1113. Rapscallion Premier
I went to the Muddy with some labmates on February 4th. They've expanded to six taps, so now there's a better chance of having new beers.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Rapscallion
Alcohol: 7.00%
Serving: Tap
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 3.5 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.85
Rapscllion Premier pours a clear copper-amber. It's topped by a fluffy, off-white head. The aroma is sweet and fruity. There are notes of caramel, citrus, juicy fruit, a mild resinous hop character, and hints of graininess.
This beer is sweet overall. Toasty malts upfront move into bready and caramel malts with hints of citrus and fruit. The finish is mildly bitter with a grassy hop flavor. This beer is light bodied with prickly carbonation.
This is a nice easy drinking beer.
I went to the Muddy with some labmates on February 4th. They've expanded to six taps, so now there's a better chance of having new beers.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Rapscallion
Alcohol: 7.00%
Serving: Tap
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 3.5 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.85
Rapscllion Premier pours a clear copper-amber. It's topped by a fluffy, off-white head. The aroma is sweet and fruity. There are notes of caramel, citrus, juicy fruit, a mild resinous hop character, and hints of graininess.
This beer is sweet overall. Toasty malts upfront move into bready and caramel malts with hints of citrus and fruit. The finish is mildly bitter with a grassy hop flavor. This beer is light bodied with prickly carbonation.
This is a nice easy drinking beer.
Labels: American Blonde Ale
I had several new beers on my trip back to Texas during December. As usual I tried to focus on Texas beers, or beers that aren't readily available in Massachusetts.
1103. Bombshell Blonde
Ward always sets aside a couple of beers for my Texas visits. This time he brought a can of Southern Star's Bombshell Blonde, and a bottle of Shiner Smokehaus.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southern Star Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Can
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.5
Overall: 3.95
Bombshell Blonde pours a cloudy golden, and is topped by a shiny, white head that fades to a film and leaves lace that clings to the sides of the glass. The aroma is fruity with lighter notes of toasty malts, and herbal hops.
There's a toasty, bready sweetness upfront that is constant underneath the building flavors. A mild banana fruitiness appears in the center, and moves into a a mild, grassy bitterness in the flavor. I thought this beer had a pleasing sweetness that was offset by a good depth of flavor. This blonde ale is medium to light-bodied, and has a nice crispness that's accentuated by the carbonation.
I was very pleased with this beer. It had a nice amount of flavor, and would make a great session beer.
1104. Shiner Smokehaus
This was another beer that Ward brought to Waco for me to try.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Spoetzl Brewery
Alcohol: 4.89%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Smoked Beer, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 3.45
Smokehaus pours a crystal clear golden, and is topped by a short-lived, bright white head. The aroma has a mild, malt sweetness, a slight grassiness, and a mild, mild smokiness.
There's an initial, crisp maltiness that moves into a slight, fruity sweetness in the center. The finish has a mild smokiness and an herbal grassiness. This beer is crisp, light-bodied, and has a good dose of carbonation.
The smokiness is fairly mild, making this surprisingly drinkable for a smoked beer.
1105. Buried Hatchet Stout
Win, Ward and I spent a bit of time at The Dancing Bear, which is still Waco's best beer bar.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southern Star Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 8.50%
Serving: Tap
Style: Foreign / Export Stout, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.15
This beer pours a cloudy brown up to the light, but sitting in the glass it's an opaque black. It's topped by a fluffy, brown head that fades to a film, leaving good lace. The aroma is roasty with mild, coffee notes, sweet chocolate, and dark fruit.
There's a strong, roasted bitter undercurrent just underneath the surface. The sweetness is very mild, really only making an appearance in the center with notes of dark fruit. The finish has a mix of chocolate and coffee that's intensely bitter. This stout is full-bodied and moderately carbonated.
This is an excellent stout. It has an intense bitterness, so it's not as much of a sessioner as many others.
1106. Hopsickle
This was another beer at The Dancing Bear.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Moylan's Brewery
Alcohol: 9.20%
Serving: Tap
Style: American Double IPA, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.0
Overall: 4.2
Hopsickle pours a cloudy copper color. It's topped by a creamy, off-white head that retains well, and leaves good lace. The aroma is intensely hoppy with notes of citrus, juicy fruit, apricots, a bit of pine, and slight, bready malts.
Sweet notes of caramel and raw sugar upfront are quickly met by a strong, hop bitterness in the center, which moves into a resiny finish that leaves a lingering bitterness. This Double IPA is medium-bodied, oily, and has a nice, prickly carbonation.
The hop aromas, bitterness, and flavors in this beer are insane.
1107. Saint Arnold Divine Reserve #9
The Divine Reserve series is Saint Arnold's limited release line of beers. Their #9 is an Imperial Pumpkin stout. These disappeared quickly in Houston, but the HEB in Woodway had several cases. I bought a six-pack. Ward bought two cases.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Alcohol: 11.0%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Double Stout
Appearance: 4.5 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 4.0| Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.05
Divine Reserve #9 pours an opaque black. The carbonation sounds oda-like upon pouring. The head is light brown, retains well, and is fed by a nice stream of bubbles. Pumpkin pie spice aromas are immediately noticeable with notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. The effect of the malts and spices give an impression of ginger bread. There are mild, roasty undertones.
A mild roastiness opens up into a spicy center with notes of cinnamon and ginger. The roasty flavors come back in the finish, along with a warming, alcoholic spice. The sweetness is strong, so there's only a hint of lingering bitterness. This stout is full-bodied, with moderate carbonation
This beer is a sipper. It's alcoholic and spicy.
1103. Bombshell Blonde
Ward always sets aside a couple of beers for my Texas visits. This time he brought a can of Southern Star's Bombshell Blonde, and a bottle of Shiner Smokehaus.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southern Star Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Can
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.5
Overall: 3.95
Bombshell Blonde pours a cloudy golden, and is topped by a shiny, white head that fades to a film and leaves lace that clings to the sides of the glass. The aroma is fruity with lighter notes of toasty malts, and herbal hops.
There's a toasty, bready sweetness upfront that is constant underneath the building flavors. A mild banana fruitiness appears in the center, and moves into a a mild, grassy bitterness in the flavor. I thought this beer had a pleasing sweetness that was offset by a good depth of flavor. This blonde ale is medium to light-bodied, and has a nice crispness that's accentuated by the carbonation.
I was very pleased with this beer. It had a nice amount of flavor, and would make a great session beer.
1104. Shiner Smokehaus
This was another beer that Ward brought to Waco for me to try.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Spoetzl Brewery
Alcohol: 4.89%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Smoked Beer, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 3.45
Smokehaus pours a crystal clear golden, and is topped by a short-lived, bright white head. The aroma has a mild, malt sweetness, a slight grassiness, and a mild, mild smokiness.
There's an initial, crisp maltiness that moves into a slight, fruity sweetness in the center. The finish has a mild smokiness and an herbal grassiness. This beer is crisp, light-bodied, and has a good dose of carbonation.
The smokiness is fairly mild, making this surprisingly drinkable for a smoked beer.
1105. Buried Hatchet Stout
Win, Ward and I spent a bit of time at The Dancing Bear, which is still Waco's best beer bar.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southern Star Brewing Co.
Alcohol: 8.50%
Serving: Tap
Style: Foreign / Export Stout, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.15
This beer pours a cloudy brown up to the light, but sitting in the glass it's an opaque black. It's topped by a fluffy, brown head that fades to a film, leaving good lace. The aroma is roasty with mild, coffee notes, sweet chocolate, and dark fruit.
There's a strong, roasted bitter undercurrent just underneath the surface. The sweetness is very mild, really only making an appearance in the center with notes of dark fruit. The finish has a mix of chocolate and coffee that's intensely bitter. This stout is full-bodied and moderately carbonated.
This is an excellent stout. It has an intense bitterness, so it's not as much of a sessioner as many others.
1106. Hopsickle
This was another beer at The Dancing Bear.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Moylan's Brewery
Alcohol: 9.20%
Serving: Tap
Style: American Double IPA, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.0
Overall: 4.2
Hopsickle pours a cloudy copper color. It's topped by a creamy, off-white head that retains well, and leaves good lace. The aroma is intensely hoppy with notes of citrus, juicy fruit, apricots, a bit of pine, and slight, bready malts.
Sweet notes of caramel and raw sugar upfront are quickly met by a strong, hop bitterness in the center, which moves into a resiny finish that leaves a lingering bitterness. This Double IPA is medium-bodied, oily, and has a nice, prickly carbonation.
The hop aromas, bitterness, and flavors in this beer are insane.
1107. Saint Arnold Divine Reserve #9
The Divine Reserve series is Saint Arnold's limited release line of beers. Their #9 is an Imperial Pumpkin stout. These disappeared quickly in Houston, but the HEB in Woodway had several cases. I bought a six-pack. Ward bought two cases.
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Alcohol: 11.0%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Double Stout
Appearance: 4.5 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 4.0| Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.05
Divine Reserve #9 pours an opaque black. The carbonation sounds oda-like upon pouring. The head is light brown, retains well, and is fed by a nice stream of bubbles. Pumpkin pie spice aromas are immediately noticeable with notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. The effect of the malts and spices give an impression of ginger bread. There are mild, roasty undertones.
A mild roastiness opens up into a spicy center with notes of cinnamon and ginger. The roasty flavors come back in the finish, along with a warming, alcoholic spice. The sweetness is strong, so there's only a hint of lingering bitterness. This stout is full-bodied, with moderate carbonation
This beer is a sipper. It's alcoholic and spicy.
Labels: American Blonde Ale, American Double IPA, American Double Stout, Export Stout, Smoked Beer
Jadyn and I went to Shelter Island, NY for memorial day weekend. We stayed at David's wife's family's house there. David (enabler) brought up several new beers for me to try.
1017. St-Ambroise Pale Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: McAuslan Brewing
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 4.2
St-Ambroise Pale Ale pours a cloudy, amber-copper color. It's topped by a light, off-white head that quickly fades to a film. Lace clings to the side of the glass. The aroma is an interesting mix. There's a bright interplay of fruit, caramel, citric hops, and a mild, phenolic twang.
The beer itself is well-attenuated with only a mild residual sweetness upfront. The malts are predominantly toasty before moving into a very mild malty sweetness that's a mix of caramel and fruity esters. The finish has a moderately bitter, herbal hop quality. This pale ale is light-bodied and moderately carbonated with a pleasing dryness in the finish.
I liked this beer a lot. It's balanced, but only mildly sweet. The dryness is pleasing and helps make this a good session beer.
1018. Southampton Altbier
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southampton Publick House
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Altbier, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.5 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.7
This Alt pours a clear brown with copper tints. It's topped by a fizzy, three-quarter inch, eggshell colored head that rises quickly on the pour, and just as quickly fades to a film. Pinprick dots of lace adorn the glass. The aroma is quite nice. There are notes of caramel malts, hints of roastiness and a mineral twang.
Caramel malts upfront move into a mild estery fruitiness in the center. The finish has a mineral twang and a mild bitterness. Overall this beer is very clean on the palate. Its flavors are there, but don't pop. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, it works well here to showcase a nice mineral character that would have otherwise been overpowered. This Alt is moderately carbonated and medium-bodied, and has a very nice crispness.
This beer is a decent Alt. I think a bit more hoppiness would have been nice, provided the beer stayed crisp.
1019. Brooklyn Local 2
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brooklyn Brewery
Alcohol: 9.00%
Serving: Bottle, 750 mL
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.25
I'd been looking forward to trying this beer, since Brooklyn Local 1 was so good. Local 2 pours a cloudy brown with reddish tints. It's topped by a sudsy beige head that fades to a continuous film. The aroma is incredibly bright for the style. There's a bright layer of citrus and honey, below which lie the rich malty aromas of a Belgian Strong Dark Ale: dark fruit and candi sugar. I think the addition of some more aromatic ingredients really did a lot for the aroma of this beer, making it seem more light and inviting than a typical Belgian Dark.
This beer's flavors tell the same story as the aroma: the honey and citrus upfront give a lighter, brighter impression before diving deeper into the darker, maltier depths. The dark malt flavors in the center are a nice mix of candi sugar, caramel, rasins, dates and other dark fruit. The finish has a nice mix of peppery and alcoholic spice, a brief reprise of citrus, and a mild bitterness. Local 2 has very prickly carbonation, is medium-bodied and is surprisingly smooth once some of the carbonation dissipates.
This is another winner for Brooklyn's Local series. It's strong, fizzy and has an interesting addition of honey and citrus that I think adds a lot to the mix.
1020. Batemans XXXB
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Batemans Brewery
Alcohol: 4.80%
Serving: Bottle, 500 mL
Style: Extra Special/Strong Bitter (ESB), BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 3.5 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.85
Based on the handwriting in my notebook, I dictated this review to Jadyn (you're the best, thanks for humoring me).
This ESB pours a crystal clear copper, and is topped by a sudsy, frothy, off-white head that fades to a film. Sustained bubbling seems to keep the film intact. The aromas are nicely malty: biscuity malts, toffee, and a little bit of an apricot aroma.
Upfront this beer is mildly sweet with a lot of maltiness. The sweetness is contributed by toffee flavors, but the bulk of the maltiness is buiscuity and toasty, which lasts through to the finish. The finish is moderately bitter with grassy and herbal hop flavors. This ESB is medium-bodied, moderately carbonated and has a mild dryness in the finish.
I thought that Batemans XXXB was a nice malt-forward beer that managed to keep the sweetness in check and that had a nice bitterness in the finish.
1021. Blue Point Summer Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Blue Point Brewing Company
Alcohol: 4.40%
Serving: Bottle 12 oz.
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.5 | Smell: 2.5 | Taste: 2.5 | Mouthfeel: 3.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 2.85
Blue Point's Summer Ale pours a clear golden and is topped by a thick, bright white head, which fades fairly quickly to a film. The aroma is fairly light. There's a hint of citrus and a mild graininess.
There's a mild sweetness as he beer first hits the palate with some neutral graininess as well. Fruity esters make a brief appearance in the center, and are met by a mild peppery character and mild bitterness in the finish. This beer is light-bodied and moderately carbonated, but feels a tad watery.
I was pretty disappointed with this beer. I know summer beers tend to be lighter, but this one was bland and lacked the crispness that makes a beer like this refreshing.
1017. St-Ambroise Pale Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: McAuslan Brewing
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: American Pale Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 4.2
St-Ambroise Pale Ale pours a cloudy, amber-copper color. It's topped by a light, off-white head that quickly fades to a film. Lace clings to the side of the glass. The aroma is an interesting mix. There's a bright interplay of fruit, caramel, citric hops, and a mild, phenolic twang.
The beer itself is well-attenuated with only a mild residual sweetness upfront. The malts are predominantly toasty before moving into a very mild malty sweetness that's a mix of caramel and fruity esters. The finish has a moderately bitter, herbal hop quality. This pale ale is light-bodied and moderately carbonated with a pleasing dryness in the finish.
I liked this beer a lot. It's balanced, but only mildly sweet. The dryness is pleasing and helps make this a good session beer.
1018. Southampton Altbier
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Southampton Publick House
Alcohol: 5.00%
Serving: Bottle, 12 oz.
Style: Altbier, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.5 | Smell: 4.0 | Taste: 3.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.7
This Alt pours a clear brown with copper tints. It's topped by a fizzy, three-quarter inch, eggshell colored head that rises quickly on the pour, and just as quickly fades to a film. Pinprick dots of lace adorn the glass. The aroma is quite nice. There are notes of caramel malts, hints of roastiness and a mineral twang.
Caramel malts upfront move into a mild estery fruitiness in the center. The finish has a mineral twang and a mild bitterness. Overall this beer is very clean on the palate. Its flavors are there, but don't pop. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, it works well here to showcase a nice mineral character that would have otherwise been overpowered. This Alt is moderately carbonated and medium-bodied, and has a very nice crispness.
This beer is a decent Alt. I think a bit more hoppiness would have been nice, provided the beer stayed crisp.
1019. Brooklyn Local 2
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Brooklyn Brewery
Alcohol: 9.00%
Serving: Bottle, 750 mL
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 4.5 | Taste: 4.5 | Mouthfeel: 4.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 4.25
I'd been looking forward to trying this beer, since Brooklyn Local 1 was so good. Local 2 pours a cloudy brown with reddish tints. It's topped by a sudsy beige head that fades to a continuous film. The aroma is incredibly bright for the style. There's a bright layer of citrus and honey, below which lie the rich malty aromas of a Belgian Strong Dark Ale: dark fruit and candi sugar. I think the addition of some more aromatic ingredients really did a lot for the aroma of this beer, making it seem more light and inviting than a typical Belgian Dark.
This beer's flavors tell the same story as the aroma: the honey and citrus upfront give a lighter, brighter impression before diving deeper into the darker, maltier depths. The dark malt flavors in the center are a nice mix of candi sugar, caramel, rasins, dates and other dark fruit. The finish has a nice mix of peppery and alcoholic spice, a brief reprise of citrus, and a mild bitterness. Local 2 has very prickly carbonation, is medium-bodied and is surprisingly smooth once some of the carbonation dissipates.
This is another winner for Brooklyn's Local series. It's strong, fizzy and has an interesting addition of honey and citrus that I think adds a lot to the mix.
1020. Batemans XXXB
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Batemans Brewery
Alcohol: 4.80%
Serving: Bottle, 500 mL
Style: Extra Special/Strong Bitter (ESB), BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 4.0 | Smell: 3.5 | Taste: 4.0 | Mouthfeel: 3.5 | Drinkability: 4.0
Overall: 3.85
Based on the handwriting in my notebook, I dictated this review to Jadyn (you're the best, thanks for humoring me).
This ESB pours a crystal clear copper, and is topped by a sudsy, frothy, off-white head that fades to a film. Sustained bubbling seems to keep the film intact. The aromas are nicely malty: biscuity malts, toffee, and a little bit of an apricot aroma.
Upfront this beer is mildly sweet with a lot of maltiness. The sweetness is contributed by toffee flavors, but the bulk of the maltiness is buiscuity and toasty, which lasts through to the finish. The finish is moderately bitter with grassy and herbal hop flavors. This ESB is medium-bodied, moderately carbonated and has a mild dryness in the finish.
I thought that Batemans XXXB was a nice malt-forward beer that managed to keep the sweetness in check and that had a nice bitterness in the finish.
1021. Blue Point Summer Ale
Beer Stats:
Brewery: Blue Point Brewing Company
Alcohol: 4.40%
Serving: Bottle 12 oz.
Style: American Blonde Ale, BJCP Style Guide
Appearance: 3.5 | Smell: 2.5 | Taste: 2.5 | Mouthfeel: 3.0 | Drinkability: 3.5
Overall: 2.85
Blue Point's Summer Ale pours a clear golden and is topped by a thick, bright white head, which fades fairly quickly to a film. The aroma is fairly light. There's a hint of citrus and a mild graininess.
There's a mild sweetness as he beer first hits the palate with some neutral graininess as well. Fruity esters make a brief appearance in the center, and are met by a mild peppery character and mild bitterness in the finish. This beer is light-bodied and moderately carbonated, but feels a tad watery.
I was pretty disappointed with this beer. I know summer beers tend to be lighter, but this one was bland and lacked the crispness that makes a beer like this refreshing.
Labels: Altbier, American Blonde Ale, American Pale Ale, Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Extra Special/Strong Bitter (ESB)
I went down to New York for David's birthday and a long weekend. I saw friends, had some new beers and did a little home-brewing. All in all a good weekend.
Friday
On Friday night David, Dave and I went bar hopping in the East Village. Dave was at Lotus Lounge when I got into town, so after a brief layover at The Bear to drop off my bags David and I set off to meet him.
369. B.B. Bürgerbräu
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass.
Appearance (3.5): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thin white head.
Smell (3.5): Light hops with toffee and caramel malt aromas.
Taste (2.5): Sweet and toasty malts. Hop flavors are light and the beer lacks any real bitterness.
Mouthfeel (2.0): Light carbonation, light-bodied and watery.
Drinkability (3.0): Light and easy to drink, but there aren't really any great flavors to make you want to drink it.
Overall (2.9): Simple and lacking in flavor and depth in the palate.
370. Sixpoint Sweet Action
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass. Dave and David gave me comments on this one.
Appearance (4.5): Hazy orange-amber with a thin creamy white head that leaves nice lace.
Dave: Pretty Sexy
David: Copper and cloudy
Smell (4.5): Sweet and peppery, with fruitiness and citric hops.
Dave: Berry.
David: Beer & boisenberry.
Taste (3.5): Mild malts upfront, with a peppery finish with citric hops. Nicely balanced in the finish. bu the malts could be more pronounced upfront.
Dave: I can't do taste. Closer to sweet scintilating saltiness (peppery).
David: Colorado Grolsch. A draft beer taste with flavor and body.
Mouthfeel (3.0): Light-bodied, slightly oily and a little watery.
Dave: Carbonation a bit much. Leaves harsh taste of void.
David: Dry mouth, overly carbonated.
Drinkability (4.5): Easy to drink with a nice refreshing hoppiness.
Dave: Mine's already gone so it must get a 5.
David: I could drink it but I don't want to.
Overall (3.95): Very drinkable, the only thing holding this beer back is the lack of malt character upfront.
371. Radeberger Pilsner
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass.
Appearance (4.0): Pours a clear golden with a fluffy white head that thins to a persistent layer.
Smell (2.0): There's a sweet smell and that's about it.
Taste (2.5): Slight sweetness upfront with a decent hoppy finish.
Mouthfeel (3.0): Tingly carbonation and clean mouthfeel.
Drinkability (3.0): Light and easy to drink.
Overall (2.8): Drinkable, but not a lot of flavor that makes you want to drink it.
Next we headed out to look for a place to eat. We ended going to an Italian restaurant whose name I don't remember. I had the ricotta and spinach ravioli tossed in olive oil and sage, which was quite nice. We finished up our meals with port: Dow's 10 Year Tawny for Dave and I, and Dow's for David.
Pictures of us enjoying port:
David
Dave
Dave
Me
Next we headed to Happy Ending where we had Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Before we left we had the candle priviledges revoked at our table, surprisingly not my fault.
After a trip out to a bar in Brooklyn we ended up back in the East Village around 3 AM. We were wandering around looking for a bar when I spotted a place called The Belgian Room. We started off with a round of De Dolle Oerbiers, found a table and started playing poker with cards we'd borrowed from the bartender.
372. Cantillon Lou Pepe Kriek - 2001
We split a 750 mL bottle of this at the Belgian Room. It was served in Cantillon wine glasses.
Appearance: Hazy dark-red. The only evidence of a head are thin wispy patches of bubbles.
Smell: Nose of cherries, a light funkiness and an acidic sour smell. Very lambic.
Taste: Sweet and sour notes of cherries up front. An intense sourness takes hold in the center and maintains its dominance through the finish.
Mouthfeel: Mildly carbonated, with a very dry finish.
Drinkability: This is something to drink slowly and savor.
Overall: This is a very nice cherry lambic.
373. Bink Blonde
I sampled this from a 12 (or maybe 11.2 oz) bottle at The Belgian Room, it was served in a Leffe Class.
Appearance: Pours a cloudy golden with a thin white head.
Smell: Sweet and peppery with some fruity notes that may have been banana.
Taste: Sweet upfront with peppery notes, fruit (again bananas?) and a surprising hop profile for the style.
Mouthfeel: Moderate carbonation, smooth with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability: A little tough to tell this late in the night, but the hoppiness was pleasant.
Saturday
Saturday Dave, David, Bennett and I went for a late brunch at Kitchenette in Morningside Heights. We walked around Central Park for awhile then saw Art School Confidential in Times Square. David, Bennett and I then headed to Megan's house in Pelham. We had pizza at the always excellent Johnny's. David, Bennett and I then played pool and poker and had a few beers: Harpoon Summer Beer, Sam Adams Summer Ale and Guinness Extra Stout.
Sunday
Sunday was David's birthday party. Megan had purchased a beginner homebrew kit for his birthday. The kit was an extract stout recipe with a small batch of milled grain, a package of extract syrup, and some Perle hop pellets. I had several Sam Adams Summer Ales as well as one new beer.
374. Sam Adams Cherry Wheat
I poured half a bottle into a half-pint weisse glass.
Appearance (3.5): Pours a slightly-hazy copper with a white foamy head that thins to a persitent layer. Large bubbles stream from the bottom of the glass.
Smell (2.0): Very strong and overpowering candy-like cherry aromas.
Taste (2.5): Light cherry flavor upfront, that fades into an American-style-wheat-beer flavor in the finish. The cherry flavor is present throughout and while not overpowering is a little cough-syrupy. The finish is grainy with little bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Light to moderate carbonation, smooth with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (3.5): Refreshing aside from the slight cough syrup flavor.
Overall (2.85): This isn't a great fruit beer. The cherry comes off candy-like and overpowering in the smell, and a bit cough-syrupy in the finish.
Friday
On Friday night David, Dave and I went bar hopping in the East Village. Dave was at Lotus Lounge when I got into town, so after a brief layover at The Bear to drop off my bags David and I set off to meet him.
369. B.B. Bürgerbräu
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass.
Appearance (3.5): Pours a lightly hazy golden with a thin white head.
Smell (3.5): Light hops with toffee and caramel malt aromas.
Taste (2.5): Sweet and toasty malts. Hop flavors are light and the beer lacks any real bitterness.
Mouthfeel (2.0): Light carbonation, light-bodied and watery.
Drinkability (3.0): Light and easy to drink, but there aren't really any great flavors to make you want to drink it.
Overall (2.9): Simple and lacking in flavor and depth in the palate.
370. Sixpoint Sweet Action
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass. Dave and David gave me comments on this one.
Appearance (4.5): Hazy orange-amber with a thin creamy white head that leaves nice lace.
Dave: Pretty Sexy
David: Copper and cloudy
Smell (4.5): Sweet and peppery, with fruitiness and citric hops.
Dave: Berry.
David: Beer & boisenberry.
Taste (3.5): Mild malts upfront, with a peppery finish with citric hops. Nicely balanced in the finish. bu the malts could be more pronounced upfront.
Dave: I can't do taste. Closer to sweet scintilating saltiness (peppery).
David: Colorado Grolsch. A draft beer taste with flavor and body.
Mouthfeel (3.0): Light-bodied, slightly oily and a little watery.
Dave: Carbonation a bit much. Leaves harsh taste of void.
David: Dry mouth, overly carbonated.
Drinkability (4.5): Easy to drink with a nice refreshing hoppiness.
Dave: Mine's already gone so it must get a 5.
David: I could drink it but I don't want to.
Overall (3.95): Very drinkable, the only thing holding this beer back is the lack of malt character upfront.
371. Radeberger Pilsner
I sampled this on tap at the Lotus Lounge in New York City. It was served in a standard pint glass.
Appearance (4.0): Pours a clear golden with a fluffy white head that thins to a persistent layer.
Smell (2.0): There's a sweet smell and that's about it.
Taste (2.5): Slight sweetness upfront with a decent hoppy finish.
Mouthfeel (3.0): Tingly carbonation and clean mouthfeel.
Drinkability (3.0): Light and easy to drink.
Overall (2.8): Drinkable, but not a lot of flavor that makes you want to drink it.
Next we headed out to look for a place to eat. We ended going to an Italian restaurant whose name I don't remember. I had the ricotta and spinach ravioli tossed in olive oil and sage, which was quite nice. We finished up our meals with port: Dow's 10 Year Tawny for Dave and I, and Dow's for David.
Pictures of us enjoying port:
David
Dave
Dave
Me
Next we headed to Happy Ending where we had Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Before we left we had the candle priviledges revoked at our table, surprisingly not my fault.
After a trip out to a bar in Brooklyn we ended up back in the East Village around 3 AM. We were wandering around looking for a bar when I spotted a place called The Belgian Room. We started off with a round of De Dolle Oerbiers, found a table and started playing poker with cards we'd borrowed from the bartender.
372. Cantillon Lou Pepe Kriek - 2001
We split a 750 mL bottle of this at the Belgian Room. It was served in Cantillon wine glasses.
Appearance: Hazy dark-red. The only evidence of a head are thin wispy patches of bubbles.
Smell: Nose of cherries, a light funkiness and an acidic sour smell. Very lambic.
Taste: Sweet and sour notes of cherries up front. An intense sourness takes hold in the center and maintains its dominance through the finish.
Mouthfeel: Mildly carbonated, with a very dry finish.
Drinkability: This is something to drink slowly and savor.
Overall: This is a very nice cherry lambic.
373. Bink Blonde
I sampled this from a 12 (or maybe 11.2 oz) bottle at The Belgian Room, it was served in a Leffe Class.
Appearance: Pours a cloudy golden with a thin white head.
Smell: Sweet and peppery with some fruity notes that may have been banana.
Taste: Sweet upfront with peppery notes, fruit (again bananas?) and a surprising hop profile for the style.
Mouthfeel: Moderate carbonation, smooth with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability: A little tough to tell this late in the night, but the hoppiness was pleasant.
Saturday
Saturday Dave, David, Bennett and I went for a late brunch at Kitchenette in Morningside Heights. We walked around Central Park for awhile then saw Art School Confidential in Times Square. David, Bennett and I then headed to Megan's house in Pelham. We had pizza at the always excellent Johnny's. David, Bennett and I then played pool and poker and had a few beers: Harpoon Summer Beer, Sam Adams Summer Ale and Guinness Extra Stout.
Sunday
Sunday was David's birthday party. Megan had purchased a beginner homebrew kit for his birthday. The kit was an extract stout recipe with a small batch of milled grain, a package of extract syrup, and some Perle hop pellets. I had several Sam Adams Summer Ales as well as one new beer.
374. Sam Adams Cherry Wheat
I poured half a bottle into a half-pint weisse glass.
Appearance (3.5): Pours a slightly-hazy copper with a white foamy head that thins to a persitent layer. Large bubbles stream from the bottom of the glass.
Smell (2.0): Very strong and overpowering candy-like cherry aromas.
Taste (2.5): Light cherry flavor upfront, that fades into an American-style-wheat-beer flavor in the finish. The cherry flavor is present throughout and while not overpowering is a little cough-syrupy. The finish is grainy with little bitterness.
Mouthfeel (4.0): Light to moderate carbonation, smooth with a lightly dry finish.
Drinkability (3.5): Refreshing aside from the slight cough syrup flavor.
Overall (2.85): This isn't a great fruit beer. The cherry comes off candy-like and overpowering in the smell, and a bit cough-syrupy in the finish.
Labels: American Blonde Ale, Belgian Pale Ale, Brasserie Cantillon, Czech Pilsener, Fruit Lambic, Fruit/Vegatable Beer, German Pilsener, Lambic, NYC, Reviews, Sixpoint Craft Ales, Sour Beer, Travel
