Texas Tuesday: New Belgium Brewing’s Rolle Bolle

Texas Tuesday

New Belgium Brewing’s Rolle Bolle

We’re rollin’ with Rolle Bolle this Texas Tuesday, Pint Jockeys, and we know after reading this you’ll want in on the action.

New Belgium Brewing has outdone itself with its Rolle Bolle brew – an incredibly drinkable summer seasonal with a name almost as whimsical as its taste. The first word that comes to mind when we think about Rolle Bolle is “delightful,” and boy, do we delight the heck in it. Brewed with monk fruit and soursop, this beer is light, refreshing and incredibly easy to sip, with earthy and tropical tones that carry the aroma. Pouring a pale sunshine yellow, with a fluffy white head, the taste follows accordingly with a hit of tartness backed by a citrus bite from Cascade and Centennial Hops to finish dry and clean.

“Born” in April, 2013, at New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado, the young Rolle Bolle has already earned rave reviews from your fellow Pint Jockeys who tried it at July’s Texas City tasting. If you haven’t yet had the pleasure of a taste, we suggest you pick up a six-pack tonight! It pairs especially well with Asian foods – think Thai and Vietnamese – or light fish with a big plate of greens.

Still looking for more incentive? The folks at New Belgium have put together this video about Rolle Bolle that we definitely think is worth checking out! Delightful indeed.

 

 

Cheers, Pint Jockeys! We’ll see you next week – same time, same place.

 

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Texas Tuesday Pick: A classic brew from South Germany by way of Fredericksburg, Texas

Pedernales Brewing Company’s Classic Hefe-Weizen

You came, you saw, you tasted, Pint Jockeys! We had a great turnout at last Tuesday’s tasting events and loved hearing from you afterward on Facebook with your favorites. It seems that many of you chose Pedernales Brewing Company’s Classic Hefe-Weizen as your tasting brew of choice, which is why we’re pleased to feature it as our Texas Tuesday pick of the week.

While Pedernales’ brew comes to you from Fredericksburg, Texas, the Hefe-Weizen style itself is an unfiltered wheat beer that originated in South Germany. True to this Bavarian style, Pedernales Brewing Co. uses a very specific yeast strain to achieve the distinctive flavors of banana, apricot and clove – making it one of the most unique beers in the world. This brew is considered a “classic” Hefe-Weizen because of its unfiltered nature, resulting in a cloudy appearance.

This is a light, golden ale that boasts a thick, frothy head and just the right amount of floral hops to balance the fruity flavors. The folks at Pedernales recommend that you pair it with a Tuna salad (with apples and pecans) sautéed salmon or other grilled fish, as well as hot and spicy fishes.

While Classic Hefe-Weizen has only been manufactured by Pedernales for a short time (the craft brewery has only been distributing since 2012), brewmaster Peter MacFarlane has been using the recipe for decades. In fact, it’s so stellar that it’s already won him three gold medals at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver.

If you were one of the lucky Texas City Pint Jockeys to sample Classic Hefe-Weizen last week, we’d love to hear your comments! And if you haven’t had the chance to experience it yet – there’s a six pack with your name on it at your local retailer. Go forth and taste!

We’ll see you back here next Tuesday, Pint Jockeys. Until then, cheers!

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Pint Jockeys’ July tasting events feature summer seasonals, perennial favorites and a few beer experts

Karbach Brewmaster Eric Warner joins Beaumont tasting, and Pedernales Brewing Co.’s brewmaster and founder make their way to Texas City.

The tastings take place this Thursday, July 18 from 5-7 p.m. at Del Papa’s three distribution centers in Beaumont, Texas City and Victoria. All tastings are free and open to adults ages 21 and older.

Check out the lineups being featured at each location below!

 

BEAUMONT:

Karbach Brewmaster Eric Warner joins us to sample the following from Karbach’s core line-up:

Karbach Weisse Versa Wheat Ale – This hybrid wheat beer is a combination of Hefeweizen yeast and spices common to Belgian style white beers. The result is a complex but refreshing wheat beer with flavors and aromas of citrus peel, coriander, banana and wheat.

Karbach Love Street Summer Seasonal – A Kölsch style beer brewed with German hops including Tettnang, Spalt, Saphir and Hallertauer. The golden colored beer has a predominately grassy flavor with other notes of grapefruit, orange, lemon and coriander.

Karbach Sympathy for the Lager – This lager is prepared with extras steps and time, similar to many brewing processes in Czechoslovakia, to create a lager that is crisp and refreshing. Karbach utilizes a process called floatation, giving a delicate bitterness, before the beer is cold-aged for several weeks. The German hops give a floral, spicy aroma and the Vienna malts produce an amber color and malt sweetness.

Karbach Hopadillo IPA – Referred to as “Texas Style IPA” by brewmaster Eric Warner, this unique ale combines American, German and English hops to give a big and bold hop aroma with citrus character and earthy spiciness.

Karbach Rodeo Clown Double IPA – Rodeo Clown doubles down with a malty richness and strong hop character, typical of a DIPA. The aromas are malty with citrus, spice and floral hop characteristics.

Karbach El Hopadillo Negro – An American black ale, with a smooth hop taste and a cool, dry finish. Flavors of citrus, pine and roasted malt lace the brew.

Karbach Hop Delusion – A West Coast Style Imperial IPA, Hop Delusion has an explosive aroma of citrus and tropical fruit thanks to loads of Chinook, Simcoe, Falconers Flight and Mosaic hops. A slight caramel malt sweetness holds this medium bodied brew together.

 

 

TEXAS CITY:

This month’s Texas City location hosts Pedernales Brewing Company’s Brewmaster Peter McFarlane and founder Lee Hereford as they serve up these five fantastic beers:

Pedernales Classic Hefe-Weizen – This classic unfiltered beer stays true to the Bavarian style with a strict yeast strain creating distinctive flavors of banana, apricot and clove. Light, cloudy and golden in color, this brew boasts a thick, frothy head and has received top marks at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver, CO.

Pedernales Lobo Lito – A full bodied, true Reinheitsgebot quality Pilsner beer made using Pilsner malt barley, Weihensteffan yeast, Saaz hops and Hill County well water. Its slightly lower alcohol content and thirst quenching, slightly hoppy finish make it the perfect summer-time beer.

Pedernales Lobo Lager – This pilsner beer starts with Texas Hill Country well water and Czech hops. Brilliantly crisp and clear with a dense foam, light golden color and subtle hop aroma. The flavor is a delicate balance of expertly malted barley and carefully selected hops.

Pedernales Lobo Negro – A true “Dunkel,” or dark brown lager, with a spicy maltiness that is neither sweet nor too roastily dry. The lager yeast is worked at low temperatures, imparting a clean roundness and balance.

Pedernales Classics India Pale Ale – The brilliantly clear, light copper color of this classic English beer denotes the specialized caramel malt used to give the ale a light toasted flavor. Classic NW American hops are used to balance the malty sweetness of the barley to provide a wonderful herbal aroma from this well balanced beer.

 

 

VICTORIA

Victoria event-goers will be treated to a little bit of everything ! Summer seasonals, a cider, and IPA and even a doughnut-inspired brew await.

Rahr & Sons Summertime Wheat – This refreshing, lightly hopped ale has unique banana and clove-like characteristics. It is unfiltered so the yeast character comes through with a light but full body that pours a hazy dark gold with a white, frothy head.

Pedernales Lobo Lito – A full bodied, true Reinheitsgebot quality Pilsner beer made using Pilsner malt barley, Weihensteffan yeast, Saaz hops and Hill County well water. Its slightly lower alcohol content and thirst quenching, slightly hoppy finish make it the perfect summer-time beer.

New Belgium Rolle Bolle – This summer seasonal ale is brewed with monk fruit and soursop and pours a brilliant blonde, with a fluffy, white head. Earthy and tropical tones construct the aroma and oats add a hint of creaminess to the dry and clean mouthfeel.

Sierra Nevada Hoptimum – An intense and complex Imperial IPA, Hoptimum features intense hop flavors and aromas of grapefruit ring, pine, herbs and tropical fruit.

Angry Orchard Ginger – Featuring a unique blend of Nigerian ginger and apple flavors, this smooth and refreshing cider offers a sweet, yet slightly tart taste and goes down easy. This cider is gluten-free and Celiac safe.

Rouge Voodoo Doughnut Chocolate, Peanut Butter and Banana Ale – Rouge Ales has partnered with Voodoo Doughnut to craft this collision of crazy flavors. This creation contains a dozen ingredients including chocolate, banana and peanut butter to match Voodoo’s famous “Memphis Mafia” doughnut.

 

Phew, that’s a lot of great craft beer! Which tasting event are you attending? See you there, Pint Jockeys!

 

 

 

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Texas Tuesday Pick of the Week

Texas Crude by Texas BIG BEER

We’ve heard great things about the friendly people out in Buna, Texas but we’re giving our highest praises to the creative couple, John and Tammy McKissack, co-founders of Texas BIG BEER Brewery.  These fine folks set up shop in the Southeast Texas Big Thicket with the belief that brewing great beer is a craft to be appreciated, enjoyed and savored – and boy do we appreciate, enjoy and savor the heck out of one of their finest creations, Texas Crude.

This American Porter style lager is extremely robust, with a roasty flavor that is surprisingly clean for such a dark beer. Dominant notes are dark chocolate and coffee, with hints of dark brown sugar, molasses, fig and raisin also in the mix.

Pour it into a mug and you’re looking at a beer as black as the barrels of oil pouring out of the East Texas Oil Field. But don’t be afraid of the dark– the beer is very drinkable with a light carbonation and consistently emerges as the favorite from BIG BEER’s lineup in their brewery taste tests.  It was even voted best Porter in the Rockies/Southwest at the United States Beer Tasting Championship’s™ 19^th annual Winter Competition.

Texas Crude pairs well with smoked meats like barbeque and brisket, as well as buttery cheeses like Brie, Havarti and Gouda making it another great go-to Texas craft beer for backyard celebrations. Lucky for you and your refrigerator, it’s available year round in one of Texas BIG BEER’s 22-ounce bomber bottles (or kegs if you find yourself fully committed, which you very well might).

Check it out and let us know what you think in the comments below, Pint Jockeys! We’ll see you here next week with another Texas Tuesday pick!

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Southern Star Brewing Company’s Walloon

Southern Star Brewing Company’s Walloon

A Texas Tuesday Grisette

Good to see you, Pint Jockeys! We know you’re gearing up for Independence Day festivities this Thursday, and that no doubt includes icing down the cooler and filling it with delicious Texas craft beer.

Southern Star Brewing Company’s Walloon, available for the summer season starting tomorrow, July 3^rd, is exactly what you need in said cooler. Trust us.

Walloon is a “Grisette”; a style of beer developed in the 1800s in the Hainaut province of southern Belgium to slake the thirsts of coal and stone miners. Quite the rarity these days, this style is now scarcely produced by American brewers or Belgians alike. Thankfully, Southern Star had brought this beer out of Belgian inconspicuousness and into our Texas fridges.

It has a light, delicate body attributed to a subtle acidity from the yeast, followed by a rich, bready maltiness from a traditionally long boil. The hazy, glowing, persimmon brew quickly displays a frothy head with tight bubbles when poured, giving off a crackery aroma with a touch of banana and citrusy notes. Incredibly drinkable, Walloon is a perfect fit for sweltering Texas summers with its medium, zesty carbonation and persimmon-like taste. You’ll also notice a hint of mango and banana flavors and a softly sweet grain and wheat profile as you sip it down.

Mouth watering yet? We suggest pairing this deliciousness with some fresh Gulf Coast seafood for one seriously “summer” meal. Try steamed mussels, fried calamari or a nice pan-seared sea bass with orange butter sauce to create the perfect combination of flavors.

Cheers to Southern Star for bringing this gorgeous Grisette to our neck of the woods!

As you prepare for red, white and blue celebrations on Thursday, make sure a designated driver is part of your plans. In need of a ride? Use the HAIL A CAB™ application – the fastest way to catch a cab. Here’s to a festive and SAFE Fourth of July, Pint Jockeys!

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