I’m a little behind on posting stuff here, so bear with me as I play catchup this week. At the beginning of every month, a bunch of friends from work and I meet up at a local BYOB and bring some new/interesting beers to try. This particular meeting was a long time coming, as weather and a hectic holiday schedule conspired to delay this session multiple times. We went to a different BYOB this month… it’s a legitimate restaurant, and thus the mood lighting wasn’t quite conducive to picture taking, but here’s what we brought (you can click for a larger version):
The theme this month was beers with a picture of an animal on the label, though there were a couple of non-qualifying beers. Conditions weren’t ideal, so no grades here, but I’ve included some thoughts on each beer:
- Jolly Pumpkin Bam Bière – My contribution to the theme went over pretty well, though it would probably make a better summer beer than a winter one. Still, it was quite refreshing, light colored ale with a little citrus. Again, would make a great summer beer.
- Ravenswood Zinfandel Vintners Blend – Technically, it’s “beer and wine” club, but I don’t really have a clue when it comes to wine. Still, this one was pretty good. Sweeter and less dry than I’m used to from a red wine, but whatever… Also, hard to see in the image, but the Ravenswood logo is awesome.
- Ballast Point Sea Monster Imperial Stout – I’d call this one an above average stout, a little more on the oatmeal side of things, and a good counterpoint to the other stouts people brought. I didn’t have enough to make a good judgement though, so it’s something I want to revisit at some point…
- Terrapin Hop Karma IPA – The first in a hoppy trio of beers from Terrapin, this one was interesting, but ultimately didn’t blow me away. Again, didn’t have a lot of this, so I should probably reserve judgement. Cool label though.
- Terrapin Rye Pale Ale – Seemed like a pretty standard, but well executed, Americal Pale Ale. Another cool label.
- Terrapin Hopsecutioner: Pretty standared IPA territory here, though I love the label on this one. Little guy looks like a TMNT.
- Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot – I’m going to review this one in detail at some point in the near future, so I’ll leave it at that. I’ll just say that it seems like a pretty good European style barleywine.
- Founders Breakfast Stout and Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout – I’ve already written about these before. Coffee drinkers seemed to like the Founders one better than me, though I don’t think anyone thought it was as good as BA says…
- River Horse Tripel Horse – I was looking forward to this, as River Horse is one of the few semi-local breweries I’m not that familiar with, and the Tripel is one of my favorite styles. However, I found it quite disappointing. I didn’t have a lot of it, but it didn’t seem much like a Tripel at all, and it had this strange kick to it that I’m having trouble remembering.
- Wintertraum Christkindles Gluhwein – Another wine. Sorta. Not sure how this is classified, but it was super-sweet tasting reddish wine. Not bad for what it is, I guess, but not really my thing either.
Another successful beer club! Like I said, not exactly ideal conditions for formal reviews, but a great time. The restaurant we went to was pretty good too. Not the best sushi in the area, but a welcome addition that didn’t break that bank. As usual, I’m looking forward to next month!