Internal Brewsletter - September 25th, 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 Cody B.! Swing by the Pub this Thursday for a Mediterranean Smash Burger!
We’re always looking for more submissions, so send in those ideas!
THIS WEEK’S RELEASES
Releasing Friday 9/27
Juice Joint //
Description: Juice Joint pairs dank, citrusy, and tropical hops to create a heady concoction. Supported by a smooth body and balanced bitterness, it's sure to satisfy your cravings. // 7.00%
Key Takeaway: We used a technique called Hop Dipping. Hops are added directly to the fermentation tank before knockout, and hot wort is pumped onto them before cooling and pitching yeast. This process allows us to see biotransformation by fermenting directly on hops for minimal isomerization of bitterness.
Tasting Notes: Blueberry • Mango • Peak Ripeness
Format: Draft & Cans
Series: Orbital
Beer Style: Hazy IPA
An IPA sub-style originating in New England, it originally evolved from American IPA to have a lighter malt bill, that had a soft finish from adjuncts containing higher protein levels and water naturally high in Chloride. Early versions retained an assertive bitterness, but that mostly softened over time giving way to a soft, juicy beer with a big, sweet body that mostly featured fruit notes (citrus, tropical, stonefruit, red fruit, etc..). Some versions can contain pine or dank notes as well. Bitterness ranges from light to moderate, and body ranges from moderate to heavy. Hazy is still a rapidly evolving style. The Variations of IPAs have become America’s primary contribution to the pantheon of world beer styles.
UPCOMING Releases
*This list is subject to change based on the production schedule, so please keep that in mind!
Flicker // West Coast IPA
Series: Perennial
Releases: October 4th
Format: Draft & Cans
Description: Inspired by Autumn's warm days and crisp nights, Flicker was designed to inspire conversation and community while delivering an engaging hop profile with notes of Lychee, Stonefruit, and Pine.
Story of the Ghost // Hauntingly Hazy Pale Ale
Series: Orbital
Releases: October 11th
Format: Draft & Cans
Description: A haunting offering brewed with bountiful hops shrouded by velvety grist. Be possessed by otherworldy hop flavor with notes of dank herbs, pine, and tropical delight to reanimate your soul.
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
Join us every other Thursday in the Game Room at the Pub to taste through beers, discuss our beers, brewing, or any other related topics you have questions about. This is a casual session, and anyone is welcome to attend. If you have an interesting bottle of beer you would like to taste/share with the group, bring it in. Your first beer is on us if you attend. The next tasting is Thursday, October 3rd, at 4 pm!
Beer 101: Oktoberfest beers
Written by Garrison Schmidt, Head Brewer
Originating in 1810 to commemorate the wedding of the Bavarian Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese of Sachen-Hildurghausen, the first Oktoberfest offered free food and beer at four different locations around Munich. For roughly 60 years, Bavarian Dunkel was the beer of choice at the festivities, this was a dark lager, not to be confused with Dunkel Weisse. It was around 5% and was a very popular style in Munich then.
Marzen was introduced sometime in the mid-19th century between 1841 and 1872, but sources disagree on which year specifically. Marzen is an amber lager, currently made between 5.8% and 6.3% ABV. Marzen is believed to have been developed to compete with Vienna lager, a similar style that was gaining popularity in Europe at that time, but the name, which literally translates to “March Beer,” originates from a 1553 decree in Bavaria that forbade brewing beer between April 23 and September 29. This, like the more famous Reinheitsgebot of 1516, was one of the first food safety laws passed in the world. Beer brewed in the warmer months was known to spoil faster, so limiting the time of the year when it could be brewed was meant to prevent spoilage. The result was brewers making stronger beer and cold storing it, mostly in cellars, using a process called lagering, so the beer would last through the summer. The 1870s also saw the introduction of Bock strength beers at Oktoberfest, up to 8%, this included the Marzen beers made for the festival. This remained the case until World War I. After that ABVs came down to the range they are today, 5.8-6.3%.
The late 20th century saw participating breweries moving away from amber beers that dominated for so long and making lighter beers that were closer to the pale lagers that became so dominant throughout the 20th century. These “Festbiers” are usually a golden color, in the same abv range, with a sweet finish and a noticeable hop bitterness. They are lighter to drink, and thus easier to drink more of.
All of these beers are Oktoberfest beers, but according to the EU, only versions brewed in Munich are allowed to be labeled as “Oktoberfest.” American breweries typically ignore this, and Boston Beer Company likes to boast that they are the world’s largest producer of Oktoberfest beer, which is technically true.
Bloktoberfest is our take on the Oktoberfest beer, and is modeled on the Marzen-style, but is a bit lighter in color and lower in ABV. At 5.5%, it is exceptionally drinkable with notes of honey, toasted bread, and caramel. A gentle bitterness balances the malt sweetness and contributes to its drinkability. Brewed in the spirit of these beers, we contribute our own methods and influence to create something that is unique.
From the Executive Chef
OCTOBER SPECIALS Launching Wednesday, October 2nd!
Downtown Pub INFO SHEET-PLEASE READ
Pork Schnitzel - Thinly pounded Carlton Farms pork cutlet, breaded and fried. Drizzled with brown butter pan sauce and served with apple compote and warm, house made German potato salad. $17.99
Pear & Hazelnut Melt - Local pears, Queen Bee Honey, Hazelnut butter and melted muenster cheese on house baked artisan bread. $15.99
Butternut Squash & Brown Butter Tortellini - Three cheese tortellini in our brown butter & sage cream sauce with roasted organic butternut squash & sweet onions, crushed hazelnuts & parmesan. $16.99
Taproom INFO SHEET-PLEASE READ
HB, PB & J Burger - NW beef burger served on a Bread Stop toasted brioche bun with creamy Freddy Guys’ hazelnut butter, sweet marionberry jam & crispy pork belly. $18.99
Brussel Sprouts & Squash - Crispy brussel sprouts & roasted butternut squash, dried cranberries, shallot-dijon vinaigrette, house honey roasted hazelnuts, parmesan $9.99
PUB UPDATES
TAP ROOM UPDATES
Upcoming Events
Pups on the Patio - October 23rd
Beer School - October 24th
Caves Updates
Events
Bloktoberfest - October 11th - 12th
We’re less than THREE WEEKS AWAY! Please make sure you’ve read through the information about the event so that you’re able to get yourself and our customers excited.
Stein Pre-Order Packages and General Admission tickets are 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
Tivey, Mars and the whole prep team - Y’all did an amazing job keeping the lines stocked and ready to roll on a super busy week
Spencer Gunn - Holding it down in distro like a BOSS
FOH Staff at all locations - You all crushed Move-In Week! Thank you for showing a lot of new customers an excellent example of our hospitality.
Leighton Godwin - Thanks for picking up shifts over the last couple of weeks!
Prep lunch coverage - You guys helped out so much last week! Thanks for stepping in when needed.
If you have kudos or kind words to share anonymously in the Brewsletter, use the button below!
Human resources
STAFF SECTION
Please welcome the following folks to the team:
Kylie Taylor (FOH)
SAFETY TIPS
With the changing of the season and the start of the school year, here’s a reminder of the most recent Covid Guidelines:
If you test positive for COVID-19, symptom-based isolation guidelines in Oregon are as follows:
Stay home until fever-free for 24 hours without using fever-reducing medication, and other COVID-19 symptoms are improving.
Avoid contact with people at high risk of severe illness (including older adults and those with underlying medical conditions) for 10 days after testing positive or developing symptoms, whichever happens first.
Consider masking for 10 days.
A five-day isolation period is no longer recommended for the general population, including those in K-12 education settings.
Please remember that we work closely with the public and people at risk and that it is vital that if you are feeling ill that you follow the masking guidelines.
Office Hours
Monday: Pub 10 am - 1 pm
Wednesday: Tap Room: 1 - 4 pm
Thursday: Pub 1-4 pm
THE PEOPLE’S PINT / CHEERS FOR CHARITY / DINE OUT
Check back next week!