BeerBorg

With the weather this week, I've missed the different events around town. They are shooting at the main destination (TN Brew Works) tonight and Friday. Apparently a wood and sage beer of some sort is what I'm hearing. They shot at Yazoo today, Hops and Crafts Tuesday, and also at Blackstone yesterday. I would assume that their "top 5" will also include Jackalope, but I'm unsure which other brewery will round it out. I hope it will be Black Abbey, but I fear it will be Fat Bottom (which is currently far from the top 5, but has great marketing and logos. They have finally hired some good brewers, so I suppose there's hope for them yet.). Neil says there has been much consternation from the Brew Dogs crew about the horrible weather and how it's thrown their schedule off.

Some pics from the Blackstone shoot. Some of you should recognize the setting...




Of course, Blackstone St. Charles Porter is the most decorated brown porter in GABF history, and one of the most decorated beers of any style.

So which brewery are they doing the beer with? TN Brew Works.
If you can go to the 'tasting' night, you should go if for no other reason than to see how cheesy it can get. But, if you can talk to one or both of the guys, do so. You'll see one is nice and the other just tries to walk off as soon as possible. Unless of course, you are a chick.

The tasting night is tomorrow night, and we're under a winter storm warning (again) for more snow during the day, and more ice forming during the time of the shooting. So I'll be home nice and toasty and will watch the episode when it comes out...

This has been some crazy winter for much of the country. Really sorry you can't get to see it being filmed. Not THE most exciting thing in the world but it's worth it while having a few brews.......and seeing the process.

Too bad you haven't been able to attend any of the events. Do you know when they actually "brewed" this beer? We all know that it is virtually impossible to brew something up Tuesday and serve it Friday.

TN Brew Works has been posting photos of the main shoot today...


The Brew Dogs with Laura, the head brewer at TN Brew Works



I really wish we had had time to go over to their facility. They have some super cool equipment...




This is Aegir Brew System with a Meura Micro Mash Filter, which they use instead of a lauter tun. Here's a nice writeup on that fancy piece of equipment. It is the centerpiece to their Aegir brew system, which also includes "a grain processing cell consisting of a grain hopper on load cells, hammermill, grist case and conveyor system, a mash tun with programmable grist hydration, direct steam injection and bottom agitation, a wort kettle with internal or external calandria and over-boil shutoff, and a whirlpool with trub buster and post-whirlpool wort aeration." Pretty automated stuff (similar to Blackstone in that regard). The joke at some of the other breweries is that the Brew Dogs picked TN Brew Works because they could do the brew day from their iPhone and not have to hang out in the brewery (some think it's maybe too automated... I'm assuming they say the same about Blackstone).

Chicken!

How did they miss the Gathering of the Borg?

By the way, when you guys met up there, did anyone say: "There can be only one!" ?

Swen do you know if the B S Brown Porter is available in Virginia? I'd love to give that beer a try it must be incredible.

Though they are the second biggest brewery in TN, Blackstone beers are only currently available locally.