Brew Years Eve 2008

December 31st 2008 8-1am
Get in touch with your senses this New Year and witness the funk of the Third Coast Kings at the Corner Brewery.....Everyone liked them so much last year we brought 'em back!
While your shakin it freak out your taste buds with our four fantastic celebratory beers:
8:30 Kriek ~ Sour Cherry Lambic
9:30 Olde #33
10:30 Imperial Strawberry Blonde
11:30 Hoaks IPA
Get here early (there's no cover) we were packed last year and we would hate to leave you out in the cold!

Hey Everyone! I'd like to introduce myself. I'm Heather Jean Wilson, the new Kitchen Manager here at Corner Brewery.

A little bit about me: I'm graduating from Washtenaw Community College in May with my Culinary Arts Associate's Degree and a Business Certificate. A lifetime Ypsilantian, I grew up in Willow Run schools. I have strong family ties to the area, and while I enjoy traveling, Ypsi is and will always be home to me.

My long-term goal is to open up a restaurant right here in Ypsi, so I'm really looking forward to this opportunity to enhance my skills and learn some new techniques.

A little bit about what I'm doing here: Some of you may have noticed the style of menu the Corner Brewery has been serving lately. It's been a great start! I've been hired to develop a new menu, with some more substantial food items. The menu will focus on good eats, few unnecessary ingredients and preservative, local suppliers, and sustainable options. Watch for announcements about upcoming specials, and details about our kick-off party in the Spring.

Most importantly, I want to unveil an exciting way that you, the local neighborhood and community, can get in on this project. You are the heart and soul of the Corner Brewery, and we want to honor that! So here's the deal:

Next time you're in the Corner Brewery, grab yourself a Contest Ballot. Fill out your name, email address*, and one item you'd like to see on the new menu. Anything you want, no matter how outrageous! No limit on how many suggestions you can submit, but you should write them each on a separate ballot. Write out or attach a recipe if you want, or leave it up to other creative minds to take the idea and run with it. If your food idea is chosen, your ballot will be put into a drawing for a prize to be announced and awarded at the big kick-off party this Spring.

* Why do we need your email? If you contribute a menu idea, then we're guessing you want to know when the big kick-off party is going to be, whether your idea will be included in the new menu, and if you won the contest (in case you don't make it to the party). We won't sell it or spam you.


So that's the plan. I look forward to meeting everyone, and encourage you to share any and all suggestions you may have.

Limited Release Belgian Style Ales Now Available


The brewers over at Corner Brewery have been busy dreaming up some special concoctions just in time for the holiday season.

Velvet Hammer: This is a beer three years in the making the base is a belgian style dubbel brewed early in 2008 and blended with an old ale aged since 2005. The resulting brew was then bottle conditioned over the summer.

It is a highly effervescent brew with a slightly tart and vinous character that pairs well with hearty stews, roasted vegetables, beef tenderloin, bbq and sweet potatoes, goat cheese and gorgonzola. Less then 10 cases remaining. So stop in and get some while it lasts.

Saison Farmhouse Ale: This classic Belgian style was born in the farm houses of Wallonia in Southern Belgium where it was originally brewed for household consumption and aged in wooden barrels.

Our Saison is a refreshing, medium-bodied, fruity and spicy ale with a distinctive yellow orange color, crisp carbonation, and a quenching acidity.

There is a burst of complex flavor on the palate with hints of candied orange peel, cracked pepper, coriander seed, and tart lemon with and underlying earthy quality.

Pairs beautifully with spicy cajun or Indian dishes. Try it with chili, curries, sharp or pungent cheeses, pasta with cream sauce and wild game.

Saison available on draft at the Corner and in 750ml corked bottles.

NOW AVAILABLE - LIMITED RELEASE
We are very excited to announce the release of our first wild beer. The Velvet Hammer is a slightly tart belgian style ale weighing in around 8% abv. The base of this beer is our Phat Abbot Belgian Dubbel but the finished product bears no resemblance.

We brewed the Dubbel last winter and inoculated it with a bit of Jackhammer Old Ale that has been aging for three years in an oak barrel inoculated with Hansens Gueuze.

We then conditioned the dubbel for a couple of months in a serving tank before bottling it into 750s and conditioning it over the summer.

The result is a medium-bodied sour ale with the vinous and sour fruit characteristics of a Flemish brown but with a sparking champagne-like effervescence.

Due to the lively carbonation, this beer must be stored and served cold, uncorked slowly, and very gently decanted. The foam does not dissipate as rapidly as the head on a champagne but will subside after a few moments in the glass.

We only have 480 bottles of this delightfully tart and bubbly ale available for purchase throughout the state. It is on sale now at the Corner Brewery and will be available at a couple of hand-selected fine beer stores in the Washtenaw county area.

NEW BEER RELEASE PARTY!
Arbor Brewing Company is pleased to announce that we are now brewing and bottling our very popular Jackhammer Old Ale for fall distribution.

As days grow short, a chill sneaks into the evening air, and leaves burst into fiery reds and golds, we seem to instinctively put away the light quenching brews of summer in favor of something richer and more substantial. Jackhammer is our celebration of the wonder and magic of autumn in Michigan.

At just over 9% ABV, this high gravity ale combines a warming sensation with a rich malty sweetness to create an outstanding initial complexity. Fruity esters add to this complex palate to provide a subtle yet distinct chocolate covered cherry quality which dissolves into a dry spicy finish with a robust hop counterbalance.

Jackhammer will be available throughout the state in September and October. We will be celebrating the release on WEDNESDAY August 27 at a release party at the Corner Brewery from 7-9 pm. No Cover for Mug Club Members. $15 for non-members. Includes beer and munchies.

MICRO MADNESS BEER TASTING
This month's tasting features some of my favorite American microbrewed beers (and a couple from Canada).

If you've never been to one of our monthly beer tastings, I assure you it's $25 very well spent. Tastings run from 7-9 pm and include an appetizer buffet, samples of 25 to 30 fantastic beers, a program with beer style background and tasting notes, and a fabulous door prize drawing.

I always try to come up with a few must-haves, a handful of nationally recognized top tier brews, along with a smattering of brews that you might not have tried before.

Here's this month's line-up: Lagunitas Lucky #13 American Strong Ale, Lagunitas Maximus Double IPA, Stone Smoked Porter, Sprecher Black Bavarian, Unibroue Trois Pistoles, Unibroue Maudite, HeBrew Bittersweet Lennys R.I.P.A, Ommegang Hennepin Farmhouse Saison, Ommegang Abbey Ale, Rogue Dead Guy Mai Bock, Rogue Brutal Bitter, Rogue Chocolate Stout, Stoudts American Pale Ale, Victory Brewing Storm King Imp Stout , Victory Brewing Prima Pils, Speakeasy Big Daddy IPA, Speakeasy Prohibition Amber, Sam Adams Imperial Pilsner, Goose Island Matilda Belgian Style Ale, Great Lakes Dortmunder, Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter, Anchor Porter, Anchor Liberty, plus a few of our favorite ABC selections.

Tickets are available at 734-213-1393 or at the door while supplies last. $25 in advance and $30 on tasting day (that's after midnight on Wednesday the 13th). Must be 21 with valid ID at the door.

Hope you can join us (and send me your pictures!)

CALLING ALL HOMEBREWERS to enter the Second Annual ABC Brews Crews Homebrew Competition! This is an AHA/BJCP sanctioned event open to any homebrewer in the U.S.(beer only - no meads or ciders will be judged).

Best of Show prize includes the opportunity to brew your beer on the 7 barrel house system at Arbor Brewing Company in Ann Arbor, Michigan and be served on tap at the pub. First prize in each of approximately a dozen judging groups (generally beer styles) will be a hand-made stein, with medals being awarded for second and third prizes.

Entries are due between May 17th and June 1st at the Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti, Michigan, with entry fee of $6 per entry. Visit this website for more details on rules and how to enter:

Questions or comments should be directed to Aron Butler, competition director, at brewscrews [at] gmail [dot] com.