A Beer a Day

Dogfish Head's World Wide Stout: a Kick in the Teeth

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 13:59:00 +0000

I figured I was in for a mouthful when cracking this one open and boy was I ever right. I'm not sure I've ever had a 12oz bottle that took me longer to drink than this one.

Even after taking it out of the fridge a half hour or so before opening it, the beer was still way too cold to be enjoyable. When over-chilled, you get a touch of roast and a touch of dark fruit, but what you primarily get is the 18% ABV of this beast. Based on my impressions of World Wide Stout cold, I really thought I was going to hate this.

Only when it begins to warm and the surprisingly high carbonation begins to fade does WWS come into its own. That is not to say that the 18% goes away; it's 18% for Pete's sake. When it warms to a proper drinking temperature, it really opens up and becomes much more complex in terms of flavor. The booziness of it is always there with you in the passenger seat, but it's no longer what drives the beer. The dark fruits (raisins, plums) really come out as the temperature rises, along with a hint of smoke, coffee, and caramel. It is a pretty sweet beer, yet is never cloying.

The carbonation at first really detracts from the thickness and weight of the beer, but once it calms down a bit, you get a sense of how thick and mouth-coating this beer really is. It's not milkshake thick (ala: Dark Lord), but it is heavy and filling.

All in all, by the time I was finished with this, I was sad my glass was empty. It took me almost two hours to drink it, but the hours were well worth it. This is the perfect beer to exemplify what serving temperature does to a beer's taste and smell. I'll probably have a hard time justifying the upwards of $10 a 12oz WWS commands, but I would love to try to get my hands on an aged bottle or two to see how it has mellowed with time. Overall, a great effort from DFH which is far, far better than their other big beer I've tried (120 minute). I'd recommend it if you haven't tried it before and also recommend perhaps splitting it with a friend. This was definitely the only thing I drank that night.

A Tale of Two Cherry Porters

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 16:01:00 +0000

Today's craft beer scene has an amazing variety of selections available to the average consumer. Today, more than at any time in the history of beer, you can find pretty much anything you could ever want and a lot of things you didn't think you would ever want or even knew existed. The variation not only between various styles of lagers and ales, but between the sub-styles of beers is absolutely amazing. Case in point: cherry porters.

No, cherry porters are not a "style" of beer I drink often. Frankly, I don't see them too often and fruit-influenced beers don't really get me riled up, so it's nothing I've much considered in the past. I just happened to be at the store, though, and saw singles of both North Peak Darkangel and Short's Black Cherry Porter (both Michigan breweries). I decided that it would be a nifty comparison experiment and picked up a single of both to contrast.

The differences couldn't have been more stark, which I suppose is somewhat expected considering the method of imparting the cherry flavor and considering the breweries involved. Darkangel is made with cherry juice added, which contributes a clean, somewhat tart edge cherry quality to the roast and chocolate of the porter. It's more evident in the smell than the taste, which is somewhat disappointing. It seems to fit with the impression I get from other North Peak beers: solid, yet somewhat uninspired. I wouldn't turn down it someone offered me one and I might even buy one at the bar if there wasn't much of a selection, but it just doesn't have anything 'WOW' about it.

The Short's offering is a completely different animal. Rather than adding juice, Short's Black Cherry Porter employs a cherry puree. The differences between the effects of the different approach is striking. Where Darkangel is subtle, the Black Cherry Porter is in your face. Both the smell and taste is dominated by the earthy, deep black cherry flavor. I suppose this would be a drawback if you wanted a straight-to-the-style porter, but if you wanted that, why in the heck are you drinking a cherry porter? No, this Short's offering falls in line with the rest of their experimental, food-tasting beers (Key Lime Pie, PB&J, etc.) as a bold departure from the base beer that is knocked about my the later additions. If you want a cherry porter that tastes like cherries, this is your beer. If you want a traditional porter with a slight wisp of cherry, check out the Darkangel.

With all of that in mind, what is your favorite cherry (or other fruit-based) beer?

Huma-lupa-licious by Short's Brewing

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:24:00 +0000

A great floral, hoppy beer I picked up while in Frankenmuth, MI. A knotch below Two Hearted and IPAs of that caliber, but I'd love to be able to get this off the shelf. Solid as all get-out It tasted even better in my Michigan glass.

P.S. If you're ever in Frankenmuth, stop by the Lager Mill. It's the best craft beer store in the city and they have an amazing selection of Michigan-brewed beers that aren't available here in Cincinnati

...and winding it back up.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 23:28:00 +0000

Okey dokey, folks. I've had a nice breather since my last post, and I think I'm ready to re-rock and roll. During this breather, I broke my 100+ day streak of a new beer every day (gasp!), but have also drank a ton of good beer and met some great folks doing so. The break allowed me to re-discover that drinking beer doesn't have to be a chore of drinking, reviewing, and posting to a blog.

So from now on, things are going to be a bit more casual. I won't be trying a new beer every day, but when I do find something I like and I think others will like, I'll make sure you're all aware of it. Also, to make these posts a little more timely, I'll be posting the pictures and brief (emphasis on brief) review from my phone. This will allow me to share on the fly and make content a little more time-relevant. I hope to share more than just what I'm drinking, though, and will try to focus on events, great finds on beer runs, and various other minutia. I'll also be hosting my debut beer dinner this Saturday, which I hope to make a recurring thing for Cincinnati-area folks who are interested in good beer and good food, so keep an eye out for the sign-up for the next one.

I'm back and hopefully ready to keep you all entertained. Drink and be merry!

Winding this baby down...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 22:00:00 +0000

So, I think this little experiment is going to come to an end. Not necessarily the drinking a new beer everyday, which I am thoroughly enjoying, but the annoying process of review each and every one of these beers. It has just come to the point where I can't dedicate time to sitting down in front of my computer, going over my notes for a given beer, and then typing out something that someone wants to read. It's more time-intensive than it seems, and since I'm contributing to two other blogs already, it's just gotten to be too much.

To those of you who've read over the past 80 or so days, I really appreciate it and I hope you've liked what you saw. I'll probably still pop in every so often and review something I found outstanding or a summary of a cool event I attended, but the everyday reviewing is done. If you still are interested in following the quest and what I'm drinking everyday, you can see it in real time at Untappd or by following my personal Twitter account.

Also, I'll still be contributing periodical beer and otherwise related posts at CincyVoices and, if you're an avid reader, I'll still be reviewing books at A Boy and His Books. Thanks again for following! Hopefully I'll still make it a year!

Day 82 (10/14/2011): Petrus Aged Pale by Brouwerij Bavik

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:00:00 +0000

I've seen this all over the place, but until recently I had no interest in sours, so it was completely lost on me. Now that I have caught the bug for them, I've been looking for affordable alternatives to Cantillon/Drie Fonteinen. How does this stack up?

You can smell this one right when it's poured. The dominant smells are vinegar and white wine, with some wood from the aging process and some light fruit. It's a little too much vinegar for my likings, but I have to remember that this is an our bruin and not a lambic. The taste introduces more balance than the smell, with a clean malt sweetness countering some of the mouth-puckering sourness. Again, the white grape taste is here, almost lending a champagne-like touch (if the champage was aged in wooden barrels). The taste is much nicer and more complex than I expected.

The tartness is delivered on a prickly, clean carbonated body that is really light and refreshing. You could drink this pretty quickly, but you would really lose out on the nuances of the flavor if you did. This one really changes as it warms up, too. The sweetness emerges, calming a lot of the sour down.

Overall, not a bad buy at $3-4 a bottle. If you're new to the style or just don't want to shell out the money for something sour when you need a fix, you could do far worse. I will definitely be keeping this one in mind for the next time I'm in the mood. The vinegar might be a little bit too pronounced, but I can deal with it. I give Petrus Aged Pale by Brouwerij Bavik a B+.

Style: Flanders oud bruin
Beer Advocate: B+/A
Ratebeer: 96/68

Day 81 (10/13/2011): Old Guardian Belgo Barleywine by Stone Brewing Co.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:24:00 +0000

I figured this one wasn't going to be very good judging by the reviews, but I always like to give Stone beers a chance. Unfortunately the reviews were spot on.

The nose on this isn't terrible. You get a slight whiff of the Belgian yeast employed, with dark fruit, some caramel, a good amount of hops, and (unfortunately) some hot-smelling booze. The taste is just not very good. Like the smell, you get some good flavors like the esters from the Belgian yeast, dark fruit, and caramel/toffee, but they are all overwhelmed by the combination of a very strong alcohol and hop flavor. This beer was just way out of control: way too much alcohol and way too much hop flavor. It's been a long, long time since I tasted a beer this hot. The body is maybe a tad light and the carbonation a tad high, but these flaws pale in comparison the the booziness.

This year's version of Belgo Old Guardian could stand to sit for a few years to let the hops and booze calm down a bit. It was not easy to finish this whole bottle, but it wasn't so bad that I drainpoured it. It could be good one day; just not today. I give Old Guardian Belgo Barleywine by Stone Brewing Co. a C+.

Style: American barley wine
Beer Advocate: B/C+
Ratebeer: 96/77

Day 80 (10/12/2011): Either by Cigar City Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 00:15:00 +0000

I was sure what to think of this one before drinking it or after. I wasn't familiar with the "black ale" style and I'm still not sure what qualifies something as one. It seems almost a catch-all style like "strong ale". I suppose you should expect these sorts of wacky things from collaborations; this one between Cigar City and Hill Farmstead.

It smells like a slightly hopped mix of a Belgian quad and an imperial stout. It had the dark fruit of the quad and the malty sweetness and roast of the stout, both on top of a layer of wood. It was bizarre, but not terrible. The taste was the same: dark fruits, sweet milk chocolate, coffee, and caramel with a small bit of hop notes. The alcohol is moderately present, but not overwhelming. The body isn't as big as you would expect or hope for from a 10+% beer, but it is medium, at least. The carbonation is just a tad under medium, though the creaminess of it makes it seems lower.

I actually quite enjoyed this beer, despite how I make it sound in the review. The flavors actually work together quite well. I could have used a little more body on it, but that's not a huge deal. The problem is: I like imperial stouts and I like quads for what they are. Both have remarkable qualities that, when added together, seem to lose the best of each. This one is worth a try, though, and I would love to get ahold of the rest of the bottles from this series. I give Either by Cigar City Brewing Company a B+.

Style: American black ale
Beer Advocate: B+
Ratebeer: 99/100

Day 79 (10/11/2011): Wynona's Big Brown Ale by Voodoo Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 00:34:00 +0000

I'm not a fan of brown ales. I just can't get into them. My favorite is probably Sierra Nevada's Tumbler, mostly because the roastiness of it is more subdued than most.

Wynona's Brown Ale is not subdued in any manner. It is roasty, boozy, and well-hopped. It is certainly not your English grandfather's brown ale. That is for sure. The smell is roasted malts, a nuttiness, and caramel, with a slight whiff of hops. The hops hit your palette first, bittering things out before is fades into a sweet, nutty malt finish. There isn't a ton of complexity in the flavor. I was hoping for a little coffee or chocolate, but if it's there, it's subtle. The carbonation is about right: just under medium, with a tad bit too thin of a body. The alcohol is somewhat present with a little burn, but it's not bad.

For a brown ale, this isn't bad. There's still a ton of beers I would drink first (including Tumbler), but I was able to finish the whole bomber, so it can't be that bad, right? I give Wynona's Big Brown Ale by Voodoo Brewing Company a B.

Style:: American brown ale
Beer Advocate: B+
Ratebeer: 91/96

Day 78 (10/10/2011): Devious Imperial Pumpkin by Fegley's Brew Works

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 23:00:00 +0000

Another pumpkin ale, this one from Fegley's Brew Works, Pennsylvania brewery I had never heard of before. This imperial pumpkin ale has the highest ABV of any I have tried so far, clocking in at 9%.

In both the smell and taste, this is on the higher end of the spice spectrum, with cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg making their presence known right up front. I don't get much else from the taste other than the spices, a good bit of caramel malt sweetness, and a tad of the alcohol. Not much pumpkin flavor here. The alcohol also provides a slight burn in the mouthfeel, which is magnified by higher than expected carbonation and a thinnish body. I sort of expected a bigger-bodied beer than this.

This isn't bad by any means, but I think it's probably at the bottom of the pack in terms of pumpkin ales I've tried so far. I could definitely go for more pumpkin flavor in it, along with a bigger body and less carbonation. Despite these flaws, it's not a bad beer; it's just that there are probably better choices readily available no matter where you live. I give Devious Imperial Pumpkin by Fegley's Brew Works a B-.

Style: Pumpkin ale
Beer Advocate: B
Ratebeer: 64/74

Day 77 (10/9/2011): Super awesome beer tasting!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 01:08:00 +0000

Thanks to a couple of awesome acquaintances, I got to try some amazing beers while watching the Packers keep their undefeated season going forward on Sunday night. Here's a quick roundup, relatively in chronological order, of what was opened that wonderful night.

Thank God this was opened early, because I did not want to forget a thing about it. Aged in Pappy Van Winkle barrels for 24 months, this is an amazing beer. The smell is like you have your face right in some of the best bourbon barrels in the world. The barrel characteristics overwhelm almost everything, wiping out any sort of bitterness while imparting amazing sweet caramel and vanilla notes. Drink this slow, drink it with friends, and enjoy every minute of it. Remember, it's not being bottled again.

The next up was Deliverance, a strong ale from Lost Abbey. This suffered terribly from following Rare, which is amazing considering that Deliverance is a RateBeer Top 100 beer. It is a mix of a stout (Serpent's Stout) and a strong ale (Angel's Share), so it's somewhat all over the place. Not a stout, but with stout characteristics. I'm glad I got to try it, but knowing Lost Abbey's prices, I don't think I would buy a bottle.

Next, we popped a can of Heady Topper by the Alchemist Pub & Brewery. For as much hype as this has got recently, it is worth every little bit of it. Super hoppy, but perfectly balanced. I will be pursuing more of this for sure.

Cantillon! It's not often that I get to drink these, so this was a special treat. It is probably one of the top five best sours I've ever had. The cherries are there in abundance along with a good amount of oak and, of course, a great deal of funky sourness. Very, very delicious.

Rounding things up was the bottle I brought, Cigar City Marshal Zhukov's, a big imperial stout. This was like a chocolate milkshake: sweet, thick, and (of course) chocolate-y. I really, really enjoyed this one even though it was the nightcap. I'll be grabbing another bottle of this so I can taste it as the front of the lineup and not the end.

What a night! Luckily I had Columbus Day off of work, so everything worked out just fine. That would have been a rough day at work. I want to thank the friends who allowed me to tag along and open all of these bottles with my poor soul. I really appreciate them and all of their awesome beers. Great friends with great taste, for sure.

Day 76 (10/8/2011) Baltic Porter by Uncommon Brewers

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 00:23:00 +0000

I've never heard of this brewery before, but I'm enough of a fan of Baltic porters, plus it's brewed with anise. Somewhat interesting.

The smell is somewhat straight forward: roast, coffee, bitter chocolate and, as advertised, some licorice. The taste follows the same lines with a strong roast countered only slightly my malt sweetness. The addition of anise is there, but only just slightly. The roast lends a charred and bitter flavor that I don't much care for and dries it out a bit. The body is thinner than I expected at medium, with a tad higher than medium carbonation.

Overall, nothing too exciting, but not bad by any means. I'd drink it again, but I'm not sure I would seek it out. I give Baltic Porter by Uncommon Brewers a B.

Style: Baltic porter
Beer Advocate: B+/B+
Ratebeer: 94/80

Day 75 (10/7/2011): Grapefruit Jungle by Sun King Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 02:21:00 +0000

The hops continue!After Zombie Dust and White Rajah, I'm onto Grapefruit Jungle. A buddy picked some of this up at the brewery a week or so ago and graciously offered me a can. Very nice of him, considering it was more than $4.00 a can.

There is most certainly grapefruit on the nose, along with a slight sweetness. It's not super hoppy, but it's fragrant enough to warrant the name of the beer. The taste is grapefruit hops and s pale malt sweetness, but not much else. The malt backbone is definitely solid, there is no doubt about that. Both carbonation and body is medium; just about right for what it is.

I think this really suffers from following those two world class hoppy beers. While Grapefruit Jungle is a good beer, it doesn't have the complexity or balance of the other two. At a more reasonable price, I would happily drink this if it was available to me in Cincinnati (it's not, of course), but at more than $15.00 for a four-pack, it's just not doable. There are just too many good IPAs out there to pay that much. Despite that, I give Grapefruit Jungle by Sun King Brewing Company a B+.

Style: American IPA
Beer Advocate: A
Ratebeer: No Score (requires more ratings)

Day 74 ( 10/6/2011): White Rajah by The Brew Kettle

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 18:00:00 +0000

I'm going to preface this review by going big: in my opinion, this is possibly the best Ohio-brewed beer that is widely distributed. If not the best beer in general, it is certainly the best Ohio-brewed IPA and it's not even a close competition.

On the back of the bottle it states that malts will take a back seat. They are not kidding. This is your prototypical West Coast IPA, except that it's better than most West Coast IPAs that are actually brewed on the West Coast instead of Strongsville, Ohio. Its smell and taste both err on the side of citrus fruits rather than the floral hops found in Midwest/East Coast IPAs. In addition to the grapefruit and other citrus fruits, there is a slight caramel sweetness there, but it does indeed take a back seat to the fresh,earthy, spicy hops. The taste is fruitiness up from with a slight sweetness that fades into a bitter finish. It's almost like chewing on a grapefruit wedge with a bit of sugar on it. Both the body and carbonation are appropriate from the style and contribute to a very refreshing experience.

I could not be happier that I am going to be able to buy six packs of this going forward. The Brew Kettle really surprised me with this offering. I haven't really enjoyed anything else from them in the past, but this is just phenomenal. It's one of the best West Coast IPAs I've had the pleasure of drinking, locally distributed, and is pretty affordable (just over $10 for a six-pack). If production keeps up with demand, TBK is going to have a very good thing going for it for a very long time. Kudos to them for putting out such an awesome product. Other area breweries should take notice. I give White Rajah by The Brew Kettle an A.

Style: American IPA
Beer Advocate: A
Ratebeer: 97/96

Day 73 (10/5/2011): Zombie Dust by Three Floyds Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 18:00:00 +0000

Ever since Three Floyds decided to bottle its super-popular citra hops-based pale ale, the crowd has been going wild. As you can see from the ratings on the two sites (an A on BA and it being in the 99.947th percentile of all pale ales on RB), people seem to think its a great beer. Since it's not widely distributed, I didn't think I would be able to get any of its any time soon, but a local Beer Advocate made my dreams come true. He did note that he thought it has fallen off a bit since he had purchased it a month ago, but I didn't think it would be so old that the quality would be significantly decreased.

The smell is great, even after a month of fading. The citra hops are the most distinct feature, bringing (duh) citrus fruits: grapefruit and citrus peel. You can tell it is not a hop bomb, though, as the malts shine through with a slight sweetness and some caramel. The taste is much like the smell, but a tad bit more balanced. The citrus mixes with the malt sweetness to make an almost candy-tasting flavor that fades into a dry-er hop bitterness in the finish. It's a hop forward beer, but not overwhelmingly so. The body and carbonation are both on the dot perfect for the style. Maybe a tad lighter than medium on the body and a tad higher than medium for the carbonation.

I would put this in my top 2 of American pale ales that I've ever drank before, tied with Alpha King (also Three Floyds). These guys definitely know how to make a pale ale. Amazing balance without being boring, the use of citra hops puts this thing over the top. Here's to hoping that, with Three Floyds now in Ohio, I can get my hands on a fresher six pack of it. I don't think it's being distributed out of the brewery currently, but here's to hoping, right? Even with it being a month old, I give Zombie Dust by Three Floyds Brewing Company an A.

Style: American pale ale
Beer Advocate: A
Ratebeer: 99/100

Day 72 (10/4/2011): (512) Whiskey Barrel Aged Double Pecan Porter by (512) Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 01:37:00 +0000

(Sorry, no bottle photo this time. Too crappy of lighting!)

I never thought I'd get to try this one, but thanks to a new acquaintance who was kind enough to split a bottle with me, here I am!

It pours a brown as close to black as possible, with a large mocha-colored head. The smell is dominated by the barrel, with vanilla and oak making up the most it. There is some roast, dark fruit and sweetness in the background, but it's very slight. The taste is, again, the barrel up front with whiskey, vanilla and oak. Frankly, I don't remember as much of the taste as I normally would because I was having a conversation during it, but I remember that it did taste good. Everything was going well until the mouthfeel. This beer is waaaaaaay overcarbonated. It takes away from everything else that was good before it. It distracts from the flavor immensely. I'd say it's probably one of the most carbonated stouts I've ever tasted.

If it wasn't for the carbonation, this would be a great beer. It's still good, but it doesn't come near some of the better barrel aged stouts and porters out there. I'll try next year's release and see if they get it under control. I sure hope so. I give Whiskey Barrel Aged Double Pecan Porter by (512) Brewing Company a B.

Style: Imperial/strong porter
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 98/81

Day 71 (10/3/2011): Black Albert by De Struise Brouwers

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 00:17:00 +0000

I'm still not sure what to think about this one. It's a huge beer in a little bottle that happens to be on the RateBeer Top 100 and cost me $10 for an itty-bitty 11.2oz bottle. Between the last two characteristics, this beer had a lot to live up to from the word 'go'.

The smell is largely dark fruit (mostly raisins, figs, and black cherries), almost Quad-like, some chocolate, roasted malts, and brown sugar/molasses. It smells a lot like a big stout mixed with a big quadrupel, which makes sense considering it's brewed by a Belgian brewery. The taste is kind of the the smell flipped on its head. The roast and chocolate are out in front here, with the fruit bringing up the rear. It's still there, of course, but just not as dominating as in the smell. The roast imparts an almost smoky essence to the beer, which is odd, but actually not a negative here. At 13%, there is pretty much no hiding the booze, but it isn't too overwhelming, just a tad hot. The body is medium, which is a little lighter than I would like in a big stout like this, but the carbonation is just about right.

Verdict? Good, but not $10 a bottle good or Top 100 good. The two Belgian-style stouts I've tried (this and Allagash Black), I haven't been super impressed with. It seems like the dark fruit and yeast flavors, in my opinion, overwhelm most of the rest of the taste. If I wanted a beer that tasted like this, I'd buy a lot cheaper quad. Despite, this, it is a unique beer and one you should at least try once if you have the chance. You'll just have to decide for yourself if you like it more than I do. I give Black Albert by De Struise Brouwers a B+.

Style: Russian imperial stout
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 100/97

Day 70 (10/2/2011): Lips Of Faith Clutch Collabeeration by New Belgium Brewing Company

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 01:10:00 +0000

It's been a while since I was so torn about whether or not I liked a beer. Sour stouts are a weird thing: either they aren't tart enough and they just taste like a weird stout or they are too tart and the flavors don't mesh. I'd say this one was a little more closer towards the former than the latter, but it was just tart enough to keep things interesting.

The smell was largely a straight-up stout, with roasted malts, some coffee, cocoa, and a little tartness in the background more reminiscent of fruit than wild yeast. The taste was tart up front followed by a strong sweetness, cherries and dark fruit, vanilla, and (strangely enough) an oakiness or other wood flavor. The body on this one is more full than I expected and the 9% is pretty much completely hidden.

I don't think I knew where I stood on this until I had pretty much finished the bomber. It is a tremendously unique beer and, frankly, one that I really enjoyed. I would have liked it slightly more sour or more "brett-sour" than fruity tart, but it was still really good tasting. At less than $8.00 a bomber, it's not a bad deal either.

Style: American stout
Beer Advocate: B
Ratebeer: 95/73

Day 69 (10/1/2011): Allagash Tripel Reserve

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 23:55:00 +0000

This was a beautiful beer. Sadly, since I was drinking it at a hotel out of a plastic cup, I have no pictures. I just couldn't bear degrading it that way. Take my word, though, it was the brightest golden imaginable with a huge billowing white head.

The smell was classic tripel: spices, banana, apple, bread, and biscuity yeast. The taste is a tad sweeter than I expected from the smell and perhaps a tad sweeter than I would have liked, but it still was great. The spiciness is slightly less than in the smell and the fruit (more tropical than the smell) was a bit more dominating. It is also slightly American-ized with a tad bit of hops on the finish that I haven't really noticed in Belgian versions. What is amazing to me is that, at 9%, how little the alcohol comes through. They did a great job of hiding it. Maybe a slight but of warmth, but that's it.

I wouldn't put this quite at the level of my favorite tripel from Westmalle, but it is darn close. A beautiful, fragrant, tasty take on the Belgian classic from an American brewery that surely knows what it's doing. I have a bottle of Curieux, the bourbon barrel aged version of this tripel, that I really, really can't wait to open. I give Allagash Tripel Reserve an A-.

Style: Tripel
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 99/100

Day 68 (9/30/2011): Milk Stout by the Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 19:14:00 +0000

I was actually quite disappointed in this one. I'd heard a good deal about it and read that it represented the style well, but boy was it ever boring. Just nothing jumped out at me to make me pay attention.

The smell is largely coffee, with a good amount of roast and a hint of sweetness yet to come. The taste is pretty much a well-sugared iced coffee: sweetness up front leading to the coffee found in the smell. Strangely, there is no lingering aftertaste at all. It's been a long, long time since a beer didn't leave a lingering memory on my palette. What really let me down was the feel of it. While the have got the creamy carbonation down, the body of the beer is terribly thin. It's almost like drinking skim milk. Certainly it's not the mouthfeel I typically expect from a milk stout.

Overall, too one-dimensional with the coffee aspect and way too thin. Was more like a watered down coffee stout than anything. I give Milk Stout by the Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery a C+.

Style: Milk/sweet stout
Beer Advocate: B+
Ratebeer: 94/98

Day 67 (9/29/2011): Imperial Pumpkin Ale by Weyerbacher Brewing

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 18:58:00 +0000

When I grabbed a four-pack of DFH Punkin Ale a little while back, I was also in the market for Weyerbacher's version. Unfortunately Marty's Hops and Vines was out of it when I was in to visit, so I figured I was out of luck. Fortunately I came across some in South Carolina and decided to give it a whirl.

The one was a departure from what I had tried to far in the pumpkin ale world. Unlike Dogfish Head and Smuttynose's versions, this was far more spiced and less nuanced. Both the nose and taste are dominated by cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. It wasn't terrible by any means, but it was a bit much for me. While I haven't tried Southern Tier's Pumking yet, I have a feeling it's more in that direction.

At 8% it is a substantial beer, too, which doesn't make it conducive to having more than a couple of them. Despite it's imperial status, though, it's never boozy. Fans of more spice-forward beers will probably love this one, and while I didn't love it, I did definitely like it. In the pumpkin ale market, Punkin it still probably my favorite, but this is a very good choice that just happens to go in a different direction. I give Imperial Pumpkin Ale by Weyerbacher Brewing a B+.

Style: Pumpkin Ale
Beer Advocate: B+/B+
Ratebeer: 96/98

Day 66 (9/28/2011): Dirty, nasty, gross draft lines

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 19:58:00 +0000

Yesterday evening, smack dab in the middle of my so-far-wonderful beach vacation, we were invited by some friends in Myrtle Beach to check out a local band playing. It was at one of those faux-Irish pub type places, so I figured the beer selection wouldn't be good, and I was correct. I have no problem with places not having good beer selections. BMC sells and, though I refrain from drinking it, I understand that others do like it and that is their god-given right. At places like that I normally will just get liquor and be merry.

Unfortunately, I hadn't had my beer for the day and was hard pressed to find something new. I had a Fat Tire - which tasted a little off and then followed it up with a Sam Adams Summer (which was my new beer for the day), which tasted just like the Fat Tire. I have a feeling that I could have tried anything running through their taps and they would have tasted roughly the same.

This gets right to the heart of a very large pet peeve of mine. I don't care whether you serve good beer or not -- if you serve any beer at all, you clean your draft lines. I understand that anyone chugging a Bud Lite or a Natty Ice out of a plastic cup isn't going to be able to tell the subtle difference between the two, but for Pete's sake, think of the sanitary issues concerning that. If you're not cleaning the lines and hardware between keg changes in a bar or restaurant, that's just disgusting.

I'm not asking your servers to get Cicerone certification, to serve me my beer in proper glasses, or even serve good beer. Just do the same thing for your taps and lines that you're (hopefully) doing for your glassware: clean them. I want even my crappy beers to taste like they're supposed to and I want them to be served in a sanitary manner. Is that asking too much?

Day 65 (9/27/2011): Bourbon Barrel Porter by Williamsburg AleWerks

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 20:42:00 +0000

One of my favorite things about vacation is getting to try new things I wouldn't normally have access to at home. This means food, attractions, views, and yes, beer. Beer distribution is so crazy that you never know what you're going to find when you head to a state outside your own. Early on in this vacation in South Carolina, I headed to the store to figure out what local/regional stuff I could get my hands on. One bottle that intrigued me was a bourbon barrel porter from Williamsburg AleWerks. I had never heard of the brewery before, but it had a good score on both sites and I'm a sucker for barrel aged beers, so I picked one up to try.

I am very, very glad I did. This might be one of the best surprises I've had since I got into craft beers. Most stellar beers I get to try I expect to be stellar because of the hype behind them. It's not often that I ahold of an amazing beer that I've never heard of before.

The smell of this beer is tremendous. It's very rich, with a chocolate, almost fudge-like scent mingling with your porter-necessary roast. The barrel treatment is what brings this beer to the next level. It imparts a complex scent of vanilla, oak, coconut, and, of course, bourbon. It fits in with the rest of the scents perfectly, never overwhelming the base beer's characteristics. The taste, though still outstanding, isn't quite as rich as the smell. The low carb'ed, somewhat thick body carries a moderately sweet, bourbony goodness, with a solid roast in the finish. The alcohol is present just enough to add a warming characteristic, but it's not hot or too boozy.

I think the best thing I can say for this beer is that I'm going back to get more bottles to bring home. At $7.99 for a great barrel aged imperial beer, this is a hell of a deal. In my opinion, it's not as good as Parabola, but it's also half the price of it. Overall, outstanding. Kudos to a brewery I've never even heard of before putting out a beer of this caliber. I guess hype isn't everything after all.

Style: Imperial/strong porter
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 99/92

Day 64 (9/26/2011): Dale's Pale Ale by Oskar Blues Grill & Brewery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 15:59:00 +0000

Old beer strikes again! In my haste to grab stuff to sip on during my week on the beach, I missed the date printed on these Dale's Pale Ales and grabbed a three month old six pack. Oh well, chalk it up to inattention and a store not moving product quickly. I'm not going to give it a grade since it's no fault of the brewery that this probably doesn't taste as good aged as fresh. As for the smell and taste, it was a typical American pale ale, but without most of the hops. Not terrible, but certainly not very good. I've heard good things about this beer, though, so I'll have to keep my eyes open for it in the future and try to grab some fresh cans.

P.S. Even old beer serves a purpose, though: it worked just fine in a shrimp boil we made last night!

Style: American pale ale
Beer Advocate: B+/B
Ratebeer: 98/100

Day 63 (9/25/2011): B.O.R.I.S. the Crusher by Hoppin' Frog Brewery

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 01:04:00 +0000

Context: Vacation. That's all that matters. Pretty much any beer tastes passable while I'm staying on the beach.

Beer: As an Ohio beer, I've been meaning to try this one forever. Strangely enough, I found it and found it in South Carolina and found it cheaper than Ohio. Beer distribution and pricing makes no sense. Being on the Ratebeer top 100 list, this one had something to live up to and boy did it ever.

The smell of this is chocolate, coffee, and slight roasted malts. The oats are also there, but it's very slight. The taste is much the same, but it comes in waves. It's sweet and creamy up front, with the chocolate, vanilla, and malt sweetness dominating. A slight bitter roast complemented by the coffee flavor finishes things up, balancing up the front of the flavor. Definitely one of the most balanced imperial stouts I've ever tasted. A little more sweet than roast, but that's the way I like it. The feel of this is amazing. The carbonation is pretty low and, with the oats, it makes for one of the most amazingly creamy beers I've ever drank in my life. Very, very impressive.

Kudos to this beer for hitting it on all fronts.It doesn't have the wow factor of some other really big, barrel aged stouts, but it does everything an oatmeal stout does pretty much perfectly. I can not wait to try the barrel aged version of it. I'm not sure how much it will improve it, but I'm willing to find out. I give B.O.R.I.S. the Crusher by Hoppin' Frog Brewery an A.

Style: Russian imperial stout
Beer Advocate: A/A-
Ratebeer: 100/97