What Ale's Thee?

WAT? - Anniversary Edition

Alvey — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 20:01:22 +0000

It’s been roughly a year since we recorded our first show so we thought we’d do a special video podcast to celebrate.

It is the first full length video podcast that we have recorded, it may take a while to download but we think it’s worth the wait!

This is, after all, the only place you will hear about the Twin Cities first ever specialty beer store. What is a specialty beer store? Watch our show and find out….

WAT? #22 - Minnesota State Fair Homebrew Competition

admin — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 04:22:46 +0000

It’s State Fair time in Minnesota and that means that there’s beer to be judged. In this special, video podcast, Alvey talks to Competition Coordinator, Adam Stern about this year’s competition and the judging process.

Also Mentioned

WAT? #21 - Flat Earth Brewing!

Alvey — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 02:33:40 +0000

Flat Earth Brewery is the twin cities newest micro brew. We talk with co-owners Jeff and Cathie about their beers, their history and their future.

-Cathie, Jeff, Philip and Alvey

If you haven’t yet tried any of the Flat Earth Beers we would highly recommend that you go out of your way to do so.

Check out their website for a list of bars and pubs that serve the beer.

Flat Earth Brewing

WAT? #20 - Alaskan Brewing Co. - Spotlight

Alvey — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 03:30:38 +0000

Hey everyone, sorry this is up so late…

Our good mate Sharon Abel took a vacation to Alaska recently and was kind enough to bring us back pretty much everything Alaskan brewing has in bottles!

How could we possibly repay her for this gift?

By having her on the show of course!

- Here’s what she brought us

- Here’s a picture of us enjoying the beer!

Also Mentioned

Liquid Solutions

WAT? #19 - Belgian Golden Ale

Alvey — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 04:20:24 +0000

Do you like your Ales to put hair on your chest?

The Belgians sure do. Even if they only had one glass of this stuff at lunch I’m betting those monks were fond of afternoon naps…

Beers Tasted

Also Mentioned

Tidbits Anyone?

Alvey — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 21:20:29 +0000

After months of scouring both the “Internets” and “The Google” we have seemingly run out of tidbits.

We need your help!

Do you know any beer related history or factoid that is unusual or funny?

Email us! We’d love to hear it! We’ll give you full credit “On Air” if we use your Tidbit and if we get enough of them maybe we’ll even have a prize for the best one.

This Monk has a whole book of ideas! How many can you come up with?

WAT? #18 - New Belgium Brewing Co.

Alvey — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 04:34:34 +0000

Brewers of the famous Fat Tire Amber Ale, New Belgium Brewing Co are distributing to the Twin Cities again after a long hiatus. Philip and I went down to Surdyks last Thursday morning (21st) and lined up with hundreds of other passionate beer drinkers to get our hands on some.

If you’re in the twin cities you now have access to three of the New Belgium brews.

Beers Tasted

-This was the line outside of Surdyks at about 7:45am.

WAT? #17 - Farmhouse What?

Alvey — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 01:30:11 +0000

Farmhouse Ale? Saison?

What has this beer got to do with a farm? What is that smell?

On this episode we try two traditional Saison style beers and one very American take from our local friends at Surly.

Beers Tasted

WAT? #16 - Adam Stern Interview

Alvey — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 04:59:44 +0000

On this episode we chat with home brewer extraordinare, Adam Stern.

Adam has been home brewing for about 12 years and has really taken it to the highest levels both in terms of complexity and quality.

-Philip, Adam and Alvey

He is an all grain brewer who specializes in sour beers and smoked beers with a number award winning brews over the years.

Adam was kind enough to bring six examples of his brews for us to try as we discussed everything to do with homebrewing, beer style classification and tasting that you can imagine. He has a lot to say, so make sure you are seated and have beers close by so you can enjoy this fast paced conversation with a true master brewer.

Also Mentioned

WAT? #15 - Lambic

Alvey — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 01:30:22 +0000

Most brewers would agree that the yeast you use plays a very important role in how your beer tastes. Having said that, you’d want to be very careful with your yeast right?

Nope. Not with Lambics anyway, those crazy Belgians simply expose the Wort to the open air and hope for the best!

Spontaneous Fermentation is what they call it: a barely controlled onslaught of wild airborne yeasts and bacteria.

Needles to say, these beers have some pretty funky flavours.

Beers Tasted

Also Mentioned

WAT? #14 - Sour Beer

Alvey — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 03:46:38 +0000

Sour beer you say? How can that possibly be a good thing?

We assure you it is a very good thing and we highly recommend that you try some!

This is our first Belgian show, although one of the beers we try is not brewed there this style is indicative of the Flanders region in Belgium.

The beers are harder to find, however, if you’re in the twin cities region go see our mate Jim at Blue Max in Burnsville, he knows his stuff and will really take care of you.

Beers Tasted

WAT? #13 - What’s that Cologne You’re Drinking?

Alvey — Sat, 26 May 2007 03:29:37 +0000

Like your summertime lagers with a little more flavor? Then try one of these, it’s actually an Ale but it’s brewed like a lager.

Those crazy Germans and their Reinheitsgebot ….

Beers Tasted

Also Mentioned

WAT? #12 - Imperial IPA

Alvey — Sat, 19 May 2007 04:49:36 +0000

Do you like IPA’s? Do you like hopped up, super alcoholic beer?

Imperial or double IPA’s take the experience to the next level. Taste along with us as we try some palate destroying brews and try to stay sober enough to actually say something worthwhile….

Beers Tasted

WAT? #11 - Bohemian Rhapsody

Alvey — Sat, 12 May 2007 03:48:49 +0000

Pilsners. This is arguably the most popular style of beer in the world. Originally brewed in Czechoslovakia they are famous for their clear golden hues and refreshing taste.

On this show we sample some great examples of a Pilsner and some very bad ones. We also got our hands on an Imperial Pilsner, if you’ve never tried one of these before you’ll be impressed!

Beers Tasted

Also Mentioned

PedalPub
Element 115
Happy Gnome
Sterkens Brewery
Tap Hard
RedOak Boutique Beer Cafe
Beer School - Philip was a guest on Beer School’s “Touring San Francisco Beer” episode.
Oregon Beerfest
City Pages Beer Festival
Craft Beer Radio
Basic Brewing Radio’s tremendous two-hour interview with Maureen Ogle.
Anchor Brewing

WAT? #10 - Wheat Beer

Alvey — Wed, 02 May 2007 05:19:14 +0000

Hefe Weizen? Dunkel Weizen? Weisse Bier?

Like your beers brewed with Wheat? How about yeast in your glass so thick you can’t see through it? Ever thought a beer that tasted like Banana would be refreshing on a hot day?

Try some of these with us and you’ll be convinced all of the above are good things!

Wheat beer is a whole world unto itself, there are so many variations on the theme that it would take multiple shows to cover them all. Tonight we taste and talk about three of them.

Arborfest!

Alvey — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 23:09:13 +0000

If you live here in the Twin Cities and you enjoy beer then you absolutely need to come to this event.

You even get a commemorative glass!

It’s on Friday the 4th from 5:30 to 9pm in St Paul. Click on the link below to get more information.

Arborfest

Hope to see you there!

Alvey

WAT? #9 - Maibocks

Alvey — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 03:32:00 +0000

It’s almost spring in Minnesota! The snow has melted (although it’s still coming down) so it’s time to try some Seasonal Maibocks from your local micro brews.

A Maibock is a heavily alcoholic Lager that was traditionally brewed for springtime festivals in Germany.

They are clear, crisp and fruity with sometimes strong hop flavors. Great for drinking with good mates on a warm spring day.

The three we have chosen to taste on this show are:

Also mentioned:

WAT? #8 - Josh Pepper Interview - Part 2 - Wine vs Beer?

Alvey — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 00:19:37 +0000

This is the second half of our interview with Josh Pepper.

Ever wondered what a total beer geek thinks of wine? In this episode Josh delivers a profoundly powerful case for the complexities of beer.

This would be the show to have all your wine buff friends listen too. At the very least they will have a new level of respect for our drink of choice.

Mentioned in this show:

Craft Beer Radio

WAT? #7 - Josh Pepper Interview - Part 1

Alvey — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 03:17:44 +0000

If you think you have heard somebody talk passionately about beer before, think again!

Josh Pepper is a BJCP Judge who has an extraordinary love of beer and everything to do with the craft beer industry.

He’s got a couple of classes coming up soon! Check out:

Beer’s Mentioned:

Philip, Josh and Alvey

First Listener beer!

Alvey — Sun, 18 Mar 2007 02:29:28 +0000

Someone sent us a beer!

Two gentlemen by the name of Nick and Matt sent us one of their homebrews to try, The Bathtub Cat Stout.

I wasn’t able to learn much about it. Nick or Matt if you read this perhaps you could let us know how you brewed it. Was a cat involved? Maybe even just pieces of cat? Did you strain it through a cat?

All jokes aside, it was quite tasty and we very much appreciate the fact that you gave us one. Cheers!

If anyone else would like to donate us beer either to try ” On Air” or just for our personal pleasure please contact us and we will do what ever we can to help!

Thanks again Matt and Nick!

WAT? #6 - St. Patrick’s Day and the F-Word

Alvey — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 02:24:57 +0000

St Patrick’s day…

The day when everyone acts Irish, right? Well, we certainly do on this recording of What Ales Thee.

Ever wondered what St Patrick acutally did? Or did you ever hear about Isinglass?

Two totally unrelated subjects, however, both are discussed with passion in this episode.

What kind of beer drinker are you?

Alvey — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 04:34:27 +0000

We would like to get to know you….

Are you a total beer geek or not so much? Do you home brew? How long have you been a fan of good beer? Tell us everything, it will make you feel better…

Hopefully it will make us feel better about how much beer we are drinking lately too!

WAT? #5 - Omar Ansari of Surly Brewing

Philip — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 23:12:04 +0000

In this episode of WAT? we have a fun conversation with Omar Ansari, President of Surly Brewing.

-Alvey, Omar and Philip

Surly is a young Minnesota brewery that’s been producing big, full-flavored beers that have been very well received.

During the session we talk about how Surly came to be, the syles of beers that Surly brews, Omar’s persoal beer background and his advice to Miller Lite drinkers.

WAT? #5 is fifty-one minutes of fun so check it out!

WAT? #4 - IPAs

Alvey — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 03:05:50 +0000

Are you a hop-head? Maybe you are, but don’t know it yet?

Listen to this show and you’ll certainly discover the answer to that question. In fact, you might get answers to questions regarding hops that you hadn’t even thought of yet!

The beers for tonight are:

Twisted Thistle - Belhaven Brewery (Scotland)
Surly Furious - Surly Brewing (Brooklyn Center, Minnnesota — 10 mintues north of Minneapolis)
Two Hearted Ale - Bell’s Brewing (Michigan)

We also mention:

WAT? #3 - Porters

Alvey — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:10:22 +0000

Show number three is ready! In this episode we answer questions and talk about some of your feedback all the while sipping on fine porters and generally having a splendid time!

The beers for the show are:

St. Peters Brewery (England) Old Style Porter
Anchor Porter
Bell’s Porter

You should be able to get these beers at any good beer store in the U.S. although Bell’s has a limited distribution. If you’re here in Minneapolis we recommend Surdyks. If you’re in Australia, grab some James Squire Porter.

We’ve really polished the third show and we feel it is the best one to date. Let us know what you think. Alvey

WAT? #2 - Imperial Stouts

Alvey — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:36:26 +0000

Imperial Stouts were developed to impress the Russian Czars. These guys were ruthless, dominating and arrogant, however they had great taste in beer, which goes a long way in my books.

The three beers we are trying in this episode are:

Victory Brewing - “Storm King” Imperial Stout

Great Divide Brewing - “Yeti” Imperial Stout

Avery Brewing - “Czar” Imperial Stout

A complete bastard.

Who we are…

Alvey — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 01:45:57 +0000

Philip Nelson on the left and Jason Alvey. This was taken after we recorded our first show.

Welcome to What Ale’s Thee!

Alvey — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 22:03:20 +0000

If you are at this website it either means one of us has told you to come check it out or, you are interested in learning a little more about beer and trying some new styles.

Either way, we’re glad you’re here! Especially if you fit the later description. Our mission here is to share our deep passion for beer with as many people as possible and try to give you a little info along the way too. There are I’m sure a lot of people out there who know much more about beer than Philip or I, we don’t claim to be experts, we are very excited though to share what we have learned so far and hopefully inspire some of you to try some new beers with us.

We believe in drinking and promoting quality craft beer, that is beer that has been brewed with the finest ingredients by brewers who are as passionate about thier brew as we are about drinking it. We believe in appreciating beer rather than just getting ploughed ( although sometimes a good beer can gain the upper hand!). We believe that drinking beer is a wonderfull passtime that has been with us since the dawn of civilization and should be denied to no one. (As long as you are of legal age in your country of course!)

So download our shows or listen to them on your computer and come along with us as we try every good beer we can get our hands on…

Please give us feedback, we promise we will respond to all emails and we welcome corrections or suggestions.We look forward to hearing from you.

Jason and Philip.

WAT? #1

Philip — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 00:07:02 +0000

We talk at length about our beer drinking history and eventually get around to trying our first beer!