Altbier Archives - Kaedrin Beer Blog

Operation Chowder II: Chowder Harder

December 6, 2021 by Mark

It’s been quite a while since travel has been advisable at all, let alone travel specifically for the decidedly unhallowed purpose of beer, but I figured it would be fun to reprise the Operation Chowder trip to the Boston area that was quite enjoyable a few years ago. There was no beer-related event or centerpiece that precipitated the trip, just a desire to get away for a few days.

First stop, on the way, was a sortie on Tree House Brewing. We’ve long been a fan of the brewery here at Kaedrin, so it was nice to finally visit the brewery. That said, the NEIPA (or Hazy IPA or whatever you want to call it) has become common enough (if not ubiquitous) such that while Tree House is undoubtedly one of the better purveyors of such styles, you could probably also find a world class example closer to home (unless you live near Treehouse, duh). Definitely worth visiting if it’s on your way or something, but maybe not worth a trip unto itself.

It’s quite a large operation at this point, and they’ve got the whole ordering process down pat. Beautiful brewery and good beer, not much else to ask for… Some of these have detailed tasting notes and were drunk after the trip, others just have vague thoughts (as a lot of stuff in this post will have, since I wasn’t taking detailed notes while on the trip).

Tree House Trail Nelson – Solid little pilsner with an extra dose of Nelson Sauvin hops. While the non-traditional hops are there and make their presence known, it’s still primarily a pilsner (i.e. this doesn’t feel like an IPL or something, as some hopped up pilsners can). Easy going and quaffable stuff. It doesn’t quite hit top tiers of pilsner-dom, but it hit the spot. B

Beer Nerd Details: 5.1% ABV on draft. Drank out of a mug on 8/26/21.

Tree House Free to Roam – Helles lager that spent some time conditioning in a horizontal oak foeder, reminiscent of Hill Farmstead’s Poetica series. Pours a clear golden yellow color with a few fingers of fluffy white head, good retention, and lacing as I drink. Smells nice, bread, crackers, noble hops, floral and herbal, maybe a faint hint of vanilla and citrus. Taste hits those same notes from the nose, but perhaps not as complex here. Mouthfeel is light bodied and crisp, with slightly lower than normal carbonation (it’s certainly there, but not as much as you’d expect from this type of beer). Overall, quite enjoyable. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 5% ABV canned (12 ounces). Drank out of a tulip glass on 8/30/21. Canned: 7/24/21. AND WE WILL.

Tree House Very Green – Amped up version of Green, one of Tree House’s flagship beers. Pours a cloudy, murky pale yellowish color, almost brown depending on lighting (look what you need to know here is that it’s not green, ok?), with a couple fingers of fluffy white head. Smells very sweet, candied tropical fruits, citrus, something floral in the background. Taste follows the nose, sweet, tropical fruit, and a balancing bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied, well carbonated, balanced, and and almost dry note in the finish. Overall, ayup, pretty great stuff. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 8.3% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 9/3/21. Canned on 08/25/21.

Tree House Queen Machine – Amarillo – Part of a series of beers based off of a Juice Machine base, and using that to explore concentrated lupulin pellets (in this case, Amarillo pellets). Similar in appearance and character to Very Green, but this is less tropical, more like orange or grapefruit, a little bit of floral, very nice. Would be curious to try other editions of Queen Machine at the same time to get the hop distinctions – many of these NEIPAs can get to feel a bit… samey, so it would be an interesting exercise. That said, if you’re going to make a bunch of beers that taste similar to this, you’re not exactly doing bad work… A-

Beer Nerd Details: 8% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 9/6/21. Canned on 08/11/21. THE QUEEN HAS ARRIVED.

Tree House Cobbler – This is basically Julius conditioned atop freeze-dried peaches. Another murky chicken broth looking thing, but man those peaches just explode in the aroma. The taste is perhaps less, er, explosive, but that actually works in its favor. The base Julius is there with just some added peachy notes. Same well balanced mouthfeel as Julius too. Great stuff here, probably the highlight of my purchases from Tree House. A

Beer Nerd Details: 6.8% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 9/10/21. Canned on 08/23/21.

Tree House Mega Treat – A hopped up rendition of Super Treat, which is itself, an amped up version of Treat. It definitely has that sweet, candied hop character that the name would imply, though I think these were the oldest cans I bought (and despite my normal OCD recording of canned on dates, I seem to have misplaced that info this time, yikes), and that NEIPA character does tend to fall off over time. I suspect this would have been better fresh, though it’s no slouch now. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 8.7% ABV canned (16 ounce pounder). Drank out of a tulip glass on 9/18/21.

So Tree House: worth stopping in and excellent as always. Once we arrived in Boston proper, we made our way to Fenway for a baseball game. In checking out the local environs, we did spy a brewery called Cheeky Monkey right across from the field. Let’s not dwell on it, but they did not impress, both in terms of beer and customer service (mistakes were made). My guess is that they can get away with this due to their location.

Fenway itself is always fun, and a member of my fantasy baseball team hit a home run in my presence, which is nice. There may have been higher end beer options somewhere, but the best I found was Lord Hobo’s 617, a tasty but standard NEIPA (named after the area code for Fenway, and it’s naturally 6.17% ABV).

The next day we made our way up to Salem for some witchery, which had some appeal, but the highlight of the visit was Notch Brewing. A nice little place right on the waterfront, they had a wonderful selection of low octane lagers and deeply unsexy European ales (to be clear: in this world of hazebros and pastry stouts, “unsexy” is a high complement.)

Notch The Standard – Double decocted Czech pilsner hopped with Sterling. As the name implies, this is a pretty standard pils, but it’s one of those beers that could set that standard. Crisp, quaffable, tasty stuff. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 4.4% ABV on draft. Drank out of a mug on 8/27/21.

Notch Ungespundet – Apparently the name of this beer translates to “unbunged” in German; a reference to a specific fermentation strategy that regulates the amount of natural carbonation. Or something like that. Clean, malt forward, bready with a light toast character, reminiscent of an Oktoberfest (though still distinct). A-

Beer Nerd Details: 4.5% ABV on draft. Drank out of a Willibecher glass on 8/27/21.

Notch Altbier – I have some coworkers who live in Düsseldorf, and they’re always telling me I need to visit and drink Altbier, which is a specialty of that city. I’ve had a few American takes on the style, and this might be the best I’ve had. Dark bread, toast, a hint of caramel and vanilla, but with a well rounded bitterness. Really tasty stuff.

Beer Nerd Details: 4.5% ABV on draft. Drank out of a Willibecher glass on 8/27/21.

And well, well, well, I just noticed that Notch delivers to PA. Will wonders never cease. You’ll be seeing more from Notch on this here blog. They were probably the highlight of this trip, so it’ll be nice to get my hands on more of their stuff.

There were naturally lots of other activities and bars visited upon the way, including some Freedom Trail shenanigans and a couple of standout bars, like The Plough and the Stars (minor taplist but good live music) and Bukowski Tavern (decent tap list, fun not-quite-dive-bar atmosphere!)

While this is the second Operation Chowder, I must admit that the most distinctive foodstuffs consumed during the trip were probably more lobster-related. However, the name “Operation Lobster” has been reserved for the inevitable trip to Maine that will materialize someday. In the meantime, I will leave you with the note that I did manage to procure some of this operation’s namesake during the trip. Prost!

Tired Hands Compilation

February 13, 2014 by Mark

It’s been a while since I’ve recapped recapped some recent Tired Hands beers, and these notes just keep piling up, so here goes nothing. Note that the earliest of these is from late August, so it really has been a while since I’ve attempted to stoke the jealousy of my readership with these local gems. Most are one-offs that will never be brewed again, but we’ve gotten to a point where I’m starting to recognize rebrews of some of their beers, so you never know.

Screeching Loud Thrashing Death Metal Offensive Song

SCREECHING LOUD THRASHING DEATH METAL OFFENSIVE SONG – 10.5% ABV blended old ale – Named after a review on Yelp where someone complained about the, shall we say, eclectic mix of music you hear when at TH (it looks like someone told her that they brewed this beer in her honor, so she updated her review, but the original one is still there.) A blend of 9 month old Flemish red (25%), fresh Barleywine (65%), and rye whiskey barrel fermented Barleywine (10%). Very interesting! Not a ton in the nose, but the taste is unique and interesting. I’m getting lots of chocolate, and maybe even coffee-like notes. Faint hints of cherries and a note of something bright escaping in the finish (prolly that Flemish red). Unique beer, never had anything like it. B+

Singel Hop Saison Citra – 5% ABV saison – Hurm, either this has gotten a lot better since my last glass (my previous note expressed surprise that Citra wasn’t that potent – but it was great this second time), or my palate got destroyed by Vermont beer and is only coming back… Juicy citrus hops and saison spice. Glad I gave it another shot, upgrade! A-

Tabel, Sacred – 4.2% ABV spiced saison – Brewed with oats and Holy Basil, fermented with a touch of grapefruit and pomegranate. Is there a touch of funk in here? Not sure, but it’s a nice, quaffable saison, with some citrus rind character, maybe a hint of lemon, an herbal note, and slight spicy yeast notes. B+

Mt.Sharp – 7.2% ABV Citra and Columbus IPA – Interesting sticky icky citrus and pine combo. Sticky and yet creamy? This is striking a chord that I can’t place, but who cares, because its awesome! A-

SuchUnique – 8.2% ABV Double IPA, Simcoe & Centennial hops – Nice floral and citrus notes, mango, flowers, good stuff. Well hidden ABV. Good! A-

Pub Style Ale – 4.5% ABV pale ale brewed with oats & Centennial hops – Great nose, lots of citrus, big floral hops in the taste. Quaffable! B+

Sad State of Affairs – 8.2 % ABV DIPA – A less profane reference to the cease and desist for FarmHands? Regardless, this is a rock solid DIPA, citrus and pine, a little slickness but still well balanced. Fantastic! A-

Lizard Queen – 5.2% ABV Motueka & Centennial Pale Ale – Yep, another great pale ale, juicy citrus nose (maybe even a lemon note), some earthy floral notes too. Crushable. A-

Euphoric Sunshine Drip – 5.7% ABV spiced saison with Meyer lemon and pink peppercorn – Another typically great Tired Hands farmhouse saison, not quite funky, but that lemon makes overtures in that direction, and the peppercorn accentuates the yeast well… A-

The Multiverse – 8.1% ABV pear farmhouse DIPA – Wow, really nice pairing (pearing?) of farmhouse spice (funk?) and hops, with neither dominating, but instead melding into something different. Really nice! A-

Critical Anxious – 7.8% ABV Biere De Garde – And I didn’t take any notes on this one, though I did write down that I had it, so, um, I dunno. Mulligan.

Oktüberfest – 6.1% ABV Ser Gut Yam Bier – Very nice Oktoberfest style beer, mild, light toasted bread, but still relatively sweet. Great mouthfeel on this one too. Not really my style, but this is my kinda take on the style. B+

My Favorite Show – 5.7% ABV classical modern saison – Typically great Tired Hands saison, almost funky, nice peppery notes, highly drinkable, like a slightly amped up FarmHands (er, SaisonHands). B+

Communication is the Key – 5.5% ABV crushable Simcoe pale ale – Typically great Tired Hands pale ale, big juicy fruit notes, hint of pine, crushable is a perfect descriptor. A-

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So I’m at the bar one night and Jean fills a couple of growlers. He gives them to some guy who’s making a trip to Hill Farmstead and says that Shaun Hill likes his beer extra cloudy, so he renamed “Communication is the Key” to “Communication is the Murky” and “We Are All Infinite Energy Vibrating At The Same Frequency” to “We Are All Hazy As Hell Vibrating at the Same Cloudiness”.

Fall Precious – 6.6% ABV autumnal saison – Really nice saison, it’s got that typical Tired Hands farmhouse character, but it’s carving out an identity of its own. Sweet up front, maybe some fruit, with the spice emerging towards the finish. A-

H.C.S. – 5.9% ABV viscous and delicious saison – Power of suggestion, or is this really viscous? Definitely a fuller body than your typical TH saison, very cloudy, a little yeasty spice, well done. B+

MortalGrade – 8.2% ABV DIPA brewed with wheat, oats, Chinook, Citra, Zythos, and Simcoe – Fantastic, one of my favorite Tired Hands DIPAs! Huge juicy citrus, some grassy, floral, and pine hop notes too. Obscenely quaffable for its ABV, no real hint of booze. Great stuff! A

MoMoCoe – 5.5% ABV Motueka, Mosaic, and Simcoe pale ale – Great juicy hop character, lots of grapefruit, nice bracing bitterness, really good! A-

Singel Hop Saison, Chinook – 5% ABV – The 8th singel hop saison, and probably around the middle of the pack. Indeed, the hops and saison yeast seem a little at odds here. Still good, of course, but not the best of the bunch. B+

Under Pressure – 7.6% Blended Artisanal Farmhouse Biere de Garde – Excellent malt forward Brett beer, some nice malty fruit notes, with some peppery yeast and complementary Brett. Great! A-

Coulton Hop – 5.5% heirloom cider/pale ale – 49% of the fermentables came from cider made of apples, pears, and quinces. Hopped with Simcoe and that’s really what stands out, but it’s amazing that they were able to coax something so beerlike out of something comprised of so much cider… As I drink more, the cider twang becomes more pronounced… Really nice. B+

Coulton Sour – 5.5% heirloom cider/Berliner Weiss – Similar approach with the cider used as fermantable. Holy sour patch kids, this is super tart, and you really get that cider side of things here too. Really interesting beers here. A-

Cosmic Slop – 8.3% DIPA – Tired Hands’ 200th batch is a typically great fruit and hop forward DIPA, lots of citrus, pine, and floral notes, very well done B+

Hail Santa – 6.4% ABV Rye IPA – Slightly darker than typical, but still a pale yellow, beautiful juicy hop nose, with some floral and spicy notes hitting in the taste. Really good! B+

I See a Darkness – 8.5% ABV porter brewed with coffee and honey – Collaboration with Sante Adairius, very nice, bigger than normal porter. Tried getting some a few days later, but they were out… B+

Sgt. Salamander – 5% ABV Holiday Sour Berliner Weiss – Wow, this has a typical Berliner nose, but the taste is all sorts of great. Really tight lactic sourness, puckering really, and it’s great. Also had some dosed with cinnamon & vanilla bean syrup that just puts this miles ahead. Super flavorful. B+ (regular) and A- (with syrup)

Trendler – 5.5% ABV alt bier – Very interesting and different, Jean is branching out here, malt forward but not heavy at all… B+

Praise Bee – 9% 2X honey IBA – Zombie rides again… Sorta! Doesn’t quite live up to zombie levels, but it’s really good, nice hop character, well matched dark malts, excellent. A-

Circumambulation – 7.2% biere de garde – Fermented with kolsch yeast and lagered three weeks, this is a subtle beer, super creamy head, not a typical TH feel, but still very good, lots of muted flavors, complex but not overwhelming… B

Bucolic Overlord

Bucolic Overlord – 8% DIPA – Brewed with oats, Citra, Columbus, and Simcoe hops. Great stuff, dank and resinous, with floral and citrus notes rounding it out. Superb! A

VOID ego VOID – 9.8% ABV blended imperial stout – Partially barrel aged in Tuthilltown rye whiskey barrels for 7 months… Not a lot of barrel character, roasty up front, sweet towards the finish with a nice hit of vanilla. Not as thick or heavy as you’d expect, but it still has admirable heft. I really enjoyed this! A-

Principal Eel – 6% sour farmhouse IPA – Well this is unusual, better than the last sour IPA I had from TH last year, but something about the strong hop and sour combo doesn’t completely work for me… B

All-O-Gistics – 5.9% Experimental IPA – Experimental hop #05256 – Whoa carbonation! Not that I’m complaining, but this is more carbonated than your typical Tired Hands beer. Great juicy hop nose, citrus, pine, and grass. Maybe something like green onion. Taste is more piney and it’s got a sharp bitterness. Definitely not your typical Tired Hands IPA, but still great. A-

Can’t Keep Up – 6.2% Spontaneous Saison – Fermented in old Tuthilltown rye barrels that had previously been used to make some apple cider (by frequent TH collaborator, Tom Culton), only 10 gallons produced. Amazing, nice oak character, sharp but very pleasant sourness, almost vinous tart fruit, really great. I love this! A

And that just about covers it. If you’re local and heading over to the next release on Sunday, let me know!

Decembeer Club II: Electric Boogaloo

December 11, 2012 by Mark

Tonight was beer club, a meeting of beer minded individuals from my work who get together for a meal and lots-o-beer once a month. As usual, a core group of stalwarts showed up, along with some new faces and other return guest stars. All told, a solid turnout, plenty of good beer, and a fun time had by all.

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Apologies for the image quality. Brightness kinda got away from me there. Stupid flash. For the sake of posterity, some thoughts on each beer we tried are below. Standard disclaimers apply, though I think I’ve achieved a new level in beer nerdom in that I’ve already had (and probably reviewed) a lot of the beers presented here. Go figure. Roughly (yeah, yeah, gimme a break, it’s a social gathering after all, you’re lucky I can do this much) listed in order of drinking, not the order in the picture above:

Hitachino Nest White Ale – This has actually been on my radar for a while, but it’s not something I’ve ever tried before. It’s a very solid Belgian wit beer, not super strong on the wheat (though it’s there), more defined by the Belgian yeast character of fruit and dry spice. Sorta reminded me of St. Bernardus’ Tokyo beer, which is not suspicious at all, as Hitachino is Japanese (I swears, I didn’t realize it when I was drinking, except perhaps subconsciously because Hitachino does sound pretty Japanese). Really worth checking out, and it won’t break the bank like St. Bernardus will. A-
Innis & Gunn Oak Aged Beer – This must be the 4th or 5th time I’ve had this. I’ve always enjoyed it too, though I didn’t have any sticky toffee dessert dish to pair it with (like I normally do). A solid contribution from a beer club newcomer. B+

Ommegang Scythe & Sickle – Malt-focused, Belgian-style harvest ale, recently reviewed! Well chosen and well placed in the tasting. This works well with food (which came out as I was drinking this)… B+

Ballast Point Sculpin IPA – Yep, another that I’ve had several times before, but I do love this beer. It seems that some beer club members have been doing some research on Beer Advocate and this is a pretty good choice. Well played, Paul. A-
Magic Hat Hi.P.A. – A decent enough IPA that I think just pales (pun intended!) in comparison with Sculpin. Flavors seemed muted and a little bland, but seemingly well crafted enough. Not something I’d seek out again, but I wouldn’t turn it down if you handed me one. B-
Kaedrin Abbey Dubbel Xmas – A variant on my homebrewed abbey dubbel beer, when I was bottling and I got to the bottom of the bucket I added a cinnamon stick and some clove to the remaining beer. Alas, I didn’t get much additional spice out of this, at least in my small sample. However, I feel like the beer has finally conditioned into something solid. Still not quite what I was going for, I think perhaps too much in the Special B department, yielding a bit too much in the way of toasted malt character, but still, it’s coming along well. I will refrain from rating this for now, as I don’t think it’s peaked yet, but perhaps a full review will be forthcoming.
Anchor Our Special Ale 2012 (Christmas Ale) – Just reviewed this one yesterday (along with the 2011 variety). This was one of my contributions, so of course it was good.
Evolution Secret Spot Winter Ale – I’ve enjoyed most of Evolutions offerings that I’ve tried so far, and this one is no exception. But it’s not really exceptional either. Another beer that may have suffered a bit by comparison to the previous beer. Technically an altbier, this drinks kinda like a winter warmer without the spice. I like. Want to try again in better context. B
Lagunitas Brown Shugga’ – Yep, just reviewed this one too. Big flavors do well in beer club setting.
Mikkeller Santa’s Little Helper 2011 – One of my contributions… I’ve had the 2010 vintage, and though Mikkel claims to tweak the recipe every year, this seemed pretty similar to me. It’s listed as a Belgian Strong Dark, but it reads more like an Imperial Stout. Lots of chocolate and roasted malts, smooth, well hidden booze. It’s said that this is a spiced beer, but it’s hard to detect in this. Definitely a complex beer, and I’m guessing the spices contribute to that without being overpowering. Overall, a very good beer, worthy of the holiday. A-

So there you have it. Another successful beer club. Good company, good food, good beer. As always, already looking forward to the next installment.