Hop Growth Already? It's only February!!!

It has been very mild this winter. We've only seen 2" of snow/ice in the Cincinnati area and there are many days where the temperatures are 10 to 20 degrees above normal. I can see that some of the local trees and roses are already trying to show signs of wanting to bud. I thought, what the heck, I'll go out and look to see if the hops are doing anything. We'll...ummm, they are!! Its only the first week of February and they are starting to show their heads. My plan is to put a layer of soil on them this week so if we see any snow or any extreme cold for the balance of winter that they may get some protection. I don't like that the rhizome is this exposed. Its has been a very rainy winter and it looks like the soil is starting to erode, so I should cover them up anyway to replenish what has been washed away.

Breweries - Fountain Square Brewing Co. - Indianapolis, IN

Fountain Square Brewing Company was the last stop on our Indianapolis Brewery Tour (see bottom of post for list of breweries seen that day).  This brewery is new to the craft beer scene as it had its grand opening a week before we got there. You can still see they are getting their tap room and sitting area all set up, but I was not going to hold that against them at all. They had all of the beers you'd expect for a small craft brewery. A pale ale, an amber ale, a stout, a porter and so forth. All of the beer was really well done.

Here's a picture of the brewery...

There are a few more breweries in Indianpolis we'd like to see, but we had some time constraint this day. When we get back to those, I'll make sure to blog about it.

Indianapolis, IN Brewery Tour

Stop #1: Flat 12 Bierwierks

Stop #2: Sun King

Stop #3: Fountain Square

Breweries - Sun King Brewing Co. - Indianapolis, IN

The second stop on our Indianapolis brew tour day was Sun King Brewing Company. Many many folks think of Indianopolis and the local brewing scene they think of Sun King. Any by the amount of people in the brewery that day, the locals really enjoy it.

We were able to try out every beer (6 total) they had in their tap room. I was surprised that they didn't have anything really out there as far as styles or flavors that day. I know they have won some award for some outside the box stuff. They offered a lot of what I'd call "gateway" craft beers such as their "Sunlight Cream Ale" and popular "Osiris Pale Ale". They did have a beer they call "Malus Pi" that was made with locally grown crab apples.

Something I really liked about Sun King is that they can all of their beer and they self distribute. The self distribution limits their reach, but they are growing slowing and trying to expand to all 4 corners of Indiana.

After trying out the beers we had the chance to go on a brewery tour. Here are some pictures....

The Grain Mill

The canning line in the front with the fermenters in the background.

They use all rubber kegs in their company colors. They say they are lighter and stack much easier than its stainless steel counterpart.

The mash tun.

There are a few more breweries in Indianpolis we'd like to see, but we had some time constraint this day. When we get back to those, I'll make sure to blog about it.

Indianapolis, IN Brewery Tour

Stop #1: Flat 12 Bierwierks

Stop #2: Sun King

Stop #3: Fountain Square

Breweries - Flat 12 Bierwerks. - Indianapolis, IN

In the not so cold of winter, a buddy and I took a drive up to Indianapolis, Indiana and stopped by 3 of the local breweries. First stop was to Flat 12 Bierwerks. Though we didn't get in to see the brewery floor (they only give scheduled tours on Sunday's) we were able to try out a few of their beers in their tap room. They had a nice set up. Many of the styles that you'd expect from a small brewery. The beer that I found most unique was the Glazed Ham Porter. No, it didn't taste like ham, but it did have the caramel-ish flavor that you'd expect when you eat glazed ham.

For a "small" brewery off the beaten path, I'd give them a thumbs up and worth a try if you are ever in Indianapolis.

There are a few more breweries in Indianpolis we'd like to see, but we had some time constraint this day. When we get back to those, I'll make sure to blog about it.

Indianapolis, IN Brewery Tour

Stop #1: Flat 12 Bierwierks

Stop #2: Sun King

Stop #3: Fountain Square