Quick reminder the June Session is quickly approaching and the topic will be Beer Festivals. Be sure to post a comment or email me geistbear(at)gmail(dot)com if you post on the topic, entries should be posted on June 6th.

Considering the wide variety of opinions on the issue, it will be very entertaining to see where people take the topic.

For more on the Session and past topics read here and here.

I have an old friend from Italy and for a long time I have enjoyed kidding with him about 'the fine Italian beers like Peroni'. Now to be fair to my friend while he is an Italian citizen he is a German by blood and lives on the far Northwestern corner of the country. He naturally prefers the more Germanic style of beer and hence why I joke with him about Peroni.

Because of my friend my interested was piqued when I read about the Italian beer night at National Geographic mentioned by the Agitator. Tonight I read a follow up article* in Mid-Atlantic Brewing News of the same event and now I am even more interested.

Italy is up to 150 breweries and while that may not sound like many, back in the dark days of the US brewing there were only around 40 here in the United States so 150 sounds like a decent start.

I like that the Italian brewers are, according to the Mid-Atlantic article, playing with flowers, herbs, and chestnuts. To see such challenges to the brewing convention makes me suspect it's a beer region worth checking out.

Russian River brewer Vinnie Chirlero may have a similar impression since he recently brewed La Fleurette with Agostino Arioli a craft brewing pioneer in Italy.

I can't wait to get back to Italy again so my friend can show me what the potential of Italian beers real can be and where there future is going.

* A side benefit of helping at my local homebrew shop is I get to read all the brewing news publications, fine work generally as publications it just seems a waste you can't link to them as they are never published online.

I see the next set of 'extreme beers' and I don't think I'll enjoy this ride. They are barrel aged beers. Don't get me wrong when they are properly done they can be wonderful. But I can see Garrett Oliver's argument on hops already carrying over to wood.

For those of you who would like a refresher he said the following "The hoppiest beer?" Garrett asked. "It's a fairly idiotic pursuit, like a chef saying, 'This is the saltiest dish.' Anyone can toss hops in a pot, but can you make it beautiful?"

A number of beers just toss wood at a beer and hope it will seem complex. For example while I sincerely enjoyed Dogfish Head's Barton Baton, their other beer Palo Santo Marron left me pulling twigs from my taste buds.

It could be that some of the wood character comes across as bad phenols to my taste buds. I recently had a beer I was convinced was overly woody, but when I checked the companies website and reviews it made no mention of wood used in the process so I am assuming it was some bad bottles. I'll hold off mentioning this otherwise great brewery for further sampling of the beer, so I can give them and the beer another chance also so I don't violate Stan's Rule #3

Granted if you let the beers age sufficently it can mellow the wood taste, but why should I suffer a brewer's bad timing of release. It just strikes me that use of wood in a beer may be seen as an 'easy' way to make something different, but we should strive to make things right.

Confession time, I don't listen to Craft Beer Radio regularly. I respect their commitment to the podcast and have them on my feeds, always watching what they are doing. That said I have been listening to their in-depth coverage of SAVOR in DC. For those of us who couldn't make the journey it's a great way to get the content from the programs and some great interviews. I just listened to Garrett Oliver and Dave Lieberman programs the contrast in styles are amazing. So if you don't listen to Craft Beer Radio you should go check them out for this special programming and afterwards stick around they look at a wide range of craft beers from around the country.

In a time of economic turmoil you want people who know how to meet a bottom line and attract business development into a local economy. Flagstaff voters choose differently tonight, watch how it impacts the economy and job base in town. People want to escape the poverty with a view, but they just ensured that won't change anytime soon.

Disagree? Wait and see.

Charlie Papazian has an interview on the state of the brewing industry of Newsweek of all places. (Via Barley Vine)

William issues the desert island challenge if you had to spend 6 months on an island with only 5 beers, what would they be?

Oak Creek Hefeweizen – Hefeweizens are arguably my favorite beer style if I were ever to admit to one and Oak Creek makes a classic example of the style. But the secondary reason I would grab this one is, leave the last inch or so in the bottle and try to culture the yeast to make some beer the rest of the time on the island ever the homebrewer. The reason I wouldn't select a German made Hefeweizen is according to Dan Gordon the Germans pull the yeast out and replace it with a lager yeast.

Lev Black Lion – U Fleku and Lev are what inspired my brewing Black Lagers, not quite as roasty as their American cousins this is hands down one of my favorite styles to brew and drink.

Stone Ruination – What list like this would be complete without at least one hop bomb and Ruination is as good an example as you'll ever find.

Brooklyn Brown – Probably my favorite brown ale of all time.

Oak Creek Rare Earth – Okay I went back to Oak Creek, this might be silly on a 5 beer list. I had wanted a interesting Beligan ale of some form and this one is a recent favorite. It is a wine barrel aged Saison Belgian ale. The aging drops the hazy out of solution leaving a brilliant clear red ale with a bit of wine character. Simply amazing stuff.

It looks like they have a good lineup of people and it would be worth the listen.

I have heard a few breweries are looking at beer for dogs. While it may be beef flavored I doubt it will be my trusty hound's beer of choice. The reason is simple, my dog is a hophead if you don't believe me go listen to this old episode of Speaking of Beer (Listen closely during the Interbeer Interlude).

Probably the beer blogger's most mentioned article of the week but this Wired article is a great review of the current state of the industry. It's also a great look at the 21st Amendment. Jeese Houck was a great host when we toured last year, I hope to visit again this year. Shaun's comment that the Watermelon Wheat "has virtually no hops in it" rings true with the prediction that adaption was the key to future success for brewers.

If you look at Jay's experiences at Boonville beer festival the Redwood tips beer made quite an impression on him.

Other brewers such as Sam Adams is using lemon zest and grains of paradise in their Summer Ale is another approach to brewing.

Hops may be scarce but brewers will find other ways to get a fine brew made. The fun is just beginning.

You never know what you will get for weather and I am just fine with it. Saturday 98 in Phoenix and a few days later Flagstaff gets snow.

Sshhhh, don't tell anyone but I got Flying Dog Garde Dog for free. Not from the brewery or even a distributor, but a retail shop owner who some how got an extra sample and decided I was worth the gift. No beer is taster than free, except maybe your own.

The appearance is a yellowish coppery color with good head retention. It is a brilliantly clear beer. A slight sour sensation in the nose with slight phenolic character. Falling somewhere between a Maibock and a Berliner Weiss in aroma.

Malt character dominates the palette, that slight funk in the aroma is gone in the flavor. The beer feels a bit heavy on the tongue with some sweetness apparent almost crystal malt like but it is not excessive or overly complex.

Looking over the Biere de Garde at the BJCP page it seems they hit the mark on the style pretty well. It is a bit light for the style at 5.5% ABV, but makes it to closer to the blonde with the hop levels. Though the color seems a bit closer to the amber to my mind.

Overall I enjoyed this beer, I could easily see it as a great Summer beer here in the mountains of Flagstaff. Enough flavor to keep one's interest, but not excessively heavy.