The current state of Midnight Sun?

"Is Midnight Sun still a top tier brewery?"

No. I thought the latest Arctic Devil was pretty bland. Fallen Angel was meh. Batch 3000... let's not go there...

 

Where did Gabe go?

 

I also thought Arctic Devil was great, but after a cellar full of infected Berserkers, I've lost some confidence in them.

As far as Batch 3000... let's go there. I really wanted to try to get a bottle, but didn't hear any negative press about it. What was the problem there?

 

Gabe started Anchorage Brewing Company

 

Ive got some 3000, if you want to swing a trade.

 

LOL, maybe I should wait to see what the perceived problem is with it, no offense

 

I don't know about negative press, but it seems like it trades super-high (I guess people thought it would be the new M?) and the taste doesn't deliver. A friend shared it a few months ago with a handful of BAs, and over half the bottle was left. It has a red wine flavor with a dry finish and some acidity that suggests it might go sour. I couldn't figure out what was Belgian about it, and there was some definite cardboard oxidation going on.

Not the worst thing I've ever tried, but I'd rather drink Arctic Devil, and Arctic Devil wasn't even very good this time around. Like a black barleywine or something. Blegh.

 

Gabe isn't the only one who left. His second-in-command, Jeremiah, also left for Anchorage. The original owner is also no longer with the company, who was the first brewer IIRC. The current brewer is Lee Ellis, who came from Mac n Jack's. Pretty sure he was not at MS during the brewing of all the beers we consider 'classics', so he's interpreting old recipes without having brewed them with the original brewers. I could be wrong on some of this and would appreciate any correction.

 

Anyone get to try their collab with Stone yet?

 

Here are my thoughts: MS really WAS fantastic. Older bottles of AD and Berserker were much better than the last two years. M and Sloth were phenomenal. Most of their regular offerings I find to be pretty bland. I've always been stoked to get any of the limited releases from them but that really started falling off for myself about two years ago.

One GOOD thing that happened with Gabe leaving is that Anchorage is a brewery I have loved pretty much everything he has made there ESPECIALLY Deal with the Devil. DwtD was by far the best beer at Brouwer's Hard Liver and is one of the most memorable BW's I've ever had. The cognac was so delicious and the 17.4% abv was basically non-existent. Gabe really needs to bottle it. I'd buy 375 ml C&C bottles for $20 a piece. (Are you listening Gabe)?

Cheers,
Ryan

 

I thought that the handling (or non handling) of the Berserker infection was pretty telling and rather disappointing.

I'm not going to write a brewery off for releasing an infected barrel aged beer or two (it happens) but I would like to hear something, anything from them acknowledging the issue. It is a bad experience for the customer and it does influence future bottle purchases.

 

Like so many others, I clamoured for MSBC beers (especially the hard-to-get-in-the-lower-48 beers) for years, and I was lucky to have a familial connection in ANC so I could get the hard to find MSBC beers. Gabe raised the MSBC bar to a very high level and Jeremiah filled Gabe's shoes exceptionally well! Since Jeremiah's departure from MSBC, the beers there have taken a substantial nose dive in quality! I no longer desperately seek out MSBC beer for cellaring, though there are still a few of their "routine" beers that I'll pick up and consume now and then. I rather wonder if the new brewer at MSBC just needs to do his own thing with the beers, if he's allowed. That is, keep the names (arctic devil, berserker, etc) but make new recipes of his own. Not sure about the legality of such things but whatever is happening there now, needs to change for the better, right quick!

 

right quick...word

 

IMO if he's going to rework the recipes they need to be new beers. I don't want "new" Berserker to be a different recipe compared to classic (incredible aside from the latest batch) Berserker.

 

Agreed. If a major overhaul happens, the beer needs a new name.

 

This is quite true, I must admit. It may be time to do a full tear down of the roof and take the walls down to the studs, so as to speak. Perhaps making the beers "his own" is the way to go.

 

Doesn't look good for MS if the brewer came from Mac & Jack's. Talk about a boring brewery.

 

Holy cats! I just realised that I had a major brain fart! After Gabe departed MSBC, Ben Johnson became the MSBC head brewer for, I think, 8 months before Jeremiah took the lead!! Ben did some fine work at MSBC including the deep, dark, brooding, and oh so extraordinary "Sloth"! I think he also did the "Bangalore" from the World Tour lineup and the "Bathtub Gin" from the Brew Crew series. Just wanted to make sure Ben got credited for his glorious work at MSBC :0)