What is "The Sickest Stick"

The History

It was once believed that a stick swirled in a vat of fresh, cooled wort was a good luck charm to the mysterious act of fermentation.  Little did they know, but it was the dust on the stick that held the key; it held the yeast.  Therefore, by swirling that stick, those early brewers were actually inoculating the wort with yeast…therefore…the person in town with the "sickest stick" would be making the greatest beers!

Let's Begin

They say god created the world in six days and rested on the seventh...well, I like to think he created sour beer on the seventh.  This is significant for two reasons; 1) The fact there is sour beer proves there is a god; 2) Only god could make sour beer in a day.  A HA!

The Sickest Stick is not a homemade quote or name, its actually a quote from Chad Yakobson of Crooked Stave, the man who introduced me to funky beer.  Little did I know that turning right down a non-descript drive in an industrial park in Denver would land me in a tiny taproom serving something I had never tasted before, something funky, something fun, something that has only begun to break the craft beer world into a whole new chapter called, Avant Garde.  

It takes something special to put something consumable together a year, or two or even three in advance.  Whether it's food, cheese, balsamic vinegar or beer, the artisans involved in this pursuit have tapped into that part of the human psyche that can identify and appreciate Time as an ingredient.  An ingredient that is abstract, and we use it in what we create.

I like to say that I am a farmer, planting seeds through time and waiting to see which are forgotten and which flourish.  To date, I have brewed around 75 batches of beer, and I can say with certainty that this art form, the seed that is artisan craft brewing, has taken hold.

I don't know where this blog will go and I don't care.  It is for me to chronicle the journey of the beers to come, the tastes, and experiences they create.  

So here's to this seed, but more importantly, here's to the beer!