Born in the USA -- and proud of it

PETER ROWE-26-Jul-2000 Wednesday

The war is over. Let the new war commence.

American brewers are urging their fellow beer drinkers to join in the National Beer Toast on Friday at 9 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time.

What should you have in your glass? Recently, I met with five local brewers who suggested that the appropriate beverage would be a pale ale -- preferably one of their microbrews.

But, amazingly, they won't fuss if it's a megabrew. Just as long as it's American.

"We're no longer fighting Budweiser or Coors," explained Tomme Arthur, the brewmaster at Solana Beach Pizza Port. "They've basically conceded. They've basically said, `OK, we're no longer going to try to crush the

Call it glasnost in a glass. Instead of firing volleys at each other, domestic brewers both micro- and mega-are now aiming at a common enemy, the growing imported beer market.

The National Beer Toast is the culminating event of the first American Beer Month, a marketing campaign spearheaded by the Institute for Brewing Studies and other trade groups. On the steps of Philadelphia's Independence Hall on July 1, Larry Bell, IBS board chairman and a Michigan brewer, led 100 patriotic imbibers in this pledge:

"On my honor, I do hereby pledge, that for the month of July I will celebrate the breadth and diversity of the beers and ales of the United States of America, that I will recognize the heritage, tradition and future of brewing in our republic, and that I will savor the flavor of American-made beer responsibly, moderately and exclusively. Hail to beer, America's beverage!"

Throughout the month, one of America's most successful beer proselytizers, Jim Koch of Boston Beer Company, traveled the country, hosting blind taste tests pitting American beers against foreign stuff. His July 12 event at Nick's at the Beach in Pacific Beach was typical. In all five flights, the red, white and brew trounced the competition. (For complete results, see Beer Biz.)

Pale ale, an expansive style that ranges from simple thirst-quenchers to beers with loftier ambitions, is a global best-seller. The United States is> no exception, and nearly every American brewery turns out its own version.

Brewery Rowe has previously reviewed three local representatives. Karl Strauss Pale Ale (3 1/2 bottles), is enlivened by seven Pacific Northwest hops; Stone Pale Ale (5 bottles), is an uncompromising brew that "shines with the color and clarity of strong iced tea, topped by a thick, frothy head that looks like it was whipped up in a blender"; and Yellowtail Pale Ale (3 bottles) is, despite its name, Ballast Point's version of the lightly spiced German Kolsch beer.

A delegation of local brewers recently poured five newer pales for my inspection. First impressions of these enjoyable beers:

AleSmith X is so pale, it probably shouldn't go out into the sun. Skip Virgilio, AleSmith's brewmaster, made an amber ale without the amber color, light in color, with a grapefruity tang.

Amarillo Ale, Justin Grey's new offering at San Diego Brewing Co., showcases a mutant hybrid of Centennial and Cascade hops. Unfiltered malt gives this light-bodied brew a hazy look; the Amarillo hops provide more bite and more floral aroma than you find in X.

Hops! Pale Ale has a big hop aroma, without major hop bitterness. Chuck Silva, brewmaster at Hops! La Jolla Village Square, added plenty of hops late in the brewing cycle to give more zing to the nose. Beeston malts give the beer a British accent and a full, bready flavor.

Palapa Pale Ale is a bigger beer, heavier in body and with more robust hop flavor, but it's no bruiser. Kirk McHale of Carlsbad Pizza Port has made a solid and well-balanced pale.

Ponto Pale Ale, from the Pizza Port in Solana Beach, is almost beyond the pale, and I mean that in a good way. Golden in color, it was the driest of the five beers. Tomme Arthur turned Chuck Silva's formula on its head, devising a beer with little hop aroma, yet substantial hop flavor.

Beer biz

Are American brewers ready to take on the world? One indication came at this year's World Beer Cup, a competition that -- unlike the better-known Great American Beer Festival -- is open to brewers around the globe.

When the results were announced last month, American brewers had captured more than half of the 69 categories. Among the winners: Chuck Silva, brewmaster at Hops! at La Jolla Village Square. His Brewer's Blonde Ale was judged the best German-style Kolsch or Koln-style Kolsch.

Shark Bite Red, from Pizza Port Carlsbad's Kirk McHale, took a silver medal in the American-Style Amber/Red category. Winners, of course, came from around the world -- Trinidad, Sweden, Austria, Fiji, Belgium, Myanmar. Japan's infant microbrewing industry, the subject of Brewery Rowe's Feb. 16 column, had an impressive showing, with four golds, five silvers and three bronzes. That country's biggest brewer scored, too, with Asahi Super Dry taking a bronze in the American-style specialty lager category.***BULLET The results from the aforementioned event in Pacific Beach sponsored Boston Beer Company, maker of Sam Adams:

  1. Corona vs. Samuel Adams Summer Ale, 33-6 in favor of the latter.
  2. Samuel Adams Lager vs. Heineken, 30-7 in favor of the former.
  3. Ballast Point Yellowtail Pale Ale vs. St. Pauli Girl, 27-11 in favor of the former.

  4. Bass Ale vs. Ballast Point Copper Ale, 28-15, in favor of the former.
  5. Samuel Adams Cream Stout vs. Guinness Extra Stout, 22-18 in favor of the< former.

All beers were poured from bottles.

When QUAFF, a local society of homebrewers, holds its monthly meeting Aug. 15 at Callahan's, members will have plenty to celebrate. The club recently placed third in the American Homebrewers Association's "Homebrew Club of the Year" competition. Four members medaled in this national competition -- Harold Gulbransen took a gold medal in the German wheat beer category; Jon Peterson, silver, stout; Jim Weiner, silver, American ale; and Peter Zien, bronze, light ale.

Brewery Rowe appears monthly in the Food section. Peter Rowe, the
proprietor, welcomes calls, (619) 293-1227; letters, c/o The San Diego
Union-Tribune, P.O. Box 120191, San Diego, CA 92112-0191; and e-mail,
peter.rowe@uniontrib.com