New Arrivals for August 8, 2006
Some new things rolled in yesterday, and a couple things have returned after extended absence.
NEW ARRIVALS:
La Face Cache de la Pomme - Neige Ice Cider: Commercial Description: "A taste of Quebec's winter... and warmth! Our apple ice wine is produced in the depths of Quebec's winter, each bottle containing a blend of 5 kg of McIntosh and Spartan apples. This golden liquid develops a complex aroma of candied fruit and achieves the perfect balance between the tart and the mellow. Enjoy Neige alone as an aperitif, or with foie gras, cheese or dessert. Serve chilled."
This stuff is amazing. Mindblowingly good. An incredible apple aroma with notes of honey and caramel wafts up from the still, clear liquid. Take a sip and your mouth becomes awash with beautiful flavors of sweet apples. A very light tannic bite from the skins helps brighten the flavor even more. Some honey notes and a bit of "pumpkin spice" round out the flavor. It has a stupendously clean finish, with almost no discernibleble alcohol burn to distract you from the glorious juicy apple flavor. At $29.95 per bottle it's a wonderful special occasion beverage that everyone should try at least once.
Allagash - Musette: I first mentioned this back in May when I heard it was coming our way, and three months later it finally arrived. Musette is Allagash's interpretation of a Belgian-inspired Scotch Ale. It undergoes a carmelization process in the kettle, where the first runnings are condensed and "carmelized", imparting a unique and subtle caramel character to the beer. Following fermentation with a Belgian strain of yeast, a portion of it is aged in Oak Bourbon Barrels for an additional three months.
Marin Brewing - Star Brew: What happens when you take a smooth and creamy American style wheat beer and crank the recipe up to eleven? You get Star Brew, a "barleywine strength" (aka Wheatwine) beer with the creamy goodness of a wheat combined with the sweet, sherry-like flavors of a barleywine. It's rich and decadent, and with an abv. 9.5% it falls into the perilously drinkable category.
Marin Brewing - Stinson Beach Peach: Marin produces some of the best American fruit beers available, and this is no exception. It's crisp and juicy, with an aroma of fresh, ripe peaches. A light sourness comes into play in the finish to help counteract the residual sweetness which results in a pleasing "sweet and sour" taste sensation.
THEY'RE BACK:
Marin Brewing - Bluebeery Ale: This light refreshing ale has a wonderfully tart blueberry flavor that seems much more natural than most Americancan "fruit beers." Whether you're looking for an afternoon refresher, or tasty dessert drink, you could do far worse than this.
Wye Valley - Dorothy Goodbody's Wholesome Stout: Commercial Description: "Wholesome Stout, which was voted Supreme Champion at the CAMRA Winter Beer Festival 2002 is produced using only the finest ingredients available. They include pale malt with roasted barley which produces a rich dark colour. Flaked barley is used to create a full and creamy head. The stout is flavoured with Northdown hops which give a dry resinous taste." That pretty well sums it up; dark, rich, full-bodied stout with a creamy mouthfeel and long dry-roasted finish.
Dogfish Head - Fort: Billed as the world's strongest fruit beer and brewed with over a TON of Oregon and Washington berries, this stuff tastes like the most intense raspberry juice you'll ever lay lips to. The body is light and "spritzy" (but not thin) and opens up with tangy berry and lemon flavors, moving into a warm finish with suprisingly little burn for a brew this strong. The alcohol begins to make itself known as the beer warms, bringing a little bit of caramel maltiness with it. At 18% (or more) abv. this is not a beer to be taken lightly, but should definitely be taken.
Urthel - Hop-it: After years of American brewers making "Belgian style" beers it seems it's time for the Belgians to reciprocate. Hop-it opens with a bready, spicy aroma reminiscent of Delirium Tremens and forms a head so think you could eat it with a spoon. The fruity/spicy/bready flavors continue throughout, leading to a unique spicy bitter ending. Get some while you can, there's no telling how long it'll last this time.
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