WV Beer News – October 22, 2019

Here is some juicy WV beer news for late October.

Big Timber goes BIG

Seems like Big Timber Brewing is really going B.I.G. after seeing their releases from this past week. We’ll begin with the collaboration they did for Summit Beer Station’s 6th anniversary. Called Lunar, it’s a 12% ABV Imperial Pastry Stout inspired by Moon Pies. It has chocolate, vanilla, and lactose added, plus seemingly a bit of cinnamon. Those who enjoy big adjunct stouts are saying great things about it. Rumor has it that the beer may contain several mini-Moon Pies among its ingredients.

The second biggie is Giant’s Milk Triple IPA. At 11% ABV, it’s one of the biggest IPAs around the state. Third is Big Timber’s Bourbon Barrel Porter. The guys in Elkins have dailed-in this 11.5% ABV beer which they release each fall.

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Hellzahoppin’ Live on Capitol Street

Charleston’s Bad Shepherd Beer Company and Adelphia Sports Bar have announced the they are working together on the big Capitol Street Monster Mash party set for Halloween night, October 31. Starting at 6:00 P.M. you will find Bad Shepherd’s Hellzahoppin’ Imperial IPA being tapped on the street in front of Adelphia.

Hellzahoppin’ is a 9.8% ABV double IPA hopped up big-time with Amarillo, Citra and a cast of others. Don’t expect much bitterness, though, because all the hop additions were either in the whirlpool or as dry-hopping in the fermentor. The beer has also been canned for sale at the brewery.

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Crazy good beer to go with some bad ass entertainment at Abolitionist

Abolitionist Ale Works in Charles Town has announced two huge shows coming to the brewery. First, on Oct 3 at 8:00 P.M. magician J. Edward Ford will present his show, Out of Sleight Out of Mind. They say Ford will leave you questioning where the science of human nature ends and the real magic begins. He uses his gift for reading people and subconscious suggestion to blur the lines between reality and illusion. Maybe he could take a turn attempting to explain the magic that Abolitionist brewer Mike Vance produces in the back room, most everyday.

In an even bigger coup, Abolitionist has booked actor, comedian, writer and director, Kevin Farley for two shows on Wednesday, November 20. We hear it’s basically sold out. If any tickets remain, they can be purchased for $20 each at Abolitionist Ticket Link or by phone at 681-252-1548.

I’d also be hitting Abolitionist for its recent beer releases. Notorious F.I.G. is a cognac barrel-aged Imperial Stout conditioned on Black Mission figs and chocolate. For a beer with a different speed, check out the return of Pale the Funky Hoposapian, which is a dry-hopped 100% brettanomyces fermented IPA. Hopefully there is still some left of the Barrel-Aged Sweet Potato Wild Ale. This barrel aged farmhouse style ale was conditioned with sweet potatoes, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, and vanilla. There’s never a dull moment on the taps at Abolitionist.

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Putnam attracts big crowd for festival

Brilliant Stream correspondents Sue and Ron Posey report that the Putnam County Craft Beer Festival attracted a large crowd last Saturday to the Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Hurricane. Sue and Ron were kind enough to share some photos with us. Click on image to enlarge.