At next year's
SAVOR event I need to attend both evenings as I determined one night is not enough time to visit with all the breweries - particularly if you attend a salon. This year it seems that I only had time for about half the beer selections for a variety of reasons.
First, I spent an hour in the Grape and Grain salon hearing Sam Calagione of
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and Dan Kopman of
Schlafly Brewery describe their respective brewery's ventures combining fermented grain with grape must. I was particularly attracted to Schlafly's two versions of
Lazy Ballerina, both made from a barley and wheat mash plus Chambourcin grape must from
Chandler Hill Vineyards. The difference between the two was that the grape must in the bottled version (which was the one poured to the SAVOR participants) was inoculated with Saison yeast whereas the second was fermented with wild yeast and bacteria - which the brewery determined was 2 types of Brettanomyces and one type of Lactobacillus. They've retained these cultures for future fermentations. That's a wise decision, since that version of the
Lazy Ballerina was fantastic - funky with a little cream. On the Dogfish Head side, Sam poured samples of their
61 (the 60 Minute plus 20% Syrah) and
Chateau Jiahu - a fermented beverage made from orange blossom honey, muscat grape juice, barley malt and hawthorn fruit based on pottery residue found in Jiahu China. Both of these are tasty in their own right.
The second reason I missed many of the breweries is that I was determined to sample all the sour and fruit beers presented. There were close to twenty ranging from Kreiks to Gose to Wild Sours. And straight up,
Upland Brewing Company (Bloomington, IN) poured two of my favorites; the
VinoSynth Red and the
Dantalion. The first is a red and white collaboration with
Oliver Winery a blend of 50% Sour Reserve and 50% Malefactor Flanders-style Red Ale aged on Catawba grapes. The jamminess of the Catawba was balanced with the acids of the red ale to create a fine funky beer. The
Dantalion is based on the Flanders Oud Bruin (Brown) beer style where the brewery's base lampic is aged in white oak barrels for at least eight months. There's plenty going on in this beer with multiple spices, chocolate, and rye characters mingle throughout. Well done.
There were several other sours worth noting. The
NOLA Brewing Lowerline is part of the brewery's Funk series. This beer was inoculated with a
lactos bacteria providing a tart and very creamy flavor. There's not a
lot of complexity here, but the beer is very pleasant. Locally based
Mad Fox Brewing Company was pouring their
Oaked Diabolik which was rich and creamy with a wine like texture. Boulder's
FATE Brewing Company offered a popular
Barrel-Aged Uror Gose, which was aged 10 weeks in used
Arta tequila barrels. The agava flavors blend seamlessly into the tart and salty brew. Nashville's
Yazoo Brewing Company Embrace the Funk Series Deux Rouges is their Flanders ale, fermenting with wild yeasts and souring bacteria, aged in used Merlot barrels. This process imparts some spiciness into the sour and mellows the finish nicely. Milwaukee's
Brenner Brewing Company Maiden Opus was quite solid (as was their
Bacon Bomb Rauchbier). And Austin's
Hops and Grain Brewing Volumes of Funk: Sour PorterCulture is a mash bill close to their Baltic porter recipe and then aged in barrels full of brett and lactos. Pretty tasty.
Two final beers to note are the
Strange Craft Beer Company Cherry Kriek and the
Schlafly Brewery Apricot Berliner Weisse. The Schlafy beer was bright, acidic, with subtle apricots which I could quaff all day. The Kriek is a World Cup Gold Award Winner and showcases a slightly tart and sweet flavor profile. Probably can't drink more than a couple, but it's an interesting beer to sample.
Getting back to missing out sampling all the beers is that that many breweries ran out of supplies way too quickly.
Funky Buddha Brewery was done an hour into the event;
Country Boy Brewing not long afterwards. And there were many other early exists. That was the major disappointment of the evening; I know many of the offerings were limited productions but the
Brewers Association may need to require breweries to pour a beer with more inventory. Otherwise, SAVOR was another extraordinary craft beer tasting. Cheers.
It looks like Lafayette, Louisiana will be our second home for the next 4-5 years and I'm excited about the small craft beverage scene in the city and parish. And these establishments take advantage of the numerous sugarcane fields in Cajun country. The excitement started last year during our first trip and a lengthy visit to Parish Brewing Company in neighboring Broussard. Their flagship beer is Canebrake - a wheat ale augmented with sugarcane syrup from Louisiana sugarcane. The Double IPA Ghost in the Machine is another popular beer but I prefer the Envie -- a juicy pale ale. And a new favorite is the refreshing Parish Pilsner. Yet, a conversation about Parish Brewing must include the SIPS sour series. On our first visit, we returned home with the Sips Pinot Noir Black Current Berliner Weisse (as we did this trip) - a juicy and tart sour ale brewed with what its name suggests. On this trip, we were able to finally sample Sips Chardonnay Apricot Berliner Weisse - a citrus and stone fruit version with a little less tartness and sourness. The future question will be how much I can fit into our return trips without having to utilize their shipping services.
Wildcat Brothers Distillery is the oldest continuously operating distillery in Louisiana and holds post-prohibition license #2. This Lafayette rum distillery leverages the local sugarcane and a proprietary distilling method to create rum in the agricole style directly from fermented sugarcane. Co-owners David Meaux and Tait Martin both trace their ancestry to the original Acadians who were exiled from Eastern Canada and Maine after refusing to pledge loyalty to the Crown in the mid-18th century. Furthermore, Meaux's grandfather purchased 750 acres of land in southern Louisiana that contained forests of long-leaf pine and various hardwoods as well as a mixture of fruit trees. These trees would have a very important role to play in the future of the distillery. Wildcat Brothers' signature spirit is the 40-proof Sweet Crude white rum which is a very clean spirit offering both honey and sugar notes. The Fifolet Spiced Rum is a finely balanced spirit where the baking spices and coffee do not overwhelm and overshadow the base rum. Sip slowly and enjoy. The final rum we tasted was the most interesting; the Noire is an aged rum -- aged in barrels made from the various timber harvested in the Meaux homestead. This "unique combination of charred ancestral hardwoods and Louisiana fruit trees has resulted in an entirely uncommon and delicious flavor profile." And we agree. There's vanilla and tobacco, plus an odd assortment of fruit flavors, providing a Bourbon-ish profile intertwined with the sweet honey of the sugarcane. 
Adopted Dog Brewing is the latest craft beverage establishment to spring up and the only one in the city of Lafayette. Based on the large number of families during our visit word of their recent opening has spread. Unlike the previous two establishments, there's a full kitchen onsite making this an excellent lunch or dinner option. Try the Crispy Brussels appetizer. As for beer, I partook in a flight consisting of the Fleur de Lis Golden Lager, Sunny as Helles Lager, Krayt Dragonfruit Sour, and the Oatmeal as Cream Pie Porter. All were well-made beers, very clean for the first two, slightly sour for the third, and a dessert finale. Looking forward to more meals at Adopted Dog.
