Dieu Du Ciel Visits 508 Gastrobrewery

Dieu Du Ciel has planned a busy visit to NYC this week, starting with a Canadiens game in Newark last night (which could have ended more satisfyingly), directly followed by making an impromptu visit to Chris Cuzme at 508 GastroBrewery, where he was serving up his Hamber (smoked amber), a deliciously sour Berliner Weisse, a tasty gentle Wit, and a hearty Black IPA.

Berliner Weisse, Dark IPA, and on the far right, Wit.

On the official DDC itinerary:

Wednesday, April 24, 2013, Blind Tiger:
  • Grande Noirceur - imperial stout, 9%
  • Fortunella - kumquat ipa, 7.2% 
  • Pionnière - imperial black ipa, 9.5%
  • Chaman - imperial pale ale, 9%
  • Basse Messe - kölsch, 5%
  • Péché Mortel - imperial coffee stout, 9.5%
  • Péché Mortel Bourbon - aged in bourbon barrels, 9.5%
  • Solstice d'Hiver - barleywine, 10.2% 
  • Neuvaine - amber ale brewed with and wormwood and fennel, 8%
  • Pénombre - black ipa, 6.5%  
  • Mea Culpa - india cream ale, 6%
  • Purgatoire - porter aged in red wine barrels; collaboration w/ Trou du Diable, 10.2%
  • Isseki Nicho - imperial dark saison, 9.5%
  • Cornemuse - scotch ale, 8%
  • Equinoxe du Printemps cask - scotch ale with maple syrup, 8%
  • Grande Noirceur cask

Thursday April 25, 2013, Spuyten Duyvil:
  • Morality - American-style IPA, 7.2%  
  • Péché Mortel 11th Anniversary - imperial coffee stout brewed with special coffees, 9.5%  
  • Symbiose 4 - sour beer aged in oak barrels, 6%  
  • Solstice d'Hiver Bourbon - barleywine aged in bourbon barrels, 10.2%  
  • Revenante - smoked porter, 6%
  • Wallonade - Belgian blonde, 4.2%

Those are two very impressive lists of beers! You won't even find such an amazing tap list of Dieu Du Ciel beers in Montréal -- don't miss this very special opportunity!

Wandering Star Brewery

WFMU's Beer Hear! Wandering Star podcast

The podcast is also presented in three shorter sections, linked below.

Last week, we were able to catch up with two-thirds of Massachusetts' Wandering Star Craft Brewery at a tasting event that they did at Idle Hands Bar. Head brewer Chris Post and NYC sales and events guru Chris Cuzme hung out with us in the upstairs hallway to discuss beer. Sadly, Alex Hall, the inspiration for the name of their Raindrop Pale Ale was feeling under the weather but we'll catch up with him for another Beer Hear! episode to talk about his mission to introduce proper cask ale to New York.

Wandering Star, located in Pittsfield in Western Massachusetts, is a 15 barrel brewery which started production this year although they were ready much earlier. Thanks to a proposed change in the Farmer Brewer license category, they avoided having to pay $4500 a year for a manufacturing license, a significantly heftier sum than the $110 that "tiny farm breweries" like Sam Adams and Harpoon pay even though Wandering Star grows some of their own hops and contract for some locally grown barley malted at local maltsters, Valley Malt.

[podcast - How did Wandering Start start?]

[podcast - Why the Berkshires; Valley Malting; Farmer Brewers; compare to Sam Adams.]

[podcast - Alex Hall; real ale; types of Wandering Star beers brewed.]

Chris & Chris toast with 2 Wandering Star beers. Cheers!

Juren, the man who took all the photos above.

Juren in action!

NYC Craft Beer Week 2011

NYC Craft Beer Week 2011 podcast
New York City Craft Beer Week 2011 took place all over New York (well, Manhattan and Brooklyn, primarily, though also Queens and the Bronx -- sorry S.I.! Next year?). It ran from Sept. 16th to the 25th, with possibly the biggest and best event, the Brewers' Choice, taking place at City Winery on Thursday Sept. 22. It was there where we caught up with Josh Schafner, the Director of New York Craft Beer Week, who told us of the event's founding, it's incredible growth and it's bright future.

S'Cuzme while I toast this guy!

The Hef of Craft Beer, Jimmy.

Craft Beer Week NYC Organizer Josh (right).

Josh Schafner (left).

Check subsequent blog posts for more on New York City Craft Beer Week 2011 and the brewers who we managed to interview!

From behind the Dieu Du Ciel table.

How does that Mike Lovulo do it?!?

Patrick of Smuttynose in the foreground of a big crowd.

B.R. works the DDC table, next to Sixpiont.

Mke and Maia exchange shocked glances.

We wear black.

All you can eat oysters? I ate all that I could!!!