According to the Brewers Association, Utah is ranked 23rd in the U.S for breweries per capita. Yet a list of the top 50 breweries released last month didn't include a single Utah brewery. This doesn't make much sense considering Utah's breweries proven 10 year track record in taking national awards. Judged by the awards alone Utah should be seen as a true beervana,liquor laws and 3.2 alcohol restriction reputation cause critics to have little faith.
In recent years Utah micro-brews have dominated in competitions (View the NABA award list here). Utah brews such as Bohemian Brewery's Cherny Boch and Czech Pilsner, Red Rock's Polygamy Porter and Bobsled Brown plus Squatter's IPA India Pale Ale are among only a few of Utah's award-winning brews.
How have Utah's beers become so great? It turns out one side-effect of residing in a state that is shunned by the larger beer community is the brewers of Utah have banned together to actually help each other improve. "We all get together at least once a month. We share receipes and ideas. We all hang out together at the conventions. We are all good friends, " said Bobby Jackson of Bohemian Brewery.
Still, despite the awards, out-of-state beer enthusiasts love to label Utah brews as "weak," "watered down," or "flavorless." On the popular website Beer Advocate, users are able to share news and reviews about the latest brews. Here's what a few bloggers said about Uinta's King Peaks Porter:
Hops are slightly bitter. Kind of thin tasting. Mouthfeel is a little thin. Finish is clean and crisp. Aftertaste is bitter coffee and a hint metallic.
--beerguy101, California
As with many of these 4% Utah beers, I feel this is a bit over-carbonated. Not bad...I'll drink it. But it's not worth spending a night on.
--Patrick999, Florida
King's Peak Porter --the same beer that is being bashed in the comments above-- actually won a gold medal in the black beer section of the North American Brewer's Association (NABA) blind taste test competition. Local brewers say the negative conclusions about Utah beer are made out of ignorance and not experience.
Jeff Fischer was a former brewer for Bohemian Brewery and now distributes ingredients to all the local brew pubs for Crosby and Baker Ltd. From the way Fischer can put down a Bohemian Cherny Boch stein in about 90 seconds-- all while describing it's unique characteristics-- he is an obvious Utah beer connoisseur. Fischer just happened to be around for our taping of Bohemian Brewerie's segment.
"They just don't know. It's a misconception," said Fischer "I've literally given Utah beer to people, and if you don't tell them that it's from Utah. They love it. They think it's a wonderful beer."
It's no news flash that the out-of-state misconceptions about Utah beer has to do with the state's dominant Mormon culture (which forbids drinking), and Utah's strict liquor laws. Currently, Utah draft beers are restricted to 3.2 percent alcohol by weight or 4 percent by volume. Utah is only one of four states that require beer to be brewed at these alcohol levels (Oklahoma, Colorado and Kansas are the others).
But a Deseret News article shows that the weakness of Utah beer is greatly exaggerated. Staff Writer Josh Loftin discovered that most big beer names such as Guinness, Budweiser, Coors and Miller brew their beers at levels that are just barely above the 3.2 mark. (Read full article here)
3.2 may be the lowest level in the nation, but it's not as absurd as most critics think. "If you look around the world, places like Germany, Czech Republic or England, which are the three big beer consumers, most of their beer is brewed between 3.5 and 4.5 percent," said Fischer
Many local brewers believe that the liquor laws force them for focus more on flavor, rather than relying on alcohol content. Squatters Pub Brewmaster Jenny Yohe says people who brew at higher alcohol levels can drown out flavor with alcohol. If the Utah laws changed, Yohe says she "wouldn't add more alcohol to many of her beers." However, she says she would be able to educate Utahns about other types of brews.
"We have to compete against every other beer in the world, in that category," said Fischer. "We don't have a buffer of having higher alcohol, so we have to compensate it with great taste. It makes our brewers better."
Utah's international brewing awards may be one of the best kept secrets in the macro-brew industry. Many Utahns don't know about the success of Utah brews because a majority of Utahns don't drink. Many out-of-state beer enthusiasts don't realize the quality because they judge before they taste. But whether you drink or not, make no doubt about it: Utah brewers know how to make a beer.
by Jonny Glines
Bohemian Brewery is one of several Utah Breweries that has brought international brewing awards to Utah. Located on 7200 south, 94 east, The Bohemian Restaurant looks like an Eastern European Brew Pub, which is exactly what Czech native owner Joe Petras wanted to bring to Salt Lake City: a taste of his homeland.
It's a classic story of the American Dream. When Joe and his wife Helen were looking at a map of the United States they said they "wanted a place that was pretty and hilly." Joe said, "we thought Utah or Denver and we looked at the map and saw the blue lake and decided, okay, Utah!" Joe had no idea it was the Great Salt Lake, and it was full of salt, rather than fish.
When Joe and Helen moved to the U.S. in 1980, Joe didn't speak a lick of English. At 30 years old he worked his first job as a busboy at the Hilton Hotel for $1.60 an hour. He slowly learned English by watching news reports at night. "The first American to whom I could understand is Ted Koppel," Joe said.
Once Joe learned English, he started his own business as a tile contractor. Joe was frugal and eventualy he and his wife were able to save enough to open a restuarant. "My wife and I both come from the hotel and restaurant industry, we both went to school for it," Joe said. They opened a popular restaurant called "Helen's" in Holladay. Joe continued doing tile work until he said he "felt too old to lift the heavy stuff." Many thought he was going to retire, or at least take a break. He ended up buying a brewery instead. "My wife thought I was crazy!" Joe said.
Now Bohemian Brewery offers award winning beers and their brew pub is a destination for ski tourists and residents who want delicious authentic Czech food.
Now Bohemian Brewery offers award winning beers and their brew pub is a destination for ski tourists and residents who want delicious authentic Czech food.
Just last year Bohemian's Czech Helles won a bronze medal in the North American Brewer's Association Competition. There are many misconceptions about Utah Beer that Bohemian Head Brewer Bobby Jackson faces when competing his beer on a national level. "People think because it's Utah that we can't make good beer, but it actually drives us to do better. We have to prove a point." Bobby said. Learn more about the craft brew industry in Utah and the Bohemian Brewery story by clicking the video below.
Salt Lake City Restaurant Listings
Fifteen years ago, I began reviewing restaurants for the Private Eye, which eventually would becomeCity Weekly. And, this month, I officially became City Weekly’s dining editor, the paper’s first. The new job—which is a lot like the old job but with more meetings—along with the publication of this 2008 dining guide, gives me an opportunity to reflect on a decade-and-a-half of local dining. A lot of restaurants have come and gone in the past 15 years. Many have endured; some haven't. And a few are so new, I’ve yet to visit them.
Gone but not forgotten: I get a little teary recalling the eggs and offal at Bill & Nada’s, the incendiary chili from Elvis Nixon’s, Café Creole's great gumbo and the overall vibe at Bubba’s. But does that mean things were better in, say, 1993 than they are now? Hardly. Despite what seems a 10-to-1 ratio of new franchise eateries to independent one-offs in recent years, there are still plenty of unique, soul- and stomach-satisfying restaurants well worth your while. I’m buoyed by the appearance of newer venues such as Five Star Cuisine, Ganesh, Chanon Thai Café, Baxter’s American and Pizzeria 712—restaurants that seem to prove the exception to the rule that only mega-money matters in creating exciting places to dine. Along with the new kids on the block, tried-and-true restaurants also strive to improve and evolve. Hey, you can even get lunch now at Metropolitan, Salt Lake City’s gold standard in the contemporary American cuisine category.
 | Part of the new dining editor gig is overseeing the food section of City Weekly’s nifty new Website, launching any day now. As one component of that, I was asked to compile a list of my favorite 100 places to dine along the Wasatch. You’re getting a preview of those in this issue. Note that I didn’t call these the “best” restaurants, or Utah’s Top 100. Looking back over the past 15 years of eating, these are simply the places I come back to again and again, when I’m off-duty and on my own dime—my favorite cafes, bistros, buffets, elegant eateries and fast food joints from Provo and Heber to Salt Lake City and Logan. There are probably a few I’ve forgotten or missed. But, overall, I think the list is a pretty good starting point—a place from which to navigate your way to your personal favorites. So, bon appétit, and don’t forget to tip your server. Bohemian Brewery In the vast, sprawling desert of fast food and strip malls that is Midvale, Bohemian Brewery is a beer-lovers oasis. Owned by a family with roots in Czechoslovakia, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that Bohemian Brewery produces the finest Czech-style lagers in the state, all brewed according to the Reinheitsgebot German Purity Law. (This is a good thing.) The food options are terrific, too: Bohemian goulash, Bavarian bratwurst, pirogues, chicken paprikash and Old World roast pork are my favorites. Be sure to check out the Vespa collection and the cool artwork while you treat yourself to an award-winning Cherny Bock. 94 E. 7200 South, Midvale, 801-566-5474 BohemianBrewery.com |
