Long Trail Hibernator

Seems like it's been a while since I had a new beer -- or any beer, really -- so I thought I'd indulge a bit.  Last night, I grabbed another bottle of Long Trail out of my keezer.  This time, I went for the Hibernator:

Vittles:

Scottish Export 80/-

5.8% abv

35 IBUs

Score:

Appearance: 8/10

Aroma: 21/25

Taste: 37/40

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Style: 2/5

Drinkability: 8/10

Overall: 84/100

Impression:

I was expecting a clearer, brighter appearance, since I didn't realize this is an unfiltered beer.  The aroma tips toward the malty side and are grainy, toasty, and bready, with some sweet grassy and caramel flavors mixed in.  The taste is much the same, but it has some added complexity with an earthy bitterness, too.  The medium body is well-suited for the season this beer is available.  What I liked best about this beer is how the flavors change and become better balanced as the beer warms.

I really don't know why Long Trail calls this a Scottish Ale.  I'm not sure how I would classify it, but it hits very few of the characteristics of Scottish Ales.  I kind of think it'd be more appropriate as a winter warmer, but even that's a little iffy for me.  Not that it isn't a tasty beer, but it's not what I was expecting out of a Scottish Ale.

Cheers!

Harpoon UFO Pumpkin

It looks like I have maybe another 3-4 fall seasonals in my keezer.  The one I grabbed to go with dinner tonight was Harpoon UFO Pumpkin.  It's probably been around four years since I've had any UFO beers, and I remember liking the varieties I had well enough, so let's see how the Pumpkin stacks up:

Vittles:
Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer
5.9% abv
20 IBUs
~11 SRM

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 20/25
Taste: 34/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 84/100

Impression:
The beer poured very nicely, and the head retained decently before falling to a slim ring.  It left very little lacing on the glass.  The aroma has a nice malt and pumpkin background, but the main player for the nose is the spice -- it smells warm and earthy, with notes of cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg.  The flavors are much the same, rounded out with a medium-full mouthfeel and a smooth finish.  It's got all the flavors of fall that I love in a good pumpkin ale, but the balance is a little off, since the spices almost obscure the malt and pumpkin flavors.  I'll be hunting the distributors at the end of the season to see if I can pick up a fall variety case of UFO on the cheap.

Cheers!

Penn Weizen

Late in the summer, I snagged a case of Penn Weizen for a measly $10.  I figured, for that price, even if it's not all that great, I can still use it for crock pot recipes and what not.  So I gave it a go:

Vittles:
Weizen/Weissbier
5.25% abv
16 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 7/10
Aroma: 21/25
Taste: 35/40
Mouthfeel: 7/10
Style: 4/5
Drinkability: 7/10
Overall: 81/100

Impression:
I rolled the bottle to agitate the yeast cake before I poured, and it poured a fair head, but the head fell so fast it was halfway down before I could snap a picture.  The aroma is wheaty with some esters and phenols in the forefront, but I don't smell as much banana and clove as I would hope.  Still it's a balanced aroma, so I can't really knock it.  The flavors are, likewise, a little shy on the banana and clove, though there is plenty of yeast overtone.  There isn't much carbonation, which is fine, but the mouthfeel is a little on the thin side.  The aftertaste is all yeast and wheat, so there's a nice linger afterwards.  I might use one or two of these in my slow cooker, but I'll be saving most of them for my own enjoyment.

Cheers!

Captain Jack's Octofest

I recently had several beers foisted upon me by a very generous friend, and Captain Jack's Octofest was among them.  I'd never heard of the Captain Jack's before (looks like it's put out by Drunk Monkey Brew Werks in Lewistown, PA).  I love finding little-known labels like this -- sometimes they're surprisingly good.  Here goes:

Vittles:

Marzen/Oktoberfest

Score:

Appearance: 8/10

Aroma: 21/25

Taste: 36/40

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Style: 5/5

Drinkability: 8/10

Overall: 86/100

Impression:

The head retains decently well and leaves mild lacing as it falls.  I really like the aroma -- it's toasty, with caramel, toffee, earthy, woody, and herbal notes.  I also smell something that reminds me of chocolate, but not quite.  Every now and then I get a straw-like whiff, but it doesn't linger.  The flavors are very similar, with the earthy/woody/herbal characteristics coming more to the front.  The flavors aren't overly strong, which is nice.  There's just enough carbonation to bring a slight sting to the tongue, and the medium-full body rounds it all out very well.  All in all, I'm very happy I wound up with this bottle in my keezer.  I'd absolutely be interested in trying more Captain Jack beers in the future, but it doesn't look like their distribution reaches out to my area yet -- it looks like they only distribute to three counties so far.  Here's hoping they expand soon!

Cheers!

Goose Island Nut Brown Ale

I liked the other Goose Island beers I had, so I hope their Nut Brown Ale doesn't disappoint:

Vittles:
American Brown Ale
5.3% abv
25 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 22/25
Taste: 36/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 88/100

Impression:
The aroma is very nutty and fairly yeasty, with a decent helping of roasted malt, so it's pulling me in right off the bat.  The flavors are very similar but more distinct: dark toasted bread, hazelnut, coffee, chocolate, and some toffee jump out at me, and there's a nice earthy/woody tone behind it all.  A medium-full body rounds it out nicely.  This is a very well done brown ale -- not too bitter, not too dry, and the malt-heavy body brings forward some nice complexities.  Very enjoyable.  I'll have to look for this again in the future.

Cheers!

Long Trail Ale

A couple weeks ago, I picked up a Long Trail variety box.  I don't think I've had anything by this brewer before, so this should be interesting.  The first one I'm trying is the Long Trail Ale:

Vittles:
Northern German Altbier
4.6% abv
28 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 22/25
Taste: 36/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 3/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 86/100

Impression:
This seems to be the first Amber Hybrid Beer category beverage that I've had since I started this blog.  I think I could have just as easily lumped this under Dusseldorf Altbiers, but the NGA label seemed just a little more accurate.  Anyway, this beer looks pretty tasty to me.  The aroma is well-balanced, but not very strong -- I smell wheat notes, along with woody/earthy hints, but a slight whiff of banana surprised me a bit.  It's not an unwelcome surprise.  I get the banana again, very very faintly, right at the front, then a nice mix of hops, malt, and wheat flavors takes over.  None of the flavors really jump out at me, but it's a satisfying beer with a crisp, clean finish.  If the rest of Long Trail's beers are just as good, I might be looking at adding another regular to my rotation.

Cheers!

Harpoon Octoberfest

I've had a few Harpoon beers before, and while they don't exactly stand out from the crowd, their beers are usually on the upside of decent.  One of the fall seasonals that found its way into my keezer was Harpoon Octoberfest:

Vittles:

Marzen/Oktoberfest

5.3% abv

32 IBUs

Score:

Appearance: 8/10

Aroma: 20/25

Taste: 36/40

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Style: 5/5

Drinkability: 8/10

Overall: 85/100

Impression:

Decent head persistence, and the foam left quite a bit of lacing as it fell.  The aroma has a nice balance between malt and hops, though neither aspect is very strong.  It smells malty-sweet, a little like caramel and toffee, offset by light grassy, floral, earthy hops notes.  The flavor is much the same, improved somewhat by the medium body of the brew.  The carbonation doesn't add much -- seems very weak.  What I like best about this beer is the balance and the smoothness.  (And it pairs well with roasted chicken.)

Cheers!

Troegs Dead Reckoning Porter

Several weeks ago, my husband and I went to Troegs in Hershey, PA with a couple friends of ours.  We tried a sampler tray, and I got to taste their Dead Reckoning Porter for the first time.  Since I had way too small of a taste, I didn't bother writing up a review of it back then, but I recently came across a bottle of it, so here goes:

Vittles:
Robust Porter
5.8% abv
53 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 21/25
Taste: 37/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 88/100

Impression:
I don't get to try enough porters.  They're underrated as a style and underproduced in general, in my opinion.  This porter pours a dark mahogany and smells deliciously of roasty, earthy notes like coffee and chocolate.  The flavors match the aroma profile nicely and with a clean balance.  A hint of bitterness picks up toward the back end, and the creamy medium-full body rounds out the beer very well.  I will be keeping an eye out for this one again -- very good for a porter.

Cheers!

Newcastle Brown Ale

It's been years since I've had Newcastle Brown Ale.  I must've been an undergrad last time I had it (and now I feel old...).  I remember liking it well enough years ago, but it wasn't one of my favorites.  It'll be interesting to see if my tastes have changed:

Vittles:
Northern English Brown
4.7% abv

Score:
Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 19/25
Taste: 31/40
Mouthfeel: 7/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 7/10
Overall: 77/100

Impression:
Ok, so it doesn't taste as good as I remember, but then again, I thought Guinness was the shit back in the day.  Now, Guinness seems like a watery, lightly-flavored concoction, and Newcastle seems like a beer I'd be just as likely to cook with as to drink.  It's not bad, but I doubt I'll be going out of my way to get another bottle anytime soon.  The head fell quickly and left almost no lacing.  The aroma is very weak, and what I could pick up on was faintly malty with a hint of nuttiness and a slight fruity undertone.  The flavors were more of sweet malts, caramel, some brown sugar -- but still weak, like flavored water.  There is a slight bit of hoppiness, too.  It's a smooth beer -- that's the one factor that really works in its favor.  It finishes somewhat dry with an earthy breath on the tail end.  Not terrible, but not fantastic either.

~Cheers!

Duck-Rabbit Amber Ale

I've had a couple Duck-Rabbit beers before, and I've been pretty impressed with them overall, so when a friend gave me a bottle of D-R Amber Ale, I popped the cap as soon as I could:

Vittles:
American Amber Ale
5.5% abv

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 21/25
Taste: 36/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 9/10
Overall: 88/100

Impression:
The head fell slowly and left mild lacing on the glass.  The aroma had a slight metallic edge at first, but that faded quickly, and I could smell the bready/malty notes clearly after that, along with hints of caramel, toffee, and maybe honey, along with a slight floral undertone.  The flavors are primarily malty, which is right up my alley.  The malty flavors transition nicely to a soft hoppiness, and the flavors are clean and balanced.  This beer is medium-bodied with just a bit of a sting on the tongue at first, followed by a mellow smoothness that goes very well with the flavors.  Duck-Rabbit did a hell of a job with this beer, and I'll be keeping an eye out for it in the future.  My favorite beer of theirs is still their barley wine, but this one's up there, too.

Cheers!

Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale

It's the fall, so of course I'm eager to try the fall seasonals and various pumpkin ales I come across.  Sidenote: I had a sip of Southern Tier's Pumking on tap a couple weeks back, and I was floored by how tasty it was, so I feel like every pumpkin beer I have from here on out will necessarily pale by comparison.  Shipyard's Pumpkinhead Ale somehow found its way into my keezer somehow, so I figured it was time to give it a try:

Vittles:
Herbed/Spiced/Vegetable Beer
4.7% abv

Score:
Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 16/25
Taste: 28/40
Mouthfeel: 6/10
Style: 4/5
Drinkability: 5/10
Overall: 67/100

Impression:
From bottle to glass, there was almost too much carbonation.  Not that it almost frothed over or anything, but it looked more like ginger ale than beer -- the bubbles were too large for beer.  Thankfully, that settled down after a few minutes.  The aroma is very faint.  I mainly smell cinnamon and nutmeg, and there's something warm and earthy in the background, but I don't smell any pumpkin or malt.  The flavor is pretty much non-existent, except for a brief taste of spices up front and an extremely faint pumpkiny after-taste.  The after-taste almost seems a little musty, too.  I feel like I'm drinking fizzy, slightly flavored water.  The mouthfeel is thinner than I was expecting, and the high levels of carbonation sting the tongue without adding anything pleasant to the experience.  This beer sort of leaves a taste like bile in my mouth after a while, which knocks a couple points off the drinkability factor.  Overall, I wouldn't recommend this beer.  I usually like Shipyard beers -- they're not anything spectacular, but they're usually decent, so I'm kind of surprised by how much I dislike this particular beer.  Oh, well.  If it ever finds its way into my keezer again, I can always cook with it.  It'd probably make for a tasty pork and sauerkraut slow-cooker meal.

Cheers!

21st Amendment Brew Free! Or Die IPA

My husband picked Brew Free! Or Die out because he loves hoppy American IPAs and he had heard it was tasty.  Bold and hoppy IPAs are continuing to grow on me, though they still aren't my favorite style.  I did enjoy this one pretty well, though:

Vittles:
American IPA
7% abv
70 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 23/25
Taste: 37/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 90/100

Impression:
I like that this brewer cans their beers instead of bottling it -- less chance of the beer getting light-struck, and canned beer doesn't pick up that metallic taste like it used to.  The head fell slowly and left a fairly sticky lacing behind as it went.  The nose is pretty potent -- grapefruit and pine jump out at me right away, as I expected they would, but I can also smell caramel and sweet-malty scents in the background.  Grapefruit, tropical fruits, and a resinous pine flavor dominate the tongue, but the malt backbone comes through on the finish.  The medium body and moderate carbonation round out the beer nicely, though there does seem to be a tinge of oiliness in there.  Overall, worth trying, especially if you enjoy other American IPAs.

Cheers!

Goose Island IPA

I can't believe how stocked my keezer is with varieties I haven't tried yet.  I'm not even sure how I got some of these beers, since I don't recognize their labels.  Since I wasn't looking for anything too different or new this time around, I opted for a Goose Island IPA, which I thought would go nicely with the chicken dish I made for dinner:

Vittles:
English IPA
5.9% abv
55 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 9/10
Aroma: 21/25
Taste: 36/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 87/100

Impression:
I tend to prefer English IPAs to American ones because they usually have a better balance between malt and hops flavors (the ones I've tried, at least).  This one has a nice aroma -- a bit of grapefruit, a little pine, a smidge floral, and a wee bit malty.  The aromas aren't overblown, but nicely balanced, and the flavors follow suit.  I taste a wider range of citrus flavors than I picked up on in the aroma, and it's both creamy and crisp, making this a very refreshing beer.  It seems like it's a fairly versatile beer, too, like I could enjoy this with a wide variety of foods without the flavors of the beer being masked (or vice versa).  I would definitely have this one again.

Cheers!

Sam Adams Octoberfest

The last time I had Sam Adams Octoberfest was probably two or three years ago.  We got a case of it  to enjoy with some friends while watching college football.  This time around, however, I had it on tap at a local bar:

Vittles:
Octoberfest/Marzen
5.3% abv
16 IBU
20 SRM
187 cal.

Score:
Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 21/25
Taste: 36/40
Mouthfeel: 8/10
Style: 5/5
Drinkability: 8/10
Overall: 86/100

Impression:
The head wasn't exactly impressive this time around.  The aroma was a little more satisfying, with caramel, toffee, and lots of toasted malt notes.  The flavors are on par with the aroma, except I taste something nutty in the background, too.  I like the herbal, earthy hops characteristics -- Hallertau hops are some of my favorites all around, and they're nicely complemented by the malt bill in this beer.  This isn't a strong-flavored beer, but it is fairly well balanced and a decent representation of the style.

Cheers!

Blue Moon Short Straw

We had picked up a Blue Moon variety pack a while back, and this one was still sitting in my keezer.  I'm a little wary about trying it, since it has hibiscus, which tends to bother me.  But I'll give it a try, and if I can't handle the hibiscus, well, my husband will just have to finish it.  I have a bottle of their Rounder, too, but if this one bothers me, I might just skip the Rounder all together.  Having food sensitivities is not fun.

Vittles:
Saison
5.8% abv
17 IBUs

Score:
Appearance: 8/10
Aroma: 19/25
Taste: 30/40
Mouthfeel: 7/10
Style: 3/5
Drinkability: 6/10
Overall: 73/100

Impression:
Though it poured with a decent head, the foam fell quickly and left virtually no lacing on the glass.  The aroma smells like every other Blue Moon beer I've had so far -- weakly wheaty with a very faint fruitiness (citrus) and a bare breath of yeast presence.  It's certainly not bringing the "wow" factor, and the flavors really don't bring anything new to the table, either.  I can sort of convince myself that I taste the citrus and something floral before the flavors turn a little tart.  The best way I can describe this beer is weak -- the aroma and flavors didn't bother to show up for work; I feel, moreso with this beer than any other Blue Moon varieties I've tried, that I'm drinking flavored water, not beer.  The mouthfeel is a little better than I was expecting, but it really doesn't add anything.  Overall, if this were your first saison ever, you'd have a pretty poor idea of what saisons are actually like.  And, unfortunately, the hibiscus did start to bother me, so I wasn't able to finish this one.  On to greener pastures...

Cheers!

Where Has the Time Gone?

These past several weeks have been sort of crazy, in a good way, and I haven't really had much of a chance to try any new beers recently, so I took a bit of an unplanned hiatus.  But I'm back.  And I have a keezer full of varieties I haven't tried yet.  I did, however, finally get a chance to tap my Belgian Tripel homebrew, which has been conditioning for about a year:

Vittles:

Belgian Tripel

9.2% abv

Score:

Appearance: 8/10

Aroma: 22/25

Taste: 36/40

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Style: 5/5

Drinkability: 8/10

Overall: 87/100

Impression:

It turned out a lot better than I had hoped for, so I'm pretty impressed with myself.  There wasn't much of a head when I pulled it off the keg, but it hadn't had a chance to carbonate -- I was too eager to try it and didn't want to wait.  The aroma is full of all that Belgian yeasty goodness that I love so much, and a fair amount of sweetness undercuts the banana and clove scents.  The flavor follows suit, and there's quite a bit of alcohol warmth as it slides down your gullet.  This is definitely a sipping beer, one to enjoy slowly and in small pours.  It also seems like just the thing to take the chill out of your bones after shoveling snow, so I hope there's enough to last through the winter.

I brought a growler of my homebrew to a party last night, and I was surprised by how many compliments I got.  I was kind of blown away by how much people enjoyed my brew.  I'll have to make this one again, though it does take a lot of patience, since it conditions for so long before I tap it.

~Cheers!