Last night, in lieu of a typical Monday night at Stuffies with my favorite residents of Edison and Metuchen, the crew headed to Jeremy's house to help along the moving in process of his cool lady, Megan. Before I headed north from home, I stopped to pick up a couple of beers to share. Cheryl called as I arrived at the liquor store, and I asked what she'd like. Her response? Something hoppy. Which surprised me, but I went with it.
I stopped at a store that I'd never been in before in Silverton, and it didn't have a particularly impressive beer selection, but I did see something that I suspect is amazing... I'll tell you about it when I actually get to try it (it's currently held hostage in Cheryl's fridge!). But right next to it was Lagunitas Hop Stoopid, which I totally bought because it was next to the aforementioned potentially amazing beer, and because it had a hilarious name. But this turned out to be awesome. Cheryl and I took a break before unpacking the kitchen and enjoyed this together. It was awesome. I'm not sure if my tastebuds are finally cooperating with IPAs and other bitter beverages, or if this one was just so unbelievable that it could transcend my dislike of that style of brew. The hops were strong but not offensive, and it was very smooth. I would drink this again and recommend it to others.
After the dishes were unpacked, Cheryl and I delved into the beer that had been supplied for the moving crew. We chose Sierra Nevada Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale, and a good choice it was. Actually, there was nothing particularly remarkable about this beer, but I think that's what made it for me. It's just a really good, pleasant brown ale, totally something you would drink on a crisp fall day while raking leaves or something. It wasn't too sweet, it wasn't too bitter, it was just smooth and pleasant.
And just now, as I wrote this, I tried Williamsburg Alewerks' Pumpkin Ale, the last from the mixed six I made when I visited Paul a few weeks ago. This tastes like pumpkin pie. Don't get me wrong, I totally love pumpkin pie. But I want my beer to still sort of resemble beer. This was just too sweet and spiced for me. I wasn't crazy about it. If your expectations for pumpkin beer include it tasting like pie, then this is the pumpkin brew for you. Otherwise, I don't see the need to do this again.
Colleen: 290
Paul: 270 (though I see he has an entry on standby that has quite a few beers in it!...)
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Glad you finally liked an IPA! Definitely my hot-weather favorite :) Have you tried any of the other Williamsburg Alewerks brews?
ReplyDeleteThere's a few I can tolerate. I'm working on it.
ReplyDeleteI have not yet had other Alewerks. Some Virginia friends have told me that's not their favorite VA brewer, but I'm totally willing to try others. Recommendations?