Wine Library TV

Search

EP 815 Beer Tasting at Brooklyn Brewery with Garrett Oliver

Gary travels to Brooklyn to visit with brewmaster Garrett Oliver, to taste some interesting beers. Gary and Garrett discuss the beer and wine industry and Garrett’s new book, The Brewmaster’s Table.

Wines tasted in this episode:

Brooklyn Brewery Local 1
Brooklyn Brewery Local 2
Brooklyn Brewery Black Ops

Links mentioned in todays episode.


Latest Comment:

View More

luca bercelli

91/100

I started out thinking the guest wasn’t too great but he won me over in the end and it turned out to be a fascinating and entertaining episode.

Tags: beer, Brooklyn Brewery, review, Video

Related Stories & Episodes >

Episodes >

←  Older Comments
Newer Comments  →
  • Mike

    Fun episode! I'm pretty sure that Oregon and Washington, having GI-normous beer selections, select beer stores, and local craft brews, would love to try your beers. Come out and show your stuff…

  • aarontewalt

    Wow, What a fantastic episode and a great guest. I really enjoyed it, it was very educational. I try the “different” beers any time I get the chance. I haven't had a BB beer yet. I am from Oregon so there are plenty on interesting beers to be had. I would love to try some BB though. Thanks for the wonderful episode.

  • Scott

    Garrett & Gary,
    Not a novel idea but what about a vertical series!! Maybe a collaboration between you guys.
    I love doing veritical wine tastings and stone has their Epic series although you have to have saved from previous years to enjoy it.
    At Gary's prompting I recently had a CDP vertical tasting from '04-'07 pricey but worth it.

    I am thinking of a 4-pack verical sold as such could be a two year project brewed 2x a year and it wont be inexpensive however with your new location next door you might be able to celebrate the inagural beer with a vertical series. The nuance could be aging(i.e. barrel types -burbon, sherry, wine, etc… as well as duration in the barrels)
    I wished I had a play ground like Garrett – a man is allowed to dream isn't he?
    Good luck with the new location.
    If you decide to go with the concept please make sure it gets to South Florida:)
    J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS

  • glennanderson

    very interesting, your sampling the beer as if it was a glass of wine. maybe I've gone about drinking beer the wrong way.

  • brixforbrains

    2000 flavor components don't show well straight from the bottle 😉

  • I have never had Brooklyn Brewery Beer. I have been getting more into the Sam Adam's and Guiness the last year.
    Gary, will you be supplying Brooklyn Brew in the near future? This episode really sparked an interest in the specialty brewerys, and would like to get some bottles.

  • Rich

    G & G – great job. A little E. coast centric though. In the great northwest we have a bunch of craft brewers that have been around for nearly 30 years – Full Sail, Hales, Redhook, Bridgeport and many more. They are not doing the wild things that it Garrett mentioned but the make a lot of very decent beer. Gary as long as you are straying off of the straight and narrow – How about a show on fruit wines (black berry, blueberry apricot etc). I have had some nice ones now and again

  • CharlieTN

    What has Brooklyn Brewery not done for me? How bout send me a free case of Black Ops? That stuff sounds off the chain.

    Never actually had anything from Brooklyn, but I certainly plan to after this episode…

  • Yeah beer is very complex.

  • Black Ops is amazing! Have a couple bottles in the cellar.

  • I dig bret when it's well integrated, and not a bret-bomb (as in some (overly?) flawed wines). I dig sours; really dig the stuff coming from Jolly Pumpkin brewery.

    What about a beer that mimics an Amarone? I could see that happening.

  • Big fan of the 90 minute too.

  • Ben

    Rad show! I live in Tennessee, so I'm pretty sure Brooklyn may not be around here, but I'm going to look!

  • Good episode. Interesting that you did a beer episode. The craft beer community is huge and there are a lot of people appreciating beer at the wine level.

    But get a tripod man.

  • yngling

    Hey! I live in Stockholm (capital of Sweden) and have never seen this beer. I'll need to find it!

  • Michael C in MKE

    Tremendous Guest. I love that he mentioned New Glarus Brewing Company. They are the bees knees.

  • johnny_P_17

    One of my favorite episodes. I have been drinking Brooklyn's stuff for quite some time and will continue to do so for years to come.

    One thing that rubs me the wrong way in the wine community is snobbishness when it comes to beer. Winos often frown upon it perceiving it as a peasant beverage. People often pit beer vs wine but that simply is not the case. They are two different things and can (and should) be enjoyed as equals.

  • Gabe4455

    Absolutely wonderful episode. As a huge fan of craft/micro-brew beers I was extremely interested to see what knowledge was going to be passed in this episode. You are definitely keeping it real in 2010 Gary, the past 3 episodes have been quite different, but very interesting at the same time. I've tried a good portion of the products that Brooklyn puts out and I still think they have one of the consistently better Brown Ales out there right now.

  • Terrific episode. Great guest too, funny and intelligent. Would love to see beer episodes more often!

    I actually was at a beer bar yesterday and got to try their black chocolate stout, tasty, tasty stuff.

  • This was a great show. Good call on switching it up a bit.

    We teach beer and wine classes in El Paso, TX, and have used a couple of Brooklyn's brews for those classes. They're always a favorite. During the holidays, we sampled the Black Chocolate Stout during class, and served it over vanilla ice cream. It brought down the house! Everyone loved it!

    QOTD: The only thing Brooklyn can do for us, is keep up the good work. We've been drinking your brews for a while now (since our east coast days), and will continue to do so now that we're in TX. Cheers!!!

  • Great show, great guest. I'm ready to book my flight to NY and visit both you guys. I have expanded my beer palate much like I have in wine and so watching a show like this really intrigues me.

    You'll have to have this guest on again, just awesome.

  • Henry

    Great episode, and great brewery. I've been there and tasted all of their products, and they are fantastic. Love the brewery, and love you too, Gary, but you interrupt nearly every answer your guest tries to complete, and it's so annoying. I'm waiting for him to finish his sentences and you cut him off! Stop!!!
    I say that will all due respect, sir.

  • markbigs

    Unlike wine, I feel that most beer is best served fresh. There are exception that are designed for aging, but most beer is like most food–the fresher it is, the better it is. That is one reason the craft beer movement is so important. Many regional beers to drink before they get too old. I much prefer beer from a cask.

    For the question of the day–does Brooklyn Brewery supply cask beer, and, how can you promote more casks in pubs?

  • Steve_T

    That Black ops looks real good, I'm jealous.

  • I was in SOHO in November, I ate a killer burger (and pomme frites) at Lucky Strike and had a Brooklyn Brewery Holiday Ale….it was freaking delicious…I cant get over that beer…so good with the burger…Garrett O is one of the countries best brewmasters….top shelf…

    I need to find some of his beer in NC

  • flavasauce

    Loveloveloved this episode!! I'm originally from CT and have enjoyed Garrett's beers in the past. Now that I live in San Francisco my request would be to get his brews in CA. I'm a hop head and my favorite beers are Stone's IPA and Pliny The Elder from Russian River Brewery but I would kill to try the Manhattan Project as that's probably my favorite cocktail. Fun show and I had no idea Garrett was involved in so many amazing projects with so many legendary people.

  • CheddarGeorge

    Brilliant episode
    I sell cheese and have a friend who has just built a micro brewery here in central London. We do cheese and beer tastings and can't keep up with demand! Have had Garrett's book for a couple of years and have to say that other than actually brewing the stuff (and of course drinking it!) it's one of the best publications on beer available and a great way to learn about a much under appreciated product.
    Thanks for a great episode

  • flavasauce

    Oh I also love Houblon Chouffe Dobbelen IPA Tripel. An amazing cross between a Belgian ale and an IPA.

  • adrums

    Great show. Garrett's energy, knowledge, dedication, and passion (while never taking himself all that seriously) were captivating.
    QOTD: Not familiar enough with the existing products to recommend any innovations. One exciting aspect of wine appreciation and collection is the anticipation that accompanies a new vintage's release… I wonder if beer could have an equivalent…?

  • Very cool episode.. Been the Brooklyn Brewery on Friday nights a few times.. Always a fun place to hang and taste some great beers and bring your own food..
    QOTD: Always up for some new flavors, especially BB's take on international styles.. Lambic maybe, or a ginger beer. I can't keep up, you guys have had a great offering so far..

  • jensbrink

    Hello everybody! Lurker comin' out! ; )

  • jensbrink

    !!!!

  • Anonymous

    Do you really think the barrel aging and soured beers will ultimately just turn out to be a fad, or do you think they might have some lasting place in American craft brewing, like the over abundant use of American hops?

  • allanj

    Hi everybody!

  • kbrower

    Put more beer in bottles! I would love a weizenbock, rauchbier, or doppelbock from Brooklyn Brewery, but I can only ever find your top 10 selling brews in bottles.

    I would love a case with a completely random assortment of Brooklyn Brewery beers.

    Gary, this was a great episode. I want more of this. I would love to see another beer episode. Victory Brewery is not too far away.

  • dennisplucinik

    Guys – chill with the camera. Find a couple books to friggin set it on already it's not the Blair Witch Project.

    and I hate to keep bitching but I just unknowingly killed the video to leave this comment.

  • MDSmitty2488

    I can say that Brooklyn Brewery is my favorite brewery and have always really enjoyed their products. Whenever I can find it in the liquor store on campus I always get a six pack of something. I'm a huge fan of their Chocolate Stout, their IPA effort and of course Brooklyn Lager.

    Another favorite brewery of mine is Great Lakes Brewing Company in Cleveland, OH. Gary, you should check them out for a future episode.

    I would really like to see Brooklyn do something in the Czech style of beer as it is one of my favorites.

  • admchin

    I loved the episode. I am originally a beer guy partly because I was attending UMich for a few years. I've been watching WLTV for about 2 years now and this is probably my first or second comment.(So you got one of the lurkers to come out!)

    Kudos to the brewmaster. He definately made this episode a pleasure to watch. I like his ideas and attitude toward eating and drinking.

    I've had those beers and I have to say, they changed the way I thought of BB. I used to think it was horrible but better than Bud. After I tried Black Ops, I started having tremendous respect for your work.

    I wanted to comment on some other beers I've had that I thought are worth the experience. Kentucky Breakfast Stout from Founder's Brewery (Michigan) is one of the best beers I've ever had. I had to wait two years to get my hands on 2 4-packs.(15-20 bucks each) They only make about 18 cases once a year in March. The second beer I would recommend is Hopslam from Bell's Brewery.(also Michigan) I am a big fan of IPAs and I can tell you, this is by far one of the highest ranked beers for me.

    As for the question of the day, I would love to see some dopplebocks and cask beers. Very few brewers make them well(at least well enough for me to buy on a regular basis) in the US, usually from Colorado and Milwaukee.

    Again thanks for a great episode

  • That was hugely fun! Really, I'm not a serious beer drinker but I LOVED this episode. Mr. Oliver is very entertaining and great to listen to. Thanks very much to both of you.

    QOTD: Fascinating question. I really want to try that Black Ops beer and things like that and the Manhattan Project beer sound perfect.

  • Loved this episode. Starting our beer review video cast next week is the first episode. So I would loooove to see some baseball centric beer. Each team has a style or “flavor”. SF Giants have the fog and garlic fries. Yankees as the premium team… I think using the team so I can drink the Yankees style beer as I watch them win their next world series! Keep up the great work and I can't wait to get back to NYC this spring and I will hop over to try some amazing beer!

  • andy

    QOTD: Yes please, more Brettanomyces! There is a very interesting imperial stout from Haandbryggeriet in Norway that uses a lot of/all Brett. They're a tiny tiny brewery but still manage to send some to Boston. Amazing. I like when Brett is used in brews that are not necessarily Belgian inspired. Victory's Wild Devil is pretty cool.

    How about a Brett Reserve Series? Brett 1, Brett 2, Brett Ops?

  • Johnny

    QOTD: I would be extremely interested in a sour Brooklyn beer, maybe an Oud Bruin or Flanders Red, or even a wild ale. So yes, more brett. Also, The Brewmaster's Table is an awesome book.

  • boughtrecords

    I have a few friends who home brew and it is fantastic. I am not sure the guest was aware but Boulevard Brewing Co. in Kansas City has been in business since 1989 and does bottle refermentation on several beers. For those not afraid of flavor I would recommend looking for their beers. If you can get it then fresh home brew will top just about any commercial version. (or maybe my friends are just awesome…)

  • Heheh, well…let’s see how it goes! =D

  • audiofan

    I'm sorry, I'm on the wrong site! This is the BeerLibrary! Back to Lurkerland!

  • Seston

    Garrett is the most compelling guest ive ever seen on this show. you have to have him back. QOTD – you have done so much for us already

  • jcrazy

    Rediculously awesome episode: knowledge, personality and dude just seems like a great guy. I would type more but I'm going to go out to get a craft beer from the store. Keep on rockin' it. Also, way to let the guest speak!!

  • Ron

    Garrett Oliver is the BEST GUEST I have seen on the show in a while. So far he is my favorite. It would be really cool if you could work together. I would buy that beer in a heart beat.

    Also, I think Garrett should have his own video podcast on beer. He has great personality and is an overall joy to watch. You should really hint him to do his own show. Overall it was an excellent show.

  • My comment isn't about this episode. But, I just saw part of a Wine Library TV episode on a gas pump in West Chicago, Illinois. Very surreal. I was disappointed that the Phillips 66 gas station did not have the wines in the episode. They did have a nice Diet Coke which gave a satisfying woosh when I opened it and was cold. So not a total loss. Cheers.

  • Just got home (1am) from the wine bar where we made sure to sell out of a couple cases of Brooklyn Lager. No big deal. Cheers!

←  Older Comments
Newer Comments  →

Close

Not Subscribed to WLTV yet?

Never miss an episode and get notifications on the hottest wine deals!

No thanks.