Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2009 #5

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

Winter is a time of hibernation for many species. The Barley Wine style of beer is not one of these. Winter is the season that this big bear of the beer world comes out to play. Baird Ganko Oyaji (“Stubborn Ol’ Man) Barley Wine 2009 is being released from his cellar cave on Wednesday, February 11 (coinciding with the kick-off of our Baird Big Beer Winter Week at the Nakameguro Taproom).

Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine 2009 (ABV 9%):

Brewed in July 2008 and packaged upon krauesening in October, Ganko Oyaji 2009 sports a grist bill of three base malts (including some wheat), two caramel matls and Japanese red sugar. The starting gravity is high (25.3 P) resulting in a strong beer, yet the apparent attenuation is modest at 67% leaving ample residual body and sweetness. This rich texture and sweet mouthfeel is balanced by 85 IBUs of American hops (Warrior, Columbus, Horizon, Sterling). Aroma hopping was done in the whirlpool but no dry-hopping was conducted in the conditioning tank. Ganko Oyaji is an ideal after-dinner or before bed restorative. It promises to condition nicely in the bottle and keg for months and years to come.

Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine 2009 will be available on draught and in bottle-conditioned (633 ml) form through the fine family of Baird Beer retailers in Japan (including our own Taprooms) beginning Wednesday, February 11. In addition, limited quantities of both bottle- (360 ml) and keg-conditioned Ganko Oyaji 2008 are also available for purchase. The vertical tasting of strong beers of different vintages is both highly enjoyable and extremely instructive.

Baird Big Beer Winter Week 2009 at the Nakameguro Taproom (Wednesday, February 11 – Tuesday, February 17):

Wednesday, February 11 is a Japan national holiday and Baird Big Beer Winter Week 2009 kicks off that day at noon at our Nakameguro Taproom. This annual event is a celebration of strong beers whose power and warmth are best enjoyed in the cold chill of the winter season. Fourteen different Big Beers will be on tap at Nakameguro all week long; they will be matched with ten or so original dishes being brainstormed by Yoko-chan and the Nakameguro Taproom kitchen staff (all priced between 500 and 1500 yen). The Big Beers to be offered are:

-Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine 2009
-Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine 2008
-West Coast Wheat Wine 2009
-West Coast Wheat Wine 2008
-Dark Sky Imperial Stout 2009
-Dark Sky Imperial Stout 2008
-Yabai Yabai! Strong Scotch Ale 2009
-Yabai Yabai! Strong Scotch Ale 2008
-Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA
-Hatsujozo 2008 Double IPA
-Kinshu Domei Double IPA
-BakaYaro! Ale (Original receipe and concept of home-brewer Chris Poel)
-Baird Dubbel
-Double Piston Bock (Dopplebock)

All Big Beers will be served in half-pint (750 yen) and taster (400 yen) sizes only. Taster Cards (including punches for all fourteen beers) will be sold for 5,000 yen (600 yen discount from the a la carte purchase price). Taster Cards are valid for the duration of the event week but not thereafter. Please plan on joining us in Nakameguro for a fantastic Big Beer Winter Week!

Cheers,
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2009 #4

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

Today marks the 8th annual release of the first fruited ale ever brewed at Baird Beer: The Carpenter’s Mikan Ale.

The Carpenter’s Mikan Ale 2009 (ABV 6.7%):

The mikans used in this brew are fresh, succulent, and local — harvested on the Heda land and by the hand of our carpenter friend, Nagakura-san. The Baird brewers hand-process the harvested mikans, shaving off the outer skin of the peel and pressing the juice. Both peel shavings and juice are added to the brew at different stages of production. The mikans serve to add depth and complexity to an already sumptious ale; their role is to complement, not dominate.

In addition to mikans, the 2009 Carpenter’s Mikan Ale incorporates a grain bill including Maris Otter pale ale malt, wheat malt, unmalted wheat and two types of Japanese sugar (sudakito and akato). The hopping schedule features cirtrusy Centennial and Cascade varieties including dry-hop additions to the conditioning tank. The combination of mikans and citrus hops provide an exquisitely complex yet balanced fruit character. The wonderful aromatics of this character waft gorgeously from the billowy white head that forms in the glass. Final transport to beer Nirvana comes courtesy of the tight and spritzy natural carbonation that works to keep you tastebuds fresh and alert.

The Carpenter’s Mikan Ale is now pouring from the taps of both of our Taprooms. It also will be available on draught and in bottle-conditioned form (633 ml bottls) at select Baird Beer retailing pubs, restaurants and liquor stores throughout Japan.

Big Beer Winter Week 2009:

Each winter we use our Taproom as a venue for a week-long celebration of strong and fortifying ales and lagers. We call this celebration Big Beer Winter Week. During this week, a collection of strong ales and lagers will be served simultaneously and paired with cuisine designed to complement these robust and warming libations. This year, we will hold this event at each Taproom during successive weeks. Specific dates are listed below:

*Nakameguro Taproom Big Beer Winter Week 2009 (Wednesday, February 11 – Tuesday, February 17)
*Fishmarket Taproom Big Beer Winter Week 2009 (Wednesday, February 18 – Monday, February 23)

Please mark your calendar and plan to join us for some wonderful winter revelry. Specific details regarding big beers to be served will be forthcoming shortly in an upcoming bulletin.

Cheers,
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2009 #3

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

Thanks to all of you who took part in the IPA Festival held at our two Taprooms. Even though climax was reached and our hop orgy is over, the IPA fun continues with today’s general release of Brewmaster’s Nightmare Rye IPA.

Brewmaster’s Nightmare Rye IPA (ABV 6.5%):

Malted rye is notoriously difficult to handle in the brewhouse. When mashing it produces a glutinous, gummy wort that is difficult to lauter. Should the brewmaster fail to set his mash bed just right or tick up the lauter speed a notch too high, a day infinitely long and arduous awaits. However, when processed deftly the malted rye lends a spicy, peppery character to the wort flavor that is supremely interesting. Combined with the spicy, fruity and herbal character of well-selected hops, the flavor reward is sublime.

Brewmaster’s Nightmare Rye IPA combines this rye-accented malt mash with gobs and gobs of resinous and spicy American hops (Warrior, Simcoe, Columbus and Santiam) producing a veritable fireworks show of flavor in the mouth. If hoppy, complex brews are your thing, this is your baby!

Draught and bottle (633 ml) versions will be available at fine Baird Beer retailing establishments throughout Japan (including the Fishmarket and Nakameguro Taprooms).

Cheers,
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2009 #2

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

During this winter period of short days and long nights have you been wondering about the 2009 release of Dark Sky Imperial Stout? Wonder no longer — Dark Sky will be pouring from the taps of fine pubs and restaurants throughout Japan beginning Wednesday, January 21.

*Dark Sky Imperial Stout (ABV 9%):

As the name implies, this is an extremely foreboding brew, pitch black in color, unctuous in body, complex and elusive in flavor, and hoppily aromatic. This granddaddy of Stouts is brewed with eight different malts, Japanese dark sugar and five varieties of hops. If you are a fan of hearty dark ales, Dark Sky Imperial Stout is for you!

In addition to Dark Sky on draught, a limited number of 633 ml bottles (adorned with our new label artwork) will be available for purchase both direct from the brewery estore and through the family of Baird Beer retaililng liquor stores in Japan.

Remainder: The IPA Festival (Ten Days, 10 IPAs) is in progress at our Nakameguro Taproom in Tokyo. The final festival day is Monday, January 26. If you have yet to attend, please make haste.

Cheers,
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2008 #27

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

We will be ushering out 2008 and drinking in 2009 with New Year’s Eve Countdown parties at both the Fishmarket and Nakameguro Taprooms. Event details are listed below.

Fishmarket Taproom Countdown Party (Wednesday, December 31, 5:00 pm start)

*All-you-can-eat Mexican buffet @ 1,000 yen per person (5:00 – 11:00 pm)
*500 yen Baird Beers throughout the evening
*Midnight debut of Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA (complimentary glass to all patrons for 2009 inaugural toast)
*Reservations NOT required

Nakameguro Taproom Countdown Party (Wednesday, December 31, 7:00 pm start)

*All-you-can-eat buffet and All-you-can-drink Baird Beer @ 5,000 yen per person
*Midnight debut of Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA (complimentary glass to all patrons for 2009 inaugural toast)
*Reservations NOT required

At Baird Beer we mark the transition to each new year with the release of a special Double IPA brewed uniquely in celebration of the fresh possibilities represented by the turning of the calendar. We kick off beer year 2009 with the midnight hour release of Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA

Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA (ABV 8.1%):

The wort produced for Hatsujozo 2009 is strong (21.5 Plato) but simple (two primary ingredients: Maris Otter malt and sudakito sugar). The hopping is equally strong (85 IBU) but more complex with four varieties of American hops (Warrior, Columbus, Centennial, Amarillo). Dry-hopping in the conditioning tank takes place with equal amounts of Columbus, Centennial and Amarillo. We kraeusen at packaging with wort from a different IPA in order to achieve secondary fermentation and natural carbonation. If Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA is any indication, the Japan beer enthusiast is in for a fantastic year in 2009.

Hatsujozo 2009 Double IPA will be available on draught beginning January 1 at select Baird Beer retailing pubs and restaurants throughout Japan (including our own Taprooms). A limited number of 633 ml bottles also will be available for purchase at Baird Beer retailing liquor stores in Japan.

Taproom O-shogatsu Business Hours

*Fishmarket Taproom will be closed on January 1 and 2. It will re-open for business on Saturday, January 3 at noon. January 3 and 4 will feature several O-shogatsu dishes (prices ranging from 300 to 600 yen) cooked up by Takanaka Tencho and Sayuri to celebrate the New Year.

*Nakameguro Taproom will be closed on January 1. It will re-open for business on Friday, January 2 at 2:00 pm. Business hours from January 2 – 5 will be 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm before returning to normal on January 6.

Happy New Year!

Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2008 #26

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

The parade of big winter beers continues with the release on Tuesday, December 23 of an annual Baird Strong Ale Series seasonal: Yabai-Yabai! Strong Scotch Ale.

Yabai-Yabai! Strong Scotch Ale (ABV 7.3%):

Scotland, an historically important center of beer brewing, has a cool climate that favors cultivation of the hardy barley plant. Scottish Ales, thus, tend to feature the rich and robust flavor of malted barley in the flavor profile. Moreover, relatively cool ale fermentation temperatures contribute to brews that are not highly attenuated — i.e. they remain rich in residual sugars and thus round and full-bodied. Strong type Scottish Ales often have been considered “a kind of liquid porridge.”

Baird Yabai-Yabai Strong Scotch Ale is, in a word, rich! It is liquid opulence that verges on decadence. The color is a deep mahogany and the head is dense, creamy and tan. The warming effect begins in the nose, with the wafting of soft fruit esters and warm fusel alcohols. As the aroma dovetails into the flavor, notes of molasses, caramel apples, rum cake and maple syrup perform a holiday festival on the palate. Just as a chewy malt sweetness blankets the mouth, it is pealed back by the ethereal pull of a vinous character reminiscent of port or sherry. One hearty pint is enough to take the bite out of the winter chill. Two pints will leave you toastily, and blissfully, warm. Three pints and…. YABAI!

Yabai-Yabai! Strong Scotch Ale will be pouring from the taps of the Fishmarket and Nakameguro Taprooms beginning at noon on the Emperor’s birthday (Tuesday, December 23). This day is a Japan national holiday so plan to come join us for a few pints and some great holiday cuisine. Yabai-Yabai! also will be served on draught at select Baird Beer retailing pubs and restaurants throughout Japan. Bottle versions (633 ml) are available for purchase through the family of Baird Beer retailing liquor stores in Japan and direct from our website estore.

Remainder: Tuesday, December 23 kicks of a three-day Christmas celebration hosted at our Fishmarket Taproom. Pints of Jubilation Ale (both the 2007 and 2008 versions) will be sold for 500 yen and a special Christmas food menu will be offered. Christmas music and DVDs will be played throughout and small gifts offered to the young ones so bring your kids and enjoy a wonderful family outing.

The Nakameguro Taproom is hosting a Christmas Eve celebration on Wednesday, December 24 that includes a special Christmas food menu as well as 500 yen pints for the lonely and forlorn who find themselves visiting solo.

Stop in and enjoy the Christmas revelry with us at one of our two Taproom locations.

Happy Holidays!

Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2008 #24

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

The holiday season is upon us. Jubilation is in the air. Jubilation also is in the glass! Yes, Friday, December 12 marks the 2008 debut of a Baird Beer holiday classic — Jubilation Ale. It also marks the release of a specially festive first-time Baird Beer brewed at the request and with the cooperation of the fine liquor store, Nakaya: Autumn Harvest Blueberry Ale.

(1) Jubilation Ale (ABV 7%):

This is our annually crafted holiday season ale. It’s hallmark flavor stems chiefly from the addition of two special ingredients: (1) fully ripened figs candied in Japanese red sugar and (2) cinnamon twigs culled from a Japanese Nikki tree. A sublimely balanced interplay of sweet and spice results. The ruby red hue and the wafting aroma of Japanese nikki warm the heart and furbish the soul.

This year we are unveiling a newly designed label for our Jubilation Ale that, we think, captures the spirit and flavor of this celebratory ale in a very esthetically pleasing way. (Thanks go to our talented and loyal designer, Ms. Eiko Nishida, for her splendid work). Fifty of these 633 ml bottles will be specially gift-wrapped and available for purchase direct from our brewery. The cost is 1,200 yen and limit one per person. To reserve one of these gift bottles, please contact directly either the Fishmarket or Nakameguro Taprooms. Pickup and payment for your reserved bottle can be made at either Taproom beginning Friday, December 19.

Non-gift wrap bottles (633 ml) are available for purchase through the Baird Beer estore as well as through the fine family of Baird Beer retailing liquor stores in Japan. A limited number of 2007 edition, long-maturation bottles (360 ml) of Jubilation Ale also will be available for purchase through these channels. The flavor comparison between the two years is highly interesting. Draught versions of Jubilation Ale 2008 will be pouring from the taps of Baird Beer retailing pubs and restaurants throughout Japan beginning Friday, December 12 (including at our own Fishmarket and Nakameguro Taprooms).

(2) Autumn Harvest Blueberry Ale (ABV 6%):

What do you get when you combine a passionate Isehara beer-retailing liquor store, fresh Kanagawa prefecture blueberries, and a devoted fruit beer craft brewery? Of course, you get a great idea for an interesting beer. Autumn Harvest Blueberry Ale is the final product of that idea. Brewed exclusively with European base malts and Japanese sugar, lightly hopped with English Fuggles, and dosed with loads of hand-crushed Kanagawa blueberries, Autumn Harvest Blueberry Ale is piquant and effervescent — a fruited beer champagne, if you will.

633 ml bottles of this gorgeous elixir are being sold exclusively through the online estore of liquor shop Nakaya (please visit http://www.craftbeers.jp). Draught versions are available for sampling at three locations: (1) Craft Beer Bar in Yokohama, (2) Nakameguro Taproom in Tokyo and (3) Fishmarket Taproom in Numazu.

Finally, please mark your calendar for upcoming events at the Nakameguro and Fishmarket Taprooms.

Nakameguro Taproom:

*Wednesday, December 24 (hosting a Christmas Eve celebration that includes a special menu and an appeal to all the loveless and forlorn — 500 yen pints for all those who visit by themselves. Christmas Eve in Japan is not just for the love birds!).

*Wednesday, December 31 (hosting a New Year’s Eve countdown party that features all-you-can-drink Baird Beer and an all-you-can-eat light buffet for only 5,000 yen per person. Party begins at 7:00 pm).

Fishmarket Taproom:

*Tuesday (National Holiday) December 23 – Thursday, December 25 (hosting a three-day Christmas celebration that features a special Christmas food menu, a vertical draught tasting of Jubilation Ale 2007 and Jubilation Ale 2008, and 500 yen pint servings of Jubilation Ale for the entire 3 days).

Wednesday, December 31 (hosting a New Year’s Eve countdown party that features our traditional an all-you-can-eat Mexican buffet for only 1,000 yen per person and 500 yen Baird Beer pints. Buffet begins at 5:00 pm and ends at 10:00 pm. 500 yen pints run through the entire evening).

Cheers!
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2008 #24

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

As we move through autumn and approach winter, the beer calendar changes too. The season for stronger, more warming libations has arrived. The brewers at Baird Beer greet this annual northward movement up the hydrometer scale with great anticipation. Most of the Big Beers that will be released during this chilly season were brewed many months ago — during the blossoms of spring and the heat of summer — and have been conditioning and maturing slowly in our cellars. Today (Thursday, November 27) marks the 2008 debut of one such prized brew: West Coast Wheat Wine.

West Coast Wheat Wine 2008 (ABV 9.5%):

Wheat Wine is a beer style born on the U.S. West Coast in the 1980s. It has as its progenitor the English Barely Wine style. A Wheat Wine, generally, is characterized by a massively rich complexity and yet a piquant, almost refreshing effervescence. It is a style representative of the irreverent creativity and unrelenting passion that are the hallmarks of craft brewing on the West Coast of the United States. Baird West Coast Wheat Wine is crafted in annual homage to the skilled brewing artisans and fearless beer entrepreneurs who have pioneered craft brewing on America’s great West Coast!

This 2008 version of West Coast Wheat Wine is higher in starting gravity and thus stronger in alcohol content than ever before. The color is an extraordinarily deep hue of gold; the hop character is boldly West Coast American; the maltiness is lusciously lip-smacking; the finish is the ethereally hot one of alcohol. Overall, there is a piquancy in the depth of flavor that is most uncommon and supremely satisfying.

West Coast Wheat Wine is being served on draught at both of our Taprooms as well as at other Baird Beer retailing pubs and restaurants in Japan. Bottle-conditioned (360 ml) versions are being sold via our brewery website as well as through the fine network of Baird Beer retailing liquor stores in Japan.

Cheers!
Bryan Baird

Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
HOMEPAGE

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Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2008 #23

Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast:

The chill in the autumn air is a very welcome sign to the craft beer enthusisast for it heralds the coming release of a brewery’s most prized beer gems — strong, rich and warming high-gravity ales and lagers of many styles. The Baird Brewery is inaugurating this year’s big beer season with the release of two extremely unique first-time brews: Big Berry Brown Ale & Baird Dubbel.

(1) Big Berry Brown Ale (ABV 8.3%):

This irreverently strong Brown Ale is brewed with six different types of malted grain, Japanese red sugar, and four varieties of hops. It also, thanks to the cooperation of our friends at Serizawa Saketen, is concocted with ample dosages of freshly picked Shizuoka strawberries which lend a wonderfully tart and piquant berry fruit character to the flavor. Glacier & Fuggle dry-hops in the conditioning tank along with krauesening at packaging add complexity of character that is compellingly sublime.

Big Berry Brown Ale is available on draught at both Taprooms as well as at other fine Baird Beer retailing pubs and restaurants in Japan. 633ml bottles also are for available for purchase through the family of Baird Beer retailing liquor shops in Japan as well as through our brewery estore.

(2) Baird Dubbel (ABV 7.7%):

Experimenting with various yeast strains (particularly Belgian ones) is one of the joys in the work of a small-scale craft brewer. In this Baird interpretation of a Belgian-style Dubbel we ferment with a yeast thought to be derived from the wonderful Trappist brewery Rochefort. Five malted grains and two types of sugar (Japanese rock sugar and black sugar) provide richness and depth of flavor without excessive heaviness or fullness. The hopping is light at only 22 IBUs and no aroma additions are made. One-year of maturation in the package contributes a round, almost vinous character. This monkish brew is meant for the contemplative drinker and is best enjoyed on a brisk autumn afternoon or evening.

Baird Dubbel is available on draught only and exclusively at our Fishmarket and Nakameguro Taprooms.

Cheers!

Bryan Baird
Baird Brewing Company
Numazu, Japan
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