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California's Gold Rush- Anchor Steam Beer and Brewery

by Jaqueline Hampton, NepaNights.net contributor

There are some things you just don�t forget. For example, I remember the first time I tried a Guinness Stout. It was a religious experience and I�ve been a devotee ever since. I didn�t think you could get beer like that in the U.S. Enter Anchor Steam.

I was visiting San Francisco, stopping for an adult beverage at a local bayside tourist haunt. This haunt was a magic club famous for tables that could be raised and lowered by hydraulic controls hidden behind the bar. While not magic, the trick was at least entertaining. On the afternoon in question, I�d ordered an Anchor Steam beer to accompany my burger and fries. Normally it takes an act of God to separate me from a plate of french fries. But once I tasted this beer...Nirvana! A flavor that went on forever with just enough bite so you didn�t forget you had a glass in your hand. Needless to say, my table was picked for the trick. I�m afraid I wasn�t a very cooperative participant. The table started to rise, I grabbed my mug and just let it go on by, transported back in time to California�s Gold Rush, and the birth of this fine lager.

It doesn�t freeze in California. During the Gold Rush, there was a lot of lager yeast around, but no way to keep the temperature cool enough for fermentation. Given the choice of no beer or ale made with lager yeast, ale it was. Originally marketed as �not a connoisseur�s drink�, you could get a mug for a nickel in the 1890�s while lagers cost three times as much.

Why �steam�? No one knows for sure, but some believe it has to do with the beers keg pressure, about forty to seventy pounds per square inch. The bung was typically opened the night before with a rush of carbon dioxide that probably looked like steam.
Not all brewers of steam beer survived Prohibition. Fritz Maytag of the Washers revived the style in the 1950s, creating a new incarnation of steam beer with �a marvelously clean, yet complex flavor with a wonderful hop bouquet.�

Anchor Brewing Company still uses lager yeast at ale temperatures. However it has come a long way and now deservedly ranks as many a connoisseur�s drink of choice.

This British Oxford Bottled Beer Database (OBBD) describes Anchor Steam beer as being a beer that, �...pours a mid-amber color, with a firm, thick bubbly head that lasts well. It is medium-carbonated, [with] a pleasant citrusy hop smell. [The nose] reveals a touch of grainy malt and a more floral character to the hops. The mouth feel is not too lively, with the flavour dominated by a firm bitterness, displaying the floral hop character noticed in the nose - the citrusy character is there too, but becomes more subdued as the beer warms in the glass. It is balanced by a dryish but rich malt body, with a treacley, caramelly, burnt touch. Finish is a bitter blend of burnt caramel and hop, leaving a lingering bitter and slightly cloying aftertaste on the tongue. A great beer - one of the better-known American craft brews, but deserving of its popularity.� Thank you OBBD!

If you haven�t tried Anchor Steam, please do so immediately if not sooner. If you have made the pleasure of its acquaintance, some other beers you might like to try include:

- Rogue American Amber Ale
- Bridgeport Brewery Blue Heron Ale
- Hook Norton Steam Beer, and any of the beers from the:
- Sierra Nevada Brewing Company;
- Sudwerk Privatbrauerei Hubsch;
- Lagunitas Brewing Company, or;
- Gordon Biersch Brewing Company.

My favorite Anchor Steam review of all those I�ve read over the years:
Pros: Balanced traditional California beer with a sharp hops edge.
Cons: Eventually the bottle is empty...

With respect the Anchor Steam, Steam Beer � truer words were never spoken.

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