THS 35: The Alchemist

Cask & Vine’s What’s On Tap: John & Jen Kimmich and Jim Conroy of The Alchemist!

The Alchemist is a small, family run brewery specializing in fresh, unfiltered IPA. We are currently focused on brewing one beer perfectly – Heady Topper, an American Double IPA.

GLORIOUS HOPS

We love hops – that’s why our flagship Double IPA, Heady Topper, is packed full of them. Heady Topper was designed to showcase the complex flavors and aromas these flowers produce. The Alchemist has been brewing Heady Topper since 2003. This Double IPA is not intended to be the strongest or most bitter DIPA. It is brewed to give you wave after wave of hop flavor without any astringent bitterness. We brew Heady Topper with a proprietary blend of six hops – each imparting its own unique flavor and aroma. Take a big sip of Heady and see what hop flavors you can pick out. Orange? Tropical Fruit? Pink Grapefruit? Pine? Spice? There is just enough malt to give this beer some backbone, but not enough to take the hops away from the center stage.

BREWING

For eight years, Heady Topper was served on tap exclusively at our seven barrel brewpub in downtown Waterbury. In early 2011 we built the Alchemist Cannery, a 15 barrel brewery and canning line, for the production of our flagship IPA. The first cans of Heady Topper rolled off the line just two days after Tropical Storm Irene demolished The Alchemist Pub and Brewery. Today we brew 180 barrels per week in twelve 15 barrel batches. We never hold back inventory, and we move all of our beer weekly in a concerted effort to provide the freshest, hoppiest packaged IPA on the market.

The Alchemist: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube

Bert’s Better Beers’ Draft Pick of the Week:

1. Heady Topper

 Find Heady Topper!!!

Listen to hear our reviews!

Teach a Friend to Home Brew Day! – November 1st

Learn to Homebrew Day is an international event held on the first Saturday of November. Since 1999, thousands of homebrewers have gathered each year to teach friends and family the basics of the homebrewing hobby.  On November 1, friends and family will gather to teach and learn the basics of homebrewing, a lifelong hobby that inspires creativity and is driven by a spirit of “do-it-yourself” ingenuity. “If you’ve ever had an interest in homebrewing, Learn to Homebrew Day is the ideal way to get started. Brewing a batch with an expert is a great way to get started, which is why this event connects aspiring homebrewers with experienced ones for a hands-on education,” said Gary Glass, American Homebrewers Assoc. Director.

Events:

1. Concord Area Home Brewers at 77 Pleasant St, Concord 11Am to 4PM

2. Interstate Brewers Unlimited (IBU) hosts a ‘Learn to Homebrew Day’ event at The Good Beer Store, Fryeburg ME, November 1, 2014 Conway, The event is free and open to the public and will be held at The Good Beer Store, Fryeburg ME at 10:00am, November 1, 2014.

 

Ale Communications:

Science Proves Gluten Sensitivity Isn’t Real, People Are Just Whiners

hat may be a snarky way of saying it, but it’s true in some cases. Scientific studies have concluded that sensitivity to gluten for people who do not have Celiac disease may be completely psychological.

It is especially relevant in a country where 17 million people may unnecessarily believe that they are gluten-sensitive. (Source: A Mayo Clinic survey in 2012, cited in a NY Times article.)

It is especially shocking in a planet that spent $10.5 billion last year on gluten-free products. (Source: Mintel, a market research company, cited in the NY Times article.)

It is especially important because a psychological disease can spread as fast as any virus but be more enduring.

It is especially lucrative for all the food companies making tons of money off of people like you.

The same scientist who gave strong proof for gluten sensitivity in 2011 now says that it might only be in your head. READ MORE

Study: Main Ingredient Found In Beer Can Help Improve Memory

CORVALLIS, Oregon (CBS Seattle) – Beer is better for the brain than you might believe. A new study finds the frothy beverage can improve memory.

A researcher at Oregon State Universtity points to a compound found in hops, one of the main ingredients in beer, improved cognitive function in a group of mice.

The mice were given large doses of xanthohumol, a flavinoid found in hops. Flavonoids are compounds found in plants that often give them their color.

Then the mice were run through a special maze to determine whether they showed signs of improved spacial memory and cognitive flexibility.

“Xanthohumol can speed the metabolism, reduce fatty acids in the liver and, at least with young mice, appeared to improve their cognitive flexibility, or higher level thinking,” reported Daniel Zamzow, with the University of Wisconsin. “Unfortunately it did not reduce palmitoylation in older mice, or improve their learning or cognitive performance, at least in the amounts of the compound we gave them.” READ MORE

 

Jukebox: “Quest for the Heady Topper” by Jim Tyrrel

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