B

Beers that have been rated B-, B, or B+

YuleSmith Summer Holiday Ale

by

In an effort to confuse and confound their customers, Alesmith makes two different beers with the same name: YuleSmith Holiday Ale. One is a hoppy red ale released during the winter holidays, which makes a certain sorta sense. The other his a double IPA released in June, which… doesn’t. The word “Yule” is derived from a Germanic winter festival that was absorbed by Christmas (like a lot of holiday traditions), so the summer one doesn’t really fit unless you consider the dubious holiday of Christmas in July an event worth celebrating. And if you look at the bottle, it seems to be portraying the 4th of July, what with the fireworks and all (and Christmas in July is usually celebrated on the 25th of the month). Alesmith makes good beer though, and this one has quite the reputation, so who am I to complain?

Alesmith YuleSmith Summer

YuleSmith Summer Holiday Ale – Pours a hazy orange color with almost no head. A little worried about that, as the bottle didn’t seem to have much pressure going on when I popped the cap. Aroma is very nice though, lots of pine and caramel malt character. The taste is sweet, caramel malts with a ton of resin and pine hop flavor coming out in the middle, and some citrusy goodness coming out to play a little too. That resin is the dominating flavor though, and it seems to be driving the bitterness in the finish. It’s actually quite nice, and reminiscent of a lighter version of Alesmith’s Old Numbskull (their barleywine). Mouthfeel is a little too light on the carbonation, as feared, and it comes off a little sticky, especially in the finish. The carbonation is at a cromulent level, but it could really use a little more of a kick in that respect. It gets better as it warms, but I’d still like to see some more carbonation in this. It’s got the markings of a great beer, but it didn’t quite get there even if it’s certainly very good even like this. Truth be told, once I started drinking, the stuff went down awfully quick! B or B+ (I can’t seem to make up my mind…)

Beer Nerd Details: 8.5% ABV bottled (22 oz. bomber). Drank out of a tulip glass on 7/3/12.

Looking closer at the bottle, the text on the back of the bottle sez that this is YuleSmith Holiday Ale 2011? This is actually printed in the description – there doesn’t appear to be a bottled-on or best-by stamp on the bottle, so I don’t know if this is actually from 2011 or if Alesmith just neglected to update the text on the back of the bottle this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if I accidentally bought a year old bottle, as perhaps that would explain the carbonation issues…

Regardless, Alesmith continues to be one of the more interesting breweries out there, and I will most certainly be exploring more of their catalog!

Update: I have it on good authority that the bottle I had here actually was from 2011. Poop. But at least it explains some things about this beer…

Tröegs Scratch Beer 63 (Danny’s IPA)

by

This beer is named after Danny Glover. No, not the actor we know and love (he’s too old for this shit), just an unfortunate soul who worked at Tröegs for a short time. Not to be a downer, but he died in a car crash at the age of 24. Tröegs decided to brew a beer in honor of Danny, who seemed like an all-around great guy:

Even if Danny’s arrival time for work was less than predictable and his uncanny ability to forget everything about his job overnight drove us nuts, he was a hard worker who would do any job with enthusiasm. But more importantly Danny had an infectious smile, a heart of gold and the absolute ability to spread joy through a room – it was hard not to love the guy.

A portion of the proceeds from this beer are being donated to the Gift of Life Organ Donation program, so good on Tröegs.

The beer itself is apparently a variant of Nugget Nectar, taken in the direction of an American Black Ale (or Black IPA or whatever you call that stuff), and it makes a fitting tribute.

Troegs Scratch 63 (Dannys IPA)

Tröegs Scratch Beer 63 (Danny’s IPA) – Pours a dark brown color with a finger or two of tan colored head and some lacing as I drink. Smells full of citrusy hops with a little pine thrown in for good measure. While I don’t get any roasty aromas, there is plenty in the taste. Taste starts with roasted malts, maybe even a bit of chocolate, before giving way a bit to the citrus and pine character of the hops. Not a ton of bitterness, but enough to balance all the flavors, and the roasted malts come out again in the finish as well. Mouthfeel is very much like an IPA. Well carbonated, but small bubbled and almost velvety. Overall, a very nice, well balanced version of the style. It’s a difficult line to walk, but Tröegs has managed to do so with this beer. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 7% ABV bottled (12 oz.) Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/26/12.

Back during Philly Beer Week, I chatted with a guy who lived near the new Tröegs brewery in Hershey and he mentioned that most of the best Scratch series beers aren’t bottled (and sell out quickly), but he agreed that this one was pretty good. Whatever the case, I’m always on the lookout for Tröegs Scratch beers…

Double Trouble Feature: Founders IPAs

by

Despite the fact that the IPA style seems to be my most reviewed style on the blog, I do find that you need to strike a bit of a balance with drinking them. At the extremes – drinking only IPAs all the time or barely drinking any – the style seems to get a bit… samey. But if you find the right balance, they can be a revelation. One of things that I’ve found most interesting about IPAs is drinking two of them back to back (I find diminishing returns after two though). This gives you an opportunity to compare and contrast, and if you choose your beers right, you can discover a huge variation in the style. So here we have two Founders IPAs, one their basic, year round Centennial, and the other being their souped up Double IPA. In some ways, this isn’t really fair, as DIPAs generally pack in a lot more flavor, but it’s still an instructive exercise.

Of course the point of these posts is to pair beer with movies, and in this case I took in a Walter Matthau double feature: Charley Varrick and Hopscotch. Both are fun little 70s and early 80s flicks about things like crooks and spies. Neither really blew me away, but I had a blast with my IPAs and viewing material…

Founders Centennial IPA

Founders Centennial IPA – Pours a cloudy orangish color with a finger of whitish head and plenty of lacing. The smell is filled with floral hops, maybe some sweet citrus too. The taste starts sweet, with some of that citrus character giving way to more pungent, spicy, and floral hop flavors, followed by a nice bitter bite in the finish. Mouthfeel is great, medium bodied, a little bit of a bite to it, but well carbonated. Overall, a very well crafted IPA. Unfortunately, Centennial hops don’t seem to jive that well with me, at least in this formulation. I like this beer, but it’s not my preferred IPA… B

Beer Nerd Details: 7.2% ABV bottled (12 oz.) Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/11/12.

Founders Double Trouble

Founders Double Trouble IPA – Pours a golden yellow color, lighter and a little more clear than the Centennial, with a finger of white head and plenty of lacing. Smells strongly of sweet hops, a ton of grapefruit character. At this point, I’m guessing Simcoe hops. Taste starts off sweet with an immediate bitter balance, both of which intensify through the middle, finishing with a little bit of extra bitter dryness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with plenty of tight carbonation, and maybe just a hint of booziness. Overall, very nice, better than average double IPA, though not quite best in class. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 9.4% ABV bottled (12 oz.) Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/11/12.

As usual, Founders doesn’t disappoint… and there’s still quite a few of their beers that I haven’t yet tried either. Nothing else in the immediate pipeline, but I’m sure we’ll get our hands on some more of their beers at some point…

Deviant Dale’s IPA

by

I don’t know how excited I should be about a beer made by someone named “Deviant Dale”. What kind of deviance are we really in for here? Am I going to pop open the can to find a toy snake springing out? Is the liquid inside actually beer (jeeze, I don’t even want to joke about possible alternative liquids…)? Has Dale invented a Ghostbuster-like grid that can store evil spirits in beer cans? The suspense was killing me, but the only deviant thing about this beer is possibly the amount of hops used in its production (and even that isn’t that bad). I don’t know whether to be relieved or not. Perhaps the deviance is slow acting and will hit sometime next year, like an acid flashback.

In any case, you’ll also note in the picture that this is a 16 ounce tallboy can, so I poured out a glass and kept the remainder cool with my fancy new Beerbecue beer cozy (get yours here). Thanks Scott!

Oskar Blues Deviant Dales IPA

Oskar Blues Deviant Dale’s IPA – Pours a golden orange color with a couple fingers of white head and plenty of lacing as I drink. Smells of sugary sweetness and citrusy hops, with a little pine and resin poking through as well. Taste is very sweet with tons of that citrus and pine hop flavor and just enough bitterness in the finish to balance out the sweet start. Mouthfeel is really nice, smooth, almost creamy, light but well balanced carbonation. Overall, really wonderful beer. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV bottled (16 oz.) Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/25/12.

Yeah, I’m still a month behind on reviews. After Philly Beer Week, consumption has slowed a bit though, so we’ll catch up eventually, though I’ll probably have some of my more recent reviews up soon too.

A Saison Darkly

by

Okay, I give up. We can discuss the merits and demerits of style definitions all day, we can even devise new ways to evaluate styles, but I defy anyone to make sense of the “Saison” style of beer. I do believe it’s the least coherent style in the history of beer. Ostensibly a rustic, farmhouse beer, there are many classics of the style, starting with Saison Dupont, which I’ve come to think of as it’s own subclass of saisons. Sweet and spicy, it’s pretty much what I look for in a saison. But then you’ve got another class of saisons that are lighter and dryer, your Cellar Doors or Jack D’Ors. Then are the earthy, Brett dosed beers, a la Saison Rue. If that represented most beers that were labeled saison, I think we’d be in good shape, but then Fantôme has to explode the entire notion of the style by making super tart, even sour examples of the style. Sometimes you’ll get a saison that’s in the 3-4% ABV range, sometimes you get one around 10%, and anywhere inbetween.

But even after all that, there is at least one commonality between all these sub-styles: a pale color. Well fuck that. It turns out that there are a number of dark saisons too. Shit. Basically, if you pick up a beer labeled saison, you can look forward to something with anywhere from 3-10% ABV, pale to dark color, sweet and spicy to earthy and roasty or what the hell, maybe even (intentionally) sour.

On the other hand, I’m rarely disappointed by Saisons, even when they’re not what I expected, and they’re a pretty versatile beer, working in a great number of situations. Need something light and fluffy for summer drinkin? A saison will do ya. Need something to pair with food? Saisons, especially dry saisons, are actually a pretty good fit. Want to blow your mind? Pick up one of the higher ABV saisons. Need a sessionable lawnmower beer? Pick up one of the lower ABV varieties (these are relatively rare, but it seems to be a popular homebrew choice).

Anyways, here’s my first dark saison, and like everything I’ve had from Stillwater, it’s pretty darn good. It also marks a rash* of Phillip K. Dick inspired brews, also including the Grassroots/Tired Hands Do Saisons Dream Of Electric Yeast?** Fortunately, drinking this beer didn’t inspire any paranoia… except about the saison style definition, I guess.

Stillwater A Saison Darkly

Stillwater A Saison Darkly – Pours a very dark brown color with tons of khaki coloed head and visible sediment at the bottom of the glass. When held up to the light, you can see beautiful ruby red highlights. Smells strongly of musty Belgian yeast, tons of spice and a little fruit too. Taste is sweet, with lots of spiciness and some very nicely balanced roasted malt notes. Mouthfeel is full bodied with a highly carbonated, spicy bite, and a somewhat dry finish. An interesting take on the saison style, this one grows on me the more I drink. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV bottled (11.2 oz) Drank out of a goblet on 5/12/12.

I’ve always liked Stillwater, but they’re emerging as a go-to brewery for me these days. And there are tons of brews I haven’t sampled yet either… Nothing in the immediate pipeline, but you’ll definitely be seeing more of their stuff on the blog.

* Two beers counts as a rash, right?

** But don’t worry, there’s plenty of PKD available for the taking. The Märzen in the High Castle, The Three Hop Rhizomes of Palmer Eldritch (oh, oh, The Tripel Stigmata of Palmer Eldrich!), Flow My Beers, the Policeman Said, The Fermentation of Timothy Archer, and probably tons of others.

Founders Imperial Stout

by

So this isn’t going to make sense to most of you, but today is Founder’s Day! My place of employment is 26 years old today, so to celebrate, I’ll write about a different kind of Founders… Ok, so I drank it about a month ago, but it still works, right?

Founders Imperial Stout

Founders Imperial Stout – Pours a deep black color with a finger of quite darkish brown color head. Smells strongly of roasted malts and dark crystal malts, some coffee with perhaps a hint of dark chocolate peeking through. Taste starts very sweet, with a bit of chocolate followed by those roasted malts emerging quickly into the middle, flavors of roast coffee asserting strongly in the middle and finish. The rich chocolate falvor becomes more prominent as the beer warms, which was much appreciated. Mouthfeel is full bodied, thick, and chewy, but still a joy to drink. Overall, a very nice imperial stout that emphasizes some flavors that are not quite my preference, but it’s still impeccable and extremely well crafted. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 10.5% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank out of a snifter on 5/11/12.

Founders is one of the best breweries in the country, so I will continue to explore their catalog whenever possible. I think I even have a few more reviews in the pipeline…

Another Dispatch from Philly Beer Week

by

One of the great things about Philly Beer Week is that you can sometimes get a taste of beers that aren’t really distributed around here. Hill Farmstead technically distributes to Philadelphia, but their production is so limited that this distribution is effectively limited to Philly Beer Week (with maybe one other event per year). And if Saturday was any indication, I’m guessing there isn’t any Hill Farmstead beer left in the area…

I wasn’t sure what to expect from the venue, but it was an absolute madhouse when I got there. I could barely walk in the place, but managed to get some beer (as per usual, beer nerds seem to be friendly folk, so it wasn’t difficult). After a couple hours, things thinned out considerably, allowing me to get a seat and even order some food. Because this was likely to be my only exposure to Hill Farmstead, I ended up drinking more than planned, but I was fortunately able to spread that out over a long period of time. But I was really happy to get my hands on some of this stuff, and I’m pleased to report that Hill Farmstead’s reputation is well deserved.

Hill Farmstead What is Enlightenment?

Hill Farmstead What is Enlightenment? – When I asked the bartender for this beer, he looked back at me with a quizzical look, as if I were hoping to ponder existential conundrums, but after repeating it a few times, I think he finally understood that I was asking for the beer, not transcendence. That’s what Hill Farmstead gets for brewing a series of beers inspired by philosophy. Anywho, this is their second anniversary beer, a “simple” pale ale… brewed with Simcoe and Amarillo hops (in other words, my favorite hops). It sounded like the perfect start to the day, and I think I was right.Pours a cloudy golden yellow with a finger of white head… Smells of huge pine aromas with some citrus notes. Taste is lightly sweet with huge pine flavor hitting in the middle, followed by a mild bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied, with ample but tight carbonation. Quaffable, well balanced, outstanding beer. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 5.4% ABV on tap. Drank out of a wine glass.

Next up is Hill Farmstead’s most hyped and popular beer, the double IPA Abner:

Hill Farmstead Abner

Hill Farmstead Abner – Part of the Ancestral Series, this beer was made in honor of the brewer’s grandfather, named Abner. Pours a darker golden orange color with a finger of white fluffy head and lacing abound. Smells of a more complex array of citrus aromas, with some pine. Taste is very sweet, but balanced out by those big, complex hop flavors of fruity citrus and pine, followed by a well matched dry bitterness in the finish. Really nice med to full body, plenty of tight carbonation… Not quite quaffable, but it goes down easy. Fantastic beer! A

Beer Nerd Details: 8.2% ABV on tap. Drank out of a tulip glass.

At this point, I was really hoping to sample the Citra Single Hop Pale, but the keg kicked just as I got to the bar (I believe it was the first to go). I suspect that after the previous two hop bombs, this one may have suffered from an over-hopped palate on my part, so I wasn’t too upset, and drowned my sorrows in a glass of what turned out to be my favorite beer of the day:

Hill Farmstead Society and Solitude 2

Hill Farmstead Society and Solitude #2 – Another from the Philosophical series, this is actually a sub-series exploring big, hoppy beers. They call this an Imperial Black IPA, and boy is it a doozy – certainly the best of the style I’ve ever had. Beers of this style usually make me crave a really good DIPA or Imperial Stout, rather than enjoy what’s in front of me… but not here. This is exceptional. Pours a black color with minimal head. Smells of bright, citrusy hops. Taste starts very sweet and rich, with a really nice, well matched roastiness in the middle, followed by a strong chocolate note and lots of citrusy and piney hops emerging quickly and lasting through a relatively dry finish. Mouthfeel is full bodied, thick, and almost chewy… but that relatively dry finish is what really sets this apart. No booziness at all, though it feels like a big beer. Utterly awesome, complex, well balanced, amazing beer! A

Beer Nerd Details: 9.5% ABV on tap. Drank out of a tulip glass.

I figured I should continue with the series, and I drank this one slowly, whilst also taking in a meal. I was worried that my palate would be shot by this point, and I would certainly like to try this next one under better circumstances, but my feelings on this seemed to be in line with the beer dorks around me… Basically, I thought it was very good, but Abner was better:

Hill Farmstead Society and Solitude 3

Hill Farmstead Society and Solitude #3 – Pours a cloudy golden orange color (lighter than Abner) with a finger of larger bubbled head and some lacing as I drink… Smells of sweet citrusy hops. Taste starts very sweet, with those bright citrusy hop flavors (little bit of pine) coming through strong… Mouthfeel is a little lighter than expected… Having this after the complex flavor bomb of #2 was probably a mistake, but even compared to Abner, I found this a bit lacking. Well, still a great beer, better than most DIPAs, but if given the choice between this and Abner, I’d go for Abner. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV on tap. Drank out of a wine glass.

So I thought I was done at this point, and took a walk around the neighborhood to clear my head (another gorgeous day) and do some shopping, but I figured that these beers wouldn’t be around again for a year and I was feeling ok, so I plopped down for another one – the only beer I had that day that wasn’t assertively hopped:

Hill Farmstead Everett

Hill Farmstead Everett Robust Porter – Another Ancestral Series beer (I think named after one of Abner’s brothers)… Pours a dark brown color with a lighting brown head. Huge roast in the nose. And the taste follows the nose – tons of roast from the get go. Very nice chocolate character opens up as it warms, even some caramel emerging as I drink more… Very well balanced flavors. Mouthfeel is deep and full, a slight richness, well carbonated but smooth. Exceptionally well crafted porter, a style I don’t normally go for… B+

Beer Nerd Details: 7.5% ABV on tap. Drank out of a tulip glass.

Phew. It was a long day, but this was some of the best beer around and I had a pretty good time. Here’s to hoping Hill Farmstead starts increasing their production capacity and distributing their exceptional beers more… I have to admit, at this point, I’m a bit beered out. I may take the drinking a bit easy for the next couple weeks, but don’t worry, I’ve got quite the backlog of reviews built up…

June Beer Club

by

Tonight was beer club, a meeting of beer minded individuals from my work who get together for a meal and lots-o-beer (and the occasional cider or wine) once a month. A very big turnout this month, and lots of good ol’ fashioned pizza place BYOB fun (I actually had a sandwich whose description was: “It’s like a cheesesteak and an Italian hoagie had a baby… it was very good, but the most popular dish of the night were these deep fried stromboli-like things that were amazing.) Good times were had by all…

June 2012 Beer Club

(Click for bigger image)

For the sake of posterity, some thoughts on each beer are below. As usual, these were not ideal conditions, so these notes are probably not very reliable. Or rock solid. The point is that I have thoughts about these beers, and I’m going to share them, and you’re going to like it. I hope. Ok, fine, maybe not, but I’m putting them here anyway. In order of drinking (not in order of the picture above):

  • Prism Bitto Honey IPA – An offering from a relatively new, relatively local brewery called Prism (which, for whatever reason, always reminds me of the premium cable channel from way back when that eventually turned into Starz, I believe). Anywho, I actually got a taste of this stuff at the Philly Beer Week preview a couple weeks back. It is basically a very nice, sweet IPA, with a pleasant floral citrus hoppiness that is offset by a prominent honey character. I would not call it a favorite, but it’s a unique take on the style, which I certainly appreciate. B
  • Kaedrin Earl Grey Bitter – My homebrewed English Style Bitter, brewed with Earl Grey tea and bitter orange peel. The taste actually continues to evolve, though it remains a highly drinkable, light, citrusy take on the traditional English Bitter. Believe it or not, the tea-like character seems more prominent now than ever. Beer club peeps seem to enjoy it, and I’m glad I’ve got an ample supply leftover for summer drinkin… B+
  • Magic Hat Elder Betty – A wheat beer brewed with elderberries, it came off a bit on the muddled side. It didn’t particularly have a strong wheat feel to it, and the elderberry was there, but not super strong. It certainly wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t knocking my socks off either. A nice alternative to macro swill, for sure, but not something to go out of your way for… B-
  • North Coast Blue Star Great American Wheat Beer – Now this one is a little more like it, though it’s not exactly a spectacular beer either. Still, I got that nice wheat character out of this, and it was a really solid take on a standard style. Again, not something that will melt your face, but it’s pretty good! B
  • Victory Summer Love – I had this beer a few times last year and I have to say that I was not impressed. However, trying it again tonight, I was quite surprised with this one. It was much hoppier than I remember, sorta like a lighter ale version of their classic Prima Pils. We weren’t outside, but that’s what this beer is made for… B+
  • Fegley’s Brew Works Monkey Wrench – A very solid take on the Belgian Saison style, a little sweet, very spicy, but not overwhelming the palate. A relatively full mouthfeel, yet it still leaves you with a light impression, which is strange, but nice. A well crafted take on the standard sweet and spicy version of the style. B+
  • Weyerbacher Blasphemy – My other contribution for the night, this is a bourbon barrel aged version of Weyerbacher’s Quad. I must admit that I’m not a huge fan of the Quad, which I found a bit too sweet and boozy for my tastes. I mean, it’s good and all, but not among my favorite quadrupels. Unfortunately, the bourbon barrel aging treatment hasn’t improved things as much as I’d thought it would. It comes off as being extremely boozy, with that bourbon really dominating the finish and aftertaste. But I’m not getting the richness or vanilla oak flavors out of this that I normally get out of bourbon barrel aged beers. It’s still good, but I was expecting a bit more… At 11.8% ABV, we didn’t actually finish off the whole bottle, so I may take another sample of this sucker soon, so perhaps I’ll have a better idea of this then… B
  • Elysian Avatar Jasmine IPA – Holy weirdness Batman! This thing was the weirdest beer of the night. Granted, we probably should have cracked this before Blasphemy, but even still, it had a very strange floral note, almost like perfume, in both the nose and taste. Presumably, that’s the Jasmine that’s dominating the beer. As I drank, I gradually got more of the floral hops, but nothing really seemed to mesh with this beer. It was sorta a mess, definitely not my thing. C+
  • MacTarnahan’s Spine Tingler – A Belgian style Tripel, and a pretty well crafted one at that. It’s perhaps not perfect, maybe a bit too sweet, but still eminently drinkable stuff. Very nice spicy, bready Belgian yeast character, lots of sweetness, a very good beer. B+
  • 5even Helles Bock – My friend Dana’s homebrewed beer wasn’t quite ready, but we tried it anyway. It was actually pretty good, nice and sweet, malt-forward beer. She things it will clear up with some more conditioning time, but it seemed quite nice to me, though I’d like to try it in another month and see where it’s at…

And that just about covers it. Good times were had by all, and as usual, I’m already looking forward to the July beer club!

Stillwater Holland Oats

by

I see what they did there, and that label is pretty awesome. I don’t know who the two guys are, though they certainly have nice mustaches akin to Mr. Oates in his heydey. But the real genius part of the label is the tiger, which I can only assume is a maneater.

Stillwater Holland Oats

Stillwater/Emelisse Holland Oats – Pours a dark amber color with a finger of light head and some lacing as I drink. Smells strongly of floral hops, with some citrus and resiny pine also evident. It’s also got some rich caramel malt character too. The taste starts sweet, then comes some caramel/toffee notes, followed by those floral, resiny hop flavors, finishing with a light hoppy bitterness. Mouthfeel is great, medium bodied, lightly carbonated, very smooth and almost quaffable. Overall, a very well crafted beer! B+

Beer Nerd Details: 6.6% ABV bottled (11.2 oz). Drank out of a tulip glass on 5/18/12.

This was actually one of them gypsy collaborations with Dutch brewers Emelisse, who seem to have a pretty good reputation amongst the beer dorks. I’ve seen them on tap occasionally around town, but haven’t partook in any of their libations. I shall have to remedy that. Also worthy of note, this alternative label design. Heh. Stillwater is emerging as a go to brewer for me, and I have at least one more review in the pipeline for them…

Notes From Philly Beer Week

by

So Philly Beer Week is here, and of course, I’m too lazy to get my butt into the actual city proper, but fortunately, there are plenty of events out here in the burbs. On Saturday, I actually hit up two locations, the first being Pinocchio’s, who had a bunch of Firestone Walker stuff on tap. It wasn’t a big event or anything, though earlier in the day, they had tapped a keg of Velvet Merkin, an apparently very rare (at least, ’round these parts) and very unique bourbon barrel aged oatmeal stout. The base beer is only 5.5% ABV, but the angels must be damn thirsty, as the barrel aging seems to raise it up to around 8-8.5% or something. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that folks would be lining up outside the place before it opened to get a taste of this stuff, so I missed out.

So I had to make do with a glass of Parabola (I know, boo hoo, right?), another bourbon barrel aged stout, this one clocking in at an impressive 13% ABV (it was, uh, the only thing I had for a few hours on Saturday). Unfortunately, I seem to have neglected the picture of this one, so you’ll have to use your mind’s eye to visualize from these scintillating tasting notes, hastily tapped into my phone one handed as I browsed the bottle shop’s wares:

Firestone Walker Parabola – Pours a black as night color with practically nonexistent head (there was a ring of brownish stuff clinging to the side of the glass, but not much going on with the rest). Smells of strongly of bourbon, chocolate, caramel, vanilla and oak. Taste is full of that same rich caramel, vanilla, bourbon and oak, with some chocolate for good measure. Mouthfeel is rich and velvety, low carbonation, but enough to keep it from being cloying. I had no idea this thing was 13% as I was drinking, but I kinda felt that way at the end of my (fortunately small) glass. Overall, fantastic beer, something I hope to get some more of at some point… A-

Beer Nerd Details: 13% ABV on tap. Drank out of a small snifter-like glass (I’m guessing 8-10 oz).

So I hung out at the shop for a while, shot some shit with the locals and beermongers, picked out a few bottles to take home, grabbed a piece of pizza and and glass of water to calm myself down, then I headed over to Wayne, PA for the Main Line Jazz and Food Fest, where Teresa’s Cafe (one of my favorite beer bars) was doing a big Tröegs tasting. Wayne ave was closed off for a block or so, and a bunch of local restaurants and other businesses set up tents and tables and whatnot, along with a live jazz band playing on the stage. It was a pretty low key, family friendly affair, but the weather was gorgeous and beer was flowing like wine!

Ironically, my first beer was not even a Tröegs – when I spied some Sierra Nevada ExPortation (a porter aged in barrels over at Russian River), I had to make sure I got some, as it was my first sour revelation and I thought I’d never see the stuff again (it was a one time Beer Camp brew, though perhaps they’ve made more batches for beer week). It was excellent, though I think some of the other sours I’ve had this year might outrank it (stiff competition though). If you get a chance to try some, you totally should.

Ad this point, I hunkered down for some dinner, and ordered me a Brotherly Suds, a special Philly Beer Week collaboration between Victory, Sly Fox, Yards, Iron Hill, Stoudts, Nodding Head, and Tröegs (who hosted the brewing session). It apparently started out as a Vienna lager… but then they used a Kölsch yeast (i.e. an ale yeast), American hops (Centennial and US Tettnanger), and rye. It seemed more like a Kölsch or British Pale Ale to me, though. Unfortunately, I came away a bit underwhelmed:

Troegs Brotherly Suds 3

Brotherly Suds #3 (Tröegs Scratch #67) – Dark amber color with a finger or two of head. Smells a bit like a British pale ale, lightly fruity, some grassy, earthy hops. Taste has some nice complexity, some delicate fruit and hop flavors, maybe some light spiciness, but it’s all rather muted, and it’s got that British pale ale or Kölsch feel that I don’t usually care for. Mouthfeel is nice, surprisingly light bodied. Overall, it’s ok, but not my thing… I probably shouldn’t have drank this after the ExPortation – it actually would have made a nice walking around outside beer, but not so much as a complement to dinner. B-

Beer Nerd Details: 4.6% ABV on tap. Drank out of a pint glass.

And finally, after dinner, I headed back outside for some browsing and Jazz and walking around and whatnots, picking up a cup of Tröegs Perpetual IPA, something I’d not had before, and which was excellent:

Troegs Perpetual IPA

Tröegs Perpetual IPA – Apparently the reason I hadn’t seen this before is that it was a limited seasonal brew, only available in august. Tröegs has recently just moved to new digs, and their expanded brewing capacity means they can now turn this into a year-round brew. Pours a golden orange color with a little head… Huge hoppy pine in the nose, with a little grassy citrus too. Taste has that same huge piney, resiny flavor, a little grassy citrus, and a mild, pleasant bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel is well carbonated, light to medium bodied, and very easy to put down. Conditions were probably not ideal here, but it was a really nice walking around outside beer. I’ll give it a provisional B+, but it’s on the A- bubble…

Beer Nerd Details: 7.5% ABV on tap. Drank out of a fancy plastic cup.

Well, there you have it: lame, unreliable notes from a day of drinking and merriment. I’m still not sure how many other events I’ll hit up this week, but I’ll definitely be going to a Hill Farmstead event on Saturday (also at Teresa’s)…