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Where we've been:
Since our last publication, we’ve been busy
checking a few things off our list. First, a
momentous day came upon us when the City of
Buffalo Planning Board approved the construction
plans for our brewery and tasting room (read Blogging). Shortly
thereafter, the SLA approved our microbrewer’s
license in a fraction of the time expected.
Though we can't sell our own beer yet,
collaborations have been a lot of fun for the
breweries and consumers of Buffalo. Over the past
9 months there has been an intense game of Risk
being played between members of our brewery,
members of Community
Beer Works, and several
others. When the battle of global domination
was coming to an end, it was decided to brew a
beer to commemorate the occasion. The
Bringer of Nuclear Fire, an imperial milk
stout made with chipotle and ancho peppers was
brewed at CBW with the help of Big Ditch and the
Risk players. The final battle was completed at
Sterling Place Tavern, and the release of The
Bringer of Nuclear Fire was very successful.
Thanks to all that made it out!
As pictured above, Big Ditch has released its
first official piece of glassware. These are
'Prague’ style glasses outfitted with our logo!
The glass is ideal for pilsners and wheat beers,
but pretty much any style will taste great out of
this glass. You can find these glasses as well as
Big Ditch t-shirts for sale at The Kegworks Store [1460
Military Rd, Kenmore NY 14217]
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What's in the fridge?
WHO: St. Bernardus Christmas Ale
WHAT: Quadrupel (Quad) – 10.0%
WHERE: Watou, Belgium
WHY: Aroma of raisin, plum, fig, pear, banana,
molasses, clove, pepper, and coriander with a good
balance and complexity of fruity/spicy esters. The
balanced malt sweetness embodies the aroma of the
holidays. For being 10%, the alcohol is barely
noticeable, only a mild warming sensation comes
across at the finish.
I couldn't help but think this beer would be an
amazing addition to ginger BEER cookies. Simply
substitute the water in your gingerbread cookie
recipe for St. Bernardus Christmas.
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Blogging: It's Repeal Day - And
Buffalo Has Come Full Circle.
Raise a glass and let's celebrate
- 80 years ago, on December 5th, the repeal of
Prohibition was passed with the Twenty-first
Amendment to the Constitution. Fourteen years
earlier, on January 16th, 1919, the Eighteenth
Amendment was ratified enabling national
prohibition. What were they thinking? But - we
have more to celebrate than the repeal of
Prohibition, although if that never happened we
wouldn't be where we are today. Read
More
What's brewing?
Many of our brewing days are currently spent
making the final tweaks to beers we expect to brew
upon opening.
As of late we’ve been working on our 'Glacier
IPA.' As we’ve mentioned in the past,
some of the most desirable hops are at a premium
and pretty hard to find. So, we’ve been
experimenting with hop varieties in order to
optimize what’s available into something that
tastes wonderful. We intend this IPA to be
delightfully citrus and tropical with a
complimentary bitterness that will leave you
asking for another.
We’ve also been finalizing our Cinnamon Apple
Ale, which we expect to be our fall seasonal. This
fine liquid is infused with local apple cider,
cinnamon, allspice, oatmeal, and brown sugar. This
will be a perfect drink to enjoy as the autumn
leaves change.
Even in the dead of winter, we are already
thinking of the summer sun kissing our skin. This
thought process is not as uncommon as you may
think. Saisons were traditionally brewed (in the
French speaking part of Belgium known as Wallonia)
in the autumn or winter months, during the slow
time of year, for farm laborers to drink during
the summer months. This beer is dry,
effervescent, fruity, spicy (bordering on
peppery), and just a little bit funky from the
Belgian yeast used. This is a great thirst
quenching beer waiting for you after a long day of
yard work… or just to relax for that matter.
We’ll brew version 2 before the year’s end.
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