Monday Night Beer Pick ’Em: Steelers vs. Redskins
The 2016 NFL season is finally upon us, which means Monday Night Football is back, which also means Monday Night Football Beer Pick ‘Em is back.
In case you’re new to the series, Tiff Oshinsky will be pitting craft beer from each MNF team’s city against each other and will determine who will win the game based solely on the beverage. There are three rounds, each round consisting of a different style of beer.
For Week 1, we decided to focus on the earlier of the two games: the Pittsburgh Steelers versus the Washington Redskins. We have two different breweries representing Pittsburgh (Grist House Craft Brewery and Church Brew Works); and three different breweries representing D.C. (Hellbender Brewing Company, Right Proper Brewing Company and DC Brau).
Watch the video to find out which team will win Monday Night Football based solely on beer.
Here are the matchups:
Round 1: Kölsch
Grist House Kölsch on the Run (5.5% ABV) - Rich pilsner undertones, and a mild resident sweetness, balance this easily approachable beer. A crisp finish and clear golden color will win over your eyes and your tongue.
Hellbender’s Bare Bones Kölsch (5.0% ABV) – A traditional German Kölsch ale made with all American ingredients. We brew this golden yellow hued beauty with 2-row barley, wheat, crystal, and Munich malts. We add an authentic German Kölsch ale yeast strain then cold condition at lager temperatures, giving it a brilliant, crisp pilsner quality. This session ale starts slightly bitter with floral and spicy hop aromas and finishes clean and dry.
Round 2: Pale Ales
Church Brew Works Thunderhop IPA (6.5% ABV) – The Thunder Hop IPA has intense bitterness, flavor and aroma. Hopped with nearly 3lbs of Australian Galaxy and American Chinook per barrel of beer resulting in pine, citrus and earthy aroma and flavor. The color is copper to amber, just a bit darker than the Pipe Organ Pale Ale. The body is big and malty with some caramel sweetness.
Right Proper’s Raised by Wolves (5.0% ABV) – Juicy, Hoppy, Fruity. A medium-bodied, aromatic, dry-hopped pale ale. Not quite an India pale ale, nor a typical American pale ale, we brew Raised by Wolves to highlight the rich flavors and aromas of hops rather than their bitterness. Their beer has aromas reminiscent of lush tropical, citrus and stone fruits with a juicy body that you can sink your teeth into.
Round 3: Special Releases
Church Brew Works Oktoberfest (5.2% ABV) – Their Oktoberfest is a light amber colored beer. It is malty in both flavor and aroma making it a delicate beer which is very drinkable. The hop bitterness is kept low to accentuate the maltiness. Notice the crisp, clean character and enjoy. They brew three batches of this beer so that they can bottle some of it in order to enhance their bottle beer selection.
DC Brau’s El Hefe Speaks (5.3% ABV) –EL HEFE SPEAKS! is a traditionally brewed Germany-style Hefe. It is fermented around 65 degrees Farenheit and hopped with German Tettnang hops. If you think it speaks to you as well, definitely try a glass… because it will be gone before you can say “sweater weather”.
