Thread O' Beer!

[bac0n]

I don't know if I've seen any beers from New Zealand in my neck of the woods, to be honest.

[Scar]

I don't know if I've seen any beers from New Zealand in my neck of the woods, to be honest.

A quest?

[bac0n]

Absolutely. We all know how the last one went.

[Gizmo]

5. Bier Brune d'Ardenne (Mc Chouffe)

I may have had this one before, I honestly don't remember. I know I've had the Christmas offering from Mc Chouffe. I really enjoy a good brown, especially the nutty kind. This is a basic, Belgian, brown. It doesn't really have a lot of malty nuance, but rather just a simple smooth taste, with a nice closing bitterness. This is rather average as far as a Belgian beer goes, and likewise for a brown. It's good enough to drink, but not sure I'd chase it down over others from the country.

19 beers to go.

[Winston*]

I don't know if I've seen any beers from New Zealand in my neck of the woods, to be honest.

Pretty amazing craft beer scene over here these days.

[Stay Puft]

I had a beer from New Zealand on my list a couple years ago. It was pretty good!
http://matchcut.artboiled.com/showth...l=1#post549479

I tried the Mc Chouffe brown about a month ago. I liked it. Simple, straightforward, delicious. Sometimes that's all you need. There's better for sure but I remember being pretty satisfied with it all the same. (How's the Christmas one, btw? We talking about the N'Ice? It's on my list this year. )

I'll type up today's beer in a minute. It's super intense. I'm having trouble getting through it. Not in a bad way, but damn, it's fucking me up. I'm sitting here like

[bac0n]

5. Ambergeddon
Ale Asylum, Madison WI
Amber Ale



I just about lost my shit when I saw this in my local bottle shop. Ale Asylum! One of my favorite Scannie breweries finally showing up west of the Saint Croix! These guys are the bad boy brewers in Wisconsin, kinda like Three Floyds is to Indiana. They do some good stuff, and were always up to something crazy at the Great Taste of the Midwest, held every August in Madison, probably the greatest shit show of a disaster of a beer festival in the entire solar system. I've been to the Great Taste three times and can't remember any of them.

Anyway, this beer. It's kinda... okay. Picking up a bit of acidity, low hop presence, I would call this a workable beer, if nothing special. But take this review with a grain of salt, cuz I just got back from Magazine Club. What is magazine club, you ask? Well, boy howdy, am I glad you asked, cuz let me spin you a little yarn about how about five years ago, my buddy A-A-ron across the street & I were wondering what was the deal with this so-called "Book Club" our wives were in to with a gaggle of their friends - you know, those monthly gatherings where they sit around drinking wine and decide which book they're not gonna read until the next month gathering? Yeah. Wine Club. Well, we decided to make a magazine club. Magazines are cheaper, and who the hell reads a magazine end to end anyway?

So, in short, I'm going to give this beer a 3/5 - middling. And I'm going go give this review a 1/5 - absolute shite.

[Stay Puft]

5. Backwoods Bastard (Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy)
Founders Brewing Company (Michigan, USA)



Founders is always a treat. It has been three or so years since they've released anything up here. Last time, we got the Dirty Bastard, an attempt at a Wee Heavy that I remember being pretty good, but just a wee bit too sticky and sweet for my liking. It came in a four pack, and that lasted me quite a while. My palate needed a long break between bottles. Now, they're finally back, with a big release event planned at my store next week for the CBS (the KBS was released here for the first time ever earlier this year). In the meantime, Backwoods Bastard started rolling into our stores. I guess it's sort of like the sequel to Dirty Bastard, so I was curious to give it a shot (also because it's four bucks for a beer with 11% ABV and that's cheaper than the Rochefort 10 and damn that's good value).

So, take a Dirty Bastard, put it in an oak bourbon barrel, roll it into a cave, and let it sit there and age for a year. What's the result? Backwoods Bastard pours dark, but tranluscent, with deep reddish hues where the light penetrates, revealing tons of small, fine bubbles dancing up the glass. Right away, there's a burst of heat on the nose. Yup, they stuck this in bourbon barrels. Yup, it's 11% ABV. It's super sweet and fruity, with grape and dark fruits like plum and raisin. There's burnt sugar and whiffs of something even more decadent, like caramel and cookie dough. The body is incredibly well structured, easily the most impressive part of the beer. It's thick and full, but also soft, striking a perfect balance of weight and smoothness. Like the Dirty Bastard before it, however, it's very sweet and sticky. The finish is long and even a little overpowering, as it just seems to stick to the mouth. It's a palate destroyer, that's for sure. As for the taste, wow, it's an adventure. The alcohol hits in waves, but in between there's caramel, toffee, fig, raisin, plum, and then once again, more decadent notes, this time like chocolate chip cookies or caramel chips... if they were completely soaked in bourbon. It's wild. As it warms, the oak flavors become more noticeable, with earthy tones and damp wood and traces of smoke. There's a lot to unpack. My hats off to Founders for this one, it's extremely well crafted. I respect it a little more than I actually like drinking it, though. It's certainly better than the Dirty Bastard. There's a lot more flavor to discover, and it's interesting, but in the end it's just too sharp, too sticky and sweet. The finish isn't as pleasant as the journey. I prefer the KBS, quite honestly, but this is no slouch of a beer, either.

Rating: 4/5

[Gizmo]

I've really enjoyed every Founder's beer I've had, which, sadly, isn't many.

[Gizmo]

6. Green Islands Stout (Foroya Bjor)


We started this thing with a Foroya Bjor beer, which was decent and a good start. Now their stout is in a style more to my liking, however, this beer is not. It actually smelled of burnt feet, and the head didn't even make it to the glass before it was gone. Taste nearly matches the aroma and head, just being palatable. It's slightly burnt caramel, a bit of raisin coming through as it warms (and trust me, I'm not drinking this fast enough for it to not warm!). I'll get through it, but hopefully the next offering is better.

18 beers to go.

[Morris Schæffer]

I had this particular Rodenbach a few days ago because one of you mentioned the name and sort of praised the Rodenbach brand, if perhaps not this one. I've never tried a Rodenbach before so perhaps I need to warm to this particular sort of taste which reminded me of wine, perhaps some vinegar. I'm no good at discerning flavours and smells at all, but the taste really hit me like a freight train. I did finish it though.

PS: Good to see some McChouffe love. It's the only one I know so far.

[Stay Puft]

I've never tried a Rodenbach before so perhaps I need to warm to this particular sort of taste which reminded me of wine, perhaps some vinegar.

Yeah, that's typical of the style. I've been drinking the Grand Cru a lot this year as well as Duchesse de Bourgogne, the other one I mentioned, and while I get the vinegar more from the Rodenbach than the Duchesse, it's certainly something that might require some adjustment. Sour beers can be pretty weird (you'll experience something similar with a geuze, which can be very acidic, or a gose, which can be very salty, etc.). I'm all in, I absolutely love them, but sometimes it's a hard sell. I bought a bottle of Rodenbach for my dad once just so he could try a sour beer, and he took all of two sips before giving up, haha. It's not for everybody.

When I first started drinking beer, I couldn't stand IPAs. I loved dark beers, that was always my go-to. It took a long time, but I finally adjusted to the taste/style and enjoy IPAs a lot now. It's an adventure, so all you can do is keep exploring.

On that note, my beer tonight is an IPA. I'll be back to write about it in a bit.

[bac0n]

6. Decadent
Ska Brewing, Durango CO
Double/Imperial IPA



Ya know, there's a fair chance I've had this before, but if I did, I can't remember. Ska Brewing, being that they are from Colorado, always has a huge presence at the Great American Beer Festival, held every Fall in Denver CO, and this year they had a particularly cool booth:



But this year, it was Friday that I made it to Ska's booth, and as I recall, I was probably about 2 hours / a dozen or more beers in by the time I got there, so forgive me if my recollection of whether or not this beer was pouring or not is a little sketchy. At any rate, I recall their beers all being okay, but nothing really stood out. The same can be said for this beer. As far as DIPAs go, it gets the job done well enough, tho I like a little more malty sweetness to balance things out, and a little more mouth feel as well.

Taste wise, it is definitely a west coast style IPA, favoring the citrus over the pine - I am picking up tangerine/clementine on both the nose and the palate, finishes sweet, as well as unusually dry, which, ya know, I kinda dig. Just the slightest bit of brown sugar peeps out just before the finish. On second thought, maybe tho whole nothing stands out comment is not 100% accurate.

I'm gonna give this a, hrm, I'm feeling 3.75. Good, just short of great. Not my first choice of DIPAs (the field is pretty crowded) but I would drink it again if offered to me.

19 beers until Christmas!

[Stay Puft]

6. Laser Show Vermont Style IIPA (American Double / Imperial IPA)
Left Field Brewery (Ontario, Canada)



Case in point, this Imperial IPA from local Toronto brewery Left Field is my favorite beer so far. Laser Show is a hazy, tropical Vermont style IPA and Left Field has knocked it out of the park (hahahahaha... sorry, these puns might be too inside baseball... because Left Field's gimmick is that all of their beers are baseball themed... hahaha get it... I might be a little drunk). The craziest thing about this beer is that it's 8% ABV and what and how? I never would have guessed if I didn't know. And I knew and I still pounded it back. Fuck this is good beer!

Laser Show pours a hazy, yellow to deep orange hue, with a moderate white head, leaving spotty lacing in its wake. There are a lot of bubbles and even more sediment. This beer throws a mean sediment in the bottle, so I made sure to roll it around get it all mixed up. It's a gorgeous looking beer, bright and lush, and those aromas! It's super lush. Tons of tropical fruit, got some lychee and mango for sure, and there's also some peach and orange. Super fresh. Some mild bitterness from the hops as well. But this isn't a super hoppy beer. It's more juicy. The palate is similarly fresh and fruity, with big doses of mango and mandarin oranges. As it warms, floral notes rise to the top, notably heather. There's some resin in there, too. It becomes a little more bitter as it goes, especially on the finish, but never loses that fresh, tropical profile. The body is thick and juicy and the finish is long and soft. It almost tastes a little like orange juice on the finish. This is a burst of freshness, and super delicious. Not my favorite beer from Left Field (their oatmeal brown ale remains one of my favorite go-to Toronto craft beers) but I think this may already be one of their best.

Rating: 4.5/5

[Morris Schæffer]

Thanks for sharing thoughts on Rodenbach Puft.

Perhaps during the weekend I'll experiment with a few more Belgian beers I've never had.

[bac0n]

5. Backwoods Bastard (Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy)
Founders Brewing Company (Michigan, USA)

Don't know if I've had backwoods bastard for not, but have seen it in bottle shops on occasion. Beers like these are the reason I keep my sample glasses from the beer fests I go to a few times a year. I enjoy them much more in 2-3 oz pours shared among a few friends. Don't think I could make it through an entire pint.

Regardless, I love Founders. I think their Harvest IPA (which I saw in stores here for the first time in years, hooray!) was the first beer I review in this thread.

[Gizmo]

7. India Pale Ale (Spencer)

Trappist brews are a unique bunch in that they aren't anything extra special, other than they meet specific standards of Abbey brewing. However, they tend to rate highly in part because of their rarity, and in part, because the monks know how to brew a damn good beer. Having spent the last 3+ years here in Germany, I've had the fortune of being able to get my hands on nearly all of the offerings that fit the "trappist" designation. What I'm missing is the 2 newest ones here (Tre Fontane, and Zundert) and the one from the states (Spencer), which I can now cross off the list with this offering, and, spoiler alert, (I think) another I have on hand.
This IPA is quite nice, and that's coming from someone who's still growing into IPAs. I generally favor citrusy hops over floral ones, and this has the floral notes. However, it also sports some slight fruit notes to take away some of the grassyness. Likewise, for an IPA, the hops are subtle, so there's no in-your-face bitterness, but a rather nice smooth bitter. I'd almost not classify this as an IPA, but they are present enough that I wouldn't know how else to classify the beer. It's really pretty good, which is nice.

17 beers remain til the fat man. I'm nearly halfway through the European edition of this countdown.

[Morris Schæffer]

I've seen an India ale in my store here in Belgium, perhaps not this one. Will seek out. It's a bit of a deterrent when I see India ale, I'm pretty Belgium-centered when it comes to beers.

[Gizmo]

I've seen an India ale in my store here in Belgium, perhaps not this one. Will seek out. It's a bit of a deterrent when I see India ale, I'm pretty Belgium-centered when it comes to beers.

I lean toward the Belgium styled beers as well. They're typically top notch.

[Stay Puft]

7. Holiday Cheers Winter Spice Ale (Winter Warmer)
Big Rock Brewery (Alberta, Canada)



Oh, Big Rock. The fine purveyor of miserable, mediocre beers, cherished by every child who grew up in the vast, pointless wastelands of Alberta. It always stuns me when someone comes into my store eagerly looking for Big Rock beers (always the biggest giveaway that you're talking to a prairie kid). I guess this is the result of rooting for the hometown team? That, or hipsters (prairie hipsters?). This sounds really harsh, but... I've tried every beer available from them and I haven't liked a single one, so nah. Big Rock sucks. So, hey, here's a great idea: Let's try another Big Rock beer! This is the first seasonal, holiday beer on my list, a beer brewed just for Christmas. I'm giving the honor to Big Rock so they can set the bar. Set it really fucking low, presumably. But, best not to judge before you try. So, okay. Show me what you got, Big Rock.

Holiday Cheers Winter Spice Ale pours a clear amber with a thin, white head, quickly settling into a thin layer of foam. There are a lot of bubbles dancing irregularly in the glass. It almost looks like a snowglobe, which is pretty novel and apropos. It looks pretty good? It even smells enticing! Lots of clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger... all the classic holidays spices you would want. Lots of... not much else, though. The palate confirms. For a second, I thought this might be a good beer. It seems fine on first approach. But, alas. This thing is all spice. Not overpowering, not cloying. But lacking. There's no backbone. The body is light, almost watery. It's just spices. Approachable, drinkable... until it's not, because it gets boring really quick. It's like they got all the spices right, but somehow forgot the beer. Like, how do you even do something like that? It's impressively bad. After half the can, I started to get a headache and started thinking about pouring out the rest. So, no surprises here. Miss me with this garbage, Big Rock.

Rating: 1.5/5

[Gizmo]

8. Weihnachtsbier (Schwaben Brau)


I'm disappointed. Not in the beer, the beer is average, drinkable, and better than the other Weihnachtsbier that made a guest appearance. I'm disappointed in the reviews on ratebeer. It's got a 14/100 and 1/5 star rating, depending on which you want to look at. That doesn't bother me, I've had my fair share of low rated beers. What bothers me is that the negativity seems to stem from it "not tasting like a Christmas beer" and similar comments. I understand that certain expectations go into pouring a seasonal beer this time of the year. Most people expect spices, and warming, and the like. There are plenty of seasonal beers that will easily fit that bill, see Stay Puft's review from yesterday. Don't expect that out of a German beer. Ever. There's a German purity law that means nothing extra is added to German brewed beers. They can't add the spices unless they come from the malt, hops or yeast, naturally. I thought this beer found a good hop/yeast that does "feel" like there's an underlying spice, and that's good enough for me to appreciate it as a seasonal. That and the smooth maltyness make this a decent beer. It's not the greatest thing, but people who care enough about beer and reviewing them to register for ratebeer.com, should be aware of the German purity law, and not hold that against this, or any, winter seasonal.

The beer? Average. My feelings toward the comments/ratings on ratebeer? disappointed.

16 beers to go.

[bac0n]

7. Sigma
Brouwerij Alvinne - Zwevegem, Belgium
Flanders Oud Bruin / Brown Sour Ale


First off, my apologies for getting this review in a day late. Last night I was bottling that Imperial Stout that I reviewed on day one, and didn't get finished until around 11:00 (bottling it was, surprise surprise, a pain in the ass). And just when I had my review all typed up and in preview, someone from work pinged me and I wound up helping her for a half hour, and then went to bed, totally forgetting that I hadn't posted my review yet. And when I got up in the morning, the session had expired and I lost my work. D'oh!

Anyway, here's what I remember of this beer. Its acidity is very assertive, both on the nose and up front, and it yields just a little bit down the middle to some sweetness that hints just a bit of brown sugar. But this is very much a flanders, so that acidity is the star, but the good news is that it doesn't taste at all vinegary like a lot of flanders beers can. Lots of times I will also pick up fruity notes with a flanders, in this case tart apple. As it finishes, lemon sneaks in, and it stays there in the aftertaste. Finally, it hides its 11% ABV remarkably well. A fella could have a few of these without knowing the strength and suddenly it's all "why am I making out with this dog?".

All in all, it's a pretty decent beer, but i wouldn't put it up there with the greats. I'm gonna give this a 3.5/5.

18 or 16 or 17 or something beers until Christmas!

[Stay Puft]

8. Cuvée Van De Keizer Rood (Belgian Strong Pale Ale)
Brouwerij Het Anker (Belgium)



Ah, now this is exciting. Het Anker was responsible for one of the best beers I had last year (the Gouden Carolus classic), so I was glad to find something else from them this year. Cuvée Van De Keizer actually comes in two styles, the Rood (Red) and Blauw (Blue), and I grabbed a bottle of both. Since they already impressed so much with a dark beer last year, and I have plenty of other dark beers on the list this year, I decided to hold off on the Blue and save it for later, and check in here with the Red, a pale ale.

Cuvée Van De Keizer Rood pours a bright yellow with a large, fluffy white head. There's good retention, and minimal lacing. There are a lot of bubbles, but they rise slowly, taking their time. The aromas are gorgeous. Lots of funky Belgian yeast, orange and coriander, ethanol and pepper and hay. There are some malt notes, too, and hints of something like banana muffin. There's noticeable spice on the palate, lots of clove and coriander and pepper, with that classic funky yeast and even a bit of a tanginess. There's a mild bitterness, notes of orange peel. And so, so many fruity esters: orange, banana, apple, pear, etc. As it warms, it starts to taste like a fresh, crisp apple, with lingering traces of clove and yeast. The body is thick and chewy, but soft, and even a little juicy. The finish is soft and creamy. This is one damn delicious beer. I will say the marriage of flavors isn't always perfect. There's a lot of complexity with the fruit esters, but the mild bitter note and that hit of tang every once and a while is a little odd. It's the kind of beer you could spend some time nitpicking, but there's no question that it's a great beer at the end of the day. Not as mindblowing as the Gouden Carolus from last year, but maybe slightly edges out Laser Show as my favorite beer so far this year. Still, with 16 beers to go, it's anybody's game.

Rating: 4.5/5

[Gizmo]

9. Foundation 11 (Crew Republic)

Another one of those that was purchased because of the bottle more than anything. This time it was my young daughter who told me to buy the "owl beer". Took me a minute to figure out which on the shelf she meant, but not having tried this, I decided I'd grab the owl beer. I'm glad I did. This is possibly the most American craft style ale I've gotten from a German brewer. It's a wonderful pale ale, with a nice citrus hit up front and a floral follow, which isn't grassy. It's smooth and easy to drink, I could see myself putting these away with ease all year long.

15 Beers until Christmas

[bac0n]

8. Cherry Tart
Steel Toe Brewing - St. Louis Park, MN
Sour with Cherries



So, my buddy Andrew was supposed to be helping me bottle the PITA Stout on Thursday, but he managed to double book himself and wasn't able to come over. Heartbroken, he insisted that the only way to make him feel better was to buy me a beer at our favorite brewery, Steel Toe over in SLP. Me, being the stand-up guy I am, decided to help him out. I even left an hour early from work, just for him. Someone call Pope Francis - if that ain't enough to get me sainted, I don't know what is. St. Bac0n of the Full Pint does have a nice ring to it, no?

Anywho, this beer is a little out of what I would call Steel Toe's comfort zone. I sorta liken them to the Rolling Stones of the local beer scene - they stick to the basics, and they execute flawlessly. They make my favorite IPA, a great golden ale, a killer stout/porter hybrid, a wee heavy that wins every competition it enters, but if you want some sorta exotic lavender spice imperial pilsner, you're going to need to go somewhere else. So, I gotta admit, I was a little surprised that those folks would take a shot at a sour, but at the same time excited, cuz these guys have yet to make a bad beer.

Visual wise, it's a purrrrrrrrrdy beer. The crimson comes through in the light, so you're not gonna be surprised by the cherries. Speaking of which, as much as I like cherries, I tend to be wary of them in beer, as they tend to make the beers taste like cough syrup. Not the case here. The cherries taste fresh and bright, not medicinal at all, and there is a nice acidity to brighten things up even further. Tasting a little bit of toastiness down the middle and towards the end with this one. What I am NOT picking up in this beer is any funk, so I'm guessing no brett or other bacterial additions are going on. All in all, another winner from the Steel Toe crew. Too bad this is only available on tap, and not in bottles or growlers. This would be a good beer to bring to a gathering of friends.

I'm gonna give this a 4/5 - great. 16 Beers until Christmas!