Not Another Beer Review: July 2014

July 30, 2014

5 Rabbit Yodo Con Leche

Brewed By: 5 Rabbit Cerveceria in Bedford Park, IL

Purchased: 750ml bottle bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2014

Style/ABV: Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer, 8.2%

Reported IBUs: 38

These Summer nights and running [X miles] followed by drinking [Y Imperial Stout] is apparently becoming a thing. And I'm okay with it. It's not like I just mowed a lawn. I swear...I still love wheat beers. About 5 Rabbit Cerveceria:

The Yodo Con Leche is an "Imperial Porter brewed with milk caramel and Costa Rican Coffee" The bottle reads:

"A Costa Rican slang term for coffee, "Yodo" means something rich, dark and intense-a perfect name for this distinctive beer. We use "Finca Agrícola Cafetal" coffee beans from Lourdes de Cirrí de Naranjo, Costa Rica, custom roasted by Gaslight Coffee Roasters for the freshest, smoothest flavor. We combine this with Argentine dulce de leche (milk caramel), three caramel malts, three dark malts including chocolate rye, and finally oatmeal, creating several layers of creamy chocolatey roasted character.""

Yeah, you read that right...this is a malt bomb, brewed with Costa Rican coffee. The exact malt bill includes 2-Row, Caramel, Roasted Wheat and Rye malts, and Patagonia C-120. This also has the Dulce de Leche (milk caramel) and Costa Rican coffee. The hops here include Pilgrim and Summit, and this one is finished with dem English yeasts. It sounds like the coffee is a late addition, post-fermentation, steeped in some of the beer and then blended into the final result. I'm excited, are you?

5 Rabbit Yodo Con Leche

In true Porter-but-not-Imperial-Stout fashion, this one pours into a mostly black and mostly opaque body, but in reality you catch some brown tones and this is slightly transparent around the edges. The beer kicks up a finger or two of mocha-brown, coffee-infused head. The beer generally looks the same in bright or low light. Head retention here is nice...courtesy of all the proteins and malts. Swirling the beer kicks up sex in the glass, and there's nice lacing and alcohol legs. It's a good looking beer...I say that rarely, so prepare your fap chamber.

Damn...I really love coffee beers. I can't emphasize that enough. Really, really, love coffee beers. This has sweet aromatics and with rich coffee overtones. It smells more like a coffee bean shop than a Starbucks, with sweet and earthy coffee beans emerging as the dominating aroma. I'm getting sweet, earthy coffee beans, mocha, huge espresso and coffee creamer (like the canned energy drink espresso), ash, and earthy hazelnut. This plays up the hazelnut as you sink into the aroma, and I'm getting a ton of vanilla and caramel sugars too. I'd say this aroma leans towards the sweeter, earthy, unprocessed side of coffee...and that's not a bad thing.

This is blissfully drinkable, and the flavors mirror the aroma with huge hazelnut, caramel, vanilla sweetness, earthy ash and ground coffee, raw coffee beans, and big espresso with creamer. At times this reminds me of chewing on a chocolate-dipped coffee bean, with hints of chocolate-caramel and caramel-vanilla sweetness. You have to wonder how this beer would taste aged in a barrel; preferably a bourbon barrel. Probably well, as I answer my own question. For whatever reason, this one avoids the lactose sugar notes...I'm getting a lot of sweetness here, but it's well balanced by measured levels of roast. This is truly a balanced, well-made beer.

I'm really surprised by the lack of love, hype, and reviews for this beer. Apparently no one gives a fuck about Randy Mosher's epic brewery thing, but whatever. This is a medium-bodied beer, but it is creamy and smooth...so smooth. This drinks like a Milk Stout in every way possible, and sort of rides the line between medium and full. I'm not getting any of the 8.2%, which is a good thing. Palate depth is great, especially for a Porter. And this is very complex. Really, this is one of the most memorable Porters I have had in recent memory. Up front: caramel sugars, sweet coffee, espresso, vanilla, creamer, mocha, hazelnut; the mids roll into huge hazelnut, with earthy and ashy coffee, caramel-vanilla, some roast; the back end trails with roast, more ashy/earthy coffee and coffee beans, and tons of lingering residual sugars. This is sticky and unashamed about it. It's basically a coffee Sweet Stout dubbed an Imperial Porter. Pretty good.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here...almost reaching that divine brew plateau. I'd have to revisit this to commit to a divine brew rating, but this is clearly one of the best things that 5 Rabbit has made. I do recommend seeking this out if you can find it on the shelves. There's not much else to say...I think you could pair this with burgers, coffee-braised beef or pork, pork chops, gamy meets, and maybe even some Thai or Indian food. The sweeter notes in this beer seem like they'd compliment a curry dish. Obviously this would work with chocolate desserts, vanilla ice cream, or breakfast as well.

Random Thought: I should probably mention that I will be going to graduate school soon...within the next two months. How that will effect my blogging or beer purchasing remains to be seen, but what is for sure is that I'll be on a tighter budget. It may be back to 6-packs and the occasional bomber. I can't say I'm thrilled about that, but I'm not even 1000 beers into my beer-drinking journey. I have so much to learn, still. So much to see. I doubt I am going to be bored with beer anytime soon...even boring shelf turds. But stay tuned, I guess.

July 29, 2014

5 Rabbit Gran Missionario

Brewed By: 5 Rabbit Cerveceria in Bedford Park, IL

Purchased: 750ml bottle bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2014

Style/ABV: Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer, 8.3%

Reported IBUs: 25

I know I keep saying I need to drink more of 5 Rabbit's stuff, so here we are. About 5 Rabbit Cerveceria:

The Gran Missionario is a "Double Wheat Beer fermented with muscat grape must & pear juice." The bottle reads:

"Missionario celebrates the intersection of cultures that occurred in the missions set up all along the Pacific Coast of the Americas.

Wheat and muscat wine grapes were among the plants brought over from Spain, being tasty as well as essential for church services. In honor of the many other crops grown in Mission gardens, we’ve chosen pears for this version of Gran Missionario. It is creamy, dry and fruity in a most comlex way, with aromas of flowers and spice.

It is a sophisticated beer capable of complementing a wide range of foods from crab tamales to sheep cheese to apple pie."

5 Rabbit Gran Missionario

The bottle says this clocks in at 8.3%. This one is brewed with US Pilsner, flaked wheat, and oats malts. This uses Muscat of Alexandria grape must, and pear juice. This also features Northern Brewer, and Hallertau Blanc hops (Floral and fruity with passion fruit, grapefruit, pineapple, grape and lemongrass overtones...yum).

The beer pours out a hazy, straw-like, golden-yellow color, kicking up two fingers of lightly gold-tinted head. The head is fluffy and thick, and looks to be the product of rich wheat and oat malts. The beer looks much the same in bright light, with some orange tones present, and nice streams of tiny carbonation bubbling away. There's lacing and nice head retention.

On the aroma: wheat, straw, barnyard and farmhouse funk, apple slaw salad and pears, pear juice, grapefruit, and big, juicy, musty grape/pear. I'm getting some pear skin...it almost smells like pear tannin...with subtle white wine, grapes, and green pepper notes. It's a complex aroma, for sure.

This is impressively dense and juicy, with huge waves of creamy pear juice and grape juice mounted on those giant wheat and oat malts. I feel like I'm a kid again, with the juice box apples and pears popping here. I'm getting big apple juice, pear juice, creamy white wine foam, white sugar/clove, perfume and seductive alcohol a la a Belgian Strong Ale, apple and slaw salad, and citrus fruits (grapefruit, passion fruit, pineapple). This sort of reminds me of the amped up and huge Pineapple Bling.

I'm a big fan of this beer, really nice stuff. This is a fantastic fusion of juice and wheat/oat malts. I'm not getting any alcohol here, except for some perfume booze. You don't taste the 8.3% at all. Palate depth is fantastic, and this is fairly complex. The wheat and oats give this a medium-full mouthfeel. Up front: creamy wheat malts, big pear, grape, and apple juice, passion fruit, citrus; that rolls into big oats and wheat malts, clove, white sugar, perfume alcohol and Belgian funk, white wine, grapes, yeast; the back end trails with some bitterness, wheat astringency, lingering passion fruit and citrus, perfume spice, and nice dryness. This is really fantastic stuff....slept on, really.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average here. This is fantastic; just an incredibly, big, juicy wheat beer. This is a nice fusion of wheat, apples, grapes, and pears. I could see myself pairing this with goat cheese, poutine, or something more delicate. Maybe a pasta or dumpling dish. I'd pick this up again...I hope they brew it again.

Random Thought: I need to type up a thoughtful rant about this year's Beer Camp, but I'm really lazy.

July 28, 2014

Lake Effect Brett Frambois

Brewed By: Lake Effect Brewing Company LLC in Chicago, Illinois

Purchased: 750ml bottle bought at Binny's in Naperville, IL; 2014 (Batch #150)

Style/ABV: American Wild Ale/Fruit Beer, 5.5%

Reported IBUs: ?

After the not-so-impressive Pamplemousse, I wanted to give Lake Effect another shake. Here is to hoping for redemption. About Lake Effect Brewing:

Like the Pamplemousse, this has no website...this is a "beer brewed with spices and raspberries added." The bottle reads: "Fresh raspberries are added to our 100% Brettanomyces fermented base beer creating a secondary fermentation resulting in a brilliantly fragrant and deliciously tart beer. Savor its color and effervescence in a clear glass to maximize your drinking pleasure."

Lake Effect Brett Frambois

This one pours into a paper-light red body, with some pink highlights. This is all murky, and kicks up two fingers of pink/red-tinged head. Head retention here is surprisingly good, with a pinky hanging around. There is also a lot of carbonation at work here in the form of medium-small bubbles coming from various streams. The body has a gorgeous red body in bright light. There's nice lacing here too.

On the aroma: improvements. This already smells much, much more substantial than the Pamplemousse. I'm getting really nice, musty, attic funk here...and layers of raspberries. This goes from dusty, attic-funk raspberries, to wet rain and refreshing raspberries, to some currants and steeped tea raspberries, to raspberries on the vine. Unlike the Pamplemousse's flat aroma, this beer transports me to numerous places. There's some really nice Brett funk lurking beneath the aroma, with leathery and butcher shop seduction. Pretty excellent from the onset, let's see how it tastes.

This is pretty good, actually. A big improvement over the muted and painfully dull Pamplemousse. This is still kind of light and mild...but at least the flavors advertised are present. Or at least some of them. This isn't really tart, but it definitely finds some funk. I'm getting a lot of wet rain, attic, and watery raspberries in the mix here. The raspberries go the jammy direction, and there are also a lot of raspberry tea and raspberry currant notes. There's actually some malts here, a wheat base? As a straight up fruit beer, this would be pretty solid. The raspberries stand out as a dominating flavor, with currants and raspberry tea. I don't know if I'd peg the Brett in a blind tasting, but if you pointed it out you could identify it.

This is light-bodied and refreshing, with a juicy and watery embrace. This drinks lighter than the 5.5%, which isn't a bad thing. Palate depth is solid here: this one excels as a fruit beer. Complexity is kind of average to below-average, I think, given the promise of raspberries gone wild. You know...I wonder if the Brett will funk up in the bottle here, but it's gonna be at the expense of the fruit. Up front: jammy and water raspberries; that rolls into raspberry tea, raspberry currants, a little wheat; the back end trails with raspberries, with some notes of Brett funk, and hints of raspberry fruit-roll-ups. The finish is actually really nice. I'm a little conflicted where I stand on this one.

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

This is a Strong Average . This is a big improvement over the Pamplemousse, and something I would try again. I think this would be a fun one to age, and it makes me want to try more Lake Effect beers. As a Wild Ale/Brett Ale...this is average. As a fruit beer, it's still average. But it's a better fruit beer than a wild. Food pairings here: fruit salads, delicate fish, and angel food cake with strawberries.

Random Thought: Again, the onslaught of sour ales has elevated the bar, even in the Midwest.

July 24, 2014

Crabbie's Spiced Orange Ginger Beer

Brewed By: John Crabbie & Company in Edinburgh, Scotland
Purchased: Single 11.2oz bottle from a 4-pack bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2014
Style/ABV: Ginger Beer, 4.8%

Reported IBUs: 45

I'm not gonna lie, I like Ginger Beer. About John Crabbie & Company:

The Crabbie's Spiced Orange Ginger Beer is a mix of zesty ginger and orange. How can this not taste delicious. This pours a clear, amber-orange, ginger ale-color, and kicks up a finger or two of ginger ale-tinted head. There's actually some sustaining head, and nice carbonation in here.

The aroma is a nice blend of alcohol, ginger ale, ginger soda, spiced ginger notes, spiced notes that remind me of rum (yum), and spicy ginger-orange. It smells and looks really refined, mature, and good.

And this actually tastes quite nice. I rolled through three of these with ease last Friday afternoon while working around the apartment, and I eventually paired this with some slow-cooked barbecued pork chops. The pairing was fantastic, and this shit is legit. You get lots of big ginger on the palate, with big orange notes as the supporting character. There's nice tingly ginger spice that burns down the back of your mouth into the depths of your throat. It's got a pretty good ginger soda kick. My only hesitation with this one is that it's kind of sweet. Again, I drank three of these in one afternoon with no problem, so maybe it tastes sweeter than it actually is.

This is a light and refreshing, and simple in terms of palate and complexity. It's basically a malt liquor. It's a good one though. There's a nice balance between ginger heat and sweet orange in here, and subtle notes of orange, vanilla, spiced rum, star anise, and curry show up in the taste. It's not something I'd buy on the regular, but this is a foodie drink that would work well in the right time at the right place. Recommended.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Above-Average here. This is a solid ginger beer, and the addition of orange adds a fun twist. It could use a little more ginger heat and a little less sweetness, but whatever. I think Stone should make a ginger beer...that is right up their alley. Food pairings here include Thai or Indian food, but I recommend pairing this with sweet barbecued pork chops. The orange and ginger provide balance that compliments the gamy pork and the sweet barbecue sauce.

Random Thought: And if you were wondering, I was on vacation! That's my excuse. RIP, liver.

July 23, 2014

Allagash Saison

Brewed By: Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine

Purchased: 12oz bottle from a 4-pack bought at Binny's in Plainfield, IL; 2014

Style/ABV: American Saison, 6.1%

Reported IBUs: ?

Tonight's beer has been on my radar for a while...not because it's anything special, but because it is considered to be a classic Saison. The bottle even says: "A traditional Saison with herbal highlights and a rustic, dry finish. Belgian Style. Bottle Conditioned." You can't go wrong with that. About Allagash:

The Allagash Saison is a year-round offering, and is Allagash's interpretation of a classic Belgian farmhouse style ale. This one is brewed with 2-Row blend, malted rye, oats, and Dark Belgian candi sugar. The beer is hopped with Tettnang, Bravo, and Cascade hops. Let's get this into a glass and see how she stacks up.

Allagash Saison

This one pours out like the poster-child for Saisons. You get a vibrant, hazy, well-carbonated, lemon-yellow body, and three fingers worth of tall, foamy, white head. The carbonation streams in here are active, and feature tiny, microscopic bubbles. Bright light confirms the same damn thing. It's a good looking beer, no doubt. Head retention is great, and there be lacing ahead.

On the aroma: a really nice blend of earthy funk, hay, straw, Belgian yeast, creamy wheat, herbal notes, lemon, coriander, white sugar, and bananas. There are a ton of fruity, banana-sugar-clove esters popping on the aroma, with gentle floral hops backing things up, and faint spice in the back. The earthy notes on the aroma are more up front. You won't find overly aggressive black pepper or American hop notes here. This is laid back, classic stuff.

This is really nice...there's constrained dryness and a peppery, doughy character. I'm getting a lot of earthy character, floral hops, lemon, mild citrus, coriander spice, black pepper, and wheat. There's some nice wheat and straw notes in here. You do get some of the clove and white sugar, with some creamy wheat. It shows up a bit up front, and then trailing on the back.

This is standard but somehow stands out as a classic example of the style...I'd almost preference this over a Tank 7, but I'd reach for my Sofie before either. I should probably get a review of the real classic, Saision Dupont, on my blog. This is medium-light bodied, with tons of effervescent and creamy carbonation moving things along. Palate depth is blissful, and the complexity isn't bad either. At 6.1%, this is in a range where you can drink a lot of it, but you want to show some restraint. Really, it's a good place to be, as this functions great as a beer you can take big gulps at a moderate pace. It's also a functional food beer, but more on that in a minute. The progression from front to back goes something like this: up front clove, wheat, lemon, herbal spiciness, biscuit/doughy dryness, hints of pepper; the mids give way to sweeter hops, big lemon and citrus, floral fruitiness, straw and wheat; the back end drops more earthy notes, clove, barnyard, funk, and trailing earthy spice. The finish is dry and good.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average on this. It's a bit standard, but the execution is top notch. It's Allagash, after all. This is a blissful, well-executed beer, and should pair wonderfully with a wide variety of foods. I'm talking about baked potatoes, peppery fish or chicken, grilled lamb, pizza, shell fish in white wine sauce, white pasta, a panini, and any soup or stew that has lots of herbal notes (like thyme). Good stuff, and priced well at around $10 a 6er. Get on it now.

Random Thought: You can't go wrong with a Saison.

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Yonder Bock Tropical Maibock (brewed with Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, Florida)

Brewed By: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California
Purchased: Single 12oz CAN from the 2014 Beer Camp bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2014 (PKG 05/04/14)
Style/ABV: Tropical Maibock, 7.7%

Reported IBUs: 45

What is Beer Camp? It is Sierra Nevada's celebration of craft beer and the numerous breweries across America that make that craft beer. For 2014, Sierra Nevada collaborated with 12 different breweries to make 12 different beers. They also have a Beer Camp Across America Beer Festival, which will stop at seven different cities and feature many different breweries and beers.

About Sierra Nevada:

Yonder Bock Tropical Maibock

The Yonder Bock Tropical Maibock is a collaboration with the talented event planners at Cigar City Brewing. If you are looking to have a birthday party, cater a large event, or release a limited beer, you know who to call. My can reads: "Brewed in collaboration with Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, FL, Yonder Bock is a Latin-inspired twist on a traditional Maibock. Cigar City finds inspiration in the Cuban roots of their hometown, which is a long way from our home base in Chico, but our friends down yonder in Florida sure can brew a great beer. YOnder Bock blends a silky malt body with bright, fruity hop aromas of guava, mango and passion fruit from the use of Calypso, Azacca and experimental 366 hops as a nod to Cigar City's tropical locale."

This one pours into a hazy, dark orange body, with tons of carbonation in the form of tiny streams (courtesy of the teku). This also kicks up three fingers of big, fluffy, caramel-orange-tinted head. Head retention is good, and there's a lot of active carbonation minutes after the pour. There is good lacing as well. The body retains its deep orange color in bright light.

On the aroma: big lager spice that flirts with bread, toast, rye, and caramel sugars. Beneath that are sweet honey notes that give way to faint tropical fruits and citrus notes. I'm getting oranges, guava, pineapple, and mango.

This is incredibly enjoyable, with deep sheets of honey sweetness and bread that unravel and drop tropical fruits, honey, and rich caramel sugars. The 7.7% is completely not obvious here, but this has a boozy seduction about it. I'm getting cherries, pineapple, super sweet coconut, mango, and orange in here. There are nice honey and saffron notes, and in the back is some faint grain alcohol that is accentuated by mild hop bitterness.

I'm a little bit at a loss here as far as how to rate this...I haven't had many Maibocks, and this one seems quite unique. This isn't an overly complex beer in general, but for a Bock there's a lot going on here. The palate depth here is great, and this is definitely a full-bodied island treat. I'm not getting any of the 7.7%, at least not in terms of alcohol heat, but some boozy seduction and grainy alcohol does show up. I'm also feeling some warming. Up front: honey and bready sweetness, with toast and Noble hop bitterness; that rolls into more saffron and honey, cherries, tropical fruits, oranges, guava, coconut, pineapple; the back end continues with sharp, quad-like fruits, and leaves some grainy alcohol and faint hop bitterness in your mouth. This could be a little bigger and rounder, otherwise it's nearly perfect.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Above-Average on this beer. This is a really interesting beer...I could see myself pairing this with an upside pineapple cake, mango salsa, white fish, and certainly on a beach somewhere. This is probably the most free-spirited application of a Bock you are going to find, and I commend Cigar City for this one. I could see myself grabbing something like this in a 6-pack.

Random Thought: Dammit, now I want to go drink on a beach. To live in the Midwest...

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Double Latte Coffee Milk Stout (brewed with Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene, Oregon)

Brewed By: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California
Purchased: Single 12oz bottle from the 2014 Beer Camp bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2014 (PKG 05/30/14)
Style/ABV: American Imperial Stout, 7.6%

Reported IBUs: 60

The Double Latte Coffee Milk Stout is a collaboration with Ninkasi Brewing Company, a brewery that is going to put beer in space like anyone cares. At least astronauts can get their drink on now. My bottle reads: "Inspired by the perennial café favorite, Double Latte combines two great things: coffee and beer. Oregon's Ninkasi Brewing knows their way around a good cup of joe. Featuring cold-press coffee from legendary Stumptown Coffee Roasters and a dose of milk sugar, this coffee milk stout is a rich and roasty treat."

Double Latte Coffee Milk Stout

Describing Imperial Stouts is like describing a zebra, or something. You know, it's a horse with black and white stripes. This one pours into an opaque, black body...and kicks up a finger of super creamy, tan/brown/mocha head. There's nice carbonation visible on the side of my glass, and it is tiny in size. This looks much the same in bright light. Notable here is the ridiculous head retention, with a finger hanging around for the long haul. In fact, the other thing to note here is how creamy and dense this head is. It's like whipped egg whites...this makes Guinness look like a chump. Really impressive head here, like drunk chicks.

WOW, dat aroma. This smells fucking amazing...I'm getting blasted with deep coffee, light hazelnut, light espresso, big latte notes, chocolate, mocha, and tons of lactose sugar. Did I mention the head is STILL hanging around?

This tastes amazing...and they nail the bitterness. This is a huge Stout, with tons of lactose, milks sugars, and chocolate density. But there's a ton of coffee notes in here, ranging from straight up coffee, hazelnut, latte, cappuccino, and then big espresso that grows and grows as the hop bitterness takes hold and punishes your palate. Before the bitter hop/coffee wallop, you get some nice lactose-cocoa sweetness, but then BAM. Non-intrusive but bitter hops show up, and then the bitter coffee unloads big espresso notes. There's tons of creamy coffee creamer and lactose sugar in the mix, and yeah.

This is a full-bodied, rich, complex, Stout. Palate depth and complexity are both very high. This is well-carbonated, and has really nice balance between sweet lactose Sugars, roasty Stout notes and chocolate, and tons of coffee. The hops in here are strictly to provide support to the bitter coffee that shows up on the back end. Up front: lactose sugars, roast, earthy notes, ash, growing coffee, hints of espresso; the mids hit hazelnut, latte, cappuccino, more dirty and ash, some woody notes, cocoa, lactose sugars, caramel; the back end rolls into bitter espresso, bitter coffee, more lingering milk sugars, and a nice drying finish that leaves sticky, residual sugars up in the corner of your lips. Really nice.

Rating: Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Decent Divine Brew on this. This is not just a great example of how to make a coffee stout, but this is a really, really good coffee stout. This puts a lot of the competition to shame...and rivals some top-notch coffee beers. This is even more impressive when you consider that it only clocks in at 7.6 and 60 IBUs. This beer is refined and balanced, making use of every single square inch of that ABV and hop addition. I love everything about this beer, but I really like the balance and the deeply bitter espresso notes that show up on the back end. You could pair this beer with breakfast foods, chocolate bacon doughnuts, dry chocolate desserts, or a big aggressive cheeseburger with strong cheeses. You could also pair this with grilled meats that are heavily seasoned. Great stuff....I am impresed.

Random Thought: This beer is clearly the standout from the 2014 Beer Camp. What a brew...

July 21, 2014

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Tater Ridge Scottish Ale (brewed with Asheville Brewers Alliance in Asheville, North Carolina)

Brewed By: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California
Purchased: Single 12oz bottle from the 2014 Beer Camp bought at Jewel-Osco in Chicago, IL; 2014 (PKG 06/04/14)
Style/ABV: Stottish Ale, 7.0%

Reported IBUs: 35

The Tater Ridge Scottish Ale is a collaboration between Sierra Nevada and the Scottish folk from the Asheville Brewers Alliance. My bottle reads: "We're fortunate to call the passionate and talented folks in the Asheville Brewers Alliance our North Carolina neighbors. Tater Ridge is our nod to the area's Scottish Highland history, and we hope this ale accented by sweet potatoes will be the first of many collaborations to come."

There and Back English-Style Bitter

This one pours out a dark reddish-browh with two fingers of tan/caramel-tinted head. This is nearly opaque; you can't really see the carbonation. There is good head retention and lacing.

The aroma here is really deep, with big caramel, bready notes, spicy notes, brown sugar, and sweet fruits that start to emerge as this warms up. It doesn't smelly like your prototypical Scotch Ale, so immediately judging this by the aroma is a bit difficult to do.

The taste, however, is much more in line with what I was expecting with a Scottish Ale. There are twangy peated malts playing off big bready and caramel notes, with Twizzlers fruits. This is fruity and sweet, with some bready spice in the back. It's very elegant and nice.

This is full-bodied, but I don't get any of the 7.0%. This is all about those gentle caramel malts and that nice, fruity body. FYI: I don't get any potato in this. Palate depth is good; good complexity. Up front: bready malts, caramel sugars, Twizzlers sweetness; that rolls into deep malts, light peat, more fruity and bready notes; the back end has a twang of hops and finishes with lingerings sugars. Nice.

Rating: Above-Average (4.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average on this beer. Maybe even higher...hmm. I'll have to revisit this in a few days. This is easily one of my favorites from the Beer Camp 2014. This is really tightly executed, and also happens to be an interesting take on the Scottish Ale style. I'd buy this in a 6-pack in the late Fall or early Winter months to pair with football and hearty stews and desserts. This is the Autumn beer that I want...not another tired adjunct squash or pumpkin beer.

Random Thought: This is seriously some great beer. It makes up for the sort-of-boring Yvan and Chico.

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Yvan The Great Belgian-Style Blonde (brewed with Russian River Brewing Company in Santa Rosa, California)

Reported IBUs: 50

The Yvan The Great Belgian-Style Pale Ale is a collaboration with the brown bears that hunt salmon in the great Russian River. Of all the beers in this mix-pack, this was by far the one I was the most excited about. The bottle reads: "As longtime friends, Russian River brewmaster Vinnie Cilurzo and our own Brian Grossman are no strangers to brewing experiments. For this collaboration, they honored their friend and renowned Belgian brewer Yvan De Baets. This Belgian-American mash-up harmoniously blends Yvan's penchant for yeast with Vinnie and Brian's affinity for hops."

Yvan The Great Belgian-Style Blonde

This one is easy to describe in appearance: it pours out a hazy lemon-yellow color, with a juicy and hazy body. My pour yielded one finger of white, Saison-esque head that gently faded into a nice sea foam/cauldron effect. Small, modest streams of carbonation pepper the glass.

The aroma here features big Belgian yeast. This is big, earthy, and super raw, with lots of Belgian yeast, raw dough, barnyard, wheat, lemons, white sugar, green bananas, and big black pepper. The Belgian yeast and doughy notes stand out. This smells pretty damn good for a Belgian Blonde.

I'd say this is somewhere between a wheat beer and a Saison and a Belgian Pale Ale....I'm getting cracker notes, biscuit, wheat, bubblegum, black pepper, coriander/lemon, clove, and earthy straw, grass, and wheat. There's nice bitterness at work here as well, with earthy Belgian yeast.

This is medium-bodied, if not light-full. Palate depth is refined and good....complexity is lacking. This is refreshing and drinkable. It's hard to rate as a one-off, especially in this compilation package. What do I compare this to? As this warms up, some candi sugar notes emerge. Up front: candy sugars, wheat, lemon, Belgian funk; that rolls into bubblegum, wheat, hop balance; the back end is clove, black pepper, biscuit, bread. This finishes with wheat....it's alright.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a super, super Light Above-Average on this beer. The execution pushes it over-the-top, especially for a boring-ass Belgian Blonde/Pale Ale. Despite my favorable rating for the style, I found this beer and Three Floyd's Chico King to be generally disappointing in the 2014 Beer Camp. There's just so much potential here...ah well. This is solid, and would pair well with pizza or white pasta or something of that ilk. I'm a fan, but it's hard to justify this beer when you have nearby (to the Midwest) breweries like Solemn Oath, Penrose, and even Goose Island.

Random Thought: All the Beer Camp 2014 needed was a single sour. In addition to Russian River's clout as a world class brewer, the description on the bottle of this beer summons the phrase, "brewing experiments." For future reference, please do not use that term unless you brew something that is a brewing experiment.

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Maillard's Odyssey Imperial Dark Ale (brewed with Bell's Brewery in Kalamazoo, Michigan)

Reported IBUs: 40

The Maillard's Odyssey Imperial Dark Ale is a collaboration with Bell's Brewery, Inc., or that one brewery with that drunk guy from that beer documentary. There's no Oberon here. My bottle reads: "Rich, dark, and roasty. That was our shared vision, and Maillard's Odyssey is exactly that, taking its name in part from the fond Maillard reaction - the "browning" of sugars and amino acids - that creates the wonderful caramelized toffee-like and roasted flavors so abundant in this beer."

Maillard's Odyssey Imperial Dark Ale

It's so weird that Chrome doesn't know how to spell "amino." Auto-correct suggestions include "amigo." NEWAY, this one pours with a dark, cola-black body, kicking up two fingers of mocha/tan, root beer float head. Head retention is excellent, with good lacing. The body has brown tones on the edges when held to bright light, but this is opaque like most Stouts.

The aroma here features deep roast, coffee, chocolate, cocoa, and big dark sugars/molasses. That's a pretty generic description, so let me offer that this also has huge woody-coffee-cream notes, with coffee creamer, ash, and milk sugars/lactose. I haven't looked up how Ratebeer and BA are styling this, but my guess is they are calling this a Stout. And frankly, this kind of smells like a Milk Stout kind of Stout. An Imperial Milk Stout. Like 18th Street's Hunter. There's some hops lurking way in the back, with faint citrus/pine elements strictly in play to balance things out. Is this a Black IPA? No. Duh. It's not an American Porter either.

The taste...wow. It's intense, and it tastes like an Imperial Milk Stout. I'm reminded again of the 18th Street Hunter, or Bell's Special Double Cream Stout. ...just massive notes of coffee, cocoa, coffee creamer, lactose sugars, dark chocolate, roast, woody notes, and big citrus/pine hops clocking in on the back end to clean things up.

This is full-bodied and dense, but hides the 8.5% well. Sticky sugars coat your lips. This has awesome palate depth and moderate complexity. I'd call this an Imperial Milk Stout, but that's just me. Up front: lactose, coffee, cocoa, creamer; the mids hit roast, deep sugars, woody coffee-creamer nuttiness and toast; the back end trails with sweetness, sugars, creamer, hints of a hop back bone. Wowza.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average on this beer. This is massive and bold. If this was barrel-aged it would be a banger. It's a touch not-complex, and to be fair the style has been done by brewers like 18th Street, Pipeworks, and probably others I'm not thinking of at the moment. Still, this would be a hell of a beer to pair with a cigar, some dry chocolate desserts, or even a greasy and cheesy burger.

Random Thought: This was one of the clear standouts from the Beer Camp 2014.

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: There and Back English-Style Bitter (brewed with New Glarus Brewing in New Glarus, Wisconsin)

Reported IBUs: 40

The There and Back English-Style Bitter is a collaboration with everyone's favorite cow-sodomizers, New Glarus. My bottle reads: "For beer folks, Chico, CA, and New Glarus, WI, are bucket-list pins on the U.S. brewing map, but it's no simple feat seeing both. There and Back is named for the planes, trains, and zeal that connect them. This classic English-style Bitter is a complex mix of toasty malt and fruity, herbal hops."

There and Back English-Style Bitter

This one pours out a hazy orange color with a finger of orange/caramel-tinted head. There is nice lacing, moderate streams of mid sized carb, and bells and whistles that might impress the UK but good lord show me some implants in bikinis thank you 'Merica.

New Glarus knows a thing or two about German-style Lagers, so it doesn't shock me that they also know a thing or two about English beer. This aroma is really nice, with deep toast and toasty notes, Lager-like cleanness, and fruit notes. This smells very much like one of New Glarus' German-Style or English-Style Ales/Lagers. If you've had any of New Glarus' beers that aren't Spotted Cow or the fruit beers, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. There are some fruity notes here: berries, apples, pears, sweet grain. The nose is ultimately on the mild, sweet, and toasty side.

At cooler temps this is quite toasty with pear/apple/berry fruitiness and raw grains. As the beer warms up, floral English-Style hops emerge with great floral notes and fruitiness. There's lots of toast and caramel notes here, balanced and cleaned up nicely by grassy hops and clean yeast.

This is clean, Lager-like, light-bodied, and quaffable. You don't get any booze here, and my only regret is that this isn't in a 16oz can. Palate depth is top notch, and complexity is also very good for the style. This definitely reminds me of early Autumn and English pubs. You could drink this at a fish fry or with fish and chips. Up front: toasty notes, caramel, berry fruit notes; apple, pear, and bitter floral hops in the mids; the back end cleans up with grain, lingering fruity notes, and mild bitterness. The finish is toasty and round.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Above-Average on this beer. This definitely skirts by being just average...it's memorable and really well-made. Kind of like everything that New Glarus puts out. I know I'm holding them to an impossibly high standard, but they generally nail all the beers they make (and there's a lot of them). Still....this is like a busty English BBW. Refined, but the teeth are still janky.

Random Thought: Ignoring my snide attack above...I actually really adore this style, and I wish more American breweries would make this type of beer.

Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 2014: Chico King Pale Ale (brewed with Three Floyds Brewing in Munster, Indiana)

Reported IBUs: 45

The Chico King Pale Ale was brewed with those tourist loving rascals at Three Floyds. My bottle says: "3 Floyds has a reputation as the Midwestern kings of alpha (hops), and it seems our flagship beer helped lure them down the lupulin-paved path. Chico King is a mash-up of our mutual passion for hoppy pale ales and we suspect you'll find it fit for royalty."

This one pours a hazy, dark orange nearing copper, color. It's almost reddish-orange. There is good carb; tiny bubbles with big streams. This pours with two fingers of caramel head and has good lacing. Folks, it looks like an IPA/Pale Ale.

Chico King Pale Ale

The aroma here is big caramel and hops. I'm getting orange, rind, and pine. Big pine. There's a big forest aroma that smells like pine, woody dankness, wet hops, and cabin. If a beer embodied camping, this is it. Like RuinTen's caramel meets Bell's Two Hearted. Bitter lemon is buried beneath the orange-wood-pine thing. This will age into iced tea as that note is already on the nose.

The taste has big malty embrace, caramel, orange, and pine hops. I'm getting crushed wet leaves, and hints of iced tea. This was packaged 5/15/14, making it two months old...that's just me fishing[or is it phishing?] for excuses to justify this boring Pale Ale.

This is well-made, of course, with good balance between the malts and hops...it makes okay use of the 6.5%, and good use of the 45 IBUs. This is medium-bodied, average in terms of palate depth, and average in terms of compelxity. Up front: caramel malts and orange; pine and crushed leaves in the middle; sweeter tea and pine sap fades to caramel-hops in the back.

Rating: Average (3.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Average on this beer. This is FFF phoning it in. Super average. It's kind of weak in a collaboration package like this, IN MY OPINION. So...just another Pale Ale from Triple-F. You either can applaud that, or admit it could have been more intriguing.

Random Thought: At least they couldn't shove this in a bomber and charge $10~$20 for it. Space Station Middle Finger should have come in a 6-pack for the same price that the bomber cost. Cot Dang.