Beer KC

A few of my favorite things…of 2014

As we are in the midst of the holiday season, I thought reflect on a few of my personal favorites, let’s be honest, they’re just damn good!

My favorite cocktail of 2014 is one that we added to the McCoy’s menu over the summer. Prohibition Sazarac is Templeton Rye Whiskey, Pernod Absenthe, Pechuard’s Bitters, sugar and a lemon zest. This is a true whiskey lovers cocktail! Smooth, spicy, rich, and perfect! When deciding which cocktails to change and the direction McCoy’s wanted the cocktail menu to move, I felt this was a great cocktail to round out the menu and one that beer lovers look for. It seems there is a strong connection between good beer and good whiskey, beer lovers seem to gravitate towards good whiskey and whiskey cocktails. Why? I’m not entirely sure, but I can say for myself as a beer lover, I really enjoy the flavors of the whiskey mash, which can sometimes remind me of a good beer. Whiskey is beer that has been distilled, am I right?  

At McCoy’s and Foundry, we offer another great cocktail/beer blend, have you ever tried the Diesel? In Europe, especially in Germany and England, it’s very common to blend lemon-lime soda with lager or wheat beers, and sometimes you might find they mix cola with wheat or dark ales. Our Diesel is a take on those traditional European beer blends. We will mix our house stout (the Oatmeal stout is the best!) with our house made root beer. What you get is a rich, velvety, smooth, not too sweet, not too roasty delicious beer blend! You don’t have to use just the McCoy’s stout or root beer, though we encourage you to come in and get one, but you can pick up any stout and root beer that you like, and blend them 50/50 or 70/30 stout to root beer ratio, sit back and enjoy!

This year, McCoy’s brewed a fantastic Gose (go-zuh). Gose is a German sour wheat ale with coriander and salt. According to the German beer purity law, Reinheitsgebot, beer can only be brewed using the four main ingredients, malt, hops, yeast, and water. Gose is a style that has been brewed for centuries and has been exempt from the Reinheitsgebot law. Our Gose was perfectly tart from the 72 hour sour mash, the salt wasn’t too overpowering and the coriander was subtle, which tuned into the best warm weather thirst quencher!

Courtesy of Boulevard Brewing Co.

Boulevard Brewing Co. released their version of a Gose this year, Hibiscus Gose. The beer was brewed in a similar style with sour mashing, additions of salt and coriander, but Boulevard took it a step further and added hibiscus flowers to the beer. The result was a tart, salty, slightly floral, pink beer! Boulevard’s Hibiscus Gose was so popular, that I’m afraid that most Kansas Citians will think that all Gose’ will be pink in color. That is simply not the case, but Boulevard really knocked this one out of the park for me!

And finally, how about those Kansas City Royals?! I’ve been a diehard Royals fan for years, and this year was a Royals fan dream come true. Not only were the “Boy’s In Blue” amazing, and gave Kansas City something to cheer for, but Kansas Citians were amazing! We really showed the nation who we are and what Midwest hospitality is all about! We will be remembered as the town who was humble, and the town who treated opposing team fans with respect. I’ve always been proud to call Kansas City my home, and I’m especially proud to be a Kansas Citian!  

Wishing you all the happiest of holidays!

Randyl Danner, Director of Beer