Posted: April 27th, 2008 | Author: Stacy | Filed under: Ale, Beer Reviews, Brewpubs, Craft Brew, Seasonal, What's that in your fridge? | 1 Comment »
AVB does seasonal ales right! is one of my all-time favorite beers. It’s a real treat to find it on tap, but I’m just as happy when spring arrives and the local store stocks the Summer Solstice. As a seasonal beer, it’ll probably be available from late April through August, then gone until next spring.
What I love about it is that it’s flavorful and interesting, but so drinkable that you could have several pints of it in a day and not mind the repetition. On pouring, it has a clear coppery golden color with a light head that quickly disappates. I love the velvety smooth mouthfeel, the malty, light cream soda flavor that brings a mild but not overwhelming sweetness. The finish is clean, smooth, just enough hops to keep the beer from being sweet. And it gets better as the beer warms up a little, allowing the maltiness and creaminess come through, with the sweetness taking a back seat.
It’s certainly not a beer for everyone, though! I convinced a friend to try it at a bar and she thought it was too weird—too much like cream soda. I hate cream soda, yet I love that taste in this beer. Go figure!
If you happen upon the Summer Solstice at a pub or in the store, really do try it! It’s delicious and unlike any other beer on the market. It will also cost a pretty penny at $9.29/6 pack, but it’s worth the money!
Posted: March 27th, 2008 | Author: Stacy | Filed under: Brewpubs, Craft Brew, Organic | No Comments »
Finally, it’s my turn to go to Hopworks! Kathy reported that it was full to the gills when she drove by at 9:30 on Tuesday, opening night, including bikes locked to every lockable surface she could see. Come Thursday at 6:30 and it’s not quite so insane on the outside, but it’s a total zoo inside. I did have to lock my bike to the hand rails that lead up from the parking lot, so my first comment is: ADD MORE BIKE PARKING. Seriously. Don’t claim to be sustainable and bike-friendly with parking for only 10 bikes.
Entering the building, it’s total chaos. To the right is dining room seating, to the left is the bar. And let me tell you, avoid the bar for a good month or two. Madness! I got my name on the list, spent 10 minutes trying to get a beer at the bar, then fled to the deck outside of the dining room to wait for my name to be called. There’s an upstairs area I couldn’t even access because there were too many people blocking the route to the stairs. Thank goodness for the deck! Quiet, spacious, I could hang out here and not feel like I was going to be crushed to death by other beer geeks. And once the hail started, we had the deck to ourselves!
We got seated after an hour or so, with very friendly service and pretty good attention to our needs. I had the chicken tenders appetizer, which reminded me of Krusty’s Ribwich in all the best possible ways: tasty sauce, breaded exterior, seemed to contain chicken breast meat. The home style fries are good, too.
Oh right, and the beer! My first was the Survival Stout. Grainy, coffee notes, slightly bitter amaranth finish. Pretty good. The second beer I tried was the Abominable Winter Ale. Amber color, honey tones in the flavor, fruity nose, slightly hoppy finish that kept the beer from being too sweet. The last beer was their doppelbock, which was pretty tasty and drinkable, but nothing special to my taste. I’ll have to try it again and see if I like it better.
Next time I’m there, I’d like to try their El Diablo, which Ben reports is like a strong tripel. I did have their Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Olde Ale at the Holiday Ale Festival, and while it was tasty, it’s just too sweet for more than 4oz of beer.
We did get to flip through their construction picture book, and they did an amazing job of rehabbing the old Sunset Heating & Fuel building. You just can’t go wrong in supporting an organic and sustainable brewery and brew pub! Since Hopworks is a 5 minute bike ride or a 15 minute walk from my house, I’ll surely be back! Especially in the summer when it’s nice out on that back deck.
Now if they’d just add some more bike parking…
Posted: March 2nd, 2008 | Author: Stacy | Filed under: Beer Reviews, Craft Brew, Organic, Tripel, What's that in your fridge? | No Comments »
Bison Brewing’s Belgian-style aleI have to admit up front that I often don’t love organic beers. While I do love many other organic things — fruit, vegetables, grains — I usually find that organic beers just taste wrong, much like “sulfite-free” wines taste wrong. So it’s with a little trepidation that I bought a bottle of
Bison Brewing’s Belgian Ale. But I persist in my search for tasty organic beer, especially since I love Belgian-style beers!
This Belgian-style “tripel” ale is brewed with coriander, though I don’t really smell or taste it much. It does have a nice golden honey color, and it’s super clear. The aroma is crisp, slightly of honey, and has a cereal aroma I associate with Belgian beers. It’s like a hint of Grape Nuts, which sounds weird but really isn’t so bad. It’s nicely carbonated; fine bubbles on the tongue, but they don’t cover the flavor of the beer.
At 8.1% alcohol, this beer has that “warming” quality I like in a Belgian tripel. It seems to add to the malty flavor, and it heightens the banana and spice flavors in the finish. Kathy said this beer tastes grapey, which I don’t taste, but there you go!
I think I’d buy this again if it were on sale. $3.29 for 22oz isn’t so bad, especially for an organic beer, but on sale it would be even better.
Posted: March 2nd, 2008 | Author: Stacy | Filed under: Beer Reviews, Craft Brew, Winter Ale | No Comments »
Kathy and I took my Dad to Green Dragon last night for a beer before dinner since we were out and about and it was a little too early to eat yet. Green Dragon generally has a good list of beers on tap, but last night I just wasn’t finding anything that sounded great. There were several pale ales and IPAs, and a few stouts, but none of those sounded right. Then I found the Laughing Dog Cold Nose winter ale, which I’d never had before.
The color on the Cold Nose is like a brown ale — deep, rich, dark, but clear and not opaque. It had a decent head, a nice tan bit of foam that wasn’t too thick to get through for a first sip. The aroma was strongly of caramel and malt. Kathy said it reminded her of candied apples.
The flavor up front was rich and a little bit tangy, but the finish is smooth, malty, and strongly caramel. It almost reminded me of the Rogue Hazelnut Brown the way the finish was sweet and a touch nutty. I bet that comes from the roasted barley. There’s nothing hoppy about this beer, other than the mild tang on first tasting that balances the sweetness in the finish.
I’ll definitely go to Laughing Dog the next time I’m in Sandpoint, Idaho! We’ve got some friends who live there, so now we’ve got one more reason to head up for a visit.
Posted: February 27th, 2008 | Author: Stacy | Filed under: Beer Reviews, Craft Brew, Pale Ale, What's that in your fridge? | No Comments »
Who wouldn’t love a coppery beer like this?I love
Kona Brewing’s Pipeline Porter, so when their
Fire Rock Pale Ale went on an excellent sale ($6.99!) I had to try it. Now, I don’t typically like pale ales. They’re often a bit over-hopped for my taste and leave a bitter flavor in my mouth or they’re a bit metallic in the finish.
Fire Rock Pale Ale has a lovely copper hue that’s best admired in a glass. These days, I’m trying to be really good about pouring all beer into a glass so I can appreciate the color and the aroma, rather than swigging it from a bottle and missing out on part of the beer experience. Seriously, my brush with a near-beerless life has changed my perspective on beer appreciation! This pale ale is clear, crisp, and the color of a delicious wildflower honey. Or, the color of hot lava!
The aroma is sweet and lightly floral, but not a hoppy floral. It’s more the sweetness of wildflower in spring than the herbal aroma of hops. On first tasting, I notice the fine carbonation, spritzy on the tongue. This is no beer soda. The up front flavors are of a pale malt and the tang of hops. Toward the back of my mouth, I taste the warmth of corn (which I know some people don’t like, but I rather enjoy), and rich toasted malt. There’s a lightly bitter hops finish, but just enough to keep the beer from tasting sweet. They’re using some Hood and Cascade hops in this beer, so I’ve got to appreciate the local connection.
What I love about this pale ale is that it’s got some backbone. It’s not wispy and thin, not bitter, but it’s full and lush without being heavy. It really can stand up to barbecue, scalloped potatoes, and lamb. But it also pairs nicely with salads and even Italian food. Versatile!
I also have to say that the Kona Brewing website is just lovely. I see so many horrible, ugly brewery websites, so it’s awesome to see a company that’s getting it right! The style of the site matches what I expect from a Hawaiian brewery, but has class and substance. They’ve clearly paid attention to the details and hired an agency that knows what it’s doing. The site delivers both a fun experience and the information I was seeking, which is distressingly rare for food-related sites. Huzzah for a great website!
This is the kind of beer that makes me think I should relocate to Hawaii for a time, just to try it out. Delicious beer, great weather, friendly people … what more could I want?