Center of the Universe Archives

RVA On Tap: Scott’s Addition Comes Together for a Collab Beer Crawl

Caley Sturgill | March 4, 2020

Topics: 2020 collaboration crawl, Ardent craft ales, bars in richmond va, beer, beer column, beer crawl, Black Heath Meadery, Blue Bee Cider, Buskey Cider, Center of the Universe, courthouse creek cider, craft beer, craft beer richmond va, events in richmond va, events near me this weekend, events richmond va, Fine Creek Brewing Company, happy hour richmond va, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, Isley Brewing Company, richmond events, richmond va, RVA, RVA On Tap, scotts addition, scotts addition beverage district, starr hill richmond, Strangeways Brewing, The Veil Brewing Co., things to do in richmond va, things to do richmond va, Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, Vasen Brewing Company

What’s happening, craft beer lovers of RVA?! Welcome to this week’s RVA On Tap, RVA Magazine’s weekly column for all your craft beer-related events, releases, festivals, and all the booze news your hearts desire.

If you missed the last column, you can check that out here. Our kegs are overflowing this week with beer releases and festivals, events, and other cool happenings around town, so hold on to your mugs.

This week, a unique new beer crawl hits Scott’s Addition for their 2020 Collaboration Crawl — which teams up pairs of local breweries in the neighborhood to show off their best collabs together. You’ll catch Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, Blue Bee Cider, Ardent Craft Ales, Väsen Brewing Company, Black Heath Meadery, Strangeways Brewing, Buskey Cider, Isley Brewing Company, Courthouse Creek Cider, and Starr Hill Richmond there, so be sure to check it out.

St. Patrick’s Day gears up with celebrations at Center of the Universe and Hardywood Park Craft Brewery’s Shamrock Shindig and Run, with some extra-awesome food trucks like Grandpa Eddie’s Alabama Ribs & BBQ at COTU on Saturday. Fine Creek has a great new earthy release, and The Veil Brewing Co. drops another delicious multi-release this week — plus Väsen teams up with the local Pink Boots Society for an International Women’s Day collab brew.

6th Annual St. Paddy’s Day Party at Center of the Universe Brewing

It’s that time of year again: St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner, which means many of our favorite brewers are gearing up for the annual celebrations.

A favorite of ours is the annual St. Paddy’s Day Party at Center of the Universe Brewing that benefits the St. Baldrick’s Foundation — an organization that, for twenty years now, has been providing life-saving research on children’s cancer to the community. Our pals at COTU are big on nonprofit benefits, and this yearly event is a staple at the brewery every spring.

The event will feature a delicious brew, the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Porter, returning for the occasion with plenty of vanilla, cinnamon, and cookie-inspired flavors. At 6.5% ABV, it’s a nice medium on the alcohol scale, and it was their first satellite-brewed beer to be released in four-packs of 16oz cans. Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Porter came together with Maris Otter, Flaked Oats and Barley, Carafa 3 Dehusked, Crystal 90, and double-roasted Crystal Malts.

Its return comes with live music all day at the brewery for their St. Paddy’s Day Party, with bands like Gift Horse, The Royal We, Flashlight Tag, Something Shiny Band, and Pizza Scissors. You’ll want to show up early if you plan to catch all the jams, because live music goes all the way from noon to 9:30pm. Along with a full day of shows, they’ll have food from Two Kings Concessions, Freekin’ Rican, and…. drumroll, please… GRANDPA EDDIE’S! My favorite food truck of all the food trucks! Grandpa Eddie’s Alabama Ribs & BBQ is an absolute must-try, and I go on about it constantly when it pops up in this column, but that should be an indicator for you that you’re seriously missing out if you haven’t tried it. Trust me, this event is one for the calendar!

Scott’s Addition Beer Crawl This Saturday

The latest beer crawl is coming to Richmond’s booziest neighborhood this Saturday, with the Scott’s Addition Beverage District Collab Crawl.

More than 10 breweries and cideries are coming together for the occasion, including Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, Blue Bee Cider, Ardent Craft Ales, Vasen Brewing Company, Black Heath Meadery, Strangeways Brewing, Buskey Cider, Isley Brewing Company, Courthouse Creek Cider, and Starr Hill Richmond, along with the Scott’s Addition Beverage District.

What makes this beer crawl different from others is that all participating breweries came together for collaborations — each brewery was randomly assigned a collab partner on the list, and over the last few weeks, they’ve all created their perfect recipes. They’re all going to be on deck starting this Saturday at 12pm, and the Scott’s Addition Beverage District wants to remind folks that many of these brews will be available for one day only.

All locations will have Collab Crawl Cards available, so be sure to grab one at your first stop. The crawl includes plenty of raffles and prizes, so the more stamps you collect at various breweries, the better! You’ll get a chance to win lots of great prizes and taste some of Scott’s Addition freshest beer.

Isley and Three Notch’d Collab Brews

For the Scott’s Addition Crawl, Isley Brewing Company and Three Notch’d RVA Collab House came together to create their Collaboration Nation beer along with Tour de Obst.

Collaboration Nation kicks off our new beer releases this week, a Blackberry Blonde ale that came together with additives like fresh blackberry puree and German noble varieties. At 4.5% ABV, this easy-drinking recipe pours as a light-bodied, golden Blonde Ale.

Tour de Obst comes in a bit lower, with a 3.8% ABV and an extra-low 5 IBU — which means it’s the perfect place to kick off your beer crawl to get in the drinking mood without overdoing it at your first stop. This Strawberry and Apple Radler was inspired by traditional German Radlers, according to the breweries, which started off as beer mixed with lemonade to meet the demand of light beers among cyclists.

Three Notch’d and Isley knew that a neighborhood-wide beer crawl would bring a similar demand, so they began their process brewing up Tour de Obst. It’ll be available this Saturday while supplies last, so swing by during the crawl for a glass.

Eldig Baltic Porter Collab with Ardent Craft Ales and Väsen Brewing Company

Another great release coming up at this weekend’s beer crawl is one between Ardent Craft Ales and Väsen Brewing Company: Eldig.

This Baltic Porter hits in at a higher 8.5% ABV, so it’ll make a great stop for a taste after Isley and Three Notch’d. With flavors like toffee, caramel, and dark chocolate, this brew brings out a roasted malt aroma to complement its sweet and earthy tastes. It’s full-bodied and cold-lagered, according to its brewers, and its name is especially unique: with Väsen’s Scandanavian roots, they landed on Eldig by translating “Ardent” to Swedish.

As they say, this brew embodies “the Swedish spirit of ‘Lagom’ — perfect balance.”

Fresh Multi-Releases at The Veil Brewing Co.

Cat Nap starts off our releases from The Veil Brewing Co. this week, and with some of the cutest cans we’ve seen, it’s one you’ll definitely want to take home. Thankfully, you can, because this IPA is available in four-packs to go. With flavors like sweet pineapple, musky papaya, tangerine, fruit snacks, passionfruit, and berries, Cat Nap combines a large array of tropical flavors into one IPA. According to The Veil, it’s a smaller sibling to their Dirt Nap brew, and it hits in at a nice medium 6% ABV.

Broz Night Out, in title, sounds like the opposite of a cat nap — but as packed as it is with tropical fruits, these two are more alike than you’d expect. This 100 percent Citra-brewed Double IPA is right up my alley, with intense flavors of mango, juicy pineapple, white peach, and grapefruit at a perfect DIPA 8% ABV.

Cold Blue is another fresh DIPA at the brewery, and it’s making its debut in cans with several combinations in its brewing process. This one came together with Citra and Experimental Hop HBC586, and it brings out flavors like lychee, pineapple juice, and mango.

Last but certainly not least, Coalesce closes out our releases from The Veil this week. This Czech-style Pilsner is unlike the rest in this batch, but it still pours with the bright, vibrant colors we’ve come to love at the brewery. With no limit on to-go packs, you’ll be able to bring as many of these home as you’d like. It comes in at 5.5% ABV for a lower alcohol content, and it was conditioned extensively in The Veil’s horizontal lager tanks for a crisp taste with “just enough Czech Saaz character.”

Shamrock Shindig and Run at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery

Hardywood’s annual Shamrock Run 5k is coming back this Sunday, and they’re celebrating its completion with a big St. Patrick’s Day bash. If you’re ready to gear up for the holiday, our local brewers have you covered — after COTU’s celebration on Saturday, you can keep the party going with Hardywood at their downtown location.

Artists like Church Hill Music Co. and The Fighting Jamesons are coming out to keep the music going all day long, and Irish Dancing will gear up during the break between bands. The brewery’s also bringing out traditional Irish fare along with several food trucks, plus photo booths and Irish-inspired vendors.

If you join in for the 5k, Hardywood says dress to impress: they’ll be giving out Best Dressed prizes to racers, along with a glass, finisher’s medal, beverage tickets, and age group awards to their participants. Come out to the brewery on Saturday from 1:30-4pm to pick up your race packet, or swing by early on the day of the event at 11:30am. Good luck, and happy racing!

International Women’s Day Collaboration Brewing at Väsen

This Friday at Väsen Brewing Company, the local Pink Boots Society chapter is teaming up with the brewery to make a brand-new collaborative brew.

International Women’s Day is coming up on Sunday, so the groups are coming together ahead of time to make something extra-special for it. The beer will be a Kettle Sour, and with the 2020 PBS Hop Blend, it’ll also have unique tastes from raspberry and pink Himalayan sea salt additions. They’ve invited all PBS members and female-identifying employees of local breweries to come out and create it together, so if you fall into either of those categories, here’s your chance to brew up something great with your local beer family.

To join in, head over to the brewery at 9am and plan to stick around until 3-4pm. They’ll also have breakfast and snacks out for everyone, and attendees are invited to bring beers and snacks to enjoy while brewing.

New Release at Fine Creek Brewing Company

Over the weekend at Fine Creek Brewing Company, the brewery released their Mountain House Buckwheat Honey Saison.

This Friday Beer Feature is full of some delicious combinations of flavors, and at 5.8% ABV, it’s another nice easy drinker for the week. With Malted Triticale from Epiphany Craft Malt, and Malted Oats from the Riverbend Malt House, this brew has a “pleasant tannic character” to complement its chamomile, dried hay, and damp soil flavors. It would stand as a great earthy recipe with those alone, but they went the extra mile by adding in local buckwheat honey from Mountain House Apiaries. This mono-floral honey gives the recipe flavors of molasses and rich malty notes, and the fermenting of its sugar makes for a perfect combination with its earthy characters.

If you’re ready to grab a glass, head out to Fine Creek and enjoy the tastes of nature while soaking it all in at the farmhouse brewery.

That’s it for this week’s RVA On Tap! As your weekly columnist, I’m here to take all your beer releases, event info, ideas and questions. If you’re a brewer, send me your release info at [email protected], and if you’re a beer enthusiast, drop me a line anytime to talk booze. Catch y’all next week!

RVA On Tap: Love Your Beer this Valentine’s Day

Caley Sturgill | February 12, 2020

Topics: Ardent craft ales, bars in richmond va, beer, beer column, Center of the Universe, craft beer, craft beer richmond va, events in richmond va, events near me this weekend, events richmond va, final gravity brewing co, fine creek brewing, happy hour richmond va, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, richmond events, richmond va, RVA, RVA On Tap, starr hill richmond beer hall and rooftop, Stone Brewing-Richmond, Strangeways Brewing, The Veil Brewing Co., things to do in richmond va, things to do richmond va, Three Notch’d RVA Collab House

This week, celebrate love (and anti-love) with your favorite beer families in Richmond. Center of the Universe throws their Anti-Valentine’s party in all its sweet, bitter glory, and Three Notch’d RVA Collab House hosts specials for the free spirits in town for Singles Awareness Day. Strangeways celebrates with a special burlesque show, and Ardent Craft Ales highlights the most important love of all: the love for your dog.

Don’t miss fresh releases like Hardywood’s Raspberry Short Kate, Starr Hill Richmond’s Blackberry Currant Smoothie Sour, Fine Creek Brewing’s Daffodil Daydream, Stone Brewing Richmond’s Cali-belgique IPA, Final Gravity’s Doppler Effect IPA, and a seriously delicious multi-release at The Veil.

Anti-Valentine’s Day Party at Center of the Universe

Here’s one for the haters! The true spirit of Valentine’s Day, in our experience, is about more than heart-shaped candies and corny, overpriced cards. What this holiday often means is your Facebook friends complaining 10x more than usual, and half your friends trying to forget that it’s happening.

Avoid the temptation to text your ex this year with Center of the Universe as they celebrate Anti-Valentine’s Day in all its sweet, bitter glory. With beer, live music, great food, and like-minded folks, they’re giving everyone an escape from all the “stupid Cupid’s arrows.” What a relief. Even if you’re in a loving relationship, this could be the place for you — there’s a good chance I’ll find myself there to escape the Hallmark stuff as well. And, as COTU themselves say:

“Do you love Valentine’s Day? Do you love the flowers? The cards? The candies? Creepy little Cherubs? Unrealistic romantic comedies? If you said yes, that’s neat. If you said no… Congratulations! We’re the place for you this Valentine’s Day.”

Pours and Pasties for Valentine’s Day at Strangeways

One of our favorite recurring events is going down on Valentine’s Day at Strangeways: Pours and Pasties!

In this perfectly-timed show, Burlesque Right Meow is heading to Strangeways to give everyone what they need most on this holiday: a dose of self-love. It’s never lost on us that finding love in yourself is number one for the rest of life’s great loves, and burlesque is one of those special things that knows just how to remind us of it.

Pours and Pasties is returning this time with Ego Von Hubris as their host, and they’ll have dancers like Sasha Nyte, Maddie De Sade, Ed Phillips, Murphy Lawless, Scarlet Starlet, and Sally Stardust for the holiday special. Burlesque Right Meow invites everyone to grab tickets beforehand here, and they say, “Whether you’re looking for a night out with your sweetie(s) or having a day of self-love, there will be butts and beer, so everyone is a winner here!” Amen to that.

Stone Cali-belgique IPA at Stone Brewing Richmond

Last week, Stone Brewing Richmond introduced something fresh at our local spot. This Stone Cali-belgique IPA was aged in red wine barrels with sour cherries, and it’s a great deviation from the more common recipes.

Since it came as a surprise tapping last week, you’ll want to head out to the brewery soon to grab a taste of it while you can. It’s only around as long as the batch lasts, so if you’re craving a taste, make your way to Stone for this crisp, refreshing, and “teasingly sour” brew. As its brewers say, it’s perfect for all these teasingly spring days we’ve been experiencing lately.

Thankfully, according to this year’s Groundhog Day, early spring might just be a reality for us this year… but if it comes before we get a single good snow day, I know one local beer writer who’s going to be greatly disappointed. For real, when do we get to break out the sleds?! If it doesn’t happen, I’ll certainly be bummed out, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited for river days to return. In the meantime, this brew will get us through as a perfect blend for both seasons.

Raspberry Short Kate returns in cans to Hardywood

It’s back! This long-loved brew from Hardywood is returning in cans on the holiday itself, and this special V-Day edition of #FreshCanFriday is definitely welcomed.

Raspberry Short Kate, the Raspberry Milkshake IPA we fell for last year, is thicker than your average IPA. Filled with fruit for a milkshake-style brew, this one’s named for Hardywood’s VP of Production and brewed with lots of love. Share some of that love with your honey this Valentine’s Day (or, if you’re spending it with friends, treat yourself!) and try this ruby-colored treat, made with local raspberries and flavors both sweet and tart.

*PHOTO: Starr Hill Richmond Beer Hall & Rooftop*

Valentine’s Weekend at Starr Hill Richmond

Chocolate and beer are coming together once again, in a delicious combination starting at Starr Hill Richmond tomorrow night. On Valentine’s Eve and running into the weekend, the Scott’s Addition beer hall is bringing out their “captivating confections” to pair with their favorite brews.

On tap for the event is the Currant Affairs Blackberry Currant Smoothie Sour, which is the featured beer for the evening and filled with dark fruit flavors to blend into the smoothie-style Sour Ale.

They’ll also be offering up their “Box of Chocolates” flight, which brings out four different stouts for a sampler that’s *definitely* not your grandmother’s holiday chocolates. It comes with several variations of flavors brewed into their Double Bass Double Chocolate Stout, from toasted coconut to orange, mocha, and raspberry. These are also being sold in 12-packs for those who would rather celebrate at home, but be sure to grab one soon if that’s your plan, because they’re almost sold out.

Each night of the weekend will host a new food truck and live band. Friday kicks it off with Kat Somers and Indira & Guppy Jo along with the La Bête food truck. Saturday brings Josh Small & Andrew Alli with Intergalactic Tacos, then Sunday closes out the weekend with Lovers Live: Mackenzie & Michael, Koda & Marie and Taqueria Panchito.

Must Love Dogs at Ardent Craft Ales

If your most-loved person isn’t a person at all, we don’t blame you. Ardent Craft Ales is celebrating Valentine’s Day with the most loving souls in the world: dogs. There is no love on this planet like that of a dog for its human, and we’re stoked to see Ardent gearing up for a V-Day party like no other.

Fresh beers will be out on tap like Historic Chocolate Stout, a small batch that was brewed in collaboration with The Valentine Museum and full of American Heritage dark chocolate. “For the Love of Stout” and “I Heart IPA” flights will also be available for tasting, along with handcrafted truffles from Chocolate Cravings that were created with Ardent’s Maple Dark Rye, Honey Ginger, and Plum Gose beers.

“For the Love of Stout” brings together Ardent’s Historical Chocolate Stout, Dark Rye, Imperial Stout with Coffee, Coconut, & Almonds, and their Barrel Aged Milk Stout. In the “I Heart IPA” flight, you’ll catch tastes of Floreda Idaho, IPA X, Summit DIPA, and the IPA 14.

The event also benefits Richmond Animal Care and Control, our favorite shelter in town, which works tirelessly to ensure animals in the community get proper healthcare and find their way to happy homes. You can drink happy at this one, knowing you’ll get to support the shelter and probably pet lots of dogs in the process.

Doppler Effect IPA at Final Gravity Brewing Co.

Over at Final Gravity Brewing Co., a great IPA is ready for your glass. This one is perfectly reminiscent of summer days, and it’s making us even more impatient for them to return.

Doppler Effect IPA is a citrus-forward IPA with a crisp finish that’ll suit regular Pale Ale fans and heavier IPA fans alike. With lemon, grapefruit, and orange notes, it’s a delicious example of how complex Mosaic hop flavors can be.

It comes along with One Drop Hazy Double IPA, which brings out plenty more lemon tastes along with mango, stone fruit, and other tropical fruit flavors. Brewed with Mosaic and Citra hops, this one’s a delicious heavier complement to Doppler Effect — and we can’t decide which to try first.

Daffodil Daydream at Fine Creek Brewing Company

The latest Friday Beer Feature at Fine Creek Brewing Company sounds like a dream in itself. Daffodil Daydream is a 6.5% ABV White IPA that’s full of both earthy and fruity flavors. With Appalachian Malted Wheat in addition to Riverbend Southern Select Barley, this IPA came together for tropical hop tastes like white grape and lime.

On the more bitter side of IPAs, Daffodil Daydream also brings out a dry finish with notes of freshly-baked bread and grassy tastes. Hops from New Zealand, Germany, and America all blended to make this recipe a reality, and it drinks with a round mouthfeel, according to its brewers.

Weekly Multi-release at The Veil Brewing Co.

Kicking off this week’s fresh list of recipes at The Veil Brewing Co., Tefnut (Blueberry Muffin) comes to us as a cosmic Imperial Gose. This one was another great collab with one of The Veil’s favorites, Omnipollo, and it was brewed to “reimagine what a fruit beer can be” with new processes and experimenting with fruit volumes. At 11% ABV, this beer tastes like a blueberry muffin in a can from all its milk sugar, blueberry, and vanilla additions for an extra-juicy finish, and it’s sure to please all the high-ABV lovers out there.

Baked Apple Pie Hornswoggler comes next for us, and it keeps with The Veil’s dessert themes this week. This Chocolate Milk Stout is as close as it gets to making an apple pie into a beer, and it was conditioned with apple purée, brown sugar, milk sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. The 7% ABV brew has great buttery crust and cool whip flavors, and it’s got another surprise — 10 Golden Tokens are hidden underneath its 4-pack holders, so there’s a real incentive to take some home with you. They’ve made special Hornswoggler glasses to accompany the recipe, and finding a Golden Token is the only way to get one for yourself.

Never Sorry³ is a brand-new Gose at The Veil this week. This one came together with triple blueberry, triple raspberry, and triple black currant for an extreme flavor punch of dark fruits in the 5.3% ABV Gose. It’s a thick beer with flavors of “fresh fruit off the vine,” according to its brewers, and it’s backed up with the tannic complexity of black currant.

dragged dragged is an 11% ABV IPA coming out in cans. Main hops with Galaxy and Citra blend with smaller additions of Nelson, El Dorado, and Vic Secret in this beer, and the double dry-hopped Triple IPA is not one to be messed with. Another from The Veil to please the high-ABV lovers, you’ll likely only need one glass here… but you’ll certainly want a second once you taste its pineapple juice, watermelon, and cherry flavors with flaked barley.

Power On debuted last night as a fresh IPA, brewed with Citra, Sabro, and Motueka hops. This one comes in at a lower 6% ABV, so if you’re feeling the craft beer but don’t want to be calling your Uber after the first glass, it might be more up your alley than some of the others this week. It’s filled with notes like grapefruit pulp, coconut, lime, and tiki drinks for a new combination at The Veil.

EarthTone is easily our favorite of this week’s batch. Brewed as a collab with 20 local breweries, we visited this one last week ahead of its debut at Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery. EarthTone is an homage to the life and legacy of Garden Grove’s Michael Brandt, and was crafted to remind us forever of his love for Lagers, malt balance, and complexity. Proceeds from this brew go to Mike’s son, Miles, for a college savings fund, and to the Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU. It’s being served up in cans at The Veil starting yesterday (and starting today, for our Norfolk folks!) and it’s a great way to help Garden Grove honor their beloved Co-Owner.

Singles Awareness Day at Three Notch’d RVA Collab House

Three Notch’d RVA Collab House is also feeling the anti-love this week, and we’re all for it. In another awesome Valentine’s Day event, head out to Three Notch’d with the free spirits of Richmond and celebrate the love for yourself.

The brewery is bringing out $3 pints of their Chocolate Silk Pie milk stout through happy hour, and they’re going the extra mile to show some love to the singles for the holiday. With an extra bonus, their Chocolate Silk Pie even comes with free chocolates and red velvet cake — and it’s enough to make me wish I could fit that list for these desserts.

As Three Notch’d notes, it’ll be nice to not have to share your beer with your S.O. this year. And who knows… with all the other singles there, you might even find love (that is, if you want it).

RVA On Tap: Winter Ales & Holiday Brews

Caley Sturgill | December 24, 2019

Topics: Ardent craft ales, bars in richmond va, beer, beer column, Center of the Universe, craft beer richmond va, events in richmond va, events near me this weekend, events richmond va, happy hour richmond va, Hardywood, Isley Brewing Company, Kindred Spirit Brewing, richmond events, richmond va, RVA, RVA On Tap, The Answer, things to do in richmond va, things to do richmond va, triple crossing, vasen brewing

This is our last beer column before the holiday season comes to a close, and if you’re not quite ready to say goodbye to the delicious beers of this time of year, we’ve got you covered. Local brewers around Richmond have plenty of releases coming this week.

Triple Crossing Beer drops their toasted coconut Imperial Stout, “Lost In The Night,” and Hardywood has a raspberry stout ready for all those still wanting more after their GBS series came out. Catch a double release from The Answer Brewpub with two new beers out, plus Center of the Universe’s “The Jeffrey” is finally open to the public after their Big Lebowski holiday packs.

Don’t miss tacky sweater parties with Isley Brewing Company the day after Christmas, winter ales with Kindred Spirit Brewing, DIPAs with Ardent Craft Ales, and a double release with Väsen Brewing Company on Friday.

Drink up, Virginia!

⟁ Christmas Eve means more than opening early presents this year. At Triple Crossing Beer, it means an early brewery opening and a brand-new beer to celebrate it with. ⟁

Lost In The Night is coming out tonight at Triple Crossing with all the toasted coconut you could need in an Imperial Stout. The brew lives up to its name as it pours with a pitch-black body packed full with espresso, toasted coconut, and dark chocolate-covered cherries along with a burnt turbinado sugar finish to round it all out. At 10% ABV, its brewers note that it’s “incredibly decadent, but cohesive like everyone’s holiday should be,” regardless of how that holiday evening might actually turn out. Triple Crossing has been on a mission lately to refine their recipes and curate them for their final barrel destinations, and this one is definitely a winning batch. Make sure to head out to Fulton for a glass with this beautiful dark khaki head, and taste the product of their careful adjustments of fermentation, finishing gravity, and overall roast characters, all perfectly balanced.

All the Gingerbread Stouts are ready to go for the season, but Hardywood has one more up their sleeves before we say goodbye to 2019. Their Raspberry Stout hits the taps this Saturday at the brewery, just ahead of their New Year’s Eve celebrations.

This award-winning stout comes to us with chocolate malt, cacao nibs, and late-season red raspberries from Hanover’s Agriberry CSA and Farm, according to Hardywood. If you’re looking for something on the heavier side to go along with the big meals of the week, this one’s just right. It’s packed with notes of dark chocolate and raspberry jam, so grab a few bottles from the brewery and give yourself a gift this year to close out your holiday evening with the best from our pals at Hardywood.

The Answer Brewpub has brewed up a few new recipes this week. Kicking off their latest releases is Crispy AF, a traditional American Lager with a twist from The Answer. At 5% ABV, this one’s a great easy drinker for those daytime holiday brews on your days off at home.

They’ve also got Cloudy AF on the taps this week, and this one’s right up my alley. This Citra and Mosaic-brewed Double IPA pours with a nice light orange color and a full head, and it was created to bring out the juiciest flavors of its hops. The Answer says they got their inspiration for this recipe while visiting “the cloudy city of Aberdeen,” and they certainly brought the clouds with them back home to make this one come to life.

Up in Ashland, Center of the Universe is finally releasing this year’s brew of The Jeffrey to the public this Saturday. This one first came out as part of their Big Lebowski-inspired beer packs, if you remember from last week, and it’s available to all starting this weekend.

This extra-special beer has been eagerly-awaited by its brewers for 12 full months now while it aged in Apple Brandy Barrels. It came together as a variation from their El Duderino brew, a White Russian Stout inspired by The Dude himself in all his slacker bathrobe glory. The Jeffrey brings a completely new taste to the original, leaving out the lactose and vanilla beans of El Duderino to swap them for Apple Brandy and cherry notes. At 10.4% ABV, you’ll probably only need one — but it’ll leave you wanting more after you get a taste of its velvety, warm dark-fruit finish along with notes of dry fig, roasted blackberry, black currant, and smaller hints of coffee. Take one home for the holidays in four-packs, or swing by Center of the Universe for a glass of your own, and enjoy this one while it lasts.

If you’re feeling bummed that the holidays are over too soon, don’t fret: Isley Brewing Company is hosting a karaoke and tacky sweater contest the day after Christmas this week to keep the holiday spirit rolling even after it’s technically over.

Put on your tackiest sweater and grab your family and friends, Isley says, to crank up the holiday tunes and drink some delicious beers with the ones you love. There are prizes in it, too, so make sure to pick the tackiest of the tacky from your grandmother’s closet before heading to the brewery for a chance to win a merch bundle from Isley. Don’t forget to register when you get there, and bring your friend with the greatest ability to drink lots of beer — each beer purchased lets attendees cast one vote, so the more you drink, the better chances you’ll have to win.

It’s a great time to head out to Goochland County. For me, that usually means for beautiful drives through the country filled with the pale, open-skies of winter — not only a yearly tradition, but often an every-weekend event as the environment cools down and the colors of the season, like burnt orange, forest green, and deep reds, come out through the woods. The surrounding areas of Richmond are absolutely stunning, and if you need a reason to make the drive out of the city, Kindred Spirit Brewing has one ready for you right here.

Kindred Spirit’s Winter Ale is fresh at the brewery, and this Dark Belgian Ale is nothing short of perfect to pair with the vibe outdoors during this time of year. Brewed with RVA 805, harvested from the Swift Creek Berry Farm, this Winter Ale is packed with warming flavors with toffee, spices, and nuts to pour in a dark chocolate color with a light, dry finish.

A brand-new Double IPA is heading to Ardent Craft Ales this Thursday, named after a well-known street right in their home neighborhood of Scott’s Addition.

Altamont DIPA was brewed with Cashmere and Mosaic hops, two classic hop additions that bring these delicious beers together perfectly every time. At 8% ABV, it’s slightly on the lighter side for this style of brew while bringing out the usually-higher alcohol content of them, so it’s one that DIPA lovers will find just right. As a “soft, hazy treat,” this recipe is full and juicy, with tropical fruit flavors alongside melon and stone fruit.

Two releases are on their way to Väsen Brewing Company this Friday, starting with Wanderlust: a Belgian Pale Ale that took home the winning award from this year’s James River Homebrew Club Dominion Cup as a collaboration beer. Unlike its counterpart Citron Saison, coming out on Friday, Wanderlust brings out toasty malt flavors that come out with more earthy notes from its Vojvodina and Glacier hops. You’ll catch smaller spicy notes in this one before trying their Citra Saison, which releases as a lighter, refreshing Belgian Farmhouse Ale. Citra Saison brings out the honey, and complements Wanderlust with more subtle spice along with Rostov’s Citron Green Tea that features fruits like lemon and lime.

RVA ON TAP: Ugly Sweaters & Gingerbread Holiday Brews

Caley Sturgill | December 4, 2019

Topics: ardent, bars in richmond va, beer, beer column, Center of the Universe, craft beer richmond va, events in richmond va, events near me this weekend, events richmond va, Final Gravity, garden grove, happy hour richmond va, Hardywood, Intermission Beer Company, Lickinghole Creek, richmond events, richmond va, RVA, RVA On Tap, Strangeways Brewing, The Answer, The Veil, things to do in richmond va, things to do richmond va, Väsen

This week, we’re honoring the life of Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery’s Co-Owner, Michael Brandt, and sending our love to their team from all of our Richmond beer family.

We’re also diving into the beginning of holiday events this week, with beer releases from The Answer Brewpub, Hardywood, Center of the Universe, and more, in addition to Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery’s ugly sweater party. The winter beers are in full swing with favorites like Ardent Craft Ales, Väsen Brewing Company, Final Gravity Brewing Co., The Veil Brewing Co., and Intermission Beer Company — plus an 80s throwback party with Strangeways Brewing.

The next Booze Clues live podcast is going down this coming Sunday as well, investigating the how and why of the world’s most “spirited” headlines over at The Hof at 5pm. If you want to make it out for the live recording, this podcast is a blast to listen to — and this is an extra-special Xmas Edition. You can check out their last podcast here, and we’ll see you Sunday for the show!

*PHOTO: Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery*

Before we jump in for the week, we want to take a moment to honor the life of Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery’s Co-Owner, Brewer, and Winemaker, Michael Brandt, who passed suddenly last week. The folks at Garden Grove are a wonderful group of people, and we’re devastated for their loss and the loss of this great brewer who was so dear to our craft beer community. They’ve asked for privacy during this time, and we’re sending all our love to their team as they take their next steps forward. We love you, Garden Grove, and we are so heartbroken for your loss. We wish you all sincerely the best from your beer family here at the magazine.

*PHOTO: Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery*

In holiday event news, it’s time for an ugly sweater party on the farm at Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery. Over the years, ugly Christmas sweater parties have really taken off. I’d speculate it’s from my grandparents’ generation of boomers happily doting themselves in bells, battery-powered lights, cotton balls, and the like, but this weird tradition probably goes back a lot further than my 25-year-old mind would know. Either way, it’s here to stay — so why not celebrate it?

My family all got together for a home-staged photoshoot in our (poorly) handmade sweaters back in high school, set appropriately in the “formal living room” of my grandmother’s house, where no one is allowed to carry a cup of water over the plush, white-carpeted floors. Wine might get you disowned entirely. The entire house is still perfectly intact from when it was built and decorated in 1972, complete with velvet jungle-themed wallpaper, a life-sized painting of a lion in the den, and wood paneled walls to compliment an oversized Christmas tree.

The tree room overlooks the mountains from the top of the hill in my quaint Roanoke town, in a house that looks like a 70s mountain cabin dream where my cousins and I were raised for many, many years with the love of our sweet grandmother. Holiday sweaters will forever take me back to that day, and to the endless days spent on that hillside that I’d give anything to see every day again. There’s no place like home, y’all. So, in the spirit of the holidays, it’s time to get your family traditions out now, too.

The fine folks at Lickinghole Creek have invited us to join their farm’s family this Saturday for their tacky sweater party, with a contest to bring it all together at 5pm. My sweater is long buried (and probably donated to Goodwill by now), but if you’ve got yours packed away, bring them out for the occasion and enjoy Twelfth Night three-pack deals on brews, and live music with Tribus through the evening.

While we were gone for the holiday break, tons of great events and beers came along that we previewed in our Thanksgiving Holiday edition of RVA On Tap. A few more gems were released as well, like The Answer Brewpub’s sixtel of Incognito Browser, pictured above. This one brings in all the deep, rich tastes of classic winter brews with flavors like Creme Brulee coffee, cinnamon, vanilla, and my personal favorite, maple. This one’s a limited edition, so make sure to grab a glass while the pours still last — it won’t be back after it’s gone!

The Answer also dropped two more beers on Black Friday, starting with Hairy Coconuts (what a fantastic name). This 10.5% ABV Imperial Stout is dessert in a can, with Oreo cookies and toasted coconut flavors to bring the chocolate in even after the Thanksgiving sweets leftovers are all gone. Black Doom closed out their releases last week, in a perfect combination of activated charcoal and bright citrus to make this DIPA pour completely black. It’s deceivingly light, according to its brewers, and you can catch these tropical tastes at the brewery this week.

Every year, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery drops some special new variations of their famous Gingerbread Stout, and this year’s no different. If you’re looking for a taste of something new with that classic beloved taste, head over to the brewery this Saturday for the release of their new Triple Barrel GBS and Gingerbread Porter.

The Triple Barrel GBS is not for the faint of heart, as this 13.5% ABV brew comes to us from 11 months in brandy barrels, plus four additional months split between Caribbean rum barrels and A. Smith Bowman bourbon barrels. All together, that means it’s a hard hitter, and you’ll likely only need one (and on a holiday budget, that’s music to our ears!) to get that warm, fuzzy GBS feeling inside.

Gingerbread Porter, on the other hand, brings out a whole new recipe, as a 9.2% ABV Imperial Porter that was brewed with local white ginger and wildflower honey. As a bonus, it’s lactose-free, so it’s an easy drinker for those with a restricted diet.

In more news at Hardywood, the brewery recently started a new video series called Dads on Beer. Their latest video features Hardywood’s Hank and Skip breaking down the Kentucky Christmas Morning GBS beer, which, if you remember from a couple weeks back, is a variation of their Christmas-spiced recipe with Kentucky’s own Heaven Hills Bourbon. It’s a really fun series, so keep your eyes peeled for more on the horizon.

It’s back! The Jesus Mexican Hot Chocolate Imperial Stout has returned to Center of the Universe Brewing in Ashland, and this is one you surely won’t want to miss. The crowd favorite marries the sweet to the spicy, with cayenne peppers, cinnamon, and a dash of vanilla bringing this Mexican Hot Chocolate to life in a brew.

The divine libation is perfect for “polishing balls and talking smack before the semis,” according to Center of the Universe, and they say this is a “no bush league, psych-out brew, because nobody………. with The Jesus!”

The 11.4% ABV stout is in a good middle range of alcohol content for stouts, and it’s packed with chocolate, ganache, and holiday spices to complement its Belgian Dark Candi syrup, cinnamon, and habanero pepper. It’s meant to warm its drinkers with the heat from its peppers, and glide over the tongue “like silk” in its deliciously spicy finish. You can grab a glass of your own at Center of the Universe this Saturday at its release party, with the Freekin’ Rican Puerto Rican food truck and live music to accompany it.

Black Friday Maple Dark Rye is fresh at Ardent Craft Ales, and this series of brews is full of great variations. Maple is the latest flavor in their releases, as a new recipe derived from their Dark Rye Imperial Stout. You’ll catch flavors of barrel-aged maple syrup along with vanilla and toffee in this one, and the 11.8% ABV brew comes from their year-long maple syrup barrel-aged classic with a roasted rye base.

Next up at Ardent is their Winter American Sour Ale, which you can catch a taste of tomorrow night at the brewery. This brew features a blend of wine barrel flavors in a “funky, farmhouse saison” that was aged for nine months in both red and white wine barrels (so if you love both tastes, you won’t have to pick). According to its brewers, Winter American Sour Ale is a complex beer with restrained acidity, and it hits in at 7% ABV with 36 IBU.

Väsen Brewing Company brought out a couple new releases recently, starting with Norse Double IPA. It’s my favorite type of beer (as you all probably know by now), and this double-dry-hopped DIPA came together with Citra, Mosaic, and Amarillo hops. These are great drinkers for any season of the year, but on these colder nights, this specific beer’s fruit flavors of grapefruit, tangerine, and pine are a refreshing blend of summer and winter.

Apricot Sour also made its debut over the weekend, with hundreds of pounds of apricot to ensure it doesn’t miss an inch of flavor. The Black Friday brew helped us hide away from the craziness of post-Thanksgiving shopping, and it’s here still to get you through the rest of the holiday season. According to its brewers, Apricot Sour is a bright, funky sour, and it’s packed with strawberry, tangerine, and subtle floral notes along with its brown sugar additions.

Another delicious DIPA is here with Final Gravity Brewing Co.’s My Shangri-La, the product of dry-hopped Citra and Cashmere hops. This Hazy DIPA is definitely on my list this week, and along with it, Final Gravity also has more new flavors on tap. Ancient Mariner Gose is out in Pomegranate and Pineapple Passionfruit, which means our brewery friends are missing the flavors of summer a bit like we are. It may be the best time of year for food, but while we’re not short on great beer releases lately, it’s refreshing to see these evergreen flavors still coming out fresh.

Last week, Stone Brewing Richmond celebrated the nice November weather with their Stone Winter Harvest Triple. In addition to having their collab Stone Saison Du Buff with Dogfish Head and Victory Brewing Company out for tastes, they tapped this keg to bring out the wine-infused recipe. Winter Harvest Triple was barrel-aged in white wine barrels after being brewed with red wine grapes from South Coast Winery, plus four strains of Brettanomyces yeast. It’s “dangerously drinkable,” according to its brewers, at 10.7% ABV — so make sure to sip slowly on this one when you swing by the brewery for a glass of your own.

Canon & Draw Brewing Company brought out the Thanksgiving goodness with their Stroopwafels over the weekend. This Just A Small Piece Sweet Potato Pie Milk Stout, a classic holiday-flavored brew, was infused into waffles with the folks at Campus Waffle RVA.

The finished product is a delicious combination of cakey desserts and stout beer, all wrapped up into pumpkin spice Stroopwafels to bring the local drinkers and foodies together in the perfect mix.

Out at The Veil Brewing Co., another great multi-release came out last night. They’ve got five brews ready to go this time around, starting with Never Never Again Again (pictured above). This recipe is a double-fruited raspberry Gose, bright as can be in color and just as rich in flavor. At 5.1% ABV, it keeps it simple and makes for a very easy drinker.

Master Shredder, a Mosaic-forward IPA, was up next. It’s another lower-ABV beer at 5.5%, and it’s also a classic from the brewery, according to The Veil. Master Shredder is out right now for the last time in printed cans, so if you’re looking to grab a piece of history from your favorite brewery, now’s your chance.

?? followed, and as my favorite in the list, it’s a double dry-hopped Triple IPA. It was originally brewed with all Citra hops, then dry-hopped with Galaxy, Enigma, BRU-1, Motueka, and Citra again in its dry-hop process — a perfect Citra-forward TIPA for those of us who lean more towards an 11% ABV brew like this one.

Don’t Move is a fresh addition to The Veil’s ever-growing list, and it’s a nicely orange-colored DIPA that comes to us from Galaxy, Mosaic, Idaho 7, and Nelson hops. It hits in at 8% ABV, and it’s available in 4-packs as well.

They is fifth on the bill from the night. Outside the IPA family, this lager recipe was step-mashed with raw wheat before being hopped with its Perle and El Dorado hops. It’s another lower-ABV beer on the list at 5%, making it a great pour for any day of the week.

Over at Intermission Beer Company, Winter Warmer is here to cozy up these chilly days. The recipe this year just dropped over the weekend, and it was inspired by a friend of the brewery. Kate’s Ginger Molasses Cookie brought the flavors of this beer to life — full of vanilla, clove, and ginger — to have a 9.3% ABV in a nicely-balanced holiday brew.

Strangeways Brewing has a great event for us this week with their 80s Flashback Dance Party coming up this Friday. I recently spent a great evening in Carytown at a spot playing almost exclusively 80s music, and this next one will be a blast as well. Strangeways is inviting us all to bring out our 80s attire and “take the party back to the greatest decade,” with dances and clothing from The Moonwalk and The Sprinkler to big hair, headbands, leotards and ripped jeans. If you’re ready to relive the glory days, Strangeways is looking for you.

RVA On Tap: Thanksgiving Holiday Edition

Caley Sturgill | November 20, 2019

Topics: beer, beer column, booze news, Canon And Draw, Center of the Universe, craft beer, dark daze, final gravity brewing co, gbs, gingerbread stout, Hardywood, holiday, holiday beer, holidays, Isley Brewing Company, Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery, local beer, RVA On Tap, Starr Hill, Steam Bell Beer Works, Stone Brewing-Richmond, Thanksgiving, thanksgiving eve party, the answer brewpub, The Veil, Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, Triple Crossing Beer, winter

This week, we’re gearing up for Thanksgiving and diving into events and beer releases from today through the holiday (so get your beer plans early, and make sure a few of these special brews make it on your calendar!) — plus plenty of celebrations and new beers all around town.

In our Booze News Holiday Edition, The Answer Brewpub kicks off Black Friday with re-releases of old favorites, plus Dark Daze beer releases with The Veil Brewing Co. and Center of the Universe’s SHUT UP beer for your holiday family woes. Hardywood drops their spicy-GBS Christmas Morning next week, and Steam Bell Beer Works has a Raspberry Tiramisu Stout up their sleeves. Don’t miss Rudolph The Red Ale Reinbeer from Isley Brewing Company, Thanksgiving Eve at Canon & Draw, Triple Crossing Beer’s Christmas market, and more with Stone Brewing Richmond, Lickinghole Creek, Final Gravity, and Three Notch’d RVA Collab House.

Kicking off our holiday events is the upcoming Black Friday at The Answer Brewpub. I don’t know about you, but Black Friday in my household is a time of avoiding the outdoors, staying in with the people I love, and waiting for Cyber Monday. But this year is different, because The Answer gave us something to have the best of both worlds.

Head over to the brewery next Friday (Nov 29) to kick it with your Answer family, enjoying all the excitement of Black Friday without all the stress. The Answer will have celebratory releases throughout the day, like bringing back some of their favorite stout recipes from their library and hosting two new glass releases. You’ll be able to grab the glass in the photo above, along with another special glass and a special beer release that you’ll find at the event.

Some of our favorite recipes will be back out for the event, with taps from The Answer like Bill Better Have My Money, Diablo Forever, At The Beginning Of The Day, Shrinkage, Jinxy Cat, and Fam Gotta Eat. See you there!

On the eve of Thanksgiving, something most delicious is returning to Steam Bell Beer Works: a Raspberry Tiramisu Stout. As far as raspberries and Thanksgiving go, I will never not associate this holiday with the fruit, thanks to years of my beautiful mother making her raspberry crumble each November.

The darker-tasting fruit is perfect for this time of year, with tangy, bold flavors that complement all the tastes of Thanksgiving. After all my dessert ramblings, if you think my dessert-crazed family should consult our dentists about our sweet tooth issues, you’re probably right. But if you want all the goodness of those treats without all the sugar, this brew is for you: Raspberry Tiramisu Stout brings the best of the chocolatey, raspberry-packed flavors together with beer. Grab your glass at the brewery on Thanksgiving Eve (Nov 27) and don’t miss music from the Pat Russell Band and eats with the Firesides Food Truck.

This week at Hardywood (Nov 23), the brewery is “recreating the best morning of the year” with Christmas Morning, a variation of their Gingerbread Stout with locally-roasted Mexican Chiapas Coffee. This brew, along with its many siblings, has been awarded time and time again for its exceptional tastes and named one of the Top 25 Milk Stouts in the world (BeerAdvocate).

All that’s to say: you need a taste of this beer. Christmas Morning is probably my favorite recipe along with Christmas Pancakes, and both of them bring out the best for sweet and spicy lovers. The same day, they’re hosting their GBS Fest (Nov 23) with all-things holiday and tastes from all their variations (tickets are here for the beer tasting panel). They’ll also have Christmas events like holiday carolers, Santa pictures, Santa’s Village activities (with gingerbread house decorating!) and many more — so if you’ve been looking for a place to get your holiday on while avoiding the mall, Hardywood’s got you covered.

Also coming up at Hardywood, Saturday (Nov 30) is the release of Kentucky Christmas Morning, a Mexican Chiapas Coffee-spiced GBS brew with an extra kick from Kentucky’s own Heaven Hills bourbon barrels (and it hits in at 11.5% ABV).

We’ve been waiting all year for it, and it’s finally here! Starr Hill has finally set an opening date (Dec 7) for their Scott’s Addition Rooftop location.

It’s still a ways away, but soon enough that you can start planning to include it on your calendar. December 7 is the official opening day, and for the occasion, they’ll have plenty of their best brews along with music from the NO BS! Brass Band, Erin Lunsford, The Northerners Duo, and Addison Liming Music. You’ll also get to catch great food from Taqueria Panchito (a bigtime local favorite this year) and Curry in a Hurry.

Jumping back to Black Friday, Center of the Universe Brewing has a beer release and party you won’t want to miss. The Shut Up Imperial Stout, aged in bourbon barrels, debuts on November 29 to put all those Thanksgiving family arguments to rest.

“It’s that time of year again,” Center of the Universe says. “The family is in town… Awkward conversations… Random tiffs… and lots, and lots of noise. Time to take a minute for yourself, and take down a tall glass of SHUT UP!”

If it ain’t true. As much as we all enjoy seeing our loved ones each holiday season, *good lord* it can be stressful. Nothing like a little reunion in your hometown to remind you why you moved away, right? But fortunately for me, the good usually outweighs the bad. Whether you enjoy spending time with your relatives or you want to whip out the roll of duct tape when they start preaching about Trump, the 11.5% ABV content of this brew is probably enough to ease your mind. Godspeed, y’all.

Rudolph The Red Ale Reinbeer is heading to Isley Brewing Company this Saturday (Nov 23) in all its Christmas-themed glory.

The 5% ABV brew is nice and low, so it’s drinkable throughout the day (what else are holidays for?) and it’s packed with some great flavors. The cranberry-cinnamon Irish Red Ale brings the traditional Red Ale in, then balances it perfectly with warm cinnamon, fresh cranberry puree, and winter spices along with caramel. It sits right in the middle between sweet and hoppy, and with its deep, red copper color, it’s “the perfect treat for your winter woes!” according to Isley.

You’ll be able to grab this beer on draft at Isley this month, but if you want to take a pack home with you for the family gatherings, they’ve got to-go bottles available as well.

The Veil Brewing Co. has a long-awaited special event coming back for the holiday week. Dark Daze hits The Veil on (Nov 29) with more than 15 beer releases to get you through the holiday without getting stuck in any of the crowds.

First up on my list is Rye Whangdoodle (pictured above), an Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout that was aged in Buffalo Trace Rye Barrels for more than a year. Along with plenty of others, you’ll catch Rye Whangdoodle at the event in all its toffee, root beer float, chocolate-covered waffles, and sundae chocolate syrup glory… and you’ll probably only need one, because this guy hits in at 11.5% ABV. Around the holidays, it’s a good problem to have when you only need one craft beer — we’re all going easy on our wallets this month, anyway.

Other delicious brews releasing this Dark Daze include Bourbon Misery Wizard (an 18th Street Brewery Imperial Porter collab), Apple Brandy Stout (with vanilla, maple syrup, and cinnamon in Laird’s Apple Brandy Barrels), Ded Mon³ (the Citra triple-dry hopped 11% ABV Triple IPA), Bourbon Sleeping Forever (the 13% ABV Anniversary Imperial Stout), Bourbon White Russian Horns (a coffee and vanilla Bourbon Chocolate Milk Stout), Maple Apple Brandy Whangdoodle (the Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout with two rounds of Michigan maple syrup), and plenty more to fill all your holiday taste desires.

It’s Thanksgiving Eve at Canon & Draw Brewing Company! These guys have been consistently releasing some of the most delicious-sounding beers each week the past few months, and I’m more than impressed with them. In that spirit, I know their Thanksgiving bash will be one worth attending.

The event is going down next Wednesday (Nov 27) and they’ll have one of my personal local favorites out for music: Justin Golden. If you haven’t listened to his stuff, I can tell you that it’s extra-good in person. He played the first-ever River City Revue a few weeks back, and I saw him again opening for Tim Barry over last weekend (always a great time). Along with great tunes, Canon & Draw will be bringing back their original-recipe Milk Stout from their Just A Small Piece series, the Sweet Potato Pie recipe.

Out at Stone Brewing Richmond, Enjoy By 01.01.20 Unfiltered IPA is debuting this Friday (Nov 22) to pack in all the end-of-year tastes you’ll need this season with the most extreme freshness.

Unlike most beers, Stone’s Enjoy By series are unfiltered, meaning they have to be opened by a certain date to boost their freshness and bursting hop flavors. I’ve tried a similar brew at The Answer before, and it came with a warning from the waitstaff not to let it get too shaken up or too hot in my car on the way home (if that doesn’t say fresh, I don’t know what is).

Stone’s brew comes to us as a “golden beauty,” according to its brewers, with the intense Double IPA coming from more than 10 different hops. They’ve got the ultimate level of freshness nailed down, and this beer is packed with peach and tropical fruit flavors to make one of the best brews of the season… just make sure you drink it before it ends.

Winter is Coming: and that means awesome holiday festivities out at the farm at Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery. If you’re in the market for seeing Santa without going to the mall, this might just be perfect for you. The event is happening next Saturday (Nov 30), with Christmas tree vendors and awesome stout beers to keep you warm all winter.

Before you get in the Christmas spirit too much, though, don’t forget Brews-Giving. Lickinghole Creek is hosting it this Saturday (Nov 23), as a day to give thanks — especially to local first responders and charities. They’ll have plenty of good eats, plus a toy and clothing drive to help local organizations.

In the spirit of Christmas, if I could have anything I asked for, I think Final Gravity Brewing Co.’s ‘69 Plymouth Superbird could definitely make the list [even though the Superbird didn’t actually come out til 1970 -car nerd ed]. But for those of us who have antique muscle car dreams on a 2001 Ford budget, the brewery’s beer commemorating this vintage beauty will certainly do.

‘69 Superbird debuts at Final Gravity this Friday (Nov 22), and it came together with Azacca, El Dorado, and Citra hops to make the 8% ABV brew. You’ll taste tropical flavors with citrus and stone fruit in this one, and this hazy Double IPA is right up my alley with all the flavor of the hops, higher alcohol content, and minimal bitterness.

It’s (unfortunately) time to start shopping for the holiday season, which means busy malls and long lines for many of us. I’m hard-avoiding all that, as I do every year, but for those of you who can’t — here’s an idea you might like.

Get your shopping in with a beer at Triple Crossing next Saturday (Nov 30), and visit their Fulton Christmas Market. They’ll have tons of great local vendors out for the occasion, and everyone will be set up in a one-stop shop fashion in Triple Crossing’s indoor event space. They’ll be announcing their full list of vendors soon, so make sure to check back at their event page in a week or so and see who’s going to be in attendance.

Thanksgiving season also means football season, and Three Notch’d RVA Collab House is here for it! For all of the football fans out there, we know that the beer budget this time of year often grows exponentially for all those Sunday get-togethers among friends. If you’re looking for a place where you can enjoy a good beer and ditch the Miller Lite during the game without breaking the bank, head over to Three Notch’d for discounted brews. They’ve got deals running on all their drafts to celebrate America’s favorite sport, so drink happy (and we hope your team wins).

RVA On Tap: Bourbon Barrel GBS & Mint Chocolate Chip Beer

Caley Sturgill | November 6, 2019

Topics: Ardent craft ales, beer, beer column, Castleburg Brewery, Center of the Universe, craft beer, Hardywood, RVA On Tap, Steam Bell Beer Works, Strangeways Brewing, The Veil Brewing Co., thrashgiving, Triple Crossing Beer, Väsen

This week, Strangeways Brewing hosts Thrashgiving, a benefit show that brings the best beer together with local metal music. We’ve also (finally!) got the return of Hardywood Park Craft Brewery’s Bourbon Barrel Gingerbread Stout, and Väsen Brewing Company makes the perfection of mint chocolate chip ice cream into a beer. Don’t miss Center of the Universe’s Pickled and Fermented Festival in Ashland and Triple Crossing Beer’s Covenant Beer Fest, plus new releases with Ardent Craft Ales, Steam Bell Beer Works, Castleburg Brewery, and The Veil Brewing Co.

Not only does the start of the holiday season mean more good food, it always means lots of awesome shows and events in Richmond. That’s especially true this year, as we kick off November with Thrashgiving at Strangeways Brewing: the 4th annual metal show hosted to benefit military families, wounded veterans, and our local food bank.

Thrashgiving gears up this Saturday evening at the Scott’s Addition spot, with tons of great bands on the lineup. You’ll get to catch Vulcanite, Genosha, The New Mutiny, LAIR, Murdersome, Alluvion, Site of Suffering, Cut The Architect’s Hand, Sentius, and more — and all alongside great craft beer to drink for a cause.

The organization behind the show is Operation Finally Home, which you can donate to here if you’re unable to make it out. The organization helps families with mortgage-free homes for wounded veterans and service members, and the event is also hosting a food drive, suggesting folks bring canned goods along with them. There’s a full list of acceptable donations on the event page, so if you make it out, try to bring along some contributions if you can (bonus: you’ll get half-off ticket prices if you do).

Times like these are when Richmond’s foodie culture really shines. Center of the Universe Brewing is hosting their 4th annual Pickled & Fermented Festival this Saturday, and it’s packed with a lot more pickling than you’d expect.

From fruit to veggies, hot sauce to kimchi, and beer to kombucha, the hands behind these dishes and drinks aren’t afraid to try something new… and as COTU says, the festival is a Pretty Big Dill (nice). They’ll have specialty vinegars, sauerkraut, sweet pickles, savory pickles, Dill Pickles, bread and butter pickles, kimchi, kombucha, shrubs, kefir, sourdough bread, and relishes like Chow-Chow, Pickle Relish, Chutney, and Piccadilly. If all that’s not enough of a mouthful for you, you’ll also be able to try COTU’s pickles, made in-house with their very own beer.

They’ll also have live music from Buckville Hootenanny on deck (with an original Pickle Opera, Dr. Pickeloptepus), food trucks, craft vendors, face painting and more — plus the most important part, the beer! COTU is bringing back their Pickled Gose Ale for the festival, and it doesn’t disappoint.

Check out their event page for a full list of vendors, and we’ve got a special S/O to Richmond’s beloved artist RVA Coffee Stain for drawing up these awesome posters.

Of all the Gingerbread Stout variations in all the taps around the land, I think it’s safe to say Hardywood’s Bourbon Barrel GBS is one of the most favorite brews out there.

It’s making its return to Hardywood this Sunday, and it’s cause for celebration. The 11.5% ABV stout is full, rich, and packed with all the tastes of the season, with an extra punch from its time in bourbon barrels. This recipe came together by taking the original GBS batch and aging it in a combination of both A. Smith Bowman (Virginia’s oldest distillery) and Heaven Hills Bourbon barrels. If you haven’t been able to tell from the buzz around town and excited gasps from your friends at bars (“What?! Bourbon GBS is back!”) every November when it returns, this beer is well-loved in the River City.

It’s also got a 2017 Gold Medal and title as one of the Top 20 Milk Stouts in the World to its name, so you’ll want to head out this weekend and grab a taste before the city drinks it all away.

The Covenant returns to Triple Crossing Beer this Saturday. The Fulton brewery is bringing back its Covenant Beer Fest, and with it are world-class brewers making their way to Richmond.

The event goes through the day from 11am-5pm, with options for VIP session tickets and glassware available as well. Get these here ahead of time, because they’re not selling VIP the day of the event! They’ll have all the best Triple Crossing brews out for pours, plus beers from other great breweries we don’t see too often. Five tickets gets you a custom Gold Foiled Covenant Glass, and if you end up with too many tickets for the festival, you can always redeem them for pours of Triple Crossing beers on regular draft that day.

Participating breweries include: Angry Chair Brewing, Bellwoods Brewery, Brasserie Dunham, Brew Gentlemen, Burial Beer Co., Casita, Charles Towne Fermentory, Creature Comforts, Dancing Gnome Beer, Equilibrium Brewery, Foam Brewers, Great Notion Brewing, Grimm Artisanal Ales, Horus Aged Ales, Resident Culture Brewing Company, and Schilling Beer Co.

Get ready to head over to Ardent Craft Ales for their Helles Lager release tomorrow night. Ardent’s keeping the German beer theme going well into the fall season, introducing more brews like the Oktoberfest recipes we saw all through last month and even in late September.

Helles Lager is a Munich-style beer brewed with all German malt and hops before being lagered for more than a month. This 4.5% ABV beer is the full-bodied, pale-lager result of the process. It comes together with a mild, malty sweetness and a balanced hop taste to complement its golden straw pour color with a full head.

Here’s one for our dessert lovers (myself included): our friends at Väsen Brewing Company figured out how to make the perfection of mint chocolate chip ice cream into a beer. Velvet Walrus on Vanilla and Mint debuted in the tasting room earlier this week to truly make my dreams come true.

With a deep chocolate and mint flavor, this smooth, dark ale is balanced by the “unmistakable” aroma of fresh Madagascar vanilla beans, according to its brewers — and I can’t wait to get a glass of it for myself.

This Friday, Steam Bell Beer Works has a double release planned for the taps. In true white-girl-in-the-fall spirit, they’ve created a masterpiece that marries all the best parts of Pumpkin Spice Lattes with beer.

I hope by now everyone has learned that people can enjoy things without being made fun of for it, and that anyone (not just white girls) can get behind the awesome flavors of fall spices. Steam Bell’s latest P.S.L. brings it to a new audience of drinkers, and this Amber Ale was conditioned on all the spices of autumn.

Extra Plenty Autumn Gose is also debuting, and it’s the next variation in their Extra Plenty series. This recipe was brewed and conditioned with orange peel and cinnamon for the perfect rounded out fall flavor — so, as Steam Bell says, “Strap on your fur-lined boots and throw on the fleece, you aren’t going to miss this release!”

Last night, The Veil Brewing Co. did what they do best every week: release a plethora of beers all in one day that sound delicious.

Never Never Catch Me Catch Me debuted for the first time last night, and this brand-new Gose was brewed with double watermelon and double lime to come together in a perfectly-low 5.1% ABV for an easy drinker. whitemiata, a crowd favorite, returned in all its Galaxy and Citra glory — and the luxuriously-hopped 6% ABV beer is a dream of an IPA.

Heavier debuted for the first time as well, with oats and raw wheat in addition to its Galaxy, Citra, El Dorado, Simcoe, BRU-1, and Mosaic hop combinations. It’s higher than the others so far at 10% ABV, and the Triple IPA sounds like all my favorite things in a beer wrapped up in one glass.

The Veil hosted two more brand new beers, starting with Burn, its Notch Brewing collab made during the brewery’s visit a while back to The Veil’s Forever Summer Festival that ended the season with a bang. Burn was made with floor-malted wheat, a traditional decoction mash process, smoked wheat, and fresh Saaz with aged whole-leaf hops. After cold-conditioning it for two months, Burn finally got ready for its release this week at 5% ABV.

Sincere finished up the releases, and the farmhouse-inspired beer brings out some great earthy flavors with its oak-fermented process. The IPA was dry-hopped with Citra and Mosaic hops to come in at a nice 6% ABV.

Over the weekend, Castleburg Brewery and Taproom made a great tribute to the season: Symphony of the Knight Stout. This brand-new stout is packed with dark, bitter chocolate and roasted coffee flavors, and with a full body, it’s nice to see that it comes in low at 4.9% ABV so it’s acceptable to drink a few. Usually these stouts hit high, and one of them is enough for anyone, but finally we’ve got an opportunity to have a couple (remind me of this on Thanksgiving, for real).

As Castleburg says, “You’ve been hard at work slaying vampires with nothing but your whip and some holy water that you got from that weird priest. It’s time to kick back and relax with a delicious beer.” Ain’t it always?