Mayflower Brewing Company, Plymouth, MA

I've decided to do an occasional blog post that focuses on one particular American brewery at a time.  One reason for doing this is simply that I enjoy doing this.  It's an opportunity .... okay I admit it more like an excuse .... to try as many of the range of beers of one particular brewery that I can get my hands on.  It's not possible for me to do this in one sitting because many of these breweries will have at least 1/2 dozen beers and some of them are very strong.  I think the timing is good because I've recently gotten into discussions online and in person with folks about how American brewing really gets a bad rap because of it's long black hole period from post prohibition up until the craft beer explosion in the last couple of decades.  The truth of the matter is that the American brewing industry has seen a massive explosion of number of breweries, variety, and quality in the last 20 years or so that I think might be unprecendented in the history of beer brewing.  I think this fact sometimes goes unnoticed by many people that still identify American beer as cheap industrial lager like Budweiser, Miller, etc.

Okay so here goes with blog Post #1 in this series.  I figured I'd start local with a set of beers that I drink from time to time and that is Mayflower Brewing Company based in Plymouth, Massachusetts.  Mayflower is only about a 30 minute drive from my home and when you first drive up to it you would think it was just an office building but they do indeed brew their own beers and have a bottling line and like a lot of small breweries in Mass. they distribute the beer themselves thus circumventing the archaic and unhelpful distribution system that is in place in this state. 

I think most microbreweries kind of have a certain character or identity to them.  In other words, what is this particular brewery trying to accomplish with it's products?  What styles are they focusing on and why?  Mayflower is kind of a no-brainer.  They are for the most part brewing classic english style beers and being that Plymouth is one of the original British American colonies I think that creates a nice synergy that makes a lot of sense considering the history of the town they reside in.  Also the fact that the town of Plymouth itself definately has an English feel to it.  On the website, the founder and president of Mayflower Brewing claims to be a descendant of John Alden.  I'm sure he wouldn't make that claim if it weren't true since the people of Plymouth tend to be very persnickety about claiming lineage to original members of the original settlement in Plymouth.  So again there is more synergy. 
Reading between the lines, it seems the founder of the brewery made a fair bit of money and contacts in his previous career as an investment banker and invested that into a nice little brewery in Plymouth.  Nice idea.

So like I said they brew a range of beers that is definately English derived.  Their core/year round beers are a Golden Ale, IPA, Porter, and Pale Ale.  Like most microbreweries they also do seasonal beers such as Imperial Stout, Thanksgiving Ale (Barleywine), Oatmeal Stout, Summer Rye Ale, and Autumn Wheat.  I didn't have access to all the seasonals at the time but I got 3 out of the 5.

I started out with the Golden Ale.  This one might be the sleeper in the whole bunch.  Very refreshing beer with a nice little hop zing (but not too much) to it.

The Pale Ale was just average for the style but no complaints.  I'd certainly order it in a bar if it was available. 

I actually was surprised by the Autumn Wheat.  I didn't expect to like it much because I'm not a huge American Wheat beer fan in the first place but this one was very nice.  It was kind of Altbier-ish (i.e. nice caramel flavor) and I think making it an Autumn seasonal is a good choice not that I'd complain if someone handed me a glass in April.

Their Porter is very solid.  One of the nicest microbrewed Porters I've had.  Very, very drinkable.

The IPA is definately more like a modern American version of the style rather than classic English.  It is quite bitter.  A perfectly fine beer but not one I can drink a lot of.

Now we get to the heavy hitters.  First off the Thanksgiving Ale.  To be honest I don't like it much.  Too much alcohol flavor in it.  Now in fairness, I'm not a fan of Barleywines to begin with and this is very reminscent of a Barleywine (I'm not sure if that was their intention or not).  It is very strong and that fact is not hidden.  It's a tough one for me to get to the bottom of.  I could probably enjoy it more in smaller doses.  I think maybe I need to turn the Pilsner Urquell log around when taking these pictures. 

But now to finish off with the real winner in the whole lot.  The Imperial Stout.  Absolutely, frigging delicous.  One of the best Imperial Stouts I've had.  This one I savored.

So all in all Mayflower brews very solid beers.  I don't love all of them but that's only natural.  A couple are just "meh" and then there are 3 or 4 that I really enjoyed (Golden Ale, Autumn Wheat, Porter, and Imperial Stout).  I think they really focus on doing a solid job with the range of beers that they have. 

So where is the best place to enjoy a pint or three of Mayflower beer.  Well the BBC in Plymouth of course.  They usually have several of their offerings on tap and I think sometimes in the cask as well.  Also it's a beautiful little shoebox size pub right off main street Plymouth with a great selection of beer for the size of the place.  IMO it's the best pub (for beer and atmosphere only) in the BBC chain.

The Altbiers of Dusseldorf

I've said it before and last week only reinforced it for me, Dusseldorf is perhaps the greatest single- night pub crawl in the world for a beer lover.  If I had to spend a week in a city I'd choose Bamberg over Dusseldorf because there is more variety of beer and pubs in and around the city.  However, if I had only one night, you simply can't beat Dusseldorf IMO. 

There are five breweries in Dusseldorf that brew Altbier on site at their own pub.  Four of them are in the Altstadt and the fifth, while it's main brewpub is outside the Altstadt, also has a nice outlet pub in the Altstadt where you can enjoy their beer.

What really struck me on this visit about the five different Altbiers is how each one of them has it's own unique taste.  In other words, they don't taste the same.  They range from the dry and hoppy Uerige to the sweet, caramelly Kuerzer and the others fall in between with Schlussel being the most balanced and my personal favorite of the five.  I'll give a rundown of them (with photos) in order from my least favorite to my most favorite.  I will say though that even my least favorite of the five is an excellent beer and I would gladly sit in that pub right now if it were possible.

So let's start with Brauerei Kuerzer.  This is the new kid on the block.  While the other four have been around a long time this one is only about 2 years old.  The atmosphere is a more modern brewpub style.  You can go in the back and look at the brewing equipment much like many of the modern American brewpubs that we're used to.  They differ also from the others in that they don't serve it from the oak barrel.  Their beer is served from some kind of contraption on the bar that they boast as an endless keg.  It appears to be some kind of glass keg that they continuously pump beer into from the cellar below. 

Kuerzer's beer is the sweetest of the five with a very pronounced caramel flavor.   It's quite drinkable though and I suspect those that don't like hoppy beer would really enjoy it. 

We were joined on the pub crawl by our friend Severin whom I met a few years ago through Ingmar and Severin had given me my first pub tour of Dusseldorf.  I make it a point to get in contact with him when I visit and this was our third Altstadt pub crawl together. 

Here's Dorff and Severin enjoying a laugh and the Kuerzer Alt.

I tried to get a shot of the "bottomless keg" on the bar.  I should have just got up closer to take the phote but I'm too lazy.

The brewing equipment was directly behind the bar area.









So I quite liked Kuerzer and will make sure to stop in again.

The next visit was a pub call Im Goldener Kessel about 1 block away (next street over) in the Altstadt.  Here is the Altstadt outlet for Brauerei Schumacher.  I have never been to the Schumacher brewpub itself mainly because it is not in the Altstadt and would require a long walk or a cab ride to get to.  I really should make the effort someday because I hear it is terrific.  But we stopped at Im Goldener Kessel for two Schumacher beers and just drank them outside.  I was quite pleased that even though it was December would could still stand outside and have beer served to us.  As you can see, Severin and I really enjoy this pub crawl.

The Schumacher beer isn't very hoppy but not as sweet as Kuerzer.  I really need to try the Schumacher more often as I vaguely remember it's taste and we didn't linger there long.

The next one though is unforgettable.  The very dry, hoppy, and amazing Brauerei Uerige.  In addition to this great Altbier it is one of the most beautiful pubs in the world.  There are multiple rooms that make up the pub each one a little different.

We first stood in the open room next to the brewery where they allow smoking.  It did get too smokey for me but the crowd in there was lively and enjoyable and we could watch the Kobe's rolling new barrels of beer past us from time to time.

Afterward we decided to go into the adjacent room to sit around a barrel.  No smoke in this room but it is still one of the more informal rooms where you go to just drink the beer and not worry about having to order food.  I paid this room a visit earlier in the day while Dorff was napping and got a kick out of the listening to the locals having a laugh and teasing the other patrons and staff when they walked by.

Another thing I truly love about the Dusseldorf pub crawl is that not only is the service fantastic (you're almost never without a beer - they just keep bringing them until you tell them to stop) but the Kobes (waiters in blue) are very entertaining.  They are the perfect balance between kick ass service and a don't give a fuck, cheeky, sarcastic attitude.  The one we had at Uerige got Dorff a bit riled up so we took some pictures of Dorff joking around with him while other patrons had a good laugh at the scene.

Uerige is just brilliant in every possible way.  It's my favorite pub worldwide.

However, before we got to Kuerzer, Schumacher, and Uerige we met Severin at my second favorite Altbier brewery Brauerei im Fuchschen.  Not quite as hoppy as Uerige but I think the second most hoppiest.  Also another magnificient pub.  We stood in the entrance hallway in front of the bar and watched the barrel changing process while we had a few.  It was hard to leave this place as the beer is so damn good and the atmosphere is really cozy.

Here is the entrance to Fuchschen.

Then we have the serving area.  Notice the two barrels on the bar.  One of them is in serving position and the other is upright.  The upright barrel is on top of an elevator that is used to lower empty barrels into the cellar and raise up a full one a few minutes later.  This happened twice while we were standing there.

Oh and what a beautiful beer it is.  A perfect Altbier.  Just look at that color.  Believe me, it tastes as good as it looks.









Dorff was happy with Fuchschen:

Now I've saved the best for last.  Or at least I've saved my favorite for last.  Brauerei Schluessel.

The perfect Altbier.  The perfect balance of hoppiness and maltiness in one glass all served in the dead center of the Altstadt in one of the most gorgeous pubs I've ever seen.  My friends I give you Schlussel.  The pictures speak for themselves.

Dorff and I also had a nice dinner at Schlussel.  They have a very traditional, regional menu.  I had a venison goulash with red cabbage that was brilliant.

Yeah you can tell I love Dusseldorf.  I've tried to put it into words the best I can but it's tough to really capture how great it truly is.  It really is one of the worlds greatest beer crawls one can possibly find.  It's worth going out of the way for even if only for one night.  It is so easy to visit all five Altbier pubs in one crawl as you don't have to wait around for service and you don't have to go in and sit down at a table if you just want to step up and try the beer at a counter or even outside.  In other words, they don't make you work for it.  I think it is the most beer lover friendly place I've ever been.  Okay, I've talked myself into it.  I need to go back as soon as possible.

My Beer Sanctuary

It took a couple of years but I got my room back.  So this weekend after clearning some furniture out I moved all of my beer stuff back into the beer sanctuary.  I just got a new camera today so I figured this was a good excuse as any to try it out.

I've got an Altbier and IPA in primary fermentation and a Stout in secondary.  Behind that is the rack and containers of grain.

Then we have the wall of Franconian beer coasters and the table with the glorious Hereford cask.

And of course I have to have the inspirational Franconian beer maps on the wall.

It's a modest beer sanctuary but its off to a good start.  Now I just have to prevent relatives from moving into the basement.

Brauerei Josef Schneider - Essing

Geographically the small town of Essing is one of the strangest I have ever seen.  It's wedged between a tall cliff on one side that looms over the village and a tributary of the Danube river on the other side.  What lies in between the two is a very small village with a spectacular brewery, hotel, restaurant/pub, and beer garden complex called Brauereigasthof Schneider.  The location is in the Altmuehltal Nature Park.  This is a fairly large park region with a very unique landscape set in Northern Bavaria.  I believe some of the park crosses over into Southern Franconia and the rest in Bavaria.  Essing itself is off a small tributary of the mighty Danube river.  Only a few kilometers away is the larger town of Kelheim and the city of Regensburg a little further away.  Kelheim's beer fame comes from the fact that it is home to the Schneider brewery (I don't know if there is a relation to the Schneiders of Essing) that brews the famous Schneider Weisse beers.  Also not far away is the monastary Kloster Weltenburg where they brew a half decent Dunkle bier. 

Anyhow, we stayed for a couple of days at the excellent hotel of Brauereigasthof Schneider. 

As soon as you get out of the car the first thing you notice is the cliff looming over the village.

Like a lot of these places in Germany the check in for the hotel is in the pub/restaurant.  I like the way these people think.  Go straight to the pub first!

The brewery appeared to mostly be in an older building out behind the hotel.

On the wall next to my room was a picture of the brewing process (including decoction mashing) used here. 

Okay now what about the beer?  They produce a Dunkle, Helles, Pilsener, Weissebier, and  Helles Bock.  It was a lovely day so I sat out in the beer garden along the stream and had the Dunkle bier first.  It was a terrific Dunkle.  Nutty, a bit chocolately. and smooth as silk.

Nice views from the beer garden as well.  A view of the stream, the nearby bridge, and the cliff.

Well I think you get the point.  It's a really nice place to drink beer.  Especially beer of this caliber.

After a couple of beers we went for a walk to check out the local scenery.  It's really spectacular.  The stream alongside the brewery is full of rainbow trout.  There's an old castle on top of the cliff.   There's a large and kind of strange bridge on the other end of Essing that runs over the main tributary and lots of walking paths about.

On the second day the weather turned lousy and we spent most of the day inside.  We did venture over to Kloster Weltenburg.  Here's a photo of the girls enjoying their Dunkle bier inside.  Another good beer.  Not quite the caliber of Schneiders though.

Overall I would rate Schneider of Essing the best brewery/hotel/restaurant I've visited in Germany.  Everything including the beer, the service, the food, the rooms were top notch.