The Beer Thread: Mach 2

[axeman90210]

if you go to beer advocate, on the front page they have the dates for all their festivals through next June.

[King Postwhore]

if you go to beer advocate, on the front page they have the dates for all their festivals through next June.

Thanks.  We will have to meet up for at least one.

[bout to crash]

Yay, my Otter Creek fall variety packs came in! And I just confirmed my volunteer shifts at the Great American Beer Festival, so I can go and bring my roommate for free afterwards 

[axeman90210]

went to Cambridge Brewing Company last night for dinner with my family before trekking home to NJ today. I had a CBC Hefeweizen to start. It was pretty good, the wheat sweetness was more forward than in most hefes I have, and so there was a little bit less banana/clove flavors from the yeast. Next was a tulip of their Belgian Pale Ale with dinner (a burger with onions they caramelized in their house amber ale, boner inducing), it's a solid BPA with a little extra hop bite. After dinner I had a little  glass of Arquebus, their summer barleywine... hot damn, very unique beer (and very tasty). They brew it with honey and white wine grapes and serve it flat, and it's like the beer equivalent of an after dinner liqueur. It was also aged in french oak chardonnay barrels for a year, so even though it's 14% it's smooth as hell. Do want more (if only they bottled)

[bout to crash]

Finally tried the Dogfish Raison D'etre and really enjoyed it. I try not to think this way, but it REALLY reminds me of another beer and I can't figure out which one... just love the flavor, though.

[axeman90210]

two nights ago I had a bottle of North Coast Old Stock Ale, which was decent but not nearly as good as the other Old Ale I've had (Terrapin's The Iron Tankard). Last night I spend about three hours with a big 750 mL bottle of Boulevard's Bourbon Barrel Quad. They brewed a quad, let it ferment on cherries, and then aged portions of it in bourbon barrels for varying lengths of time before blending them together for this beer. It tasted incredible, one of the finest barrel aged beers I've had, but it was a little bit thin and a little bit overcarbonated, otherwise it probably would have been one of the highest scoring beers I've reviewed

[carl320]

Ive thought about the NC Old Stock, but I didn't know if it would be worth it...

Recently I had a couple bottles of the Sam Adams Imperial Stout.  It wasn't bad, but if I wanted a dark SA, I'd buy the Black Lager.  The Imp Stout wasn't worth the price IMO.

[axeman90210]

I'd say the Old Stock is worth trying, but if you have a bottle shop that sells singles just buy one. Last night I had a Terrapin Hopsecutioner (I let this get *way* too cold before drinking and I think that seriously messed with the hop flavors) and a North Coast Old Rasputin imperial stout, which was good but for the same price I'll take Brooklyn BCS every time. Tonight I'm working on an Oskar Blues Ten Fidy, which is a pretty damn solid RIS

[axeman90210]

spent 3+ hours tonight with a bottle of Ithaca Brute. It's a golden ale that they aged for months in oak barrels that were overrun with Brettanomyces (wild yeast strain). This bottle is from a batch that was released somewhere around a year ago, and given that the effect of brett only grows with age this one was tart, funky mofo of a beer by the time I cracked it tonight. The flavors were a bit harsh when the beer was fresh out of the fridge, but as it warmed everything smoothed out and I was left with one hell of a beer

[King Postwhore]

spent 3+ hours tonight with a bottle of Ithaca Brute. It's a golden ale that they aged for months in oak barrels that were overrun with Brettanomyces (wild yeast strain). This bottle is from a batch that was released somewhere around a year ago, and given that the effect of brett only grows with age this one was tart, funky mofo of a beer by the time I cracked it tonight. The flavors were a bit harsh when the beer was fresh out of the fridge, but as it warmed everything smoothed out and I was left with one hell of a beer

When you say 3+ hours do you mean a bit of cuddling, forplay and then a slow pour into a glass? 

[lonestar]

Seriously.  Three+ hours is a twelve pack of Bud to me.  I do appreciate your love of beer though, you sound like many of the wine snobs I come across in my line of work, but better, cause it's beer.

[King Postwhore]

Seriously.  Three+ hours is a twelve pack of Bud to me.  I do appreciate your love of beer though, you sound like many of the wine snobs I come across in my line of work, but better, cause it's beer.

You just redeemed yourself lonestar with the "cause it's beer" line.

[LudwigVan]

Whenever I come into this thread now, I feel ashamed to talk about the coronas and heinies I guzzled last nite.    I blame axe and king. 

[King Postwhore]

Whenever I come into this thread now, I feel ashamed to talk about the coronas and heinies I guzzled last nite.    I blame axe and king. 

  I still can't keep up with axe.  it is a bit expensive so I do buy the 12 pack on sale for $10.  Like Magic Hat or Long Trail, but they pale in comparison to the crafted beers.

[bout to crash]

$10 for 12 MH or LT?? And they are awesome beers 

[King Postwhore]

$10 for 12 MH or LT?? And they are awesome beers 

On sale this week at a local grocery store!!!

[bout to crash]

That's awesome... we just got the new MH variety packs in and my coworker put a case aside from me. Can't wait! I liked the Hex a lot at the factory and always happy to have the hIPA...

[axeman90210]

Seriously.  Three+ hours is a twelve pack of Bud to me.  I do appreciate your love of beer though, you sound like many of the wine snobs I come across in my line of work, but better, cause it's beer.

Part of it wasn't due to any kind of restraint, the beer was so tart and funky that it was impossible to drink it quickly. It's funny though, I just went back and read the first page of this thread the other day and it's awesome that you jumped from your regular Bud right up to a Pliny the Elder, a seriously hopped IPA, and loved it. If you were any other profession besides a chef I'm not sure that you would have enjoyed it

[bout to crash]

 

Just tried a River Horse Tripel Horse and at first I wasn't sure how I felt about it because it tasted too strong, but it grew on me and developed a very nice flavor. I don't drink much Jersey beer...

[axeman90210]

neither do I, but I want to try some Cricket Hill stuff because I think I'm going to enter their homebrewing contest this fall. Kept it simple tonight, just a Terrapin Hopsecutioner. It's not a bad beer, very good in some aspects, but the hop flavor is a little weak for an IPA. The bitterness is there, but the beer needs some more late or post boil hops.

[bout to crash]

I just tried that one like last week...

Btw, I went to BK to get my Magic Hat on the way home just now and everybody was outside because the power went out (wooo no traffic lights! chaos!) so no beer for Jackie 

[King Postwhore]

Well we had Bacon burgers last night with Shipyards Smashed Pumpkin Ale.  Axe, I know your not a big pumpkin guy but it is the top of the line best pumpkin ale I've ever had and someone else in our family agrees.

[axeman90210]

yesterday I mowed through some Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ales (forgot how tasty that beer is) and Brooklyn Lagers (just solid) with Jackie at Nick's. We also had a bottle of Jack D'or with dinner (*sigh* I miss Pretty Things). After the epic win that was Piranha 3D we went to a brewpub in Allentown where I had a hefeweizen (solid, but I just find that even good American craft brewers have a hard time doing this style as well as their German counterparts. Points though for serving it in an appropriate 23oz glass.) and an IPA called Hop Explosion, or something like that, that was very good (though not quite in the west coast style as advertized). Late dinner for me and then I think I'm gonna crack a Smuttynose Wheatwine to enjoy while I watch tonight's Mad Men

[King Postwhore]

I love the Smuttynose wheatwine. I haven't seen it in a few weeks around here.

[Jarlaxle]

LUCKY LAGER!!!

[axeman90210]

BUMP

nothing too crazy the last week or so. I was working on a sixer of Cricket Hill's Hopnotic English IPA for a while, it was pretty decent but I bought it mostly because the brewery is having a homebrew competition this fall that I plan on entering. I also picked up a six pack of Dogfish Head Indian Brown, which is just a damn tasty beer. I did get to try a bottle of the newest Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary collaboration beer, a black American Barleywine that had a great roasted malt flavor but was lacking a little bit in the hop department to live up to the barleywine billing (though it was still very good). I received a trade in the mail with 2(!) bottles of Russian River Supplication and some Bell's Expedition Stout that I hope to dig into soon, and I've got another one in the works for some new Terrapin beers.  I also ordered a bunch of homebrew stuff midweek, and should be working on a hoppy brown ale and an imperial stout soon enough.

[King Postwhore]

Last night my brother and I tried Samuel Adams Stony Brook Red (Barrel Room Collection).  We were realy impressed with it's tart fruits and a smooth taste to it. 

Then we tried Dogfish Head Theobroma.  this beer is made with honey, ancho chilies, annatto & cocoa powder.  The beer was very smooth and had a nice peppery finish to it.

[axeman90210]

I haven't had the Stony Brook Red, I think I only tried the Kriek (at a festival awhile back) and didn't much care for it. I would like to try that and the Tripel that are part of the Barrel Room Collection though, I'll have to snag a few bottles next time I'm up in Boston. I had a bottle of Theobroma last summer, and it was just a miss for me at that point. I'd be interested in trying it again sometime though, because my palate has been exposed to a lot more since I first tried it.

[King Postwhore]

I don't think the Theobroma is something that grabs you right away.  It's very subtle in it's flavor.  The Red barrel was very good for Sams.  I've always thought Sam Adams had been going downhill for a while.  While it's not a home run it is a lot better than anything they put out today.

[axeman90210]

hmmm, what have I had lately. My uncle gave me a Saranac summer 12 pack, unfortunately it's spent an entire summer (if not a year) sitting in his garage and the heat has totally ruined the beers and given them all a wet cardboard taste. I'll end up drain pouring them and harvesting the bottles for homebrewing. For the most part I've just been working through my sixer of DFH Indian Brown. When we were out to dinner the other night the waiter earned my ire by only giving me the shitty half of their beer list, and then after I settled for a Blue Moon I wandered over to the fridge by the bar and saw Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Torpedo, and Ommegang Abbey Ale... that stupid son of a bitch Last night I cracked my first ever Russian River Supplication (brown ale aged in pinot noir barrels with wild yeast and souring bacteria), which promptly began making love with my taste buds. Tonight me and my cousin unpacked a bunch of homebrewing supplies that came in the mail and are now splitting a bomber of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout (mmmmm, chocolate milkshake with a shot of bourbon dropped in). We'll be up early tomorrow to head into NYC on a beer buying/drinking trip

[King Postwhore]

That Goose Island Bourbon County Stout sounded delish!

[axeman90210]

my beerventure to NY was sabotaged by a bus driver strike that I didn't know was going on. Ended up going to a couple places local and picking up some good beer (both for me and for some trades) before my cousin and I split a bottle of Brooklyn Sorachi Ace over lunch. Contemplating what to start with tonight, possibly a Terrapin Rye Pale Ale

[axeman90210]

I did indeed start off with a Terrapin Rye Pale Ale (better than last time I tried it, still nothing mind blowing), followed by a Sierra Nevada Tumbler (new fall seasonal, just a great traditional, well crafted brown ale), and now am enjoying my first Dogfish Head Punkin Ale (only thing missing is a little bit more of a rich mouthfeel, otherwise it's straight pumpkin pie. This is definitely getting used for my pumpkin spice cake this fall). Probably going to call it a night after this one.

[King Postwhore]

I had two beers last night.  One was very disapointing.

  I'ts name is Brew Dog, Punk IPA.  It was the least bold IPA I have ever had.  It was smooth with not a hint of hoppiness at all. It's color wasn't even copper.  I could have sworn somebody drank it and poured a bud into it and re-caped it.  2 thumbs way down.

The second beer was much better.  It was from Longtrail and it was a brewmasters series. An Imperial Poter. 8.3% abv. A nice head to it.  A nice expresso flavor to it with a hint of hoppiness. A very nice porter.

[bout to crash]

Mmm, Long Trail Imperial Porter and RR Supplication.

Tonight I pick up Bitches Brew and have a listening/drinking party 

Bill, interested in a bottle? I probably won't need all ten...