One of the best aspects of beer—aside from, well, everything—is that it has so many diversified styles. Between ales, stouts, lagers, sours, IPAs, barrel-aged, hefeweizens, wheats, ambers, reds—you get the point. The possibilities are endless. But within these broad genres, modern craft brewers have been tweaking recipes and experimenting with subcategories that are both innovative and intensely flavorful. A personal favorite that has been seemingly ubiquitous as of late is the Imperial Stout.
Spirits and Suds
Beer and booze were separated at birth. And I’m not just alluding to the obvious fact that they are both alcoholic. The actual fermentation process responsible for each is quite similar, reliant upon a fermented-sugar liquid, usually barley, to produce the buzz that we love so much. As craft distilling and craft brewing have ascended the ranks of popular culture over the past decade, it was perhaps inevitable that their paths would eventually converge. Nowadays many well-known breweries and distilleries are producing zany Frankenbrews like hopped whiskey, or whit-spiced rhum. And of course there’s always the rising trend of barrel-aged beer. So you have the choice of whiskey that drinks like a beer, or beer that tastes like bourbon. Either way, if you fancy yourself a beer geek or a distillery junky, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with this list of the 5 best blends available today… 5.) New Holland [...]
Age Before Beauty: Barrel Aged Negroni
One of the hottest and most innovative trends in cocktails today is the barrel aged Negroni. The bitter and sometimes sweet finish of this traditional apéritif takes on added complexities during the aging process and in so doing appeals to a broader range of cocktail cognoscenti. Perennially regarded for its intrepid spirit, San Francisco is a city on the forefront of new and exciting elixirs. Take, for example, the gourmet pizza destination Zero Zero (826 Folsom Street). This popular SoMa eatery will be offering a batch of barrel aged Negronis during a festive launch party from 6pm-9pm on March 29th. The event is open to all and for $5 you can take a sip–or many–to discover what the fuss is all about. Over in Nob Hill, at the Stanford Court Hotel, Aurea (905 California Street) is using local favorite No. 209 gin for their own take on the barrel aged sensation. Home to one of [...]
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