Brewtiful

As many remember, Mikkel Bjergso of Mikkeller came to Texas last November for Houston and Dallas Beer Week. He brought two friends with him- Thomas Schøn and Jakob Mielcke. Thomas has worked in brewing/marketing with Mikkeller for four years, and Jakob is a head chef at the critically acclaimed Mielcke & Hurtigkarl restaurant in Copenhagen.

When they weren’t speaking or signing bottles at Beer Week events, they had a great time eating real Mexican tacos and firing pistols at a local gun range with Jay in Houston. What we didn’t know at the time was that the Mikkeller folks had planned a beer festival.  During Beer Week, tickets to their Copenhagen Beer Celebration sold out.  If you’re not familiar with the event, don’t feel bad, we weren’t either at the time.  Mikkel was kind enough to invite us to the festival, so we visited Denmark last weekend to check out both the beer festival and the local craft beer community.

As it happens, there is already a Copenhagen Beer Festival, which is in its 12^th year.  Although this festival does feature a wide array of Danish beers, Mikkel and his team decided to host their own festival, featuring 25 of their favorite breweries from around the world. The first annual Copenhagen Beer Celebration was born. Here’s a list of the incredible breweries that attended.

• AmagerBryghus
• Baird Brewing
• Beachwood BBQ and Brewing
• Brewdog
• Brodie’s Beers
• Brouwerij de Molen
• Cigar City
• Croocked Moon (yes, that’s spelled correctly)
• De Struise Brouwers
• Dieu Du Ciel!
• Evil Twin Brewing
• Fanø Bryghus
• Farmers Cabinet
• Hoppin Frog
• Jolly Pumpkin
• The Kernel
• Lost Abbey/Port Brewing
• Mikkeller
• Nøgne Ø
• Stillwater Artisanal Ales
• Three Floyds
• To Øl
• Uncommon Brewers
• Westbrook Brewing
• Xbeeriment

For those familiar with some or most of these breweries, you can see that this is a groundbreaking event in the world of craft beer- the first time breweries of this caliber have been available in one place at one time.

Of course, we had another motive for this trip.  Of all of the breweries above, none are available in Texas, with the exception of Mikkeller. (Mikkeller beers are only available in Texas due to a lot of hard work from the small Massachusetts- based importer Shelton Brothers.)

As many of you may know, Live It Big hosts a quarterly Camp Beer series which provides tastings of beers that usually can’t be found in Texas. Thanks to private donations from our team of Camp Beer “Beerslingers”, we are able to provide tastings to groups of 60.  Therefore, our secondary motive for this trip was to find lots of rare beer for these tastings.  

We ended up with so many great pictures that we couldn’t include them all in this post, so they are in a gallery at the bottom of this article.  Check them out as there are some great shots. 

Ølbutikken

Aside from the CBC, we were very excited to visit Mikkeller Bar, and though we wanted to stop there first, we decided it would be better if we hit up the beer shops before the festival crowd picked through the good stuff.  Our first stop was Ølbutikken (roughly translated as “Bottle Shop”). Though it was a small shop, their selection was 100% quality.  There wasn’t a single mediocre beer in the store. We picked up a great selection of Cantillon, and a few others, including a rare bomber of Mikkeller/Cigar City “Swinging Harry Tropical Quad” collaboration.  As much as we wanted to go crazy in there, our capacity to ship back was limited, so we fought to restrain ourselves. 

Mikkeller Bar/The Office

Following our shopping excursion, we headed straight for Mikkeller Bar.  Designed by Femmes Regionales, this underground bar was like nothing we’d seen before. It was tough to get interior photos of the place, since it was crowded due to the scores of beer fans in town for the Copenhagen Beer Celebration. The glassware is hung on racks on the ceiling, and small cabinets and drawers adorn unusual places on the wall.  The walls displayed the original drawings from Keith Shore, the Philadelphia-based artist who designs Mikkeller’s beer labels, as well as several McSweeney’s book covers.  The bar was packed for the entirety of our stay, similar to stopping by Denver’s Falling Rock while GABF is in town.

Mikkel himself stopped by, and we met their lovely intern Irina Carlén. Irina has been working on the CBC for several months after meeting Mikkel at the Stockholm Beer & Whiskey Festival.  (which, btw, sounds like more fun than I can probably take.) Mikkel showed us the beer cooler/bottle room at the bar, stocked with rare kegs and bottles. As you can see, there are some really nice bottles here.  

After sampling a multitude of beers, Irina walked us over to the nearby Mikkeller office down the street, where we saw a wall of bottles we’re still trying to wrap our heads around (there is a picture of it at the bottom of this post). It was great to meet Keith Shore and some of the other members of the Mikkeller team. Chef Jakob Mielcke also stopped by, and it was interesting to hear his plans for throwing a beer dinner for over 1,000 guests over the next two days at the CBC. As Thomas Schon told us back in November, “Noma in Copenhagen is widely regarded as the greatest restaurant in the world. If that’s true, Mielcke & Hurtigkarl is number two.” (Mikkeller also brews Noma’s house beer.)

The Day Before: Sour & Bitter Dinner

Months before, we had purchased tickets to a three-course “Sour and Bitter” beer dinner organized by Drikkeriget, a Danish import company owned by Jeppe Jarnit Bjergsø, Mikkkeller’s identical twin (also of Evil Twin Brewing). Ticket sales were limited to 250 people. Other than the dinner itself, there were extremely rare beers available such as 3 Fonteinen Malvasia Rosso, 4 Year Lambic and Millenium Geuze. The event took place in a warehouse in an industrial district way out of town.  In addition, there were several breweries to sample from the US, including Jolly Pumpkin, Pizza Port, Lost Abbey/Port Brewing, and The Bruery.  Although we were seeking Danish and Belgium samples we hadn’t tried before, the Danish locals largely lined up to try the American beers. Unfortunately, we were having such a great time with the Mikkeller crew earlier that day, we arrived late to the dinner after the food was gone.  The beer was still there, so we were just fine.

At the end of the night, they announced that the 3 Fonteinen “to go” beers would be sold.  We were in a huge line of people to buy the Armand Four Seasons – four beers blended over four days by the legendary Armand Debelder from the last 50 barrels of one, two and three year old lambic.  Lines piled up outside of the warehouse, and the bottles were sold out of vans. We each had a ticket that allowed us to purchase Framboose bottles, but the sale of other bottles were only limited to how much room we had to ship the beers back home. After buying these rare beers, and waiting for a cab next to a stack of it, we felt a little guilty in front of the locals.  However, we knew that these were all going to Camp Beer and would be spread out among 60 Texas beer aficionados in the order of two ounce tastings.  You lucky dogs!

The Copenhagen Beer Celebration

The next day, we eagerly wended our way to the Copenhagen Beer Celebration.  This was a two day event, and the first of its kind. The event had been sold out for over five months, so everyone there was thrilled to finally walk through the front doors. CBC took place at Sparta, a stadium outside of a historic running track. All 25 breweries were listed in a well-designed printed program, and each brewery featured an entirely different beer selection on Friday and Saturday for maximum beer nerdery .

There were a series of tables on one end of the stadium, so bloggers and aficionados could sit down and take notes on the multitude of beers available. As the organizers intended, it was a well behaved crowd of true beer fans, with short lines and plenty of tastings for all in attendance.  This was an extremely studious audience.  Many attendees brought computers and would (in groups) get several samples, then sit discussing them at length as they took copious notes.

It would be impossible (and probably boring) to go through every beer or even every brewery that was at the CBC — there were just too many to try for one such as me.  So here are a few highlights.

De Struise might have been the darling of the event.  They had around 30 beers available both days, and so drew quite a crowd. Their setup was different than the other breweries- they had an outside trailer that held all 30 taps of beer, which was quite an engineering feat.  These were all outstanding beers, and the guys pouring the beers were definitely hams as they sang songs while filling the sample glasses. No idea if they were singing in Danish, Flemish, German, or French, but it was fun to listen to.  Their special favorite was evident as they would burst into a raucous song anytime someone ordered the 2008 Rio Reserva, a Belgian dark golden blond quadrupel - a beer definitely worth singing about. Also on hand was Dirty Horse 1983, Pannepot Special Reserve 2008, and Tsjeeses Reserva 2009 — and those are just a FEW of the 30 beers they had.  It was easy to see why they had some of the longest lines of the event.

Fanø Bryghus was another popular booth, and their Tuff Ghost Wild Ale (collaboration with Tired Hands) was one of my all-time favorites at the festival. They also had a spicy beer called Chocolate Lava that was brewed with habanero, chipotle, coffee and chocolate.  Fanø brewmaster Ryan Witter-Merithew was in attendance, drawing a large crowd of bloggers and a video crew to chronicle the shaving of his epic beard (and hair and even eyebrows), which raised $3,300 for the Pints for Prostates charity.  Way to go, Ryan!!

Ohio’s Hoppin’ Frog unsurprisingly brought a frenzy of fans. Brewmaster Fred Karm was pouring beers and fielding questions. We have been on a mission to bring Hoppin’ Frog (and several other beers) to Texas over the last few years, and I relayed some of the progress Texas has made recently due to the Jester King/Authentic Bev vs TABC suit since we last spoke at GABF. Fred explained that labeling issues were one of the big obstacles keeping Hoppin’ Frog out of Texas (other than production size), so this conversation was definitely a step in the right direction.

Mikkeller had an incredible selection of unusual beers. Notables include the Royal Rye Wine, a collaboration with Baltika and Jacobsen, that was brewed for the Queen of Denmark. There was a Beer Geek English Breakfast, brewed with black tea which oddly had a strong peat  and smoke flavor.  Perhaps the biggest hit was the Spontandoubleblueberry, a wonderful sour brewed thick with tart blueberries.  Everyone who had this beer was asked by others what it was — it had an amazing head of purple foam that made this beer look something like ice cream.  Didn’t hurt that is was equally as tasty.  My personal favorite was the jaw-dropping Beer Geek Vanilla Cognac Breakfast.  This beer was everything that Beer Geek Breakfast is normally plus a delicate vanilla flavor — not overpowering at all — along with the soft hint of cognac.  If you ever see this beer somewhere — buy it.  Buy all of it and then call me. 

3 Floyds was a big standout, as you can imagine. With bandoliers of high-caliber shells draped over their jockey boxes, they had the fans eating out of their hands.  Naturally, they brought favorites such as Alpha King and Arctic Panzer Wolf, but they also brought a Cimmerian Sabretooth Berzerker DIPA, and Ham on Rye, their notorious smoked beer that somehow tastes exactly like a ham on rye sandwich.

In addition, it was great to finally try out Japan’s Baird Brewing, which offered excellent versions of a pale ale, imperial IPA, a brown ale and a nice saison. I asked why a brewery from Japan had a very American sounding name and was told that the brewery was started by two American ex-pats.  They have grown now to include three Japanese brewers as well.  Both Americans have lived in Japan for 15+ years, so they plan to stay and brew in Japan.  If you ever find yourself in Numazu, Japan, look for their brewpub and check out their beers. 

Uncommon Brewers had a short list of outstanding beers. Those who remember the “Mushroom Beer” from Camp Beer II may recall the results of Alec’s brewing expertise and unusual techniques.  I asked why there was no Rubidus Red Ale (AKA, the mushroom beer).  Turns out, Uncommon is a certified organic brewery, and the FDA wouldn’t certify the mushrooms Alec forages in the wild as “certified organic”, if you can believe it.  Thus, Alec hasn’t made the beer in 2 years.  He finally managed to find a farm that would allow him to harvest mushrooms while also allowing the land to become certified organic.  Just when things were looking up, there wasn’t enough rain to produce the mushrooms, so we beer geeks will be left waiting for another year.   

Westbrook Brewing, a new brewery out of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, had a Mexican Coffee Cake Imperial Stout that was a big hit and you really couldn’t tell it was a 10.5% beer.  Brewmaster Edward Westbrook and his wife Morgan were a lot of fun to hang out with, and did a good bit of volunteer work at the festival to help things run smoothly. (you can see Morgan in the photo with Ryan Witter)

Stillwater Artisanal is Brian Strumke’s gypsy brewing project which has turned out incredible and highly sought-after beers.  ”Debauched” was one such amazing beer that had been brewed at Fanø and aged in Brunello barrels.  Brian’s brewing schedule was completely insane as he was set to travel to Paris, Brussels, Australia and other parts I can’t remember.  He must be triple platinum on some airline by now.

Farmer’s Cabinet from Philadelphia had some extremely innovative concepts. One of their beers, Marry Me In Goslar, was swoon worthy — brewed with Pink Himalayan salt, and other beers that had chamomile and lavender elements.  However they had a second booth which was even more interesting. Utilizing combinations of spirits and bitters, they were able to emulate the taste of several beer styles in cocktail form- in some instances even replicating specific beers using no actual beer.  Sounds impossible, but they proved otherwise with one cocktail emulating Mikkeller’s 1000 IBU.

Brewdog was definitely there and in big.  They were “inking” the crowd with their Brewdog temporary tattoos and generally having a ton of fun.  We met Collin Lymer and Martin Dempster along with Mikey, one of the brewers.  ”Mikey” has an interesting story, it turns out.  Mike is from Austria and at the tender age of 14, he enrolled in a brewing academy- so now at the ripe old age of 19, he is now one of the lead brewers at Brewdog.  He had a great time chatting with other big names in the brewing world such as Nick Floyd of 3 Floyds. 

Norway’s Nøgne Ø had an India Saison in collaboration with Bridge Road that was made with Stellant and Galaxy hops from Australia and it was a stunner.  Croocked Moon had an American lager called Lawnmower Cascade that I had to try because it made me think of Saint Arnold, and it was a wonderful representation of that style.  One day, I’d like to have both Lawnmower beers side-by-side.  Amager Bryghus brought their Hr. Frederiksen Imperial Stout aged in Buffalo Trace barrels.  I know it has a 100 rating on Rate Beer, but this version must have been aged in REALLY wet barrels as I got a big mouth full of bourbon.

Clearly, not every brewery in attendance is mentioned here, but they all featured outstanding beers- that’s how they got to this festival  in the first place. 

Jakob Mielcke’s beer dinner was flawlessly executed. Not sure how many they had on the culinary team, but it looked like around 25, not including the festival volunteers that were helping out. Watching them plate the dinners was an experience on its own, and there wasn’t a bite left on any plate in the place. How he managed to make 1000 pork tenderloins (and keep each one fork-cutting tender) is a mystery.

If you’re reading this, it’s very likely you’re into craft beer. Copenhagen, while a bit pricey, is a fantastic place to plan a craft beer vacation, and features some of the greatest cuisine in the world. If you’d like to score tickets for the Copenhagen Beer Celebration next year, follow @MikkellerBeer on Twitter and check their website regularly.

Also , if you’d like to sample some of the fun stuff we came back with, follow @CampBeer on Twitter! These will be featured in our December event.

@CathyWonderful

@HoustonBeerWeek

@DallasBeerWeek

@CampBeer