Fredericksburg Brewing Company

I've been here twice now, both times after hiking Enchanted Rock. It makes a great stop on the way home, or if you're camping in the area. The food is pretty good for what you should expect in the area, and the beers are decent. Not great, and not all good, but worth supporting. Hopefully they'll tweak them in the future to beef them up a little.

The beers are below, and are very briefly described. I took minimal notes because I was tired as hell. But, they all seem to fit what I remember.

Haupsttrasse Helles: This one pours a clear yellow with a fizzy white head. Grassy hops, unusual for a helles. I think of them as much more subdued, but this one has more kick to it than others of the style.

Harper Valley IPA: You know, this one is weak, more like a pale. Looks and smells on style in other ways, but it's just too weak.

Not So Dumb Blonde: It's weak, as expected, but has a harsh, cardboard bitterness that I never like in a beer.

Peacepipe Pale Ale: I like this. It's as bold as an IPA, which makes me wonder if the server didn't mix up the pale and the IPA. Grassy hops with a nice, smooth body.

Enchanted Rock Red Ale: This is a fairly sweet amber with a slight hint of the grassy hops that are used in the Peacepipe. Good beer, but slightly too sweet.

Pioneer Porter: Their best offering if you ask me. Slightly smoky, light tannins, and a smooth body. Nice.

Pyramid Brewing Company's Curve Ball Blonde Ale

I remember trying a few pyramid beers a while back. Stayed clear of them ever since, but I figured a blonde would be simple enough to get right, and since I found it as a single I couldn't resist.

Pours a clear, straw yellow with a fizzy white head that disappears fairly quickly.

Smells sweet and malty. Bigger than I expected, and without a hint of hops.

Nice, clean taste that is right in line for the type. Very light and indistinct hops taste. Blondes are nothing sexy, ever, but they're light and drinkable, and this is a pretty good one.

Spoetzel Brewery's Shiner Blonde

I've had a couple of these over the years, but largely don't remember much about it so I was glad to see it in the family pack.

It pours a clear, light yellow with a crisp white head and good carbonation. Smells more like a lighter pilsner than a blonde, since it has that slight funk to it. I envision a blonde as a light lager with fairly muted characteristics. Malty, but not distinctive in any serious category. This is closer to a pils.

Yep. Taste is very close to a pilsner. A German maltier one, I think. If not for having read the label, I would have put it in that category in a blind test. Good, crisp, and zippy, it has low bitterness and the pilsner taste that really shouldn't be in any other style. It fades to a malty bitterness when the light and sweet malt fades to what seems more like a grainy bitterness than a hoppy one. It doesn't have the Shiner taste that many of their variants have, which is a good thing.

I like it. But it's a pilsner.

Spoetzel Brewery's Shiner Blonde

I've had a couple of these over the years, but largely don't remember much about it so I was glad to see it in the family pack along with Kosmos Reserve.

It pours a clear, light yellow with a crisp white head and good carbonation. Smells more like a lighter pilsner than a blonde, since it has that slight funk to it. I envision a blonde as a light lager with fairly muted characteristics. Malty, but not distinctive in any serious category. This is closer to a pils.

Yep. Taste is very close to a pilsner. A German maltier one, I think. If not for having read the label, I would have put it in that category in a blind test. Good, crisp, and zippy, it has low bitterness and the pilsner taste that really shouldn't be in any other style. It fades to a malty bitterness when the light and sweet malt fades to what seems more like a grainy bitterness than a hoppy one. It doesn't have the Shiner taste that many of their variants have, which is a good thing.

I like it. But it's a pilsner.