Okay, so, here's the deal. I've taken a break from drinking beer for the past month or so and I think I'll continue being beerless for a while. There's no meaningful reason behind the break, other than it gets a little boring/lonely drinking beer at home, alone... but I've been too poor to go out and pay upwards of $4 a beer to drink socially. Also, I'm not going to whip out a notepaper and start writing beer reviews in the middle of a brewpub with company.
Additionally, amidst all the holiday shenanigans and honeymooning and whatnot, Mike and I have also been preparing for our final step in the immigration process - the interview! It's been a stressful month or so getting together the last of the necessary items for him to take to Montreal. If he doesn't show up with all the right documents, we're toast. And by that I mean we have to wait for another interview, pay another $700 round trip airline ticket... and go back to Montreal to try again. Talk about stressful. So there's the reason for the break.
I realize this means I'm missing the entire winter season for beer, which is a shame because some of these winter seasonals are quite comforting and delicious! For that, I am sorry. I might pick back up again in the new year post-interview, in which case I won't miss ALL the winter beer.
Anyway, to the one of you that reads this (but probably still doesn't, due to lack of updating), we WILL be back, we promise! It's just been a crazy holiday season and some things had to be cast aside for a while. This was one of them :(
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Witch Hunt Spiced Harvest Ale from Bridgeport Brewing Company
Sorry for the delay. Here's a new review! You might notice that I'm changing up the style of my post a bit, mainly because separating the experience into all each individual part is not only annoying to have to do but also feels far to "official", like I think I know what I'm talking about (I don't, for the record). From now on, I'm taking a page from my brother's book and only segregating the non-taste-related elements (aroma, appearance, etc.), henceforth referred to as "the pour", from the taste, henceforth referred to as "the taste". And of course I'll still give my overall comments/thoughts, should there be any.
So anyway, on with the beer!
Tonight I'm sipping on a Witch Hunt Spiced Harvest Ale from Bridgeport Brewing Company, located right here in Portland. Witch Hunt rings in at 5.8% ABV, and brags "something wicked this way comes." We shall see!
The Pour
The beer comes out of the bottle a gorgeous red-golden-copper-brown color and is free of cloudiness or floaties. You know that crayon color from Crayola "burnt sienna"? And you know how none of us really knew what the hell "burnt sienna" was supposed to be (admit it, you didn't know). Well, this beer is that color: burnt sienna... but as a beer, not a crayon. Trust me, it's pretty. There's really no head present and it even resists being whipped up. The miniscule layer of head I produced by force was about the color of the pith of a clementine - I know this is the color, because I've eaten an entire bag of clementines in three days... so I am an expert on this. It disappeared rather quickly, though, into a leopard like pattern of bubbles and beer on the surface. The aroma has some very pleasant caramelly sweet notes in it, as well as a strong acrid presence of hops. There's some unidentifiable spice aroma as well, maybe cinnamon?
The Taste
Holy shit. Hops! Mmm, hops. Not IPA hops here, but this is definitely a hoppy beer. How many more times can I say hop? Hop hop hop. There's a good level of fizz on the tongue to indicate the beer is well carbonated, but not overly so. Interestingly, there doesn't really seem to be a change in flavor from beginning to end... it's a very hop-forward taste with a subtle presence of caramel malt and spices (I'm still thinking cinnamon).
Overall
It's a nice, mostly balanced ale with plenty of hop presence to satisfy even an IPA fan during the harvest season. It's beautiful in a glass and pleasant to the tastebuds. That being said, I probably wouldn't pick it again for a "harvest" beer, simply because my preference for this season isn't for hops, but instead for mellower, spicier flavors. If you're a hops fan, though, looking for something seasonal to enjoy, this definitely gets my recommendation. It's not overtly fall-spiced, but there's enough of a presence that it isn't missed. I'll give it 7/10 arbitrary beer rating units.
So anyway, on with the beer!
Tonight I'm sipping on a Witch Hunt Spiced Harvest Ale from Bridgeport Brewing Company, located right here in Portland. Witch Hunt rings in at 5.8% ABV, and brags "something wicked this way comes." We shall see!
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| What is that orange thing? A moon? Pumpkin? Basketball? |
The Pour
The beer comes out of the bottle a gorgeous red-golden-copper-brown color and is free of cloudiness or floaties. You know that crayon color from Crayola "burnt sienna"? And you know how none of us really knew what the hell "burnt sienna" was supposed to be (admit it, you didn't know). Well, this beer is that color: burnt sienna... but as a beer, not a crayon. Trust me, it's pretty. There's really no head present and it even resists being whipped up. The miniscule layer of head I produced by force was about the color of the pith of a clementine - I know this is the color, because I've eaten an entire bag of clementines in three days... so I am an expert on this. It disappeared rather quickly, though, into a leopard like pattern of bubbles and beer on the surface. The aroma has some very pleasant caramelly sweet notes in it, as well as a strong acrid presence of hops. There's some unidentifiable spice aroma as well, maybe cinnamon?
The Taste
Holy shit. Hops! Mmm, hops. Not IPA hops here, but this is definitely a hoppy beer. How many more times can I say hop? Hop hop hop. There's a good level of fizz on the tongue to indicate the beer is well carbonated, but not overly so. Interestingly, there doesn't really seem to be a change in flavor from beginning to end... it's a very hop-forward taste with a subtle presence of caramel malt and spices (I'm still thinking cinnamon).
Overall
It's a nice, mostly balanced ale with plenty of hop presence to satisfy even an IPA fan during the harvest season. It's beautiful in a glass and pleasant to the tastebuds. That being said, I probably wouldn't pick it again for a "harvest" beer, simply because my preference for this season isn't for hops, but instead for mellower, spicier flavors. If you're a hops fan, though, looking for something seasonal to enjoy, this definitely gets my recommendation. It's not overtly fall-spiced, but there's enough of a presence that it isn't missed. I'll give it 7/10 arbitrary beer rating units.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Making the Switch
I'm going to power through about 5 more Autumn beers/ciders by Thanksgiving and then I'm making the switch to Holiday Ales. I'm pretty over pumpkin, but I'll try to be fair nonetheless. Keep your eyes peeled, the final Fall beer reviews are coming soon.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Schnitzer Bräu from Schnitzer Bräu... from Germany!
Brewer: Schnitzer Bräu
Location: Offenburg, Baden, Germany
Name of Brew: Schnitzer Bräu or German-Hirse Lemon
Manufacturer's Description: "Blend of beer, alcoholic beverage, mixed with Lemon Limonade (45%), brewed with millet malt, glutenfree."
ABV: 2.8%
Colour
The original pour colour was shocking: cloudy, but not in the natural, organic turbidity way. Rather, the colour was an oddly bright yellow.
Head
There was a small hiss of gas when the cap was removed. Even less head when poured. Of the small amount of head that built, only a small ring around the edge of the glass stayed for longer than a few moments.
Aroma
The first whiff was of a light beer. Second of a thin, almost watery lager, with some sweetness added. From then on it smelled of a cheap, bottom of the keg summer beer that must be served with a citrus fruit salad in it to make it tolerable. But because it's summer, that keg bottom and two anti-scurvy fruits cost you three times more than it should.
Taste
Lemonade. It was beer mixed with lemonade. Nothing more to it, really. Not an exceptional lemonade or a notable beer. Tasted like a light lager mixed with made-from-frozen lemonade. It is the kind of flavour that comes of rationing alcohol as teenagers, where it's not the ABV per drink, but the total number of drinks that earn you clout as a "good drinker".
Overall
Because I rarely get to try different gluten free beers, I have a habit of grabbing a new one off the shelf and purchasing it. This one cost me $16.59 CND for six bottles. Six bottles of 2.8% beer, which was probably 5%, but because a jug of lemonade was dumped into it, has been thoroughly watered down into a bar-priced mixed drink.
I did not read the label to see what the ABV was or that it was full of lemonade. Mostly because it is a German made beer and the vast majority of the label is in German, with the small exception of some 1pt font around the neck. There is some English on the main label, which does clearly say "Organic and Gluten Free". The organic I'm not too concerned about; the gluten free is nice. And from millet!
It was drinkable, but it almost needs to be drank with something else or if you have to drive later. It is weak in alcohol content and taste. There was little beer flavour in it. Out of my gluten-free beer options, I'll be sticking to Bard's (coming in at $15.59 CND); cider is still my choice if I want drinkable and gluten free.
El Guordo from Hopworks Urban Brewery
I just wanted to throw in a quick note: Last week at The Green Dragon I sampled what I *believe* was called El Guordo Pumpkin Ale (or something to that effect) from Hopworks Urban Brewery, brewed right here in Portland, OR. It was FANTASTIC. I think it rivals Elysian's Night Owl for the top spot of everything I've tasted so far, but falls just slightly short of winning due to it being a little bit heavier and bit more of a sipping beer than the Night Owl, which for me gives it slightly less points mainly because I am an impatient person and I don't like to wait and sip. It was really rather tasty though.
Here's a terrible quality photo to go with my ultra-abbreviated not-a-review review.
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| The decal on this glass neither represents the establishment within which I was drinking, nor the brewery from whence this beer was conceived. |
Ace Hard Pumpkin Cider from California Cider Company
This is a combo post between Mike and Amelia. Amelia did all the tasting... then forgot about this review for almost two weeks... then was too lazy to write the review herself, so she instead dictated the review notes to Mike, who out of the goodness of his heart, typed it all up for her and I'm sure did his best to follow her instructions: "Make me sound smart".
Brewer: California Cider Company
Location: Sebastopola, CA
Name of brew: Ace Hard Pumpkin Cider
Manufacturer's Description: (??)
ABV: 5.0%
Color
The color was a true golden with the common filtered transparency of a cider. Clear and bright.
Head
Should cider have head? I poured rather carelessly. I probably just lost half of the fizz. Oops. Head built when poured aggressively, but quickly dispersed. Only a small amount head remained.
Aroma
Smells like cider. Definitely smells like fermented pumpkins and apples. Nothing remarkable that can be recalled after the fact or was worth noting down. Simple, but enjoyable.
Taste
Sweet and tart. Delicious like an apple. An enjoyable crispness on the tongue. Like eating a Granny Smith and a Gala simultaneously. It's not like "mmm, pumpkin cider", but the pumpkin is there, hiding in the sweet notes, bringing a nice undertone that cuts through the tartness. Good balance between apple's crispness and tartness and the pumpkin's earthiness and synergy with sweetness.
As an aside, who the hell is Granny Smith? Smith is SO common. That could be anybody!
Overall
Very pleasant. I would definitely enjoy this in lieu of Martinelli's at Thanksgiving and will be buying again if I am ever in need of a gluten-free option for this holiday season.
Amelia's review of this review: Me cavewoman. Me make blocky sentence. Me drink beer. Beer ok. BORED! BOOOORRREDDD!!!!!
America's Original Pumpkin Ale from Buffalo Bill's Brewery
Hello again nobody, sorry for the delay. There is no good reason it has taken me this long to get another review down on paper, and for that I'm only partially sorry.
Today's beer is America's Original Pumpkin Ale made by Buffalo Bill's Brewery. Lets dive right in.
Location: Hayward, CA
Manufacturer's Description: Ale brewed with real pumpkin and natural spice flavor.
ABV: 5.2%
Out of the bottle the beer poured very cloudy and the color was almost identical to homemade pumpkin pie, which was neat to see and got me excited for the tasting to come. There was a thick, white, three-finger head which was light gold in color. There were big fluffy bubbles, but they faded quickly which made me sad. I really like nice thick, big, bubbly heads on beers - it reminds me of the beer you always see cartoon characters drink where the head seems to be as dense as shampoo lather or whipped cream.
The nose on this brew was incredible - on my notes I have written "pumpkin fucking pie" which was appropriate. Imagine you're at your aunt's house on Thanksgiving and she opens the door to the oven to check on her pie. That exact scent (minus the heat obviously) is what was coming off of this beer. All your favorite players were present: clove, cinnamon, allspice and any other warm winter spice you can think of. Very nice. I detected almost no hop, yeast, or malt character in the nose... it smelled like pumpkin fucking pie.
The pallet is really pretty lame however. When you get some in your mouth there is absolutely zero pumpkin spice flavor, no yeast, and very little malt. It was like someone dumped pumpkin pie spice into a PBR, and as a goddamn joke gave it to me. The only thing remarkable about how the beer tasted was how unremarkable the beer tasted. There is some small amount of a cidery finish to the beer which I admit was very pleasant but not what I wanted at all. There was also a trace amount of the pumpkin spices in the end if you kind of did that smacking-your-mouth-thing-over-and-over to bring it out.
I'm a big fan of seasonal beers but I need them to live up to what they promise. If you are making a pumpkin or pumpkin spice beer, then I basically want to be drinking pumpkin pie juice with alcohol added for me. This was more as if it offered 1000 dollars up front, then came back a few weeks later, hat in hand, telling me all it could scare up was 376 dollars, and that it's sorry but it will have the rest next week. I kind of felt like breaking the knees of this beer just to teach it a lesson.
Today's beer is America's Original Pumpkin Ale made by Buffalo Bill's Brewery. Lets dive right in.
Location: Hayward, CA
Manufacturer's Description: Ale brewed with real pumpkin and natural spice flavor.
ABV: 5.2%
Out of the bottle the beer poured very cloudy and the color was almost identical to homemade pumpkin pie, which was neat to see and got me excited for the tasting to come. There was a thick, white, three-finger head which was light gold in color. There were big fluffy bubbles, but they faded quickly which made me sad. I really like nice thick, big, bubbly heads on beers - it reminds me of the beer you always see cartoon characters drink where the head seems to be as dense as shampoo lather or whipped cream.
The nose on this brew was incredible - on my notes I have written "pumpkin fucking pie" which was appropriate. Imagine you're at your aunt's house on Thanksgiving and she opens the door to the oven to check on her pie. That exact scent (minus the heat obviously) is what was coming off of this beer. All your favorite players were present: clove, cinnamon, allspice and any other warm winter spice you can think of. Very nice. I detected almost no hop, yeast, or malt character in the nose... it smelled like pumpkin fucking pie.
The pallet is really pretty lame however. When you get some in your mouth there is absolutely zero pumpkin spice flavor, no yeast, and very little malt. It was like someone dumped pumpkin pie spice into a PBR, and as a goddamn joke gave it to me. The only thing remarkable about how the beer tasted was how unremarkable the beer tasted. There is some small amount of a cidery finish to the beer which I admit was very pleasant but not what I wanted at all. There was also a trace amount of the pumpkin spices in the end if you kind of did that smacking-your-mouth-thing-over-and-over to bring it out.
I'm a big fan of seasonal beers but I need them to live up to what they promise. If you are making a pumpkin or pumpkin spice beer, then I basically want to be drinking pumpkin pie juice with alcohol added for me. This was more as if it offered 1000 dollars up front, then came back a few weeks later, hat in hand, telling me all it could scare up was 376 dollars, and that it's sorry but it will have the rest next week. I kind of felt like breaking the knees of this beer just to teach it a lesson.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Jumpin Jack Pumpkin Ale from Tree Brewing Company
Sorry (to all one of you) for the delay in posts. I was away to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving with my husband and our friends in Victoria, BC! As this isn't a vacation blog I won't say much about it other than it was a fantastic time and despite that the city looked virtually nothing like I'd imagined it, it was gorgeous and I'd move there in a heartbeat (although I'm not sure I'd ever get over how damned expensive alcohol is up north... jeez).
Okay, anyway. On with the beer! I figured while I was up there I might as well review something seasonal and semi-local, so I picked up something out of Kelowna (southern interior of BC).
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Brewer: Tree Brewing Company
Location: Kelowna, BC
Name of Brew: Jumpin Jack Pumpkin Ale
Manufacturer's Description: none specific for this seasonal
ABV: 7.0%
Color
Uh oh... this is a brown ale. I guess I should have realized, given that it's a 7.0% ale touted as "strong", but for some reason I was caught off-guard by it's darker copper-brown color. Oh well... can't judge a book by it's cover, right? I am not the world's biggest brown ale fan but I am determined to give this one a fair review.
Head
Head!!! So much head!!! Seriously, almost an inch of tannish colored head formed immediately out of the bottle. I guess the color was kind of like an earthy potato-flesh color (not the skin). Also observed decent head retention as it took nearly two full minutes for the head to dissipate.
Aroma
Very earthy aroma with a bit of sourness to it. Nothing obviously standing out here for me as pumpkin spice but there's some other scents at play here that I can't seem to put my finger on. Alas, maybe it's just the smell of malt or yeast and I haven't quite mastered how to pick out those smells yet. Anyway, moving on...
Taste
Early palette Not much carbonation fizz, but not flat tasting either. The carbonation is clearly there but the bubbles aren't hitting my tongue in that obvious "this is really carbonated!" way.
Middle palette Heading straight into a deep, earthy flavor very much like the other brown ales I've had the (dis)pleasure of tasting during my drinking career. It feels heavy on the tongue with indistinct and fleeting pumpkin flavor.
Late palette The pumpkin flavor here is already gone... it probably only lasted a second or less - just when you realize you think you're tasting pumpkin, it's gone again. Not detecting a lot of pumpkin spices either, and it finishes with a dark, nutty flavor.
Overall
Well, I typically don't like brown ales, and this was no exception. I don't think it's fair to say it was bad just because it's not my personal cup of tea - to someone who enjoys a darker brew (without venturing into porter and stout territory) this might have been fantastic. It was one of the more exciting-looking beers based solely on the fact that it actually had a good amount of head and looked nice out of the bottle, but it's not something that I would buy again. I can see how its heavy-ish flavor and sipping quality could be a nice complement to the cool, crisp Fall weather, but the pumpkin was too weak and fleeting, and too easily dominated by the other earthy flavors coming through on the tongue for me to be happy with it as a seasonal offering.
Okay, anyway. On with the beer! I figured while I was up there I might as well review something seasonal and semi-local, so I picked up something out of Kelowna (southern interior of BC).
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Brewer: Tree Brewing Company
Location: Kelowna, BC
Name of Brew: Jumpin Jack Pumpkin Ale
Manufacturer's Description: none specific for this seasonal
ABV: 7.0%
Color
Uh oh... this is a brown ale. I guess I should have realized, given that it's a 7.0% ale touted as "strong", but for some reason I was caught off-guard by it's darker copper-brown color. Oh well... can't judge a book by it's cover, right? I am not the world's biggest brown ale fan but I am determined to give this one a fair review.
Head
Head!!! So much head!!! Seriously, almost an inch of tannish colored head formed immediately out of the bottle. I guess the color was kind of like an earthy potato-flesh color (not the skin). Also observed decent head retention as it took nearly two full minutes for the head to dissipate.
Aroma
Very earthy aroma with a bit of sourness to it. Nothing obviously standing out here for me as pumpkin spice but there's some other scents at play here that I can't seem to put my finger on. Alas, maybe it's just the smell of malt or yeast and I haven't quite mastered how to pick out those smells yet. Anyway, moving on...
Taste
Early palette Not much carbonation fizz, but not flat tasting either. The carbonation is clearly there but the bubbles aren't hitting my tongue in that obvious "this is really carbonated!" way.
Middle palette Heading straight into a deep, earthy flavor very much like the other brown ales I've had the (dis)pleasure of tasting during my drinking career. It feels heavy on the tongue with indistinct and fleeting pumpkin flavor.
Late palette The pumpkin flavor here is already gone... it probably only lasted a second or less - just when you realize you think you're tasting pumpkin, it's gone again. Not detecting a lot of pumpkin spices either, and it finishes with a dark, nutty flavor.
Overall
Well, I typically don't like brown ales, and this was no exception. I don't think it's fair to say it was bad just because it's not my personal cup of tea - to someone who enjoys a darker brew (without venturing into porter and stout territory) this might have been fantastic. It was one of the more exciting-looking beers based solely on the fact that it actually had a good amount of head and looked nice out of the bottle, but it's not something that I would buy again. I can see how its heavy-ish flavor and sipping quality could be a nice complement to the cool, crisp Fall weather, but the pumpkin was too weak and fleeting, and too easily dominated by the other earthy flavors coming through on the tongue for me to be happy with it as a seasonal offering.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Night Owl Pumpkin Ale from Elysian Brewery - Amelia
I also reviewed Elysian's Night Owl Pumpkin Ale! Here's my take.
Brewer: Elysian Brewing
Color
This one pours out a lovely coppery color like many of the other beers we've sampled so far. Comes out fairly clear and without yeast floaties or other sediments.
Head
Oh. My. God. Finally! A beer with some head on it! Well, compared to all the previous beers, it felt like a lot of head... but right out of the bottle it generated about 3-4mm of a creme colored head, which dissipated quickly but was able to be re-whipped up at will.
Aroma
Oh man does this beer ever smell fantastic! Right at the front there's a malty sweetness that is definitely carrying some gourd-like aroma, definitely pumpkin and maybe even something else. Spices are obviously at play here as well, but there's virtually no smell of hops or anything distinctly fruity either, which we've seen with previous choices.
Taste
Early palette Almost no carbonation bubble-fizz on mine (unlike what Taylor experienced) but it doesn't feel flat. Slightly bitter at first but definitely not from hops.
Middle palette Deep pumpkin flavor in the forefront with strong hits of spice notes in the background. I'm tasting mostly nutmeg here.
Late palette Pumpkin flavor is fading in the finish but there's still a strong bit of what I think might be allspice coming through now. There's a bit of bitterness left on the back of the tongue while the heavy pumpkin taste fades into oblivion which means only one thing - time for another sip!
Overall
This is the best pumpkin ale I've tried all season so far. While there is no doubt this was brewed with pumpkin and spices, it is not overwhelmingly pumpkiny - definitely not like drinking liquid pumpkin pie (unlike the smoothie I tried to make for breakfast this morning which was almost literally like trying to drink pie except not even remotely delicious). This is definitely going on my short list (now consisting of 1 entry) of beers I would buy and drink again this Fall. Yum.
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| Pretty badass label if you ask me. |
Brewer: Elysian Brewing
Location: Seattle, WA
Name of Brew: Night Owl Pumpkin Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "A very drinkable pumpkin ale - brewed with seven and a half pounds of pumpkin per barrel and spiced in conditioning with ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice."
ABV: 5.9%
Color
This one pours out a lovely coppery color like many of the other beers we've sampled so far. Comes out fairly clear and without yeast floaties or other sediments.
Head
Oh. My. God. Finally! A beer with some head on it! Well, compared to all the previous beers, it felt like a lot of head... but right out of the bottle it generated about 3-4mm of a creme colored head, which dissipated quickly but was able to be re-whipped up at will.
Aroma
Oh man does this beer ever smell fantastic! Right at the front there's a malty sweetness that is definitely carrying some gourd-like aroma, definitely pumpkin and maybe even something else. Spices are obviously at play here as well, but there's virtually no smell of hops or anything distinctly fruity either, which we've seen with previous choices.
Taste
Early palette Almost no carbonation bubble-fizz on mine (unlike what Taylor experienced) but it doesn't feel flat. Slightly bitter at first but definitely not from hops.
Middle palette Deep pumpkin flavor in the forefront with strong hits of spice notes in the background. I'm tasting mostly nutmeg here.
Late palette Pumpkin flavor is fading in the finish but there's still a strong bit of what I think might be allspice coming through now. There's a bit of bitterness left on the back of the tongue while the heavy pumpkin taste fades into oblivion which means only one thing - time for another sip!
Overall
This is the best pumpkin ale I've tried all season so far. While there is no doubt this was brewed with pumpkin and spices, it is not overwhelmingly pumpkiny - definitely not like drinking liquid pumpkin pie (unlike the smoothie I tried to make for breakfast this morning which was almost literally like trying to drink pie except not even remotely delicious). This is definitely going on my short list (now consisting of 1 entry) of beers I would buy and drink again this Fall. Yum.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Night Owl Pumpkin Ale from Elysian Brewery - Taylor
2 reviews in 2 days, I'm what the young people call rolling.
Today I drank "Night Owl Pumpkin Ale" from Elysian Brewery. Elysian is one of my all time favorite breweries for no reason other than they have great label design and the names of their beers are generally very awesome. This particular brew was done with pumpkin pulp in with the boil and conditioned with pumpkin spice blend.
THE POUR: It comes out of the bottle crystal clear and a very pleasant orange/copper color, not unlike the O'Briens Harvest Ale. A head formed easily while pouring and was a very beautiful color that looked like orange peel mixed with creme. Scrumptious. Night Owl comes in at 5.9% but I didn't notice any alcohol legs forming on the glass.
THE AROMA: The nose on this beer is an explosion of holiday scents. Tangerine hits the senses first and says "Hello, welcome to the beer, have you met my friends bitter orange peel and ginger?". It is one of the finest smelling brews I've ever had the pleasure of inhaling. There are zero hops on the nose though which is an indication of things to come, but also in my opinion mildly disappointing.
THE PALETTE: Up front there is a good carbonation zing, but when that fades away the true serum dreams begin. It starts sweet and only slightly malty which glides seamlessly into the familiar flavors of the aforementioned party guests, orange, tangerine, and ginger. Taken as a whole they add up to a wonderful pumpkin pie spice blend that is not overpowering but also easily enjoyed. Your mouth is left with pumpkin pie spice flavored fumes as the slight warmth from the alcohol dissolves into your mouth.
OVERALL: This is easily the best pumpkin ale I've ever tasted and would absolutely drink it again. It's sweet enough to be a dessert beer but not so sweet that it cannot be enjoyed with more savory fare, or even just drinking for the sake of drinking. I'm giving this 8.5 out of 10. It loses points because there are absolutely zero hops present. Hops are of course not required to make a great beer, but they are something I enjoy.
Today I drank "Night Owl Pumpkin Ale" from Elysian Brewery. Elysian is one of my all time favorite breweries for no reason other than they have great label design and the names of their beers are generally very awesome. This particular brew was done with pumpkin pulp in with the boil and conditioned with pumpkin spice blend.
THE POUR: It comes out of the bottle crystal clear and a very pleasant orange/copper color, not unlike the O'Briens Harvest Ale. A head formed easily while pouring and was a very beautiful color that looked like orange peel mixed with creme. Scrumptious. Night Owl comes in at 5.9% but I didn't notice any alcohol legs forming on the glass.
THE AROMA: The nose on this beer is an explosion of holiday scents. Tangerine hits the senses first and says "Hello, welcome to the beer, have you met my friends bitter orange peel and ginger?". It is one of the finest smelling brews I've ever had the pleasure of inhaling. There are zero hops on the nose though which is an indication of things to come, but also in my opinion mildly disappointing.
THE PALETTE: Up front there is a good carbonation zing, but when that fades away the true serum dreams begin. It starts sweet and only slightly malty which glides seamlessly into the familiar flavors of the aforementioned party guests, orange, tangerine, and ginger. Taken as a whole they add up to a wonderful pumpkin pie spice blend that is not overpowering but also easily enjoyed. Your mouth is left with pumpkin pie spice flavored fumes as the slight warmth from the alcohol dissolves into your mouth.
OVERALL: This is easily the best pumpkin ale I've ever tasted and would absolutely drink it again. It's sweet enough to be a dessert beer but not so sweet that it cannot be enjoyed with more savory fare, or even just drinking for the sake of drinking. I'm giving this 8.5 out of 10. It loses points because there are absolutely zero hops present. Hops are of course not required to make a great beer, but they are something I enjoy.
Punk'n Harvest Pumpkin Ale from Uinta Brewing Company
This is a placeholder post for the Punk'n brew I drank (or, tried to drink) last night. I promise to come back and write in explicit detail about how much this beer made me wish I didn't have tastebuds.
For now, suffice it to say that this beer totally sucked. It smelled like malted dust and tasted like stale asshole. I didn't even want to drink enough of it to do a proper review... but I powered through long enough to decide it was disgusting. Then the rest went down the sink (and I didn't even feel bad).
I think I got punk'd by Punk'n.
It is now several hours later... and I'm leaving my "placeholder" text because I think it's funny. Here's the actual review:
Brewer: Uinta Brewing Company
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Name of Brew: Punk'n Harvest Pumpkin Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "This sessionable pumpkin ale is brewed with fresh pumpkin and seasonal spices."
ABV: 4.0%
Color
This ale poured out a beautiful coppery orange color. It was crystal clear and had no cloudiness or floaties to speak of. As you'll soon find out, this is about the only positive thing I can say about this particular beer.
Head
Such little head, I don't dare even call it that. Really. Virtually none. The picture of the beer on the actual brewer's website is hilariously inaccurate. Also... no head retention... because you have to have head in order to retain it. This thing had less head than a eunuch.
Aroma
Smells flat. Stale, kind of like dust... really unpleasant. Seriously, it reminds me of the smell my bookshelf gets when I haven't dusted it in 10 months... an amalgamation of used trade paperbacks all covered in a featherlight coating of dust. Eventually as I sipped on it it did sort of start to smell like sweet dust. An improvement? Certainly not. Now it just smells like the morning after a college drinking party: sticky sweet, stale beer fragrance and hey, where'd my pants go?
Taste
Early palette Hey, there's carbonation here! It did have a good a amount of carbonation zing right off the bat, which is actually surprising considering how flat it smelled.
Middle palette It's got some kind of flavor, but I can't seem to pin-point what it is. I really, really want to say dust, but I don't actually know what dust tastes like so that wouldn't be a fair assumption. But it tastes like what I imagine dust would taste like, based on what dust smells and looks like!
Late palette Sour on the back of the tongue and somewhat bitter, although it doesn't taste like hops.
Overall
From the way it poured with a immeasurably small amount of head, to the way it smelled like a stale dust biscuit, to the way it tasted like, well, nothing... this beer was completely unenjoyable. I really couldn't pick out any distinct flavor at all, and each sip was followed by a wince and some variety of an onomatopoetic exclamation like "eugh", "blech", or "pluhhh". I'm hoping I just got a bottle out of a bad batch and that this beer isn't actually all that terrible (especially considering it's won a silver medal award at the 2010 World Beer Championships), but I'm not willing to buy another one to find out.
For now, suffice it to say that this beer totally sucked. It smelled like malted dust and tasted like stale asshole. I didn't even want to drink enough of it to do a proper review... but I powered through long enough to decide it was disgusting. Then the rest went down the sink (and I didn't even feel bad).
I think I got punk'd by Punk'n.
It is now several hours later... and I'm leaving my "placeholder" text because I think it's funny. Here's the actual review:
 |
| I like this label. This is the only thing I liked about this entire experience. |
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Name of Brew: Punk'n Harvest Pumpkin Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "This sessionable pumpkin ale is brewed with fresh pumpkin and seasonal spices."
ABV: 4.0%
Color
This ale poured out a beautiful coppery orange color. It was crystal clear and had no cloudiness or floaties to speak of. As you'll soon find out, this is about the only positive thing I can say about this particular beer.
Head
Such little head, I don't dare even call it that. Really. Virtually none. The picture of the beer on the actual brewer's website is hilariously inaccurate. Also... no head retention... because you have to have head in order to retain it. This thing had less head than a eunuch.
Aroma
Smells flat. Stale, kind of like dust... really unpleasant. Seriously, it reminds me of the smell my bookshelf gets when I haven't dusted it in 10 months... an amalgamation of used trade paperbacks all covered in a featherlight coating of dust. Eventually as I sipped on it it did sort of start to smell like sweet dust. An improvement? Certainly not. Now it just smells like the morning after a college drinking party: sticky sweet, stale beer fragrance and hey, where'd my pants go?
Taste
Early palette Hey, there's carbonation here! It did have a good a amount of carbonation zing right off the bat, which is actually surprising considering how flat it smelled.
Middle palette It's got some kind of flavor, but I can't seem to pin-point what it is. I really, really want to say dust, but I don't actually know what dust tastes like so that wouldn't be a fair assumption. But it tastes like what I imagine dust would taste like, based on what dust smells and looks like!
Late palette Sour on the back of the tongue and somewhat bitter, although it doesn't taste like hops.
Overall
From the way it poured with a immeasurably small amount of head, to the way it smelled like a stale dust biscuit, to the way it tasted like, well, nothing... this beer was completely unenjoyable. I really couldn't pick out any distinct flavor at all, and each sip was followed by a wince and some variety of an onomatopoetic exclamation like "eugh", "blech", or "pluhhh". I'm hoping I just got a bottle out of a bad batch and that this beer isn't actually all that terrible (especially considering it's won a silver medal award at the 2010 World Beer Championships), but I'm not willing to buy another one to find out.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Taylor's intro and review of O'Brien's Harvest Ale from Hale's Ales
Hello! My name is Taylor and I'm Amelia's brother. A little bit about myself, hrm. I'm Amelia's older brother - I turn 30 this week. I've been enjoying craft beers for my entire drinking career which started when I was 18 or so. I was fortunate enough to grow up in Portland, OR which was (along with other cities, but not Seattle, fuck Seattle) an early hub of the home brewing and craft brewing scene and the mecca of the northwest craft brew scene.
In addition to drinking beers, I brew them as well and have been a home brewer for almost a year with 7 batches to my name. I would like to brew much more often but the demands of life have me limited for now.
I'm newly married and as an anecdote to how clever my wife is, she came up with the name to this blog! In my spare time I enjoy drinking beer, playing modern board games, and watching movies.
NOW ON WITH THE SHOW THIS IS IIIIIIIT
Brewer: Hale's Ales
Location: Seattle, WA
Name of Brew: O'Brien's Harvest Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "Our Autumn seasonal is eagerly anticipated each year when the annual hop harvest is about to begin. This year's rendition is faithful to other years - lots of Simcoe, Centennial, Bravo, and Cascade hops provide great aromatics and spicy character. This year the addition of a bit of Rye malt adds complexity to the malt profile."
ABV: 6.5%
Today I reviewed O'Brien's Harvest Ale, which is an offering of the (they think) cleverly named Hale's Ales Brewery.
Calling something a harvest ale makes me think its part of your fall seasonals, so while I don't know for sure that this isn't a year round offering it's name suggests that it is.
THE POUR: It poured out of the bottle with a very distinct copper color; it reminded me of a slightly weathered penny. There was no head to speak of right out of the bottle. It was mostly clear and didn't have any evident yeast balls or anything floating around but there was some clouding.
AROMA: To help open up the beer I like to give the glass several swirls. This has the added benefits of trying to whip up a head and to see if there are any alcohol legs on the glass. While I was able to stir a minimal head onto the beer that had the exact color of orange peel, there were no alcohol legs. The head, however, was very attractive and once present, persisted throughout the drink. Moving in to smell the beer there was some citrus hop notes of orange and grapefruit. Additionally there was a kind of earthen aroma at play which I think is also from the hops used. There was a strong presence of malt sweetness in the nose which is nice and not something I'm used to smelling in a beer. Yeast was minimal but contributed a very mild generic fruity note in the nose, something like very mild strawberry.
PALETTE: When I took my first sip my first reaction was HOPS!!! THERE ARE HOPS IN THIS BEER! The hops carry you through the entire experience and mesh organically with the grapefruit bitterness that finishes the palette. Carbonation levels are very low so there is no bubbly zing on your tongue which helps the hops settle in. Needless to say, the hops dominate the palette and leave little room for the very understated malt presence, which contributes crisp light flavor.
OVERALL: My overall feeling about this beer is dependent on whether its seasonal or not. If it is seasonal, it is an underwhelming addition to the already clogged market of fall seasonals; it simply isn't anything special enough to be offered for only a few months a year. If, however, it is a year-round offering, aside from a name change I really think this should be marketed as an IPA, or a hoppy amber ale. The hop forward flavor really doesn't leave a lot of room for fucking around. 4 out of 10, wouldn't reject it if offered for free, but also wouldn't drink again it if were up to me.
In addition to drinking beers, I brew them as well and have been a home brewer for almost a year with 7 batches to my name. I would like to brew much more often but the demands of life have me limited for now.
I'm newly married and as an anecdote to how clever my wife is, she came up with the name to this blog! In my spare time I enjoy drinking beer, playing modern board games, and watching movies.
NOW ON WITH THE SHOW THIS IS IIIIIIIT
Brewer: Hale's Ales
Location: Seattle, WA
Name of Brew: O'Brien's Harvest Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "Our Autumn seasonal is eagerly anticipated each year when the annual hop harvest is about to begin. This year's rendition is faithful to other years - lots of Simcoe, Centennial, Bravo, and Cascade hops provide great aromatics and spicy character. This year the addition of a bit of Rye malt adds complexity to the malt profile."
ABV: 6.5%
 |
Calling something a harvest ale makes me think its part of your fall seasonals, so while I don't know for sure that this isn't a year round offering it's name suggests that it is.
THE POUR: It poured out of the bottle with a very distinct copper color; it reminded me of a slightly weathered penny. There was no head to speak of right out of the bottle. It was mostly clear and didn't have any evident yeast balls or anything floating around but there was some clouding.
AROMA: To help open up the beer I like to give the glass several swirls. This has the added benefits of trying to whip up a head and to see if there are any alcohol legs on the glass. While I was able to stir a minimal head onto the beer that had the exact color of orange peel, there were no alcohol legs. The head, however, was very attractive and once present, persisted throughout the drink. Moving in to smell the beer there was some citrus hop notes of orange and grapefruit. Additionally there was a kind of earthen aroma at play which I think is also from the hops used. There was a strong presence of malt sweetness in the nose which is nice and not something I'm used to smelling in a beer. Yeast was minimal but contributed a very mild generic fruity note in the nose, something like very mild strawberry.
PALETTE: When I took my first sip my first reaction was HOPS!!! THERE ARE HOPS IN THIS BEER! The hops carry you through the entire experience and mesh organically with the grapefruit bitterness that finishes the palette. Carbonation levels are very low so there is no bubbly zing on your tongue which helps the hops settle in. Needless to say, the hops dominate the palette and leave little room for the very understated malt presence, which contributes crisp light flavor.
OVERALL: My overall feeling about this beer is dependent on whether its seasonal or not. If it is seasonal, it is an underwhelming addition to the already clogged market of fall seasonals; it simply isn't anything special enough to be offered for only a few months a year. If, however, it is a year-round offering, aside from a name change I really think this should be marketed as an IPA, or a hoppy amber ale. The hop forward flavor really doesn't leave a lot of room for fucking around. 4 out of 10, wouldn't reject it if offered for free, but also wouldn't drink again it if were up to me.
Friday, September 28, 2012
So much to learn...
With two reviews under my belt, there's one thing that's really sticking out about my writing: it sucks!
There's still so much I'm trying to figure out. What is meant by words like "mouthfeel"? What does malt actually taste like? How many different words for "ale" are there? And how many shades of color are there between blonde and brown that actually have distinct names?
I knew I wouldn't just magically become some overnight wordsmith with the most thorough beer reviews this side of the Mississippi... but my lack of vocabulary and ability to string useful sentences together is a bit alarming. Perhaps I'll learn some cool new words while I study for the GRE and they'll start cropping up throughout the entries here... or perhaps studying for the GRE will stress me out so much I'll drink through so many of my seasonal ales that I won't be able to keep up with reviews and/or I'll be writing them totally blitzed.
Only time will tell.
There's still so much I'm trying to figure out. What is meant by words like "mouthfeel"? What does malt actually taste like? How many different words for "ale" are there? And how many shades of color are there between blonde and brown that actually have distinct names?
I knew I wouldn't just magically become some overnight wordsmith with the most thorough beer reviews this side of the Mississippi... but my lack of vocabulary and ability to string useful sentences together is a bit alarming. Perhaps I'll learn some cool new words while I study for the GRE and they'll start cropping up throughout the entries here... or perhaps studying for the GRE will stress me out so much I'll drink through so many of my seasonal ales that I won't be able to keep up with reviews and/or I'll be writing them totally blitzed.
Only time will tell.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Pumpkinhead Ale from Shipyard Brewing Co.
 |
| The beer this pumpkin-headed horseman is holding in his hand has considerably more head than the actual ale in the bottle did *sigh* |
Location: Portland, ME
Name of Brew: Pumpkinhead Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "A crisp and refreshing wheat ale with delightful aromatics and subtle spiced flavor."
ABV: 4.7%
Head
Not much more than 2-3mm of white head on this beer, even after several attempts to swirl it just to generate head. What did show up cleared pretty quickly, leaving only a trace white ring around the glass and nothing in the middle.
Color
Poured into a glass, this ale is slightly more orange than your typical blonde ale. The color actually reminds me quite a bit of a coppery cider. There are some slight bubbles but no "floaties" or clouded debris indicating that this must be a filtered wheat (if it is indeed even a wheat, as the manufacturer claims).
Aroma
The first hit of this ale is very nearly wine-like. Hints of fruit scents (apricot, apple) come through on the first pull, but a second sniff uncovers a touch of cinnamon spice as well. There's virtually no "beer" smell here at all.
Taste
Early palette
Very tart, strong intial presence and bite at the front. Immediately I noticed the carbonation "zing" on the tip of my tongue.
Middle palette
Apple and spice flavors are really coming through here. The taste is sweet, but not overly so, with the tiniest hint of hops coming through.
Late palette
Finally, the pumpkin flavor creeps in, although it's a very muted pumpkin taste. Still getting hits of spices lingering on the tongue (nutmeg, cinnamon), but the strong apple flavor present in the middle palette is much weaker here. Almost as weak as the fleeting pumpkin flavor, which is already gone about as fast as it came in.
Overall thoughts
While the flavor was mostly pleasant, it almost tasted more like a cider than an ale. The strongest flavors that come through are clearly apple and spices, and although it didn't have that clear, crispness of an actual cider, it certainly felt like some kind of cider-ale hybrid. About as weird as it sounds. And I'm not trying to say it tasted like an apple-beer either (which my brother has the most amazing recipe for - I hope he'll make it again sometime in the future). At the end of it, I'm left wondering, "did I really just drink an ale?" More specifically, "did I really just drink a pumpkin ale?" Even more specifically, "did I really just drink a pumpkin wheat ale?". I feel like if I were given this in a blind test, I would never have known it was supposed to be pumpkin or wheat, as there is nothing distinctly wheat about the appearance, smell, or taste, and the pumpkin flavor is elusive at best. I think it's there? Or I may have been trying to convince myself it was there, since this was supposed to be a pumpkin ale afterall. Enjoyable, I guess, but not one I'll be buying again. Really makes me curious about these pumpkin ciders I picked up, though...
Alas, the hunt for the best Fall seasonal continues... see you next beer!
Monday, September 24, 2012
Pumpkin Seasonal Ale from Wasatch Beers
Brewer: Wasatch Beers
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Name of Brew: Pumpkin Seasonal Ale
Manufacturer's Description: "Ale brewed with natural pumpkin and spices. Brewed with the finest barley and pure pumpkin, then spiced like your favorite holiday pie. This amber-hued beer is sure to please!"
ABV: 4.0%
 |
| The color is a bit misrepresented here thanks to my amazing camera phone. The lack of head, however, is completely accurate. |
Head
Very minimal head with even less head retention. I was able to somewhat create head in the glass by swirling it around a bit, but it always disappeared into a thin ring of bubbles around the outside of the glass within seconds. What head did appear briefly was a simple off-white color, slightly darker than eggshell.
Color
Unfortunately the photo doesn't represent the color very well. It was definitely a caramelly amber colored ale, exactly how the bottle described it would be. It was slightly cloudy although not opaque, but my brother thinks that's because I "poured it with reckless abandon" (which still doesn't say much for the lack of head, in any case). I feel like I poured it carefully enough and the cloudiness was just an aspect of the beer regardless. It had a few floaties, nothing very off-putting and definitely nothing noticeable upon drinking.
Aroma
My first impression, admittedly, was "it smells like beer." Extra swirling started to bring out the pumpkin spice smell until it became "beer with pumpkin pie spice". It was definitely present without being overpowering for the first few sips. As the beer became half empty and beyond, however, the smell transformed into what was basically pumpkin pie in a glass. It was a really pleasant smell with all of the pumpkin being at the forefront and very little alcohol/beer smell remaining.
Taste
Early palette
There weren't any obvious flavors jumping out at me right at the beginning of the taste. Kind of your generic "beer" flavor without anything distinct.
Middle palette
This is when I started getting hit with hints of pumpkin flavoring. There was some fizzy bite, but not much. It almost felt like it'd been poured a few hours ago and it was close to flat. I couldn't detect any spices or anything behind the subtle hints of pumpkin. Little to no hoppiness.
Late palette
Pumpkin is way in the foreground now and finishes all the way with the drink. Aftertaste is a combination of pumpkin and something somewhat tart or sour, but I'm not sure what. The tartness lingered on the back of my tongue while I was still tasting pumpkin the foreground. Still no detectable hop flavor.
Overall thoughts
The flavor, overall, wasn't very strong. It tasted almost like it was flat after the initial fizz on the early palette dissipated. The aroma of the beer was much stronger than the taste and was quite pleasant throughout. I'd say it was a good beer, very drinkable, but I don't see it being my go-to for a pumpkin ale. It wasn't pumpkinless by any means, but if it didn't have that small amount of pumpkin taste going for it, well, it may not have tasted like much at all. Just... okay beer. Like an amateur first "ale" homebrew - good but not great, very drinkable, but I probably wouldn't pay money for it (again).
Coming up soon I've got Shipyard Brewing Company's Pumpkinhead Ale! See you next beer!
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Introduction
This is my new beer tasting adventure! Yes, yet another attempt to keep a blog and actually write in it more than a handful of times... but this time I think I've really got something that can succeed. I actually have a specific idea in mind, a project, rather than another aimless "well, I'll just write about science or food or something". I'm very excited by the prospect of being able to exercise my creative muscles through writing, while also improving my knowledge of and appreciation for the wide variety of beer flavors and styles available throughout the year.
The focus of this journal will be seasonal beers/ciders and special edition brews. Stuff that the breweries don't sell all year, or produce only for a limited time. I had to try to choose a focus because there are obviously just so many beers already, with new brews coming out all the time, there is no way I could get through even a fraction of what exists. Although, thinking about it, I bet I'll still only get through just a fraction of the seasonals... oh well.
Guest posts will come from my brother Taylor, who is a superb home brewer and beer enthusiast, and my husband Mike, who will offer up his opinions on gluten-free brews and ciders whenever possible. I'm hoping Canada might have some unique seasonals for him to try that we won't get imported into Oregon.
With the recent turn in weather and October just around the corner, we're going to start with Fall seasonal beers and ciders. Bring on the pumpkin ales, Oktoberfest lagers, and spiced harvest brews!
Until next time - see you next beer!
The focus of this journal will be seasonal beers/ciders and special edition brews. Stuff that the breweries don't sell all year, or produce only for a limited time. I had to try to choose a focus because there are obviously just so many beers already, with new brews coming out all the time, there is no way I could get through even a fraction of what exists. Although, thinking about it, I bet I'll still only get through just a fraction of the seasonals... oh well.
Guest posts will come from my brother Taylor, who is a superb home brewer and beer enthusiast, and my husband Mike, who will offer up his opinions on gluten-free brews and ciders whenever possible. I'm hoping Canada might have some unique seasonals for him to try that we won't get imported into Oregon.
With the recent turn in weather and October just around the corner, we're going to start with Fall seasonal beers and ciders. Bring on the pumpkin ales, Oktoberfest lagers, and spiced harvest brews!
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| Just some of the Fall seasonals I'll be trying! I'm particularly excited about the Elysian... I've heard it's good. |
Until next time - see you next beer!
(that's going to be my signoff for each beer review, heh)
P.S. credit goes to Jenilee for the title of the blog!
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