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)
At 10pm on a Friday night, we're being real cool cats and playing Battlefield 2, probably against a bunch of pimple faced kids taking a break from World of Warcraft. But before I head to Bar Pico, we're celebrating our supreme awesomeness with a celebratory 17 Anniversary Barley Wine from Salt Lake based Uinta. I was 11 when their brewery opened.
When I say 'playing,' that's not what I meant. We're raging on them, spanking them like a bad child. Just dominating them...That makes us cooler, right?
There is a very light, but sweet caramel aroma from this 10.4% beast. The taste is the same but also with a nutty flavor. For a barleywine, the alcohol is hidden well. The flavor profile isn't raw and needing to be aged or rich and complex, but is rather very subtle and drinkable. It's very becoming of a barleywine, I must say. For the beginning of my Friday night, this is a pleasant start. TRANSFORMERS rating.
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
Can't believe I've put off both of these for so late in the year! It's time to clean out our hall closet to make way for our carboy, two buckets, two 5 gallon partial-mash coolers, and 5 cases of home brew plus another 4 cases of home brew that are currently fermenting and will bottle in the coming weeks. I will have before and after pictures tomorrow for now/below, feast your eyes on part of the after and the beer of the day.
Dogfish Head's 90min IPA is a phenomenal beer, rich, big bodied and perfectly hopped. How big a difference will 30 mins less of being continuously hopped make for Dogfish Head's 60 min IPA?
So the fewer 30 mins and lower alcohol/body found in the 60 min IPA does make a huge difference in quantity compared to the 90min. That being said, this still beats many, many IPA's out there. It's a great IPA and its drinkability is high. We originally bought a six pack and I could easily have drunk it all laying on the hammock that afternoon. Good thing I saved one for later! TRANSFORMERS rating
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.
Gotta love any NYC street art that promotes Stephen Colbert and the Colbert Nation.
After another monster of a night, which included making Chile Con Queso at 5am (obviously I'm surrounded by Texans), I'm ready to spend my last hour in NYC with a beast of an ale, Brooklyn Brewery's Monster Ale Barleywine. I've been saving this fella all weekend under Warren's desk so it won't be drunk by some hooligan (i.e. Walker at 5am) and now it's mine, all of it! To be fair, I bought Warren and his roommates one of the best beers in the world to try at the same time, a Rochefort 10.
Love these two cities...And a monster sized picture for a monster ale.
*I love me some barleywine and this fits the bill so far. It's well carbonated and a sweet mix of caramel and chocolate that has a bite to it. However, the sweetness is pretty raw and the alcohol is noticeable. It's a solid barleywine but needs to age. However, I bought this in a 4-pack and there are not many brews of this style that are produced large quantity. TRANSFORMERS rating.
Well staying up to dawn last night scrubbed any brunch plans, but it's okay, because we're gonna go straight into day drinking at the Brass Monkey in the Meatpacking district. Warren's friends were had already been partying for hours, so our group settled into a back booth and Warren regaled us with college stories as the Belmont Stakes unspooled in the background. In both instances, you gotta love Southern kids. Coming from Pepperdine, Dan and I had a muted fraternity pledging and experience, which made Warren's stories about pledges kidnapping active members and tying them to a light post at their rivalry's school along sorority row, that much more enthralling.
Brass Monkey to my great surprise has their own house beer, a red ale. I'd guess from it's smoothness and subtle caramel notes, it's an Irish-style red ale opposed to an American, but I could be wrong. Regardless, it's easy to drink but a rather simple, tasty beer. Perfect day session beer. TRANSFORMERS rating
After bidding goodbye to our friend Nichole who had to go work at Pop Burger, we set our sites on one of my favorite restaurants in NYC, Fatty Crab (menu).
Last last trip we had it to-go and the food was cold but excellent. Tonight the food was hot, spicy and fantastic. It's Malaysian food, a style of food my naive pebble of a brain didn't think could exist. Lots of spices and spicy sauces. Like a bastard child, I'm the only one in my family who can't handle spicy food and I was this close to spontaneously combusting, but I was still loving it.
Thankfully, we had at our disposal Recession Specials; a tall boy of PBR, a shot of Mr. Daniels, and a shot of spicy pickle juice, which killed the bourbon bite. Of course, the pickle juice further inflamed my scorched tongue, which I had to dunk with PBR. A viscous cycle.
Hopefully you can tell, but the bread/buns the sliders arrive in are amazing. That sauce pictures is sweet like eel sauce but with a different consistency and not as strong. Pretty sublime stuff.
Afterward, a nap and then hitting the Big Apple with my taller, blonder and bluer-eyed little bro, Warren D. Love'n life.
Good Beer NYC is a beer store and tasting room and is where I'm headed to meet Warren and Lorin, who both got out of work early. If I lived here and wanted to do a beer every day, Good Beer would be my Candyland. It's small space wise but filled to the brim with phenomenal brew from all corners of the globe.
It would be a contest between this and Beverage Warehouse in LA for beer supply supremacy. And you know who the real winner is? Heyyy, this guyyy.
The Bro's Dubya enjoying Dale's Pale Ale
Flights are ordered and from their roughly 10 taps, I choose 3 lighter beers I couldn't find on the West Coast, a Sly Fox Helles, Troegs Sunshine Pils, and a Left Hand Polestar Pils, and rounded out my foursome with a strong dark ale I can find anywhere but have never tried, Sierra Nevada's Bigfoot Barleywine. We add a golden goose to wrap up the tasting, a pint of Dale's Pale Ale.
I wasn't really impressed with any of my choices, but that was expected. Pilsners and Hells are simple and clean - perfect day drinking beers but not a style that will woo me. Lorin's future roomie who currently lives nearby, Stephanie joined us to hair of the dog her hangover.
After catching up with my friend and new friend, Lorin and Steph depart and Warren and I hobble back to the apartment. Warren is on crutches from an ankle surgery and I couldn't imagine canvassing NYC on four legs. Fortunately, we stop on the way back and pickup cookies and one of the more amazing dessert-edly delights I've tasted, a Cake Truffle. It's the most amazing funfetti birthday cake you've ever had, but in the palm of your hand. My inner fat kid is screaming!
Back at the homestead, I pop open one of the beers I bought at Good Beer, Dogfish Head Hellhound on My Ale. This beer was on my list of beers to drink in New York, and I'm relieved it was so easy to find.
There's such a rich mythology and purpose behind this beer that my words wouldn't do it justice, so here's what the brewer Sam Calagione has to say about it:
"2011 marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who, according to legend, sold his soul down at the crossroads in a midnight bargain and changed music forever. Working again with our friends at Sony Legacy (yup, the same folks we did our Miles Davis-inspired Bitches Brew with), Dogfish Head pays tribute to this blues legend by gettin the hellhounds off his trail and into this finely-crafted ale.
Hellhound is a super-hoppy ale that hits 100 IBUs in the brewhouse, 10.0 ABV, 10.0 SRM in color, and dry-hopped with 100% centennial hops at a rate of 100 kilos per 100 barrel brew-length. Can you tell we at Dogfish are stoked for this mighty musical centennial? To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the centennial hops (and as a shout out to Robert Johnsons mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson) we add dried lemon peel and flesh to the whirlpool."
My fraternity brother, good friend and Warren's current roommate, Dan, enjoying the Hellhound. Only Dan and his roommates would put a golf net in their NYC apt. instead of a table.
These Dogfish fellers are pretty wild. Their enthusiasm and passion for beer is inspiring. And fortunately, so is their beer. The alcohol is well hidden behind a sweet golden colored body and a very citrus flavor profile. As expected, it's intensely hoppy both in flavor and aroma. This is a wonderfully wild and zesty beer to drink, if only once. THE ROCK rating.
This was one hell of a day. I wake up early and successfully fly standby for an earlier flight, hoping to arrive in NYC at 7pm rather than 12am in order to spend time with the broham, the brosef, the hambone himself, my brother Warren. However, as we're about to land the plane starts dropping and jumping around, causing the woman next to me to start yelling and grabbing my arm. This is what happened next -
True story. So our approach is canceled and we're diverted out to sea, and about an hour later diverted into Atlantic City. At this point we're 2 hours late. To compound my woes, my phone's screen is broken and I have no way to contact my friends in NYC except my brother, whose number is the only one I have memorized. Long story short, we land in NYC after being on that damn plane for 9 hours, and I f*cking needed a drink. Fortunately I have the best brother in the world and he had a double shot of Maker's Mark and a Goose Island IPA waiting for me when I arrive five minutes to midnight - just in the nick of time!
Goose Island IPA upholds the Chicago brewery's golden standard. It has a light caramel malt that's sweet but makes room for the robust hops, which don't overwhelm the palate. This is a very drinkable IPA, a hoppy midwest session beer, and it's deserving of THE ROCK rating.
Afterward Warren and his two coworkers, Mike and Scuba Steve (pictured) head over to Pop Burger for some 1am brews and burgers. Warren's excited for me to try his favorite Barleywine, the Anchor Steam Foghorn, which is excellent. I'm excited to try the Brooklyn Chocolate Stout (amazing) and our lovely manager/waitress Nichole pushes the Brooklyn Local 1 & 2 on us. I'm an easy sell them all. The #2 is Belgian Strong Dark Ale and isn't quite as delicious as the #1, but you still can't go wrong with it. Warren has to be up early to trade commodities so we call it a night at 2am.
A burger so big I actually had to unhinge my jaws like a snake to eat it. Charming Walker, such a class act
A long, shitty day of zero drink'n ends with a burst of delicious brews from all over the U.S. Thank you brother and NYC for delivering, can't wait to see what the weekend entails!
Enjoying a big beer my last evening before I head to NYC. There's a rich caramel aroma as I pour this pooch out on the deck at day's end. Barleywines, my friends, are my kinda dogs. Will this brew be a yellow lab or a hairless chihuahua?
Hair of the Dog's other ales are named after people in either the brewing world or the owner's personal life - Ruth, Adam, Fred - you know, the type of four letter words one doesn't need to spell out in front of kids, like Love or Twat. So why not a name like something like Nick or Tedd for their Barleywine? Because at 11.5% alcohol and 70 IBU's, Fido here has claws.
There is a sweet, rich caramel flavor profile and a bold, unique hop flavor. The hops used are Simcoe, which typically departs a very bold and earthy flavor, and the Amarillo, which departs a very citrus flavor. They also used wild flower honey, which only helps the flavor imparted by the Amarillo hops. Right now the brew is tasty, but in another 6 months the hops will smooth out to make a more balanced barleywine. Still, I love in your face Barleywines and I'm looking forward to my next time with Doggie Claws. THE ROCK 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.
Tonight I'm brewing my 6th home brew in 7 months. The recipe is incredibly experimental and is inspired by a particular sweet I can't pass by, which are caramel on the inside with sea salt on top. The combination of sweetness and the salt creates a supernova of flavors. It's wild if you haven't tried it, you can probably find them in wine shops or Whole Foods.
I've never seen a beer like this and there is only style brewed with salt that I'm aware of, the German Gose. This beer is packed with caramel malts and dark brown sugar, then I'm adding sea salt at the end of the boil and crossing my fingers that it's the correct amount. I chose a Scottish pale malt as my base grain and I'm using a Scottish yeast, which will accentuate the malty flavors. Since smelling a beer will greatly influence the taste your beer, I threw in a gregarious amount of aromatic malt to bring out the salt and caramel aroma. Finally, the hop count is real low, which will exacerbate the caramel malt presence.
To be honest, those who have tasted all my homebrews agree that they would buy them again if it was sold in store, which is the ultimate litmus test. However, I'm nervous about this one. I haven't really screwed a brew up yet but this one could be the one. Welp, here's to being bold:
Hops: Kent Goldings (5.0%) 1 oz at 60 mins
Willamette (5.5%) .5 oz at 45 mins
Yeast: Wyeast 1728 Scottish Ale
Misc: 9 tsp of Sea Salt at 5 mins.
Instructions: Boil 1 gallon of the first runnings and add brown sugar. Add with the rest of the wort to cool in the fermenter.
Mash Efficiency set at 70%
Potential Alcohol 6.3%
19.4 IBU's
Color is 26 SRM (Dark Brown to Black).
*Keep reading and you'll discover why I don't have a starting Original Gravity, grrrr.
Three tiered brewing in action. You can see David in the background manning the caramelization pot on our open flame stove
The major difference between this partial mash brew and the last, is that the grain bill is 2.5 lbs more, around 8 lbs. This requires 4 gallons of water to mash at 158 degrees and another 7.5 gallons of water at 182 degrees to sparge. We use a 4 gallon pot for all of our boils. After the first gallon was taken out to boil to caramelize the wort, I filled up the 4 gallon pot really quickly. Suddenly I'm scrambling for pots.
This is when the circus came to town and this music started playing in my head:
So I'm running around the apartment, flipping open cabinets, the dishwasher and scrubbing off bowls from the Sunday bbq. I'm scrambling for pots and pans, anything that resembles a bowl. I literally use every pot we own and one of the bowls to catch the run off. I look ridiculous, David is shaking his head at me. Actually, he does it so often that I'm wondering when he'll start charging for chiropractic appointments. THEN, guess what happens? I have to boil all each and every pot.
I'm boiling on every heat inducing platform in our apartment. I'm pretty stressed here, but I also can't stop laughing at my naivety. I thought earlier today about getting a larger boil kettle, but my ADD mind shifted gears after I watched this entire video David sent me (start at 2 minutes):
So, I'm stuck boiling wort on 5 different pots in two different locations. At this point in the brewing process, I usually play video games for an hour, but instead I'm going back and forth checking for boil overs. Boo. We're going to have a huge electric bill from running four electric coils for over an hour and a half.
To shift gears, David suggests we pop open a small bottle of my Belgian Blonde, pictured above, which has only been in the bottles for a week. Usually I wouldn't even consider to open a beer this early, but I need something and at this silly point in my second partial mash, curious to try how my first partial mash finished.
Even though at a week early it's great! Citrus and apple flavors with a hint of sweetness and a dry bite belgian blonde bite. David says its better than my honey wheat, which is the highest compliment he could give it. I really appreciate that and it couldn't have come at a better time, as I rush to check on my pots.
Afterward, we uncapped our beer of the day from Iron Fist, which was brewed by a 21 year old kid. His Imperial Oatmeal Stout is phenomenal. I bought the Renegade Blonde at the brewery whilst we visited. It's a blonde ale that's created using Kolsch yeast. When I sampled it at the brewery, I thought he really nailed the malt. Tasting it here after my blonde, it's not nearly as scrumptious. It's crisp but also quite tart. ARMAGEDDON rating.
Long story short, the 5 gallons of boiling wort that I poured into my fermenting bucket took me two hours to cool down. Usually it takes less than half an hour. 6 hours after I started, I went to bed at 2AM. I was to tired to take the OG. This marks the first and last time I brew during the week. Also, the last time I brew without a 10 gallon kettle. I feel like most home brewers have stories from their rookie mistakes, and finally after my 6th beer I have something to share. Hopefully the brew will still turn out great!
Two years ago David, Nick and I went to the first LA Beerfest at Sony Studios (which has since turned into a shit-show) and amidst a hundred vendors, bumped into these two guys set up next to Fireman's Brew pouring two beers from "The Bruery."
I think the first beer we tried was either a Saison de Lente or a Rugbrod, but their second beer was a summer seasonal made with Thai Basil which was astounding. Our minds were blown and we had just crossed a threshold; in a very unlikely place we'd stumbled upon one of the best breweries in the U.S.
Since then, neither David or I have tasted Trade Winds - until today. And we have a growler of the stuff! Two years later and we're having a homecoming for our threshold beer to The Bruery.
The Bruery's brewers are Promethean with many if not most of their beers and this one is an excellent example. Who woke up at one day and said, "hmm, I'm going to make beer with basil, thai basil to be exact." Truly Amazeballs. The beer's base is a belgian golden ale, but instead of using candi sugar, typical for the style, they use rice in the mash to lighten the body and increase the gravity and then spice with Thai Basil. The result is a beer that is subtle and earthy, with a hint of spice from the Thai Basil, which is evident in the first sip. The result is a basic golden ale that's easily drinkable (too much so) and a complex flavor profile. Some might argue that this is like their Mischief, only better. For me, how can you pick between your two kids? Well, for my parents it's obviously me and not my brother Warren, but I made that easy. Here it's much more difficult :). BAD BOYS rating.
Melissa R, Nick G, Lisa, Jake, Jenny and Tiffany are coming over to eat and watch the 3rd game between Dallas and Miami. I'm using this excuse to do a flight of my homebrews, as everyone except David and myself haven't had all three of my beers.
I love this, because I'm able to stand up and give a spiel about how each brew was made, funny tidbits, and how clever I think the names are (self absorbed much?). To my surprise though, Heisenberg's Honey Wheat, a winner at previous parties, is not the leading man here. My first brew, King Moonracer's Revenge made with clove, probably got the highest all-around rankings. Lisa's favorite was King Moonracer, Jake's the Red Headed Step-Child (because you just can't beat it), and Mel's was the Honey Wheat. The super hoppy Double Dutch Rudder (a belgian IPA, a beer where two different styles rub off on each other) and one of my personal favs, Jake loves but is probably too hoppy for the ladies' tastes.
Overall, everything but the Mavs loss was a great success! This entire weekend was filled with beer and breweries and great friends - another stellar weekend thanks to beer!
Planning on having a little bbq tomorrow, so David and I grab Mark and Brennan to join our jaunt down to refill growler's at Bootleggers and The Bruery. I haven't been since February to either and after missing their 3rd anniversary party last weekend, I'm beyond titillated see what's on tap!
While David scopes out the Cuir for the first time, I'm pouring myself their new Provisions Series, the Bierbach. The Bierbach is an Imperial Miabock and the timing couldn't be better because I had my first maibock, a Hofbrau, exactly a week ago. I love how experimental The Bruery is, particularly how they're willing to make like Barry Bonds and 'roid up their beers. They doubled the alcohol for their Imperial Orchid Wit and here they clock in at an impressive 8.1%
And here's what The Bruery has to say about their latest and greatest:
"Meaning Beer Belly in German, Bierbauch is the Provisions Series ale for the month of May 2011, so of course we had to make a Maibock! And we're The Bruery, so of course we had to make it imperial! And why stop there when you can age it in oak barrels for a few months? The last strong beer you'll need before the heatwave of summer is upon us, this version of the traditional German lager is rich and oaky."
The oak barrels really come through in the smell and taste, in the best of ways. I'm starting to believe that for homebrewing and making high alcohol beers, using oak chips to sedate the aggressive alcohol flavors is key and the Bierbach is another excellent example. The Bierbach is a full bodied beer with a sweet bready malt with the floral notes, which are a welcome surprise. Yep, The Bruery has brewed another Provisions Series winner. THE ROCK rating.
We loaded up with more than we possibly needed, including 7 bottles of The Bruery's 3rd Anniversary 14.5% Old Ale, the Cuir. David and I each bought two to age and the rest are for friends. I plan on keeping at least one of the bottles for my 30th birthday, which is in two years (sweet Jebus did I really just say 30?).
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
Got a big night ahead! I left for Whole Foods with the Mavericks game in the toilet and I return with 1 minute left and the Mavericks have pulled it off! Hot damn! Time to celebrate their win and our 301st beer (since we didn't realize yesterday was 300) with a real treat from the one Trappist Brewery whose beers are hardest to find, Westvleteren - Westvleteren info (Lost Abbey Inferno post).
The Westie Blonde is actually the least sought after of this brewery's beers - although the other two are the highest rated beers in the world for their style Beer Advocate Westvleteren. It's kinda like the Emanuel brothers. Ari is the president of the second largest talent agency in the world and has a character based on him in Entourage; Rahm was the Chief of Staff for Obama and is now running for the mayor of Chicago; and Ezekial is the Director of the Clinical Bioethics Department at the U.S. National Institutes of Health and a leading proponent to legalize euthanasia. They are all leading men in their fields, but let's be honest, the Westie Blonde is probably an Ezekial Emanuel.
This lady is one smooth talking blonde who gets a little sassy as the night wares on. There is a malty sweet smell and I'm really enjoying the creamy, buttery and herbal flavor profile, but the grainy bite at the end jolts me. It's a grainy or clove like bite and it shadows my every sip. This is very well rated on every beer site, but the finish really nags me, like an itchy bug bite or a woman (winks). I want to say it's a Transformers rating, but I know that it's a Westie and other might enjoy it more than I, it gets a THE ROCK rating. However I personally wouldn't buy it again - not that I plan on going to Bruge anytime soon.
Next on the books is the great Sea Salt and Caramel experiment of 2011. I'm forging new ground with my next homebrew and so I need to test it. It's a wild recipe with a lot of new ground to cover. I have to reduce part of the wort to aid caramelization and then actually caramelize the brown sugar while I boil the wort for an extended time (90mins) - at least that's the plan. We'll see how it actually goes down.
The recipe is in the final stages of development and is go for brew this Sunday. It's based on these chocolate caramels that have sea salt on top, which explodes the flavor in your mouth. Love it. Here's my recipe: Savory Caramel Sea Salt
I'm testing how much salt should be used in the boil. Too little and I make an overly caramel beer, too much and I ruin it for everyone. I bought a can of caramel and dumped it in a specific amount of water in order to provide some flavor consistency, and then I'm adding sea salt at specific increments and tasting.
1/4 and 1/2 teaspoon yield nothing. 1 teaspoon we're getting there. 2 teaspoons and we've ruined it. This is a 2 quart batch and in 5 gallons there's 20 quarts, so we're multiplying by 10 and thus I'm looking to add 10 teaspoons to the boil. I'd rather go under rather than over. Another reason to test the salt now rather than later is, if I miss the correct salt amount in the boil, I can't add it when I bottle because salt de-carbonates beer. You've probably seen people add salt to beer at bars, particularly to Corona in the summer. That's why. Adding salt at bottling will make my beer flat. #notwinning
Tonight I'm also making a yeast starter for the brew, which is the easiest and quickest part of the process. My math is a little fuzzy, but each container has roughly 50 billion cells of yeast in it, and a yeast starter can double that amount. It's important to the fermentation process that there is enough yeast to eat the sugar. I think it's important to make one with any beer over 4% and more importantly, your beer will ferment faster, sometimes as soon as 4 -6 hours after pitching it. Party
Even though barleywines are one of my favorite styles of brew-ha-ha's, I wasn't aware tonight was our landmark 300th beer at the time of opening the Old Victory. If I had realized, I would've gone with the Lost Abbey Judgment Day or a Quadruple we have stored up. Maybe the Westvleteren Blonde. We'll properly celebrate tomorrow or Friday. Until then, apparently it's the right time to barleywine.
Old Victory Barleywine is surprisingly bitter, but not from hops, who are the usual suspects. David notes that it tastes malty without being sweet. Eureka, that's why it's bitter. Barleywines usually have a big caramel flavor that join forces with dark fruit and even unusual flavors like tobacco. Here, there is simply a big malt taste that expertly camouflages the whopping 11% alcohol and no residual sweetness.
I have the feeling that the brewers set out to make specifically this style of barleywine, one that hides the alcohol and isn't sweet. But to me this is the anti-barleywine. I enjoy barlreywines like Stone's Old Guardian or even The Bruery's Old Richland, to a lesser extant, that knock you in the teeth. I like barleywines the way I like my women; big, bold and complex with lots of daddy issues. If that sounds like you, call me, wink. This is a very subtle barleywine and although it's a well made beer, the style it's made doesn't appeal to me. ARMAGEDDON rating
