No baby goats were harmed in the tasting of this beer.
Celebrator is a classic example of a Doppelboch. "boch" is German for goat and traditionally these beers are brewed before Christmas. Whats the astrological sign in December again? Ohh yes, its a goat. How cool! To aid in the tasting, and to lend an air of sophistication I have procured a baby goat for this tasting.
The beer is beautiful. A dark amber color with a thick bullet proof head of a cream/tan color. The nose is amazing as well. Brown sugar, caramel and a bit of fruitiness like an apple.
It has a nice full body and the taste follows the nose-- though I was not able to pick up any apple flavor and the aroma subsided as the beer warmed.
This beer goes great with BBQ, I had a couple of Earl Campbell's with mine. At 6.5%, celebrate with respect!
Three Tiered System
Most people walk into a grocery store or bar, buy a beer, take it home and never think any more of the transaction. But where does that beer come from? The brewery right? That's why you see all those giant beer trucks running around. Wrong.
At the end of prohibition in 1935 the TABC was established to make sure that gangsters would never use alcohol as a way to leverage the little man into debt and then into a life of crime. There was a lot more that went into the thinking I'm sure but protecting shop keepers is specifically mentioned in the code in an aside.
The TABC decided that the best way to protect us was to create the Three-Tiered System(here on TTS). TTS separates Manufacturers, Wholesalers and Retailers in to three completely separate groups that may not overlap in ownership, duties or functions.
For example, a Brewer is allowed to brew beer but not sell it. A wholesaler can sell beer to a retailer but not to the ultimate consumer. A retailer can sell be to the ultimate consumer but can not produce beer.
There are exceptions, for example brewpubs and the ability of small breweries to self-distribute. But for the most part, TTS must maintain a separation.
Supposedly, some nefarious individuals were making hooch themselves then turning around and delievering it on credit to a barkeep. The barkeep must have been a bad business man because A) he was dealing with gangsters B) he went into debt and C) he couldn't pay his bills! Nonetheless, the nefarious gangsters supposedly would come back with "an offer" the barkeep "couldn't refuse" i.e. wheel and deal our drugs and guns and hookers or we will shoot your face off!
It gets dense from here, but I think we have made some solid headway. Share this with your friends and stay tuned for more info on the state of Texas Beer! It is a really important time for beer and the only way to make change is to band together.
Until next time...
No comments:
Post a Comment