Steamworks Colorado Kolsch

Leading up to this month's Session and its theme of German Beer, I'm trying to drink more German styles, instead of my overly hoppy beers that I love so much. Nothing wrong with drinking German styles as there are a lot of very solid ones being made by American Craft Brewers. One of my favorite styles of beer, but one that is rarely made over here is Kolsch. Anytime I make it to Spec's or Central Market I'm on the lookout for a beer that calls itself Kolsch to see how it pairs up to those from Cologne. You can imagine then how happy I was to see a Colorado Kolsch from Durango, Co brewery Steamworks on the shelf.
The Beer: This one weighs in at a 4.5% abv and pouring into a traditional Kolsch glass is a straw yellow colored beer with a nice white head. The nose is yeasty, low on malts and hops. Even in the mouth the yeast and bready character seem to be the focal point over the hops and malt. There isn't a malty sweetness but you do get some pale malt characteristics in the flavor profile. But over all this beer misses some body to it. There is some flavor but its light, nothing substantial to this brew. Good but nothing spectacular and it gets a C+ from me. The folks at BA are a little kinder than I am.

Flying Dog Tire Bite Golden Ale

What better way to celebrate this months Session Theme of German Beer than partaking in a German style beverage. I've had almost everything Flying Dog has to offer, and posted on most of them. This one is a beer I've had before but its the first time I've had the opportunity to do a write up of my thoughts. The Tire Bite is Flying Dog's version of a Kolsch Beer, a beer that I am rather fond of. For this beer instead of using a chalice or pint glass I used the traditional Kolsch style glass.
The Beer: Weighs in at 5.0% just right for a Kolsch and pours a golden straw color with a rather thin stark white head. Lots of tiny bubbles evident, like a fine champagne. The nose is yeasty and bready. There is a lot of carbonation in the mouth, a good yeasty taste with a bit of hoppy bitterness. A solid if not spectacular example of the Kolsch Style. I still say Saint Arnold's Lawnmower is the best American example I've had. This one still gets a B- from me. Here's what the folks at BA had to say.

Saint Arnold's Lawnmower Ale

I am on a quest of late to find a good session beer. A beer that one can drink a couple in a sitting and not feel completely wasted. Its hard to do that sometimes with craft beer as everyone seems to be moving towards Extreme. Extreme Hops, Extreme flavors and extreme alcohol. A week or so ago I picked up a six pack of the incredible Victory Pils. This week its a six pack of the local Saint Arnold's Lawnmower Ale.
The Beer: The beer is Kolsch Style, so that obviously got me excited as I feel a bit of an expert on the style since my recent trip to the land of all things Kolsch. Having gone to a few of the wonerful Saturday tours at Saint Arnolds I have quite a few of their tasting glasses which are basically Kolsch style glasses, so thats what I poured this beer into. This version weighs in at 4.9% slightly higher than the typical Kolsch which is usually closer to the 4.5 mark. The beer poured a pale golden straw color capped by a typical thick white head. Plenty of tiny champagne bubbles rising to the top. So far so good with Kolsch Comparisons. Sweet malt and floural hops on the nsoe. The mouth was full and bubbly, more sweet malts being the predominant flavor with a nice crips hop bite from the Hallertauer variety used. If I could compare it to anything I had in Cologne it would be Pfaffen. A bit sweeter than the typical Kolsch but still a very fine example. Here's what the folks at BA had to say.

The Weekend Kolsch Run

This weekend as I was out among the masses (and MASSES) of people dong shopping (yes Christmas shopping is just as crazy over here) I stopped by a small Italian Pizzeria for some lunch and a Kolsch. The pizza was thick crust of tomatoes, mozzarella, olives, and peperoni. The Kolsch was Sion. The Sion was poured into the 0.3L glass, pale gold (not the pale sickly yellow of American Industrial lagers) capped by a half inch thick FOAMY white head. The nose was full of green grass, a little earthy, finished out by the smell of pale malts. Plenty of carbonation as copious amounts of tiny little bubbles floated their way up the glass. In the mouth there was plenty of carbonation to help cut through the acidity of the tomatoes and fat of the cheese. The flavor profile consisted of a bit of citrus notes, some nice acidity, the smoothness of pale malts, finishing with just a bit of hop bitterness. A very nice Kolsch. One that I would put at the top of the second tier of Kolsch's, with my top tier consisting of Pfaffen and St. Peters at the moment.

Another Weekend another Kolsch

I tend to look forward to my weekends while living here in Cologne. One reason is that of late I have been working an overnight shift for my job (yes its actually NOT beer) and haven't been able to go out to much during the week. So when I am out on the weekend sightseeing, looking at the amazingly old churches, Cathedrals, museums and the like I tend to build up a bit of a thirst. And in Cologne, there's no better way to quench that thirst than a glass (or two) of Kolsch. This weekend I visited one of my favorite's, Paffgen on Friezen Str. Its smaller than some other breweries, and it feels a little homier to me. To have with my Kolsch I ordered a lunch of speck, potatoes, and split green beans. A nice hearty Kolsch fair.
The Kolsch poured an orangish yellow capped with a fairly foamy head. There was more bitterness in the nose than other Kolsch's. Less carbonation, with a smoother aftertaste, a bit citrusy even. As the beer went down in the glass it left a nice sheen of lacing in its wake, very nice. My overall impression of the beer was its smoothness. It partnered well with the starch in the potatoes, and the beans, but didn't have the carbonation for the fat of the speck. A solid if not spectacular Kolsch. One I will have again (and again....)

St. Peter's Kolsch

I have spent a lot of my spare time visiting the numerous Christmas Markets around the town of Cologne. These are small groups of bungalows in various squares (or Platz) around town. One of the nice things about Cologne is that where there's a Platz there is more than likely a pub or Kolsch Brewery near by. So the other day when I had my fill of Christmas markets I decided to head into the near by St. Peters Brewery near Heumartk for a Kolsch and a bit to eat. I wasn't starving, just a little snack so I opted for the Halven Hahn, nice thick German bread with a huge slice of Dutch Cheese. I ordered my Kolsch and it came out in the traditional 0.2l glass. Bright golden with a thick pillowy and foamy head almost over flowing the glass, yet never cascading down the side. Great amounts of tiny little bubbles like a fine champagne. The nose had some nice green and grassy notes with a bit of stone minerality filling it out. The mouth had those same flavors with the greeness of the beer turning into hop bitterness at the end. As the head dissipated it left behind copious amounts of lacing sticking to the side of the glass. The carbonation was excellent and really cut through the fat in the thick slab of cheese. This maybe my second favorite Kolsch that I have enjoyed here, with Pfaffen still in the lead.

Sunday's Quest

I yet again ventured out into the great and wonderful city of Cologne yesterday. As I walked around the beautiful city past the Dom, walking along the Rhine, I began to get a little thirsty (amazing how that happens). So I looked around for the nearest watering hole and found a small cafe along the river serving a brand of Kolsch that I had never had before. So in my state of discovery I decided to have a late lunch and some kolsch. The Kolsch in question was Ganser, which is an outfit that no longer has a brewery in Cologne city proper. It was poured into the 0.3 L not the traditional 0.2L glass. A nice pillowy white head capped the glass. The beer itself was bubbly and a slightly darker shade of yellow than a pils. The nose was green and grassy with maybe a hint of limestone and earth. The first taste was really rich, with pale malts on the forefront a little tartness that mellows out on the aftertaste with just a hint of hop bitterness. Very nice. The carbonation was very good just bordering on too much. For lunch I had a goulash soup (think beef stew in a tomato broth). The combination worked very well together as the carbonation of the Kolsch cut through the acidity of the tomatoes. This is another Kolsch that I will be on the look out at cafe's aroiund Cologne.

Saturday around Cologne

I experienced my first Saturday in Cologne by myself yesterday. So I got up and went to the great Christmas Markets, a sight to see to be sure, but thats not the reason that you are reading this. During my jaunts from market to market I got a little thirsty so I decided to stop by a couple of Kolsch Brewery's for a beer. While I am here, I will try to do most of my tastings from the brewery since that is a great way to experience Kolsch. I will always try to have the beer out of the tap since that is when it is at its freshest. Now on to the tastings:
Pfaffen: I came to the brewery the other day with a bunch of friends so I wanted to go back by self for a tasting as I think this may be my favorite Koslch. I had my beer standing up against the tables outside as the weather was beautiful. The beer poured a light amber, much darker than the traditional golden pilsner color of most Kolsch's. The head was about 1.5 inches and pillowy floating atop the beer with ample lacing throughtout. There was an underlying spiciness on the nose along with the familiar malty sweetness. The mouth was more of the same, with that same spiciness that I can't quite put my finger on, not from hops from something else, it almost reminds me of a winter warmer...almost. Such a great beer.
Fruh: This is one of the most popular breweries in Cologne, and I can see why. FIrst of all its HUGE....multiple stories, rooms off of rooms, when I had some friends meet me there a couple of days back they got lost....the atsmosphere is truly kolsch, with the waiters slinging their carriers around (these round contrapations that carry about 8-16 glassses) I am suprised that no on loses a glass. So I sat down ordered a Halven Hahn (nope note half a hen) which is a Kolsch snakc of cheddar and good German Bread, goes great with the beer. The beer isn't bad either. The beer is the traditional color, with a nice foamy head, but limited lacing. The taste was more traditional as well, with nice malt at the top and slight hoppy bitterness on the aftertaste. Very smooth, very crispy. While nothing special, this is agreat example of a fine Kolsch.

More as I walk around the town.