Outer Banks. Local-ish beers (North Carolina, at least):
Natty Greene's Buckshot Amber Ale: Not super crazy about this. It's a little sweet, but just doesn't seem particularly balanced or interesting. Just not really worth the effort.
Natty Greene's Pale Ale: This one, on the other hand, is pretty good. Maybe I've just gotten well into hoppy beers at this point in my life, maybe it's because this is nicely hoppy and refreshing in the heat and humidity of Duck, North Carolina, or maybe it's just good. I think that. I can't say it's much besides hoppy, but it was well received by a group of people who typically prefer hoppy beers.
Highland Oatmeal Porter: GOOD STUFF. I like that beers with oatmeal involved are generally pleasant and not too strongly flavored like anything but stout (or in this case, porter). This was delightful. Malty but balanced, smooth but interesting. Definitely a winner. I'd do this again or recommend it to others who like dark beers (or perhaps even those who are still conflicted in their feelings toward darker beers; Mike, who wrinkles his nose in an epic way to most of my black-paint beers besides Guinness, liked this).
I saw Paul and his awesome wife at a wedding last weekend. Congratulations, Tyler and Christie! We drank a lot of your Yuengling. Paul keeps promising he'll tell us all about Dogfish Head...
Showing posts with label amber ale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amber ale. Show all posts
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Does this make Laura my beer-buddy-in-law?
The most wonderful thing happened on Saturday. Paul and Laura got married!
Congratulations to a truly beautiful couple. It was really an honor to be part of such an awesome day. The ceremony was great, the weather was incredible, the company was excellent. And yes, there was beer. Paul chose two brews from Williamsburg Alewerks which went over pretty well--
Red Marker Ale: Good, hoppy amber ale. The website talks about all of this fruit but it came off as more of just slightly sweeter hops. If you've been reading our updates over the past few years, you know that I was not into hoppy beers until more recently, so I understand how people find them offensive. However, this is a pretty accessible hoppy-ish beer. Either ALL of Paul and Laura's people are into fancy beers, or people were just enjoying the slight bitterness in this otherwise very smooth, pleasant, refreshing brew. I had several.
White Ale: My favorite beers are ones that look like black paint or ones that are wheat-related. This was a very fresh Belgian witbier. Paul described it quite well as being similar to Sam Adam's Summer Ale but more orangey instead of lemony. Not one to turn down a new brew for my list, much less a recommendation from my beer buddy, I went to the bar and asked for it. No one knew what I was talking about. It wasn't until I insisted that the groom himself told me to go try it that someone went and found the case that was hiding in a refrigerator somewhere. I'm not much into fruity beers, but this wasn't overly sweet, just a really clean, refreshing drink.
People kept asking me if I approved of the beers. Of course I did. If I didn't approve of Paul's taste in beer, this blog would not exist.
Hopefully now that they have moved past the wedding part of their lives and into the marriage part, we'll start hearing from Paul (and Laura?!) more. Congratulations again to you both-- I look forward to sharing many years of happiness with you both (and maybe also a few beers).
Congratulations to a truly beautiful couple. It was really an honor to be part of such an awesome day. The ceremony was great, the weather was incredible, the company was excellent. And yes, there was beer. Paul chose two brews from Williamsburg Alewerks which went over pretty well--
Red Marker Ale: Good, hoppy amber ale. The website talks about all of this fruit but it came off as more of just slightly sweeter hops. If you've been reading our updates over the past few years, you know that I was not into hoppy beers until more recently, so I understand how people find them offensive. However, this is a pretty accessible hoppy-ish beer. Either ALL of Paul and Laura's people are into fancy beers, or people were just enjoying the slight bitterness in this otherwise very smooth, pleasant, refreshing brew. I had several.
White Ale: My favorite beers are ones that look like black paint or ones that are wheat-related. This was a very fresh Belgian witbier. Paul described it quite well as being similar to Sam Adam's Summer Ale but more orangey instead of lemony. Not one to turn down a new brew for my list, much less a recommendation from my beer buddy, I went to the bar and asked for it. No one knew what I was talking about. It wasn't until I insisted that the groom himself told me to go try it that someone went and found the case that was hiding in a refrigerator somewhere. I'm not much into fruity beers, but this wasn't overly sweet, just a really clean, refreshing drink.
People kept asking me if I approved of the beers. Of course I did. If I didn't approve of Paul's taste in beer, this blog would not exist.
Hopefully now that they have moved past the wedding part of their lives and into the marriage part, we'll start hearing from Paul (and Laura?!) more. Congratulations again to you both-- I look forward to sharing many years of happiness with you both (and maybe also a few beers).
Friday, October 28, 2011
VArious
I'm hanging out with my big brother at home, routing for the National League and listening to him play with Siri on his new iPhone machine. His puppy is curled up on the couch next to me, the Cardinals are winning, ...
I was busy catching up with my brother and enjoying the game. Go National League!
So. I spent the last week in Virginia, welcoming home one friend from Peace Corps service and another from grad school in England. That plus camping plus a visit to the alma mater plus catching up with one of my favorite girls plus meeting up with Paul for the first time in a while plus my college roommate playing a show means I have a few new beers to report--
Sam Adams Rauchbier: part of the Sam Adams seasonal pack, this is incredibly underwhelming. I mean, the last time I tried a rauchbier, I wasn't thoroughly impressed either, but this just had nothing to it. Don't bother.
Starr Hill Dark Starr: While hanging out in Fredericksburg with some awesome former professors of mine, I of course tried this Virginia stout. There was some chocolate flavor, some coffee flavor, and lots and lots of awesome flavor. It was dark and dry and smooth and wonderful. I like stout, and it's always fun to drink local.
Port City Porter: Another one at Cap Ale with a crew of Mary Washington geographers. This is a good porter from a relatively new brewer in Alexandria, Virginia. I'd say they're off to a good start. You can't see through it and it's got some hints of chocolate happening. Awesome.
Six Point Righteous Ale: I had another Six Point brew recently that I found to be not so great, but this was good. My good friend Emily and I had gone out on Sunday night in search of the Cardinals game, as she is from St. Louis, and ended up in a place in Columbia Heights that she'd never been. They were out of the Brooklyn Brown I'd ordered so the server recommended this instead. It was nothing like Brooklyn Brown, rather, more hoppy but really clean and nice. I'm surprised to learn it involves rye, but not upset about it. Rye beer. Hoppy rye beer. Good hoppy rye beer.
51st State Amber Ale: This is a pretty not-exciting house beer, but was how I kicked off my first ever bar trivia night, in which a team of Mary Washington Geographers owned the rest of the crowd at 51st State. If you go to this place in D.C., it's a reasonable beer for its price, but there are most definitely more exciting things on the menu.
Starr Hill Boxcar Pumpkin Porter: Of course, an extended stay in the D.C. Metro Area is never complete without a DBF Staff Meeting. Bailey's, located in Ballston and Crystal City, has a $2 pint special on Tuesdays. This was the only new beer I tried there though. This was more spice than pumpkin, but if you like pumpkin pie esque beers and you like dark beers, this is a good combination. The spices are good but not overwhelming, with a really nice, smooth porter underneath. I usually see pumpkin ales, not specifically porters, so this was a really nice change to that particular fall beer.
Tallgrass Buffalo Sweat: Selected partially because of the ridiculous name and partially because it's a stout, this was way sweet. I mean, I liked it, but a pint seemed like a lot due to the sweetness. If you like milk stout, it's great, but if you're not into the very sweet stouts, steer clear.
New Belgium's Ranger IPA: Taylor ordered this, but I ended up finishing it. It's good. Very recommendable.
Hooray for good beer, good friends, JT and Boo getting home, and the National League (and the team that knocked out the Phillies) winning! It is past my bedtime...
I was busy catching up with my brother and enjoying the game. Go National League!
So. I spent the last week in Virginia, welcoming home one friend from Peace Corps service and another from grad school in England. That plus camping plus a visit to the alma mater plus catching up with one of my favorite girls plus meeting up with Paul for the first time in a while plus my college roommate playing a show means I have a few new beers to report--
Sam Adams Rauchbier: part of the Sam Adams seasonal pack, this is incredibly underwhelming. I mean, the last time I tried a rauchbier, I wasn't thoroughly impressed either, but this just had nothing to it. Don't bother.
Starr Hill Dark Starr: While hanging out in Fredericksburg with some awesome former professors of mine, I of course tried this Virginia stout. There was some chocolate flavor, some coffee flavor, and lots and lots of awesome flavor. It was dark and dry and smooth and wonderful. I like stout, and it's always fun to drink local.
Port City Porter: Another one at Cap Ale with a crew of Mary Washington geographers. This is a good porter from a relatively new brewer in Alexandria, Virginia. I'd say they're off to a good start. You can't see through it and it's got some hints of chocolate happening. Awesome.
Six Point Righteous Ale: I had another Six Point brew recently that I found to be not so great, but this was good. My good friend Emily and I had gone out on Sunday night in search of the Cardinals game, as she is from St. Louis, and ended up in a place in Columbia Heights that she'd never been. They were out of the Brooklyn Brown I'd ordered so the server recommended this instead. It was nothing like Brooklyn Brown, rather, more hoppy but really clean and nice. I'm surprised to learn it involves rye, but not upset about it. Rye beer. Hoppy rye beer. Good hoppy rye beer.
51st State Amber Ale: This is a pretty not-exciting house beer, but was how I kicked off my first ever bar trivia night, in which a team of Mary Washington Geographers owned the rest of the crowd at 51st State. If you go to this place in D.C., it's a reasonable beer for its price, but there are most definitely more exciting things on the menu.
Starr Hill Boxcar Pumpkin Porter: Of course, an extended stay in the D.C. Metro Area is never complete without a DBF Staff Meeting. Bailey's, located in Ballston and Crystal City, has a $2 pint special on Tuesdays. This was the only new beer I tried there though. This was more spice than pumpkin, but if you like pumpkin pie esque beers and you like dark beers, this is a good combination. The spices are good but not overwhelming, with a really nice, smooth porter underneath. I usually see pumpkin ales, not specifically porters, so this was a really nice change to that particular fall beer.
Tallgrass Buffalo Sweat: Selected partially because of the ridiculous name and partially because it's a stout, this was way sweet. I mean, I liked it, but a pint seemed like a lot due to the sweetness. If you like milk stout, it's great, but if you're not into the very sweet stouts, steer clear.
New Belgium's Ranger IPA: Taylor ordered this, but I ended up finishing it. It's good. Very recommendable.
Hooray for good beer, good friends, JT and Boo getting home, and the National League (and the team that knocked out the Phillies) winning! It is past my bedtime...
Thursday, February 10, 2011
fun, friends, falafel and beer
This year, I "watched" the Superbowl with Cheryl, Gurzo and Cristina at Cheryl and Gurzo's house. I may have been paying more attention to my friends, falafel and... there doesn't seem to be a synonym for drinks that starts with the letter F, so the alliteration ends there.
We split several 22 ounce bottles partially because good stuff came in them but also because I have realized that I do not have enough bottles for my homebrew, which I am set to bottle tomorrow (and will be buying more bottles in order to do so due to my poor planning).
HUB's Abominable Winter Ale: As much as I seem to have developed a taste for hoppy beers, I just felt like this was really unbalanced in favor of hops. It wasn't bad, just not particularly more interesting than a really hoppy beer.
Oakshire's Ill Tempered Gnome: This was relatively plain but had some nice spice to it, if that makes sense. It wasn't particularly complex tasting aside from the spices, I mean. Whatever. It was smooth and I enjoyed it and it seemed like a good beer to drink in winter when you're cold and just need something warm and spiced in your life.
Ninkas Oatis Oatmeal Stout: This was a little sweeter than the average oatmeal stout but very smooth and mellow. I liked it, but it's not about to win the favorite oatmeal stout award (that would most likely go to BORIS, Shakespeare or Samuel Smith, or the overly- built- up- in- my- mind- epic Southend Brewery Oatmeal Stout that I tried with the Mary Washington Geography Department at the SEDAAG conference in 2007).
Dogfish Head Sah'Tea: Ahhh, Dogfish Head, you almost never let me down. This was really excellent, like if beer and chai had a beautifully delicious spiced baby (my love of spiced chai is severe). You could kind of taste the spices and the tea, but it was just so unique and enjoyable. I was worried when I saw juniper berries in the description after not totally loving tree flavors in another beer, but no problem. It was a hint but not overpowering. Subtle and complimentary. Ah. Loved it. This also introduced me to a new type of brew: the sahti. I had never heard of it before. I suspect this is not super typical of the style though...
Fort Collins Brewery's Double Chocolate Stout: I had this on Tuesday in hopes that another 22 ounce bottle would alleviate the bottle crisis... not even close, but it was still a worthwhile beer. If you like offensive, sucker-punch flavored stouts, this is for you. I really enjoyed this. The chocolate was present but not super sweet. The stout was mostly just strong and... strong. Yep. Delicious. My kind of beer.
Long Trail Hibernator: My little brother gave me one of these this evening because I'm his favorite big sister (probably more because I picked up some snacks for him on my way home from choir tonight...). It was not as interesting when it was ridiculously cold from sitting in a fridge in our ridiculously cold garage, but once I let it sit for a few minutes, I got a hoppier- than- expected- but- not- overly- so kind of flavor. Decently balanced, pretty smooth going down. This was more delightful than I expected. It's reasonable and generally unoffensive.
So, tomorrow I bottle my first batch of beer! It will need a week or two to carbonate before I can find out if I did it right or not... I'm really nervous, but excited. In the meantime, I have a few beers around waiting to be tried, including Mikkeller's Coffee IPA (I got the last two available in the region as per my big brother's request), Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout (which I plan to use to get me through the latest round of thesis revisions... ugh) and Dogfish Head's My Antonia (which was purchased to cover up someone's worst boyfriend ever moment of drinking all of my beer).
We split several 22 ounce bottles partially because good stuff came in them but also because I have realized that I do not have enough bottles for my homebrew, which I am set to bottle tomorrow (and will be buying more bottles in order to do so due to my poor planning).
HUB's Abominable Winter Ale: As much as I seem to have developed a taste for hoppy beers, I just felt like this was really unbalanced in favor of hops. It wasn't bad, just not particularly more interesting than a really hoppy beer.
Oakshire's Ill Tempered Gnome: This was relatively plain but had some nice spice to it, if that makes sense. It wasn't particularly complex tasting aside from the spices, I mean. Whatever. It was smooth and I enjoyed it and it seemed like a good beer to drink in winter when you're cold and just need something warm and spiced in your life.
Ninkas Oatis Oatmeal Stout: This was a little sweeter than the average oatmeal stout but very smooth and mellow. I liked it, but it's not about to win the favorite oatmeal stout award (that would most likely go to BORIS, Shakespeare or Samuel Smith, or the overly- built- up- in- my- mind- epic Southend Brewery Oatmeal Stout that I tried with the Mary Washington Geography Department at the SEDAAG conference in 2007).
Dogfish Head Sah'Tea: Ahhh, Dogfish Head, you almost never let me down. This was really excellent, like if beer and chai had a beautifully delicious spiced baby (my love of spiced chai is severe). You could kind of taste the spices and the tea, but it was just so unique and enjoyable. I was worried when I saw juniper berries in the description after not totally loving tree flavors in another beer, but no problem. It was a hint but not overpowering. Subtle and complimentary. Ah. Loved it. This also introduced me to a new type of brew: the sahti. I had never heard of it before. I suspect this is not super typical of the style though...
Fort Collins Brewery's Double Chocolate Stout: I had this on Tuesday in hopes that another 22 ounce bottle would alleviate the bottle crisis... not even close, but it was still a worthwhile beer. If you like offensive, sucker-punch flavored stouts, this is for you. I really enjoyed this. The chocolate was present but not super sweet. The stout was mostly just strong and... strong. Yep. Delicious. My kind of beer.
Long Trail Hibernator: My little brother gave me one of these this evening because I'm his favorite big sister (probably more because I picked up some snacks for him on my way home from choir tonight...). It was not as interesting when it was ridiculously cold from sitting in a fridge in our ridiculously cold garage, but once I let it sit for a few minutes, I got a hoppier- than- expected- but- not- overly- so kind of flavor. Decently balanced, pretty smooth going down. This was more delightful than I expected. It's reasonable and generally unoffensive.
So, tomorrow I bottle my first batch of beer! It will need a week or two to carbonate before I can find out if I did it right or not... I'm really nervous, but excited. In the meantime, I have a few beers around waiting to be tried, including Mikkeller's Coffee IPA (I got the last two available in the region as per my big brother's request), Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout (which I plan to use to get me through the latest round of thesis revisions... ugh) and Dogfish Head's My Antonia (which was purchased to cover up someone's worst boyfriend ever moment of drinking all of my beer).
Monday, December 13, 2010
Pathetic
This post has been slowly updated in draft form for about a month now. I wrote these reviews over the course of a couple of weeks. Any beers I tried, but failed to review during this time I am going to negate. I'll call it my punishment for failing to update. I don't think I could fairly review those beers this late without more detailed notes. I also missed a 1 year anniversary post - I've really dropped the ball. I owe apologies to my readers and beer friend. In any event, here's what I have...
Starr Hill Festie: I have an affinity for Starr Hill since they are a Virginia brewer and they make one of my favorite Amber Ales. That said, this tasted like a beer from Bizarro world. Oktoberfest beers tend to be very brown in color and are heavy on malts. These can sometimes be a little sweet as well. This was on the lighter side, since it is classified as an Oktoberfest Lager. I wasn't sure whether I was drinking one style or the other. I'd probably avoid this in the future.
Hook and Ladder Flash Point Pale Ale: I got really excited when I saw this on the shelf, since it is from the brewer that makes a great brown ale - Backdraft Brown Ale. For a pale ale, this was on the lighter side of the color spectrum. I also thought it was mediocre to bland in flavor. It was by no means terrible, but nothing to write home about either.
Fisherman's IPA: I had this beer paired with some excellent enchiladas that Laura made. I tend to like to pair spicy food with IPAs. I think the bitterness from the hops compliments spicy food very well. This was a middle of the road IPA, which served it's purpose with dinner.
Full Sail Amber: I thought this was a mediocre amber ale. It went well with conversation, but it was nothing to write home about.
Philadelphia RowHouse Red: I thought this was a somewhat creamy flavored red ale. While I like Killian's Irish Red, I wasn't impressed with this one.
I had lunch with Colleen yesterday - it was lovely to catch up. We discussed how many beers I am behind, and the length of time I have been behind. I had a few more beers (maybe 6) I could have added, but the bottles and notes are in New Jersey (I forgot them there). With that, I'll work with what I have in the near future. It's the Holidays, so if I can control the damage, it will be a win.
My new rule is that I have two weeks to post a beer review (even if it's one), or I lose the ability to add it to my list. It's time to man up and do something about Colleen's lead...
The scorecard:
Colleen- 334
Paul - 311
Cheers,
Paul
Starr Hill Festie: I have an affinity for Starr Hill since they are a Virginia brewer and they make one of my favorite Amber Ales. That said, this tasted like a beer from Bizarro world. Oktoberfest beers tend to be very brown in color and are heavy on malts. These can sometimes be a little sweet as well. This was on the lighter side, since it is classified as an Oktoberfest Lager. I wasn't sure whether I was drinking one style or the other. I'd probably avoid this in the future.
Hook and Ladder Flash Point Pale Ale: I got really excited when I saw this on the shelf, since it is from the brewer that makes a great brown ale - Backdraft Brown Ale. For a pale ale, this was on the lighter side of the color spectrum. I also thought it was mediocre to bland in flavor. It was by no means terrible, but nothing to write home about either.
Fisherman's IPA: I had this beer paired with some excellent enchiladas that Laura made. I tend to like to pair spicy food with IPAs. I think the bitterness from the hops compliments spicy food very well. This was a middle of the road IPA, which served it's purpose with dinner.
Full Sail Amber: I thought this was a mediocre amber ale. It went well with conversation, but it was nothing to write home about.
Philadelphia RowHouse Red: I thought this was a somewhat creamy flavored red ale. While I like Killian's Irish Red, I wasn't impressed with this one.
I had lunch with Colleen yesterday - it was lovely to catch up. We discussed how many beers I am behind, and the length of time I have been behind. I had a few more beers (maybe 6) I could have added, but the bottles and notes are in New Jersey (I forgot them there). With that, I'll work with what I have in the near future. It's the Holidays, so if I can control the damage, it will be a win.
My new rule is that I have two weeks to post a beer review (even if it's one), or I lose the ability to add it to my list. It's time to man up and do something about Colleen's lead...
The scorecard:
Colleen- 334
Paul - 311
Cheers,
Paul
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Road trip with a side of beer
So this post reviews my recent vacation, where Laura and I drove from southwest Colorado to Virginia. Our route took us to Mesa Verde, a small town called Dolores, CO, the south rim of the Grand Canyon, Santa Fe, Dallas, New Orleans, and Atlanta. Admittedly, this was not the most direct route, but it was a blast. We drove 3,200 miles in eight days, and that includes one day of no driving at all! For Laura's thoughts on this trip, see her blog.
Upon my arrival in Colorado (we drove out a couple months ago and I flew back to DC), Laura and I went to Durango, CO for Mass (since it was Sunday), which was preceded by a cup of coffee at a local shop. Once we were done with Mass, she took me to an awesome brewpub in the town called Steamworks. If you know your beer history (or if you saw the movie I lasted posted about), you would know there was a time in this country when each town had its own brewery. At some point, we lost that trend. However, I am glad to report than in Colorado, it seems that the local brewpub is on the rise once again.
Steamworks Backside Stout: This beer won a gold medal and a silver medal at the 2010 Great American Beer Festival. As an aside, I must go to the Great American Beer Festival one year. Despite the mediocre ratebeer ratings, I agree with the medal distinction. I thought this stout was amazing, well balanced, and full of flavor. It also was not that heavy. Tenured stout drinkers know that, believe it or not, Guinness comes across as light as water sometimes. This beer had a similar characteristic.
Steamworks Night Train: This was a dark lager than can be described as Yuengling on steroids. By that I mean, it was darker in color and heavier on flavor. It was a little hoppy, but I could otherwise drink a beer like this all night without getting tired of it.
We went to Mesa Verde National Park, which was beautiful. They are known for their 13th century cliff dwellings, some of which still stand today. We didn't stay for more than about 3 hours because the lack of sleep from an early morning flight and the altitude were getting to me. We stayed the night in the Rio Grande Southern Hotel. It's a pretty sweet, and might I add reasonably priced, bed and breakfast that is over 100 years old. Our room came with an awesome breakfast the next morning, and was cheaper than every macro chain hotel we stayed at the rest of the week. The best part about Dolores? They too had a local brewpub. The Dolores River Brewery was 1 block from the hotel, and was a sweet local place to eat. Their specialty is brick oven pizza, but they add pesto sauce which gives the pizza an interesting kick.
Dolores River Dry Stout: This beer was dry, yet well balanced. Experienced alcohol drinkers know the descriptor "dry." In a sense, it's that dryness that appears in your mouth after sipping a dry red wine. In no way was this similar to wine, but the same effect was there. This came across as well balanced and, despite the dry taste, as very drinkable.
Dolores River ESB: Their ESB (or pale ale) was hoppy, but not overwhelmingly. In other words, it fit its style very well. The hop (or bitter) flavor initially escalated during the sip, but trailed off into a malty flavor after the glass was pulled away. It went well with a slice of pizza.
Our next day took us to the Grand Canyon. While we stayed there, we found out that the grocery store at the south rim sells beer. There is a Grand Canyon brew. The part where Colleen pounds her fist into the desk? They let you buy individual bottles, so you can make your own six pack. Never fear dear beer friend, they only had three brews I could try anyway. The Grand Canyon was awesome. It rained while we were there, but it provided some really unique views of the canyon - we saw clouds/fog roll in and out as the weather changed, and the rain brought out a lot of color from the canyon walls.
Grand Canyon Pilsner: I thought this was a crisp, gold colored beer. For the most part, it fit the mold as an average pilsner. The unique part being the slight creamy flavor from the beer head. It didn't significantly improve the beer, but certainly made an impression.
Grand Canyon Horseshoe Bend Pale Ale: Pale Ales have more hops than malts, which give them a bitter flavor most of the time. It's important to note though, that hops are actually flowers. Therefore, hops can give a variety of different flavors to a beer. In this case, the floral aroma came across in the smell and taste.
Grand Canyon Sunset Amber Ale: The beer was below average. The amber did meet its style in the sense that it was mostly malty. Caramel malts were certainly used and they were present in the taste. Unfortunately, I thought the beer was too light in body for me to consider an above average amber ale.
On our way from the Grand Canyon to Santa Fe, we ran into some interesting weather outside of Flagstaff, AZ. While on I-40, we experienced hail (which accumulated), heavy winds, and sat in traffic due to many accidents. A tornado touched down and crossed the highway about 40 minutes before we got there. The storm system wasn't moving, so needless to say, we drove out of there as quickly and safely as possible. Upon our arrival in Santa Fe, we explored the city plaza and the Cathedral. For dinner we went to a place where I ate when I was there about 10 years ago, the Blue Corn Cafe. They had great food and their own beer. I highly recommend it if you are in that neck of the woods.
Blue Corn Cafe Oatmeal Stout: This was a gold medal winner at the 2007 Great American Beer Festival. With oatmeal stouts, you can definitely pick up the difference in flavor and body compared to a traditional stout. Both chocolate and coffee malts were used - with the coffee malt taking control as the majority influence on the taste. I liked this oatmeal stout.
Between Santa Fe and New Orleans, we drove through the long, dark of Texas. We stayed outside of Dallas, but about 11 hours of driving with maybe 20 minutes of stopping took its toll. We used the night to recharge for the next day's drive and the following night in New Orleans.
Our arrival in New Orleans was nice, we stayed in the French Quarter. This allowed us to see Bourbon Street, Jackson Square, and Cafe Du Monde. We got drinks at a brewpub in New Orleans called Crescent City Brewing; I thought the beer was mediocre for the price. We ate at a really local hole in the wall called Coops. We got the tip to eat there by asking a local who worked in a gift shop where she liked to eat. We both had cups of Gumbo. Laura had seafood gumbo. I sincerely hope Colleen will still be friends with me after this, because I had rabbit and sausage gumbo - which had quite the kick.
Crescent City Black Forest: I thought this fell into the category of a traditional dark lager. By that I mean, it's a little more complex than Yuengling and has a darker color.
Crescent City Oktoberfest: Like its counterpart, this was a rather mediocre Oktoberfest. The dark color and malty flavor were there, but nothing else really distinguished it.
Abita Amber Lager: We had this beer at the hole-in-the-wall place. The beer definitely had a clean taste to it, and went well with my dinner. The bottle advertises that the beer is brewed with spring water. Other than that, I didn't think it was that special. Being that Abita is the signature brew of New Orleans, trying this was necessary.
We left New Orleans the next morning en route to the suburbs of Atlanta to stay with Laura's aunt for the final night. She was very hospitable despite her broken leg. We certainly hope she gets better soon. The key note of that day's drive was US-90 along the water in Mississippi which had amazing views of the Gulf of Mexico.
This last beer was in my fridge. It may have been part of my last custom six pack, but I am not entirely sure. It seems Colleen and I tend to drink a beer as we write posts, and today is no different.
Left Hand Oktoberfest: I definitely picked up the caramel malt in this beer, and it had a slight sweetness to it. The brewer says they upped the alcohol from last year. 6.6% alcohol is a little high for an Oktoberfest, so it may have led to a different tasting experience. I tend to like Left Hand's brews, but I thought this was average.
I really need to post more frequently, and review fewer beers. I get the feeling its grueling to read through and digest this many reviews. I also need to get ahead of Colleen.
The scorecard:
Colleen - 304
Paul - 300
Cheers,
Paul
Upon my arrival in Colorado (we drove out a couple months ago and I flew back to DC), Laura and I went to Durango, CO for Mass (since it was Sunday), which was preceded by a cup of coffee at a local shop. Once we were done with Mass, she took me to an awesome brewpub in the town called Steamworks. If you know your beer history (or if you saw the movie I lasted posted about), you would know there was a time in this country when each town had its own brewery. At some point, we lost that trend. However, I am glad to report than in Colorado, it seems that the local brewpub is on the rise once again.
Steamworks Backside Stout: This beer won a gold medal and a silver medal at the 2010 Great American Beer Festival. As an aside, I must go to the Great American Beer Festival one year. Despite the mediocre ratebeer ratings, I agree with the medal distinction. I thought this stout was amazing, well balanced, and full of flavor. It also was not that heavy. Tenured stout drinkers know that, believe it or not, Guinness comes across as light as water sometimes. This beer had a similar characteristic.
Steamworks Night Train: This was a dark lager than can be described as Yuengling on steroids. By that I mean, it was darker in color and heavier on flavor. It was a little hoppy, but I could otherwise drink a beer like this all night without getting tired of it.
We went to Mesa Verde National Park, which was beautiful. They are known for their 13th century cliff dwellings, some of which still stand today. We didn't stay for more than about 3 hours because the lack of sleep from an early morning flight and the altitude were getting to me. We stayed the night in the Rio Grande Southern Hotel. It's a pretty sweet, and might I add reasonably priced, bed and breakfast that is over 100 years old. Our room came with an awesome breakfast the next morning, and was cheaper than every macro chain hotel we stayed at the rest of the week. The best part about Dolores? They too had a local brewpub. The Dolores River Brewery was 1 block from the hotel, and was a sweet local place to eat. Their specialty is brick oven pizza, but they add pesto sauce which gives the pizza an interesting kick.
Dolores River Dry Stout: This beer was dry, yet well balanced. Experienced alcohol drinkers know the descriptor "dry." In a sense, it's that dryness that appears in your mouth after sipping a dry red wine. In no way was this similar to wine, but the same effect was there. This came across as well balanced and, despite the dry taste, as very drinkable.
Dolores River ESB: Their ESB (or pale ale) was hoppy, but not overwhelmingly. In other words, it fit its style very well. The hop (or bitter) flavor initially escalated during the sip, but trailed off into a malty flavor after the glass was pulled away. It went well with a slice of pizza.
Our next day took us to the Grand Canyon. While we stayed there, we found out that the grocery store at the south rim sells beer. There is a Grand Canyon brew. The part where Colleen pounds her fist into the desk? They let you buy individual bottles, so you can make your own six pack. Never fear dear beer friend, they only had three brews I could try anyway. The Grand Canyon was awesome. It rained while we were there, but it provided some really unique views of the canyon - we saw clouds/fog roll in and out as the weather changed, and the rain brought out a lot of color from the canyon walls.
Grand Canyon Pilsner: I thought this was a crisp, gold colored beer. For the most part, it fit the mold as an average pilsner. The unique part being the slight creamy flavor from the beer head. It didn't significantly improve the beer, but certainly made an impression.
Grand Canyon Horseshoe Bend Pale Ale: Pale Ales have more hops than malts, which give them a bitter flavor most of the time. It's important to note though, that hops are actually flowers. Therefore, hops can give a variety of different flavors to a beer. In this case, the floral aroma came across in the smell and taste.
Grand Canyon Sunset Amber Ale: The beer was below average. The amber did meet its style in the sense that it was mostly malty. Caramel malts were certainly used and they were present in the taste. Unfortunately, I thought the beer was too light in body for me to consider an above average amber ale.
On our way from the Grand Canyon to Santa Fe, we ran into some interesting weather outside of Flagstaff, AZ. While on I-40, we experienced hail (which accumulated), heavy winds, and sat in traffic due to many accidents. A tornado touched down and crossed the highway about 40 minutes before we got there. The storm system wasn't moving, so needless to say, we drove out of there as quickly and safely as possible. Upon our arrival in Santa Fe, we explored the city plaza and the Cathedral. For dinner we went to a place where I ate when I was there about 10 years ago, the Blue Corn Cafe. They had great food and their own beer. I highly recommend it if you are in that neck of the woods.
Blue Corn Cafe Oatmeal Stout: This was a gold medal winner at the 2007 Great American Beer Festival. With oatmeal stouts, you can definitely pick up the difference in flavor and body compared to a traditional stout. Both chocolate and coffee malts were used - with the coffee malt taking control as the majority influence on the taste. I liked this oatmeal stout.
Between Santa Fe and New Orleans, we drove through the long, dark of Texas. We stayed outside of Dallas, but about 11 hours of driving with maybe 20 minutes of stopping took its toll. We used the night to recharge for the next day's drive and the following night in New Orleans.
Our arrival in New Orleans was nice, we stayed in the French Quarter. This allowed us to see Bourbon Street, Jackson Square, and Cafe Du Monde. We got drinks at a brewpub in New Orleans called Crescent City Brewing; I thought the beer was mediocre for the price. We ate at a really local hole in the wall called Coops. We got the tip to eat there by asking a local who worked in a gift shop where she liked to eat. We both had cups of Gumbo. Laura had seafood gumbo. I sincerely hope Colleen will still be friends with me after this, because I had rabbit and sausage gumbo - which had quite the kick.
Crescent City Black Forest: I thought this fell into the category of a traditional dark lager. By that I mean, it's a little more complex than Yuengling and has a darker color.
Crescent City Oktoberfest: Like its counterpart, this was a rather mediocre Oktoberfest. The dark color and malty flavor were there, but nothing else really distinguished it.
Abita Amber Lager: We had this beer at the hole-in-the-wall place. The beer definitely had a clean taste to it, and went well with my dinner. The bottle advertises that the beer is brewed with spring water. Other than that, I didn't think it was that special. Being that Abita is the signature brew of New Orleans, trying this was necessary.
We left New Orleans the next morning en route to the suburbs of Atlanta to stay with Laura's aunt for the final night. She was very hospitable despite her broken leg. We certainly hope she gets better soon. The key note of that day's drive was US-90 along the water in Mississippi which had amazing views of the Gulf of Mexico.
This last beer was in my fridge. It may have been part of my last custom six pack, but I am not entirely sure. It seems Colleen and I tend to drink a beer as we write posts, and today is no different.
Left Hand Oktoberfest: I definitely picked up the caramel malt in this beer, and it had a slight sweetness to it. The brewer says they upped the alcohol from last year. 6.6% alcohol is a little high for an Oktoberfest, so it may have led to a different tasting experience. I tend to like Left Hand's brews, but I thought this was average.
I really need to post more frequently, and review fewer beers. I get the feeling its grueling to read through and digest this many reviews. I also need to get ahead of Colleen.
The scorecard:
Colleen - 304
Paul - 300
Cheers,
Paul
Thursday, October 7, 2010
accidental Triumph
This entry is dedicated to Josh Ritter, the reason I was in Princeton at all last night.
Paul really almost had this milestone, and I'm really sorry for ruining that for him. It wasn't really my intention to cross the 300 threshold that evening, it's just kind of what happened.
After another amazing, upbeat, fun show put on by the talented Mr. Ritter, a few of my favorite seminarians and I headed over to Triumph Brewing, only to find the doors locked. After a few minutes of pondering what to do, someone exited the establishment and held the door for us. They were open, so we weren't going to argue (we did tell them their doors were locked though). And we sat down, and when the server came over, I asked about the sampler.
Each sample is 5 ounces. There were currently seven beers on tap. And so, Paul was toast.
Porter: This was served at "cellar temperature" which I kind of liked. However, it was very plain and light feeling, which surprised me for a porter. It was very smooth though, and I think this would be a good baby step for people trying to get into porters.
Rauchbier: This means "smoke beer". I didn't like it, but that's because I thought it tasted like bacon. As far as the beer part goes, yeah, it was another smooth brew, but I definitely thought I tasted bacon, and as a vegetarian, that kind of turns me off. A vegetarian at the next table agreed with me, though everyone else said it just tasted like smoky wood, which I got a little of, but mostly just bacon.
Honey Blond: This was very plain and light, standard issue sort of beer. Not much to write home about. Or in this case, write in the blog about. That might be a good thing though. Sometimes people just want a beer that's not totally crazy or overwhelming.
Amber Ale: This was a good amber. It was a little bit hoppy but overall very smooth and drinkable. If I approve of a hoppy beer, you know it's pretty good.
Gose: This beer was one of my two favorites in the sampler. A relative of the witbier, this gose is light weight, slightly sweet and really, really nice. I have to say, all of Triumph's beers were very smooth, meaning, there wasn't any sort of sharp bite as it went down the hatch. Except, of course, for...
IPA: Not as smooth as the rest of them, but I suppose that's to be expected when you're just a little glass full of hoppiness. This tasted like flowers to me (confirmed by our friends at the next table, who proclaimed, "This tastes like perfume!"). It was interesting. As someone who is still getting into this genre of beer, I have little else to say about it. Doesn't mean it was bad, just means that I am not an IPA aficionado.
Oatmeal Stout: Saved the one I thought would be best for last, and I was pretty right. I know what I like. Very smooth, slight taste of coffee in it, but otherwise a good, nondescript stout. Sometimes, that's ok.
Triumph is pretty good. If you're in the area, it's a good place to stop in. Actually, starting the first weekend of November, the artwork of my very talented friend Lauren Scott will be displayed there, so you should stop in. Princeton is a lovely town and there are some great restaurants in the area, too.
And so. My apologies, Paul--
Colleen: 303
Paul: 288 (though I know he's actually way closer to 300, he's just on the road and not updating)
Paul really almost had this milestone, and I'm really sorry for ruining that for him. It wasn't really my intention to cross the 300 threshold that evening, it's just kind of what happened.
After another amazing, upbeat, fun show put on by the talented Mr. Ritter, a few of my favorite seminarians and I headed over to Triumph Brewing, only to find the doors locked. After a few minutes of pondering what to do, someone exited the establishment and held the door for us. They were open, so we weren't going to argue (we did tell them their doors were locked though). And we sat down, and when the server came over, I asked about the sampler.
Each sample is 5 ounces. There were currently seven beers on tap. And so, Paul was toast.
Porter: This was served at "cellar temperature" which I kind of liked. However, it was very plain and light feeling, which surprised me for a porter. It was very smooth though, and I think this would be a good baby step for people trying to get into porters.
Rauchbier: This means "smoke beer". I didn't like it, but that's because I thought it tasted like bacon. As far as the beer part goes, yeah, it was another smooth brew, but I definitely thought I tasted bacon, and as a vegetarian, that kind of turns me off. A vegetarian at the next table agreed with me, though everyone else said it just tasted like smoky wood, which I got a little of, but mostly just bacon.
Honey Blond: This was very plain and light, standard issue sort of beer. Not much to write home about. Or in this case, write in the blog about. That might be a good thing though. Sometimes people just want a beer that's not totally crazy or overwhelming.
Amber Ale: This was a good amber. It was a little bit hoppy but overall very smooth and drinkable. If I approve of a hoppy beer, you know it's pretty good.
Gose: This beer was one of my two favorites in the sampler. A relative of the witbier, this gose is light weight, slightly sweet and really, really nice. I have to say, all of Triumph's beers were very smooth, meaning, there wasn't any sort of sharp bite as it went down the hatch. Except, of course, for...
IPA: Not as smooth as the rest of them, but I suppose that's to be expected when you're just a little glass full of hoppiness. This tasted like flowers to me (confirmed by our friends at the next table, who proclaimed, "This tastes like perfume!"). It was interesting. As someone who is still getting into this genre of beer, I have little else to say about it. Doesn't mean it was bad, just means that I am not an IPA aficionado.
Oatmeal Stout: Saved the one I thought would be best for last, and I was pretty right. I know what I like. Very smooth, slight taste of coffee in it, but otherwise a good, nondescript stout. Sometimes, that's ok.
Triumph is pretty good. If you're in the area, it's a good place to stop in. Actually, starting the first weekend of November, the artwork of my very talented friend Lauren Scott will be displayed there, so you should stop in. Princeton is a lovely town and there are some great restaurants in the area, too.
And so. My apologies, Paul--
Colleen: 303
Paul: 288 (though I know he's actually way closer to 300, he's just on the road and not updating)
Saturday, October 2, 2010
A Medley of Sorts
Part of me doesn't want to make a post this long, but the other part of me wants to update the blog and get back to my regularly scheduled programming. I've been working a lot of hours since Laura has been in Colorado, and now that the craziness is about to end, it's time to go through my notes that I've left here, on the back of receipts, and in my cell phone...so here we go.
In August, Brendan and I got a beer at Fireflies. Almost everyone I have taken there enjoys the the vibe and beer list. We talked about life, had some beer and some wings.
Boulder Beer Singletrack Copper Ale: I had some high hopes for this beer, thinking it might be more like an amber ale. I was sorely mistaken. It did have the smooth, light malty characteristics of an amber ale. However, this beer was had too much hop flavor, which ruined it for me stylistically.
I started off September with a Jimmy Buffett concert. If you have not been to one before, I would recommend it. It's basically just one monstrous, but chill, party. It gave me the opportunity to momentarily kick back and relax with a few beers and some friends. I managed to try a new, large macro brew.
Bud Light: It wasn't on my list yet, but according to Colleen, if it's beer it can be reviewed. I find this beer useful if I am out drinking and I don't want to load up on alcohol content. Other than that, it might find purpose to boil brats in or wash my car.
That same weekend, Colleen came to visit. It was great to catch up with her, and hear about her trip. As a thank you, she bought me a custom six pack. I've worked my way through them, some of which I had at the Virginia Tech vs. Boise State game, and the rest I had at a couple pizza and beer nights with the roommates.
Samuel Adams Dunkelweizen: I really liked this beer. It was a good transition from the summer beers that I've been complaining about in recent posts. Essentially, it's a dark hefeweizen. The difference being there is more malt to it, hence the darker color and different taste. Samuel Adams usually doesn't steer you wrong (EXCEPT: when there is a fruit/pumpkin in it or its name is Old Fezziwig).
Samuel Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale: I don't like pumpkin beers. I tend to avoid them. However, I am also behind in our beer count, so I can't be choosy. This tasted a bit like pumpkin pie, because I tasted cinnamon. It's an experimental seasonal. That said, the taste was better than most pumpkin beers that I've tried.
Holy Brew Purgatory Pilsner: It shouldn't surprise most that I bought this beer for the name on the bottle. Overall, it was an average pilsner. It was the light body, medium taste that you would expect to find from the style.
Smuttynose Robust Porter: This was a fantastic porter. Really, it might be one of the best porters I have ever tried. The beer was everything a porter should be, and nothing else. The brewers did a great job of not messing with a good thing. The beer was just the right body, with the perfect roasted malt flavor. I highly recommend it.
The Duck-Rabbit Amber Ale: Bottom Line: This was a sub-par amber ale that didn't seem to distinguish itself from any other amber ales that I've had in the past. If anything else, it left an odd aftertaste in my mouth. Perhaps it could have been the individual bottle, but I wasn't impressed.
Yards General Washington Tavern Porter: The recipe was originally created by Washington himself. He used molasses with his recipe. The molasses creates an interesting twist to the flavor and aftertaste. Porters tend to have chocolate malts, so the taste is not entirely foreign either. I thought this was good as well.
The roommates and I went to RFD in Washington DC. They have about 50 beers on tap at any given time, and a good bottle list. Their location near Chinatown makes for a good location. Matt, Brendan, and I enjoyed time to make sarcastic comments. It's nice to kick back with them and have a few new beers.
Troegs Dead Reckoning Porter: The fact that it is the time of the year for porters makes me very happy. This porter also made me happy, because it was done well. The beer was heavy, which should be expected, but didn't overbear my stomach. The malts seemed varied in flavors, but were very well balanced.
Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale: The guys at Stone brewing are most likely the best in the country. They aren't afraid to experiment, but everything they put on a shelf seems to be liquid gold to a beer snob. This was an incredibly complex beer, which is par for the course with Stone. It's kind of like drinking an IPA, but it's dark with plenty of malts.
I joined my friends Tim and Heather for dinner a couple of weekends ago. We went to Victoria's Gastro Pub. I have been there before with them, and I highly recommend it as a place to eat as well as enjoy new beers. They are on the cutting edge of complimenting food with beer. When paired well together, I think beer and food make a better combination than wine and cheese.
That same weekend, I went to West Chester, PA to their yearly restaurant festival. It's a really good time, plus I get to hang out with my cousin Scott. He was kind enough to buy a six pack of Guinness, since he knew I was coming. Quote of the weekend: At one point, I went to get another beer and I said, "I guess I'll preserve the Miller Lite and get a Guinness for myself". I intended this to mean, that since most people won't drink Guinness, that's what I will stay with in order to be polite. However, after a good laugh, the group decided this would make a great beer commercial.
Evolution Lucky 7 Porter: I enjoyed this porter. As far as the style goes, it was above average. There was that smoky/roasted taste that is endemic of most porters. The malts were well blended between coffee and chocolate characteristics.
This past weekend, I went with my cousin Brendan and a few friends to the DC Oktoberfest. In short, it was a small piece of heaven. I ended up with an extra ticket, so that meant more tokens. The best part was the smallest samples (which cost one token) were 4 oz. That follows our rule. Secondly, I had enough tokens and time to get decent samples (8+ oz) and still maintain a good review. I will be going back to this next year. Colleen, you should come down for it. Most of the brewers were ones that I hadn't heard of before - win.
Julius Echter Hefe-Weissbier: I thought this was a very light bodied hefeweizen. The beer was unfiltered, and thus a little heavy on the yeast. However, it did have a sweet characteristic that complimented the hot September day.
Evolution Rise Up Stout: This was heavy on the coffee malts. I traditionally don't like coffee stouts that much, and this wasn't an exception to that rule.
Goose Island Honker's Ale: I have some interesting notes for this beer. I thought it came across as rather malty on contact, became mild and very good in between, and ended off hoppy. And those are the impressions I got on each sip. I need to find this beer again so I can break it down more.
Pyramid Juggernaut Red Ale: The lone descriptor I included was the beer was rather malty. Other than that, it was very forgettable. I wouldn't go out of your way to find this.
Lancaster Oktoberfest: I tend to think of Oktoberfest style beers as being on the heavier side, and erring mostly toward the malt side of things. If you don't like IPAs, then Oktoberfest might be your thing. For an Oktoberfest, I thought this was very light. By that I mean it wasn't as heavy as I expected, nor did it contain as much of a malt characteristic as I expected.
Sierra Nevada Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale: Like Colleen, I found this to be a very drinkable beer that was very, very smooth. The malt character is extremely well balanced. For those of you who aren't big on hops, but want to try something from one of America's best brewers, give this beer a shot. I had more of this beer than any other at the DC Oktoberfest.
Lastly, I went to Rock Bottom to celebrate my good friend Andy's birthday. Colleen and I have both reviewed Rock Bottom (since it is a chain of brew pubs). We also happen to like it, since their beers are pretty good. My advice is to look at the boards on the wall to see which beer is freshest and go with that. My biggest complaint is sometimes the beer gets a little old there.
Rock Bottom Rocktoberfest: After a summer of light, fruity beers we finally reach autumn, which means the style of beers predominantly found changes (praise Jesus). I thought this Oktoberfest was rather well done. It was very well balanced, and had a great malt characteristic to it. It's certainly above average for the style.
I'll be on a road trip with Laura in the next couple of weeks. Expect some updates on great brewpubs from around different parts of the country. I need to keep pace with Colleen somehow...
The scorecard:
Colleen - 290
Paul - 288
Cheers,
Paul
In August, Brendan and I got a beer at Fireflies. Almost everyone I have taken there enjoys the the vibe and beer list. We talked about life, had some beer and some wings.
Boulder Beer Singletrack Copper Ale: I had some high hopes for this beer, thinking it might be more like an amber ale. I was sorely mistaken. It did have the smooth, light malty characteristics of an amber ale. However, this beer was had too much hop flavor, which ruined it for me stylistically.
I started off September with a Jimmy Buffett concert. If you have not been to one before, I would recommend it. It's basically just one monstrous, but chill, party. It gave me the opportunity to momentarily kick back and relax with a few beers and some friends. I managed to try a new, large macro brew.
Bud Light: It wasn't on my list yet, but according to Colleen, if it's beer it can be reviewed. I find this beer useful if I am out drinking and I don't want to load up on alcohol content. Other than that, it might find purpose to boil brats in or wash my car.
That same weekend, Colleen came to visit. It was great to catch up with her, and hear about her trip. As a thank you, she bought me a custom six pack. I've worked my way through them, some of which I had at the Virginia Tech vs. Boise State game, and the rest I had at a couple pizza and beer nights with the roommates.
Samuel Adams Dunkelweizen: I really liked this beer. It was a good transition from the summer beers that I've been complaining about in recent posts. Essentially, it's a dark hefeweizen. The difference being there is more malt to it, hence the darker color and different taste. Samuel Adams usually doesn't steer you wrong (EXCEPT: when there is a fruit/pumpkin in it or its name is Old Fezziwig).
Samuel Adams Harvest Pumpkin Ale: I don't like pumpkin beers. I tend to avoid them. However, I am also behind in our beer count, so I can't be choosy. This tasted a bit like pumpkin pie, because I tasted cinnamon. It's an experimental seasonal. That said, the taste was better than most pumpkin beers that I've tried.
Holy Brew Purgatory Pilsner: It shouldn't surprise most that I bought this beer for the name on the bottle. Overall, it was an average pilsner. It was the light body, medium taste that you would expect to find from the style.
Smuttynose Robust Porter: This was a fantastic porter. Really, it might be one of the best porters I have ever tried. The beer was everything a porter should be, and nothing else. The brewers did a great job of not messing with a good thing. The beer was just the right body, with the perfect roasted malt flavor. I highly recommend it.
The Duck-Rabbit Amber Ale: Bottom Line: This was a sub-par amber ale that didn't seem to distinguish itself from any other amber ales that I've had in the past. If anything else, it left an odd aftertaste in my mouth. Perhaps it could have been the individual bottle, but I wasn't impressed.
Yards General Washington Tavern Porter: The recipe was originally created by Washington himself. He used molasses with his recipe. The molasses creates an interesting twist to the flavor and aftertaste. Porters tend to have chocolate malts, so the taste is not entirely foreign either. I thought this was good as well.
The roommates and I went to RFD in Washington DC. They have about 50 beers on tap at any given time, and a good bottle list. Their location near Chinatown makes for a good location. Matt, Brendan, and I enjoyed time to make sarcastic comments. It's nice to kick back with them and have a few new beers.
Troegs Dead Reckoning Porter: The fact that it is the time of the year for porters makes me very happy. This porter also made me happy, because it was done well. The beer was heavy, which should be expected, but didn't overbear my stomach. The malts seemed varied in flavors, but were very well balanced.
Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale: The guys at Stone brewing are most likely the best in the country. They aren't afraid to experiment, but everything they put on a shelf seems to be liquid gold to a beer snob. This was an incredibly complex beer, which is par for the course with Stone. It's kind of like drinking an IPA, but it's dark with plenty of malts.
I joined my friends Tim and Heather for dinner a couple of weekends ago. We went to Victoria's Gastro Pub. I have been there before with them, and I highly recommend it as a place to eat as well as enjoy new beers. They are on the cutting edge of complimenting food with beer. When paired well together, I think beer and food make a better combination than wine and cheese.
That same weekend, I went to West Chester, PA to their yearly restaurant festival. It's a really good time, plus I get to hang out with my cousin Scott. He was kind enough to buy a six pack of Guinness, since he knew I was coming. Quote of the weekend: At one point, I went to get another beer and I said, "I guess I'll preserve the Miller Lite and get a Guinness for myself". I intended this to mean, that since most people won't drink Guinness, that's what I will stay with in order to be polite. However, after a good laugh, the group decided this would make a great beer commercial.
Evolution Lucky 7 Porter: I enjoyed this porter. As far as the style goes, it was above average. There was that smoky/roasted taste that is endemic of most porters. The malts were well blended between coffee and chocolate characteristics.
This past weekend, I went with my cousin Brendan and a few friends to the DC Oktoberfest. In short, it was a small piece of heaven. I ended up with an extra ticket, so that meant more tokens. The best part was the smallest samples (which cost one token) were 4 oz. That follows our rule. Secondly, I had enough tokens and time to get decent samples (8+ oz) and still maintain a good review. I will be going back to this next year. Colleen, you should come down for it. Most of the brewers were ones that I hadn't heard of before - win.
Julius Echter Hefe-Weissbier: I thought this was a very light bodied hefeweizen. The beer was unfiltered, and thus a little heavy on the yeast. However, it did have a sweet characteristic that complimented the hot September day.
Evolution Rise Up Stout: This was heavy on the coffee malts. I traditionally don't like coffee stouts that much, and this wasn't an exception to that rule.
Goose Island Honker's Ale: I have some interesting notes for this beer. I thought it came across as rather malty on contact, became mild and very good in between, and ended off hoppy. And those are the impressions I got on each sip. I need to find this beer again so I can break it down more.
Pyramid Juggernaut Red Ale: The lone descriptor I included was the beer was rather malty. Other than that, it was very forgettable. I wouldn't go out of your way to find this.
Lancaster Oktoberfest: I tend to think of Oktoberfest style beers as being on the heavier side, and erring mostly toward the malt side of things. If you don't like IPAs, then Oktoberfest might be your thing. For an Oktoberfest, I thought this was very light. By that I mean it wasn't as heavy as I expected, nor did it contain as much of a malt characteristic as I expected.
Sierra Nevada Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale: Like Colleen, I found this to be a very drinkable beer that was very, very smooth. The malt character is extremely well balanced. For those of you who aren't big on hops, but want to try something from one of America's best brewers, give this beer a shot. I had more of this beer than any other at the DC Oktoberfest.
Lastly, I went to Rock Bottom to celebrate my good friend Andy's birthday. Colleen and I have both reviewed Rock Bottom (since it is a chain of brew pubs). We also happen to like it, since their beers are pretty good. My advice is to look at the boards on the wall to see which beer is freshest and go with that. My biggest complaint is sometimes the beer gets a little old there.
Rock Bottom Rocktoberfest: After a summer of light, fruity beers we finally reach autumn, which means the style of beers predominantly found changes (praise Jesus). I thought this Oktoberfest was rather well done. It was very well balanced, and had a great malt characteristic to it. It's certainly above average for the style.
I'll be on a road trip with Laura in the next couple of weeks. Expect some updates on great brewpubs from around different parts of the country. I need to keep pace with Colleen somehow...
The scorecard:
Colleen - 290
Paul - 288
Cheers,
Paul
Monday, June 21, 2010
I've been pretty busy lately, but I did manage to finish off the last beer from my custom six pack. I also managed to get to Fireflies with my cousin Brendan last Friday to have some beers. We made nice with the bar manager there, which led to me trying perhaps the most interesting beer I've ever tried (see my last review). My family went back there on Father's Day for brunch (no new beers though). For Father's Day, I got dear old dad a custom six pack of IPAs.
Lion Stout: This was the last of my custom six pack. If you like stouts, you will like this. If you don't like stouts, I would avoid it. It's made in Sri Lanka, which I can't exactly say gave me high expectations - I hadn't really heard of a long and storied beer tradition from there. The beer was like any other stout, dark. It had a bit of ompf to the taste. Like I said, if stouts are your thing, this is the beer for you.
Leinenkugels Summer Shandy: This beer was so terrible, it practically made me weep. If you like fruity beers, then I guess there is a chance you will like this - but I tend to doubt it. It was basically a glass of lemonade mixed with beer. This is an insult to beer. Unfortunately, this is a sad strange trend for Leinenkugel.
Breckenridge Avalance Amber: I like amber ales. As far as an amber ales go, this was below average. However, you could argue I was biased against it, since it came in a can. It was poured out into a glass, but it wasn't anything special. In some ways, I thought it was lacking in character or watery.
Left Hand Sawtooth ESB: I thought this was a slightly above average pale ale. I generally thought it wasn't overwhelmingly hoppy, which is traditional for its style. I rushed through this one a bit, so I don't have the best descriptors for it.
Green Flash Le Freak: Perhaps the most interesting beer I've ever tried. This beer follows America's long, proud tradition of pissing on Europe's cannonical norms. This beer seemed like a blend between a Belgian Trippel and an American Pale Ale (which basically amounts to an IPA on the 'roids Barry Bonds took). The taste was very flavorful with a slight fruit characteristic during the sip, and as the glass was pulled away, the taste turned turned into full on hops. I can't say I loved it, but I can say it was interesting.
Note: I also discovered one of the vegetable drawers in my fridge is full of Yuengling and pork roll. I love my roommates.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 267
Paul: 249
Cheers,
Paul
Lion Stout: This was the last of my custom six pack. If you like stouts, you will like this. If you don't like stouts, I would avoid it. It's made in Sri Lanka, which I can't exactly say gave me high expectations - I hadn't really heard of a long and storied beer tradition from there. The beer was like any other stout, dark. It had a bit of ompf to the taste. Like I said, if stouts are your thing, this is the beer for you.
Leinenkugels Summer Shandy: This beer was so terrible, it practically made me weep. If you like fruity beers, then I guess there is a chance you will like this - but I tend to doubt it. It was basically a glass of lemonade mixed with beer. This is an insult to beer. Unfortunately, this is a sad strange trend for Leinenkugel.
Breckenridge Avalance Amber: I like amber ales. As far as an amber ales go, this was below average. However, you could argue I was biased against it, since it came in a can. It was poured out into a glass, but it wasn't anything special. In some ways, I thought it was lacking in character or watery.
Left Hand Sawtooth ESB: I thought this was a slightly above average pale ale. I generally thought it wasn't overwhelmingly hoppy, which is traditional for its style. I rushed through this one a bit, so I don't have the best descriptors for it.
Green Flash Le Freak: Perhaps the most interesting beer I've ever tried. This beer follows America's long, proud tradition of pissing on Europe's cannonical norms. This beer seemed like a blend between a Belgian Trippel and an American Pale Ale (which basically amounts to an IPA on the 'roids Barry Bonds took). The taste was very flavorful with a slight fruit characteristic during the sip, and as the glass was pulled away, the taste turned turned into full on hops. I can't say I loved it, but I can say it was interesting.
Note: I also discovered one of the vegetable drawers in my fridge is full of Yuengling and pork roll. I love my roommates.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 267
Paul: 249
Cheers,
Paul
Saturday, June 19, 2010
six great new beers that won't make the list
I had a really wonderful Friday night with some really wonderful friends. While I have six new beers to report as a result, none of them count toward my list as they were all part of an awesome sampler at Long Valley Brew Pub-- two ounces each. We finally have our list of rules on the blog, which Paul had referenced recently but we hadn't thought to post yet. However, Long Valley Brew Pub was so awesome that I have no qualms sacrificing those six points. So worth it, forget my score in this "contest"!
When I visited my friends Cheryl, Gurzo and Cristina last week, it came up that all would like to do a bit of hiking, so I invited them to visit me this week, adding the idea of visiting of the nearby brew pubs. Long Valley got our vote for having a well rounded menu that included veggie options for myself, Cristina and Cheryl. My friend Noah, a fellow nature and beer enthusiast who will also be under contract beginning this coming Friday, joined us for the evening.
Here's the thing about Long Valley Brew Pub: it's amazing. Just entering the place gave a great impression. It's in a beautifully restored 200 year old stone barn, in a lovely historic town, at the top of a windy road that goes up a pretty mountain that we got to watch the sun set behind as we anxiously awaited our awesome samplers of their brews.
This is actually a photo from the drive to the brewery, but you get the idea-- such an incredible part of the state!
Hookerman's Light: While I don't generally pursue light beers, this was really excellent. Smooth and to the point, extremely drinkable. We were all really impressed with how not lame it was for being a light beer.
American Pale Ale: This was slightly hoppy, and yet I loved it. It's beers like this that will get me to like stronger hops flavors someday. It was very crisp and refreshing with just a hint of really tasty hops. One of my uncles once told me that a good pale ale is totally worth the trouble of looking for. This brew absolutely made me agree with that statement.
German Valley Amber: This was also slighty hoppy but very smooth and tasty, somewhat akin to some sort of nice Irish Red but not quite. I don't think I described that very well, but whatever-- this is also a great beer.
Lazy Jake Porter: SO GOOD. I love my dark beers, and this was really great. When I go through samplers, I tend to take a sip of each and then finish them in the order from least favorite to most favorite. This was the one I saved for last. Definitely a strong coffee flavor but such a smooth, tasty beer. Oh man.
Dusseldorf Altbier: This one I was less crazy about, it being kind of heavy on the malts for being so light in feeling. That's a combination I tend not to totally embrace, such as in the case of bocks. That being said, this was still a solid beer and it wasn't so strong or sweet that I didn't enjoy it.
English Pale Ale: This one didn't have too much exciting about it, but was their current feature beer-- "great beer for no particular reason" it says on the menu. I definitely preferred the American Pale Ale, but this was pretty straightforward and not offensive in any way. I imagine most people would like it.
In addition to great beers, the service was good and we all really enjoyed our meals. The five of us split two orders of some really excellent nachos (the chips themselves were great, with a good mix of fresh veggies and a really good salsa). I had a homemade vegetable burger with fries, phenomenal. This place was awesome and I'd totally recommend it to anyone, the only drawback being it's not particularly close to anything or on the way to anywhere. Well worth the visit if you ever find yourself even remotely in the neighborhood!
When I visited my friends Cheryl, Gurzo and Cristina last week, it came up that all would like to do a bit of hiking, so I invited them to visit me this week, adding the idea of visiting of the nearby brew pubs. Long Valley got our vote for having a well rounded menu that included veggie options for myself, Cristina and Cheryl. My friend Noah, a fellow nature and beer enthusiast who will also be under contract beginning this coming Friday, joined us for the evening.
Here's the thing about Long Valley Brew Pub: it's amazing. Just entering the place gave a great impression. It's in a beautifully restored 200 year old stone barn, in a lovely historic town, at the top of a windy road that goes up a pretty mountain that we got to watch the sun set behind as we anxiously awaited our awesome samplers of their brews.
This is actually a photo from the drive to the brewery, but you get the idea-- such an incredible part of the state!
Hookerman's Light: While I don't generally pursue light beers, this was really excellent. Smooth and to the point, extremely drinkable. We were all really impressed with how not lame it was for being a light beer.
American Pale Ale: This was slightly hoppy, and yet I loved it. It's beers like this that will get me to like stronger hops flavors someday. It was very crisp and refreshing with just a hint of really tasty hops. One of my uncles once told me that a good pale ale is totally worth the trouble of looking for. This brew absolutely made me agree with that statement.
German Valley Amber: This was also slighty hoppy but very smooth and tasty, somewhat akin to some sort of nice Irish Red but not quite. I don't think I described that very well, but whatever-- this is also a great beer.
Lazy Jake Porter: SO GOOD. I love my dark beers, and this was really great. When I go through samplers, I tend to take a sip of each and then finish them in the order from least favorite to most favorite. This was the one I saved for last. Definitely a strong coffee flavor but such a smooth, tasty beer. Oh man.
Dusseldorf Altbier: This one I was less crazy about, it being kind of heavy on the malts for being so light in feeling. That's a combination I tend not to totally embrace, such as in the case of bocks. That being said, this was still a solid beer and it wasn't so strong or sweet that I didn't enjoy it.
English Pale Ale: This one didn't have too much exciting about it, but was their current feature beer-- "great beer for no particular reason" it says on the menu. I definitely preferred the American Pale Ale, but this was pretty straightforward and not offensive in any way. I imagine most people would like it.
In addition to great beers, the service was good and we all really enjoyed our meals. The five of us split two orders of some really excellent nachos (the chips themselves were great, with a good mix of fresh veggies and a really good salsa). I had a homemade vegetable burger with fries, phenomenal. This place was awesome and I'd totally recommend it to anyone, the only drawback being it's not particularly close to anything or on the way to anywhere. Well worth the visit if you ever find yourself even remotely in the neighborhood!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
excuses excuses
So I can't really explain my MIA-ness. I think the best guess is all the graduations I attended, plus I just finished doing some moving. Before this update, I was behind by almost 25 beers and Colleen had a lead that was closing on 10%. Yikes.
Despite this, I did manage to escape my moving duties last weekend and go out with some sailing buddies from college. We went to The Whiskey in Annapolis, no new beer to be had there. However, I did get to catch up with some people and listen to some local music. I'd say the music drowned out catching up more than anything else. Nonetheless, good times were had.
After we had our fill there, we went to downtown Annapolis to Harry Browne's, which is on State House circle. The upstairs bar was the kind of place most appropriate for a cigar and a sniffer full of brandy, but I did manage to try a new beer. As pretentious as it sounded, unlike the last place, you could definitely have a conversation there. So perhaps that means I had a good mix of bar experiences.
Dominion Hop Mountain Pale Ale: I thought this tasted a little funny. I think it was most likely the hop variety, since it can have a large affect on pale ales and IPA. Considering the varying kinds of hops, that's my best guess on one try - assuming the keg was fresh. It did seem to get better as I broke up the taste with some bar pretzels. At times, I think beer can be aided by food. Yet, it can also mask the taste. Being that this isn't a sophisticated beer review guide, I'll stop here and reiterate my review again. Dominion generally makes decent beer, but I'd avoid this one.
In a desperate attempt to begin to catch up, I went to Total Wine and made a custom six pack. For the most part, I avoided porters and stouts, being that it's the time of year for lighter ales and lagers, but I did manage to sneak in an oatmeal stout. Also, at Laura's suggestion, I will be adorning the mantle in my living room with empty beer bottles from my recent reviews.
Bavaria Holland Blonde: Admittedly, if you put this and Heineken next to each other, I might not tell the difference. That statement makes this review interesting, since technically Heineken has not be officially listed on my count. The beer was light in color and taste, and the slight floral/fruit aroma reminded me of Heineken.
Harpoon Celtic Ale: As with the last beer, this reminded me of another common brew. I thought the taste was very similar to Killian's Irish Red. Harpoon, like Dominion, generally does a pretty good job. Being that I like Killian's, I thought this was a very good beer.
Left Hand Jackman'ss Pale Ale: As far as pale ales are concerned, this was rather middle of the road. I thought it wasn't too hoppy, but had enough kick to certainly distinguish itself as a pale ale. The beer went down fairly clean and smooth. Thus far, I'd say Left Hand brewing makes a quality micro-brew.
Lost Coast Alleycat Amber Ale: I tend to like amber ales, especially in the summer. I was somewhat disappointed by this beer. I thought it tasted pretty smooth, but was not what I think an iconic amber ale should taste like. No comment on the brewer, since this is my first by them.
Southampton Double White Ale: White ales tend to remind me of a wheat beer or Blue Moon. Fortunately, this was much better than Blue Moon. The beer was very cloudy, as I believe it was unfiltered. When tasting unfiltered beers from the bottle, it is best to avoid the very last drops as they mostly contain yeast. In short, this was a nice summer beer to have on a hot day.
New Holland The Poet: I thought this was a great oatmeal stout. While it was heavy for the summer, I thought this beer was well done for its style and overall. Laura made Salisbury Steak for dinner that night, and it complemented the food really well. I wish I had better descriptors for you, but I'm at a loss of words. I hope to locate another one of these, because I really enjoyed it - and so I can update this review a little more.
This begins my long march to slowly catch up to Colleen over the summer. I hope to pass her sometime in late July, just in time to build a lead before she begins her march to demolish me once again. That said, I hope to meet with my beer friend sooner rather than later for a beer. Speaking of my beer friend, I wish her best of luck on her Thoreau style thesis writing.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 253
Paul: 236
Cheers,
Paul
Despite this, I did manage to escape my moving duties last weekend and go out with some sailing buddies from college. We went to The Whiskey in Annapolis, no new beer to be had there. However, I did get to catch up with some people and listen to some local music. I'd say the music drowned out catching up more than anything else. Nonetheless, good times were had.
After we had our fill there, we went to downtown Annapolis to Harry Browne's, which is on State House circle. The upstairs bar was the kind of place most appropriate for a cigar and a sniffer full of brandy, but I did manage to try a new beer. As pretentious as it sounded, unlike the last place, you could definitely have a conversation there. So perhaps that means I had a good mix of bar experiences.
Dominion Hop Mountain Pale Ale: I thought this tasted a little funny. I think it was most likely the hop variety, since it can have a large affect on pale ales and IPA. Considering the varying kinds of hops, that's my best guess on one try - assuming the keg was fresh. It did seem to get better as I broke up the taste with some bar pretzels. At times, I think beer can be aided by food. Yet, it can also mask the taste. Being that this isn't a sophisticated beer review guide, I'll stop here and reiterate my review again. Dominion generally makes decent beer, but I'd avoid this one.
In a desperate attempt to begin to catch up, I went to Total Wine and made a custom six pack. For the most part, I avoided porters and stouts, being that it's the time of year for lighter ales and lagers, but I did manage to sneak in an oatmeal stout. Also, at Laura's suggestion, I will be adorning the mantle in my living room with empty beer bottles from my recent reviews.
Bavaria Holland Blonde: Admittedly, if you put this and Heineken next to each other, I might not tell the difference. That statement makes this review interesting, since technically Heineken has not be officially listed on my count. The beer was light in color and taste, and the slight floral/fruit aroma reminded me of Heineken.
Harpoon Celtic Ale: As with the last beer, this reminded me of another common brew. I thought the taste was very similar to Killian's Irish Red. Harpoon, like Dominion, generally does a pretty good job. Being that I like Killian's, I thought this was a very good beer.
Left Hand Jackman'ss Pale Ale: As far as pale ales are concerned, this was rather middle of the road. I thought it wasn't too hoppy, but had enough kick to certainly distinguish itself as a pale ale. The beer went down fairly clean and smooth. Thus far, I'd say Left Hand brewing makes a quality micro-brew.
Lost Coast Alleycat Amber Ale: I tend to like amber ales, especially in the summer. I was somewhat disappointed by this beer. I thought it tasted pretty smooth, but was not what I think an iconic amber ale should taste like. No comment on the brewer, since this is my first by them.
Southampton Double White Ale: White ales tend to remind me of a wheat beer or Blue Moon. Fortunately, this was much better than Blue Moon. The beer was very cloudy, as I believe it was unfiltered. When tasting unfiltered beers from the bottle, it is best to avoid the very last drops as they mostly contain yeast. In short, this was a nice summer beer to have on a hot day.
New Holland The Poet: I thought this was a great oatmeal stout. While it was heavy for the summer, I thought this beer was well done for its style and overall. Laura made Salisbury Steak for dinner that night, and it complemented the food really well. I wish I had better descriptors for you, but I'm at a loss of words. I hope to locate another one of these, because I really enjoyed it - and so I can update this review a little more.
This begins my long march to slowly catch up to Colleen over the summer. I hope to pass her sometime in late July, just in time to build a lead before she begins her march to demolish me once again. That said, I hope to meet with my beer friend sooner rather than later for a beer. Speaking of my beer friend, I wish her best of luck on her Thoreau style thesis writing.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 253
Paul: 236
Cheers,
Paul
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
woo...antibiotics
So for the last month (really?!), I've been busy traveling for family stuff and have been taking an antibiotic. While drinking wasn't forbidden due to the medication, I did significantly slow down my beer intake (new or otherwise).
I have taken notes, and unfortunately even lost the review for one beer. There's a reason you shouldn't write them on the back of a receipt. In any event, since my last post Colleen visited. She outlined her travels pretty well. It was nice to catch up while she was down here. I may be at a disadvantage if she lives in Virginia permanently, since so many of the beers that I've tried are found in this area exclusively.
I did get a chance to visit Williamsburg AleWerks, however the samples there were under our minimum ounce limit for a beer to count. Nonetheless, the tour and tasting were nice on a hot May day. I'd recommend any of there beers, they don't make anything that is below mediocre.
Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA: Have you ever tried a really dry red wine? Where your mouth just feels arid after? Yea, this was the beer version of that. The extent of the hops literally gave the beer a very dry taste. Colleen thought this was much milder than I did, apparently.
Rogue dead Guy Ale: Most people were surprised when I told them I hadn't head this up until a few weeks ago. This one was a freebie due to Colleen's Geography nerd party. However, I won't make fun of them anymore, since they did get me a free beer. For whatever reason, this gave me a really weird mix.
St. George Pilsner: I'm not that crazy about Pilsners. They ere on the light side for me, and there generally isn't much to them. This beer pretty much meets that description. It was fine, but just nothing special.
Carolina Blonde: Laura and I met with some college friends of mine a few weeks ago for drinks. It was quite nice to catch up with Amanda, since she is leaving the state for work soon. On the beer front, this was a rather disappointing. I'm not crazy about Gold Ales, and this didn't really change my mind. As far as the time of year goes, lighter beers are nice in the summer - but they generally disappoint me. They aren't that complex. As I've said a lot, I prefer porters.
Rogue American Amber: A caveat to my previous comment is that I do enjoy amber ales quite a bit, even if this is a summer beer. Despite my not-so-great feelings about Dead Guy Ale, I know Rogue has a pretty good reputation. For me, this beer definitely saved that. It's really one of the better Amber Ales I've tried.
Highland Big Butte Smoked Porter: I had this at the Green Leafe. I thought it was a bit on the smoky side, but I wasn't aware of the full name until I wrote this review - sometimes restaurants neglect long names on their menus. That said, it wasn't that bad of a porter, being that they should be somewhat roasty/smoky. I just prefer more of a roasted malt flavor than a smoky one. I've had one other beer of theirs when I was in OBX last summer, and I thought that was pretty good.
Bells Oberon Ale: After some searching on ratebeer for the name. I found the name to match the review in my head. I had this at the Brickskeller to celebrate my friend Matt's birthday. It was a rather hot day in DC, and as far as wheat ales go, this was a very tasty beer. I'd love to say the Brickskeller has nothing but knock out beers, but unfortunately it can be a mixed bag there. This one was quite good though. I can't even recall the brewer of the other beer, but that's how it goes.
Laura and I are meeting with a college friend of mine this week for a beer or two. The place has quite a few micro-brews, so perhaps I can close the lead. So, in conclusion, I am not dead...just really, really far behind!
The scorecard:
Colleen: 242
Paul: 229
I have taken notes, and unfortunately even lost the review for one beer. There's a reason you shouldn't write them on the back of a receipt. In any event, since my last post Colleen visited. She outlined her travels pretty well. It was nice to catch up while she was down here. I may be at a disadvantage if she lives in Virginia permanently, since so many of the beers that I've tried are found in this area exclusively.
I did get a chance to visit Williamsburg AleWerks, however the samples there were under our minimum ounce limit for a beer to count. Nonetheless, the tour and tasting were nice on a hot May day. I'd recommend any of there beers, they don't make anything that is below mediocre.
Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA: Have you ever tried a really dry red wine? Where your mouth just feels arid after? Yea, this was the beer version of that. The extent of the hops literally gave the beer a very dry taste. Colleen thought this was much milder than I did, apparently.
Rogue dead Guy Ale: Most people were surprised when I told them I hadn't head this up until a few weeks ago. This one was a freebie due to Colleen's Geography nerd party. However, I won't make fun of them anymore, since they did get me a free beer. For whatever reason, this gave me a really weird mix.
St. George Pilsner: I'm not that crazy about Pilsners. They ere on the light side for me, and there generally isn't much to them. This beer pretty much meets that description. It was fine, but just nothing special.
Carolina Blonde: Laura and I met with some college friends of mine a few weeks ago for drinks. It was quite nice to catch up with Amanda, since she is leaving the state for work soon. On the beer front, this was a rather disappointing. I'm not crazy about Gold Ales, and this didn't really change my mind. As far as the time of year goes, lighter beers are nice in the summer - but they generally disappoint me. They aren't that complex. As I've said a lot, I prefer porters.
Rogue American Amber: A caveat to my previous comment is that I do enjoy amber ales quite a bit, even if this is a summer beer. Despite my not-so-great feelings about Dead Guy Ale, I know Rogue has a pretty good reputation. For me, this beer definitely saved that. It's really one of the better Amber Ales I've tried.
Highland Big Butte Smoked Porter: I had this at the Green Leafe. I thought it was a bit on the smoky side, but I wasn't aware of the full name until I wrote this review - sometimes restaurants neglect long names on their menus. That said, it wasn't that bad of a porter, being that they should be somewhat roasty/smoky. I just prefer more of a roasted malt flavor than a smoky one. I've had one other beer of theirs when I was in OBX last summer, and I thought that was pretty good.
Bells Oberon Ale: After some searching on ratebeer for the name. I found the name to match the review in my head. I had this at the Brickskeller to celebrate my friend Matt's birthday. It was a rather hot day in DC, and as far as wheat ales go, this was a very tasty beer. I'd love to say the Brickskeller has nothing but knock out beers, but unfortunately it can be a mixed bag there. This one was quite good though. I can't even recall the brewer of the other beer, but that's how it goes.
Laura and I are meeting with a college friend of mine this week for a beer or two. The place has quite a few micro-brews, so perhaps I can close the lead. So, in conclusion, I am not dead...just really, really far behind!
The scorecard:
Colleen: 242
Paul: 229
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
catching up and getting ahead
Anyone who knows me, knows that I am really quite a responsible drinker. What follows appears otherwise, but give me some credit-- I spent a week in a city I adore, with old and new friends, catching up and enjoying the company. I will try to keep each of these short, since there were a few of them during the week...
Fireflies Amber Ale: I stayed with Paul my first two nights in the area. He took me here, which had excellent food (especially the fries!) and great beer. He recommended this in the blog and to my face, so I went with it... and much to my surprise, so did he. He's letting me get ahead right now, since this summer I will not be active in this little tongue-in-cheek contest we have going. (Also he was a bit under the weather.) Anyway, this is a good beer! Generally unoffensive to anyone, I suspect. Very clean, not too heavy, not too boring. Nice.
Left Hand Fade to Black: My second night, I made my infamous easy beer marinade for Paul with this and then drank the extra 4 ounces, making it a legit entry on the list (we have an unwritten code about these things). This was my kinda beer! Really dark, with strong flavor, definitely a bit coffee-y.
Flying Dog Amber Lager: Nice, refreshing beer. Flying Dog is pretty legit.
Sweetwater's Straight Shooter Stout: So I'll sneak this tidbit in here: I had a job interview whilst in the area last week, and at the end of it, I went to Sweetwater with a fellow former Mary Washington Geographer for a quick round. I obviously ordered the stout, because I like those. This one was a good one! Well rounded, no particular flavor too strong, not too heavy, just the right amount of awesome.
Flying Dog Pale Ale: Rutgers co-hosted an AAG party with Clark University at RFD Washington. I brought Paul. I hear the place was great, but there were only a few beers on tap in the back room where we were, including this one that I'd never had before. It was a little hoppier than I'd prefer, but for being pale and hoppy, it didn't kill me. That means that it's an accessible pale ale, even if you're not into super hoppy nonsense (like me).
Kilkenny Cream Ale: This came up in conversation when out at the aforementioned Sweetwater, so I was pleased to see it on the menu at Murphy's, which was across from the conference hotels. This was another really great beer! It was a little bit sweet but not in a sickening oversweet sort of way like doppelbocks that I generally haven't been too into. Very smooth, very nice. I would do this again.
Mooney's Irish Stout: Also at Murphy's, this was a very chocolatey flavored stout. Very very obviously chocolatey. However, not bad. I liked it. But then again, I like stout. One of my friends I was out with ordered it as well, so I clearly wasn't the only one who liked it.
Murphy's Lager: Yes, three at once place! My college friends came into D.C. to hang out for the evening, so we spent quite a while at the restaurant waiting for everyone to arrive after work. This was pretty straightforward, no nonsense, dry lager. Whatever.
Tusker lager: Went to Brickskeller on Saturday night, a place Paul has mentioned more than once for their incredible selection. Seriously, go read the menu. I estimated about 1000 beers on the printed copy I was looking at, from all over the world, and reasonably priced, too. This place rocked. I watched the Caps game with Deron and Scott while enjoying this "whatever lager" from Kenya, for no real reason other than the fact that I'd never had an African beer before.
Starr Hill Dark Star Stout: This was excellent, also from Brickskeller while we watched the third period end in a tie. This was a bit coffee-y, especially compared to the Mooney's the day before with its absurd amount of awesome chocolate flavor. But I enjoy a strong beer, and this totally fit the bill.
Mike's American Lager: Out dinner with amazing host family #3 of my week, Alison and Scott Berry, I had this beer, which is apparently brewed using bottom fermenting yeast, like a lager, but using an ale recipe. I don't even know what that means, but this was a nice clean beer to go with my great dinner (I totally recommend the grilled portobello!).
Kona Wailua: Back at the Berries', Scott had some of this waiting. They had it on their honeymoon in Hawaii last fall, and he's a huge fan. This is a wheat beer brewed with passionfruit, which I tried for the first time in Mexico last summer-- delicious and sweet, but really difficult to eat because it's got seeds galore. In my beer, it worked out very well! Not too sweet or fruity, just a hint of interesting on top of a very nice wheat beer.
Legend Lager: This is also a "whatever" lager, but I was at the excellent J. Brian's in Fredericksburg with the excellent Hilary, who is originally from Richmond, like this beer. It was just fine with my delicious quesadilla and my fabulous company!
This seems ludicrous but I guess you had to be there to see that it wasn't really so crazy. MANY thanks to all of my wonderful friends who joined me for these!
Paul: 222
Colleen: 236
Fireflies Amber Ale: I stayed with Paul my first two nights in the area. He took me here, which had excellent food (especially the fries!) and great beer. He recommended this in the blog and to my face, so I went with it... and much to my surprise, so did he. He's letting me get ahead right now, since this summer I will not be active in this little tongue-in-cheek contest we have going. (Also he was a bit under the weather.) Anyway, this is a good beer! Generally unoffensive to anyone, I suspect. Very clean, not too heavy, not too boring. Nice.
Left Hand Fade to Black: My second night, I made my infamous easy beer marinade for Paul with this and then drank the extra 4 ounces, making it a legit entry on the list (we have an unwritten code about these things). This was my kinda beer! Really dark, with strong flavor, definitely a bit coffee-y.
Flying Dog Amber Lager: Nice, refreshing beer. Flying Dog is pretty legit.
Sweetwater's Straight Shooter Stout: So I'll sneak this tidbit in here: I had a job interview whilst in the area last week, and at the end of it, I went to Sweetwater with a fellow former Mary Washington Geographer for a quick round. I obviously ordered the stout, because I like those. This one was a good one! Well rounded, no particular flavor too strong, not too heavy, just the right amount of awesome.
Flying Dog Pale Ale: Rutgers co-hosted an AAG party with Clark University at RFD Washington. I brought Paul. I hear the place was great, but there were only a few beers on tap in the back room where we were, including this one that I'd never had before. It was a little hoppier than I'd prefer, but for being pale and hoppy, it didn't kill me. That means that it's an accessible pale ale, even if you're not into super hoppy nonsense (like me).
Kilkenny Cream Ale: This came up in conversation when out at the aforementioned Sweetwater, so I was pleased to see it on the menu at Murphy's, which was across from the conference hotels. This was another really great beer! It was a little bit sweet but not in a sickening oversweet sort of way like doppelbocks that I generally haven't been too into. Very smooth, very nice. I would do this again.
Mooney's Irish Stout: Also at Murphy's, this was a very chocolatey flavored stout. Very very obviously chocolatey. However, not bad. I liked it. But then again, I like stout. One of my friends I was out with ordered it as well, so I clearly wasn't the only one who liked it.
Murphy's Lager: Yes, three at once place! My college friends came into D.C. to hang out for the evening, so we spent quite a while at the restaurant waiting for everyone to arrive after work. This was pretty straightforward, no nonsense, dry lager. Whatever.
Tusker lager: Went to Brickskeller on Saturday night, a place Paul has mentioned more than once for their incredible selection. Seriously, go read the menu. I estimated about 1000 beers on the printed copy I was looking at, from all over the world, and reasonably priced, too. This place rocked. I watched the Caps game with Deron and Scott while enjoying this "whatever lager" from Kenya, for no real reason other than the fact that I'd never had an African beer before.
Starr Hill Dark Star Stout: This was excellent, also from Brickskeller while we watched the third period end in a tie. This was a bit coffee-y, especially compared to the Mooney's the day before with its absurd amount of awesome chocolate flavor. But I enjoy a strong beer, and this totally fit the bill.
Mike's American Lager: Out dinner with amazing host family #3 of my week, Alison and Scott Berry, I had this beer, which is apparently brewed using bottom fermenting yeast, like a lager, but using an ale recipe. I don't even know what that means, but this was a nice clean beer to go with my great dinner (I totally recommend the grilled portobello!).
Kona Wailua: Back at the Berries', Scott had some of this waiting. They had it on their honeymoon in Hawaii last fall, and he's a huge fan. This is a wheat beer brewed with passionfruit, which I tried for the first time in Mexico last summer-- delicious and sweet, but really difficult to eat because it's got seeds galore. In my beer, it worked out very well! Not too sweet or fruity, just a hint of interesting on top of a very nice wheat beer.
Legend Lager: This is also a "whatever" lager, but I was at the excellent J. Brian's in Fredericksburg with the excellent Hilary, who is originally from Richmond, like this beer. It was just fine with my delicious quesadilla and my fabulous company!
This seems ludicrous but I guess you had to be there to see that it wasn't really so crazy. MANY thanks to all of my wonderful friends who joined me for these!
Paul: 222
Colleen: 236
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
a linktastic entry for you
Paul said he was just waiting for me to pull out ten beers to add to the list. It's been a bit of a busy week for me so far, so no, not ten, but four, putting me back in the lead (barely).
Before this week went wild and crazy, I did have a lovely weekend, wrapping up my spring break. As a result of a minor procedure* late in the week, I spent most of it lying on a couch being pathetic. However, on Saturday, I was fortunate enough to be called upon to babysit seven of the world's most well behaved children (they turned off the tv and put themselves to bed!) with the help one of my favorite people in the universe, Becky, who recently returned from a three or so year stint in Peace Corps and other world travels. Since this was up at the aforementioned camp, I also got to see the aforementioned Lauren and share the aforementioned Rogue Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout.
Um, DELICIOUS. I love stouts. I occasionally mention my ongoing search for an oatmeal stout as bangin' as the one I had at the microbrewery in Charleston, S.C. while attending a geography nerd conference that one time. Well, I think I finally found it. This was smooth and delicious. No weird aftertaste. Just awesome. Actually, what I wrote in my beer spreadsheet is, "SO GOOD! Smooth, tasty, not too sweet, not too bland, plain delicious perfecto stout" so yeah. Winner winner chicken dinner! Except I'm a vegetarian. Whatever, it's just fun to say. And I found a winning oatmeal stout.
Now onto my regularly scheduled Monday evening antics at Stuff Yer Face.
Corsendonk Abbey Pale Ale: I would highly recommend this one to the person who sort of likes pale ales but tends to be scared off by hops. Actually, I would recommend this one to just about anyone who likes good beer, because it's just plain good. It's actually a tripel. I would use words like "refreshing" and "delightful" to describe this very nice pale ale. It's not too sweet, and there's no real hops punching you in the face type experience to be had. It's just very nice and very good.
Rogue's Captain Sig's Northwestern Ale: While I've had a few Rogue brews now that I have really, REALLY enjoyed (um, did you read the beginning of this entry?), this was not a good experience. Hop hop hop away! No one around me really enjoyed it, either. I drank enough for it to count. Begrudgingly. The brewer describes it saying something about malts and other stuff besides hops... but I didn't get that part. It was just really bitter. If you're into hoppy beer, you'll like this!
and... don't judge...
Heineken: Once upon a time when I didn't really drink beer, I seem to recall liking this? I think it had more to do with the company I was keeping at that time in my life (said company being a big fan of said Heineken). Someone (and I forget who) judged me in a negative light over this and I hadn't had it since, till last night, when I had it just for the sake of getting it on the list officially. Well, I was annoyed at the person for judging me at the time, but I guess I owe them a thanks, whoever they were, because this isn't nearly as tolerable as my memory suggested. In fact, whoever you are, if you're reading this, please remind me that you once judged me, so I can properly thank you. When searching for a non-descript lager (I list these as "whatever lager" on my beer list), I would definitely go for a "Mexican lager" or the Earp Family Standard Issue over this. Eesh.
And so. Paul: 209, Colleen: 210. So I guess Paul's statement about ten beers sort of counts, in that I'm now ten beers past 200 beers.
*Bonus link if you aren't easy skeeved out by medical things: this is an x ray of my spine with a big needle next to it when I had the same procedure done a few years ago.
Before this week went wild and crazy, I did have a lovely weekend, wrapping up my spring break. As a result of a minor procedure* late in the week, I spent most of it lying on a couch being pathetic. However, on Saturday, I was fortunate enough to be called upon to babysit seven of the world's most well behaved children (they turned off the tv and put themselves to bed!) with the help one of my favorite people in the universe, Becky, who recently returned from a three or so year stint in Peace Corps and other world travels. Since this was up at the aforementioned camp, I also got to see the aforementioned Lauren and share the aforementioned Rogue Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout.
Um, DELICIOUS. I love stouts. I occasionally mention my ongoing search for an oatmeal stout as bangin' as the one I had at the microbrewery in Charleston, S.C. while attending a geography nerd conference that one time. Well, I think I finally found it. This was smooth and delicious. No weird aftertaste. Just awesome. Actually, what I wrote in my beer spreadsheet is, "SO GOOD! Smooth, tasty, not too sweet, not too bland, plain delicious perfecto stout" so yeah. Winner winner chicken dinner! Except I'm a vegetarian. Whatever, it's just fun to say. And I found a winning oatmeal stout.
Now onto my regularly scheduled Monday evening antics at Stuff Yer Face.
Corsendonk Abbey Pale Ale: I would highly recommend this one to the person who sort of likes pale ales but tends to be scared off by hops. Actually, I would recommend this one to just about anyone who likes good beer, because it's just plain good. It's actually a tripel. I would use words like "refreshing" and "delightful" to describe this very nice pale ale. It's not too sweet, and there's no real hops punching you in the face type experience to be had. It's just very nice and very good.
Rogue's Captain Sig's Northwestern Ale: While I've had a few Rogue brews now that I have really, REALLY enjoyed (um, did you read the beginning of this entry?), this was not a good experience. Hop hop hop away! No one around me really enjoyed it, either. I drank enough for it to count. Begrudgingly. The brewer describes it saying something about malts and other stuff besides hops... but I didn't get that part. It was just really bitter. If you're into hoppy beer, you'll like this!
and... don't judge...
Heineken: Once upon a time when I didn't really drink beer, I seem to recall liking this? I think it had more to do with the company I was keeping at that time in my life (said company being a big fan of said Heineken). Someone (and I forget who) judged me in a negative light over this and I hadn't had it since, till last night, when I had it just for the sake of getting it on the list officially. Well, I was annoyed at the person for judging me at the time, but I guess I owe them a thanks, whoever they were, because this isn't nearly as tolerable as my memory suggested. In fact, whoever you are, if you're reading this, please remind me that you once judged me, so I can properly thank you. When searching for a non-descript lager (I list these as "whatever lager" on my beer list), I would definitely go for a "Mexican lager" or the Earp Family Standard Issue over this. Eesh.
And so. Paul: 209, Colleen: 210. So I guess Paul's statement about ten beers sort of counts, in that I'm now ten beers past 200 beers.
*Bonus link if you aren't easy skeeved out by medical things: this is an x ray of my spine with a big needle next to it when I had the same procedure done a few years ago.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Nothing very exciting to report these days, unless you find remote sensing, the electromagnetic spectrum, land change science and Bracken fern interesting... but I have tried three new brews.
Sam Adams Noble Pils: a new spring seasonal?! This was pretty good. Currently on tap at Stuffies, as discovered when I went there for dinner with Tom on Sunday. It's a little hoppier than I'd prefer, but not offensive, more in the same vein as Victory's Prima Pils, which I also recently tried. I got a slightly citrus taste out of Sam's; I think Victory had a little more lemon going on. This was decent, but I don't need to go out of my way for it again soon.
Dundee Honey Brown Lager: As my friend Jeremy said, this beer is inoffensive in every way. It seems the people in the internet were even more indifferent, according to that link at beer advocate. I liked it. Not too sweet, not too bitter, not too sharp, not too tasteless, just fine.
Tröeg's Nugget Nectar: I have liked other things by Tröeg's-- the Mad Elf, Dreamweaver Wheat, and Nut Brown Ale, but this was like a smack in the face with hops, which it's been well established that I don't care for. If you like hops, have at it. I don't need to drink this again.
Colleen: 197
Paul: 185
Sam Adams Noble Pils: a new spring seasonal?! This was pretty good. Currently on tap at Stuffies, as discovered when I went there for dinner with Tom on Sunday. It's a little hoppier than I'd prefer, but not offensive, more in the same vein as Victory's Prima Pils, which I also recently tried. I got a slightly citrus taste out of Sam's; I think Victory had a little more lemon going on. This was decent, but I don't need to go out of my way for it again soon.
Dundee Honey Brown Lager: As my friend Jeremy said, this beer is inoffensive in every way. It seems the people in the internet were even more indifferent, according to that link at beer advocate. I liked it. Not too sweet, not too bitter, not too sharp, not too tasteless, just fine.
Tröeg's Nugget Nectar: I have liked other things by Tröeg's-- the Mad Elf, Dreamweaver Wheat, and Nut Brown Ale, but this was like a smack in the face with hops, which it's been well established that I don't care for. If you like hops, have at it. I don't need to drink this again.
Colleen: 197
Paul: 185
Saturday, January 30, 2010
The Brickskeller
If beer were a religion, I just found its high altar. I'm not kidding. Obviously, this isn't a new discovery for the world, but on my part. Recently, a few people have told me that I should try out The Brickskeller. It has been open in Washington DC for over 50 years, and they started business with having the world's largest selection of beer (which was about 50 at the time). Now that list is over 1,000! They have weekly beer tastings featuring different micro brews and the brewers who make them as well. Did I mention this is a Mom and Pop joint? I'm going to take a moment so we can all take that in....
Now, needless to say I have a new favorite bar. It's a couple blocks from DuPont Circle in DC, and has a nearby Metro - win. I met there with my sailing buddy from college, Hazen. The cool part was that the bartenders used a dumbwaiter to get beers from the storage cellar to the bar. That means they are pulling on a rope half the night to get your order to you. There are also about 12 beers on tap, only two of which that I had heard of before. I had one beer on tap, and three from the bottle. This place rocks.
We both had a great time. It was nice to see a college friend of mine. As you get older, hanging out with friends becomes more infrequent. It's just life. Nonetheless, I think he and I will be going back there sooner rather than later. I just wish my tolerance was as high as it was in college...oh well. We'll also do some sailing together this summer - he owns a boat.
I really need to start carrying a copy of my beer list on my phone or something. The Brickskeller made this apparent, because I know there were beers from brewers I've had before there, I just didn't know which. Therefore, I generally played it safe and went with brewers I had not heard of before, except for a Brooklyn beer.
Brooklyn Blast Imperial IPA: I enjoyed this beer, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It didn't seem overly hoppy, which is what one would expect when they see the term IPA. However, I thought it came across as a pretty balanced beer. It wasn't the best beer I've ever had, but I'd certainly give it another try.
Speakeasy Prohibition Amber Ale: This beer caught my eye on the beer menu due to its name, being that it references the dumbest point in American History. All I can say is that I thank God for beer and the 21st Amendment to the Constitution. My ranting aside, I did enjoy this beer. I have an affinity for amber ales. I thought it was well balanced between smooth, slightly caramel flavored, malts and bitterness of hops. I want to have this beer again.
Oskar Blues Ten-Fidy Imperial Russian Stout: One disadvantage of having over 1,000 beers on the menu is that some items are kept at low inventory, so it's easy to run out. After a few tries to get an Imperial Russian, and politely declining a $45 dollar bottle of Imperial Russian, I was brought this beer. I liked it quite a bit, although it took about halfway through before I got over the fact that it came in a can?! The beer was classic Imperial Russian: thick, full of flavors (including roasted chocolate malts), and high in alcohol content. It comes in at a whopping 10% ABV.
Legacy Hedonism Red Ale: I can admit that this beer name caught my eye on the menu, and that's about the only reason I ordered it. I really hated this beer. I thought it was terrible. The only flavor that came to my mind was creamy. It was like drinking that terrible cream soda someone gives you as a kid. I will avoid this at all costs in the future - 81/100 on ratebeer.com be damned!
With these beers, I have now closed the gap to less than 10. Weather permitting (there's some snow in DC today), I will be joining my friends Tim & Heather at a Bistro near their place for dinner. The noteworthy part of this for you, the reader? The place has many micro-brews on tap, and matches beers with menu selections. There will be a full report later.
Many thanks to Hazen for giving me a heads up about the bar with the largest selection of beer in the world. Next time we go, I'm going for international beers. I just wanted to try some American Craft Brews that I hadn't had.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 194
Paul: 185
Cheers,
Paul
Now, needless to say I have a new favorite bar. It's a couple blocks from DuPont Circle in DC, and has a nearby Metro - win. I met there with my sailing buddy from college, Hazen. The cool part was that the bartenders used a dumbwaiter to get beers from the storage cellar to the bar. That means they are pulling on a rope half the night to get your order to you. There are also about 12 beers on tap, only two of which that I had heard of before. I had one beer on tap, and three from the bottle. This place rocks.
We both had a great time. It was nice to see a college friend of mine. As you get older, hanging out with friends becomes more infrequent. It's just life. Nonetheless, I think he and I will be going back there sooner rather than later. I just wish my tolerance was as high as it was in college...oh well. We'll also do some sailing together this summer - he owns a boat.
I really need to start carrying a copy of my beer list on my phone or something. The Brickskeller made this apparent, because I know there were beers from brewers I've had before there, I just didn't know which. Therefore, I generally played it safe and went with brewers I had not heard of before, except for a Brooklyn beer.
Brooklyn Blast Imperial IPA: I enjoyed this beer, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It didn't seem overly hoppy, which is what one would expect when they see the term IPA. However, I thought it came across as a pretty balanced beer. It wasn't the best beer I've ever had, but I'd certainly give it another try.
Speakeasy Prohibition Amber Ale: This beer caught my eye on the beer menu due to its name, being that it references the dumbest point in American History. All I can say is that I thank God for beer and the 21st Amendment to the Constitution. My ranting aside, I did enjoy this beer. I have an affinity for amber ales. I thought it was well balanced between smooth, slightly caramel flavored, malts and bitterness of hops. I want to have this beer again.
Oskar Blues Ten-Fidy Imperial Russian Stout: One disadvantage of having over 1,000 beers on the menu is that some items are kept at low inventory, so it's easy to run out. After a few tries to get an Imperial Russian, and politely declining a $45 dollar bottle of Imperial Russian, I was brought this beer. I liked it quite a bit, although it took about halfway through before I got over the fact that it came in a can?! The beer was classic Imperial Russian: thick, full of flavors (including roasted chocolate malts), and high in alcohol content. It comes in at a whopping 10% ABV.
Legacy Hedonism Red Ale: I can admit that this beer name caught my eye on the menu, and that's about the only reason I ordered it. I really hated this beer. I thought it was terrible. The only flavor that came to my mind was creamy. It was like drinking that terrible cream soda someone gives you as a kid. I will avoid this at all costs in the future - 81/100 on ratebeer.com be damned!
With these beers, I have now closed the gap to less than 10. Weather permitting (there's some snow in DC today), I will be joining my friends Tim & Heather at a Bistro near their place for dinner. The noteworthy part of this for you, the reader? The place has many micro-brews on tap, and matches beers with menu selections. There will be a full report later.
Many thanks to Hazen for giving me a heads up about the bar with the largest selection of beer in the world. Next time we go, I'm going for international beers. I just wanted to try some American Craft Brews that I hadn't had.
The scorecard:
Colleen: 194
Paul: 185
Cheers,
Paul
Sunday, January 24, 2010
A Trip to the Mixing Bowl
Yesterday, since I am starting to become hopelessly behind in the beer count, I ventured over to the Total Wine near the Mixing Bowl to make another custom six pack. I know I linked to the Wikipedia page for the Mixing Bowl, but perhaps the Google Map with do it more justice. I used a GPS to get there - which should be slightly shocking to anyone that knows me, since I think they are cheating. However, given the glorious mess that is the Mixing Bowl, I thought I would try out the used GPS that my cousin Brendan so generously gave me. Intentional wrong turns just to see what it would do? I think so.
Right now I am watching the AFC Championship game - Go Jets! Football and beer just go perfect together. Writing that makes me notice the fact that I am missing pizza, but a custom six was my treat for the weekend. Speaking of which, it was a rather quiet weekend with some awesome time spent with the girlfriend.
I think I made a halfway decent mix of beer styles, though I do love stouts and porters. Here goes my reviews:
Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier: Weihenstephaner has been brewing beer since 1040! It is the worldest's oldest brewery. Say what you want about the Catholic Church, we kept the beer going during the Dark Ages. This beer was nice and cloudy, like most Hefe's. It did however, have a nice aroma and went down quite clean. Brendan took a few sips, but did not like it. His loss is my gain!
The Duck-Rabbit Porter: I've had one other Duck-Rabbit beer, their Milk Stout. I do not like Milk Stouts, but I thought I'd give them another try. I thought this was heavy on the chocolate malt after taste, and came with more of a roasted after taste. Translation: A pretty good porter indeed.
Stone Levitation Ale: My experiences with Stome brewing company have shown that this company makes solid, hoppy ales. This beer doesn't diverge from that generalization. It was a Gold Medal winner at the Great American Beer Festival (I need to go to one) in 2007. I thought the beer was quite enoyable. I really liked it. The beer leaned toward the hoppy after taste, but went down smooth and wasn't overly bitter. I'd like to have this again.
Starr Hill The Love Wheat Beer: I like Starr Hill beers. I think they do a decent job across a broad spectrum of beers. Unfortunately, my fellow beer snobs at Ratebeer.com do not agree with me for the most part. I've been drinking this beer as I was writing this post, and I've enjoyed it. It's your standard, run of the mill unfiltered Hefe. It remined me of Hoeggarden to some extent.
Obviously, I am missing two of the six. I expect to review them some time this week. I also noticed a transcription error when it comes to my count. Note: I typically just add my new beers to the last posted count on this blog, however I do check my spreadsheet from time to time. If you go back a few posts, I went from 173 to 172. This isn't a big deal. I just thought I'd explain the discrepancy. If someone calls shennanigans, I would be happy to share my google doc spreadsheet with you.
I also talked to my sailing buddy Hazen the other day. He mentioned some extensive beer cellars in DC that I can check out. I hope to do some in the coming weeks. After all, I am still behind!
The scorecard:
Colleen: 192
Paul: 179
Cheers,
Paul
Right now I am watching the AFC Championship game - Go Jets! Football and beer just go perfect together. Writing that makes me notice the fact that I am missing pizza, but a custom six was my treat for the weekend. Speaking of which, it was a rather quiet weekend with some awesome time spent with the girlfriend.
I think I made a halfway decent mix of beer styles, though I do love stouts and porters. Here goes my reviews:
Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier: Weihenstephaner has been brewing beer since 1040! It is the worldest's oldest brewery. Say what you want about the Catholic Church, we kept the beer going during the Dark Ages. This beer was nice and cloudy, like most Hefe's. It did however, have a nice aroma and went down quite clean. Brendan took a few sips, but did not like it. His loss is my gain!
The Duck-Rabbit Porter: I've had one other Duck-Rabbit beer, their Milk Stout. I do not like Milk Stouts, but I thought I'd give them another try. I thought this was heavy on the chocolate malt after taste, and came with more of a roasted after taste. Translation: A pretty good porter indeed.
Stone Levitation Ale: My experiences with Stome brewing company have shown that this company makes solid, hoppy ales. This beer doesn't diverge from that generalization. It was a Gold Medal winner at the Great American Beer Festival (I need to go to one) in 2007. I thought the beer was quite enoyable. I really liked it. The beer leaned toward the hoppy after taste, but went down smooth and wasn't overly bitter. I'd like to have this again.
Starr Hill The Love Wheat Beer: I like Starr Hill beers. I think they do a decent job across a broad spectrum of beers. Unfortunately, my fellow beer snobs at Ratebeer.com do not agree with me for the most part. I've been drinking this beer as I was writing this post, and I've enjoyed it. It's your standard, run of the mill unfiltered Hefe. It remined me of Hoeggarden to some extent.
Obviously, I am missing two of the six. I expect to review them some time this week. I also noticed a transcription error when it comes to my count. Note: I typically just add my new beers to the last posted count on this blog, however I do check my spreadsheet from time to time. If you go back a few posts, I went from 173 to 172. This isn't a big deal. I just thought I'd explain the discrepancy. If someone calls shennanigans, I would be happy to share my google doc spreadsheet with you.
I also talked to my sailing buddy Hazen the other day. He mentioned some extensive beer cellars in DC that I can check out. I hope to do some in the coming weeks. After all, I am still behind!
The scorecard:
Colleen: 192
Paul: 179
Cheers,
Paul
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Snowed in.....with beer
This weekend was supposed to mark the beginning of my holiday season, as the extended family planned to gather in New Jersey for our annual Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, A blizzard decided to crash the party. On Friday, it was evident we needed to cancel our plans. In the Washington, DC area - we had 23 inches of snow! Fortunately, I stocked up on supplies for the weekend. My girlfriend gave me part of my Christmas gift early - a custom six pack. Needless to say, she's a keeper.
Williamsburg AleWerks Washington's Porter: It's becoming evident that I love porters. George Washington was a great man who left this country with countless gifts. One of the his most overlooked talents was his recipe for porter, which he left in the New York Public library. Several companies make this. I highly recommend it.
Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale: Smuttynose generally makes a quality beer. This was your run-of-the-mill Pale Ale. I thought it was decent, and it went well with the DiGiorno I was eating at the time.
Smuttynose Really Old Brown Dog Ale: Like the previous beer I had from Smuttynose, this beer is worth giving a try. My girlfriend said this tasted like an old dog. I thought it was better than that. It had some depth, but I think I'd need another one to get a better description.
Troegs Troegenator Doublebock: This beer is basically liquid bread. It's rather aggressive on the malts as well. Troegs is a fairly popular micro-brew. I haven't had much of their beer, but I'll try a few different types to get a good sampling at some point.
Troegs Hopback Amber Ale: I do like amber ales. They tend to be a nice mix between malts and hops. However, this one was heavy on the hops for an amber ale. Hence, it was quite bitter in taste - almost painstakingly so.
This past week, I also had two other beers worth mentioning (one of which already has been accounted for on my list). On Thursday, my cousin and I went for beers at Fireflies. Friday brought me to Chadwick's for lunch.
North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Russian Stout: This beer was excellent. I love an Imperial Russian Stout, and this beer did not disappoint. It was complex, but not overbearing. It poured out like syrup, but was much smoother than it appeared. The head on the beer was darker than normal. I need to have this again.
Morland Old Speckled Hen: This beer was already in my beer count, but I thought I'd document it here. This beer comes highly recommended from two people I respect: my old sailing buddy, Jim, and a family friend, Frank. The beer looks a bit like hard cider, but we won't hold that against it. It tasted a little creamy to me on first taste. I thought the hops and malts were fairly balanced though.
Scorecard:
Paul: 165
Colleen: 157
Cheers,
Paul
Williamsburg AleWerks Washington's Porter: It's becoming evident that I love porters. George Washington was a great man who left this country with countless gifts. One of the his most overlooked talents was his recipe for porter, which he left in the New York Public library. Several companies make this. I highly recommend it.
Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale: Smuttynose generally makes a quality beer. This was your run-of-the-mill Pale Ale. I thought it was decent, and it went well with the DiGiorno I was eating at the time.
Smuttynose Really Old Brown Dog Ale: Like the previous beer I had from Smuttynose, this beer is worth giving a try. My girlfriend said this tasted like an old dog. I thought it was better than that. It had some depth, but I think I'd need another one to get a better description.
Troegs Troegenator Doublebock: This beer is basically liquid bread. It's rather aggressive on the malts as well. Troegs is a fairly popular micro-brew. I haven't had much of their beer, but I'll try a few different types to get a good sampling at some point.
Troegs Hopback Amber Ale: I do like amber ales. They tend to be a nice mix between malts and hops. However, this one was heavy on the hops for an amber ale. Hence, it was quite bitter in taste - almost painstakingly so.
This past week, I also had two other beers worth mentioning (one of which already has been accounted for on my list). On Thursday, my cousin and I went for beers at Fireflies. Friday brought me to Chadwick's for lunch.
North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Russian Stout: This beer was excellent. I love an Imperial Russian Stout, and this beer did not disappoint. It was complex, but not overbearing. It poured out like syrup, but was much smoother than it appeared. The head on the beer was darker than normal. I need to have this again.
Morland Old Speckled Hen: This beer was already in my beer count, but I thought I'd document it here. This beer comes highly recommended from two people I respect: my old sailing buddy, Jim, and a family friend, Frank. The beer looks a bit like hard cider, but we won't hold that against it. It tasted a little creamy to me on first taste. I thought the hops and malts were fairly balanced though.
Scorecard:
Paul: 165
Colleen: 157
Cheers,
Paul
Saturday, December 12, 2009
A Custom Six Pack (Part 2) + Plus More
My last post reviewed three beers from a custom six pack I made at Total Wine. Having tried the remaining beers, I wanted to update you on how they went.
St. George Porter: Recently, I've had a lot of Virginia beers: Starr Hill, Williamsburg Ale Works, Olde Richmond, and probably some others. This beer is also a Virginia beer, and it is excellent. If this six pack taught me anything, it's how much I love a good porter.
Clipper City Gold Ale: This beer is from Baltimore, and the beer's color matches the name. It's light color is normally unusual for me, but I enjoyed this beer. It wasn't light on flavor as I noticed a slightly hoppy after taste with more floral aromas. It struck me as the uncomfortable (yet tasty) love child of an IPA and a wheat beer.
Samuel Adams Imperial White: This beer was intense on flavor to the point where it wasn't even enjoyable. If potpourri came in liquid form, it would taste like this. Samuel Adams makes a lot of good beers, I just don't think this is one of them.
Lastly, I had been reminded that I have tried another beer over the summer that was not on my list. The Guinness 250 Stout was good, but I expected more from Guinness. There were different malts used for a slightly different flavor and after taste. I'd be willing to have it again, but I like the regular Guinness Draught instead.
Yesterday, I made some travels around my area and had some more beers. I met one of my co-workers, Bob, at The Vienna Inn. The place can be best described as a local watering hole and a hole in the wall. The food is good and cheap - plus the beer is always cold. Over some chili cheese dogs, and a good conversation, I had the following beers (bonus - more Virginia beers!):
Dominion Porter: I really enjoyed this brew. Needless to say, my love for porters is becoming documented on this blog. It has a nice roasted malt flavor, and jived well with my chili cheese dog.
Dominion Amber Ale: This was a standard, amber ale. It was good, but it didn't distinguish itself from the group. It was a house beer at the Vienna Inn.
Widmer Brother's Drifter Pale Ale: This completed my tri-fecta, which went from darker to light and from malty to hoppy. I liked this pale ale, nothing special, but solid nonetheless.
After my visit to the Vienna Inn, I went to Chadwick's in Old Town Alexandria. They have a good tap and bottle list. It was nice to have a couple beers with my friend Jeremy and his friend Jared. Without further ado, here goes the rest of the beers I tried.
North Coast Brother Thelonious: I hated this beer. It was a Belgian Abbey style ale. I might avoid this style in the future.
Anderson Valley Boont Amber Ale: This was a decent amber ale. It was mostly forgettable, then again, I was about 5 deep at this point.
The Scorecard:
Paul: 159
Colleen: 156
St. George Porter: Recently, I've had a lot of Virginia beers: Starr Hill, Williamsburg Ale Works, Olde Richmond, and probably some others. This beer is also a Virginia beer, and it is excellent. If this six pack taught me anything, it's how much I love a good porter.
Clipper City Gold Ale: This beer is from Baltimore, and the beer's color matches the name. It's light color is normally unusual for me, but I enjoyed this beer. It wasn't light on flavor as I noticed a slightly hoppy after taste with more floral aromas. It struck me as the uncomfortable (yet tasty) love child of an IPA and a wheat beer.
Samuel Adams Imperial White: This beer was intense on flavor to the point where it wasn't even enjoyable. If potpourri came in liquid form, it would taste like this. Samuel Adams makes a lot of good beers, I just don't think this is one of them.
Lastly, I had been reminded that I have tried another beer over the summer that was not on my list. The Guinness 250 Stout was good, but I expected more from Guinness. There were different malts used for a slightly different flavor and after taste. I'd be willing to have it again, but I like the regular Guinness Draught instead.
Yesterday, I made some travels around my area and had some more beers. I met one of my co-workers, Bob, at The Vienna Inn. The place can be best described as a local watering hole and a hole in the wall. The food is good and cheap - plus the beer is always cold. Over some chili cheese dogs, and a good conversation, I had the following beers (bonus - more Virginia beers!):
Dominion Porter: I really enjoyed this brew. Needless to say, my love for porters is becoming documented on this blog. It has a nice roasted malt flavor, and jived well with my chili cheese dog.
Dominion Amber Ale: This was a standard, amber ale. It was good, but it didn't distinguish itself from the group. It was a house beer at the Vienna Inn.
Widmer Brother's Drifter Pale Ale: This completed my tri-fecta, which went from darker to light and from malty to hoppy. I liked this pale ale, nothing special, but solid nonetheless.
After my visit to the Vienna Inn, I went to Chadwick's in Old Town Alexandria. They have a good tap and bottle list. It was nice to have a couple beers with my friend Jeremy and his friend Jared. Without further ado, here goes the rest of the beers I tried.
North Coast Brother Thelonious: I hated this beer. It was a Belgian Abbey style ale. I might avoid this style in the future.
Anderson Valley Boont Amber Ale: This was a decent amber ale. It was mostly forgettable, then again, I was about 5 deep at this point.
The Scorecard:
Paul: 159
Colleen: 156
Monday, December 7, 2009
Drinking in Colonial Williamsburg
As Colleen will probably post soon, she traveled to Minnesota. Therefore, she probably has another post (or more) already written in her head. I'll let her regale you with her travels on her own time.
Not to be outdone, I went to Williamsburg, VA this weekend to visit the girlfriend. While there she was kind enough to let me watch college football at The Green leafe. I watched football, while tasting a few new pints of beer, and she quietly sat with her beer and studied. She's a keeper. The place had a nice tap and bottle list of beers I hadn't tried before. I hope to get there again to try some more.
The new one's on the list are as follows:
Williamsburg AleWorks Red Marker Ale: This beer was smooth, but otherwise forgettable. I probably would enjoy Killian's Irish Red more.
Harpoon Winter Warmer: This tasted terrible: egg nog meets beer. There was also a cinnamon taste. It was quite surprising, because Harpoon usually makes a quality beer. Then again, the Holiday season makes people do strange things to beer...
Black Sheep Monty Python's Holy Grail: I have a confession to make. I bought this beer because of the name. It was a slightly hoppy beer.
Bear Republic El Oso Lager: I probably enjoyed this beer the most out of the group. It went down smooth, which was very much appreciated after the egg nog beer.
A few weeks ago, with the aforementioned girlfriend, we went to a place called Fireflies. It's pretty much a swank coffee shop atmosphere, except they server beer. During my travels there, I have documented (Colleen, note the word choice - I'm not bitter, really) 2 beers.
Olde Richmond Batch No. 4: This came in a 22 oz bottle. It was a nice, dark brown ale. It went down smooth, and went especially well with a pizza. Then again, what beer doesn't. Long story short, I'd certainly love to cross paths with this beer again.
Fireflies Amber Ale: This seems to be their proprietary beer. I am generally a big fan of amber ales. I think they are a nice mix between a strong malty beer, but with a slight hop taste. It's pretty much smooth with anything. This was already listed in my beer count, as I've had it before I just haven't reviewed it yet (expect more of these to come).
The gap has been temporarily closed...
Colleen: 154
Paul: 147
Not to be outdone, I went to Williamsburg, VA this weekend to visit the girlfriend. While there she was kind enough to let me watch college football at The Green leafe. I watched football, while tasting a few new pints of beer, and she quietly sat with her beer and studied. She's a keeper. The place had a nice tap and bottle list of beers I hadn't tried before. I hope to get there again to try some more.
The new one's on the list are as follows:
Williamsburg AleWorks Red Marker Ale: This beer was smooth, but otherwise forgettable. I probably would enjoy Killian's Irish Red more.
Harpoon Winter Warmer: This tasted terrible: egg nog meets beer. There was also a cinnamon taste. It was quite surprising, because Harpoon usually makes a quality beer. Then again, the Holiday season makes people do strange things to beer...
Black Sheep Monty Python's Holy Grail: I have a confession to make. I bought this beer because of the name. It was a slightly hoppy beer.
Bear Republic El Oso Lager: I probably enjoyed this beer the most out of the group. It went down smooth, which was very much appreciated after the egg nog beer.
A few weeks ago, with the aforementioned girlfriend, we went to a place called Fireflies. It's pretty much a swank coffee shop atmosphere, except they server beer. During my travels there, I have documented (Colleen, note the word choice - I'm not bitter, really) 2 beers.
Olde Richmond Batch No. 4: This came in a 22 oz bottle. It was a nice, dark brown ale. It went down smooth, and went especially well with a pizza. Then again, what beer doesn't. Long story short, I'd certainly love to cross paths with this beer again.
Fireflies Amber Ale: This seems to be their proprietary beer. I am generally a big fan of amber ales. I think they are a nice mix between a strong malty beer, but with a slight hop taste. It's pretty much smooth with anything. This was already listed in my beer count, as I've had it before I just haven't reviewed it yet (expect more of these to come).
The gap has been temporarily closed...
Colleen: 154
Paul: 147
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