July 21st, 2010 beckel
While this is the first beer from Deschutes Brewery I have gotten around to writing about it is certainly not the first I have enjoyed. Hailing from Bend, Oregon Deschutes first hit our market a few months ago and has been a welcome addition with tasty year round brews such as their Mirror Pond Pale Ale and Black Butte Porter which are available in both 6-packs and very reasonably priced bombers at around $3. Today I have a brew from their Bond Street Series, a series of hoppy ales that started at their brewpub. Cascadian Dark Ales, India Brown Ales, India Black Ales; whatever we want to call them are definitely the style of the moment but simply from the aroma I already have high hopes for this ale. Lets see how it goes. This very carbonated ale quickly produces over four fingers of tight light chocolate bubbles that quickly open up into large bubbles even when carefully poured down the side of a glass. Color is a very dark brown hue that is completely opaque. Aroma is a lovely contrast of dark roasted malts and bright bursts of citrus and floral hops that can be smelt from a foot away. The play between aromas creates a variety of esters from chocolate to bitter dark malts that is quite enjoyable. Consumed at room temperature diverse notes of plum, grapefruit, lemon, orange, roasted malts, coffee, and a solid bitterness are present. Making for one diversely flavored ale. I put the bottle back in the fridge to see how the flavor would change served a bit colder and I must say the balance between smooth roasted malt and wonderful grapefruit forward citrus is much cleaner and more well defined. The contrast between gently sweet but equally bitter roasted malt and the wonderful bitterness and vast variety of citrus esters produced by the Cascade, Centennial and Citra Hops used in this ale are really quite fantastic. Body is full but not overly heavy with a slightly syrupy mouthfeel. At 6.5% ABV this ale is full of flavor, but not so strong you can’t have a few. For those interested in the style I think this was a very enjoyable and approachable take on it. If you enjoy buoyantly hoppy ales and roasted malts you might just be in heaven. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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July 14th, 2010 beckel
Boy has it been far too long. June was a very busy month for me with charity bike rides the second and third weekend and the National Homebrewers Conference the last weekend of the month. All of these events were wonderful and made the month pass by amazingly quickly, so quickly in fact I didn’t even get around to writing about the 2nd anniversary of this website. Though the fact that I was in the middle of a 150 mile bike ride at the time didn’t exactly help. But all of that is irrelevant, this is about beer.
With all the cycling i did last month what better beer to return with than one called Fixed Gear. When I read about this beer a few months ago I couldn’t help but laugh. As an avid cyclist and proponent of fixed gear and single speed bicycles the title of this ale certainly hit home. While part of me can’t help but think of this ale as a gimmick my respect for the quality ales that Lakefront Brewery produces entices me. It also doesn’t hurt that it is touted to be a hopped up Red Ale, a style I am all for. After hearing good things about this brew from Alvey of The Four Firkins I am even more excited to sample it. Pours a deep red hue that is very opaque and similar to the color of dates when away from light. Quite carbonated with about three fingers of off white head being produced and a good deal of small bubbles swirling through the glass for some time. After settling there is a small amount of lacing and a ring of about two millimeters around the surface of the beer. Smells of resinous bitter hops, a variety of citrus esters; particularly grapefruit,  moderate alcohol, and gentle fruit notes including passion fruit. Flavor is very hop forward with fruity, floral and bitter hop notes immediately hitting your palate and never fading. A solid malt backbone is present and adds  a nice sweetness mid palate that contrasts the bitterness well enough as to not overwhelm, yet little enough to allow the hops to shine through the whole sip. Overall this ale is quite bitter, with lovely grapefruit esters and related citrus notes, full flavored and almost tart fruit esters as well as modestly sweet malt that rounds off the ale nicely. Body is medium and the mouthfeel is very smooth and relatively clean. At 6.5% ABV this is one easy drinker that can be consumed by the 22oz bottle with no problem, provided you don’t mind bitterness. While not overly complex I really enjoyed this hoppy Amber Ale and would happily drink it regularly, particularly as it is reasonably priced for being packaged in 22oz bottles. If you enjoy bitter, hoppy ales that this brew should be right up your alley. If you prefer less bitterness I would suggest enjoying this ale more on the room temperature side as the sweetness comes out a lot more and helps distract from some of the serious bitterness present. If your not a fan of bitterness I would obviously stay away. Year round cyclist, seasonal cyclist, recreational riders and even those who don’t own a bike…you should all give it a shot, make up your own mind, and ride a damn bike.
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June 7th, 2010 beckel
Mikkeller is one fine brewery from Denmark and their Single Hop Series is one of my favorite. So I was very pleased to find this brew on the shelves of South Lyndale Liquors a few weeks ago. East Kent Goldings are a classic English hop traditionally used in English Bitters and Pale Ales and I am excited to experience them in their pure glory with this IPA. This cleanly labled 11.2 oz bottle has 22/12/11 printed on its cap, which I assume is a best by date. When poured this carbonated ale quickly creates four plus fingers of bright white head that slowly opens up settling after a few minutes and leaving a good deal of lacing and about a half an inch of perpetual bubbles around the rim. Color is a modestly hazy apricot hue that is completely opaque. Smells as one would expect with a variety of herbal almost spicy esters and a earthy note that reminds me of orange rind. Tastes of hoppy herbs and spices and solid bitterness contrast with sweet malt esters creating one interesting brew. Again the herbal orange attribute comes through for me in the flavor quite notably. While this brew is obviously hop centric it is rather enjoyable if you are into herbal hops. With a 6.9% ABV it is plenty strong but not over the top for regular consumption. Body is medium and mouthfeel is quite carbonated but not overly sharp. Probably not a beer I would drink regularly because of its scarcity and serious herbal characters make it not as easy to consume by the 6-pack. Probably not the best hop to use on its lonesome but an enjoyable experiment. For those who enjoy variety, learning and sampling unique things this brew is absolutely worth your time. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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May 31st, 2010 beckel
For a long time I have been an avid supporter of Flying Dog, their beers and their marketing. So upon hearing about their 20th Anniversary brew I knew I would eventually have to get some. The politely named Raging Bitch is a Belgian-Style India Pale Ale that I am sure will be a treat as their first batch of this brew didn’t even make it to Minnesota. I grabbed my 6-pack at Chicago Lake for a reasonable price so this ale should be widely available. Pours an attractive rich copper hue that is very translucent, producing close to four fingers of bright white head. With a small amount of lacing and a few millimeters of bubbles remain after settling. Smells of bright citrus hops, orange and grapefruit in particular, with wonderful earthy hop esters melding with earthy and spicy yeast notes. Flavor is delightfully hoppy with lemon, grapefruit & gentle orange esters that play with clean earthy hop flavors which are smoothed brilliantly by the Belgian yeast used in this brew. Gentle earthy, spice & fruit esters come from the yeast and produce a lovely play with the serious hop content and notable bitterness. The yeast contributes a lot to a delightfully clean, smooth and slightly creamy mouthfeel accentuating its solid medium body. At 8.3% ABV and 60 IBU this beer is far too delicious and easy to drink. It should obviously be treated as more of a sipper but I could easily drink pints of this all day in the sun. I am very pleased Flying Dog decided to release this anniversary brew in 6-packs at a reasonable cost and I hope they continue to produce it for years to come. Truly a fantastic brew and an amazingly impressive melding of two styles that can be enjoyed by most people. If you enjoy IPAs and Belgian Style brews this happens to be close to the best of both worlds. Perfect for paring with spicy or acidic food. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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May 19th, 2010 beckel
As this beer has sat in my fridge for far too long I suppose it’s damn time I consume it. A large variety of beers are fine to age but for many lower alcohol beers and particularly hoppy beers it is not the best approach. Sierra Nevada is already releasing their Estate 2010 as I write this post so I am sure this bottle will not have nearly as brilliant hop characters as it likely had initially. Oh well, it’s my fault for procrastinating. This exciting brew is the first release of Sierra Nevada’s Estate Ale, part of their Harvest Series. Consisting of only hops and barley grown on Sierra Nevada’s own estate in Chico, CA. Pours a very translucent bright amber hue that quickly creates over three fingers of off white head that leave a decent amount of lacing after settling a few minutes later. Smells nicely of grassy hops which play nicely with sweet malt and modest citrus esters. Tastes of rich, smooth, sweet malts, a decent amount of citrus, lemon, orange, grapefruit, modest bitterness and some gentle grassy & earthy esters. Body is medium and mouthfeel is wonderfully smooth and tight. The beautiful mouthfeel likely has something to do with the age of this brew. I am quite impressed by the delightful melding of hops and malts present in this brew and equally impressed by the robustness of the hop esters still present after roughly a year of aging. Overall enjoyable bitterness is complimented with rich malts and delightful hop notes creating a very well rounded ale. When I first saw this 24 oz bottle on the shelves of The Four Firkins I was amazed by its price tag of around $13 if memory serves me correctly and almost didn’t end up purchasing it. After consuming it I’m glad I did because I believe it will be appreciated by any fan of IPAs or Pale Ales. At 6.7% ABV this is one drinkable but very flavorful Ale. If this years edition of Estate Ale is anywhere near as well balanced I would highly recommend picking up a bottle, I probably will. While it is always fun to be surprised by an aging experiment I wouldn’t highly recommend aging (m)any India Pale Ales. If you can find an old bottle give it a shot and ride your bike.
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May 13th, 2010 beckel
Today I have what is sure to be a remarkable beer from Dogfish Head and another fantastic Score from Dark Lord Day. Luckily this bottle is a 2008 vintage because I am certainly not patient enough to give this brew anymore time to age, though I’m sure it would treat it marvelously. A Belgian inspired base beer was blended with over a ton of pureed raspberries to create this intense 18% ABV brew which claims the title of worlds strongest fruit beer. Pours an interesting hue somewhere between a tangerine and a raspberry. Two fingers of off white head form and settle within a few seconds. Aroma consists of a good deal of alcohol, similar to brandy, hints of raspberry, gentle tartness and a hint of sweetness. Flavor is full of strong alcohol esters that largely dominate the beer followed by enjoyable sweet and tart contrasting notes of raspberry and modest bitterness. Aside from being incredibly boozy the flavor profile of this brew is really quite enjoyable. As you get your palate accustomed to the massive alcohol you can start to enjoy the whiskey like esters and the way they play with the varying fruit esters including raspberry, cranberry and a variety of citrus’. While I can’t really pick out the Warrior hops used in this beer a solid IBU of 45 is noticed in the finish creating an enjoyably bitterness. Mouthfeel is surprisingly smooth for such as strong ale and the body is equally light for the style though near the medium side. Overall an enjoyable brew provided you can handle the alcohol and be patient. Those who enjoy very strong ales and fruit will find their dreams met here. If you want to keep your throat warm and enjoy complex fruit esters this is probably the beer for you. I would love to see what this beer has to offer after a decade of aging. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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May 12th, 2010 beckel
As the wonderful Stone Brewing does not distribute to my fine state of Minnesota yet I was lucky enough to get this brew from a lovely acquaintance my friends from The Beer Genome Project introduced me to on our Dark Lord Day trip named Sarah. While not an unobtainable brew by any means I am always happy to consume anything from Stone and as a massive fan of their Arrogant Bastard Ale I have wanted to try this brew for some time. As usual this cleanly illustrated, gargoyle laden, 22oz bottle (2009 Release) has a delightful paragraph on the back that proceeds to thoroughly insult those unworthy who dare attempt consuming this fine beverage. Onto the important things. Pours a deep dark mahogany hue that is relatively translucent, though you will only notice if you hold it up to the light as it is quite dark. Two fingers of full off white head blossoms from the brew and lasts for a few minutes reducing to about a millimeter around the surface of the beer and leaving a small amount of lacing. Aromas of dark sweet malts, caramel, and soft plum are present reminding me of a rich Barleywine. Surprisingly gentle hop notes, likely due to age as this beer is roughly 6 months old. Strong flavors of molasses, plum, alcohol, toasted malt and a solid hop bitterness as well as gentle notes of citrus, pine contrast with sweet malts giving this bitter ale a surprising level of synchronicity. Body is on the heavy side and the mouthfeel is full but enjoyably clean. With a 10.5% ABV this arrogant ale is certainly no joke, particularly if you are consuming the bottle on your own. Definitely a solid ale that reminds me of a bitter barleywine with a bit of extra hop flavor. I am now very curious to see how different the hop presence is in this brew when it is first bottled. If you enjoy Strong Ales or Barleywines and aren’t opposed to bitterness this should be right up your alley, provided your worthy. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
Arrogant Note: When looking up information related to this brew I discovered that a company called Carlsbad Gourmet makes a line of Stone endorsed seasonings based off a number of their brews including hot sauces that reflect the entire Arrogant Bastard line. I know I’m late to the game but all i can say is fuck yea! I need to get these. All of them. Soon.
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May 11th, 2010 beckel
Though this ale only showed up on our local shelves recently it was apparently the third release of New Belgium’s Lips Of Faith Series. This ale was the handy work of it’s namesake Eric Salazar who decided to play with their Belgian Style Blond Ale; aging it in Oak, adding peach juice & Brettanomyces yeast to create a unique sour ale. I was happy to find this bottle at The Four Firkins but it should be pretty widely available right now. Pours a completely translucent light copper hue that borders on peach with three fingers of clean white head that settles within less than a minute. Small bubbles continuously trickle from the bottom of the glass popping on the surface. Clean assertive tartness followed by gentle peach esters, very light malts and just a touch of alcohol. Smooth but potent sour esters remind me of cranberry & tangerine tannins and contrast with sweet peach, gentle malt esters, light bitterness and very subtle alcohol. Bright sour notes are very enjoyable and play very well with the sweet peach and smooth mouthfeel created by the oak aging. The 7% ABV of this beer is occasionally noticed but overall an after thought in this delicious brew. Body is on the light side of medium making this complex brew go down very easily. If you enjoy clean, full flavored sour ales this one is definitely worth your time. Additionally if you are new to the style this one isn’t a bad stepping stone as the fruit characteristics and oak aging make this ale very palatable for a tart brew. I would happily drink many more bottles of this brew, and might just have to. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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May 7th, 2010 beckel
Today I have what is sure to be a fun brew, and seemingly the last new beer to involve Fritz Maytag before the sale of his landmark brewery Anchor Brewing (more about that here). I haven’t participated in The Session for quite some time but after looking at this weeks I realized I have the perfect brew for this months topic: Collaborations. I love collaborative brews for many reasons. In fact I think they are an example of the life blood of the Craft Beer industry. With out cooperation, sharing and support of one another many Craft Breweries would not be where they are today. Not only is it more fun to work with others when brewing but there is also a ton to learn from one another. From techniques to preferences not to mention local traditions and ideas. In honor of collaboration I will be consuming Sierra Nevada’s 30th Anniversary brew which is a collaboration between their brewer Ken Grossman and Anchor Brewing’s Fritz Maytag. I bought this bottle of Fritz & Ken at The Four Firkins, another at Chicago Lake Liquors and even saw a few still on the shelves of Princeton’s Liquors when I was there earlier today. According to the bottle they decided to brew this Imperial Stout in honor of the Dark Ales and Stouts that seduced them in their early years. Lets see how it goes. Gently poured from a cleanly labeled, caged and corked 750ml bottle over four fingers of creamy tight chocolate colored head are quickly produced. Bubbles slowly open up and even more slowly dissipate. I poured my glass more than five minutes ago and there is still half a finger of reasonably tight head that has yet to settle. A good deal of lacing is present and likely won’t be going anywhere soon. Color is a very opaque dark black that lightens slightly when brought to light. Smells of roasted malts, smoke, chocolate, coffee, gentle malt bitterness and some notable alcohol. Flavor is massively smoky with enjoyable coffee and roasted esters and some residual sweetness to help create some sort of a balance. As it warms the smoky flavors loosen up quite a bit allowing the variety of dark malt esters to shine. Chocolate esters are highlighted exceptionally along with gentle coffee, smooth bitterness and an enjoyable amount of residual sweetness. Pitted fruit esters exist but are incredibly subtle. Body is on the heavy side, but not overly considering the style. Mouthfeel is very smooth and silky despite its massively rich malt profile. At 9.5% ABV this is definitely a sipper but not overly offensive with more than enough dark malt esters to hide the alcohol easily. Over all quite good but not anything particularly unique. If you enjoy Imperial Stouts that are nicely roasted and to style you should certainly enjoy this brew. I will definitely be aging my 2nd bottle to see what it has to offer in a year or two. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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April 28th, 2010 beckel
I stopped by The Four Firkins last night for a lovely Breckenridge tasting and was ecstatic to hear that they had gotten in a brew that I have been waiting to show up in our market for close to a year. I have always loved the adventurous spirit of Mikkel Bjergsø, Mikkeller’s brewer and 1000 IBU is a prefect example of it. While some will be quick to argue that 1000 IBU is simply a theoretical measurement and nothing but a marketing gimmick, I say enough with the fretting. You can also read Mikkel’s response if you’re interested. It is true that most humans have a hard time detecting bitterness over 100 IBU and various research suggests that the maximum theoretical IBU is far below 200 simply due to solubility issues. Regardless I think one of the best things about brewing is experimentation and having fun with it so the more the merrier, it is after all just a name. As you may know Mikkeller does not have their own brewery (Mikkel calls himself a gypsy-brewer) and this treat was brewed at the De Proef Brewery in Belgium. I believe that this batch is about two months old and it is definitely the kind of beer you want to drink as soon as possible to ensure as little deterioration of hops as possible. This bottle cost about $15 and consists of a 12.7 oz bottle wrapped with labeled paper that when opened reveals a green corked bottle with the same label affixed which depicts a burglar with a bag of hops. Pours a dark hazy almost muddy medium brown hue, containing a small amount of sediment that floats to the bottom of the glass. Upon pouring down the middle of my glass I was immediately greeted by over 5 fingers of tight off white bubbles that slowly open up eventually dissipating but leaving a good deal of lacing and about 2 millimeters of bubbles around the glass and a little island of carbonation on the surface of the beer. I believe this Imperial IPA was bottled one to two months ago and I can’t wait to experience it’s hop aroma. Smells strongly of a myriad of hoppy esters; blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, orange, mango and other citrus esters, massive earthy notes and a bit of pine. Serious bitterness in the nose and a solid dose of alcohol. In addition to hops there is also a very notable malt base to this brew with a number of bready esters and just a hint of caramel. This beer tastes of every thing it smells like and is far more like eating actual hops than any brew I have ever consumed before. A nice, mildly sweet bready malt base that contains a gentle creaminess helps contrast the absurd hop content as to not simply kill you with bitterness. Earthy hop esters are very strong with pine, orange and even pineapple like notes playing a central role. This beer is very bitter but not as overwhelming as I had expected making it surprisingly drinkable. Alcohol is noticeable but not overly offensive considering its 9.6% ABV. Body is medium and mothfeel is quite carbonated but still smooth due to a gentle malty creaminess present. While I am very curious how much exactly of what varieties of hops were used in this brew I still find it very impressive how much hop flavor is present in this brew without making it simply consist of pure bitterness. One solid massively hoppy brew that is no joke and probably the most insanely hoppy of the style so far. Not a beer to drink every day (even if you could find that much of it) but certainly worth trying if you enjoy insanely hoppy Imperial IPAs. I’m uncertain if anyone in the city still has this brew in stock but I would certainly recommend calling around if this sounds like something you would enjoy. If you don’t like hops obviously you shouldn’t bother with this beer. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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