Chip the Beer Guy Rock 107 – Jim Koch

It’s always fun to hear Jim Koch join the guys (and Ruthie) on the show.  Jim brings a relaxed and humorous confidence to the beer world that’s just plain fun to listen to.  One of my favorite all-time quotes of Jim’s came when he was asked how he liked being a giant in the micro-brewing industry, to which he replied that it was like being “the tallest midget.”

Jim brought with him some exciting news about a Sam Adams Co-brew and sent the guys a few beers to taste to…

The guys first tasted the new Beer Lovers Choice winner Samuel Adams Noble Pils.  This is also the new seasonal for Sam Adams replacing their White Ale as the spring seasonal.  Noble Pils was a beer Jim first brewed about three years ago for his daughters wedding, and sad to say NOT the beer I voted for in this years BLC voting.  Those that were there “sampling” with me will also admit I voted in my head before I even tasted.  Yes I love IPAs and no I typically don’t like Lagers.  As Pilsner style beers go, this one was tasty and did have a great hop character.

The second beer the guys tasted was a gift sent to Chip from the Sam Adams Barrel Room Collection.  This is a limited release, not currently in the NEPA market called Stony Brook Red.  Look for this 10% red in Mass, Michigan and Colorado currently, with a new batch large enough to hit our market in about 12 months.

The big news of the day was the announcement of the Samuel Adams / Weihenstephan co-brew.  This is not only exciting news for beer lovers, but as Jim said a wonderful nod from the oldest brewery in the world (1044) to the new world of brewing.  It will be an interesting beer to taste given that they are essentially trying to create a beer-style never before made in Germany, while still adhering to the Reinheitsgebot beer purity laws that state they can only use Water, Malt, Hops & Yeast.  Look for an interesting yeast variant in this beer to be the difference.

Thanks to Jim and the guys (and Ruthie) for an entertaining and frighteningly education show.  Imagine that, we somehow learned something at 8AM over a beer.  My mom would be proud.  Cheers!