An American IPA from another great brewer out of Northern California. This particular IPA is made with 18% rye.
I haven’t really gotten into Bear Republic for some reason. To tell the truth, I think it has to do with the fact that I don’t like the look of their bottles. How incredibly stupid is that?? Anyways, I have overcome my terrible consumer instincts and had their Racer 5 IPA recently which I thought was superb. Now onto another.
After much waiting and anticipation, I finally got a taste of the dark dark sweetness! This is the beer that people wait around for hours once a year for. Got it in a trade for some Cuvee de Tomme.
Wax top pops off with no noticeable carbonation… did I get a bad bottle?
Smells of coffee and sweet alcohol right off the bottle cap, very promising!
Filed under: Beer Review
Time for a marathon of quick reviews in no particular order…
Rogue/Santa’s Private Reserve Ale
Spicy and hoppy. I love winter beers and this is an excellent example. A bit more body would have taken this to the next level. Good complexity and drinkability. B
Avery/Samael’s Ale
Oak aged beast packs 15% abv. Tastes thick and syrupy like a barleywine reduction. Reminds me of the J.W. Lees. Sweet, caramel, fruit in the front, big oak finish and a bourbony alcohol burn to finish it off. Definitely a sipper, but another incredibly interesting, complex and challenging beer from Avery. B+
J.W. Lees/Vintage Harvest Ale 1998
Speaking of J dub, this one was a sweet, very syruppy brew with lots of fruit flavors and a caramel richness to it. Again, tastes like a condensed, no-hop barley wine to me. Really feels like it was just sitting around for about 10 years (which it has). A bit of alcohol charecter, more like a brandy though. Another sipper, very interesting and have never had anything like it (till the Samael’s). B+
Thirsty Dog/Siberian Night Imperial Stout
Very solid imperial stout. Nothing stands out, but definitely cannot find a fault. Dark, roasted, some hops, what more can you ask for? B+
Oskar Blues/Ten FIDY
Another well produced imperial stout. I really love this style and can’t complain one bit about this beer. Comes in a can too! Nothing really takes it to the next level, but I can’t fault a beer for being a perfect representation of a style. A-
I had a lot more to go, but a study break took me away for a while. Hopefully I will be back with pictures and more reviews!
Winter in early summer.
I am a big fan of winter/holiday beer. First off, it was my first exposure to seasonal/rotating releases. Second, they are usually fuller bodied and more roasted. Third, they often are quite hoppy.
Pyramid/Snowcap, Sierra Nevada/Celebration and this Jubelale were stalwarts in my winter collection and I haven’t had one for years. Lets see how it holds up.
Pours a ruby color with one finger head that dissipates quickly with minimal lacing. Darker beer than I expected, body looked light going in. Strong malt smell with a hint of roastiness and maybe some skunkiness.
“And now for the trifecta…”
George Costanza may have a different idea of a trifecta (pastramia/sex/tv?!). This beer completes the Dogfish Head trifecta of beers found in Los Angeles. This particular beer is brewed with muscat grapes and saffron… interesting indeed.
Pours like a white wine. Bubbly and efervecent, not head to speak of and absolutely no lacing. Body really looks like a heavy white wine, the only thing that gives it away is the dark straw color.
Can’t smell much due to a clogged nose, but the smells of grapes definitely come through. First taste is thick and full and very much like a reisling. More beer flavor than I would have expected from the look and smell. Grape flavors are definitely there, along with a bit of something at the end that could be the saffron? Just a touch of carbonation.
Filed under: Beer Review | Tags: Moon Lit Sessions Lager, Port Brewing, Serpent Stout
Yet another (!) great beer from Port Brewing. This particular dark lager is made from the second running of the Lost Abbey/Serpent Stout, one of my favorite stouts. I usually don’t go for lagers, especially dark lagers. To me, lagers arent nearly full bodied or interesting enough, and dark lagers are worse mainly because they are a let down. Lots of dark lagers like Heineken Dark (whatever happened to that beer?) or Negro Modelo have no taste and hurt my eye’s feelings!
Not this time dark lager! Not this time!! Beer pours dark brown with little head. Smells like a stout, a bit of alcohol and roasted malts are present.
I haven’t had this beer in a while. My buddy got a bottle of this for his b-day from a co-worker and let me relive the glory days of early Belgians.
Beer looked great, nice auburn color with a good looking foam head with good retention. Unfortunately, not alot of taste to back it up. Don’t get me wrong, there was nothing wrong with the beer and it was very drinkable and enjoyable, its just that I remember being challenged a bit more by this beer when I first had it. I can see why this particular Belgian is so popular, Mark said it best “its the Budweiser of Belgians”.
Filed under: Beer Review | Tags: De Proef Brouwerij, Flemish Primative Wild Ale, Pig Nun
Pii-ig Nun, Pi-ig Nun, does whatever a Pig Nun does…..
Pig Nun version of this Flemish Wild ale. Why is it called Pig Nun? Because there is a picture of a Pig Nun on the bottle. What is a pig nun? No idea, those Belgians have the strangest sense of humor…
Poured into the delirium glass with a pretty 2 finger head. Thick and pillowy, very nice. I expected this to be much more carbonated than it was. Beer like these can have a tendency to be overly carbonated, but I was pleasantly surprised. Nice golden orange color, fairly clear.
Smells fruity and yeasty. Not as crazy as I would have expected. Funk smell does become more pronounced over time.
Trader Joe’s annual release brewed by Unibroue.
Poured from a 750 ml bottle into the trusty Delirium glass.
Beautiful dark brown ruby pour with pretty carbonation forming at the bottom of the glass. Decent head forming, 1.5 finger, with quick dissipation. All Unibroue beers seem to pour similarly, the head is more like a soda or champagne than beer.
Smells wonderful! Like perfume or grapes. First taste is very juicy. Grapes and other dark fruit are present. Not a lot of malt, not hops. Finishes with a touch of alcohol, very nice! Body is perfect. Effervescent, full bodied and a smooth finish and lingers just the right amount.
Its amazing that Trader Joe’s can sell these for $4! A great deal considering Unibroue beers cost twice as much. Unibroue does it again with a very drinkable and enjoyable beer that hits the Belgian style right on the head.
Overall: B+
Beer snob would rather drink: Cheap Cab
Don’t really feel like doing a full review yet, but I picked up some Dogfishhead beer at Beverage Warehouse yesterday.
I got 3 12 oz bottles: Midas Touch Golden Elixir (a golden ale brewed with muscat grapes and saffron), Palo Santo Marron (a brown ale aged in Palo Santo wood barrels) and 90 Minute IPA (an imperial IPA).
At $10-$12 for a 6-pack, they were not cheap. Luckily they let me buy singles to taste first, so the three beers came out to $9.
