New Beer For Friday May, 19, 2006

I'm sorry this is a couple days behind, I got wrapped up in the vintage stuff last week and didn't have a chance to post anything about the new beers that rolled in on Friday. So, this week we welcome a new brewery from southern California, two new Avery brews, and a couple new imports.

Green Flash Brewing / Reaper Ales:

Located in Carlsbad, CA, The Green Flash Brewing Company makes a range of products under their own name as well as the "ReaperAles" line of beer.

West Coast IPA: This is a tasty, crisp IPA that should do well around here. It features loads of floral/citrus/piney hop flavors balanced by a good caramelly maltiness. I could see myself drinking lots of this.

Nut Brown Ale: I haven't had this one yet, I'll get back to it soon.

Extra Pale Ale: I'm not sure what they mean by "extra pale" as it's got just as much color as the average "pale" ale, but whatever. It's smooth and refreshing with some a lot of the same hop flavors as the IPA, but in a more approachable (read: less bitter) package.

ReaperAle Mortality Stout: I haven't had this one yet, but the beer geeks have spoken.

ReaperAle inevitable Ale: Another one I need to try. Check back soon.

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Avery sent a few cases of their anniversary beer and their new Belgian-style brew our way, and I'm glad they did.

Avery 13 is a Doppel Weizenbock brewed to celebrate their "unlucky 13th" year in business. Combining the best aspects of a Weiss and a doppelbock, they've brewed up a thick, rich brew exploding with flavors of fresh bread, caramel, and bananas. At warmer temperatures there's a bit of heat from the 9%abv, but it seems to help cut the sugar a little bit and ease the "throat coating" feeling.

Avery Karma: Here's the official line on this one: "We believe in Karma. We suspect most of you do, too. It truly is a global concept. Very simply put, "you get what you give." Inspired by this principle and the wonderful farmhouse and pale ales of Belgium, we've created Karma Ale, a decidedly fruity and estery ale, intricate in body and nose, all driven by a unique Belgian yeast strain. Remember, good things DO happen to good people. Here's to being good!"

It doesn't taste much like a farmhouse ale, but it does have some nice fruity esters and a very smooth, dangerously quaffable finish.

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New Imports:


Baby Cham: This classic British perry (pear cider) is one of those things that the expats are constantly asking for. I never thought it would get imported, but lo and behold, here it is. I really don't know what to expect, but I'll let you know soon.


Lindeman's Pomme: Our case fell off the truck, so we won't have any until Friday.

Rochefort 6: This one also fell off the truck, but one bottle survived so at least I got to try it. It's light, effervescent and sublime. It's a nice ruby-brown dubbel with lots of nice fruity, yeasty flavors and a clean malt undertone. As nice a beer as this, Josh Oakes on Ratebeer sums it up well, "It reminds you of its bigger brothers, which makes it feel thinner than it actually is."