Victory

Victory Dry Hopped Prima Pils

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I still remember my first trip to Victory Brewing Company in Downingtown, PA. I was already a big fan of Hop Devil IPA* and Golden Monkey, but a visit to the brewery promised all sorts of new, unfamiliar beers to explore. I distinctly remember looking up their taplist online and running that up against ratings on Beer Advocate. I know, I know, ratings are dumb and the people who rate things on the internets are dumb and only dumb people think they are meaningful and I’m the worst, but this was like, well over 15 years ago and I didn’t think a bunch of pseudonymous strangers from the internet would steer me wrong.

Anyway, it looked like the best rated beer that was available on tap during that first visit was Prima Pils. I was incredibly disappointed. It tasted kinda like the dreaded Bud/Miller/Coors that was an anathema to beer dorks of the time. Obviously everyone hates the corporate behemoths for their size and abysmal business practices, but at the time, it was even just the flavor of their bland fizzy yellow stuff that people didn’t like. It was a sorta (over)reaction to the ubiquity of these bland macro lagers. Not that Prima Pils is bland, which is where we’re headed here, but there’s a reason the craft boom was fueled by IPAs and other flavorful brews.

Since then, I’ve had that lager revelation and no longer associate that sort of flavor profile with the BMCs of the world. Prima Pils and Braumeister Pils have become some of my favorite go-to pilsners and probably the sort of thing people in this area forget about too often. In other words, way back when, a bunch of strangers on the internet actually did steer me to the right beer, I just couldn’t recognize it at the time. We all live and learn.

Last year, Victory ran a series of small batch beers, and among them was a Dry Hopped version of Prima Pils, using Motueka, Vic Secret, and Galaxy to put a new spin on an old beer.

Victory Dry Hopped Prima Pils

Victory Dry Hopped Prima Pils – Pours a clear, almost radiant bright straw yellow color with a few fingers of fluffy white head, good retention, and lacing as I drink. Smells nice, the dry hopping contributes IPA-like aromas of tropical fruit, mangoes, pineapple and the like, a hint of the more underlying herbal, floral character too. Taste features more of that pils base, but it’s got a bit of that bright citrus character from the nose too. The normal bread and cracker pilsner character is there, but this has certainly got the hoppy bite of a pale ale or IPA. Mouthfeel is light bodied, crisp, and refreshing, certainly quaffable stuff. Overall, it splits the difference between Pils and IPA in a way that doesn’t make me wish I was drinking one or the other, which is the real accomplishment here. It’s an interesting spin on an old favorite (or rather, a beer that has slowly grown into a favorite over time, but whatever). A-

Beer nerd Details: 5.3% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/21/21. Canned on: August 2021

Yes, I’m working through a backlog of reviews here, glad you noticed. Moar to come.

* Hoo boy, those old posts from 2010 are something else, aren’t they? Witness the awful pictures, the shaker pint glasses, the use of the word “smooth” in the tasting notes! I won’t claim to be the best (as has amply been established, I’m the worst), but I have improved over time, I think.

Dark Wednesday 2018

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Eschewing the Black Friday events most breweries seem to favor for their barrel-aged stout releases, Victory has always done their thing a day before Thanksgiving, which they hath dubbed Dark Wednesday. Once upon a time, this was for Dark Intrigue (basically barrel-aged Storm King and probably the first beer release that I’d ever waited in line for), but the past few years have seen the rise of Java Cask, and variants of same. This year, we were treated to three new variants on the Java Cask theme (plus the original). Alas, none of these variants is the one I’ve been pining for (i.e. one without coffee, so, like, just “Cask” or maybe “Bourbon Cask”, though I’m guessing the TTB would have problems with that, but I think I’ve made my point.) But then, beggars can’t be choosers, and despite my coffee ambivalence, I always look forward to trying a couple of these every year. Let’s start with my favorite of the year:

Victory Java Cask Maple

Victory Java Cask Maple – Basically Java Cask aged in Bourbon Barrels that were previously used to age maple syrup (a treatment that appears to be gaining in popularity these days) for 8 months. Also of note, if you click on the picture above to embiggen it, you will see that this bottle was signed by Ron Barchet and Bill Covaleski… and some guy named James, who I’m not familiar with but who I’m sure is incredibly important. – Pours a deep, viscous dark brown, almost black color with a finger of tan head. Smells of roasted coffee, chocolate coffee, maybe a hint of that maple (a light touch in the nose), and did I mention coffee. Taste starts off with a rich caramel note, followed by maple syrup, then coffee, finishing on that bourbon, oak, and vanilla jam. Plenty of coffee for this non-coffee drinker, but certainly less than the nose would imply. As it warms both the maple and the coffee come out more, so that is a thing that happened. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and chewy, ample but appropriate amounts of carbonation, and a pleasant level of boozy heat. Overall, I like this better than the Rye/Rye Vanilla variants and I might even like it better than regular Java Cask, but my lack of coffee enthusiasm is still a limiting factor. Indeed, I might even like this as much as or more than CBS. I’m the worst, but I still give it a strong A-

Beer Nerd Details: 13% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a tulip glass on 11/21/18. Bottled on 14 Nov 2018.

Victory Java Cask Latte

Victory Java Cask Latte – A DONG offering on Dark Wednesday that is basically a milk stout version of Java Cask that is calibrated at a much lower ABV of 8.3%. The addition of lactose is supposed to make up for the decrease in body. I didn’t take formal notes for this one, but I did have two small glasses – one on regular tap and one on nitro. I think I liked the nitro one (pictured above) more, but both feel like imitations of their full-strength big-brothers. This sort of thing has its charms though, and I appreciate being able to sample something without taking in too much alcohol. B

Beer Nerd Details: 8.3% on draft/nitro. Drank out of a… small weizen glass? Whatever you call that thing in the picture. On 11/21/18.

Victory Java Cask Gold

Java Cask Gold – Not sure I’m on board with the whole blonde stout thing, but this is a blonde coffee stout made with lactose, brown sugar, cacao nibs, oats, and dark roast coffee, aged in buffalo trace barrels for 7 months. – Pours a clear, pale orange color with half a finger of off-white head. Smells… a lot like Java Cask. Lots of roasted coffee, coffee, maybe a bit of chocolate, and oh yeah, I almost missed… the coffee. The taste, though, does not feel like a stout. Which I guess makes sense, since it’s not. Sweet, but not that deep, a bit of caramel, some coffee, but they’re not quite playing together as well here; a heaping helping of bourbon, but not particularly well integrated with the rest of the flavors. I like bourbon and all, but it seems to be overpowering the base. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied, well carbed, and quite boozy. Overall, an interesting experiment, but a little off-balanced and it never really harmonizes into a great beer… but it’s certainly interesting! If a tad disappointing. B-

Beer Nerd Details: 11.8% ABV bottled (500 ml). Drank out of a snifter glass on 11/22/18. Bottled on 16 Nov 2018.

So there you have it. The Maple variant is the clear winner of the year, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they cook up for next year (fingers crossed for the non-coffee version!) In the meantime, we’ve got some actual Black Friday releases that we’re going to cover, including tons of variants of Kaedrin favorites, so stay tuned.

Again Dark Wednesday

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Every year, on the day before Thanksgiving, Victory has some sort of beer release. They hath dubbed the day Dark Wednesday, and past offerings include the likes of Dark Intrigue, Java Cask, and Java Cask Rye. This year’s primary offering was Wisdom’s Hour, a dark sour, but they were also teasing another “mystery” beer that wasn’t really a mystery because it sorta already came out during the summer that they were making another batch of Java Cask Rye, but with added vanilla beans. As per usual, Victory’s releases tend to be pretty low-stress affairs, so even though I was battling a cold at the time, I managed to pop over and secure a couple bottles without notably impacting my condition… Anywho, Victory is one of my long time favorite local breweries, so I’m always excited to see them trying new things from time to time. Let’s get on with it:

Victory Wisdoms Hour

Victory Wisdom’s Hour – Pours a dark amber color with a finger of off white head. Smells of dark fruit, oak, vinegar, vanilla. Taste has some darker malt sort of notes, not exactly roasty, some dark fruit, spice, oak, and vinegar, only moderately sour. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, well carbonated, moderate acidity, pretty easy going. Overall, it’s a nice little sour, not going to light anything on fire, but worthwhile. It may be on the lower end of the B+ rating, but I’m feeling generous enough.

Beer Nerd Details: 9.5% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a tulip glass on 11/27/17. Bottled on: 10 Nov 2017.

Victory Java Cask Rye with Vanilla Beans

Victory Java Cask Rye with Vanilla Beans – Pours a jet black color with almost no head whatsoever (and what’s there disappears quickly). Smells of coffee, with a little bit of booze and hints of that vanilla evident. Taste starts with some rich caramel, lots of booze, oak, and a little vanilla, with the coffee only emerging in the middle and not super strong either. Mouthfeel is rich and despite the appearance, actually pretty well carbonated, lots of warming booze. Overall, it’s pretty darned good, but I have a feeling coffee fans would be a touch disappointed, but as someone ambivalent to coffee, I think I liked this more. It’s definitely not the non-coffeed version of my dreams, but it’s darned good. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 12.5% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a snifter on 12/3/17. Bottled on: 13 Nov 2017.

As per usual, Victory remains a local go to, and it looks like they have another batch of Red coming soon, which was phenomenal last year…

Victory Red

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In the dim and distant days of 2012, Victory did a Q&A culled from comments and emails. One asked about sour beers, and the ultimate response was this:

I can tell you that Victory has begun the process of making a sour beer. But we will not release just any sour beer. We are doing small-scale experimentation so that when we do have a sour beer for you, it will be a beautifully balanced, refreshing Flemish-style sour beer. Unfortunately, we are years away from a final product, because once we figure out how to do it, a commercial size batch will be produced and could take more than three years to be ready to blend with younger sour beer.

Cut to four years later, and Victory quietly releases Red, a Flemish-style red beer. Well, they did say it could take more than three years, and indeed, Red is comprised of beer aged in oak barrels for three years and blended with younger beer. It wasn’t a big event like the Java Cask releases, but I’m quite happy I grabbed a bottle of this:

Victory Red

Victory Red – Pours a brilliant, clear golden amber color with a finger of white head. Smells fabulous, tons of oak, vinegar, tart fruit, sour cherries, and the like. Taste follows the nose, is also fabulous, lots and lots of oak, a little tart fruit and vinegar, light on the sourness which is balanced by the oak. Mouthfeel is perfect, medium to full bodied, rich, light acidity. Overall, I tend to like my Flanders style beers oaky, and this one really pulled that off. It’s wonderful. A

Beer Nerd Details: 5.5% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a charente glass on 1/21/17. Bottled on 18 Nov 2016. Released on 15 Dec 2016.

Always nice to see Victory continuing to expand their horizons, and I look forward to seeing what they do next with this sort of thing. If you’re local, you may still be able to snag a bottle of this (even though it was released in late December), well worth the effort.

Vintage Victory

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So I’ve been aging beer for a while now, both intentionally and unintentionally, and it’s often an interesting exercise. However, it’s also pretty rare for a beer to get better over time. It’s usually different and sometimes worse than fresh, but better is, again, rare.

In general, my advice continues to be to drink fresh. If you can only get one bottle of something special, drink it fresh. If you can get a second bottle, it’s a fun exercise to age it, but seldom does a beer age incredibly well. At least, not for very long periods of time. Lots of beers can get better or be just as good over a few months, but not many will last over a year and the ones that can last 5 years are even more rare. Of course, there are many variables. My “cellar” doesn’t exactly have ideal conditions, so you may have better luck. Bottle variation exists, especially when it comes to wild ales. Some people don’t like harsh booziness and time can clear that up sometimes. And so on.

Since Victory is local, I’ve stockpiled plenty of their offerings over the years. Readily available, not too pricy, and quality beer – they make good candidates for aging experimentation. Let’s see if this patience has paid off:

Victory V-Twelve 2011

Victory V-Twelve (2011) – This is a special one. I loved it fresh back in the day and squirreled this away to see how it would age. High alcohol, darkish beer, I thought it would do well. Naturally, I haven’t thought too much about it in the intervening time, especially as my tastes evolved over the years. In a recent attempt to drink down a bit of my cellar I noticed something curious. The bottle sez “Should be enjoyed within 5 years” and the bottling date was Nov 11 2011. So of course, I popped the cork on Nov 11 2016. Nailed it.

Victory V-Twelve Bottling Date

Pours a murky amber orange brown color with just a cap of off white head. Smells nice, lots of yeast-driven, rich, dark fruit, brown sugar, maybe even a little floral aroma, toffee too, hints of spice. Taste is rich and sweet, ample malt backbone, dark fruit, raisins, dates, yeasty esters, a little oxidation definitely showing, but nothing overwhelming, sherry, toffee, brown sugar, finishing with hints of Belgian yeast spice and a bit of booze. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and chewy, a sipper for sure. Overall, this is still fantastic. I haven’t had it fresh since, oh, 2011, but it’s holding up pretty darned well. A high B+ (I originally rated this an A, but taking into account ratings inflation puts this about on par with my feelings on it fresh.

Beer Nerd Details: 12% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a tulip glass on 11/11/16. Bottled: Nov 11 2011. “Should be enjoyed within 5 years” (Nailed it.)

Victory Java Cask (2015) – The story on coffee beer is that the coffee tends to fade over time and hoo boy is that the case here. For the coffee ambivalents like myself, that’s not a huge deal, but this was a huge coffee bomb when fresh, and while the coffee character is still there if you look for it (or if you’re particularly sensitive to it, ahem), the bourbon barrel stout character is now the majority of this beer. It’s actually quite pleasant, but then, I’m one of the aforementioned coffee ambivalents, so I would be like that. I’m still hoping that Victory will put out a non-coffee version of this same beer someday, but that’s not in the cards this year (FYI, this was written in November 2016 – ed.). We’ve got a Rye barrel variant this year, as well as a rebrew of this, but I hold out hope. Still, I’m quite enjoying this and won’t even drop the grade. Again, coffee-heads will be disappointed by an aged bottle of this stuff (and anecdotally, I’d say most of the dropoff had occurred within 6 months). A-

Beer Nerd Details: 14.3% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a charente glass on 11/8/16. Fucking election day. Enjoy by: 10 Nov 2016, cutting it close.

Victory Otto (2011) – A smoked dubbel? Not your common style, and at the time, the smoke completely overwhelmed any Belgian yeast characteristics. Pours a dark amber color with a finger of almost white head. Smells of belgian yest, raisins, and just a bit of smoke. Taste goes similarly, the smoke has really mellowed out over time (fresh, the smoke was potent and overpowering, now it’s barely there). Proooobably held on to it too long, but it’s held up much better than your typical dubbel. Will try the Bourbon Barrel version next (it was a massive improvement over the original). B- (Update, I brought Otto in Oak to a share recently and it has fared a little better, but is also well past its prime. Solid B material.)

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a tulip glass on 11/1/16. Bottled: Sept 21 2011 (I think that’s what it sez)

Victory Old Horizontal 2013

Victory Old Horizontal (2013) – No fancy stories here, just realized it had been about 3 years, which is plenty for a beer like this. Turns out, I think it could probably stand up to more, but I’m still really glad I opened this when I did. Pours a dark amber color with a finger of white head. Smells of caramel and toffee, hints of dried, candied fruit. Taste also has that rich caramel and toffee character, sweet but not cloying, some modest hop character too. Some oxidation present, but nothing overwhelming and it ends up adding complexity. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, moderate carbonation, hints of booze. Overall, this has aged very well, would do again. I still have a couple of Oak Horizontals laying around, so I should probably strap one of those in next. B+ or A-

Beer Nerd Details: 11% ABV bottled (22 ounce bomber). Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/22/16. Enjoy by Oct 25 2018. (deduced bottling date: October 25 2013)

So there you have it. 5 years probably too long, even for something like V-Twelve. Three years, though, seemed fruitful. Stay tuned for more vintage drinking, including one that was 7 years old (and still drank incredibly well).

Victory Java Cask Rye

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After last year’s Dark Wednesday introduction of Java Cask (a top tier bourbon barrel aged imperial coffee stout, at least when it’s fresh – the coffee drops off a cliff after a few months or so, which is actually a welcome development for coffee ambivalents like myself, but I digress), they decided to let it ride with another batch this year… plus a variant! Alas, not the “non-coffee” variant I dream about, but rather a Rye barrel aged version.

At first glance, this seems like a pretty minor tweak. Rye whiskey can be very different than bourbon, but it’s not that much of a leap, especially considering that it will have to stand up against strong adjuncts like coffee. It turns out that Victory used a different strand of One Village coffee for this one, and the use of Bulleit Rye casks does genuinely impart a distinct character. The resulting beer is almost 2% lower in ABV, but still fabulous. Just to signal my neckbeardedness, it’s a brewpub exclusive, and limit of 4 bottles per person. Bill Covaleski was even signing bottles! Let’s do this thing:

Victory Java Cask Rye

Victory Java Cask Rye – Pours a dense, very dark brown color, almost black, with almost no head. Smells of, yes, roasted coffee, but also chocolate, oak, and vanilla. Taste starts off sweet, caramel and dark malt, coffee comes out in the middle followed by a nice, spicy rye character that is actually distinct from regular Java Cask. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and chewy (if perhaps a little less so than regular Java Cask), moderate carbonation, plenty of warming booze too. Overall, it’s another winner… perhaps not quite at original Java Cask level, but close enough and a worthy variant. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 12.5% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a snifter on 11/23/16. Enjoy By: 17 Nov 2017.

Supposedly, Java Cask original recipe is making the distribution rounds, so if coffee stouts are your thing, make the effort. I hold out hope that Victory will do a non-coffified version someday. As it was, they had a fabulous firkin of Java Cask with vanilla and cacao that was, well, fabulous. I believe I said that already. Jeeze guys. Anywho, Victory has also been teasing something called Victory Red, a Flanders Red style beer that’s been in the works for three years. Color me interested. Stay tuned.

Dark Wednesday Redux

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About 4 years ago, I waited in line at my first beer release. I have since cycled through degenerate FOMO line-waiting and beer-hunting into a much more relaxed cadence. But it all started with Victory’s Dark Intrigue in an event dubbed Dark Wednesday. Releasing something special on the day before Thanksgiving has become something of a tradition for Victory, though for reasons unknown, they never revisited Dark Intrigue (and claim they won’t make it again). I loved that beer when fresh, and since I bought a case of the stuff, I’ve enjoyed checking it out over time. Other releases included Red Thunder and Earth & Flame.

The hype surrounding these releases has died down, but they’re definitely worth checking out. Victory has grown considerably since then as well, opening new brewpubs throughout the area and even a new production facility in Parksburg. This year’s Thanksgiving Wednesday release was called Java Cask, a bourbon barrel aged imperial stout made with coffee from local restaurant and indie rock venue, Johnny Brenda’s. Unlike Dark Intrigue (or indeed, most of Victory’s barrel aged efforts), the base beer does not appear to be something in the regular lineup, and the result clocks in at a whopping 14.3% ABV (to my knowledge, the highest they’ve ever brewed). It was much anticipated locally, but since the release was spread out across several locations, it was all very low key. I rolled up a little after opening, waited about 5 minutes and got myself some bottles. That being said, there wasn’t that much left and I’m told it sold out not long after I snagged mine…

I love the local brewing scene, but I have also noticed a distinct lack of great bourbon barrel stouts. With Java Cask, we’ve now seen two new BBA Imperial Coffee Stouts in the past year alone (the other being Weyerbacher’s Sunday Morning Stout). This is nice, but given my legendary aversion towards coffee, I wouldn’t mind seeing some non-coffeed versions floating around every now and again. A man can dream. That being said, I feel like I’m gaining a better appreciation of great imperial coffee stouts, so let’s get to the main event. Since I’m a glutton for punishment, I rooted around my cellar and found a bottle of Dark Intrigue to commemorate the occasion and compare both Dark Wednesday beers. Totally unfair comparison, but fun nonetheless.

Dark Intrigue

Victory Dark Intrigue 2011 – This is long past its prime, but it’s still a worthy pour. Faded piney, resinous hops and oxidation are prominent, but the malt backbone and barrel aging keep things interesting. It felt much better integrated when fresh or within 1-2 years. It’s fine now, just very, very different, and the bourbon barrel character has faded. If you have one of these tucked away, it’s probably long past time to drink it, but it’s still worth checking out. Chalk this one up in the “drink one fresh, save one to age” category… Difficult to rate this one, but if this was my first taste, it’d be somewhere in the low B range.

Beer Nerd Details: 10% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a snifter on 11/25/15. Bottled: Nov 08 2011.

Victory Java Cask

Victory Java Cask – Pours a deep, dark, oily brown, almost black color, thick looking, with half a finger of very short lived light brown head. Smells of coffee, coffee, and more coffee, roast coffee, chocolate coffee, and did I mention coffee? It’s got a lot of coffee. Taste is less coffee focused, though it’s still playing a lead role. Starts off sweet, with rich caramel, milk chocolate, dark chocolate, roast, and finally that coffee really takes over in the finish. As it warms, it gets more complex and the flavor elements come out more. Mouthfeel is full bodied, rich, and chewy, well carbonated, and plenty of boozy heat. This is a delicious, intense coffee stout, and if I wasn’t such a coffee ambivalent fella, this would be full on A material, but I’m not, so you get A-

Beer Nerd Details: 14.3% ABV bottled (750 ml caged and corked). Drank out of a snifter on 11/25/15. Enjoy by: 10 Nov 2016.

It’s been a while since I’ve reviewed a Victory beer, which is weird, since they are one of my most reviewed breweries. This was great, but man, I really want a non-coffee version of this. Fingers crossed that we’ll see something like that in the future.

Beer Club February

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Beer club was last Thursday! I started to write this recap when I got home, but I didn’t get very far. As has been established frequently, I am the worst. But I’m here now to make amends. For the uninitiated, beer club is a monthly gathering of like-minded coworkers at a local BYOB for good food, optional libations, and general merriment. This time we checked out the newly opened West Chester branch of The Couch Tomato, a rather fine pizza establishment (in a sea of pizza places, this has immediately established itself in the local upper tier with America’s Pie). I had a rather fine stromboli (called the “Italian Stallion”) whilst imbibing the usual beery wares:

Beer Club for February 2015

(Click to embiggen)

For the sake of posterity, some thoughts on each are below. Since it’s been a few days, these thoughts will be even more unreliable than normal, so take them with a giant, asteroid-sized lump of salt. In order of drinking (not necessarily the order in the pic):

  • Evil Genius Stacy’s Mom – Has moderate amounts of goin’ on. Citra hops come through a little, but it’s not particularly accomplished compared to its Citra-based brethren. B
  • Jailbreak Welcome To Scoville Jalepeno IPA – Definitely a peppery beer, but not a ton of heat, which is nice. On the other hand, I feel like whatever hops it has going on are sorta canceled out by the pepper character. B-
  • Flying Dog Mexican Hot Chocolate Stout – Now this one has some heat to it, but it’s a very well matched heat that matches better with the roasty chocolate notes of the base stout than an IPA. That being said, it wasn’t exactly blowing me away. B
  • Alaskan Smoked Porter – I get the impression that sometimes people bring beers they bought but realized they don’t actually want to drink a whole bottle of. I’m as guilty as anyone, and this is one such example. I don’t mind the occasional smoked beer, but really haven’t been in much of the mood for this sort of thing lately. As Smoked Porters go, this is a pretty great example. Still not exactly my thing though, and I’m glad I shared. B
  • Stone Enjoy By 02.14.15 IPA – Tastes about 5 days too old. Oh snap, breaking the law! Just kidding, it was fine, despite not following the rules on the bottle. It’s a decent beer, and it’s definitely grown on me, but I’ve never gotten the absolute love some folks show for this (and yes, I’ve had it fresh before too). B
  • Ballast Point Dorado Double IPA – Ah now this is the stuff. One of my contributions and a rock solid citrus and pine bomb, well balanced and tasty. B+
  • Armstrong Ales Bold Thady Quill – A pretty nice take on an Irish Dry Stout, roasty and light bodied. Not going to melt your face, but it’d make for a nice session. Also, probably not the best setting for this kind of beer. Would still love to try more from this local upstart. B
  • Kaedrin Trystero Barleywine – I feel like my keg should be empty right now, but it appears to be bottomless. The keg feels nearly empty, but I just filled up this 1 liter growler with no problem. Need to finish off that keg so I have somewhere to put an IPA! The beer itself is doing well enough. I do feel like I perhaps dosed it with a bit too much in the way of bourbon, which cuts down on some of the fruitier malt characters in the beer. Still good though. B+
  • Prairie Bomb! – Another of my contributions, I have to admit that I didn’t realize this was a coffee dosed beer. I was really excited to try it, then initially disappointed by the coffee character. Still, I ended up drinking more of this than usual, and it grew on me. Rock solid and I can see why it’s so popular, but it doesn’t really approach my top tier. B+
  • Victory Moving Parts 03 – Technically, we’d left beer club and moved the party over to a local bar, which was having a Victory event. This was our initial pour, a Belgian IPA. Nice enough on its own, but nothing particularly eventful here. B
  • Victory Deep Cocoa – On cask with vanilla and something else that I don’t remember. It could have been that I was just drunk at the time, but I kinda loved this. Deep, rich chocolate, vanilla, full body, really delicious stuff. Have not tried the regular version but this cask was hitting the spot, so let’s give it an A-

And there you have it. Attendance was a little low, so I probably drank more than normal this time. Also, we didn’t get to the Nugget Nectar, mostly because we’ve all had it several times already this year (even out of the can, which is, yes, very nice) but also because there were less of us there that night than normal. Crazily enough, some people didn’t come because it was just super cold out (not snowing or anything, just really cold, low-single digits). I don’t know what their problem is. Maybe I’m not the worst after all.

December Beer Club

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For reasons outside of my control, I was unable to attend the November Beer Club. I am, myself, doubting my commitment to Sparkle Motion, but I managed to pull it together and attend this month’s beer club. For the uninitiated, beer club is a monthly gathering of like-minded coworkers at a local BYOB for good food, optional libations, and fun (which is not optional). This month, we hit up our favorite local pizza joint (and a regular delivery option here at Kaedrin HQ), America’s Pie. Most attendies partook in the off-menu Pizza Pocket Pie option, a delightful deep-fried stromboli-like concoction that I have certainly devoured on occasion. Oh yeah, and we had beer too:

December Beer Club

(Click to embiggen)

For the sake of posterity, some completely unreliable thoughts on each beer are listed below. Standard beer nerd disclaimers apply, if you disagree, you’re probably right and I am wrong. It has long been established that I am totally the worst. Stop harping on it, ok? In order of drinking (not necessarily the order in the pic):

  • Anderson Valley Blood Orange Gose – Salty and sweet, with lots of that tart blood orange character making itself known. Not a mind-blower, but very nice nonetheless, would make a great summer beer. Decent way to start the night though! B+
  • SoChesCo Marianne IPA – A homebrewed IPA from one of our regular attendees, this is part of pair of IPAs brewed as one batch, then split in secondary. This one is straight up IPA. The other was does with fresh chopped ginger (it would be titled Ginger IPA, get it?) As IPAs go, this is pretty standard stuff, clearly using Chinook somewhere in the recipe. Very nice! B+
  • Kaedrin Christmas Ale (2011) – My homebrewed Christmas Ale… from 3 years ago! It’s holding up reasonably well. Much of the spice character has faded away, but the base was robust enough to make for a decent light drinking option. When fresh, this was probably right up there with my favorite batches of homebrew. After 3 years, it’s definitely degraded a bit, but it’s still worth drinking. B
  • Maredsous 8 – Brune – Pretty standard Belgian Dubbel stuff, though this seems much more raisiny than I remember. B
  • Spring House The Martians Kidnap Santa! Egg Nog Stout – Wonderful nose, milk stout with a heaping helping of vanilla and a light spice. The taste doesn’t quite live up to that, though it’s certainly fine. Definitely worth trying. B+
  • Jack-O-Traveler Shandy – I’m not much of a shandy kinda guy, but this is bad even for a shandy. Something about the Pumpkin mixed with the lemon just doesn’t work. As noted at the table, it kinda tastes like Lysol. I’m feeling particularly ungenerous at the moment, so we’ll go full F
  • Earth Eagle Puca – A pumpkin porter, this had a fabulous, spicy nose, though like the Spring House beer above, the taste just didn’t hold up to the nose. It’s certainly a fine beer though, and worth trying if you like that sorta dark pumpkin option. B
  • Shiner Bock – Tastes like Texas! Obviously nothing special, but it still holds a nostalgic value with me. B
  • ShawneeCraft Frambozenbier – Despite yesterday’s disappointing, mildly infected Bourbon Barrel Porter, I shared this beer with everyone, and they seemed to love it, just like I did. B+
  • Hardywood Gingerbread Stout – I’ve heard many things about this sucker, and now that Hardywood is distributing up here, I’m starting to see these things show up more often. Alas, I have to admit that amongst the typical Pumpkin/Holiday spices, Ginger is probably my least favorite, so this was good, but not quite the mind-blower I’d been lead to believe. (Oddly, I love gingerbread cookies and gingersnaps, but I guess this just had the wrong proportions). I’m sure I could easily drink an entire bottle of the stuff, but I’m glad I got to try it in this tasting atmosphere. Now, the Bourbon Barrel version of this beer is another matter entirely! That’s something I really want to try. B
  • Victory Earth & Flame – A collaboration with a tiny local brewery called Earth+Bread brewery, this is a smoked Scotch ale aged in Bourbon Barrels. The smoke is pretty well muted by the Bourbon Barrels, leading to a nice fruity, bourbony character. Not quite top tier (and not quite at the level of Otto in Oak, another BBA smoked Victory beer). Something I’d definitely like to revisit in more detail. B+
  • Vicarus Winter 2013 – This is great up front, Belgian Strong Dark, highly carbonated and very dry up front, with some raisiny character apparent in the finish (which is not as dry as the initial taste would have you believe). That being said, I can’t help but feel that this would probably have been better if it were fresher. Still quite decent B
  • Terrapin Coffee Oatmeal Imperial Stout – Holy coffee, Batman! My ambivalence to coffee in beer is legendary, though I’ve grown to appreciate some of the more subtle varieties that have a lot of other things going on. This one is almost pure coffee grounds, which I imagine folks who love coffee would be really into, but which doesn’t translate well to me personally. B
  • Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout (2014) – The latest incarnation is as good as ever, and if anything, it’s not as hot as the past couple years (it’s actually “only” 13.8% ABV this year, apparently an artifact of a cool spring and summer). The great satan of AB/Inbev or not, I love this beer. A

And that’s all for now. Already looking forward to January.

September Beer Club

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Due to various scheduling mishaps and vacations and whatnot, the August beer club never happened, and September ended up being a little on the delayed side. But we finally made it, and a good time was had by all. For the uninitiated, beer club is a gathering of like minded coworkers who get together for food and optional libations at a local BYOB. Tonight we hit up a regular Mexican establishment and had a rather good time.

Beer Club

For the sake of posterity, tentative thoughts on each beer are below, though they should be taken with a grain of salt, since tastings like this are not exactly ideal conditions. So here we go, in order of drinking (not necessarily the order pictured).

  • Kona Castaway IPA – A surprisingly decent IPA, lots of mango in the aroma and flavor, tropical fruit hops and so on. It’s not a mind-blowing beer by any stretch, but it’s actually pretty damn decent. B+
  • Devil’s Backbone Catty Wompus – A Belgian IPA that kinda come off a little light on the Belgian and even IPA character, though it did have a pretty solid amount of bitterness towards the finish. That being said, it felt like the Belgian elements were canceling out the hop character, rather than combining with each other. Certainly not a disaster, but not really my thing either. B-
  • Victory Prima Pils – A beer I’ve obviously had on numerous occasions, and it’s as good as it ever was. Pilsners are not really my style, but if I was asked what I would want to drink within the style, this would be a worthy candidate. B
  • Victory Headwaters Pale Ale – I always forget how good this beer is, even if it’s still not my favorite pale ale evar or anything that silly. Still, it’s a rock solid take on a standard style. More thoughts here. B+
  • Sly Fox Oktoberfest – A decent take on a standard style. Nice toasty malt character, and a very drinkable beer for this time of year. B
  • Round Guys The Berliner – This Berliner weis is almost like a sorta crazy lemonade/beer hybrid. It’s got a nice tarness to it, and the color is crazy pale, almost white. It’s an interesting beer, something I’d like to try someday on its own, though it seems ideally suited for hot weather, and we’re sorta heading away from that these days. B+
  • Yeastie Boys Pot Kettle Black – Not quite as good as I remember from last time I had this, but it’s still got a nice roast and coffee base with a bit of hoppiness to follow. The first one of these I had a while back seemed a little more balance and hop focused, so who knows what’s going on here. That being said, it was still quite nice to revisit this beer. B
  • Kaedrin Trystero Barleywine – So I gave up on hoping that my barleywine bottles would carbonate, dumped everything I had into my keg, and attempted to force carbonate the stuff. The result is decent, though I need to figure out a better way to transport the stuff (carbonation is better from the tap, but loses some of its punch in traveling in a resealable bottle). On the other hand, this turned out rather well, with a really nice bourbon and oak character to it. B+
  • Element Extra Special Oak (ESO) – This is quite an interesting beer, even if it’s not particularly fantastic. It’s a sorta amped up English ESB, with a little more alcohol and some oak aging. For something oak aged, there wasn’t a whole lot to salvage, but it does have that sorta rich barrel feel that often pervades these types of beers. B
  • Neshaminy Creek Punkless Dunkel – Basically the same thing as last year’s Punkle Dunkle (no idea why the name had to change), with a slightly different label (that, so far, is the only meaningful difference we’ve found yet. Big pumpkin and spice (cinnamon, clove, allspice, nutmeg, and the like) notes, fabulous carbonation and smooth, wheatey mouthfeel. Really fantastic brew, just as good as last year, and probably my favorite of the night. A-
  • Elysian Oddland Ginger Berry Brown Ale – Doesn’t seem like much of a brown ale, it’s very pale, like an IPA. But this is brewed with ginger and wheat, so it should work itself out. On the other hand, I don’t care much for ginger, so I’m obviously not going to love this. Still, it was decent enough. C+
  • DuClaw Bourbon Barrel Aged Serum – I have to admit, I’m not a huge fan of BBA pale ales, or pale beers in general (i.e saisons, etc…). It comes off as more of a barrel aged barleywine than a DIPA… It’s got the richness imparted from the oak and bourbon, but the playfulness has disappeared. Decent enough, but nothing particularly famous. B+

And that’s all for now. Already looking forward to the next meetup…