December 24th, 2014
31 Beers of December – Day 24: Death of a Contract Brewer
@aljpeace @ShmaltzNYC @ShmaltzBrewing
To celebrate the Holiday Season, we have teamed up with beer bloggers and craft beer enthusiasts around the country to host the fourth annual beer bloggers advent calendar. This is the season of sharing and we intend to share our love of beer with you.
During the 31 days of December, we will be sharing our favorite regional/winter seasonals/holiday beers with the help from our fellow beer bloggers. We hope that you tune in every day, to hear our stories and share our holiday cheer.
Death of a Contract Brewer
Blogger: Amber Jansen
Website: www.2beerguys.com
Twitter / Facebook / Instagram: @aljpeace / https://www.facebook.com/2beerguys / http://instagram.com/aljpeace
About Amber:
I am a reluctant blogger though I enjoy craft beer immensely. I jump at any chance I can to visit a brewery, festival or try a new beer. I find the best folks are the ones with a beer in hand.
Beer: Death of A Contract Brewer
Brewery: Shmaltz Brewing, Clifton Park, NY
Website: http://www.shmaltzbrewing.com/
Twitter: @ShmaltzBrewing
Beer Details:
-Style: Black IPA
-ABV: 7%
-7Hops: Cascade, Citra, Summit, Crystal, Amarillo, Ahtanum and Chinook
-7Maltz: Specialty 2-Row, Munich, Wheat, Crystal Rye, Chocolate, Pale Chocolate and Kiln Coffee
Commercial Description:
Death seems so obvious: the end of life, no mas, kaput. But Humans stand an optimistic animal. Many traditions suggest alternate endings: Resurrection, reincarnation, rebirth, afterlife. Even the atheist view of Eternal Oblivion doesn’t seem quite final, more of a shift in spiritual states of (un)consciousness. As usual, Jewish tradition prescribes… Food. 7 days of family, community, and bagels (beer!), called, Shiva, meaning “7” in Hebrew. The flip side to the 7 days of Creation with the 7th as a holy day of rest.
The first meal of Shiva is “the comfort meal.” And the number 7 provides powerful mojo: 7 Jewish wedding blessings, 7 Liberal Arts, 7 Lucky Japanese gods, 7 stars of the Big Dipper, 7 colors of the rainbow, 7 seas, 007 license to kill, 7 dwarves, We are 7 by Wordsworth with a child’s view of death, 7 deadly sins, Best of 7 finals in NBA, NHL, MLB, 7th Inning stretch, no. 7 on Elway & Tiny Archibald. George Costanza yearned to name his firstborn, “7” as a living tribute to no. 7 Mickey Mantle. The 7 Award however must go to the immortal George Carlin for 7 Dirty Words, inspired by another hero Lenny Bruce.
Coming into 17 years of beer, and Year no. 1 with our own Brewery, we commemorate this conversion with Death Of A Contract Brewer, our Shmaltz homage to new life – L’Chaim! Jeremy Cowan, proprietor
Why I selected Death of a Contract Brewer:
I selected DOACB as the final beer from the He’Brew gift pack, which completes the Chanukah beer Menorah. I enjoy building the Shmaltz Brewing beer Menorah with Sean every year. This beer seemed like an interesting choice because they brewed it to commemorate their years of going from contract brewing to their very own brewery — which was the perfect ending to this pack. Right from opening the bottle, the hop aroma caught our attention. The citrus notes were well balanced with the roasted malts. The flavors were so perfect, I wanted more!!!
This year the He’Brew gift pack was a bit hard to come by. I had to track down one of the three boxes that were distributed to my area. I ended up in Haverhill, Ma at Academy Liquors on South Main Street and was very pleased by the service I received. I recommend purchasing this gift pack (which comes with a commemorative glass and a box of candles) because it’s fun to crack one of the 8 beers in the pack, light the candles and reflect. This is the 4th year I’ve been celebrating Chanukah with He’Brew and will again next December!
L’Chaim!
Amber
@aljpeace
About 2Beerguys:
Founded in 2006, 2Beerguys.com has been devoted to spreading their passion of the craft beer world. Originating primarily as craft beer reviewers, they have molded their organization into premier craft beer educators and ambassadors for craft beer industry. Their passion has taken them on the wild ride of home brewing and beer education.
2Beerguys.com believes that you deserve a good beer, visit http://www.2beerguys.com for more information.
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The Craft Beer Education Series was developed to provide a fun, interactive beer tasting experience. CBES combines general beer education, style-specific education, and an introduction to beer tasting, along with eight tasty beer samples to practice your newly honed skills on! http://www.craftbeereducation.com
About Shmaltz Brewing Company:
Established in San Francisco in 1996 with the first batch of 100 cases of HE’BREW Beer bottled, labeled, and delivered by hand, Shmaltz has sold more than ten million bottles of beer to date. Along with their acclaimed line of HE’BREW Beers, Shmaltz introduced its new line of sideshow-inspired Coney Island Craft Lagers. Shmaltz offerings are available in more than 30 states through 35 wholesalers at more than 3,500 retail specialty shops across the U.S., including Beverages & More, Whole Foods, Total Wine, select Krogers and Cost Plus. For more information, please visit: www.shmaltzbrewing.com