Sierra Nevada Brewing Company's Stout

Stout. Says it all, right? Not Torpedo, or some other goofy name. Stout.

Pours deeper than most straight-up stouts. Not heavier in body really, but definitely more opaque. Great roasted malt smell. Definitely more substance to it than most stouts. Slight but not insignificant hops zing to it.
Perfect for a stout. Not really a roasted coffee or chocolate taste, just roasted malt and a solid bitterness that's not grassy or piney, it just let's you know it's there.

Every time I drink something from Sierra Nevada I can't help but think that this is everything BBC wishes it could be.

Warsteiner Dunkel

One of my favorite German dark lagers, puts the crap Shiner and many US brewers pump out to shame. Pours a deep raisin-like brown. paque-ish, with a nice light tan head that stays.

Smells zippy, more like a lighter lager than expected. Still has a deeper malt than the straight lagers, with a bit of the funk of a German pils.

Pretty much the same in the taste--darker than usual in appearance, a little heavier and slower than most lagers, but still nice and light with a decent bitterness and malt.

No tterriby sexy, but well worth it.

Grolsch Premium Lager

This one is old school for me. Maybe not Silver Bullet old school, but back when I was first preparing to home brew I saw these swing-tops and quickly decided that I should buy quite a few an save them so I didn't have to cap or keg right away. The good news is that I have a ton of the bottes, and they have served me well. The bad news is that I had to drink the beer out fo them.

And that's not really fair, because I like Grolsch, and back then I hadn't had the variety that I have now so I realy didn't know any better. Now I shun drinking more of one of the same beer in a two-week span and have enough in my cellar to get me by for several months. Internet beer stores are perfect for that kind of variety.

As for this one, Grolsch pours a bright but deep yellow with a huge white head for a lager. Most fizzle as they pour, but this one just builds. Lots of carbonation.

Smells a lot like a malty German pils, with an added sweetness like a Euro Golden, but it's too clean for that. Too crisp.

Solid bitterness hits you first, with a twang that's not citrus, but not an off cardboard bitterness either. Best when cold because it keeps its crispness. Gets slightly oily when warmer, like many pilsners can.

Overall a good, light lager. Falls inbetween pilsner and golden, and nowaays I'd much rather have a Czech Pilsner than this but it's certainly beter than mst lagers out there.

Belhaven Brewery's Scottish Stout

A Scottish stout? Worth a try. Oddly enough my favorite beer from this brewery so far is the IPA, but this one is showing promise and I was glad to see some variety at the store.

Pours a deep black with ruby highlights. Great tan head that fades slowly.

Great smell. Roasted grain and bread smell, but quite hoppy as well. A bit grassy.

Very smooth feel, on the heavy side of a stout. While the roasted coffee flavor is the most prominent, it has a solid bitterness for a stout. There's no real chocolate flavor, as the label claims, but it does come out in the aftertaste as the bitterness mellows.

Very good stout. The best of the Belhaven offerings, if you ask me.

Oskar Blues Brewing Company's Mamma's Little Yella Pils

Excellent. A new beer from Oskar Blues, and in one of my favorite styles.

Pours a great clear yellow with a surprisingly large fluffy off-white head for the style. Slowly fades, with good carbonation.

Huh. It's funky like a Czech, but malty like a German. A bit too much hops for the style if you ask me, but it doesn't even come close to being as hoppy as that abomination to God known as Prima Pils. Non-distinct bitterness, a bit cardboardins like a lager can be.

All in all a good beer. Pushes the style on malt and hops, and it's a bit oily feeling even cold whereas most pilsners have to warm up to get that way, but a good beer. Nothing to look for, since I still prefer the lighter-bodies and funkier tastes of Urquell and Chechvar, among others, but good for hikes and to take on the water because of the can.

Real Ale's Sisyphus 2008

I have high hopes for the 2008. I've heard it's hoppier, as a barleywine is supposed to be, and the 2007 was decidedly unexciting.

Starts out great. Pours slowly and thick, almost oily. Great light tan head that thins to a sheet with slow, small carbonation. Excellent deep amber color.

Smalles hugely malty. Sweet with a hint of grassy hops. Strong smell of bread, but it feels a bit crisp in the smell.

Man, it's slow. Goes down smoothly, like a heavy cream ale. Huge body. Big bitterness that is mostly indistinct, primarily because it has to fight through the big body and malt. Fades to an twangy grassy aftertaste, and the bready malt never fades.

Very good beer. Huge step up from last year, and I'm looking forward to letting it age and also to trying it side by side with the '07 as well. Good to see such a big beer from Texas.

Harpoon Brewery's Brown Session Ale

Pours a deep red, light brown, with a pillowy light tan head that thins to a heavy sheet and stays due to decent carbonation.

Smalls great. The head throws off floral hops and a strong sweet malt. It says it's brewed to accentuate the sweetness of the malt, and they hit that mark for sure. Sweeter than most, but a bit nutty and right on style. Smells remarkably like Saint Arnold's brown.

Decent yet indistinct bitterness. Leans more toward a red than a brown should, but it's a session beer so it's a little lighter in feel and taste than the smell indicated. Nuttier and hoppier than the smell indicated too, and not quite as sweet, which I relate to the fact that the floral hops smell isn't present in the taste.

Pretty good beer. Browns aren't the sexiest stle, but this is a good one that I'll pick up and keep around if I see it in a store.

Uinta Brewing Company's Angler's Pale Ale

I wasn't too impressed with the other Uinta beer I had, but this one may be better.

Pours a decent but slightly too clear, amber. Light tan head fades quickly, with moderate carbonation. Smells nice and malty with decent hops. Like a solid pale, but maybe too sweet in the smell.

Not bad. A damn sight better than that other one. Decent grassy hops that are stronger than in the smell. Overall it's a decent pale, it's just a bit too fizzy and a bit light in the body. Odd twangy adtertaste as well.

Not much to say about this one, it's within the guidelines but nothing more.

Otter Creek Russian Imperial Stout

Finally, back to stout of the day. I've heard good things about Otter Creek but don't remember having had one of their beers before. Hopefully their Imperial Series isn't another version of Sam Adams' Brewmaster Series.

So far so good. Pours inky black that just looks heavier than a standard stout. Great deep tan head. Good roasted coffee smell as well.

You know, it feels a little too light. Not sure if it's because of the higher than normal carbonation, but either way it gives it sort of a soft-drink feel. And although there is a solid bitterness and a stronger roasted malt taste, it's a bit too vinous. It has a bit too much of that merlot tannins without the vinegar, and sort of wanders back and forth between that and a chocolate stout. Slightly sweet and sugary at times, which fights through the bitterness.

I'm not sure about this one. It's a little bit of a porter, a little bit of a chocolate stout, and a little but of an impy stout. It's just not a good, right in the middle of the style imperial stout. It's hard to beat the beers from Colorado to the West Coast in this style. This one certainly doesn't make it.

Sierra Nevada Brewing Company's Torpedo Extra IPA

Sierra Nevada is without a doubt the best quasi-macro brewery out there. This is what Sam Adams can never be, but BBC fanboys claim it is. They don't even come close. And if anyone from SN reads this (I know they won') dont take the quasi-macro thing the wrong way. You've maintained your quality hile increasing production. You haven't pandered to the mass market by dumbing down your beers, which BBC has done shamelessly, while promoting themselves as craft the whole time. I'm far more offended by ther commercials than anyting BMC ever put out. So I was glad to see this one finally hit my local store after I got back from vacation.

Pours like a big amber. Deep orangish amber color with a great light tan head that thins a bit but stays with decent carbonation. Great grassy hops smell, backed by solid bready malt. This is what an IPA is supposed to smell like, and in testament to the "extra" part, it actually smells pretty close to some barley wines.

Dang. This one grabs you. You can taste the bitterness even in the roof of your mouth. Perfect feel to it, substantial and smooth. After you adjust to it, the bitterness gives way to a sweet malt that gives it its body. Solid, grassy, excellent bitterness.

Eh, I don't like the name, but everything else about this beer is right where it should be. You know the other brewers are pissed that they put out an IIPA. I can't wait to see if they come out with an RIS. It'll be Code Brown for other brewers, as SN will make an even bigger dent in BMC and the micro market.

Good stuff.

Southern Star Brewing Company's Bombshell Blonde Ale

I hope this one fares better than Pine Belt Pale Ale did post-hops shortage. Pine Belt was too piney, but solid, until the hops shortage killed it. Some say it's back, but not the last time I tried it.

Anyway, their Blonde Bombshell has some great nose art on it, and I've been looking out for it because I've heard good things.

Pours pretty deep for a blonde, with a solid amber color and a huge light tan head that throws off a floral sweetness with a hint of slightly grassy hops and grainy malt. Most blondes ae closer to lagers, lighter in color and feel with a fizzy head that recedes fairly quickly. This one sticks. Pine Belt was strong for a pale, and I think his one is shaping up to be strong for a blonde. An Imperial Blonde? I've drank (drunk?) weirder things. Looks loosely filtered and I guess the head took pretty much all of the carbonation out of it, as there's just a few bubbles rising slowly.

Yeah, it's hoppier than a blonde should be. A hollow bitterness, with a hollow aftertaste that ends up tasting about like wet cardboard smells. Like a lot of blondes with big hoots, it looks promising but is kind of vacuous. And the more I think of it, the bitterness comes more from the cardboard taste than the hops, what with only 20 IBU's, but that's even worse than a beer that's overly hopped.

For Texas blondes I'll reach for a Shiner next time.

Four + Brewing Company's Rype

I don't know man, I think I may be headed downhill. Billed as "like a Beligian, but you can't tell from the looks." Well, I don't like Belgians. And thelooks are piss poor. So this one is getting ready to both suck and blow.

Pours a horribly clear cider-ey transparent orange. Doesn't look like a beer so much as a flavored ice tea. It's from Utah, so I guess that's no surprise. Dull light tan head that thins to spots very quickly.Yeah, smells like a wit. A hint of orange citrus, but dull.

Water in Houston has more body and flavor than this (and that explains the third testicle I've grown). Dull, flat taste. Like a half-strength lager, or a Michelob. Fine, make that 1/4 strength.

The best thing about this beer is the aftertaste. Mostly because it means you're that much closer to not having to taste it any more, but it's actually a decent balance of hops and malt, once the beer is down.

Harpoon Brewery's Hibernian Irish Style Red Ale

Been on vacation in kind of a beer wasteland. Great tequila though.

It'll be good to kick off the new posts with a beer from a brewery I've never tried. Don't know why, just never have.

Harpoon's Hibernian pours a perfect red with a dull tan head that stays a while. Moderate to low carbonation.

Smells fantastic. Bready and crisp, like a red/amber should be. Not muddled by any off or slow smells, just a sharp, crisp, bread smell.

Grainy taste as well, with solid bitterness that is in line with a pale or red. It fades to a bit of a cardboard taste though, kind of like Coors, which is disappointing. Like husks, or wet paper. Definitely not crisp in the taste like in the smell.

Maybe I should have started back with a Founders Breakfast Stout instead.

Independence Brewing Company's 2008 Jasperilla Old Ale

As a general rule, you shouldn't follow a big barleywine with a smaller beer, but an old ale is generally big enough to stand up for itself, and truth be told it's the five corn dogs with mustard that will affect the taste of this beer more than anything else.

This one pours a deep amber with a good light tan head that stays afloat with moderate carbonation. Smells like a light amber with a hint of Belgian yeast. Not too bad, but not as pronounced as many old ales. Just a hint of citrus--oranges nore than limes.

Huh. Pretty solid. Good malty bread taste backed up by a decent if indistinct bitterness. I know I call lots of beers 'bready' but it just seems to fit. Although this one isn't too sweet, it fits here too. All in all this is very balanced beer. Big feel, almost as strong as thick as a barleywine, with solid bitterness and malt. Nothing overrides anything else, except as the taste fades to a good bitterness in the aftertaste.

This brewery has surprised me. I've heard mixed reviews, but so far everything I've tried has been well worth it.

Anchor Brewing Company's Old Foghorn Barleywine

Another of my favorite seasonals from this excellent brewery, Old Foghorn packs a decent punch.

Pours a deep copper that you can't quite see through until it settles, with a huge pillowy tan head. Slow, small carbonation.

As the head recedes it throws off an almost bourbon smell, but the sharp bourbon smell fades just a bit to allow a sweet bready smell to come through. The hops don't really stand a chance against that much malt and alcohol, but it's under there somewhere.

You know, I think Belgian monks could fast longer on a barleywine than a quad. This is almost meaty. Foghorn has more bourbon flavor than other barleywines, and it's a little sweeter than my favorites, but it's hard to make a beer with this large of a grain bill without it coming across as sweet and bready. And the bready I like, the more the better, but the man flaw in this one is that it's a bit too sweet. And I don't remember that it had such a bourbon hit to it last year, which is also a downer for me, but overall it's a great beer. I'm saving the other five to see how they age, right next to a case of '09 Bigfoot. Should be fun.