What Beers Did You Drink Today? Or Yesterday? (Part 2)

[Florida]

-Oskar Blues Ten Fidy RIS: a decent, but not overly impressive RIS. Lacked the complexity typically found in most Imperial Stouts.

-Ale Asylum Ballistic IPA: Load of citrus hops with a sweet malt character

-Russian River Pliny the Elder: the "definitive" West Coast IPA. A smorgasbord of hop aroma and flavors with a surprisingly light malt profile.

[Florida]

-Short’s Pandemonium Pale Ale: a rather malty and uninspiring pale.

-Founder’s Kentucky Breakfast Stout: an excellent stout. Loads of sweet roasted malts with vanilla, oak, coffee and molasses. And for an 11.2% ABV beer, there is only the slightest hint of alcohol.

- - -

So, it’s Friday and I’ve got a Short’s Soft Parade, a Short’s Huma-Lupa-Licious IPA, a Weyerbacher Double Simcoe, and a Stone Oak Aged Arrogant Bastard in the fridge. I’m not feeling overly decisive, so someone tell me what to drink!

[Lilija]

I'm drinking my last lovely bottle of ST's Choklat. I keep telling myself it's ok, because it's getting warmer, and I'll be in the mood for lighter stuff...but I know I'll probably spend the summer drinking ST's Oat.

[Lilija]

I seem to be on a tear this weekend. Bought a bunch of new stuff, but tonight I am drinking a bomber of Hoppin' Frog B.O.R.I.S. The Crusher Oatmeal Imperial Stout. The label is silly, but the guts are so incredibly good.

[BonVivant]

some beers i had on draft at the pub (yesterday):

Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier: ab.so.lute.ly fantastic. just like liquid bread. having been to Bamberg twice this beer fills my heart with happy memories.

commercial description:

The Original Schlenkerla Lentbeer is an unfiltered smokebeer, brewed according to the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516. Bottom-fermenting yeast gives the reddish brown lentbeer a natural cloudiness. Its smokey aroma is already noticeable in the smell, combined with a fine hoppy note. In the drink the fullbodied, highly drinkable lentbeer shows its strong malty flavour, rounded up with the smokey taste and a light bitterness. Due to the nourishing yeast, the Original Schlenkerla Lentbeer has the "Brotzeit already included" (German word for afternoon snack). Served / Sold: - Only during lent from Ash Wednesday to Easter - Only from the wooden keg at the Schlenkerla Data: Original Gravity: 14.5% Alcohol: 5.5% EBU: 32

Fullers London Porter: not my first time but always nice to drink it whenever it's on tap. would like to try the cask/unpasteurised version someday.

commercial description:

Fuller’s London Porter captures the flavours of those original brews perfectly, although you won’t find a cloudy pint these days! Rich, dark and complex, at 5.4% ABV the beer has an outstanding depth of flavour. It is brewed from a blend of Brown, Crystal and Chocolate malts for a creamy delivery balanced by traditional Fuggles hops. The range of flavours works well with a wide variety of foods, ranging from rich meat dishes, to oysters, and even chocolate puddings.

Texels Skuumkoppe: a pleasant wheat beer (6%) for a pleasantly warm day.

De Molen Hamer & Sikkel (Hammer & Sickle): just like chocolate coffee. 5.1%

[Florida]

-Koshihikari Echigo Beer: A slightly better version of the standard Japanese beer. However, at $6 for a 500ml bottle of what is essentially an imported adjunct lager, the price isn't justified.

-Mikkeller Cascade Single Hop IPA: A very green, grassy, and herbaceous IPA with surprisingly low bitterness given the ridiculous quantity of hops used in the brewing of this beer.

-SN 30th Anniversary (Fritz and Ken's Ale): A dry imperial stout with the robust flavors of chocolate and heavily roasted, almost burnt, malts.

[BonVivant]

yesterday in Düsseldorf i had asparagus lunch and delicious Altbier at Schumacher brewery. it's so easy to make me happy: good beer, good sausages, good bread.

Edited May 13, 2010 by BonVivantNL (log)

[Florida]

Just got back from Minneapolis:

-Town Hall Masala Mama: Spicy hopped IPA

-Town Hall Mango Mama: IPA brewed with mango's. Whacked out: Sweet. Spicy. An excellent beer.

-Surly Schadenfreude: A slightly smoky Dunkel

-Surly Abrasive Ale: Very hoppy, orange scented IPA

-Surly Furious: One of the best IPA's out there.

-Flat Earth Belgian Pale Ale: Rather typical American version of a Belgian Pale Ale. Toasty malts. Light on the hops.

-NG Moon Man:Light, crisp, sessionable Pale Ale. Nothing overly interesting.

[nakji]

Were you at a beer tasting, or just an exceptionally well-stocked party?

I'm drinking Erdinger white and Qingdao in almost perfect rotation these days. I think I'd drink the Erdinger all the time, but for budgetary restrictions.

[Florida]

Were you at a beer tasting, or just an exceptionally well-stocked party?

Aside from the New Glarus, there wasn’t anything that wouldn’t be readily available to anyone living in the Twin Cities:

-The Mango Mama and the Masala Mama were on tap at Town Hall. ( http://www.townhallbrewery.com/ )

-Schadenfreude and Abrasive were on tap at Cafe 28 (which is co-owned by one of Surly's brewers). Furious is relatively common; I'm not sure where I had it.

-Flat Earth Belgian Pale Ale was at the Bulldog in St. Paul.

-I picked up the New Glarus at a gas station in Wisconsin on the way up.

[Lilija]

So, last night, we had a gathering of beer nerds on the premises. Filled one of those huge white Coleman coolers with big beers. These bottles, both large and small were being shared usually 3 ways, sometimes 4 or 5 people had a bit. This was one of those "you bring your favorites, and something for all of us to try first, and I'll do the same." kind of deals. They were trying to get me into IPAs, and for a wonder, it worked! No rhyme or reason to the tasting, just kind of beer Russian roulette, except we were set on trying the Mikeller Black and Dark Horizon back to back. We took some tasting notes, like phone notes, and I remember my feelings about each one, although I wasn't exactly eloquent afterwhile. Loved some, hated some. Many fell in the "mm, I'd drink this again." category.

Started with "lighter" stuff, during the day.

Green Flash Wst Coast IPA

Southern Tier Iniquity

Lagunitas Maximus IPA

Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shutdown

Lagunitas Wilco Tango Foxtrot

Smuttynose Big A IPA

Flying Fish Exit 16 Wild Rice Double IPA

Had a nice break for food, loads of red meat.

Southern Tier Oak Aged Unearthly

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Southern Tier Choklat

then we went for the big stouts. These sort of blew my mind. Literally with their 17.5% ABV, and figuratively, as well. What an excellent opportunity to have them both side by side.

Mikeller Black

Nogene Dark Horizon

On into the evening...

Rogue Double Dead Guy

Stone Vertical Epic

Weyerbacher Twelve

Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar

Old Rasputin

We overshopped, because the cooler is still half full, and we could probably do this all again next week, with no overlaps. Overzealous nerds!

Edit to add pictures:

This is the empties table, and what's left.

Apparently, looking at the picture, I forgot about the banana bread beer. It was gross.

Edited May 30, 2010 by Lilija (log)

[judiu]

Since WTF? is one of my favorite expressions in situations where I have to mind my mouth, what was the Wilco Tango Foxtrot like? I just has to ask!

[Lilija]

The tag line is "A malty robust jobless recovery ale" This is going to sound really lame, but it tasted like a perfectly balanced blend of godknowswhat. A real "WTF" kind of beer. It was hoppy, malty, sweet, and bitter, fruity, but not very. Bitter, but not very. It was one of the favorites. A little like Arrogant Bastard with the volume turned down.

[chardan]

I'm happy that Oregon beer is being consumed as far away as Florida!

If you like beer, it's a good time to be living in Oregon. I know crazy

people here: they grow their own hops and malt their own grains. Yes, they're

nuts. No, I'm not that crazy... but, I sure enjoy the result.

In a world of ever-increasing machination, under permanent threat of bald

blandness, where everything being "good enough for everyone" is the party

line, I'm so thankful that crazy, irresponsible people are doing their own

thing-- and showing others that not everything has to be the way it is.

_Jesse Williamson ;-};

[judiu]

Actually, I DON'T like beer, but then all I've ever tried is the 'good enough' domestic, available anywhere crap. I used to love Steigmeier (sp?)draft porter, when I could buy it years ago in a bar in Manhattan. I'd like to find a beer I could love again, so I guess I'll have to start trying new stuff!

[Florida]

-De Struise Brouwers Black Albert: A very dark, black Imperial Stout. Flavors of chocolate, sweet dark fruits, figs, and coffee. One of the best Imperial Stouts I have ever had.

-Goose Island Green Line Pale Ale: Predominantly citrus hop flavored mild American Pale. An excellent summer beer.

-Piece Brewery H…Oppenheimer: described as a Triple IPA with a heavy 11% ABV, this one is more of a dud than a hop-bomb.

BTW, Lagunitas WTF is a great beer for the price, offering a balance of sweet caramel malt, earthy hops, and mild grapefruit bitterness. All for less than $5 a bomber.

edited for formatting.

Edited June 14, 2010 by Florida (log)

[haresfur]

One of the great things about my current job is Friday beer club in the break room. Beer is rated 1 to 10 by each member on taste (high is good) and wank (or presentation with high being excessively wanky labeling - e.g. Budwiser ranks about 10 on wank factor). Australians are about a decade behind the Pacific Northwest in beer quality IMO but there are some gems.

By coincidence the last two have been from Mildura brewery. I brought Mildura Storm cloudy ale (a bit wanky name for a less filtered beer). I quite liked the hop profile and was amused to find out it is basically their recreation of a PNW microbrew. Then we had their Mallee Bull - a malty brew but quite decent.

I'm going to check out their brew pub next week.

[Florida]

-Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout (BCBCS): Heavy, sweet, dark malts, with flavor of coffee, vanilla, oak, and a bit of bourbon.

-Green Flash / Brasserie St. Feuillien Bière De L'Amitie: A Belgian strong Blonde Ale, brewed with rye. Very light malt with flavors of coriander, cumin, and citrus rind finishing with a grassy hoppiness.

-Half Acre Shewolf: A collaboration beer with Three Floyds. Quite aromatic, with loads of grapefruit and citrus. Flavor is unusual for an IPA, starts with an unusual dry, musty earthiness, almost smoky, toasted malt flavor that fades to an astringent grapefruit bitterness. Long bitter finish. Some pine and citrus as well.

[Florida]

-CCB Jai Alai Cedar Aged IPA - Humidor Series: An interesting take on an IPA. Predominantly earthy hops with citrus and pine to a lesser extent. The cedar comes through as a compliment to the earthiness and the lighter malts and is not overpowering

-Duck-Rabbit Rabid Duck: An RIS with heavy dark malts, licorice, cocoa and a moderate bitterness, but a heavily roasted, almost burnt flavor that increases along the way.

-Brooklyn Sorachi Ace: A saison brewed with the Sorachi Ace hop. Slightly sweet malts on the front, tart apples with a little lemon and unripe pears. Somewhat vinous and a mild bitterness on the finish.

[dividend]

I've had some great beers lately.

Went to Founders brewery in Michigan, and was absolutely blown away by their Curmudgen. It's a non stout Bourbon Barrel beer, smooth, low carbonation, and it has that wonderful vanilla, oak flavor without any harshness at all. It's now my favorite beer. (If you get it in a bottle, decant it into a goblet style glass and let it sit for about 10 minutes - it's really harsh right out of the bottle.) Their breakfast stout was great, as always, and the BF liked the Red Rye, which is like a sweet IPA that's mellowed without getting boring.

While in Michigan, I tried some other local beers - Bells Consecrator Doppelbock, which was delicious and smooth, and Shorts Bourbon Barrel Sustenance, which tasted like espresso and cream in a really good way. If you like Founder's breakfast stout, you'll like this one.

Back home in Kansas City, I'm loving Boulevard's Two Jokers on tap. It's super bright and citrusy double wit, refreshing and crisp.

We discovered that Left Hand Milk Stout, which is a very drinkable stout for summer, is tremendously better on tap than in a bottle.

Tried three new beers from our neighborhood bar that are all Belgian style ales - La Chouff (a Belgian Blonde Ale), Pauwel Kwak (which is served in its own complicated chemistry set looking glass), and Maredsous Tripel (an Abbey style Tripel). The BF says that La Chouff tastes like what you get when take a pretty good IPA and let it age and mature. These are all heavy and sweet, but they've got varying degrees of that characteristic sour funk to them that keeps them from being too much. I love this style.

And I've been drinking a lot of Goose Island Sofie, both at home, with orange slices, and happily, on tap at most of my favorite bars. It's my go-to summer beer. Estrella Damm Inedit (brewed by Ferran Adria) is similar - brewed to be light, with citrus and spices.

[Cap'n Hector]

I generally drink my homebrew (currently have a saison and a ginger stout on tap) but I did have an excellent glass of Delirium Tremens yesterday. An excellent Belgian golden strong, and a good summer beer.

[Florida]

Attended a tasting over the weekend. We were lucky enough to try a few rarities:

-FFF Brandy Vanilla Dark Lord

-FFF DL De Muerte

-FFF DL Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Aged

-FFF DL Brandy Barrel Aged

-Lost Abbey Duck Duck Gooze

-The Bruery Chocolate Rain

-The Bruery Tart of Darkness

-Funky Buddha Wide Awake It’s Morning (Imperial Maple Bacon Coffee Porter)

-Armand'4 Oude Geuze Zomer

-Foothills Brewing BA Sexual Chocolate

-Half Acre Brandy Barrel Ambrosia

-Short’s Imperial Carob Stout

-Pelican Pub & Brewery Mother of All Storms

-Alpine Barrel Aged Token

-Jackie O’s Brandy Barrel Dark Apparation

-Hill Farmstead Double Galaxy

-COAST Blackbeerd

-East End Illustration Ale

-Cigar City/Dunedin Brewery Auld Alliance

[rlibkind]

Hennepin, accompanying bockwurst steamed atop sauerkraut and onions braised in unpasteurized apple cider. Not an idea combination, but satisfying nonetheless.

[rlibkind]

Heading to Wisconsin in a couple week. Can't wait for more Spotted Cow!

[BrentKulman]

Attended a tasting over the weekend. We were lucky enough to try a few rarities:

-FFF Brandy Vanilla Dark Lord

-FFF DL De Muerte

-FFF DL Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Aged

-FFF DL Brandy Barrel Aged

-Lost Abbey Duck Duck Gooze

-The Bruery Chocolate Rain

-The Bruery Tart of Darkness

-Funky Buddha Wide Awake It’s Morning (Imperial Maple Bacon Coffee Porter)

-Armand'4 Oude Geuze Zomer

-Foothills Brewing BA Sexual Chocolate

-Half Acre Brandy Barrel Ambrosia

-Short’s Imperial Carob Stout

-Pelican Pub & Brewery Mother of All Storms

-Alpine Barrel Aged Token

-Jackie O’s Brandy Barrel Dark Apparation

-Hill Farmstead Double Galaxy

-COAST Blackbeerd

-East End Illustration Ale

-Cigar City/Dunedin Brewery Auld Alliance

That is a powerhouse list. You should be pinching yourself at your good fortune.