March 24th, 2009 beckel
When I saw the beer I hold in my hand on the shelves of The Four Firkins I knew not one thing about the brewery that it hailed from; Amager Bryghus other than what the bottle states which is little more than the fact that it was brewed in Kastrup, Denmark and that the brewers obviously have an inventive spirit from reading the brief paragraph on the bottle. After searching the web briefly it appears that this again is a two man inspired operation founded in 2006 and is located ever so securely in an air-raid shelter (lest anyone tamper with the beer). It appears their brews only reached the American market late last year and I am ever so excited to sample this American inspired Barleywine who’s hoppy aroma keeps calling to me. Color is a nice hazy date like brown hue with some red tones that brighten greatly in light. Head is off white and about 3 fingers that fade with in a few minutes leaving a thin layer around the surface and just a small bit of lacing. Though from a distance I kept getting hop aromas as soon as I put my nose in the glass the first thing I notice is dark pitted fruit, raisins, dates and a bit of alcohol. There are also a few floral hop aromas but there are hard to seperate from the malt backbone of this beer though it adds a nice moderate contrast. Floral hop flavors come first to me but are almost immediately ushered away by the somewhat sweet dark fruit flavors produced by the malt and finished with a bitterness in the end that attempts to balance the brew though it isn’t quite enough to hide the alcoholic flavor of this 9.2% ABV beer. This beer as well only uses Simcoe hops and as it warms in my glass more citrus flavor comes through though frankly I’m surprised they don’t shine through a little more. As this beer continues to warm flavors from the caramel malt become much more apparent and work to balance this beer much better than when it was colder. Body is medium and the mouthfeel is pretty smooth making this a rather drinkable beer if you don’t mind a bit of alcohol coming through. You can tell this beer has plenty of sugars present though it is not incredibly sweet and I would be very interested to see how it ages. Definitely a good beer for those who are into big beers regardless if you prefer more malt or hops. I probably allowed this beer to warm for at least fifteen minutes before drinking it but I would encourage everyone to allow this beer to warm even further as all flavors are more identifiable when warm. The dark date flavors are nicely balanced by the caramel malt and the simcoe hops are much more noticeable throughout when served a bit warmer and the alcohol flavors are toned down quite marvelously making this a much more rounded brew. Provided it isn’t still raining tomorrow I will definitely have to grab another bottle of this fine brew to age. If you’re not into high ABV beers this is probably not for you but if you are you should absolutely try it out. Give it a shot and ride your bike!
(Picture awfully dark need to work on my new camera’s settings)
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March 23rd, 2009 beckel
Today I have a beer that I am delighted to try for many reasons. First off it will be the first brew from Mikkeller Brewing who hail from Københaven, Denmark that I will have the opportunity to sample. If that weren’t tempting enough I have heard many good things about the majority of their ales but a bit further reading tells me even more. They were founded in 2006 by two friends and since 2007 has been run solely by Mikkel Borg Bjergsø and in 2008 they were named the second best brewery in Denmark loosing out to 1st place by less than 0.2% as well as sixth best brewery in the world. Mikkel refers to himself as a gypsy brewer because he rents brewery space from others in Denmark and around the world but that has not hindered his spirit nor discouraged his international fame (Edit: this beer was brewed at De Proef Brouwerij of Lochristi-hijfte, Belgium). One of the biggest things that has stopped me from trying their beers in the past is the price tag that tends to be associated with them, this 11.2oz bottle was close to $10. However I am always for trying innovative beers and single hop beers always tempt me, so when I saw this bottle on the shelves of The Four Firkins I couldn’t help but pick it up. Though I know it is in many beers I enjoy Simcoe isn’t necessarily a hop that I am easily able to pick out of a beer, but after this experience hopefully I will. It is a very new strain of hops that was created by Yakima Chief Ranches and first released in 2000. It was designed to pack more of a punch than the current hops on the market and it appears they succeeded. Though not quite comparable it is said to be similar to the Cascade hop we all know so well but primarily used for bittering though it also produces some citrus flavors and further tends to exibit some pine characteristics. As this hop was designed for brewing big IPAs I am sure it will be enjoyable. When pouring this beer down the center of my glass it rather quickly erupted into a mass of carbonation producing over four fingers of overflowing white head that lasted for many minutes and left some solid lacing around the glass and a little lump of head still remains in the center of the glass over 10 minutes later. Color is an attractive obviously unfiltered (after drinking most of the beer there is a good amount of sediment at the bottom of the glass, some is dark and some is more of an off white color which is a bit interesting) dark hazy apricot that brightens in light but is not translucent at all. Aroma is delicious, a similar grapefruit citrus to Cascade hops but with a more full meaty body to the fruit. I get a few hints that remind me of tropical fruits like starfruit or passion fruit but they are interestingly subtle. As well there is a nice bitter base to the aroma of the hops and I get a tiny bit of the pine but not very much. In addition to the hops there is a nice sweet malt base to this beer that distracts a bit from the obvious bitterness likely produced by the cara-crystal malts. This is a pretty darn tasty beer. Initially you can notice the caramely malt base of this beer but it fades quickly due to the hop profile. First I get sweater somewhat floral citrus flavors similar to those described in the aroma largely passion fruit and a bit of apricot but as soon as this beer sits in my mouth for a moment and I start to swallow the bitterness is massively intensified. The bitterness is wonderfully hoppy and robust and as I drink a bit more some of the citrus flavors put up a solid fight against the bitterness and manage to sneak back in once you get used to how strong of a bittering hop Simcoe really is. All of the bitterness and citrus combined start to make some almost tart flavors but considering what it is this ale is quite well balanced, for a hop head. The body of this beer is relatively light and the mouthfeel is quite smooth. With all of the bitterness present in this beer its 6.9%ABV isn’t noticeable at all. Certainly not the beer for those who do not enjoy bitterness, but a great choice for those who do. In my opinion this is the perfect session beer for a lover of strong hoppy beers if only it were more available in my area and much less expensive I would drink it constantly. If you don’t mind spending a bit of dough I would recommend trying it out, I know I can’t wait to try his other single hop brews or any of his beer for that matter. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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March 20th, 2009 beckel
Another busy week and hopefully another delightful beer from the fine people of Shmaltz Brewing Company. This beer was brewed for their 10th anniversary and as it is over two years old now I must say it is a miracle I found a bottle at Zipps Liquor. Though not quite as insane of an ingredient list as Jewbelation 12 [review] Genesis 10:10 was brewed with 2-row, Caramel 40, Munich, Black Malt, Wheat, and Dark Crystal 80 Malts as well as Warrior, Centennial, Cascade, Willamette, Simcoe, Crystal and Mt. Hood hops oh and did I mention, 10,000 pomegranates. According to Jewish tradition pomegranates symbolize righteousness so lets get into this righteous ale! Pours an attractive dark apricot color that is a bit hazy and not penetrated by light. Two finger head is off white and leaves a good amount of lacing around the glass, though most of the bubbles dissipate with in a few minutes. The aroma of this beer makes me hungry, but I think that is because I haven’t eaten a proper meal all day. Smelling strongly of fruit juices, slightly fermented pomegranates are easy to identify and are accompanied by some other orange like citrus and an unexpected ginger like spice scent on top of a nice malt base. Very interesting, I really wish I had sampled this beer when it came out so I could compare how the flavors have changed but I have no real excuse to complain. The flavors I get from this beer initially are a variety of sweet malts with an interesting bitter hop taste hidden towards the middle of the flavor which is quickly subdued by the tart pomegranate finish. The many sweet malts in this beer are balanced quite well by the sour pomegranate present giving it a surprisingly smooth mouthfeel. The body is medium and this is certainly a drinkable ale even at a hefty 10% ABV you won’t notice too much alcohol. The malts in this beer have certainly matured over their 2+ years and the addition of fruit certainly creates some interesting extra flavors that are hard to single out. As it warms the pomegranate flavors start to take on more characteristics of dark pitted fruits such as dates which adds a very nice balancing component. Overall this is a tasty brew that further encourages me to try their Origin Pomegranate Ale which is brewed year round beer and an offspring of Genesis 10:10. Not that you can find it anymore but people who enjoy a malty beer and fermented fruit flavors as well will most likely enjoy this beer. In unrelated news I finally purchased a new camera after using an almost decade old digital camera it will be a nice change to be able to take a picture and not wait close to 30 seconds before I can take another one, not to mention the increase in mega pixels by over 12x, hopefully my beer pictures look better now. So go ride your bike, even if it’s raining out and a titty bit nippley.
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March 15th, 2009 beckel
Today I have an ale from Full Sail Brewing that is part of their 2009 Brewmaster Reserve which are apparently switched up about every 10 weeks for our consuming pleasure. As an Imperial IPA, Slipknot is right down my alley and an ale I felt obligated to write about. I first came upon this beer at The Four Firkins and passed it up a few times until one day as the stock was dwindling and I figured I should give it an opportunity not to mention Alvey informing me that he enjoyed the brew certainly didn’t hurt it’s odds. One day two weeks ago I had the delema of wanting a hoppy ale to enjoy and only single bottle brews that I had never tried before that fit that description in my fridge (I know, hard life I live). I thought about it for a while and my bottle of Slipknot became the victim. I was pretty confident that if I deemed it neccisary I would be able to find another bottle to properly review, so here we are. This ale pours an interesting translucent amber color that is a bit of a dull orange. After cascading marvelously it produces a solid three fingers of off white head that lingers for many minutes leaving quite a bit of lacing around the glass. Aroma is full of bitter hops that are very distinct as well as a little bit of orange like citrus tough there is an underlying malt sweetness that makes the aroma less intimidating. The flavor of this ale is very unique and it tastes almost the same as the aroma except the malt sweetness is less noticeable. Many nice bitter hop tones blend with some orange and grapefruit citrus and a slightly floral note, all of which are balanced nicely with a slightly sweet pale malt flavor near the end though the ale finishes with some further bitter and almost sour notes. Their website states that this brew used 80 IBU but I would be curious to know what they actually used as some of the hop flavors present aren’t the most common. The body is very light for an Imperial IPA and the mouthfeel is pretty smooth. If you can handle plenty of hops this will be a quite drinkable ale, though you may not want to take it to fast as it is 7.8% ABV. This probably isn’t an every day beer for most people, but if you are into hops you will probably be glad you tried it. I’m not sure how much of this ale is still around but last I heard The Four Firkins still had a few and I just bought this bottle at Zipps Liquor so get it while you can. The perfect beer for a spicy meal, hopefully my Thai chicken pizza will get here soon. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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March 13th, 2009 beckel
Today I have an ale that I was lucky to find because I didn’t search for it until months after its release. Shmaltz the brewers of He’Brew “The Chosen Beer” out of Saratoga Springs, New York decided there was no better occasion than their 12th year of production to make one simply insane brew. Crafted with 12 varieties of hop, 12 varieties of malt and and an impressive 12% ABV. Boy golly I can’t wait to see what this ale has in store for me but if you want to see more iterations of the number 12 feel free to check out their website. I had the opportunity to sample a few “Freak Beers” from Shmaltz at the Autumn Brew Review but thanks to many samples prior I don’t recall much about them other than they tasted fine so lets get onto the important part. This ale pours a dark color that looks black until you bring it to light where you can see some ruby hues but just around the edges of the glass. The brew is incredibly opaque and produces about two fingers of creamy light brown head that lasts for a few minutes and leaves a bit of lacing around the glass and on the surface of the beer. Aroma includes some dark pitted fruits, mostly date, raisin and a bit of cherry with some alcohol on the nose, but not very much considering the 12% ABV. Sweet malt comes across most in the aroma though there is certainly more going on it is difficult to separate the scents with the amount of pitted fruits I am getting. Well done. Upon my first sip of this brew it is amazingly more balanced than I feared particularly after watching the guys over at Beer Tap TV review it, though they certainly do it justice. Flavor is of strong sweet dates, slightly sour cherries and a decent amount of hoppy bitterness near the finish though you are left with a sweet flavor in your mouth. There are so many flavors in this brew it is wonderful, yet it doesn’t seem confused because of the amazing malt backbone. Mouthfeel is smooth and a bit creamy and the body is medium but relatively light for a beer with so much in it. The 12% ABV is undoubtedly there but only slightly noticeable in the taste. This is simply a marvelous ale though it is more malty than my staple brews I plan to return to a secret location and grab whatever stock they may have left (cross your fingers). Though of course if anyone here would like to sample some let me know, I’m always happy to share good brew. Those who enjoy big beers and dark pitted fruit flavors will most likely appreciate sampling this ale just be aware your not getting into something average. A great beer for connoisseurs who can handle their alcohol and enjoy expanding their palate. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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March 12th, 2009 beckel
Today I get to enjoy a beer that has been tempting me from my fridge for far too long. I was first alerted of what is sure to be a wonderful beer by my buddie Dirtyspeed from Friday Night Beer a few weeks ago and was happy to see it on the shelves of The Four Firkins while picking up my Tres and other goodies. Lagunitas makes some delicious ales and I can’t wait to see what they produce when they take 102 IBUs and craft an Imperial IPA. The limited post on Lagunitas Brewing’s web page currently states “So Hoppy that it threatens to remove the enamel from one’s teeth.” so I figure the only sane thing to do is dig right in! This ale pours a rather light completely translucent copper color that would make me assume less of this ale if it weren’t for the massive hop aroma I encountered as soon as I opened the bottle. Pure white head was a solid three plus fingers that remained for a good ten minutes with a very thin layer persisting indefinitely and a good deal of lacing remaining all around the glass. Aroma is wonderfully hoppy, grapefruit and other tart citruses as well as a hint of pine and a tad of bitterness that is easily masked by a sweet orange citrus and a little bit of malty sweetness. Flavor is quite nice if your a fan of hops. I get largely orange citrus that is much less sweet than in the aroma and a very hoppy and bitter finish with some nice pine and grapefruit hints. A sweet malt flavor is present as well but is easily distracted from by the massive hop profile of this beer. For a brew with so much hops the body is light and the mouthfeel in only a little sticky. With a 7.7% ABV this ale is rather conservative for an Imperial brew but I think the sheer amount of hops used makes up for it. Not quite as easy to drink as their Maximus IPA [review] but a perfect beer for hop heads and one I would happily consume any day. Though this ale is not for those weary of hops the sweet malt hint in this brew does a fine job balancing out the bitterness and making it not too over powering for those who may be afraid of an incredibly bitter brew and as usual the more you allow it to warm up the more noticeable the sweetness. Would be a solid beer for any spicy meal, yet it does not murder the palate with bitterness. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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March 9th, 2009 beckel
So I’ve been far too busy recently, but what are you going to do, tiz the way of life sometimes. Last Tuesday I had a very enjoyable ride over to our local Brewpub, Town Hall for their Lion Brewing & Moylan’s Brewing tapping. Though I am a fan of the flavorful simplicity offered by Lions Imperial Stout and curious what they have to offer in their Imperial Lager I didn’t end up consuming either as I was distracted with the Barleywine wisely named Twisted Reality from Town Hall that had just been tapped on Monday. The ale pours a nice date like color with some nice red hues and is incredibly opaque allowing almost no light through. Aroma had a decent amount of citrus initially but it was immediately nullified by the caramely sweet malt characteristics and a solid dose of bitterness. Flavor is of delicious pitted fruits that are complimented with rich smooth malts and a good dose of bittering hops to round it off. Enjoyable floral and citrus notes are present but very subtle due to the massive bittering, I detect mostly orange. Head is a creamy tan color but not much was present as it was a bar pour into a modest sized sniffer. Body is quite light for a Barleywine and the mouthfeel is smooth making this solid 9.9% ABV brew very drinkable. I was quite pleased with the brew and would encourage anyone else who likes big beers to try it. The balance of flavors was done very well and I am a big fan of the wonderful hoppy bitterness present. After my first Barleywine I couldn’t help but try some Moylan’s Double Kilt Lifter as I have never had the opportunity to try the double strength stuff and thought the original Kilt Lifter was decent. The aroma was quite sweet with some malt coming through but largely sugar and a cherry like scent as well as other pitted fruits and a hint of sherry. Color is very deep but bright red and slightly translucent. Flavor is sweet and relatively fruity, almost a bit tart. Body is amazingly light and this brew goes down pretty smoothly. Alcohol is a bit more noticeable than some ale’s because of the sweetness but not particularly intense considering its 11% ABV. I did not realize this until now but apparently it was a special for their 1000th batch brewed. Similar to what Town Hall just did with their Imperial IPA, though unfortunately I missed that. The Double Kilt Lifter was a bit too much on the sweet side for me, but you have to get those sugars to ferment from somewhere. Not a bad beer I could just do with a bit more bittering to balance. I ended up finishing the evening with a few more Barleywines and another, this time full pint size glass of Moylan’s Double Kilt lifter when the distributor arrived with a few of their brewery glasses for us to take home. I also ended up with a good amount of Lion Brewing schwag including a small or medium womens shirt….so if anyone has a gal that likes Lion Brewing let me know, though I’m tempted to wear it just for good measure. Hooray for good beer, good conversations, and a safe ride home. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
Town Hall Twisted Reality Barleywine
Moylan’s Double Kilt Lifter & Sweet Potato Fries
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March 4th, 2009 beckel
Today I have a limited release brew #1147 of 1800 from the folk of Big Sky Brewing out of Missoula, Montana, Olde Bluehair a Barrel Aged and Bottle Conditioned Barleywine that is sure to be tasty but will doubtfully become a regularly consumed brew as The Four Firkins only received a single case and it has a solid price tag of $15 for the 750ml bottle. I know very little about Big Sky other than they are the makers of the wonderfully named Moose Drool and I’m pretty sure I’ve tried their IPA but I don’t remember much about the flavor of either. Depending on how this experience goes I may have to refresh my memory. When initially pouring this brew many large airy bubbles formed at the top of the glass but as the pour finished and the ale was allowed to cascade a nice two finger off white head was produced which lasted for a few minutes and produced a nice amount of lacing on the glass. Color is like that of a raisin but when brought to light it brightens very nicely and the red hues are more visible though it is still very hazy and opaque. The aroma nice, rich with pitted fruits such as sweet dates, plums and raisins coming from the malt and just a hint of alcohol. Holy crap. This is a bloody sweet Barleywine. I initially get a lot of sugary flavors which makes me curious to see how much those extra sugars would further ferment over time. Tastes similar to the aroma but even more sweet and intense in the pitted fruit flavors particularly plum as well as a bit of an off creamy vanilla flavor that I have tasted before but can not quite place, I’m thinking creme brulee. The overwhelming sweet flavors in this brew don’t do a very good job of hiding its solid 8.75% ABV but it also isn’t too intense if your used to strong brews. Body is light for a Barleywine but the mouthfeel is strangely creamy. Though I continue to drink it, so far this beer isn’t particularly appealing to me and is in dire need of some hoppy bitterness for balance. I am quite curious how this ale would age and am optimistic that it would be better but probably will not have the opportunity to do such as I can’t justify buying myself another bottle and fear there would be no bitterness what so ever after a few years in the cellar. As I continue drinking I am starting to pick up the faint bitterness in this ale but it is not nearly enough to contrast the massively sweet malt profile. Not a bad beer but it tastes more like desert to me than a Barleywine. I allowed this brew a good 15+ minutes to warm up before consuming but after allowing to warm close to room temperature this ale and its flavors are certainly a lot more smooth or perhaps I’m just getting more accustomed to its sweet creaminess. If you enjoy sweet malty beers that incorporate pitted fruit flavors this is probably the beer for you. If you are into hoppy flavors I am sad to say stay away. As I said, not a bad beer but really not the beer for me. My favorite thing about beer is that everyone has a different palate and will get different flavors from a beer and appreciate different aspects of a good craft brew so don’t listen to me and…Give it a shot and ride your bike!
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February 28th, 2009 beckel
So the time has come for our fourth installment of the Dark Horse Brewing Holiday Stout Series. This time around we have Fore a Smoked Stout that is sure to entice our taste buds. After pouring this bottle there was a good layer of sediment stuck to the bottom of the bottle which is somewhat odd, we’ll have to see what the other bottles are like. This ale pours a solid jet black that couldn’t be penetrated with light if you wanted it to. Producing less than a finger of beautiful chocolate brown head most of which dissipates within a minute or two with only a thin ring remaining around the glass. Aroma is quite smokey but not too overwhelming and is complimented by other nice roasted malt scents and a bit of grain that reminds me of oats. Wow this is a rich roasted Ale. Tastes mostly of roasted malts that create a number of coffee and smoked flavors as well as a few sweeter toffee like flavors once your palate gets used to the intense roast flavors in this ale. The body is a solid medium and the mouthfeel is quite silky and rich but it still goes down pretty easily provided you can get used to the roasted flavors. RB suggests that this beer is 8% ABV and I would be inclined to concur though you certainly can’t pick up any alcoholic flavor with the intense malt profile of this brew. More roasted than I would typically prefer but this is a darn tasty brew that I am happy to have 3 more of in my fridge. Would compliment any grilled meal, particularly red meat wonderfully. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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February 25th, 2009 beckel
Today I have a beer in my hand I have been anticipating for some time. As the third installment of Dark Horse Brewing’s Holiday Stout Series Tres offers us some blueberry to add to our stout. On Monday I made my way out to The Four Firkins to grab some goodies they had just gotten in, namely Winter Warlock, Hop Stoopid and Fore (Tres had been in stock for a bit but luckily there was still a few four packs hanging around) but as always I found a few more goodies that I couldn’t help but get; Southern Tier’s Back Burner Barleywine and a four pack of Young’s Double Chocolate Stout because I still haven’t given it a try. I happily loaded my bag full of brew and merrily biked my way home with little concern even though I felt a can depressing slightly as it bumped against my back. Taking Minnetonka Blvd home brought me to a Chipotle and I figured it would be a decent dinner as I didn’t feel like preparing anything and haven’t consumed their food in some time. After waiting in line for a few minutes and watching my bike carefully I exited with fajita in hand and set my bag near my bike to secure my grub. Sadly upon opening my bag I noticed a large amount of liquid on the cardboard of the four packs and the faint smell of chocolate. Luckily upon investigation the only victim was one can of Young’s which I duly opened and finished the last few sips of before throwing away. I don’t think I’ve ever had a can explode in my bag before, perhaps the nitrogen widget contributed to its demise. Oh well at least all of the bottles survived and I didn’t have to pull my hands out of my bag covered in blood like I did the time a growler broke. Short of the can of Young’s the only other victims were the labels of the Tres and Fore who’s carrying packs soaked up the good stuff like a sponge, they’re still intact you just might notice some stout abuse in the pictures. But I digress because I have a lovely blueberry aroma calling to me. This ale pours with about two fingers of rather dark milk chocolate head giving this pitch black beer a lovely appearance. Aroma is just what I expected, a wonderful slightly sweet blueberry scent that transitions into rich dark malt creating a nice roasted smell with a bit of coffee as well. Flavor is very interesting. Blueberry comes out immediately but is rather subtle and a nice compliment to the dark roasted malt flavors of this brew, particularly the chocolate flavors. There is a good amount of roasted malt flavor but it is likely not roasted for too long as it has a much smoother mouthfeel and taste than most Stouts reminding me of a Milk Stout. The body is light for a stout and with a 4.5% ABV this is an incredibly drinkable beer. I would even give it the session beer distinction if only it were a bit lighter in body and mouthfeel, but I’m not quite sure how one would do that with a Stout and not make it seem like drinking dirty water. The more I drink this beer the more I enjoy the additional flavors the blueberry creates (and the more I wonder if it really is only 4.5%). Probably not a beer I would buy too much of in the future (largely because I am too much in love with their Scotty Karate [review]) but a damn tasty beer I would gladly consume if it were offered and am very pleased to have had the opportunity to sample and a wonderful example of how additional components can enhance a brew. Anyone who likes stouts and does not mind the addition of some real fruit will likely enjoy this brew as will those who may be hesitant to approach dark beers but enjoy chocolate and blueberries. Would work wonderfully as a lighter desert beer or a compliment to a nice creamy dish or fresh fruits and veggies wonderfully. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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