Another week another Brown Ale. This week we look at one that is widely considered the best domestic offerings, Brooklyn Brown Ale. Sorry that Jim cuts out in the intro, don’t worry we haven’t changed it on you.
News
Anheuser Busch (AB) has bought shares in Crown Beer International…in fact it bought all of the shares that International. Crown Beer International has been doing very well in India lately and the company is responsible for 60% of the beer in India. The question is, will this effect the Inbev/AB deal that could or could not go through in the future?
Brooklyn Brown Ale
- For those of you who don’t remember, Brooklyn Brewing Company is located in, you guessed it, Brooklyn, New York and was opened in 1987 by Tom Potter and Steve Hindy.
- A lot of what I have learned about beer has to be looked at through the lens of Brooklyn and their current brewmaster, Garret Oliver. His book, the Brewmasters Table, was one of the first beer books that I ever read and probably the most influential.
- This beer was also originally dry hopped, which we haven’t really talked about much on this show. Dry hopping is the process of throwing hops in the fermentor with beer and letting the flavor come out through fermentation.
- Weighing in at 5.5% ABV, Brooklyn Brown is described as having a blend of 6 malts.
- The beer pours a dark brown with a small head.
- The aroma is chocolaty and malty, with a lot of roast notes here. Not as strong as a porter or stout, but just shy of it.
- The flavor is what you would expect from the smell, malty and roasty, however there is also a hop presence here that makes itself known.
Next Week
Next week we wrap up the brown ale series with a trip over the pond to a British brewer and Samuel Smith Nut Brown Ale.
Your Next Beer 
Sounds like a nice beer. I haven’t had anything from Brooklyn Brewery – yet, but I think I’ll give them a try. They’re local enough to me! (NJ!)