Travel by the Pint: the Blog » louisville

Episode 22: Bluegrass Brewing Company, part II

michaelcsnell — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:39:19 +0000

Season 1, Episode 22

In part two of our interview with head brewer Jerry Gnagy, we learn a little more about the St. Mathews location, how he got his start as a professional brewer, and how an award-winning beer can spring from even a disastrous beginning; before sampling a few of Kentucky’s State Parks.

Links for this episode:

BBC East in St. Matthews
3929 Shelbyville Road
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 899-7070
(989) 891-0100

Kentucky State Parks:

Natural Bridge State Resort Park 
2135 Natural Bridge Road 
Slade, KY 40376

Jenny Wiley State Resort Park 
75 Theatre Court 
Prestonsburg, KY 41653

For more information:

Southern & Eastern Kentucky Tourism Development Association
Center for Rural Development
2292 South Highway 27
Somerset, KY 42501
(877) TOUR-ESKY

Episode 21: Bluegrass Brewing Company, part I

michaelcsnell — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:29:38 +0000

Season 1, Episode 21

In part one of our interview with head brewer Jerry Gnagy, we get an overview of Bluegrass Brewing Company’s two locations, and their beer menu. Afterward, we head east to visit Appalshop, a multimedia arts center in the heart of Appalachia, to learn about that region’s rich musical heritage.

Links for this episode:

BBC East in St. Matthews
3929 Shelbyville Road
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 899-7070
(989) 891-0100

Appalshop
91 Madison Ave
Whitesburg, KY 41858
(606) 633-0108

Butcher Hollow and Webb’s Grocery
1917 Miller’s Creek Road
Van Lear, KY 41265

U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum
120 Staves Branch Road
Paintsville, KY 41204

For more information:

Southern & Eastern Kentucky Tourism Development Association
Center for Rural Development
2292 South Highway 27
Somerset, KY 42501
(877) TOUR-ESKY

Browning’s Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout

michaelcsnell — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 15:39:52 +0000

It appears that Browning’s, a restaurant/brewpub located in Louisville, Kentucky, has closed. We found this bottle at a Louisville Liquor Barn if you want to see if you can still find a bottle on the shelves. Our thoughts:

SALLY: I bought this bottle on a summer ’08 trip through central Kentucky. Between then and now, the brewery closed. Too bad. Bourbon notes really come through strong in this brew, which is aged in white oak barrels. The description on the bottle describes notes of espresso and chocolate. Mmmm… definitely the espresso. If it’s chocolate its baker’s dark chocolate. There is very little sweet about the flavor. Rustic is more like it. Little light penetrates this dark beer, which boasts an extra thick, extra creamy malty head. If I have this again, which I guess is impossible, I’d definitely try pairing it with a bleu cheese steakburger with a side of cottage fries and Texas toast.

MICHAEL: I’ve enjoyed other bourbon barrel-aged beers from Kentucky before so I was anxious to give this one a shot. It’s pretty dark with some red highlights and a very aggressive tan head. A really thick froth that created a mountain landscape over the rim of my glass. The aroma really gives away the bourbon and oak but the flavor fell apart for me a bit. There’s a nice medium-bodied mouthfeel and the initial flavor is slightly sweet. Then a syrupy sweetness kicks in and a metallic tang (Funny — I just read what Sally said about there being very little sweetness. Maybe the bottle settled so we got different pours?). I don’t taste a lot of alcohol but I assume it’s a fairly high content. Maybe the tanginess masks it. I’m a little disappointed but my hopes were high given that I’ve enjoyed bourbon beers in the past. I think Kentucky Ale’s is maybe my favorite. This one isn’t bad, I just don’t care for the metal tang toward the end. It actually gets better further down the glass. Maybe the alcohol content is higher than I expected…

Sally’s rating: 6
Michael’s rating: 4.5
Ratings are 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest