Day 92 / April 2, 2011
Oskar Blue Brewery / Longmont, Colorado
A | NG | P | G | VG | O |
Check out those cans!
A can revolution is upon us. More and more craft breweries are canning and distributing their beers in cans. Some are canning in addition to bottling, and some, like Oskar Blues exclusively distribute their beer for sale in cans.
Some argue that the can is a superior package to the bottle. Cans are lighter and take up less space, making them cheaper to transport and store. They’re more durable once filled. Cans are completely lightproof, meaning the beer won’t get “skunked,” acquiring the nasty odor that comes from hops compounds breaking down in sunlight. Cans today come with a lining that keeps beer away from the aluminum, eliminating the metallic taste that used to affect canned beer. They seal up with very little air in the can, keeping the beer fresh longer. They’re even cheaper to recycle. Any “but it’s a can” stigma evaporates with the first taste of the emphatically nonmainstream taste.
[That last paragraph was stolen unapologetically from this article.]
Be forewarned – there will be a craft beer in a can Beer Run sometime this year. So if you have a favorite, please let me know.
Dale’s Pale Ale may well be the first craft beer to be widely distributed in cans, dating back to 2002. It pours a slightly cloudy copper color, with a medium head. It is definitely a hoppy beer, clocking in at 65 IBU’s (which, by comparison, is twice as hoppy as a Sam Adams Boston Lager). It’s a good choice for those of you who like a strong, hoppy ale.
It is a Huge Voluminously Hopped Mutha of a Pale Ale (their words, not mine)
Oskar Blues also operates a few restaurants and music venues in and around Longmont, CO, which is northeast of Boulder).
A couple other Oskar Blues beers I would recommend are Old Chub, an 8% Scotch ale; and Mama's Little Yella Pils. I'll let ya guess what style that one is.
ReplyDeleteOne of the new DC micros will package their beer only in cans: DC Brau, which supposedly started brewing in December. So their beers should be available soon if not already.
Cheers!
HHH