Evil Twin vs. Mikeller

Here at Friendly Package we’re doing our best to get the best beer we can, and beer that you want. Wherever you are in the world come here to FriendlyPackage.com, click on contact us and we’ll do our best to have the beer you’re looking for when you come home. Even if you’re down the block, get ahold of us, or come in and talk to one of our clerks and we’ll do our best to get the beer you’re looking for.

There’s a bunch of great stories out there in the beer world, and in the upcoming months, we’re going to delve into them a bit. Now, there are many great stories out there about brewers being nice guys and helping their community, but we know what sells… DRAMA. So, we’re going to look at rivalries in the beer world. This is the first installment of Friendly Package’s Rivalry Series. There are only a few known rivalries within the beer industry that are worth talking about, and we’re going to look at them in the upcoming months.

Here’s how things will work for this series: First we’ll get you acquainted with each brewer, a little tale of the tape if you will. Next we’ll explain the beef they have with each other, and finally it will be up to you to decide. Instead of just picking who you like more, you will let your palate decide. If you any of our social media, you will know we do craft beer tastings every Thursday, and this is where you come in. Each week we will do a blind tasting, letting you decide which beer you like better. That coupled with what you, the consumer, buy more will be tallied at the end of everything and we’ll see whose side Muncie is on.

We’re starting it big, with the first installment of the series:

This is our first installment of the Friendly Package Rivalry Series, in the next few weeks we will do a blind tasting Mikkeller vs. Evil Twin and you will choose who you like more. We will also take into account sales throughout this time, and we will figure out the winner before Christmas break. Every Thursday, when we do our Craft Beer tasting, all Mikkeller & Evil Twin products will be 20% off.

Now that you know the rules, let’s get into the backstory of this rivalry.

This is quite possibly the biggest and most interesting rivalry in the beer industry currently; the biggest reason is because it’s family. If you pay attention to details, you’ll notice the heads of Mikkeller & Evil Twin, Mikkel and Jeppe respectively, are identical twins. The stem of the rivalry is that Mikkel and Jeppe are very similar- competitive, determined, ambitious, stubborn. In a NewYork Times article, Jeppe mentions that Mikkel was the first out of the womb, but only because he was lying the wrong way and was removed via C-section. Throughout their childhood they competed against each other in long distance running, and after they both came to the states from Denmark, they found beer. Craft beer starts hitting it big in the states, but also overseas. When Mikkel comes back to Denmark, he joins a beer club started by Jeppe. This beer club turns into a job for Jeppe when he starts his own beer store in Denmark called Olbutikken. Mikkel decides to start brewing with a friend Kristian Keller and soon Mikkeller (get it?) is Olbutikken’s house beer.

A few years later, Mikkeller is selling very well at Jeppe’s Olbutikken and Mikkel decides to open his own bar down the way. This decision may not be the reason their bond fractured, but it is a situation that weakened the structure of their relationship. After this fallout, a few other business decisions continued to deteriorate their link. The brothers went to therapy together to work out their many differences, but soon, Jeppe decided it’d be best to move to the states.

Enter Beer.

At this point, beer had been in Jeppe's life for a while, but when he moved to the states, he decided it was going to be a major part of his life. Jeppe had this radical idea, where he'd brew beer but without equipment. Simply, he'd make contacts within the industry, go and brew his beer on their equipment- this is known as "Gypsy Brewing." Jeppe didn't invent Gypsy Brewing, but he took the idea from Mikkel.

Jeppe and Mikkel respect each other’s craft, although they don’t necessarily agree on some beers. Jeppe finds some of Mikkel’s beers undrinkable, unbalanced and too complex. From an outsider’s perspective, this seems to be hypocritical as Jeppe uses some wild ingredients.

Regardless of the twin’s feelings about each other’s beer it’s about what the public thinks. So let’s go to the tale of the tape:

As you see, Mikkeller has won more awards than Evil Twin based on the two big beer websites, BeerAdvocate and RateBeer. Mikkeller has a little bit of an edge, as he’s against a smaller number of brewers in Denmark for regional awards, and he’s been in the game for quite a bit longer. On the other side of things, Jeppe at Evil Twin helped develop the first beer bar with a Michelin Star, Luksus. He’s also made beers specifically for Michelin Star winning restaurants, like Luksus, Nomo, Fat Duck.

If these two brothers would combine efforts, they might be able to make some of the best beer ever, but it may be better that they’re just two separate guys, both making great beer. The big question is, who will Muncie pick?

Come in for our Thursday Beer Tasting and you will be the one to decide!

The winner, by split decision, Mikkeller!

June 26th Update...

        Hello, folks! It’s that time again; let’s recap a few of the recent events we’ve had – and talk about some of the best specials we are offering this week. It’s been a very exciting month, here at Friendly Package Liquors!

     Two weekends ago, we held our second, annual, craft beer tasting at our Jackson location. We ended up having a very good turn-out (regarding both that of the breweries and representatives involved, as well as that of the patrons). There were over twenty-five different types of craft beer to try, from nationally recognized brews to a few beers brewed by Muncie’s first commercial brewery since the Muncie Brewing Co. was in existence. There were some delicious finger-foods provided by Barn Brasserie (also based out of Muncie). It was a very nice event and a pleasure for all those involved!

     Just last weekend, we hosted another one of our ever-popular Bourbon tastings. A couple of highlighted items from that event would have to be the ‘Rebel Yell’ Bourbon – which for the price, can not be beat in quality!

                                       

       Another item in the spotlight from that tasting was ‘Bulleit Bourbon’, aged ten years (which proved to be of impeccable quality, with a depth of flavor and smoothness that is only found in truly exceptional Bourbon). 

                                           

     Believe it or not, there was even an underdog liquor that came out of the corner swinging for a knockout, when they brought out a gin, dubbed ‘Bone Dry’, to taste. Even folks who are not partial to gin ended up enjoying the cocktail incorporating this high-quality spirit (which lives up to the name, being bone-dry and delicious… without dropping too many earthy or herbal notes normally associated with gin).

                                             

     I would like to take this time to remind everyone that in addition to the larger-scale events we periodically host, we also put on a number of tastings regularly throughout the week. There is a craft beer tasting that is held at our Yorktown location every Wednesday, from 4:30pm-7:30pm. There is also a craft beer tasting held at our Jackson location on Thursdays from 6pm-8pm. We put on liquor tastings Thursdays at both our Jackson AND Yorktown locations. The Yorktown liquor tasting is held Thursdays, 5pm-7:30pm – and the Jackson liquor tasting is held Thursdays 8pm-11pm. Finally, we have a wine tasting at our Yorktown location every Saturday, from 2pm-7pm! Stop by and try some samples from new & popular items! Expand your horizons and try something different… You never know what hidden gems you might find! 

     

     Click the “Specials” link at the top of the page on our Friendly Package Liquors website to see all the deals and specials we’re offering this week!

     Be sure to check back next Friday for a recap and review of weekly-happenings, the rundown on upcoming events and specials – as well as any other interesting news surrounding the wonderful world of Friendly Package Liquors! Have a great weekend! 

- Maxon

Back to Blogging

     Hey there, folks! It’s been a little while since we last updated our blog. We shall be working on adding posts regularly, now – however. We’re going to be providing you with information and feedback from our weekly tastings, details regarding new products/promotions/specials, reviews of new products, as well as any local beer or spirit news.

     I would first like to remind everyone that we provide a number of interesting tastings for both craft beer and liquor products at both our Muncie and Yorktown Friendly Package Liquor locations. We put on a craft beer tasting at our Yorktown location from 4pm-7pm on Wednesdays, a craft beer tasting at our Muncie location from 6pm-8pm on Thursdays, as well as a liquor tasting from 5pm-7:30pm at our Yorktown location, and a liquor tasting at our Muncie location 8pm-11pm on Thursdays.

     This week we tasted out ‘Not Your Father’s Root Beer’, and ‘Sprecher Hard Root Beer” from Small Town Brewery and Sprecher Brewery, respectively. Both of these choices have been highly revered for their quality and unique take on what should be incorporated in a hard root beer. The general consensus is that ‘Not Your Father’s Root Beer” tastes more like a traditional root beer… Where as Sprecher’s Hard Root beer is more along the lines of an ale spiced like a root beer.

     We also tasted out a few flavors in the Calico Jack rum line. We tasted the Calico Jack Spiced Rum, Calico Jack Black Spiced Rum, as well as the Calico Jack Cherry Spiced Rum. Each provide a nice twist on traditional Caribbean rum. Both the normal Spiced, and the Black Spiced, have fairly heavy vanilla notes throughout. The Black Spiced rum has a slight hit of roast incorporated from the charred oak barrels it is aged in.  The Cherry Spiced rum has fairly heavy cherry notes that are carried alongside the vanilla undertones dancing throughout. As a result, most people enjoyed this product mixed with Coca Cola or Cherry Coke.

      I would like to take this time to remind everyone that our weekly sales will be good through the fifteenth of June. This includes some incredible deals on such things as ‘Admiral Nelson’ (all flavors), 1.75L for $14.97, ‘Calico Jack’ Rum (all flavors, excluding ‘94’), for $7.97, ‘Pinnacle’ Vodka (all flavors), for $8.97, and ’99 Schnapps’ (all flavors), for $12.97. The ’99 Schnapps’ line are very popular - being 99 Proof while still retaining a smoothness comparable to any other line of schnapps available.

      We also have some SPECIAL tasting events coming up in the very near future. This Saturday (6/13/15), we will be hosting a Craft Beer Tasting at our Muncie location from 12pm-2pm. This will include 20+ beers, representatives from breweries involved, as well as food – provided by Muncie’s Barn Brassserie. This is a ticket-only event; if you are interested in attending – stop by our Muncie or Yorktown location for tickets or details. There will also be after-party at The Fickle Peach from 3pm-6pm.

      The following Saturday (6/20/15), we shall be providing a Bourbon Tasting at our Yorktown Location from 4pm-7pm. We will have representatives on-site to provide information and answer any questions regarding the various Bourbons that shall be tasted out.

      Last, but not least – Father’s day is quickly approaching (falling on the twenty-first, this year)! Don’t buy Dad yet ANOTHER neck-tie he doesn’t really need! Why don’t you buy him something he will use and enjoy? We provide a large number of unique gift-sets that cater to any taste your father might have. Stop into one of our convenient locations and inquire as to what sets we might have in stock!

     Be sure to stop by and check out next week’s post for information and reviews of new products we get in, or specials we may be running. We will keep you up to date on all things Friendly Package!

-Maxon

Monks, Abbeys and Chimay

Before we get into business, Friendly Package would like to thank all of the Ball State students that voted for us for “Best Liquor Store On Campus” through Ball State's Daily News. For those of you paying attention, that's two years in a row.

Here at Friendly Package we’re doing our best to get the best beer we can, and beer that you want. Wherever you are in the world come here to FriendlyPackage.com, click on contact us and we’ll do our best to have the beer you’re looking for when you come home. Even if you’re down the block, get ahold of us, or come in and talk to one of our clerks and we’ll do our best to get the beer you’re looking for.

Let’s take a trip across the pond, a swim across the English Channel and stroll into a Trappist Monastery called Scourmont Abbey where Chimay is brewed. Ready to hang out with some Monks?

Chimay

History lesson… Beer lesson… Beestory Lesson! (See what I did there?) Chimay is brewed by Trappist Monks dating back to 1862. Only eight breweries in the world are contained within Trappist Abbeys while only seven of the breweries in the Trappist abbeys are in Belgium. The lone Trappist Brewery not in Belgium is Mariawald Abbey over in Germany. Anyway, Trappist Breweries brew beer only to sustain their Abbey and anything after that is distributed to charities for community development around the area.

We’ve already been briefly introduced to two Trappist Abbeys, Mariawald and Chimay, but there’s six others. Other than the Chimay brews, Rochfort, La Trappe, Orval and Westmalle are Trappist brews that you can find at Friendly Package. Mariawald and Achel we are not able to get. Lastly, Westvleteren no one in the states can get.

Let’s get off topic real fast. Fun fact time: Westvleteren was founded in 1838 and since has been internationally known for its taste, quality and rarity. If you want to experience Westvleteren you have to go to the Abbey, but not before you call their “Beer phone” because walk-ups are not welcome. Last I’ve heard availability is limited to one 24-bottle case, per license plate, per 60 days. Westvleteren is bottled with no labels, and with all of the legal info printed on the cap. You can sometimes find bottles for sale on eBay, or from a friend, but the Monks hate that… Do you really want to piss off a Trappist Monk? I’m pretty sure they have a direct line to god, so I’m not going to test them.

Alright, let’s get back to Chimay… How’d we get off track anyway?

Chimay brews three different beers that are readily available at the best liquor store on campus, Friendly Package Liquors.

Chimay Premiere

Premiere was the first beer the Trappist Monks brewed in the Scourmont Abbey. It’s a dubbel that clocks in at a nice 7% abv, and is an easy drink. It’ll pour out a red/brown, rusty-ish color with a creamy head leaving a nice lace on the goblet. A fruity, maybe apricot nose with a smooth fruit taste. At the end you’ll catch a touch of bitterness, while your mouth screams for more.

Chimay Cinq Cents

Never had a triple? Give this one a shot. Cinq Cents first brewed in 1966 with an abv of 8%. This trip pours out a nice gold color, and smells of musky grapes with some raisons and malty-ness. You wouldn’t necessarily realize it by the smell, but Cinq Cents is fresh hopped, and while you get a hint of that at the end, you get a lot more sweet fruit.

Chimay Grand Reserve

This is where it’s at. Chimay Grand Reserve first brewed in 1948 as their Christmas beer. For the cold weather they made sure to give you a bit of warmness with a 9% abv. After the pour you get a floral aroma mixed with fresh Belgian yeast, clove and dark fruit is present. It feels light in your mouth, with a lot of carbonation. Grand Reserve gives off a mild banana flavor with an alcohol presence, there’s a nice malt flavor with a bit of spicy-ness mixed in that gives away to more alcohol at the end pairing with a dry finish.

All three Chimays come in a corked and caged 750 ml bottle for $12.77, $13.49 and $14.77 respectively, however if you’re looking to try them, all three 11.2 oz bottles are $5.99. If you’re going to grab a bottle of Chimay from us, you should probably pick up a Chimay Goblet for $2.99. It’s not completely necessary, any glass will work, but the Goblet is made by Chimay and if you use it, you’ll taste exactly what the Monks were intending.

Lastly to close out this bomb of knowledge on Chimay, let’s have a quick talk about temperatures. Most people think that drinking a beer ice cold is the way to go, but with any craft beer a warmer temperature is necessary. If a beer is ice cold, you lose subtle flavor notes that you would pick up if not for the numbingly coldness in your mouth.

Premiere should be served 50-54 degrees

Cinq Cents should be served 42-46 degrees

Grand Reserve should be served 50-54 degrees

When you grab a beer from our cooler, I would recommend you let them sit out for a little bit, 10 minutes for Cinq Cents, maybe 20 for Premiere and Grand Reserve. Personally, I’ll take a taste and then let it warm up and see if I can find any differences. Wrap your hands around the Chimay goblet, and slowly drink. Towards the second half you’ll find complexities that you didn’t realize were there. Or you can jam a thermometer in your glass, wait for the correct temperature and start drinking. Either way you’re in for a treat.

American Craft Beer Week Pt.4

Before we get into business, Friendly Package would like to thank all of the Ball State students that voted for us for “Best Liquor Store On Campus” through Ball State's Daily News. For those of you paying attention, that's two years in a row.

Here at Friendly Package we’re doing our best to get the best beer we can, and beer that you want. Wherever you are in the world come here to FriendlyPackage.com, click on contact us and we’ll do our best to have the beer you’re looking for when you come home. Even if you’re down the block, get ahold of us, or come in and talk to one of our clerks and we’ll do our best to get the beer you’re looking for.

This Week is American Craft Beer Week

It’s Friday, and that means it’s our fourth installment ofthe American Craft Beer Week reviews. Today our featured breweries are Stone Brewing and Indiana’s own Three Floyds. Although Stone has a lot of good beers tochoose from, I don’t care. I’m a Three Floyds fanboy, I’ll admit it. I’ve spentmore than my fair share of money at their establishment, had at least 50 oftheir beers, have a bunch of other merchandise. With this being said, of courseI’m going to review a Three Floyds beer, but which one?

Well, first I thought about reviewing Zombie Dust, BallerStout or Darklord, but you can’t get a bottle of any of those at our store, so what’s the point? Instead I’ve decided to review this month’s bomber, Blackheart.

Three Floyds Blackheart

The old label was pretty rad.

Blackheart is an English style IPA, but what makes it anEnglish style IPA? Does it mean that it’s more true to the style? Not sure, butwhat I do know is that it’s made with all English ingredients, English yeastand aged on oak. Sounds fun, right? Right, and it’s pretty good too.

Once poured Blackheart comes out a red-orange color with abig frothy head. You get thecitrus/floral smells from the hops, a sweet and hoppy smell. You also get a bitof the oak out of it also. Upfront you get the IPA-ness out of it, very similarto the nose, hoppy up front, sweet, citrus, cruises along and the oak comes inat the end piggybacking almost. The aftertaste still has the hoppinesslingering, and you get sweetness, almost vanilla (?) maybe from the oak. A nicemedium body, you get a little booze kick, but not as much as you’d expect from9%.

Give this one a shot, it’s not one of those 3F’s brewseveryone talks about, but it’s solid to say the least.

American Craft Beer Week Pt.3

Before we get into business, Friendly Package would like to thank all of the Ball State students that voted for us for “Best Liquor Store On Campus” through Ball State's Daily News. For those of you paying attention, that's two years in a row. 

This week is American Craft Beer Week

Today, is our third installment of American Craft Beer Week, and once again, time to step out of your box. Today’s featured breweries are (Jacob) Leinenkugel Brewing Company and Founder’s Brewing Company.  Leinenkugel have a handful of good beers, especially for the hot weather. If you’re looking for lemonade in your beer check out Summer Shandy, fruity pebbles check out Sunset Wheat, want some berries? Berry Weiss. You’re a big Honey fan? Honey Weiss.

The aforementioned beers are good and fine, but Founder’s Brewing Company brews serious beers. Their Centennial IPA is the standard for IPAs, their Porter (Like I’ve previously said) is the best in our cooler, their Pale is solid, and that’s not even getting into their seasonal bottles. Enough of how awesome all their beers are, time to tell you about Red’s Rye PA.

The good stuff.

Founders Red’s Rye PA

Quick backstory on this: For the longest time I avoided this beer because of my previous experience with rye beer. I’ve had a few of them and didn’t really dig the taste. I wasn’t sure exactly what I didn’t like, but the fact that rye was in it, I assumed it was the culprit. I’ve never really had an experience with rye before beer, so it was a new experience overall. On top of my bad experience with rye beers, I assumed that it was going to be similar to a red or an amber beer, which is also not up my alley. After talking to a customer, they assured me Red’s Rye PA was the way to go if I’m looking to figure out what a good RIPA tastes like, and boy was he right.

There's Red, hidden outside of their offices

Red’s Rye PA is brewed with four different Belgian malts, and Amarillo hops. It pours red with a grapefruit nose stinking up the room from the Amarillo hops. Other than the floral and grapefruit, some caramel malty-ness comes through. This is what a Rye PA should taste like, hop bitterness, malt and rye come through nicely with a medium body. My words can’t do this beer justice, just go grab one, or a full sixer and get a dollar off.

Enjoy.

American Craft Beer Week Pt 2

Before we get into business, Friendly Package would like to thank all of the Ball State students that voted for us for “Best Liquor Store On Campus” through Ball State's Daily News. For those of you paying attention, that's two years in a row. 

This week is American Craft Beer Week

American Craft Beer Week continues, so time to try something new. Today’s two featured breweries are Boulevard Brewery and North Coast Brewery. Both companies have a lot of great beer to offer so this was a hard choice to pick what to review. Boulevard has some killers like Tank 7, Double Wide, Two Jokers and Rye on Rye (located on our warm shelf), but North Coast is one of my favorite breweries so I gotsta show them some love.

The grandaddy of them all

With the amount of North Coast brews we have at our disposal, it was a little taxing to figure out which to review. Old Stock Ale, Old Rasputin, Brother Thelonious, PranQster all being good choices, but these are the more popular of the beers. I’ve thought about reviewing Old Stock Ostuchi, Grand Cru or the lovely Old Stock Cellar Reserve, but I decided we’re going to look at Le Merle.

North Coast Brewing Company’s Le Merle

Le Merle is a saison/farmhouse ale made with a Belgian yeast strain. It pours a pale, “straw” color, yellowish orange with a big head that hangs around only for a second. Right away you can smell fresh, tangy fruits, some citrus and flowery smells. Le Merle has a light lemon taste, very crisp and fresh. The Belgian yeast gives some extra fruity characteristics, and carbonation is good. Overall I love this beer, one of my favorite saisons in our cooler right now, just make sure to drink this first. 

Michael Jackson says about Le Merle “More than a serious beer – it is outstanding….Dizzying, appetizing, refreshing.” This is not a quote from the “King of Pop” but “The Beer Hunter”.