Founded in March of 2007, Crow Peak expanded from a five-barrel to a thirty-barrel system in 2009, thanks to that good witch of the west, Popular Demand. They can a trio of beers: 11^th Hour IPA, Pile-O-Dirt Porter and Canyon Cream Ale.

Familiar with these tasty libations, I made it a point to check out some of brewmaster Jeff Drumm’s other offerings (there were seven on offer, plus a guest tap). In my mouth went the likes of Dancing Bear Brown Ale, a rye brown ale with hemp seeds; Mjollnir, a blend of old ale and brown ale accented with local spruce tips; Dark Helmet Schwarzbier, a German black lager with taste sensations aplenty; and 11^th Hour IPA, because I wanted to revisit this beer after only drinking it straight from a can around a campfire.

All these beers were quite nice.

The Brown: Though I’ve seen more hemp seeds in pale ales/IPAs than anywhere else, I’ve always thought that a brown ale is the right place for hemp seeds. The rye melds well in this set-up and I quite liked this beer.

The Mjollnir: The barmaid was cagey when I asked her about the blend ratio of old and brown ale, but wherever it fell, I liked it. The spruce was restrained to perfection, adding serious interest without a curveball bouncing in the dirt to destroy a good beer. At 8.5% ABV, this deep and pondering brew would do well around the fireplace in the wintertime, methinks. But you gotta pick the spruce when the time is right. I’d lay some down in a barrel and blow some minds next winter. But Drumm doesn’t really need my advice. He’s doing fine without me.

Dark Helmet: Deep red/black with a clean and soft roast/bread/caramel character that made me happy to keep coming back for another sip.

11^th Hour: As I said, I’d only ever had this beer straight from the can, as I’d only ever consumed it around camp, a place that I seldom outfit with a full array of appropriate glassware. So this time, I had the good fortune to smell this beer in all its hoppy glory. But there’s malt too. Lotsa flavor.

In the end, I had time for another pint before retiring to my campfire hotdogs. I picked the Schwarz, because it was yummy, drinkable and hit the spot just then. We moved from our table in the taproom (a gorgeous space complete with growler-shaped stonework on the fireplace) to a table outdoors. The late afternoon sun and emerging bustle of a crowd, along with the fresh pine air, made for a perfect location to imbibe.

So that’s what I did. If you’re in the area, I’d encourage you to stop by and sip for yourself. You’ll find a happy ending, I feel sure.

Part of BREWVANA’s occasional series, this is our twist on the boring beer review: you know, the classic babble on what my smarty-pants beer judge’s nose, tongue and eyeballs discerns. We do it fun and childish-like. Here in Mad Libs Beer Reviews, we write down thoughts, words and descriptors of a beer and plug them into the classic, childhood word game.

Today, we ponder Schlafly’s Helles Style Summer Lager. It’s quaffably delicious, and I’d highly recommend it.

He was a longtime Rock Bottom brewer with a reputation for quality beers. But things didn’t get Gigantic for Van Havig until May of 2012, when he and fellow Brewmaster Ben Love joined forces to open Portland, Oregon’s Gigantic Brewing Company. What brewer shaped Van?

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

VAN HAVIG: The guy for me is a brewer by the name of Mark Youngquist. In the mid-1990s, everybody knew who he was, since he started the Walnut Brewery in Boulder, Colorado, which became Rock Bottom a couple of years later. He left Rock Bottom right about 2000, after having previously moved to extreme Southwest Colorado a few years before (that’s right, he worked for a company whose closest location to him took eight hours to reach—he was obviously distancing himself from the increasingly corporate culture). Anyway, Mark was really my first serious brewing mentor, by which I mean that he challenged me to be better than I was, and helped facilitate that through education and encouragement. Pretty much all of the really old RB people site Mark as a major influence, not really in terms of beer flavor or approach, but in terms of the way in which you approach brewing—analytically, intellectually and with common sense and a palate. He’s still brewing. He has a small brewpub in Dolores, Colorado (a town of about 800 people) and as of the last couple of years has been coming out of his self-imposed exile.

Wondertwins Paul Kavulak and Tyson Arp of Nebraska Brewing Company ham it up at a recent event.

Nebraska Brewing Company released not one but two new beers in their Inception Series on May 26, and I was fortunate enough to receive a set of samples of this pair of beers originating of the same wort.

Brewer Tyson Arp brewed a hibiscus- and rose hip-infused saison, which entered a pair of French oak Chardonnay barrels with a shot of cherry juice. When the time came to evaluate the barrels, Arp and NBC owner Paul Kavulak found that one of the beers was just as they’d intended and the other beer had a little more funk than was planned.

“We tasted and decided they were two different beers,” said Kavulak. “We were not going to blend them. We were not going to dump either one. They became different beers.”

And so Cowboys and Indians were born. Cowboys is the name of the “intended” beer, while Indians is the moniker for the slightly “wild” deviation. No, Kavulak won’t be surprised to catch flak for calling the wild version Indians. “It won’t be the first time,” said Kavulak, on hearing an outcry for the name of his beers or style of his labels. Kavulak, it seems, likes catchy semantics as much as he likes a tasty beer.

And so he named the beers playfully. But how do they taste?

Cowboys

Pours a hazy pinkish color and settles in the glass some hue of orange-pink, if there is such a thing, with a pink-tinted head. Barrel, cherry and floral aromas and flavors abound, bright, tart and refreshing in presentation. There is a touch of acidity and some barrel-borne astringency, as well as significant complexity for such an easy-drinking mouthful.

Indians

This beer looks just like its sibling, but in the aroma, it announces distinction. Notes of sulphur and stinky cheese emerge over a darker-leaning fruit presence. Eventually, this lactic earth flashes, but left behind is still a darker element. The flavor reveals a similar vein, with the fruit flavors darker, muddled and thicker. The wood element is hidden in the background.

Assessment

This was an interesting move by Nebraska Brewing Company, and I can see why they didn’t want to a) adulterate such a beautiful beer (Cowboys); and b) toss such an interesting brew (Indians) down the drain. I’d say I prefer Cowboys for its brightness, but found Indians every bit as intriguing.

Maker of ridiculously good beer, Matt Van Wyk is the brewmaster at Eugene, Oregon’s Oakshire Brewing Company. Over the years, he’s won a gaggle of awards, to include GABF Brewmaster of the Year in 2006 while brewing for Flossmoor Station in Chicago. How’d he get so good? Keep reading.

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

MATT VAN WYK: As with everyone else in the series, it is utterly impossible to name just one influential brewer, so I’ll give you four.

First, Todd Ashman, currently of FiftyFifty in Truckee, California. Todd preceded me at Flossmoor Station in Illinois, and as a 2.5-year-experienced brewer at the time, I certainly knew it all. I, of course, didn’t. Through his mentoring and the riffs I did on the solid foundation he built, I was able to grow and have great success. Furthermore, if you know Todd, he does not subscribe to the Keep It Simple Stupid mantra, as he is an expert at layering flavors and aromas through complex malt and hop regimes, and I learned from that. Finally, I wouldn’t have had a clue with barrel aging experiments without Todd’s trailblazing experience throughout the 1990s. I owe much of my current success to Todd.

Second, I would say Jeff Bagby, formerly of Pizza Port and now of Bagby Beer. Jeff doesn’t know this, but he taught me to be thoughtful, careful, and creative, whether you are making your everyday pub drinker or your attempt at an international brewing award. I also think that, at times, he doesn’t take himself or his beer too seriously, something we could all learn from. It’s just beer after all.

Next, I give you a triumvirate of brewers. (so now we’re at six). From a trip to Belgium I got the pleasure of meeting Armand DeBelder, Jean Van Roy of Cantillon, and Frank Boon of Boon Brewery. What I learned from them is patience, patience, patience. Plus, cutting corners is not acceptable in the pursuit of great art and tradition.

Finally, while not a professional brewer, he is a professional chef who brews: the Homebrew Chef, Sean Paxton. His thoughtful use of flavors, textures, aromas, and also the use of beer are mind blowing. If you’ve heard Sean wax poetic about food and beer, you’ve likely heard him start a sentence with, “If you think about…” The dude is always thinking about beer, flavors, combinations, experiences. I subscribe to his philosophies as both a home cook and a brewer.

I could go on and on about brewers who have had a positive influence on my career.

Hill Farmstead Brewery’s Shaun Hill is no slouch around the mash tun. He guided the young brewery to RateBeer’s “New Brewery of the Year” title just two years ago, and this year, with eight of the top ten beers on the list and a full 25 percent of the top 50 beers released in 2012, Hill Farmstead was named not only Best Brewery in the US, but also Best Brewery in the World. Who within the industry does Hill look up to?

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

SHAUN HILL: At this time, I have several favorite brewers. For bright, beautiful hoppy beers: Alpine. Pat’s Duet and Nelson are fantastic expressions of what hop flavor and balance should be. I also think Tomme Arthur and the Lost Abbey/Port Brewing operation do a great job achieving a unique and distinct house profile in blending their barrel aged beers. I believe that Stone has demonstrated that a brewery can experience explosive growth while still producing and maintaining a very high quality product. Arrogant Bastard and Sublimely taste exactly the same today as they did when I first tasted them many moons ago.

The list goes on… Beers we like to drink.

Most influential brewer? John Kimmich at The Alchemist in Waterbury, VT. I used to spend at least one day a week at their pub in 2004/2005/2006/2007 – and John became a close friend, critic, and inspiration. Without him, Hill Farmstead’s Hop-Forward beers would certainly not taste the way that they do…

Vinnie. Like Madonna, Sting and Prince, Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River Brewing Company is one of the great American brewers who could get away with just one name. Refer to “Vinnie,” and folks know who you’re talking about. Not only is he credited with brewing the first Double IPA, Vinnie’s also known for his work with barrels and bugs—and his willingness to share his expertise. Who inspires him?

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

VINNIE CILURZO: I can’t pin it down to one person; I have to list four people: Ken Grossman, Sierra Nevada Brewery; it is no secret I am big Sierra Nevada fan, not just for their amazing beers but for the way Ken pursues quality and the way he runs his brewery.  As an industry, we are very lucky to have someone like him around to inspire the rest of us.  I was lucky enough to do a collaboration with Ken’s son Brian at Sierra Nevada; it was amazing seeing the inter-workings of SNBC.  Ken and his staff never do things the easy way, but they always do it the proper way.

I also have to tip my hat to Peter Bouckaert at New Belgium for inspiring and teaching me the art of sour, barrel-aged beers.  I’m also a big fan of Jean Marie Rock at Orval for his amazing depth of knowledge of Brettanomyces and finally Hedwig Neven at Duvel for his ability to make amazing Belgian beers.

John Laffler. Until recently, he was the guy making oh-so-many cool Goose Island beers even cooler. Now, he’s struck off on his own, working with Dave Bleitner to bring Off Color Brewing to the Chicago beer scene.

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

JOHN LAFFLER: Simple—Armand Debelder at Drie Fonteinen. Most of the beer I drink comes from people I know by first name and of everyone I think he best embodies what I love about beer and the people who make it. That there’s this thing that we do and it’s easy to think that we’re very, very clever for it, but it’s important to not forget that our craft is an art that has been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. It’s how we learned to survive, to store food, and it’s defined and been defined by culture both high and low. It’s part of something bigger than us, and we need to think about that when we make beer. Art is a response to things poor, nasty, brutish and short. This is ours and Armand taught me it’s important to make something beautiful.

Oh, and also Jeremy Danner at Boulevard because he’s funny on the Internet.

You’ve probably heard of Mitch Steele. He’s the brewmaster at Stone Brewing Company, where he brews a string of aggressive, arrogant and impressive beers. He’s also the author of IPA: Brewing Techniques, Recipes and the Evolution of India Pale Ale.

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

MITCH STEELE: Two people that I think have really shaped my career and my approach to brewing:

1. Professor Michael Lewis (UC Davis). Michael Lewis has taught hundreds/thousands of today’s best brewers. He is uncompromising in his commitment to brewing consistency and quality. As a brewing science student at UC Davis in the 1980s, I was indoctrinated into what it takes to brew a quality beer consistently, and these are focuses that have remained with me through schooling and in subsequent brewing positions at Anheuser-Busch and Stone Brewing Co. I also appreciate the fact that Michael Lewis likes to stir the pot in the craft brewing industry, and he’s not afraid to let brewers know that they might not be as good or as technically sound as they think they are. This is something every brewer should take to heart—even if you don’t always agree with his stance, his points are well thought out and worthy of further discussion. I think he has taken it on as a personal mission to not allow craft brewers to become complacent or smug with their success!

2. Steve Wagner: I absolutely loved and sought out Stone’s beers before I got the job here. Stone IPA was (and still is) one of my favorite IPAs. Except for my homebrewing projects, I had never brewed beers with the sheer flavor intensity that Stone is known for until I got here. Stone approached hops in the brewhouse differently than I had experienced in prior positions, and their brewhouse hopping and dry-hopping amounts were much higher than anything I had ever done before. I have used the past and current Stone brewing procedures as a starting point for the recipes that I have done in the last seveb years. I have been inspired to try ingredients, quantities and processes that I had previously might have thought were crazy. No limits—that’s one thing I’ve learned from Steve. In addition, Steve has given me a tremendous amount of creative input, and now I am using his approach with me to do the same with my brewing team. And he has supported m  fantastic opportunities to brew at other breweries and in other countries. You learn so much from traveling to other breweries.

(I really had trouble picking contemporary brewers as favorites because there are so many of them that I admire and respect. My “short” list includes Vinnie Cilurzo, Tomme Arthur, Patrick Rue, Ron Jeffries, Peter Bouckaert, Ken Grossman and John Keeling.)

To start, let’s find out who influences the talented and heavily-decorated brewmaster from Firestone Walker, Matt Brynildson.

BREWVANA: Who is one of your favorite and influential-to-you brewers in the industry and why?

MATT BRYNILDSON: Ken Grossman, owner of the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, is my hero brewer. He is the most quality-minded and knowledgeable brewer alive today. He is the pioneer that blazed the trail that the rest of us craft brewers walk today. There are many other brewers that I admire, but Ken is head and shoulders above them all.