Friday, May 27, 2011

Hydra Ale Tapping at Great River

If you have been following along on my blog you would of read that I was involved in brewing a special beer on Big Brew Day May 7th.  To let everyone be on the same footing here is the back story.  The brewers/owners at Great River Brewing gave a special opportunity to the homebrew club I belong to MUGZ.  Seven of the members would brew a 10 barrel batch of a beer of our choice on their brewhouse and then the beer would be sold at their tasting room.  Once they recouped the expenses the rest of the profits would go to MUGZ.  So the gang of seven decided on making a Blonde/Kolsch beer, naming it "Hydra Ale".  Last night was the tapping party.

My wife and I arrived shortly before 5pm, the official time of the tapping, and there was all ready a good amount of people there for the beer.  I do not believe that there was much accomplished in the QC after 4PM by beer fans, because they were all at Great River.  The crowd continued to grow as the evening went on.

I am very happy to say that the beer did not suck.  It was a pleasant medium straw color with a white head, crystal clear from filtering.  There was a noticeable amount of graininess, probably from the wheat and Munich malts.  Also a light citrus from the hops and the distinct aroma of Pilsner malt.  Taste was a delight as well clean, smooth, with a slight graininess and a light amount of citrus on the tongue.  The beer came out as we had planned it when we decided what we wanted to brew and planned the grist bill.

More than once I heard that this is the perfect gateway beer for those people that are the Bud, Miller and Coors drinkers.  Light enough not to scare them away and enough flavor for them to realize that beer is supposed to have taste.  This beer is currently on tap until it runs out so hurry down to Great River and drink it up.  Please, either let them know at the brewery or let me know how you like it, because we are interested in receiving feedback about the beer.

A big Thank You to the crew at Great River for the opportunity to brew the beer and making a few hobbyist feel like "pro" brewers for a few hours!

QC Beerguy

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