Oskar Blues: Great Beer, Cool Cans

Famed Colorado brewery Oskar Blues was featured for tasting this past Tuesday at Eli Cannon's Tap Room in Middletown. Oskar Blue, infamous for being one of the first major craft breweries to offer their beer in cans, had four beers on draught: Mama's LITTLE Yella Pils, Dale's Pale Ale, Deviant Dale's, and Gubna. The representative on hand was Brendan McLane, East Coast Sales Leader.

Oskar Blue brewery is located in Lyons Colorado (a territory of Boulder). It started in 1997 as a restaurant, expanded to a brewpub in 1999, and has expanded well beyond that since. Perhaps what Oskar Blues is most well known for is its great beer in cans. They, as McLane jokingly told me, started the "canned beer apocalypse," in 2002. They were the first craft beer company to can their beer, and have since become the leaders in a long line of craft brewery's canning their beer.

The decision to can beer came down to a few basic points. Canned beer is more fresh, portable, and better for the environment, McLane told me. Because of canning Oskar Blues puts out 30% less of a carbon footprint, and recycles more than other brweries. Personally canned beer really agrees with me, but I shared with McClane the popular thing people say about canned beer: "It's not that great because it tastes like metal."

Like me, McLane had heard this one plenty of times before and rolled his eyes at the sentiment. He explained that the FDA decided decades ago that any canned items (soup, beans, tuna, etc) need to be lined inside first so no food products touch bare metal. As such beer never actually touches metal, and so cannot physically taste like aluminum. McLane went on to explain that the outside of the can still smells like metal, so perhaps that's where the stigma comes from. The easy solution around the metal problem, "Just pour it in a glass," McLane says.

Oskar Blues is special, says McLane, because of the lifestyle that they promote. Oskar Blues wants people to push the limits, get outdoors, and drink awesome beer from cans. As with many Colorado breweries, Oskar Blues is into mountain biking, other outdoor endeavors, and sustainability. They have started a farm out in Colorado where they grow their own hops, and also raise livestock for their restaurant. They want an inflow of beer and for all food to (eventually) come from their organic farms. McLane says that Oskar Blues want to bring their restaurant and brewery into a big circle, relying on their own product for everything.

Oskar Blues is proud of its unique style and philosophy. As McLane explains it, Oskar Blues has no set styles and instead puts its own twist on beer that they want to make. They are admitted hop heads, but embrace the wide flavor spectrum of the hop: not just bitterness. The hop is an ingredient with vast flavor potential and Osker Blues loves experimenting with hop notes to tease out new and different flavors. They embrace craft beer as a group effort, and in their main restaurant they have 43 beers on draught, with only 12 or so from Osker Blues. Liking to do things differently and decidedly anti-corporate, Oskar Blues is serious about making good beer, while being good to the environment and each other. "At the end of the day," McClane says, "it's just beer."

It's this cavalier attitude that speaks to the great dichotomy of Osker Blues. They're a serious brewery that doesn't let their high quality beer extinguish their love of fun and community.

For a full write-up on the featured beers, check out my blog: Malted Musings. If you want to try some of the beers I talked about here on tap, head down to Eli Cannon's Taproom before they kill off all the kegs. For more info on the brand, their canned beer and sustainable mindset, head over to Oskar Blues' website. Also follow me on Blogger, Facebook, and Twitter for up-to-date news on the exciting CT beer scene!