More new things for you to try! It’s a bevy of brew! As fans of all things Belgian, we’re happy to see the second in the De Proef Brewmaster’s Signature Series, featuring a collaborative brew with Allagash called Les Deux Brasseurs. Les Deux Brasseurs is described as “a golden Belgian ale fermented with multiple strains of Brettanomyces yeast.” [8.5% abv] Bring on the funk! (Aside: The next ‘08 Fluxus looks to be interesting, too: a double-witte spiced with ginger.)

The other we’re really enjoying, personally, is the Hummel Räucherator. This smokey Doppelbock is tops. Not too smokey on the finish—it’s all up front, which is nice. We could dig on one of these sitting around a big bonfire with toasted marshmallows. Weeping Radish has made its debut from the Outer Banks and into the mountains. And the first of the pumpkin beers arrived with DFH Punkin’ Ale.

Tomorrow we’ll see the arrival of Avery’s Ale to the Chief, another big Imperial IPA, as well as The Kaiser, and the long-awaited and extremely limited Sierra Nevada Chico Harvest Wet Hop Ale—only FOUR cases. Get it while you can. Here is a video about the making of Sierra Nevada’s first homegrown hop ale.

AVERY The Kaiser* (Friday)
AVERY Ale to the Chief* (Friday)
DE PROEF Les Deux Brasseurs
DOGFISH HEAD Punkin Ale*
FLYING DOG Dogtoberfest*
HUMMEL Räucherator Smoked Doppelbock*
MAHR’S Christmas Bock* (a little early, no?)
PAULANER Oktoberfest*
ROGUE Double Dead Guy*
SCHMALTZ He’Brew Coney Island Freaktoberfest*
SIERRA NEVADA Chico Estate Harvest Wet Hop* (Friday)
WEEPING RADISH Black Radish Black Lager

Wow, it’s like we willed it to happen. We had just posted that it would be out this week and low and behold, Pisgah Valdez is here! The labels are beautiful. Love the brown. We were close to the strenth, with the brew’s label reading 6.8% abv. (You can guess what we’ll be having tonight for the game.)

Adhering to the strict philosophy of the Pisgah brewers, this mouth watering coffee stout is brewed just miles downstream from America’s most beautiful watershed. Brewed with organic fair-trade coffee beans from Asheville Coffee Roasters, and weighing in at a respectable 6.8%, the aroma of fresh coffee leaps from the glass, and finishes slightly dry. Treat yourself to the finest coffee stout this season.

Respect tradition.
Love beer.
Treat Yourself!

[EDIT: Check out the glassware suggestion in the upper righthand corner. A coffee cup. How cheeky. Thanks, Mike!]

Craggie Brewing Co.:
The last Craggie Brewing tasting was amazing, with a dead-on English-style ESB, a nice stout, and a strawberry porter. Strawberry Porter!! We had seconds on that one. The brewery sent us an update this morning, and they are sure busy, busy, busy:

Brewing two golden ales using US & UK goldings. One will be fermented with Pacific/east coast/ California ale yeast strains and the other will be fermented with a Burton ale yeast strain. Next Thurs, we will be also brewing two more ales—a pre-civil war receipe and another TBA. We also have a Belgian Wit Brite abbey conditioning and a Dunkelweiss fermenting. Plus a lager and a schwartzbier lagering. GOT BEER?

Highland Brewing Co.:
Schenk’s Cream Ale, the recipe of the winner of the Highland Cup, was released at the Highland brewery yesterday. We should be seeing it in-store very soon, as our tasting is next week. Just on the heels of that brew is the new Clawhammer Octoberfest. And, don’t forget the release of Imperial Black Mocha Stout the day after Brewgrass Festival.

Asheville Pizza & Brewing is giving away Brewgrass tickets… with a catch
The Beer Guy has the story, but here are the nuts and bolts of it:

Two tickets will be given to the beer lover who e-mails the brewery with best reason why he or she deserves them. Keep that begging down to just 100 words or less. Going on and on won’t get you anywhere.

And two more tickets will go to the aspiring filmmaker who submits the best You Tube video along the same lines. Those clips must be 60 seconds or less. And each set of winners also gets $50 for cab fare.

First thing to do is click over to www.ashevillepizza.com to get going. The deadline for entries is Sept. 15, so that doesn’t leave much time to get creative here. Please do not e-mail or call me. I can’t help you.

Also, the article notes that APB’s newly-named Old School Pale Ale has gone organic. (And, yes, we do see the irony in that.)

Pisgah Brewing Co.:
Pisgah Brewing Co. is releasing Valdez this week, only this time in big 750ml bottles, like Solstice, Hellbender, etc. Beer spies say that this batch is a tad heftier than the first—maybe a hair over 7.0% abv this time around—and also bottle-conditioned. Asheville Coffee Roasters provided the fair-trade beans again for popular coffee stout. (And, the beer is pronounced Valdez, as in Juan Valdez the coffee roaster, NOT Valdese, like the oil spill.)

There are just two new additions this week, but both are insanely special. First off, from Canada’s Unibroue arrives a beer to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the settlement of Quebec. Another fine Belgian-style Strong Pale Ale, it’s called Quatre-Centième. At just 7.5% abv, it doesn’t go over the top as some of the other Unibroue special editions, but this is a collector’s edition with a beautiful painted label.

Second is the T’misje Grand Reserva. Many of you now this is one our favorite eclectic little Belgian craft breweries. (Perhaps you’ve gotten the Calva Reserva nudge from yours truly.) In fact, Johan Brandt was originally a bee-keeper, and made a single beer called T’mijse beginning in 1995. His Guido, with honey and raisins, is about as close to the original you’ll get these days. Now, with six permanent brews, the Grand Reserva makes its first appearance. Like Remy Martin? It’s “champagne cognac” for those who have never had it. T’mijse Grand Reserve is actually T’mijse Kerst, the dark spiced holiday ale, T’misje Catherine the Great, the imperial stout, aged in Michel Couveur cognac casks. It’s described as having “rich flavours from fruit, woody hints of whisky.” There are only two cases of this rarerity, so get it while you can.

UPDATE: The B. United website appears to be incorrect. The bottle reads Catherine the Great. At any rate, we had one last evening and it’s uber delicious. Really woody. If you’re into that sort of style.

[Image: beernews.org]

We’ve got a bunch of fun stuff in this week that we’re really excited about. Most of which we haven’t seen before and some of which we’ve been pining for since we opened. The one that really excites us is a rareity that we’ve been waiting on for some time—St. Lamvinus, a hybrid beer-wine of sorts, a lambic made with French wine grapes. And Péché Mortel is back. Let’s rejoice, shall we?

ABITA Pecan Harvest* (tomorrow)
CANTILLON Lou Pepe Gueze
CANTILLON St. Lamvinus*
CLIPPER CITY Heavy Seas Hang Ten*
DIEU DU CIEL Péché Mortel
GOUDEN CAROLUS Hopsinjoor
LAGUNITAS We’re Only In It For The Money* (Zappa #4)
NØRREBRO Old Odense* (with Dogfish Head)
NØRREBRO North Bridge Extreme Dbl IPA
NØRREBRO Skärsgaard Porter
NØRREBRO La Granja Espresso Stout

Enjoy! See you at the tasting!