Here are the latest articles from the Beer and Brewing site at BellaOnline.com.

Angel's Share Blueberry Cobbler
Did you know that Blueberry Cobbler got its name from the cobbled streets common to London and early America? This version of Blueberry Cobbler uses Bourbon Barrel-Aged American Strong Ale to round out the fruit sweetness, while leaving a hefty amount for you to enjoy while waiting for oven magic.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art177432.asp

Mystery of Enzymes for Brewing Beer
In my younger years, I found chemistry to be a little creepy. The instructor was a rookie, newly graduated from college and sorely lacking in the social skills needed to engage a roomful of juniors and seniors.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art177404.asp

Keg of Love for Your Beer
What color music are you? Deep forest green? Blazing red? Hazy orange with flecks of yellow? Perhaps a touch of light blue with a little gray mixed in?

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art177344.asp

From the Beer Fox Archives:

Sake - Education in Taste and Culture
Sake aromas are of a different nature; more light, delicate, and exotic. They feathered through the air, coaxing me gently into the Millennium Ballroom.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art61798.asp

Summer Beer & Glassware - Belgian Chic
Our rooftop venue adopts the tone of a Viennese coffee house...joie de vivre, Bohemian kitsch. Elegant, hedonistic, lively...

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art62501.asp

How to Become a Certified Cicerone
Seven months after taking, and not passing, the Certified Cicerone Exam, I was still licking my wounds. Did I have the right stuff to hold the distinction of Certified Cicerone?

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art62348.asp

Breakfast Beer
Old wives tale: Never have beer before noon – that is a true sign that you have developed a drinking problem. Who are these old wives and where did they accumulate their higher education?

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art62268.asp

Beer Fox Tip of the Week

Although you may think you are assessing a beer based completely on aroma and taste, there are other factors that come into play. We all have variations in our perceptions. Some people interpret coriander as soap, for example, while others cannot detect diacetyl or phenol until the concentration is very high.

Some flavors are affected by what we have just tasted previously. When chemicals are mixed together, we may have different results based on what was mixed. In pale ale, DMS may taste like cooked corn juice; but in stout, it may take on the flavors of tomato juice. Be aware of your ability to adapt. Once you have become used to an aroma, you become less aware of it. Be aware of catch phrases that "dress up" or alter your opinion of a beer, or by packaging that is so impressive that it overwhelms your good judgment.

Beer Fox Laugh of the Week

A vampire bat came flapping in from the night covered in fresh blood and parked himself on the roof of the cave to get some sleep.

Pretty soon all the other bats smelled the blood and began hassling him about where he got it. He told them to go away and let him get some sleep. However, the bats persisted until finally he gave in.

"OK, follow me," he said and flew out of the cave with hundreds of bats behind him. Down through a valley they went, across a river and into a forest full of trees. Finally he slowed down and all the other bats excitedly milled around him.

"Now, do you see that tree over there?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, yes!" the bats all screamed in a hungry frenzy.

"Good," said the first bat tiredly, "Because I didn't!"

Beer News:

Bon Beer Voyage is an award winning “beercation” specialty tour company for those who appreciate a good brew. They are now accepting reservations for “Grand Crus to Farmhouse Brews: A Beercation Cruise through Belgium and France," scheduled from October 27 to November 3, 2012. Get your palate ready for the fresh taste of Chimay and a visit to the legendary In de Vrede cafe at Westvleteren, Saint Bernardus and Brewery Van Eecke in Belgium. As if that weren't enough, tour participants will also travel into northern France to savor some authentic French beer and farmhouse ales during tours and tastings at Brasserie Thiriez, Brasserie St. Germain and Brasserie Bailleux. (and others too numerous to mention...)

The beercation is further embellished with guided tours of areas along the French/Belgian border, Bruges, the old historic quarter of Lille, Flanders Fields and Museum, and other cultural and historic sites.

For information on this and other specialty tours, go to: http://www.BonBeer.com or call 1-888-U-GO-BEER (888-846-2337)

Beer Fests and Events:

Great American Beer Festival - October 11-13, 2012 - Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Colorado, USA - the largest ticketed beer festival in the country featuring craft beers from every corner of the USA, Farm to Table Pavilion, Brewer's Studio, Beer and Food Pavilion, You Be the Judge, Silent Disco, the American Homebrewers Association, Bookstore and Book Signings, Support your Local Brewery Pavilion, Craft Beer Guilds, Pro-Am Competition, and the GABF Commercial Competition. Whew!

Public Tickets go on sale August 2, 2012 For info:
http://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/

Craft Beer of the Week Award

Independence Day 2012 Limited Edition - Innis & Gunn, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Style: Oak Aged Scottish Beer - 7.0% ABV

This brilliant copper beauty spills into the glass like flowing silk, as a creamy off-white head rises on the surface. The nose is greeted by sweet caramel, a touch of toffee, vanilla, nuttiness and a spicy hint of salty air. On the palate, the sweetness is tempered by an oak woodiness and vanilla that linger with hop bitterness in the back of the throat. Secondary notes of earth, citrus fruitiness and florals emerge with a gentle, dry heat in the finish.

Cheers!

To participate in free, fun online discussions, this site has a community forum all about Beer and Brewing located here -

http://forums.bellaonline.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=postlist&Board=322

I hope to hear from you sometime soon, either in the forum or in response to this email message. I thrive on your feedback!

Have fun passing this message along to family and friends, because we all love free knowledge!

Carolyn Smagalski, Beer and Brewing Editor
http://Beer.bellaonline.com

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