Internal Brewsletter - September 11th, 2024
General
Employee Provision
A weekly special served at the Pub, the idea of which comes primarily from Block 15 employees.
This week’s Employee Provision will be brought to you by Tivey! Swing by the Pub this Thursday for Chorizo & Potato Flautas!
We’re always looking for more submissions, so send in those ideas!
UPCOMING BEER RELEASES
Releasing Friday 9/13 on draft, Tuesday 9/17 in cans
Sticky Hands: Fresh Hop //
Description: The iconic hop experience ale you all know is slammed with a fresh hop treatment! Using fresh-picked Citra hops from Alluvial Hop Farms, we immediately cryogenically froze the hop cones and shattered them straight to the tank for a fresh hop blast, all within a few hours. // 8.10%
Key Takeaway: For our first time ever releasing a Fresh Hop Sticky Hands, we used our Liquid Nitrogen Freezing and shattering method for this beer to add Fresh Hops in Secondary. USING CITRA HOPS
Tasting Notes: Honeydew • Candied Pineapple • Herbaceous
Format: Draft & Cans
Series: Fresh Hop
Beer Style: Imperial IPA
Imperial IPAs (often called Double IPAs) feature a more robust profile of malts and hops. Significant factors that set Imperial IPAs apart from regular IPAs are their alcohol content and bitterness levels. An Imperial IPA can range from 7.5%-10% ABV. Due to the increased malt load it takes to create the additional alcohol, more hops are required to balance out the beer and keep the malt in check. An Imperial IPA should be intensely hoppy, medium-light to medium-bodied, and have balanced hop characteristics. There can be Imperial versions of virtually any IPA style or sub-style.
UPCOMING Releases
*This list is subject to change based on the production schedule, so please keep that in mind!
Fieldstone Farmhouse // Wild Farmhouse Ale
Series: Cellars
Releases: September 20th
Format: Draft Only
Description: This rustic, traditional Farmhouse Ale was aged in oak and conditioned on juicy peaches and apricots. A beautiful expression of summer harvest, this beer balances bright stone fruit flavors with notes from the heritage Oregon hops used on brew day, offering a crisp, tart finish.
CROWLER/PACKAGE SALE for Sippin’ Sunday
20% off all packaged beer to-go, $5 Crowlers and $10 Growler fills all-day Sunday of a specific beer.
This week’s beer is: Joy
BEER EDUCATION
2:30 pm Tuesdays @ the Tap Room
Join us at the Tap Room every week for an educational session where you can taste and learn about the week’s releases. All are welcome!
4:00 pm every other Thursday @ the Pub
Our next tasting is Thursday, September 19th!
Beer 101: Porters
Written by Garrison Schmidt, Head Brewer
Porters are a very important style of beer, historically. Beginning in London in the early 1700s, they were the first beers to be aged to perfection at the brewery. Before porters, beer was sold young and aged at the pub, leaving the owner to serve it when he or she thought it was fit. It also led to the development of many new types of malts, most importantly Black Patent malt, which was kilned as dark as it could be to lend as much color as possible with as little grain as possible. Porters got their name from their popularity with porters, people who carried the kegs and barrels from the brewery to the pubs of London.
It was the first beer to be widely distributed, reaching the Americas, Baltic region, Northern Europe, and India by 1760. Large London Porter breweries were responsible for many advancements in brewing technology. They pioneered the use of thermometers and hydrometers, two of the most critical instruments in brewing science. Stouts were originally called Stout Porters, and differ from porters due to the flavor, strength, weight, and mouthfeel gained from the use of unmalted roasted barley in the mash.
Many adjuncts can be added to porters and stouts, including but not limited to vanilla, chocolate, candy cap mushrooms, tropical fruit, molasses, spices, oats, and coffee. They can be barrel aged, bottle conditioned, casked, or put on nitro. They are truly some of the most versatile of all styles, and have driven innovation since their inception.
This last week we released Event Horizon, Chocolate Porter. It was brewed to be more dry than other porters, to balance the sweetness of the chocolate that was added post fermentation. Tonotocs Mexican vanilla was also added alongside the chocolate, as it’s a very important piece of the flavor profile associated with chocolate to our palates. Give it a try, and let me know what you think.
From the Executive Chef
We will be running a Game Day menu all weekend this week! Holly has spruced it up with a black and orange version of the menu! Check it AND the weekend special out HERE!
PUB UPDATES
Just a reminder: We have a Dine-Out at all locations for the Sick Town Derby Dames coming up on Tuesday, September 17th! They classically have a pretty darn good turnout, so we may be busier at all locations that day.
The Online Waitlist and Online Ordering will be turned off on Saturday the 14th due to the busy game day! Waitlist and Online Orders will be available again on Sunday morning.
If you have Beaver gear, remember that you can wear it during home Football games! Let’s drown out that green and yellow with a bunch of orange and black!
Pub Focus Points
ALL: Hand Washing Awareness!! Wash your hands! Cleanliness is a huge part of food safety so if you're FOH, make sure you're washing your hands after bussing dirty dishes, handling money, etc. BEFORE running food. BOH, make sure we are washing our hands between helping out in dish and hopping back on the line, after handling raw items, etc.
FOH: Napkin Awareness!! Always default to one napkin per item unless it is guaranteed to be messy. If you see that a table still has napkins from an appetizer, do not drop more. Guests can always ask for more napkins but we cannot reuse those that have already touched the table.
LINE: Dating & Labeling Awareness!! Let's focus on dating and labeling all line prepped items such as wontons, celery sticks, and lemons. These should be labeled and dated when we prep these items, also items that are hot held like soups and the Sunday BBQ chicken need to be labeled & dated before we take them down to the walk-in.
PREP: Rotating Items on Arrival Awareness!! Make sure items are getting grouped and rotated correctly when they come in. Line helpers, we appreciate you putting away orders but if you don't have time or don't know where something goes, feel free to leave things in a pile in the walk-in and we'll put it away the next morning.
TAP ROOM UPDATES
We have a Dine-Out at all locations for the Sick Town Derby Dames coming up on Tuesday, September 17th! They classically have a pretty darn good turnout, so we may be busier at all locations that day.
Tap Room Focus Points
ALL: GAME DAY WEEKEND- bring your positive attitude, remember to have fun and communicate kindly with your team! <3
FOH: Beer Knowledge- Focus on tasting beers, flight organization, reading info on one sheets, etc.
BOH: Busy weekend coming up! Please aim for high pars, set yourself and others up for success!
Upcoming Events
Tour ‘N Taste - September 26th, 5:30 - 6:30 pm
Production Facility tour with a taste of Juice Joint before it’s released. Paired with Pineapple Fried Rice, curated by Sarah.
Tours start at 5:30 and 6:00 pm. 21+ only.
Tickets are on sale now: https://block15.com/experiences
Caves Updates
Bloktoberfest - October 11th - 12th
Stein Pre-Order Packages and General Admission tickets are now available through our website! Find links on our Bloktoberfest HUB or in our web store under Experiences: https://block15.com/experiences
The Bloktoberfest website HUB has all the details about the event. Please point customers here if they have any questions. A QR to this page lives on our posters and table tents for ease of finding it!
HIGH FIVEs
If you have kudos or kind words to share anonymously in the Brewsletter, use the button below!
Human resources
STAFF SECTION
Check back next week!
SAFETY TIPS
Be Aware of Your Surroundings - Every job site has inherent dangers, whether that’s heavy machinery or even tripping over items in the office. The best way to keep yourself and others safe is to identify the hazards in your workplace and be aware of your surroundings. The more familiar you are with your tasks and workplace, the more aware you’ll be of the potential hazards.
Office Hours
Monday: Pub 10 am - 1 pm
Wednesday: Tap Room : 1 - 4 pm
Thursday: Tap Room 9:30 am-12:30 pm, Pub 1-4 pm
THE PEOPLE’S PINT / CHEERS FOR CHARITY / DINE OUT
Dine Out! For Sick Town Roller Derby - September 17th
Dine Out! for Sick Town Roller Derby. We're so happy to partner with them to donate a portion of food sales from both Block 15 locations on September 17th. Folks from Sick Town will be on-site at our Southtown Tap Room from 5-7 pm, providing more information about their organization. Stop by and say hello!
Sick Town Derby Dames is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization located in Corvallis, Oregon and is a skater-owned and operated flat-track roller derby league based in Linn and Benton counties. Sick Town provides a fun athletic outlet for members of the community in addition to a positive, inclusive social environment.
