Cask for New Years Eve!

I just found out that the Raleigh Times Bar will be tapping a cask of Foothills Brewing Total Eclipse Stout at 6:30 PM on December 31. Total Eclipse is really enjoyable on draft, I bet the cask version is tremendous.

Ballast Point Sculpin Firkin!

This is pretty last minute, but on Thursday, November 5th at 7pm, the Flying Saucer Raleigh will have a firkin of Ballast Point Sculpin. Sculpin is an IPA that is 7% ABV. I have not had the chance to taste this beer, and its overall A rating on Beeradvocate.com has my mouth watering right now.

Ballast Point is out of San Diego, CA, so for a firkin to get all the way to Raleigh is quite amazing. More info on the brewery can be found here.

Prices of Casks Around the US

I'm attempting to find some data on average or typical cask prices around the US. The most pertinent data that I'm looking for is on special event casks, where bars bring them in for one night, not bars that keep casks around regularly. Note that this does not necessarily mean special or limited release beers in the cask. I'm going to start with a thread on BeerAdvocate, which can be found here:

http://beeradvocate.com/forum/read/2273789

NC Cask Ale Fest - 3 Boys and Beers

Being as big a proponent of cask ale as I am, I had to post this event. The breweries to be featured include Highland, Triangle, Duck Rabbit, Foothills, Aviator, Top of the Hill, French Broad, and Lone Rider. There is also one cask from outside of NC, from Rogue Brewery. Hit the link below for more details. The event is this coming Saturday, August 29th, at 6:30 at Rigsbee Hall in Durham.

http://www.durhamcentralpark.org/events/meals-from-the-market/2009-meals-calendar/

Big Boss Casks

Two special treats from the Big Boss guys this week:

Tuesday August 18th hit the Raleigh Times at 6 pm for "Kentucky Colonel" Woodford Reserve barrel aged Bad Penny brown ale

Thursday August 19th check out the Flying Saucer for a dry hopped cask of Angry Angel at 7pm

More cask ale please?!

Clipper City Firkin @ Flying Saucer

Tuesday, May 19th, the Flying Saucer is going to be tapping a firkin of Clipper City Heavy Seas Loose Cannon IPA! Pours begin at 6, hopefully I'll be able to make it all the way across the street after work...If you don't know I do work literally across the street from the Saucer, I know, it's rough.

Thoughts on Cask Ale in Raleigh

After thoroughly enjoying the Raleigh Times "Super Duper Cask Party" last night, I think it is time that a local bar step up and offer Cask beer as a regular part of their lineup. It is quite obvious that Cask ale has quite a following locally, as every special event is packed. While the fact that the events are bringing out a big crowd is great, the Casks often get drained very quickly (1 hr) and it causes a couple of problems in my opinion. It promotes drinking faster than normal if you want to have more than 1 glass of the special offering. It does not promote a full appreciation of the beer and all of its flavors.

Now, yes, of course I could get my one pint, and sit and enjoy it as slowly as I would like, there is certainly nothing preventing me from doing that. The event and the beer would be much more enjoyable if it was possible to have a few pints over a few hours.

The bigger issue is simply that I really enjoy Cask Ale and it is frustrating having to attend special events to drink some. Then the Cask gets kicked so quickly and the wait for the next event begins.

There are plenty of bars in other locations that have a Cask in their regular lineup. We have some great breweries in the area that are obviously committed to producing Casks. I believe this has the potential to be very popular, and would definitely separate a bar from the rest of the crowd if they were to offer Casks regularly.

Raleigh Times Cask Ale Event

The Raleigh Times is hosting a special pre-beer fest cask fest this Thursday, April 30. Casks will be tapped at 6 pm and should include beers from Big Boss, Highland, Foothills, French Broad and Duck Rabbit.

Sounds like a great time to me!

Couple of updates:

Word on the street is that BIG BOSS will be bringing Woodford Reserve Barrel aged stout....

Foothills will be offering a cask of Hoppyum liberally dry hopped with cascade and whole leaf simcoe for this event...

Victory Cask at The Flying Saucer

Thursday, March 26th, The Flying Saucer is having a cask conditioned version of Victory Hop Devil. The cask will be tapped at 7pm according to their website. Mmmm....cask conditioned IPA. Is it Thursday yet?

Duck Rabbit Cask!

Duck Rabbit will be bringing a cask of Bourbon Barrel Aged Milk Stout to The Recovery Room in Chapel Hill on Sunday February 15th. It will be tapped at 6:30. I've had a small taste of this beer from the brewery, and I'm really looking forward to a cask-conditioned version.

Triangle Brewing Company "Friday da Firkenteenth

Friday the Thirteenth has provided Triangle Brewing Company an opportunity to showcase a couple of unique casks at Tyler's Durham. From the ever present Rufus:

Triangle Brewing Company will be tapping 2 Firkins on Friday the 13 at Tyler's Taproom in Durham. The event kicks off at 5:00 pm with a cask of our 100th batch IPA! This IPA measures in at 6.7 abv. and has been dry hopped four different times with four different hops. This will be the only cask of the IPA, the rest will be released in 22 oz. bottles. The second cask will be our "Best of Both Worlds" Stout, that has been conditioned with coffee, chocolate, and raspberries. This will be a great event to end a long week. Hope to see you there. Cheers.

Looks like a perfect excuse to leave work at 4:30 on Friday! But who am I kidding, I'm never at work at 4:30 on Friday anyway...