Saturday is an incredible day for beer in ATL!

Decatur’s Three Taverns is throwing down for their second birthday, it’s Lincoln Station’s First Anniversary Beer Festival, and the Great Southern Craft Beer Competition Finalist Party goes down at Red Brick! What, what?!

Whaddup!!!

Just getting off the plane from my awesome trip to New York to get interviewed on Heritage Radio’s Beer Sessions here and appearing on WNYCs Craft Beer Jams Web show here, I was welcomed to some killer events going on today in ATL based on the world’s greatest libation, beer. This action-packed, craft sippin’ rain-free day has three standouts:

• the Lincoln’s First Anniversary Beer Festival here (their incredible list is below)
• the Great Southern Craft Beer Competition Finalist Party (which I judged) and People’s Choice Blind Tasting from 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. at Red Brick Brewing here and…
• the beloved Three Taverns is celebrating their second birthday from 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. at their brewery here.

With all the info below including the amazing beer lists, you better make at least one of these unless you are at Wicked Weed's Funk Asheville in North Carolina or somethin'. (I have my new Cruisin’ For A Brewsin’ affiliate and brewing partner Jon Shari covering that for me.) I will hold it down in the A.

Oh, and super happy birthday to my brother Lamont. He couldn’t have picked a better day to kick it with me. Sip safely everyone and celebrate like it’s yours too!

Cheers!

Ale

Three Taverns hits numero dos!

I have been covering Three Taverns since day one, and they have been blessing Georgia with their awesome, award-winning Belgian-inspired beers in bottles, on draft, at the brewery and in growlers resulting in numerous awards and accolades for the past two years. Well below is the GANGSTER beer list they are featuring today including the debut of their first sour—the Inceptus—from their Georgia wild series, and the anniversary beer—Anniversarium II—an 8.5% rye tripel! With more than 16 year-rounds, seasonals, limited releases, two inaugurals and a cask on tap including my fave, the Departed Spirit. I hope I see you there!

 

Here’s the Three Taverns 2nd Year Anniversary Beer List:

Year Round Beers

Single Intent – Belgian-style blonde or single ale, 5%

White Hops – White IPA, 6.5%

A Night In Brussels IPA – Belgian-style American IPA, 7.5%

A Night on Ponce IPA – American IPA, 7.5%

Le Peche Mode – Saison brewed with Georgia peach juice, 6%

Prince of Pilsen – Hoppy pilsner dry hopped with Citra & FF7C’s, 5%

Seasonals

Quasimodo – Belgian-style quadruple

Theophan the Recluse 2014 – Belgian-style Russian Imperial Stout

Limited Release

Departed Spirit – Theophan the Recluse, our Belgian-style Russian Imperial aged for a year in 8-year-old Bourbon barrels

Heavy Bells 2014 – Quasimodo, our Belgian-style quadruple aged in 8 year old Bourbon barrels

Dubbel Shot 2014 – A coffee oatmeal dubbel brewed in collaboration with Thrive Coffee Farmers, 8%

Tripel Reserve 2014 – Tripel fermented on red wine oak and brewed for 2014 Food and Wine Fest, %

A Night in Brett – A Night In Brussels IPA aged on Brett in North Georgia wine barrels from Monteluce Winery, 7.5% abv

Day of the Departed – Departed Spirit infused with Serrano peppers, cinnamon, cocoa nibs and vanilla beans, 10%

Inaugurals

Anniversarium II – A rye tripel brewed in celebration of our 2^nd Anniversary, 8.5%

Inceptus – Our puckering American sour spontaneously fermented during Snowpocalypse   2013 and patiently aged in North Georgia wine barrels, 6% abv

Cask

A Night On Ponce IPA dry hopped in cask with Citra, Galaxy and Amarillo

The story of the Inceptus: Three Taverns’ first Georgia Wild Ale

It was a 2013 winter’s day that brought Atlanta to a standstill, leaving cars parked on highways for days, closing businesses and making national headlines. But with Joran Van Ginderachter, a foot-powered Belgian, as brewmaster, Three Taverns remained open for a scheduled brew day as the entire region took a weather-enforced holiday.

As it happened, Joran walked into the brewery that day with an ear-to-ear grin. The crisp, frigid air, he announced, was clean and healthy. In sum, perfect conditions for open fermentation, a process by which wild yeast is “caught” from the air instead of cultivated.

So the brewers transferred wort into a mini-fermenter and placed it outside, exposed to the air. Over the next few days they observed the signs of spontaneous fermentation and were rewarded with a wild yeast strain that literally arrived with the wind.

After primary fermentation they transferred the wort into an oak barrel for maturing. After many months of aging, in keeping with wild beer traditions of Belgium, the first Three Taverns sour beer emerged. Next, the brewers began replicating the fermentation and maturing process in more North Georgian wine barrels with their unique, wild-caught yeast strain.

The result is Inceptus, (Latin for “beginning”), a wild ale of remarkable complexity. It is both the brewery’s first sour-ale offering, and the “first born” of an emerging series of wild ales—based on the unique yeast strain the crisp winter air delivered us back in 2013.

Lincoln Station’s First Anniversary Beer Festival

2280 Henry Clower Boulevard

Snellville, GA 30078; 3 to 11 p.m.

I truly have love for owners Tiny, Brad and the rest of the Lincoln Crew, and after spending just a few seconds with them, you will too! If you can find a way to Snellville or happen to live out there, DO NOT miss this one! This list is ridiculously dope! The length of time to drink them is pretty damn gracious too! Besides the beer menu below, go here for more info on other attractions. Congrats Lincoln!

• Black Diamond’s “American Sour” – Aged over 4 years
• 2014 Boulevard Brewing Imperial Stout – 11.8% Double Stout (BA Rating: 94 – Outstanding)
• 2014 Clown Shoes “Peace that Money Can’t Buy” – 11.5% Belgian Quad (BA Rating: 86 – Very Good)
• 2013 Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break – 11.5% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 97- World-Class)
• 2014 Great Divide Espresso Yeti –  9.5% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 95 – World-Class)
• 2014 Allagash Interlude – 9.5% Saison/Farmhouse Ale (BA Rating: 94 – Outstanding)
• 2014 Left Hand Wake up Dead Oak Aged – 10.2% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 88 – Very Good)
• 2014 Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Barleywine – 10% American Barleywine
• 2014 New Belgium Lips of Faith “La Terroir” – 7.5% Wild Ale (BA Rating: 96 – World-Class)
• 2014 New Belgium Lips of Faith “Salted Chocolate” – 9% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 87 – Very Good)
• 2014 Prairie Bomb – 14% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 100 – World-Class)
• 2014 New Holland Dragon’s Milk Reserve w/Chili Peppers – 11% American Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 85 – Good)
• 2014 New Belgium Salted Chocolate – 9% American Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 87 – Very Good)
• O’Dempsey’s Your Black Heart Cask w/Northern Brewers Hops – 8% American Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 89 – Very Good)
• 2014 Red Hare Watership Brown – 7.2% American Brown Ale
• 2011 Red Brick Lost Years Strong Ale – 9% American Strong Ale (BA Rating: 85 – Very Good)
• 2014 Sierra Nevada Bigfoot – 9.6% American Barleywine (BA Rating: 98 – World-Class)
• 2014 Stone Xocoveza Mocha Stout – 8.1% American Stout (BA Rating: 90 – Outstanding)
• 2014 Straight to Ale Unobtanium – 11.5% Old Ale (BA Rating: 92 – Outstanding)
• 2014 Straight to Ale Bourbon Barrel Laika – 11.7% Russian Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 95 – World-Class)
• 2014 Terrapin Wake N’Bake – 9.4% American Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 96 – World-Class)
• 2015 Thomas Creek Banana Split – 7.5% Milk/Sweet Stout (BA Rating: 83 – Good)
• 2014 Three Taverns/Wrecking Bar Tripel Reserve – 9% Abbey Tripel
• 2015 Sweetwater 18th Anniversary – 10% Abbey Tripel (BA Rating: 86 – Very Good)
• 2014 Three Taverns Heavy Bells – 11.5% Quadrupel (BA Rating: 93 – Outstanding)
• 2013 Uinta Crooked Line Sea Legs – 8% Baltic Porter (BA Rating: 99 – World-Class)
• 2013 Widmer Brothers 2013 Brrrbon – 9.4% American Strong Ale (BA Rating: 92 – Outstanding)
• 2014 Anderson Valley Huge Arker – 13.5% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 99 – World-Class)
• 2014 Blue Tarp Last Place Stout – 10.6% Imperial Stout
• 2015 Founder’s Devil Dancer – 12% Imperial I.P.A. (BA Rating: 99 – World-Class)
• 2015 Boulevard Chocolate Ale – 9.1% Spiced Ale (BA Rating: 93 – Outstanding)
• 2011 Humboldt Xantus – 11% Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 99 – World-Class)
• 2015 Wrecking Bar Gravel-Pritchard’s Barrel Aged Wee-Heavy Scottish Ale – 8.5% Scotch Ale/Wee Heavy
• 2015 Clown Shoes Mango – 6% Kolsch
• 2015 Jekyll Brewing Chai Tea Cooter Brown – 6% American Brown Ale
• 2015 Jekyll Brewing Rye Black Ale – 5.3% Rye Beer
• 2015 Woodchuck Lazy Hazy Lemon Crazy – 4.2% Summer Session Cider
• 2015 Alpine Brewing Captain Stout – 6% American Stout (BA Rating: 84 – Good)
• 2015 Ballast Point Habanero Sculpin – 7% American I.P.A. (BA Rating: 85 – Very Good)
• 2015 Ballast Point Thai Chili – 4.5% Witbier (BA Rating: 87 – Very Good)
• 2015 Eventide “The Grove” – 5.7% Hefeweizen 
• 2015 Founders Brewing “Blushing Monk” – 9.2% Fruit Beer (BA Rating: 94 – Outstanding)
• 2015 Jailhouse Brewing Conjugal Visit – 6% American Red Ale (BA Rating: 84 – Good)
• 2015 Mother Earth Silent Night – 9% American Imperial Stout (BA Rating: 97 – World-Class)
• 2015 Monday Night Brewing “Spirit Animal” – 5.5% American Wild Ale 
• 2015 Second Self Barrel Aged Red Hop Rye 
• 2015 Straight to Ale Gorillanaught – 9% American Imperial I.P.A. (BA Rating: 88 – Very Good)
• 2015 Terrapin Brewing Maggie’s Blackberry Cobbler – 8.5% Saison/Farmhouse Ale (BA Rating: 84 – Good)
• 2015 Red Brick Brewing “3 Bagger” – 9.5% Tripel (BA Rating: 85 – Very Good)
• 2013 Red Brick Brewing “Vanilla Gorilla” – American Porter (BA Rating: 86 – Very Good)
• 2015 Woodchuck Brewing Raspberry

Representatives from several local breweries will on hand and will be bringing specialty casks of unique and rare creations, including ones from:

O’Dempsey’s Brewing (Atlanta) – “Your Black Heart” brewed with Northern Hops – 8% Russian Imperial Stout

Eventide Brewing (Atlanta) – Plum Kolsch

Terrapin Brewing (Athens) – Hi-5 I.P.A. with Mandarin Oranges and Lacto

Heavy Seas Brewing (Halethorpe, Maryland) – Blackbeard’s Breakfast – 10% American Porter

Oscar Blues Brewing (Lyons, Colorado) – Coffee & Chocolate Ten Fidy – 10.5% Russian Imperial Stout

Great Southern Craft Beer Competition Blind Taste Test at Red Brick!

Local Homebrewers to Square Off in People’s Choice Blind Taste Test from 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. at Red Brick Brewing

I judged this joint along with Publik Draft House Owner Eddie Johnson, Hey Brewtiful!’s Jess, veteran beer scribe Bob Townsend, and Red Brick to pick the finalists from this annual homebrew competition. Now it’s your turn to pick between the last two standing! Congrats Zachary Owen and Alan Pugh for making it through! 

They say: The Great Southern Craft Beer Competition finalist event will take place on Saturday, July 18 from 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. at Red Brick Brewing. The party will feature brewery tours and pours, P.D.H. food pairings, a people’s choice blind taste test of the competition finalists’ beers and more.  

“We’ve made this year’s Great Southern Craft Beer Competition more unique by assigning part of the winner selection process to the Atlanta community,” says P.D.H. co-owner Eddie Johnson. “Anyone who attends the event can take the blind taste test of brews and choose their favorite.”

In addition to the opportunity to participate in the blind taste test, ticketholders will receive a souvenir pint glass and complimentary tours of Red Brick Brewing along with tastings of the brewery’s beers, including Hoplanta American IPA and Laughing Skull American amber ale. Attendees can also sample beer-based food pairings from P.D.H. and play a raffle to win prizes such as Uber gift cards, tickets for Great Southern Beer Tours and more. This year’s finalists are Zachary Owen and Alan Pugh. Tickets are available for $10.00 and can be purchased at the door.  

The competition’s winner will receive the grand prize of $1,000 and distribution at P.D.H. To learn more, visit www.greatsouthernbeercompetition.com or connect at www.twitter.com/BeerDownSouth.