decisions.

So, we are leaving it up to YOU to decide where it will be tapped.  There is a poll posted on the right hand side of the home page of my blog. Go there to cast your vote for which store is to receive our only keg.  Do it quick, as the polls close on  April 30th at noon.  Make your voice heard!

Cheers,
Dave

So, I attended the Beer, Bourbon and BBQ fest with Jim and Bo today. We had Serum plus Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack (vintage 2009) there. We weren’t there to work the festival since the promoter had pourers assigned to our booth, which lead to walking with Jim and trying some bourbons. Bo was left to do all the work (if you are around the brewery at all, this is a recurring theme). Well, after two bourbons I decided to head back to beer only. And this of course got me a boat load of jabs from Jim (who mind you took the light rail in, while I drove!). But, I did have a nice IPA from Evolution before heading back to our booth to have my first try of the Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack.

And even though I am biased (shocker, I know) IT WAS AWESOME! A nice presence of bourbon, but by no means overwhelming. And judging by the comments from the attendees, it seems they loved it too. Now, we have less than ten kegs of this, so the only place you are going to see this is at festivals. But, I will make sure that we send an email when we are attending a festival that has the Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack Stout. Come to think of it, it would be a good idea to send an email about every festival and what beer we will be bringing. Well, looks like I made some more work for our marketing people. But, if you get a chance, don’t miss the Bourbon Barrel Aged Black Jack, it will not disappoint.

Cheers,
Dave

Comments are open!  I am very interested in hearing anyone thoughts on our first eXile launch, Chocolate Imperial Rye Porter.

Cheers,

Dave

Just wanted to thank everyone who showed up yesterday for our little April Fools promotion. We really appreciate it. There were a lot of you, and it seems you guys were determined as we are going to have to make extra deliveries of beer this week to get us through the weekend!

We had a lot of questions on the sliders, with the biggest one being are we adding them to the menu. Yes we are, along with a Tempura Battered Shrimp Slider. All new items are set to launch in May, and I already got it on my ‘blog todo’ to give you some good details about it in a week or so.

Don’t forget – today is the launch of our eXile series. It starts with a Chocolate Imperial Rye Porter, very tasty. Oh, and the second batch is in the tanks fermenting away. You want a hint? A BIG, bad WOLF…..

Cheers,

Dave