Avery Hog Heaven

 

I’ve had this little guy before, but there’s nothing little about it. It is a barleywine, after all. When you pour it in a glass the piny smell from the hops is suffocatingly strong — not a bad thing. On the bottle Avery says it uses 2.5 pounds of Columbus hops per barrel. I’m guessing they aren’t lying. Columbus hops average about 12 percent alpha acid, which is on the high end for hops. It’s a deep amber color with a tannish head. Aggressively bitter from start to finish. This beer stays with you for eons. Each sip is like a delicious, mild whiskey shot, though at 9.2 percent alcohol, it settles much easier. It’s also not whiskey, but the sensation is similar to me. The bite is strongest right in the middle and then it subsides, leaving you with the hoppy aroma that rises back to your nostrils as you breath out. I picked it up on sale at Whole Foods for about five bucks. I think it’s normally about seven for a 1 pint, 6 ounce bottle. I held it up to the light to hopefully give you a good shot of the color.

Stoudt’s Double IPA

 

 

This beer is a treat. I had a few last night. First of all, in my opinion any hoppy beer should smell it, and Stoudt’s double definitely fills the nostrils with that piny, crisp aroma. I wouldn’t say the hop experience is intense. It’s probably a little more mello than lots of other doubles, but you can taste the 10 percent abv, and that sort of gives it a different strong element to contrast with the hops. It’s a nice battle to be a part of as the drinker. With the warming of the alcohol and the nice spicy hop bite, it settles nicely in your stomach. They meet in the middle on your tongue. This was the first beer I’ve had by Stoudt’s. I’ll definitely be trying them again. 

 

I know, I know. The picture is backwards.

Long Trail Mix Pack

 

I’ve been going through a Long Trail Mix Pack. It had their Amber, Rasberry Wheat, Belgian White and Hefeweizen. I have to say I was very impressed with the Hefeweizen. It sticks to its Bavarian roots. It has the strong taste of banana and smooth finish you would expect. It’s definitely modeled after the German version rather that the American wheat beer style, which would be kind of like a Blue Moon. The first hefeweizen I ever tried was the Paulaner version from Munich, Germany, and I sometimes judge beers in comparison. Not that Paulaner is the standard, but it’s pretty close. This is one of the closest American beers I know to the Paulaner one. Which, in my book, is an A+. The Belgian White is very citrusy, yet it’s not too much. You can taste the orange peel predominantly but it’s distinctly Belgian instead of just a modified version of their hefeweizen, a mistake which I think breweries sometimes make. Long Trail is in Bridgewater Corners, Vermont. Haven’t visited, but other than my personal experience with the brand, I met a few guys that go to St. Michael’s College in Burlington, Vt., and they recommended Long Trail very highly. After my mix pack experience I would agree.

G. Shneider and Sohn Aventinus

I’ve been really excited to try this. “Germany’s Original Wheat-Doppelbock, Ale” has been sitting in my fridge for far too long, about two weeks. It tastes just like I hoped it would, a Bavarian Hefeweizen on steroids. It’s got a real deep hue, a little bit darker than a cup full of caramel. It has that banana-ey aftertaste you get from the German yeast. If you like the Paulaner Hefeweizen, you’ll love this beer. It runs about $4 for a 500mL bottle. I found it at Whole Foods. It comes in at 8.2 percent abv.

Thomas Hooker American Pale Ale

The Pale Ale is described as having “crisp hop flavor.” I don’t know if I would use the word crisp just because I associate that with a hop bite that is slightly sharp and transient. I thought the hop bite in the pale ale was a bit stronger. That’s not a bad thing at all. I thought it was nice. Would be a good session beer. Even half way through it I can still distinguish a good bitterness. Usually if a beer is good and bitter, it kind of numbs my tongue and I can’t tell how bitter it is after a while. 

Thomas Hooker Blonde Ale

So I kind of realized that I started this blog with the intention of becoming the next Michael Jackson, the beer guy not the singer, and wanting to do so immediately. That was the wrong way. There’s no way my palette is refined enough to pick out the intricacies that go in to great beers yet. Maybe I will write like Jackson when it gets there, but until then, I’m going to strip down my approach and just say what I can for sure. So from now on, it’s the poor man’s MJ on the whyg wam. 

My next venture in to Connecticut brews comes from the Thomas Hooker brewery. I bought a mixed twelve to get a sampling. It came with the Blonde, Irish Red Ale, American Pale Ale and IPA. I’ve been happy with my purchase though my wallet gets saddened any time I buy beer these day, stupid hop and grain shortage. At least I can tell myself I’m supporting a small-business owner. Well, in some cases anyway. Some of my favorite micro-brews aren’t so micro anymore, but I digress. 

The Blonde drinks smooth. It’s pretty malty and not very spicy, from hops or otherwise. The bottle says it’s “cold-fermented.” I wonder if that means it’s fermented over a longer period that some beers because I’ve always understood that lower temperatures make for less yeast activity in an ale. Who knows? Maybe I will take the advice of the flyer that comes in the twelve-pack and visit the brewery sometime soon and ask. 

U.S. Open

This afternoon, I came back from a run and saw the drama unfolding at Torrey Pines. It was time for a brew. I cracked a Berkshire Imperial Stout and was pleased with the results. I love watching Tiger play, but I have to say that I would have been really happy for Rocco to pull it out after all that he did this weekend, three birdies in a row, are you kidding me? But after it was all over, my appetite for great beer and great sporting moments was sufficed. My beer-describing might be getting lazy but at least I have something to offer you here. Pairing reccomendation: Berkshire Imperial Stout with a side of PGA Major comeback win.

Berkshire Lost Sailor IPA

OK, I’m going to preface this post. I haven’t had a beer in a while. It’s been almost a week. That looks like such a short time when I write it down, but it’s seemed like about a month. This beer is going to taste good no matter what. I don’t have a glass to use, as I am staying in someone’s third floor with a dorm fridge for the summer, so the color isn’t available for this one. 

Again, I hate drinking from the bottle, but this beer seems to have a more full body than lots of IPAs. That could also be because I haven’t had an IPA in a while. It’s got a nice bite and . . . it’s just occurred to me that I have no interest in trying to describe this beverage and I just want to drink it. Rest assured, you would  not be disappointed with it. My ambitions of writing a good post may be falling by the way side, but my taste buds don’t care. Good night.

YES!

It looks like I’m getting off work a whole hour early tonight. Finally, I’ll get some time to try some Connecticut brews. Check back tonight and you’ll find a much happier blog. 

Beer Pictures!!

So I arrived in Connecticut Sunday. I haven’t been able to try some of the local brews yet because I’ve been getting settled and working pretty much every day. But, I did come across some pics of good ol’ Triangle Brewing Co.’s Belgian Golden I took for the blog back in N.C. I don’t know why I didn’t put them up with the post about Golden Ale but here at least you can see them now. It looks delicious. The guys that own Triangle are actually from Connecticut originally. It’s too bad I can’t get their beer here now.