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BEER FEST

Stout-hearted men and women, break out of your ale rut.

Published online on Tuesday, Sep. 22, 2009

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Go ahead: Drink something you haven't tried before.

Inspired by Oktoberfest, the famous annual beer festival in Munich, Germany, American brewers are pouring lots of specialty beers at fall festivals.

"As microbreweries in the United States, we respect the world brew styles," says Kevin Cox, brewmaster of Sequoia Brewing Co. in the Tower District and north Fresno. "But then we do our crazy things. We're not trapped in a box of tradition."

For more than 30 years, the craft beer industry has brought forth a host of different drinks, including porter, India Pale Ale, fruit beers and holiday beers.

Try them at the central San Joaquin Valley's beer festivals. Or visit the Valley's handful of craft breweries: Sequoia and Full Circle Brewing Co. in Fresno, Brewbakers Brewing Co. in Visalia and Mariposa Brewing Co. in Mariposa.

Before you go, heed this advice from Cox and Clovis resident Nico Freccia, a partner in San Francisco's 21st Amendment Brewery:

Get out of your comfort zone. Festivals typically offer small amounts of different types of beer, so try something new and dump what you don't like.

"People can outstep their normal boundaries," Cox says. "This is the environment to do that."

Before you drink beer, start with water. You want to drink an equal amount of water for every beer you have, Freccia says.

"Water helps to flush your system," he says. "It fills your stomach so you don't drink as much."

Choose milder beers before you go for the intense stuff. "When you have strong, bitter beers, they will kill your palate," Freccia says.

Before drinking, inhale the aroma. Freccia likes to place a piece of paper on top of the glass and give it a swirl. When he removes the paper, he'll close his eyes and sniff.

"Beer has a lot of volatile aroma compounds," he says. "Think about what you're getting from the malt, hops and yeast."

Also consider whether its a lager or an ale, the two major types of beer. Lagers are fermented cold; their "grassy, spicy aromas" reflect the "crisp cleanness of malt and hops," Freccia says.

Ales are fermented warm, so the yeast aromas are more developed.

"In American Pale Ale, the yeast is fairly neutral," Freccia says. "But in German hefeweizen, yeast adds spice and phenolic aromas and flavors."

Look at the beer, and then drink it. Is it filtered or unfiltered? Is its head thin and soapy, or foamy and tall? Is it light and refreshing? Or does it have a creamier texture?

Pay special attention to its initial flavor, its taste at midsip, and its finish. Then ask the brewmaster about the beer's ingredients.

For example, the sweetness in Sequoia's Tamarack Amber Ale comes from malts, while its slight bitterness comes from hops, Cox says.

The coffee-like flavor in Sequoia's Irish Stout comes from roasted dark malts and unmalted barley, while its creamy texture comes from the addition of nitrogen gas.

When you're sipping a beer, think about food pairings. That way, beer isn't just what you drink while watching football.

For example, 21st Amendment makes a "Hell or High Watermelon Wheat" beer that pairs well with light salads, Freccia says. And beer, in general, "pairs beautifully with cheese."

And here's the no-brainer: Don't drink and drive. If you know you'll drink a lot, arrange for transportation in advance.

Where to taste beer

The Lindsay Brewfest will have about 50 beers on tap, including ones from Brewbakers in Visalia and TC Hops, a local homebrew club.

The event includes live music and a barbecue. It takes place 2-6 p.m. Saturday at the Sweet Briar Plaza in Lindsay.