Birthdays, Barleywines, and Beer releases—Oh My!

Thanksgiving week is host to Phantom and Storybook's Anniversaries, and multiple breweries are putting out some special releases as well.

Thirty Years ain’t no thang…

Phantom Canyon is celebrating their 30th Anniversary with a “house-party” type event this Saturday, so I popped in to chit chat with Charles McManus, their head brewer. Charles has been with the company for going on a decade now, beginning with his time at Wynkoop working his way up from cleaning kegs and tanks to brewing for both breweries during the pandemic. Suffice to say, Charles has been around the block a time or two. When I asked him about Phantom’s plans for a 30th celebration, he made sure I knew the focus was on the people who got them to today, not anything he’s done or is doing.

“This party is for everyone who pours their heart and soul into providing a stellar experience for our customers. It would be weird to not just throw a big house party.”

Beyond the low-key anniversary party, Charles was most proud of the five beers they’re releasing for the occasion (on tap now too). He brewed four beers commemorating long-time employees, some of who have been with Phantom since day one: a double IPA, an imperial peppermint stout, a porter and the return of Cascade Amber.

For the Cascade Amber, Charles had to go diving into old tax records as brew logs were scant and details on the actual recipe were nowhere to be found, but according to some regulars he hit the flavor on the head. I’m a big fan as well, as it has this early craft beer industry kind of vibe. It was brewed in honor of Johnny Mills, who was behind the bar when I stopped in, and has been working at Phantom since day one.

Note to self: I need to pick Johnny’s brain about his memories of the beer scene on a podcast soon.

Peppermint Patty’s is a beer that I would venture many homebrewers have attempted to make at least once: an imperial chocolate peppermint stout. In Phantom’s version, the peppermint was used sparingly, only lending a nice aroma and a cooling sensation that chases the chocolate stout flavors down your gullet. Of the four it wasn’t my top favorite, but I enjoyed it for what it was.

Rounding out the new releases, the Pops’ Porter was a silky smooth robust porter and Two Headed Shauna was a wonderful double IPA, but for me, they were overshadowed by the amber and peppermint beer, so I’ll have to revisit those on Saturday.

House party-esque celebration

Join Phantom for a night of celebration as they commemorate their 30th birthday on Sat, Nov 25, 2023 at 6:00 PM. Enjoy a toast with their team, meet the brewers, and sip the evening away with an exciting lineup of festivities, including live DJ, delicious food and drinks, legacy beers, holiday barleywine, and surprise giveaways throughout the night. Mark your calendars and prepare to party like it's 1993! 

The party is free to attend, but if you RSVP, you are entered into a giveaway for a gift card and Anniversary t-shirt!

RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/30th-anniversary-party-at-phantom-canyon-tickets-754675784587

---

The Never-ending Story Part 9

It feels like just yesterday when I was knocking on the window of a deserted strip mall off El Paso just north of Fillmore. At that point, Storybook Brewing had no bar, but had taps, and were planning a small soft opening. We brought a crowd and packed the place, and they’ve been providing an incredible beer and family atmosphere ever since. Also, that parking lot is never empty nowadays.

In the 9 years since opening, Storybook has expanded mightily, and I’ll have to sit down with Pete and Lisa ahead of their tenth next year, as this week was all about talking with Phantom, but I hope to see you there this Saturday! The party officially kicks off at 6:30pm with Karaoke, and Storybook will be releasing their Chocolate-covered Cherry Stout and a Pomegranate Sour.

---

The Ministry of beer says what?

Fresh for your holiday gatherings, Cerberus Brewing will be releasing their Emmanuel Goldstein bourbon barrel-aged barleywine on Wednesday. Emmanuel was aged for eleven months in Breckenridge bourbon barrels, providing a whiskey character along with notes of toffee, vanilla, and caramel. Available in 22oz bombers while supplies last.

Also, bookending Thanksgiving, Cerberus will be doing Buy Two Get One Free Crowlers, so grab some Hannigan’s Hypothesis haze or The Dale.

---

La Fo-what?

In bottles that look eerily like a certain nouveau Belgian brewery’s super famous sour program, Lost Friend will release Red Shift, a sour red ale, on Friday. Yes, these are screenprinted bottles, friends. That’s some trust in your barrels if I do say myself.

Red Shift represents the start of Lost Friend’s solera project, where they’ll bottle a portion of their barrel-aged sours and add freshies to ferment for another year.

I stopped by Lost Friend on Monday to chat with Andy France about this release, and his inspiration. Andy tells me he’s long been a fan of Rodenbach’s sours (especially their Grand Cru) and modeled this beer after “all the best parts” of those beers. Red Shift pours a slightly murky reddish brown, with light effervescence that gives way to a dark raisin-y aroma and a mellow yet pleasing tartness. A pour off the tap yields a much clearer result, so pick your poison if you’re not a fan of the murky depths.

Andy mentioned that this year’s variant is all force carbonated, but hinted at future releases being bottle conditioned if they can plan that far enough ahead. If you find yourself out and about on Black Friday, skip the malls and head to Lost Friend for this beer.

Or, skip Black Friday altogether and hit up Lost Friend’s Winter(ish) Market this weekend instead. They’ll have fire pits, festive decorations, food trucks and beer, so there’s everything for everyone.

---

Thanks as always for reading this newsletter, I appreciate the heck out of all of you and am eternally thankful that someone, somewhere, finds this entertaining. Happy holidays to you and yours.

Cheers,

Ryan

PS, here’s Troy Johnson (somewhat ironically) holding a bottle of Phantom Canyon’s 30th barleywine.

Go support your brewers.