As of 6pm (Friday 2/6) we still had a few bottles of Full Sail Black Gold left, but I doubt it'll be here tomorrow so don't delay if you're planning on coming in for some. The Black Gold may have garnered all the hype this week, but it's far from the only good beer to arrive in the last few days.
New Arrivals:Lagunitas -
Cruising With Ruben and the Jets: You may remember this beer from the Holiday Ale Fest. Then again, if you had more than a few samples of the potent libations present at the fest you might not remember much of anything. In any case, it's an imperial stout with cacao and white peppercorns. I had one yesterday and didn't get much chocolate other than the "bitter chocolate" malt character typical in most stouts, but the white pepper added a nice little zing to the finish. This is also the last beer in the Zappa series, so if you're collecting them all you won't want to miss the final entry in the collection.
Wolaver's -
Pat Leavy's All American Ale: This well balanced pale is the first in a series of beers from Wolavers that seeks to focus attention on the farmers who provide them with raw materials. Pat Leavy is a hop grower from Aurora who's been working with Wolavers to produce organic hops that are otherwise unavailable or to costly to ship from over seas.
Heater Allen - Abzug: I haven't had a chance to drink this one yet, but Rick Allen describes it as "A low-alcohol (3.8%abv) Vienna lager packed with oodles of flavor." A good analogue would probably be the low abv "table beers" brewed for consumption by monks and farm workers in Belgium.
Aspall -
Perronelle's Blush Cider:
(commercial description) A twist on the classic Kir Royale – champagne and crème de cassis replaced by cider and a hint of blackberry juice. Named after Perronelle Chevallier‐Guild and her rosy red cheeks. Perronelle is the grandmother of Barry & Henry Chevallier‐Guild, the eighth generation family management of Aspall. Perronelle was a founding member of the UK Soil Association and was also known to pole‐vault across the moat that surrounds the family home. The color is deep blush suggestive of dark summer fruit, with a rich appearance. There is a subtle blackberry aroma with a hint of traditional cider apple. Deceptively smooth with a silky but refreshing palate, Blush offers a perfect blend of sweetness and acidity. It has a lovely mouth feel and a lingering aftertaste of berries.
Anchor -
Bock:
(commercial description) Bock beer, released in celebration of the arrival of spring, is an ancient and mysterious part of the brewing tradition. Over time, the term "bock" has come to mean a beer darker and stronger than the brewery's regular brew. This is the first time we have brewed a bock at Anchor Brewing Co., and we hope you will find it to be a rich and flavorful addition to our offerings. San Francisco's Anchor Bock Beer is virtually handmade by the brewers of Anchor Steam® Beer, in one of the most traditional small breweries in the world. It is brewed from a complex blend of the finest barley malts, wheat malts, and fresh whole hops.
New Belgium -
Lips of Faith Dark Kriek: I think this one has potential, but it feels like it's not quite done yet. It's beautiful to behold; a dark garnet body, wispy head, and good lacing down the glass. It smells delicious too, but after that things start going south. It's too sweet for a kriek, at least compared to any traditional example, which lead one person who sampled from my bottle to refer to it as "unfermented cherry juice aged in a barrel." I'm not sure if it's bottle conditioned (there wasn't any visible yeast in the bottle) or whether a few months of age would help, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to try. It will most likely appeal to folks who love sweet, fruity drinks like the Lindeman's line of lambics, but people who want something tart, sour, and woody should look elsewhere.
New Belgium -
Mighty Arrow Pale Ale:
Pyramid -
Rollick:
(commercial description) Smooth malty character balanced with a gracious quantity of hops make this copper-colored offering the perfect beer to celebrate your first rollicking spring adventure.
Erie Brewing -
Drake's Crude Oatmeal Stout:Buffalo Bill's -
Blueberry Oatmeal Stout: I was skeptical, and I'm still not going to buy it regularly, but I've got to admit that this is a lot better than I expected it to be. The blueberry flavor tastes more natural than synthetic, and the 7.5% abv is well hidden in the roasty, fruity body
St Louis -
Gueuze Fond Tradition:
Deschutes -
Hop Henge Experimental IPA: I'm not sure what they're experimenting with, but it's tasty. A sweet "hop candy" body acts as a vessel for floral, earthy, citrusy goodness. The finish is sticky with resiny hops, but surprisingly it doesn't come across as cloying. One unsubstantiated claim I read on BeerAdvocate was that the beer was spiked with brettanomyces before bottling, but an IPA seems like an odd choice for such an experiment. You'd also expect Deschutes to mention something about that on the bottle in order to alert people to the fact that the beer will get funky and musty if left to age, otherwise they run the risk of angering and confusing people who pop one open and expect a hoppy delight.
Southern Oregon Brewing -
Pale Ale: description coming soon...
Southern Oregon Brewing -
Gold Ale: description coming soon...
Southern Oregon Brewing -
Porter: description coming soon...
Sierra Nevada -
Torpedo Extra IPA: At 7.2% it's slightly bigger than a regular IPA, but smaller than an imperial IPA, hence "extra" IPA. It's almost like a cross between their Pale Ale and Celebration; hugely floral and bitter, but light-bodied and easy drinking. It's been out-selling just about everything in the store since it came in, and shows no signs of slowing down. I'm curious to see where the sales will level out at, and whether or not they can keep up with demand.
Sierra Nevada -
Bigfoot Barleywine: After 20+ years in production this beer needs no introduction, but I figured I'd mention it for the sake of those who haven't been in lately.
Panty Dropper Ale: You've probably seen tap handles for the Panty Dropper around town, or perhaps at the Spring Beer and Wine Fest. It's a solid pale ale, and now that there are bottles (with a provacative image) to accompany the name I'm sure you'll be hearing about it more often. I'm pretty sure we're the only place east of the river that has this in bottles, so stop on by and get some panty dropping goodness!
Laughing Dog -
Alpha Dog: An imperial IPA with bite! This debuted at our Laughing Dog tasting last month, and when I tried it there it was enough to make my shiver. It's been a long time since I drank something that was so bitterly hoppy that it made the sides of my mouth pucker. At that point all I could say was, "Whoa!" I'll try a bottle this weekend and see if the experience translates to the bottled product.
Returning Favorites:Mikkeller - Beer Geek Breakfast: Imperial oatmeal stout with coffee. Mmm...coffee and oatmeal. If someone could figure out a way to get bacon flavor into the mix it might be the perfect breakfast food.
Victory - Old Horizontal: Victory's barleywine is always a welcome addition to the line-up. It's a little hot now, but a few months in the cellar will cure that.
Victory - Hop Wallop: One of the hoppiest beers on the east coast finds it's way back to our side of the country. If I remember correctly it's kind of thin bodied, but delicious.
Fuller's - London Porter: Classic London porter, now in 16oz cans!
Upcoming events:
THURSDAY FEB. 12 6-8PM IMPORT TASTING. Acclaimed Importers Merchant Du Vin will offer up tastes of Samuel Smith's Winter Welcome Ale, Samuel Smith's Organic Cider, Lindemans Framboise, Lindemans Pomme Lambic, Pinkus Jubilate & Westmalle Trappist Tripel. Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock on draft.
TUESDAY FEB. 17 6-8PM FISH TALE ALES TASTING & Anniversary Ale Release. Your chance to score a few bottles of this year's very limited Fish Tale Anniversary Ale (also known as Ten Squared). Plus taste the full line of Fish Tale Ales: Fish Organic IPA, Organic Wild Salmon Pale Ale, Organic Amber, Detonator Doppelbock, & Old Woody. A rare keg of Ten Squared on Draft.
THURSDAY FEB 19 6-8PM, SIERRA NEVADA TASTING. Taste 2009 Bigfoot, Torpedo IPA, ESB, & Porter. Bigfoot and ESB on draft in the Biercafe.
WEDNESDAY FEB. 25 5-7pm FIRESTONE WALKER & NECTAR ALE TASTING. Taste the Union Jack IPA, Humboldt Hemp Ale, DBA, and Pale 31. Plus Nectar Ales IPA & Red Nectar. Hemp Ale on Draft.
I think that's all for now, so have a great weekend!
Labels: Biercafe events, new beers
