Vintage Beer Is Out, and Author Patrick Dawson Weighs In On Denver's Beer Scene

Vintage Beer, released yesterday by author Patrick Dawson is a best practices book for how to build and maintain a beer cellar. Dawson is an avid homebrewer who is well-versed on the science of beer aging, as well as a Beer Judge Certification Program judge and a brewpub reviewer for the North Denver Tribune.

"[New Belgium's] La Folie brought sours to America in a big way," Dawson says. "[When] Brewmaster Peter Bouckaert first made it, that was way before most American breweries had even heard of brettanomyces."

Since then, Trinity Brewing in Colorado Springs created the first all-Brettanomyces brewed beer (so only Brettanomyces as the yeast) in the state called the TPS Report, and several other breweries have begun to use this kind of yeast, too.

Notably Chad Yakobson of Crooked Stave. "In my mind, he is the world expert in all things wild and bretty," Dawson says. "His master's dissertation on brett had a huge effect on the industry and documented how you could manipulate it just like normal brewer's yeast to get all sorts of different characteristics.

Also in Denver, Falling Rock Tap House and Bull and Bush Brewery are two of Dawson's favorite watering holes. "They both have awesome vintage lists, and they don't charge an arm and a leg like some of the new spots."

Next for Dawson is a book release party tomorrow from 5 to 7 p.m. at Crooked Stave, a vintage beer dinner with Hair Of The Dog brewery in Portland, Oregon, and a book tour across the United States. And then he'll think about his next book, a tongue-in-cheek guide on how to live your life dedicated to all things beery. Stay tuned.

Patrick Dawson, Vintage Beer [Photo: pdawson.com]

· Patrick Dawson [Official Website]
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