Mug Warrior

As some of you may know from my personal blog, I am fermenting wine for the first time. I love the subtle complexities in wine and different approaches wineries take while fermenting and ageing. A Cabernet from winery x, may taste very different from winery y. Beers are the same way, but probably with 10 times the different character and complexities. The type of hops, barley, and yeast really defines the flavor of a beer along with the different methods in brewing. I love them both wine and beer equally, but since this is a beer site, I will talk about some beers that rival wine in both complexity and character and also in alcohol by volume.

While on my way home from work the other day, I decided to stop by one of the greatest beer stores ever and pick up a selection of Tripel Ales and Barley Wines.

Tripel Ales get their name due the addition of triple the amount of malt used during brewing process. Tripels came to life in the early 1930’s when the Trappist Monks in Belgium produced them. Today, Tripels are a popular style within the craft beer circles.

Due to the amount of malt used during brewing, Tripels average an alcohol by volume of around 8.5-9%. This creates a strong stomach warming beer with outstanding character. Traditionally Tripels are bright gold in color, but many new age crafters are producing amber and darker colors.

Barleywines are similar to Tripels, but were created in England in the early 1900’s. Barleywines often are darker and more bitter than Tripels. But in this day and age, the difference between the two are often blurred. Barley wines can reach up to 12% ABV. That is three times the alcohol than what is in Miller or Coors Lite. American Barley Wines usually contain a boatload of hops to produce an extreme bitterness, while English Barley Wines are usually more rounded in flavor between the hops and barley.

My mixed six-pack contained these six brews:

1. Bigfoot Barleywine Style Ale by Sierra Nevada
2. Old Horizontal by Victory Brewing Company
3. Westmalle Trappist Tripel by Brouwerij Westmalle
4. Watou Tripel by Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV
5. Maredsous 10 by Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat NV
6. Duvel by Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat NV

I bought some of the beers on merit and some on instinct, but I never had any of these beers before and I can’t wait to enjoy them.

I will write about my experiences with these strong ales over the weekend or early next week. This will give me something to do while my wine finish up its second stage in fermenting.

I did not know exactly how to categorize this particular passage. There are categories regarding breweries, seasonal, and a general category about the site. How does the common beer drinker, nay the common man in today’s society navigate his way to higher learning about beer? We may provide the words, but we do not provide the squeeze. We do not make available the internet bourgeois, a guide to sample or dabble in these fine goods because our site does not have the category labeled “BEER STORES” or “DISTRIBUTORS.” Well I tell you my fellow serfs; it is my purpose in this particular blog to shed such light on where we may find many of the beers we discuss on Mugwarrior.

Today’s topic…The Foodery. If you are familiar with or frequent The Foodery, this is all old hat to you, so I recommend perusing the rants of Tim and his many Victorious moods. If you know not of the The Foodery, then continue to read. “The Foodery is located at 10^th and Pine street in downtown Philadelphia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for those of you from Mississippi. It is the beer addict’s kingpin. It is where I have discovered and experimented with many of the beers I have tried in my life. It is where I was able to sooth the cravings of my wheat beer desires with the likes of Franziskaner, and Paulaner. It is where I was able to try the many different varieties of Chimay, only to realize the only good one is the expensive one. Sadly, The Foodery’s massive inventory has also fooled me into thinking that all beer is good. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury exhibit A…Aass Beer. Fortunately, a Guinness chaser was all that was needed to soothe the disappointment of a less than tasty beer. (If you have a different or similar experience with the Aass, please reply to this blog.) OK, no more writing, I am now thirsty and thinking about a trip to The Foodery…takers?

Update: We added a distributors category since this one was written.