Hopworks Dubbel Suplex Belgian Abbey Ale

Since I can’t make it to the Cheers to Belgian Beers festival this year, I’m taking a little time out to try Hopworks’ brew for the event. The Dubbel Suplex is a rich Belgian Abbey-style ale brewed with the Wyeast 3822, Ingelmunster yeast strain per this year’s festival rules.

Served in a tulip glass (they called it a chalice) on account of being 8.1% alcohol (can you imagine a couple of pints of that?), it sure is a pretty beer. Dark amber, red hues, clear like a ruby, with little head retention (a little foam around the rim of the glass). The up front aroma is of alcohol then warm malt and a hint of spice, like cloves or nutmeg.

It has a bubbly medium mouthfeel appropriate for the style, not too creamy or flat, but not too effervescent for the flavor. There’s a lot of malt and spice flavor, with a little caramel sweetness. A bit rich, but not overwhelming. There’s a slight tartness or tang in the finish that clears the palate and keeps the beer from being too sweet and sticky.

The Dubbel Suplex is pretty right-on for abbey style, and has matured nicely. I almost wonder what it would be like if aged in a bourbon barrel, but that might be over the top, making it too sweet and rich to drink in any quantity.

8.1%

Laughing Buddha Ginger Pale Ale

Since I’m still on the lookout for good ales brewed with ginger, I had to grab a bottle of Laughing Buddha’s Ginger Pale Ale. It’s brewed with ginger and coriander, so be ready for it to taste a little like a grand cru. The aroma is strongly of savory ginger, some spice, and a hint of malt. It pours clear and the color of copper-tinted honey. It’s not over-carbonated, and has a medium bubbly mouthfeel much like you’d expect from a pale ale. The ginger flavor is definitely present, both up front and in the finish, but isn’t astringent.

This is actually an ideal beer for a warm spring day – full enough to take the chill off you when the wind blows, but light and crisp to compliment the warmth of the sun on your face. I could see it pairing nicely with sushi, or even udon. Something that doesn’t have strong spices that would overwhelm the ginger notes.

It reminds me a lot of the experimental ginger hefeweizen I brewed a couple of months ago, only more carbonated. I hope that my brew gets a bit more bubbly!

Also, it turns out that Laughing Buddha had to change its name to Trade Route Brewing due to a legal dispute. Since the brewery is in Seattle, I’ll have to check it out the next time I go north.

Hitachino Nest Real Ginger Brew

You may have noticed that I’ve been on a ginger beer kick lately, so when I saw Hitachino Nest’s Real Ginger Brew I had to try it. I’ve had their white, red rice, and sweet stout before and thought they were pretty decent if a bit pricey.

On pouring, the Real Ginger Brew is not as light as I’d expected, having a more copper color that was a bit hazy. The haze didn’t reflect a wheaty taste. On pouring there’s a bit of head, much like a soda, but no head retention.

It has a surprisingly tart aroma followed by coriander and citrus. The initial taste also has a tang like a Flanders Brown, slightly fruity and tart. The ginger flavor is present, but more savory than spicy, and there’s no real ginger hotness. I noted a definite metallic taste that all the Hitachino Nest beers have. The carbonation is a little rough, like a soda, though it calms as the beer warms.

On warming there’s a noticeable alcohol aroma and flavor, and the taste of the beer becomes more savory than tart. It’s an interesting beer, but I’m not sure I’d pay over $4.50 for it again.

Hopworks Inaugurator (Cultivator) Doppelbock

Who doesn’t love a beer released on the eve of Obama’s inauguration? How could it fail? What better way to celebrate than with a new beer offering from Hopworks? Of course, I didn’t have an opportunity to attend the release part on January 20th, but I did stop by for a pint a couple of days later.

Inaugurator is dark like a brown ale in the glass, mostly opaque but allowing just enough light to shine through that it’s not pitch black like a stout. Imagine a medium-roast coffee in a glass, if you will. The initial head subsides pretty quickly, leaving no foam or lacing on the glass.

As you might expect there’s lots of malt in this beer, with a hint of dry chocolate on the back of the palate, along with a slight tang in the finish. The tang is almost reminiscent of black cherries. Luckily for me, there’s just enough hops to cut the sweetness, but not so much that it ruins the malty flavor. This beer is smooth, rich and not too heavy. Some might consider it a sweet beer, and it’s certainly sneakily boozy, but it would be surprisingly easy to drink all night.

As an inaugural doppelbock, I’d say it’s dark, smooth, and a little surprising just like our new president.

Old Lompoc Pagan Porter

There are more benefits to playing a team sport than getting exercise and meeting some nice folks. Sometimes you get really lucky and the spouses of your teammates do awesome things, such as brew for Old Lompoc. I’m lucky enough to be invited to Amber Swope and Jon Berry’s annual holiday brunch – already an awesome spread, replete with bacon, cheeses, and of course their famous dutch babies – that always features a selection of beers from Jon’s experiments at home and at Old Lompoc.

This year’s runaway favorite (for me) was his Pagan Porter, served on nitro in their amazing retro-styled basement bar. I love a porter in general, but I love porter variations even more. I have to admit, the Lompoc Vanilla Porter was a close second, and I’ll look forward to the taste-off again next year. Perhaps there will even be a new contender.

When I heard that Pagan Porter was on limited release at Old Lompoc, I had to get another taste! I wasn’t able to make it to the release party, but I had to catch a glass or two (only served in glasses, not pints) at Hedge House the next day. On nitro, it’s smooth, creamy, and velvety-delicious. On regular Co2 it’s still awesome, but not quite as smooth. Maybe next time the Lompoc locations will serve it on nitro? Please?

As one might expect, there’s a definite bourbon flavor and aroma to this beer. Aging the beer in fresh bourbon barrels for six months will do that! It’s the perfect beer for bourbon lovers, or for people who want to love bourbon but just don’t. It’s all the things I thought hard liquor would be like when I was a kid – delicious, sweet, exotic, a treat.

On the tip of the tongue the flavor is sweet, a little fruity (like a fruit cake – yeasty, malty, a little tangy and mysterious), quite oaky, with a hint of caramel. Chocolate notes appear at the back of the mouth, a happy medium between sweet and dry cocoa. As the beer warms, the chocolate flavors are more present at the front of the mouth, developing as a rounded flavor with the bourbon notes. What impresses me is that this beer isn’t too sweet and sticky. There’s so much potential to take it over the top and make it a gut bomb, like a cream-filled donut. But it’s no barley wine and I’m glad for it. The slight tang up front and the hint of bitterness in the finish balance the sweetness and richness of the bourbon flavors, making the beer rich and flavorful but nicely balanced.

Perhaps I’m biased because I know the brewer – he’s the man who makes sweet malty elixir and fresh hot dutch babies, after all – but this is in my top favorite 5 porters. I’ve never had another porter quite like it, and I think it raises the bar on porter variants brewed in Beervana. Fantastic work, Jon! I look forward to next year’s experiment.