David and Walker are drinking a different beer each day* for an entire year, 365 beers in all, starting August 5th, 2010. We're writing about our daily regime to share the experiences and delicious discoveries with our friends and mild acquaintances to inspire YOU to bring previously unknown beers to your lips. (*limit one new beer per day consumed before midnight, no catch up days allowed)
With my brother Warren in town and me moving out of LA in 6 weeks (you
heard it here first), a trip to our favorite brewery The Bruery is in
order. I'm designated driver on the way back, so naturally I drink
several beers beforehand and plan to sober up while I'm at the brewery,
but nobody believes I will! I don't know what I could have done to give
them that belief...
After a detour to The Bruery Provisions store where Nick G, Warren, David, Aaron B, Jamie, Karl and his crew order some sampler plates and I stock up on beers from there store such as the Stone 15th Anniversary Imperial Black IPA, Iron Fist Velvet Glove and the brand new brew from The Bruery's Provisions Series, Snickelfritz, we're onto the main brewery.
Beer drinkers take blurry pictures. It's an occupational hazard
Upon arrival, I note a sign posted above the bar noting the Bruery produced 2500bbls last year - that's 31 gallons per 1 bbl - so 77,500 gallons. This year they produced 5000 bbls - 155,000 gallons - double! Wow. I've seen The Bruery in Chicago and New York, but I didn't realize until today after I asked the bartender, that this 4 year old brewery is in over 16 states. It's absolutely amazing. We started drinking their beer 3 years ago, and I suddenly feel like I've been at the epicenter of what will become one of the most renowned breweries in the United States. Bruery's a pretty damn special place. This will probably be my last time here which makes me sad - I might even miss the creepy babies hanging around here (Creepy Babies), so I'm buying a long overdue hat to keep me company in San Francisco.
The one beer I am going to have today is their seasonal Black Orchard Wit. The style is unique and I've never heard of a black belgian wit bier. It's 5.7% and chamomile is added for the aroma. This could be really amazing or Patrick Rue's day dream gone wrong, what will it be?
The flavor profile is fascinating and delicious, a subtle dark roast bitterness at the beginning that fades as the sweet belgian wit and spice (coriander and orange peel) subtle kick in. I'm going to use that word again because I don't know how else to convey this beer; it's so subtle. As far as unusual styles go, this is up there. I feel like the Bruery pulled of a hat trick here, combining all these ingredients to make a smooth and delicious brew. At the end of the day, we had already filled up our 3 growlers for the party at home with Loakal Red, Mischief, and Snickelfritz, when David walked away from the car and back into the brewery. He returned sometime later with a newly purchased 4th growler full of the Black Orchard. He bought (a probably unnecessary) 4th growler just to make sure we had more of the wit to drink this week because it was that good. A true gauge to the tastiness of any beer is the length a person will go to find and drink it. I think the 4th growler speaks to the power of this beer. BAD BOYS rating.
We're about an hour away from the crush of people coming to the Beer Every Day Great Success Party. David cracks open our last beer, the highest rated beer in the world, the Westvleteren 12, a quadruple. I'll let the video do most of the talking.
It really is the smoothest quadruple, at 10.2%, I've ever had. There isn't a whole lot of complexity, but jebus it tastes so good and smooth. BAD BOYS rating, obviously. I'm a little high on the excitement right now, I can't believe this milestone is happening.
A cookie and a cake, the best of both worlds. THANKS TIFFANY!
A lot of people didn't think we would actually drink a different beer every day. Most thought there weren't that many beers available, to which I respond with:
or:
I don't really blame them for thinking this, it's a huge commitment and required focused dedication. And let's be honest, my longest relationship with a girlfriend is 6 months. 3 years ago. This year has doubled my longest relationship and guess what baby? It's still go'n strong. So whoever out there thought that I would date someone for a year before I drank a beer for a year, you obviously didn't realize I had my priorities straight. Zing.
A few people I'm especially thankful for, who experienced so many of the beers with us, are Karl, Tiffany, and Nick G. You guys were incredible this year and I am so proud and thankful that you are my friends. Karl is the most mentioned person on the blog besides David and is tagged in over 40 posts, nearly 1/9th of the beer we had this year, which if you consider the number of nights David and I were sitting in our apartment or having beers across town or countries from each other, incredibly impressive.
And, if I can toot my horn for a minute, I'm freaking damn proud that I've written about each and everyone one of these beers. Half of life, some people say, is just showing up. Well I showed up, drank a beer, and then chronicled my experiences. Too-tooot.
Having a blog is a lot of work, but it's also immensely rewarding. 14 months ago I had never thought I would be a blogger, but I really encourage everyone if that have a passion, to write about it. Take a picture every other day. Express yourself. Even if you don't share the blog, just go online and write about anything and everything, your life will change for the better. Anywho...
THE PARTY
So for our party, Karl orchestrated a blind tasting of five different beers from the year for David and I to compete with. I'll let the video I put together tell the tale of that and the overall party. About 25 people came to celebrate and celebrate we did. The evening was an amazing way to end an incredible year. I joked the next day with David, that even though we just finished drinking a every day for the last year, apparently, we can still party.
I'm going to post in the forthcoming weeks additional posts describing my year and what it meant to me. In the meantime, I put together a video slide-show of photos created from freeze frames in the 60 minutes of footage to hold you over in the meantime until I can edit the film down to an viewable duration.
This was an incredible year, thank you following along!
Slide-show below:
Tomorrow, David is going to take his first day off in 365 days from drinking a different beer, but I plan on continuing the experience until I reach a nice round number, maybe 400 or 425. And after that, I will absolutely still be reporting on beers and experiences. I can't just get enough.
Also, subscribe to the RSS feed above,or like our page on Facebook (to the right) to receive posts as soon as they are published.
Frequent collaborator Karl celebrates his birthday today and in case you forgot who this classy gentleman is and whether he likes cheese, below is a subtle reminder:
At The Daily Pint, I order a pint of a black IPA, a very different style that I'm considering home brewing. I've tasted a few along the way, Deschutes Hop in the Dark was the first and by far the best, but the rest have been a mixed bag. Will my 348th beer of the year be delicious and help me destroy Karl at Foosball on his berday?
Me thinks so. Poured a two finger head out of the tap and has a rich roasted aroma that's enticing. It has a medium bodied consistency, less than a Guinness. The taste is a great combination of roasted malts with a hoppy kick at the end. It's pretty malty up until the hops kick in, which I enjoy but it doesn't make the beer much of an IPA and is more along the lines of a hoppy Black Mild. Potatoe, Potatoo I suppose. The main problem in creating a black IPA, is mixing the hop bite with the bitter roasted malts, and Lagunitas solved the problem by creating a malty IPA, and I'm enjoying it.
I also enjoyed beating Karl for second time by 1 point! CLUTCH CITY. TRANSFORMERS rating.
Every once in a while, a bad apple comes along - a 'corked' wine bottle, a lemon car, the latest carnation of the Hawaii 5-0 televisions show. The beer world is not immune to failure and in pouring Iron Fist's Golden Age, David and I realized that at some point, this beer had crossed over from being a delicious and refreshing treat to something that needed to be poured out.
It's 9.5% alcohol but the only defining characteristic is an overwhelming yeasty flavor. David looked up other reviews and confirmed our suspicion that it was a bad bottle, because this brew had solid reviews and fail to mention yeast. Bad batches happen from time to time. This was especially hard to drink entirely because the yeast flavor Dominated. Yuck. TRANSFORMERS 2 rating.
But I'm not letting a bad beer get in the way of a good time, because David, Karl and Laura are all going to The Hollywood Bowl to watch Hall & Oates belt out their smooth and easy sounds. Take me away Daryl!
If there is one thing Karl and Laura know how to do, it is picnic the Hollywood Bowl. They brought 5 different kinds of cheese, 4 different kinds of deli meat, baguettes and 2 types of crackers. Combined we had 4 bottles of wine, a bottle of Bruery Mischief and a bottle of port. We picnic'd the hell out of that place.
Here is Maneater, which was the best quality video I took. The saxophone player just kills it and women who loved saxophone players who look like Meatloaf with a pony tail were SWOONING:
Afterward, the Hollywood Orchestra, led by their hilarious conductor, closed the show down playing patriotic tunes with choreographed fireworks. Ahhhmazing. Probably one of the best nights of my year! Lovin it
At the Daily Pint for a free Scotch tasting from Glenross and it's packed! But there's no better place to wait than a pub with Foosball and shuffleboard.
Tasting was interesting and we learned about the process of Scotch, which is similar to beer brewing in several respects. Afterward I ask for a new beer on tap from New Belgium Lips of Faith series, a Super Cru.
The Super Cru is a 10% Belgian Strong Pale Ale but the color is amber and more akin to a Belgian Abbey beer. This beer is unbalanced with an odd mix of sweetness and fruitiness that sweep through a boozy body. All this is probably a product of a Belgian and Saison yeast mix, and while I appreciate the effort, it didn't quite come together. ARMAGEDDON rating.
We bought Port Brewing's 5th Anniversary Ale during our San Diego trip (a month later we're still drinking off what we bought there). I love anniversary beers because brewers pull out all the stops for them. It's their guilty pleasure beer. The Bruery has a 14.5% Old Ale aged in oak barrels that's mixed in with previous anniversary batches. Port Brewing has a 10% Double IPA for their anniversary beer, and judging from the comments on beeradvocate, they're only getting better with age. Anniversary beers are absolutely gratuitous, usually ridiculous and always delicious, so on behalf of everyone, YUM and THANK YOU.
Bought this gem in NYC at the Union Square Park
The label calls it a Hop Monster. But the first sip tells me it's not a Bigfoot-type monster, but more a Godzilla-type beast. The 5th Anniversary is a full bodied golden ale that is hopped to the extreme. The hops are raw, grassy, even minty and stick to your tongue. You can taste the 10% alcohol as it finishes but up until then, it's a hop show. I love it, but it's definitely overwhelming. It's like a supercharged Stone Ruination - and do you know why they call it a ruination? - because it's so hoppy that it ruins your palate. If your a hop-lover, buy this at Whole Foods before they run out. BAD BOYS rating.
With brewing equipment strewn around the apartment - under the living room table, in David's room - and five cases of beer stacked in my room with an additional four cases currently fermenting (we'll have over 108 22oz bottles by July 4th for those at home counting), I decided Tuesday night it was high time we had a beer closet. There was just one problem with the closet available -
There was a little game I liked to play with the hall closet called, "Don't hit me in the face." See, I had something I needed to store in the hall closet, so I'd open the door real slow, and if nothing fell then I'd toss the object to the top of the stack and shut the door real quick. Problem was sometimes, whatever I threw up there (see above kickball) wouldn't like his new accommodations and felt the need to escape; usually landing on my face. Ha-haa I'd say to the hall closet, real funny asshole. Boy it loved those games...
When I told my dad about my predicament, he told me about a radio and tv show he grew up listening to with a running gag.
When we move out of our apartment, I'll wag my finger at the hall closet and say, "gee whiz, we sure had some good times. And by we I mean you."
Tuesday night I threw everything out on the ground, covering the living room floor. Through a little black magic of my own, I reorganized David's walk in closet to fit most of the material (David's due for a surprise when he returns from San Francisco tomorrow), stuff a couple things behind the washing machine and give a few items away. Tonight I ran to Home Depot for a shelf and then after a paint job, the closet has a miraculous makeover -
Think the space needs a beer poster, don't you?
I might just start calling it the Miracle in the Marina. Thanks to our brewing passion, the apartment is considerably more organized - except behind the washer.
"To alcohol, the cause of and solution to, all of life's problems" Homer Simpson
Meeting Karl for a $5 burger and a beer at Whole Foods after work. Wine is 1/2 off on Mondays so his glass is only $2 bucks, and it ain't now two buck chuck. I chose a Beer Valley Leafer Madness, a brewery named after a magical Shangri-La where the beer flows like wine.
It's a 9% Imperial IPA, which puts the beer in the same league as Sierra Nevada's Hoptimum. It's super bitter, filled with grassy hops like the Green Coast IPA. They didn't pull any punches here, this is like a wacked out of his mind Mike Tyson.
Karl and I disagree here, because I'm not a huge fan but he believe it's excellent, far better than the Hoptimum and I disagree. The Hoptimum hid the alcohol well and the hops hit you but didn't knock your teeth out. It was subtle but powerful. This is simply a difference in style, whether you enjoy a very raw IPA or something a little bit smoother. For me, it's the later but if you enjoy the former, check this feller out. ARMAGEDDON rating.
Karl picked this gem up in Bruges because he'd never seen the Grand Cru from this Saint, and because he knew this ceramic bottle wouldn't break in his luggage. Smart man that Karl and an incredible friend for bringing 4 beers back from Belgium just for us.
It's a pretty smooth and light for a 7.8% beer. It's crisp with a bit of that Belgian Blonde sharpness. Karl believes this to be pretty tasty and I agree. It's smooth and easy with an edge at times; this would be Van Morrison singing 'Jackie Wilson Said,' if it 'twas a song. TRANSFORMERS rating.
Small update, David insisted I open up a bomber of my Belgian Blonde for Karl to try, since the small bottle last night proved excellent. Unfortunately the bigger bottle hasn't carbonated yet. Still good but nearly as crisp. Will have to put this back on the shelf for a week. If St. Sebastiaan was incarnate, his royal monkness would tell us to be patient. Lesson learned.
Forgoing our usual Friday excursion to the Surly Goat, Tiff and I head to a particularly special tasting at the Venice Whole Foods. Every Friday they do tastings but since December I've been haunting the Goat on Fridays. Tonight though, Whole Foods is serving 6 different barrel aged beers, and all are made with big, delicious complex malt bills and are over 10% alcohol. Old Ales, Imperial Stouts, Barleywines and DIPA's, I'm looking forward to these heavyweights. Looking back on my notes from the tasting, the degree of detail declines rapidly after each tasting. HA, I wonder why...
Our first pour is a Great Divide Double IPA that is the only beer aged with oak chips, not barrels. It's a measly 10% alcohol. The smell doesn't correspond to taste, which smells like a Rose wine. The hops and alchol join forces and my sips finish sharply with a punch. The oak is evident, but it's an almost experimental mix of flavors. A good beer but my least favorite out of the other heavyweights.
Mikkeler, as our pourmaster Super Mike informed us, was a "gypsy" brewer who traveled from brewery to brewery making different batches of goodness. He must be some badass to make a living that way. I've seen his bottles but never knew his story or tasted the fruits of his labor. Brewdog is a very well known Scottish brewery. Together they made the Devine Rebel, which is a 12% Barleywine. It is sweet, alcoholic and rich with a light caramel undertone. I love this brew and would give it a Bad Boys rating if I was counting it as today's beer. Tiff loves it as well.
Allagash Curieux is an 11% Belgian Tripel, based on the same recipe we tasted as our first beer, but the Curieux is aged with bourbon barrels. I'm tasting the bourbon as it finishes, giving us a gentlemanly kick out the door. As the beer warms, the bourbon kicks becomes less gentlemanly kick and more a boot by a bouncer who's girlfriend you just kissed. It's a mix of two worlds and an interesting beer to try but not to sip on again, although I do hope to properly review it soon. For Tiff, the bourbon flavor is overwhelming and I see that being a problem for people who don't fancy bourbon as much as I do.
North Coast Old Stock Cellar Reserve aged in Bourbon Barrel. That name illustrates how you announce a beer with authority! This is an Old Ale, like Hair of the Dog Adam and Bruery's Cuir, both of which are two of my favorite beers. Old Ale's are rarely made but are strong in alcohol and embody a wild spectrum of flavors not often found in beer (like leather and molasses). With this Old Stock, there is a wild bourbon smell and a rich caramel flavor notes. This is incredibly rich and complex, and the bourbon adds an even higher level of complexity which makes it the stand out thus far. 13.7% alcohol too! There is just a syrupy flavor that tickles my soul.
Practicing our portrait pose
Karl joins us for a late glass and already aware of the Old Stock, receives a big glassful. He's somersaulting over this beer as well. It's damn amazing. Turns out, it's rated in the top 5 for the Old Ale style. Karl and I both discuss buying a bottle but choose to hold off. BAD BOYS rating.
The Bush de Nuits is pourmaster Mike's favorite out of the group. It's 13% too and isn't as complex as the Old Stock but is sublimely smooth. Different but just as amazing as the Old Stock.
The Older Viscosity David and I counted it during our trip to San Diego. Pourmaster Mike has been pumping everyone else up all night about it, saying "it tastes like motor oil!"
If motor oil actually tasted like this then I'd be dead for motor oil poisoning. Also fortunately, I think they're both out of my price range: http://www.beereveryday.com/2011/05/san-diego-brewery-trip-sunday-and-port.html
I'm at The Other Room with Karl and we're killing time until David and Nick G are able to join us to kill a growler of Iron Fist and hopefully some ice cream, which if they don't eat, will eventually turn my inner fat kid into an outie. In the meantime, I'm surprised to discover I've unfortunately covered a good portion of The Other Room's beer menu, and I'm settling down on the fairly easy to find Anchor Steam Porter.
Anchor Steam's brewing process, is called steam brewing, and during the first half of last century, it was pretty common on the West Coast, but now Anchor steam is the only company which still brews in this manner. The result, if you've ever had an Anchor Steam, is a creation similar to a fruity Sierra Nevada.
Accordingly, the Anchor Steam Porter has very dark fruit notes that are unique to the porter style. Porters are known for their roasted and toasted malts - chocolate, nutty flavor notes. The steam process has really differentiated this porter from others in the style. While unusual, I like it. It's a drinking porter and perfect for summer. TRANSFORMERS rating.
Back at the homestead, we open Iron Fist's Velvet Glove, which I've had before as the beer of the day and scooped some ice cream (Velvet Glove is pretty heavy). This beer is just phenomenal, and with ice cream it's like chocolate alcohol syrup. It's so good I had seconds of both, just to enjoy the pairing.
Nick G also brought over some Gunga Galunga, one of David's favorite beers, made with ginger and named after a Bill Murry line from Caddyshack. Could it get any better? Only by sharing it with great friends like Karl and Nick G. Freaking great guys night of drinking and non stop laughter.
Karl and David arrive baring In-N-Out, which I graciously consume after having a shoddy day. I'm moderately surprised they splurged on the delicious burgers, and they reveal that not only did David have a shitty day, but so did Karl as well as his wife Laura after she was stuck at the DMV all day. I coincidentally had my own problems with the DMV as well, but more on that later.
There's been a lovely lady wandering around our apartment and it's now time to taste her offering. I can't tell if that sounds like prostitution or human sacrifice, either way come! We're beer drinkers here in the marina, not Pirates or Mayans. Any brew from Goose Island gets our hearts fluttering and the Sofie is no exception.
It's listed on the bottle as a Belgian, but beeradvocate describes it stylistically as a saison and I agree with them. It's a Belgian style ale made with orange peel and aged in wine barrels. This process creates a golden ale with a very strong flavor profile including fruit, banana and citrus, making it more akin to a farmhouse saison than a golden belgian. Karl says it seems more alcoholic than its actual 6.5%. I wonder if that's a result of the wine barrel aging. If you like saisons or white ales, you would love this. Girls especially, who might be turned away because it says Belgian style, might dig it. THE ROCK rating.
My problem with the DMV began when I went to renew my license today. After making an appointment and going in, I was informed that I had a "Failure to Attend" (FTA) a trial and "Failure to Pay" from a traffic violation in 2006. I've only been pulled over once for having Texas plates while in California. I changed my plates and registration and paid my ticket...or so I thought. An FTA is a misdemeanor and stay on your record for 5 years AND they release a bench warrant when it's issued. If you're pulled over by the police for anything, they can haul you in before a judge and make you pay. So I'm freaking out a little after this. They irony is, I've been driving like a maniac the last 5 years and until I resolve this, I'm more nervous than a virgin on prom night
I'm writing this postscript - I went on Tuesday to the Beverly Hills Courthouse and they let me know that I wasn't going to pay $850, like the poor sob in front of me who was in a similar situation, or go before a judge. It was a clerical error, hooray! There was a mix-up between the courthouse and the DMV because I originally had a Texas license. Jesus, come on peoples! What a pain in the ass. Anyway, problem solved.
Sometimes you can do everything right and still get run around the block. Ah life, such a mysterious fig.
Our good friend and frequent drinking collaborator has brought back the Holy Grail of beers from his European trip, The Westvleteren 12 (and his two brothers). It is quite simply the highest rated beer on any beer review site Beer Advocate. Why is this such a HUGE deal? Why does we love Karl so much right now (as always)? Because it's virtually impossible to buy this beer in the United States.
I'm not yanking your chain. The abbey monks only brew a finite amount of beer per year (a number that hasn't changed since the 1946) and the demand is so high, they don't allow wide distribution of the beer. Karl had to rent a French car and drive out to the abbey in order to buy a case of the stuff. Sales are limited to one order a month per person per license plate and phone number and they only distribute a few days a month. They only make 60,000 cases a year. From Wikipedia:
"Buyers of the beer receive a receipt with Niet verder verkopen ("Do not resell") printed on it. The abbey is very much against resale of their beer, and it is their wish that the beer is only commercially available at the two official sale points. To this end, any Westvleteren beer which is sold anywhere else in the world is grey market beer, as no wholesalers or pubs are supplied with the beer... In an interview with The Independent, monk Mark Bode explained that the abbey had no intention of increasing its production, despite demand: "We make the beer to live but we do not live for beer."
Can you imagine how sad we would be if Karl wasn't able to return with this rarity? Well, there was a close call during Karl's flight back. The windows were frosting up and Karl was worried there would might be catastrophe occurring in his luggage below. The luggage he received was soaked through. SHIT. Please be a Blonde, don't be a #12, please be a blonde, please be a blonde (not the first time you've said that, eh Karl?). Unfortunately, a beer had exploded. Fortunately, it was a blonde. Hip hip hooray! God was smiling upon Karl that day.
We're still contemplating whether we'll taste this next week or at the end of the year in celebration. In the meantime, how does the highest rated beer in the world taste to Karl? He describes it not as a mind-blowing/reality shattering beer, but it is the perfect execution of a belgian quad. As always, Karl is very eloquent and dead-on in his critique, and it serves as a very good reality check for something so highly revered and rated. Without knowing this, I would drink the beer with exorbitant expectations and I'm glad Karl steered my away from the mindset.
While Karl regaled us with stories of his travels to Paris, Bruges, and London, we thought it fitting to open a bottle of Belgian Strong Ale we bought during out San Diego trip, the Lost Abbey Inferno.
So many Belgians, so little time...
Karl's stories included drinking a Westvleteren 8 for breakfast, a Westmalle Trappist for lunch and a Rochefort 10 for dinner - some of the world's greatest beers, all for under 4 Euro. Ridiculous. He spoke of the picturesque scene in Bruges, wine festivals in Bordeaux, crepes in Paris and schwag parties in London. Thanks Karl, for proving how awesome you are, can we drink some beer yet?
Lost Abbey was a brewery David and I weren't in love with before our San Diego trip, but we returned enthusiastic supporters. The Inferno smells and tastes like spicy yeast, bread and apples. The flavor is a strong golden ale with spicy notes and a bitter aftertaste. David compares it to Duvel but with an imperfect finish. The Inferno is a beer with character and I'd love for my daughter to marry him, but I'm not going to invite my the guy to poker night. TRANSFORMERS rating.
I tend to stay away from Lagers on this beer quest, but you know the saying, when in India...
Karl and Laura have searched LA high and low for the finest Indian food and Jaipur is, as Beck says, where it's at. I've tasted the fruits of Jaipur and upon the completed meal, my rotund belly let me know it was AMAZING. The Chicken Tikki Marsala, Lamb Korma, and Tandoori Chicken was phenomenal. I know that David didn't like Indian food before Karl took him here but he's a changed man because of it. So if you're in LA, check this place out Jaipur. AND I finally discovered what the hell a Tandoori is, horay!
To cool off the spicyness, Karl and I utilizing his favorite Indian brew, the Taj Mahal Premium Lager. Apparently, Indians have beat America to the punch in the realm of whoring out national landmarks to sell beer. I never thought this day would come.
However, not to vilify ourselves, the quote of the night comes from Laura who exclaimed confidently in response to the shenanigans of Karl and I that, "We're all shady people." Touche miss. She knows all too well.
The Mahal de Taj is pretty tasty. I would put it above any mass produced American Lager. It's crisp, creamy, and has a touch of fruit flavor. It pairs wonderfully with the native food. TRANSFORMERS rating.
Afterward, Library Alehouse had a special Belgian beer night where they were giving away glasses with the purchase of specific brews, including Kwak. David was practically frothing at the gash for a glass for whatever reason (he didn't know they looked like a novelty margarita glass you buy at a baseball game) so I met Tiffany and her friend Tyler who were holding down the fort at the Alehouse all night. Thanks to Tiff, David now has his Belgian Margarita Glass. Parrrrtayy.
This is the granddaddy, the Big Kahuna, the 2nd not fully operational but secretly operational death star whose shields are still up. Karl and David have built up to a very high level of expectation. I actually wish they would've oversold the damn thing because the Rochefort 10 would still surpass any description they could give.
Last week we tasted the Rochefort 6 and 8 and they were pretty blissful. The 10 follows their tradition; it's sweet, rich and not as heavy as a what I'd think an 11% would be. It's so easy to drink! I'm not sure how else to describe this other than its divinely made. I'm slobbering all over the couch like a bulldog. I'd like drink a sixer of these, but at 11% I'd be out of my mind.
YOU MUST try this beer if you've never had one. BAD BOYS rating.
Karl asks this question, "What other 11% beer, or beer in general, tastes as good as this? You'll be hard pressed to find one."
Nick G, David and I did this beerfest two years ago and it was a wildly fun. Karl did it last year and enjoyed himself. Nick G gave up booze for lent so right now only Karl, David and I are standing in a massively long line. Massive. We're thinking it won't compare to the last beerfest we attended in October LA Beerfest at Union Station but we're pretty certain that it will take less than the three hours allotted to us to drink our $40 tickets worth. We're meeting up with a group of people including Kenny, our accomplice from the above mentioned beerfest, and Yooner.
As I enter the gate the security clicker counts me off as #1634 out of 2500 for the first three hour tasting. Madness (2nd one is from 5-8pm). I went to the port-o-potties and opened the first green door and walked right in on an older lady doing her business. She screamed and I yelped. From the very beginning I knew this whole thing was gonna be a...shit-show. zing
Also, Snoop Dog was there:
Kenny looked good in more ways than one. CHOMP
And there were seriously a billion people. This shot is just of the back area.
We charged pretty hard out of the gate. Karl and I counted 10 or 11 pours/tastings within the first half hour, which is a little under 4 beers. I stopped counting after that because I ran out of fingers.
There were two really strong standouts for the day. One of our first beers was the Gordon Imperial Red, which came in a can! David and I are big fans of imperial red ales and this was no exception. Even though we may be able to find this in the store, this brew demanded our attention. It's light and creamy with a sweet caramel flavor. It's really smooth and clocks in at 8.7%. And it's from a can! Holy smokes. THE ROCK rating.
The welcome surprise for the afternoon was an upstart brewery call Cosmic Ales. They're brand new and don't have serious distribution for their brews yet, so if you are looking for a new brew in your bar check them out here, because they caught peoples' attention at beerfest Cosmic Brewery. David and I are in joint agreement on our dislike of brown and amber ales. However, David tracked me down through the madness to tell me I had to try their Brown Ale. The two fellows behind the table were incredibly friendly and enthusiastic about their product. I could tell they were simply excited to spread their passion to others and it was infectious.
The Brown Ale has 36 IBU and is 5.3% and whatever other brown ales you like are but mere shadows compared to this cosmic goodness. Living in LA, you see the ocean very often and you become used to it. But every once in a while you see the waves and suddenly it's like see the water for the first time. That's how it was for me tasting this brown ale. I saw the style in an entirely new light, what they could be. I wish these guys the best of luck in the future and will try to spread the word to the Surly Goat and other places I frequent.
I have a soft spot in my heart for anything Ninkasi brews.
Overall, what I expected to happen, happened. Everyone got "overserved" by the beer servers and became really happy and had a great time. We ran into an old college Caroline Heart, which was a delightful surprise. It was indeed not as delicious as the Union Station beerfest but it was just as fun.
Here are some random pics from the day, enjoy!
Sony Studio ain't a bad place to cut loose
Kenny and crew
Squinty Christian Bale made an appearance
You really thought we were gonna stop after the beerfest?
Karl is over again two nights in a row (Karl's presence is always a pleasure, never a chore) to drink beer 2 of 3 from Rochefort, the 9.2% alcohol Rochefort 8.
Only the best company for my new book
The 8 is simply a bigger bodied and badder version of the 6. It's hard to explain but it's even though the 8 is essentially the same beer as the 6 - only bolder - somehow the additional alcohol and body make a huge difference in flavor.
Another interesting note is that I can taste the alcohol. Usually I take points away for not masking the booze, but here it's not a bad thing. Because both beers are so smooth, the alcohol adds an edge to the 8 that the 6 didn't have and I dig it. It's like after I grew a beard, people actually notice me. It's probably because I'm so dark and mysterious...but it's more likely because I look like the Brawny Man in my plaid pearl snap shirts. And I'll take it! I mean, have you seen Ax Men on Discovery Channel? BAD BOYS rating.
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So I ordered two beer books from Amazon last week, and one of them was the Designing Great Beers textbook (as I'll call it). It's marks the next step forward in my burgeoning home brewing experience. I received it today and I've already poured through a decent hunk of the material and it's pretty fascinating. The author breaks down the science of brewing, which wasn't my forte, because I'm more of a history guy, but I plan to make an exception. Karl joked that if I applied as much effort to studying beer as I did studying in college, I wouldn't currently be such a waste of space / bum. Dammit, Karl's always right.
This book, I think, will radically challenge what I perceive to already know about brew and about what beers I want to make in the future. Time to dive in get serious about this stuff.
