OK, so we use the term “Fall” loosely in North Texas. That being said, there is a time when we stop hiding inside during the day and venture outdoors more often, and that time is now. It’s also a time when breweries follow suit with heavier styles that might not sit so well when it’s 110 degrees outside.
This is an overview of the beers that I think fit with Autumn. This is just my take, but if it nudges you to try something new then I’ve done my job.
It’s no secret that Panther Island Brewing founder and head brewer Ryan McWhorter has a sweet tooth. His brewery’s newest release, Sweet Fang, is something the chocolate-craving six-year-old in all of us can relate to.
Sweet Fang, he said, has a “seasonal sweet stout base with natural peanut butter and chocolate flavoring added. I also added cocoa nibs in secondary. As you’re pouring Sweet Fang, you can immediately smell the peanut butter on the nose with hints of dark chocolate. As you’re drinking it the cocoa nib flavor takes over with a nice creamy mouth feel due to the 150 pounds of lactose I used in the brew. The roasted cocoa nibs give the beer a nice dark chocolate flavor that pairs perfectly with the peanut butter.
“I like to describe it as drinking a dark chocolate peanut butter candy,” he continued. “I kept it at a low ABV so you could drink a few pints of it in a sitting and not get the alcohol bite of a higher ABV beer. You for sure want to get this in your mouth. Once this batch is out, it’s out until next year.”
(Update: I was able to grab a pint of this peanutty brew at the Weekly’s monthly cocktail contest, Stir. Fixture Kitchen and Social Lounge, the Near Southside restaurant hosting the event, wisely put it on tap, along with several other local brews. Sweet Fang is definitely a different beer. It had an easy drinkability, and I was amazed how prominent but not overbearing the peanut profile was.)
One of Martin House Brewing Co’s first hits was the Pretzel Stout, a beer brewed with, you guessed it, pretzels. The robust stout has just the perfect salty bite to capture the nuances of America’s favorite twisted baked good. Ah, and then there’s the Rahr & Sons Brewing Company Winter Warmer. You’ll have to wait a few more weeks for its November release, but this dark ale leaves little to be desired with dark chocolate/fruit notes and thick body.
Chimera Brewing Company will soon be selling bottles and pints of a Russian Imperial Stout. You may have noticed some new additions to its brewpub recently. Those barrels aren’t just for decor. My first entree into the funky world of The Collective Brewing Project began with the Moustache Rye’d, a lightly toasted porter with more than a touch of rye spice.
Bearded Eel Brewing’s The Stout will make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside on a chilly day with notes of “toasted pine, a subtle fruitiness, and slight bitterness. This stout is boozy and smooth in all the right ways,” says its website. Shannon Brewing Company keeps its Chocolate Stout on the shelves year round. The milk stout gets a special fire-brewed treatment that lightly caramelizes the sugars in the brewing process.
Revolver Brewing may be best known for the popular Blood and Honey, but the seasonal Mother’s Little Fracker is not to be missed. The stout is big, bold, and oh-so-boozy. Up in Justin, Rabbit Hole Brewing’s Dark Snark takes everything popular about stouts and adds a light, fruity tinge of strawberry.
There aren’t any hard rules about when to drink this or that style of beer, but there’s no rule saying you can’t wear a parka in July either. The fact is, some brews lend themselves to being more seasonal than others, and that’s part of the fun of drinking craft beer.
On Tap this week:
Pride of Southside Homebrew Invitation presented by SiNaCa Studios.
This event is still two weeks away but deserves advance notice. On Oct 30, you can watch many of Fort Worth’s finest homebrewers square off to a panel of BJCP-certified judges. There’s a lot at stake. The winning beer will be brewed at Chimera Brewing Company and entered into the 2016 Great American Beer Festival pro-am category. Additionally, Chimera Brewing Company, Martin House Brewing Company, and The Collective Brewing Project will offer complimentary beer samples for all attendees 21 and older. Tickets are available here. For more information, click here.
Fort Worth Weekly events.
Our Homebrew Throwdown lineup just keeps on growing. The November 15 Q&A panel at Panther Island Pavilion recently added Macy Moore with HopFusion Ale Works and BJ Burnett with Bearded Eel Brewery. Add that to our judging lineup of brewers from The Collective Brewing Project, Martin House Brewery, Panther Island Brewing, Rahr & Sons Brewing, and Revolver Brewing and we have an enviable lineup movers and shakers in the craft beer world. And they’re all there shake hands and clink a pint with craft beer fans just like yourselves. We’ll have live music, food trucks, and a beer vendors to make sure you have no excuse for leaving early. The fun doesn’t end at 6pm. The Bearded Lady is hosting Homebrew Throwdown revelers for a not-to-be-missed after party. Seriously, don’t miss it.
