Beer Issues.
This weekend, the annual Utah Stories Beer Issue is scheduled to hit the streets. It's one of several local publications that write and distribute (and make available online) an annual beer-focused issue.
 Over the years, I've collected a handful of these beer guides from SLUG, City Weekly, Utah Stories, and others, and they continue to be valuable reference materials (older issues are fun to thumb through to see how far the Utah beer scene's advanced).
And this year, Utah Stories asked me to contribute to their upcoming beer issue.
For my part, I chatted with three brewers in three different counties, stretching from Park City to Salt Lake to Cedar City. The conversations reinforced how resilient craft breweries are, and how forward-thinking they continue to be.
I encourage you to pick up a copy of Utah Stories when you're visiting your favorite bar or brewery to read the full beer issue. In the meantime, here's a sampling of what I learned during my interviews.
- Policy Kings Brewery: My first stop proved to be a virtual one—visiting with Sara Ridgel, co-owner of Policy Kings Brewery in Cedar City, via telephone. The brewery is expecting to upgrade to a five-barrel system and add a new canning line to allow for greater distribution outside of southern Utah.
- Offset Bier Co.: I traveled up Parleys Canyon to visit a new member of Utah's craft beer community. Offset opened its doors in Park City in September 2021. Conor Brown and Patrick Bourque are determined to do a lot in a little space without cutting corners. Hops shine in many of Offset's offerings, as I learned while enjoying a single-hop Mosaic Double IPA recently.
- Proper Brewing Co.: Sticking closer to home, I enjoyed a lengthy conversation with Becca Cardaccio, sales director, and Jeff Bunk, director of operations, to learn what the future may bring for Proper. First, an outpost in Moab. And second, insight into how strategic shifts—cans, mix packs, etc.—are paying off big for the Salt Lake brewery.
Cheers,
Tim
Currently Drinking: As I write, I'm enjoying a Batch 723 Double IPA from Fisher Brewing. How about you?
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Hello Again & Welcome
If this is your first time receiving this monthly dispatch, welcome! If you're a longtime subscriber, thank you for sticking with it. As always, feel free to drop a line to let me know what you think. Connect with me personally on Untappd.
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🍻 Fisher Brewing: 5-Year Anniversary Beers
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Congratulations to Fisher Brewing Co., which celebrated its five-year anniversary in February. Its opening in 2017 helped to usher in a new wave of craft breweries in Salt Lake and surrounding areas. And Fisher's impact on the beer community—720+ beers!—is outweighed only by its contribution to the community at large.
As part of its anniversary celebration, Fisher released a trio of beers—Batch 723 Double IPA, Fisher Gose, and Mysterious Something—and a limited edition print created by artist April Norby.
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🍻 Level Crossing Brewing: Red Feather Beers
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Longtime readers know that Level Crossing Brewing's Red Sea Rift proved to be my favorite local beer of 2020. Well, in 2021, Level Crossing released a new batch of the Imperial Coffee Stout as part of its Red Feather Limited Series.
I took the opportunity to taste the two side-by-side: The appearances are strikingly similar, both a rich chocolate brown, bordering on black, with a semi-rocky cap of graham cracker foam that lingers.
- For the 2020 version, I picked up aromas of fresh-ground coffee, some toasted rye bread, and hints of dark chocolate. Flavors included cold-roasted coffee, toasted oats, dark chocolate, and subtle chocolate-covered blueberry. The mouthfeel is silky and smooth, slightly creamy. A lingering black coffee bitterness coats the tongue.
- Moving to the 2021 iteration, I perceived a slightly brighter coffee nose and picked up more chocolate. Flavors of rich coffee-infused dark fruits. This one was softer on the palate for me, and not as significant of lingering coffee that 2020 had, but it's still there. The newer version is a little rounder overall, which makes for a slightly different drinking experience, but is still very tasty.
If you pick up a can of the 2021 version (or are hanging on to a 2020 offering), let me know what you think.
Also of note, the latest in Level Crossing's Red Feather series hit the market in February. Timpanator Doppelbock is a smooth, malt-forward (though I picked up more initial bitterness than I was expecting) lager. Notes of toffee and dark cherries.
Red Feather Beers: Level Crossing celebrates its three-year anniversary this month. In 2021, Utah Beer News sat down with Mark Medura, founder, and Chris Detrick, head brewer, to talk about the limited series.
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🎙 Give a Listen: Craft Beer Podcasts
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Brewery Travels: In late 2021, Utah Beer News joined Rob Phillips of RoHa Brewing Project as guests on Episode 12 of the Brewery Travels podcast. You can listen to the episode here.
The Tastemasters: I'm honored to be a guest on an upcoming episode of The Tastemasters podcast. I've enjoyed listening to the podcast evolve over the course of 100+ episodes. Full episode lineup.
Salt City Suds: Following last month's dispatch, I received a note that tuned me in to Salt City Suds. Though only a few months old, the local beer-focused podcast already has a half-dozen episodes under its belt. Here's where you can learn more and listen.
And even though it's on a bit of a hiatus, the Utah Beer News podcast features 70 episodes worth of craft beer conversations
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🍻 Outsider's View: San Diego Beer News Visits SLC
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Late last year, Brandon Hernández, the founder of San Diego Beer News, reached out to me for a little insight into Salt Lake's booming craft beer scene ahead of a planned trip to the Beehive State.
Brandon traveled to Utah, and in February published an article showcasing several Salt Lake-area craft breweries. Give it a read here.
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🍻 Mark Your Calendar: Lagerpalooza 2022
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