Thirsty Bear's Brenden Dobel
Founding brewmaster Ron Silberstein opened Thirsty Bear in 1996, and three years ago it became the city's only certified organic brewery. Thirsty Bear is adjacent to techie central, aka the Moscone Convention Center, so look for programmers galore quaffing anything from nitrogenated Meyer ESB to whatever brewmaster Brenden Dobel taps seasonally. As for the food, it's Spanish tapas all the way. (Just be careful if you tell friends to meet you at the tapas bar, since there's a topless bar across the street.) Yesterday, the brewpub tapped Dobel's new Locavore Ale, brewed entirely with California-grown ingredients.
brookstonbeerbulletin.com Brenden Dobel with, um, friends, at the 2008 Slow Beer Festival.
SFoodie: When did the brewery switch to brewing all organic and how important is that for the final product?
Dobel: We became certified organic by the CCOF in 2007. Honestly, brewing with organic ingredients does not improve, nor does it deteriorate, the quality of our beers. The satisfaction lies more in knowing that large portions of agricultural land somewhere in North America are pesticide free and the surrounding water is purer due to our purchasing power.
How does Locavore Ale turn that up to 11? Will any of the other beers switch over to California-grown materials?
Locavore is a step in the right direction of tightening the loop for ingredients. Again, we use our organic purchasing power to support a local farmer with his organic barley production. He has a lot depending on this first batch of ale to see if this can work economically. That being said, Linden Street has expressed interest, and most likely other organic breweries (Bison, Butte Creek, Uncommon Brewers, Ukiah, Eel River) would prefer to use local organic malt, rather than Canadian or European malt. This also includes locally grown hops from Hops-Meister farms.
As someone with a great deal of brewing experience in Germany, with strict laws about beer purity, how does what you're brewing at Thirsty Bear differ?
Tom R./Yelp Dobel brews seven mainstay beers for Thirsty Bear.
Outside of Locavore Ale, which is a study in brewing minimalism (one malt, one hop, no adjuncts) and therefore adheres to reinheitsgebot pretty strictly, most of our beers and brewing philosophy are ingrained in the American craft brewery revolution. We brew a Wit with coriander and orange peel, another is "dry-hopped" with vanilla beans, and one of our seasonal was brewed with molasses. We also add various spices to some of our casks, such as wormwood, hibiscus, or oak chips. Perhaps the Americans are closer to the Belgians rather than the Germans when it comes to brewing.
In addition to the seven mainstay beers, what are some of your favorite kegs down in the cellar and how do you decide what goes on tap?
We always have vintage aged Barleywine that we release the day after Thanksgiving, with the '08 starting this year. We are aging beer in Maker's Mark bourbon barrels, which will be released on Nov. 8 with the Maker's brand ambassador participating. After that, we have some sour Belgian beers aging and re-fermenting with Brett. And Lacto. And in French Oak wine barrels that will be released during the Craft Brewers conference in March. In terms of seasonality, we have an authentic Oktoberfest coming, which always makes me happy!
It's your last meal. What is it and what do you pair it with?
I would start with a butter lettuce and pear salad paired with Hefeweizen, followed by a Helles beer break, then French onion soup with a Dunkles, followed by another Helles beer break, moving on to a roasted meat (beef or pork) with a Märzen, a Wit beer break to refresh the palate, affogato for dessert paired with an imperial stout, Berlinner Weiss beer break to refresh the palate, finishing with a cheese plate paired with an American IPA. I would then reflect on the dinner and life with a strong Trappist Ale, most likely Rochefort 10.
Thirsty Bear Brewing Co.: 661 Howard (at Third St.), 974-0905.
Other brewers in this series:
• Kushal Hall of Speakeasy Ales and Lagers
• Dave McLean of Magnolia Pub
• Kirk Hillyard of Half Moon Bay Brewing Company
• Arnie Johnson of Marin Brewing Company
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