NT, What Beer Do You Drink?

[panaricanretro]

I have no idea what most of you guys talk about in here means. IPA's, Stouts, etc. I'm lost as hell. I just got into a few beers a few years ago and stick to what's recommended. Blue Moons, Sam Adams Cherry Wheat are the basics that I know and like.

Blue Moon was one if my gateway beers. I started with that, Hoegaarden, Allagash White, and then started trying some amber ales, etc. after a while the bitterness and hoppiness of IPAs (India Pale Ale) didn't bother me as much and I started drinking Harpoon. From there i just started tasting and trying stuff. As for the differences between them all googling it can help you decide what to try next. I found this glossary pretty quickly:

Plan to crack open a cold one for the 4th? You're not alone.

Confused about the different styles of beer? Again, you're not alone. Here's a quick-and-dirty guide that will make for a good conversation starter this weekend.

There are only two categories of beer - Ale and Lager. From there are endless variations. Let's explore some of the more popular styles within each category:


Lager
Made with bottom-fermenting yeasts at cold temperatures.

Pale Lagers are what many Americans think of as "beer", i.e. Miller and Bud. Also called "American Adjunct Lager". If this is the only beer you drink, it's time to branch out!

Pilsner has a hoppier taste than pale lagers, and is traditionally from the Czech Republic.

Bock is less popular than Pale Lagers or Pils, but deserves more attention. Bocks often have a complex malty flavor with less hoppiness. Amber to dark color, with a rich taste.

Ale
Made with top-fermenting yeasts at warm temperatures. Ales are what most Brits think of as "beer".

Wheat Beer is my favorite, along with Belgian White. Both styles are made with wheat and are often seasoned by orange and spices.

IPA (India Pale Ale) is a very hoppy and dry beer with medium color. My husband loves IPAs, although they're a bit too hoppy for me.

Porter is a very dark, full bodied brew. They have a very strong malty flavor, with hints of chocolate, caramel, and coffee.

Stout is a subcategory of Porter. Stouts have more alcohol content than Porters, and also have a slightly dryer and more bitter characteristic.

 

[af1 1982]

Stillin, where did you cop the 21st Amendment x Elysian

 

[wallyhopp]

Wally - it's 8:55 pst and I'm already in my pajamas but Total Wine is a 5 minute drive from my house and they close at 10. Your post has inspired me to get up and go shopping.

-J-

Love the place for their singles alone.. I try to stay local with other purchases to even things out..

A more up close look.
Where to begin on this winter wonderland of beer fun

In a prelude for what should be a few great weekends ahead, I tried to finish off some local canned Saison. Second and third try on this six pack and I'm coming around to it.

It has slight hints of clove and banana like a hefeweizen but has quite a bit of peppery spiciness, a hop bite, and some fruity yeast flavors... It's appears to me more like a blend of a nice pilsner/hefeweizen, and a European beer chalked full of that yeast flavor. It's just kind of all over the place.. I can't compare it to anything else I've tried. It tastes a bit wild/farmhousey but doesn't reach out too far past that. Well balanced. 8.5/10



--------
I also got to try that Odell Mychenary Double IPA.... The smell reminded me a bit of Foothills Kashmir English IPA.. Something about the smell of the hops/yeast seems just a touch off to me.. It's maybe how it is supposed to be. But it has a bit of a spoiled/rotten hops smell to it. Some call it a skunky hop smell. All of that bad doesnt translate into the smell.. Quite boozy and sweet with mild hops... Not as balanced as I would have liked.. Date on bottle has 1/2/14 so it's about about 2 1/2 months old. I should have known better.. I'd say its about a 8 out of 10, with so many other DIPAs way above this... I have 3 more of the 4 pack left, so we shall see what comes of the next few.


I'm coming around slowly to Black IPAs. After having bought a six pack of that Santa Fe Black IPA, the 3rd and 4th servings were some of the better ones. It's hard to explain the balance of extreme hops and that chocolate/coffee flavors mixing together.. Maybe my taste buds have adjusted?

--
rwfanatic, Hit up a brewery. They are popping up everywhere. Most serve sample sized glasses of all their beers to try and sample. Cost isn't too much.. THat's pretty much where I started when getting into beers.. Many beer stores will also offer single bottle purchases.. Buy 1 or 2 a week and just start slow. I never push new beers onto family and friends. They all seem quite interested in what new beer I may be trying for the day.

 

[stillin729]

Stillin, where did you cop the 21st Amendment x Elysian

Capones in Norristown; you ever hear of it? Place is a beer mecca, they are like one of the first bars to really focus on quality micros and they have a bottle shop

 

[stillin729]

I need to get to Total Wine

Make your own case would be like an 8 hour day for me

 

[af1 1982]

Capones in Norristown; you ever hear of it? Place is a beer mecca, they are like one of the first bars to really focus on quality micros and they have a bottle shop

Really? I'm right down 202 from Norristown, it's on my way to KOP mall. Might have to stop by there on my way home from State for the holiday.

 

[stillin729]

Really? I'm right down 202 from Norristown, it's on my way to KOP mall. Might have to stop by there on my way home from State for the holiday.

yeah man it's on Germantown Pike; basically off 202 a little bit

place was one of the first microbrew places I knew of when you were probably like 15

 

[af1 1982]

yeah man it's on Germantown Pike; basically off 202 a little bit

place was one of the first microbrew places I knew of when you were probably like 15

Definitely hitting that up to get a sixer.

Idk what's worst. The fact that it makes me feel young as hell or you old as ****

I just peeped in beer advocate and it has a 100% rating with 200+ votes. Literally everyone voted 5 stars

 

[stillin729]

Definitely hitting that up to get a sixer.

Idk what's worst. The fact that it makes me feel young as hell or you old as ****

I just peeped in beer advocate and it has a 100% rating with 200+ votes. Literally everyone voted 5 stars

you will get to my age one day; I remember buying Shock Top at PSU thinking it was top of the line

but yeah man it's seriously an incredible place they have all these special events on Saturday and rare stuff in kegs; dude has serious connects and he is cool as hell, the owner is Matt

 

[panaricanretro]

My wife got back from a work trip to SD this morning and brought me a couple of bottles from the Stone bar at the airport. That and the Troegs and I'm good for the week.

 

[Aviator]

Today's beers for sunday

49ers lost today though so it's a little bittersweet.

 

[wallyhopp]

^ sounds like a good Sunday to me

Round one of our Winter seasonal beer tasting.
I randomly picked 6 out of the bunch to try this Sunday

Photos and a quick rundown of each in spoiler

Spoiler

We decided to taste these each individually knowing full well what we were having. No comparison between one another. The judging was simple.. Would I buy this beer again?


First beer up was the Rogue Yellow Snow IPA..

This is a great example of an IPA style I just don't like very well. Almost no piney hoppiness or that citrus or fruit taste/smell.. 7.5/10 Would I buy this beer again? NO.

Second beer we tried was the Abita Christmas Ale. This one was a bit cloudy, with a slight scent of that winter spice (what ever it may have been. Cinnamon/corriander.. I dont know). It tasted a touch flat and had almost no distinguishable attributes to it.. Drinkable for sure, but im not sure what we were drinking. 6.5 out of 10.. Would I buy this beer again? NO.

Third up was the Big Sky Powder Hound Winter Ale
Clarity was amazing. Prettiest beer I have seen in awhile. More like a Pale ale in taste I would say. Carbonation was spot on, with a touch of that carbonation bite I love. Easily a 8.5 out of 10 Would I buy this beer again? YES.

Fourth was Boulder's Never Summer Ale. Listed as a red ale, it poured a nice ruby red color. Taste had a bit of malt sweetness. I didnt taste the hop blast they hyped on the bottle, but thats okay. Great mouthfull. 8.5/10 Would I buy this beer again? YES.. This is my 2nd or 3rd Boulder beer that is solid

Fifth was Goose Island's Sixth Day... What a murky mess. This one was quite boozy with all these flavors just all intermixed together. I could drink this and not gag, so its not THAT bad. But I wasn't sure what they were going for... 7/10 Would I buy this beer again? NO

Last was Tommy Knocker's Cocoa Porter... Chocolate beers are so very hard to get wrong.. Mouthfeel was a bit thin. I tasted hints of chocolate... This style is really hard for me to judge. 8.2/10 Solid but what stout or porter isn't/ Would I buy this beer again? YES

Cliffnotes.... I personally found 3 of the 6 to be at the level where I would buy again.. 3 others were a mess... Can you guess which ones I liked.

Having not known any review scores of these beers before trying, itll be interesting to see where my taste buds lie with other consumers..

 

[stillin729]

^ sounds like a good Sunday to me

Round one of our Winter seasonal beer tasting.
I randomly picked 6 out of the bunch to try this Sunday

Photos and a quick rundown of each in spoiler

Spoiler

We decided to taste these each individually knowing full well what we were having. No comparison between one another. The judging was simple.. Would I buy this beer again?


First beer up was the Rogue Yellow Snow IPA..

This is a great example of an IPA style I just don't like very well. Almost no piney hoppiness or that citrus or fruit taste/smell.. 7.5/10 Would I buy this beer again? NO.

Second beer we tried was the Abita Christmas Ale. This one was a bit cloudy, with a slight scent of that winter spice (what ever it may have been. Cinnamon/corriander.. I dont know). It tasted a touch flat and had almost no distinguishable attributes to it.. Drinkable for sure, but im not sure what we were drinking. 6.5 out of 10.. Would I buy this beer again? NO.

Third up was the Big Sky Powder Hound Winter Ale
Clarity was amazing. Prettiest beer I have seen in awhile. More like a Pale ale in taste I would say. Carbonation was spot on, with a touch of that carbonation bite I love. Easily a 8.5 out of 10 Would I buy this beer again? YES.

Fourth was Boulder's Never Summer Ale. Listed as a red ale, it poured a nice ruby red color. Taste had a bit of malt sweetness. I didnt taste the hop blast they hyped on the bottle, but thats okay. Great mouthfull. 8.5/10 Would I buy this beer again? YES.. This is my 2nd or 3rd Boulder beer that is solid

Fifth was Goose Island's Sixth Day... What a murky mess. This one was quite boozy with all these flavors just all intermixed together. I could drink this and not gag, so its not THAT bad. But I wasn't sure what they were going for... 7/10 Would I buy this beer again? NO

Last was Tommy Knocker's Cocoa Porter... Chocolate beers are so very hard to get wrong.. Mouthfeel was a bit thin. I tasted hints of chocolate... This style is really hard for me to judge. 8.2/10 Solid but what stout or porter isn't/ Would I buy this beer again? YES

Cliffnotes.... I personally found 3 of the 6 to be at the level where I would buy again.. 3 others were a mess... Can you guess which ones I liked.

Having not known any review scores of these beers before trying, itll be interesting to see where my taste buds lie with other consumers..

I've tried all those beers; reviews are pretty much where I'd put them too

Never Summer Ale is underrated IMO

 

[aph]

I had a bunch of new beers this weekend, but Stone Espresso IRS stole the show. Man, that's a smooth (and cheap) beer.

this beer is amazing

21st Amendment x Elysian "He Said" Pumpkin Ale 8.2%

One is a Tripel and one is a Baltic Porter

I had the baltic porter one on-tap a couple weeks back. Honestly, It was probably the blandest beer I've ever had. No distinguishable taste/smell to it whatsoever. On the bright side, the 8.2% ABV is well hidden just like the flavor, so it was at least an easy drinker. :\

 

[Comparison Ford]

Drinking another Backwoods Bastard at the moment.  I already have a whole case to myself, and I'm seriously contemplating buying another.  I actually catch myself saying "damn" at the end of every sip.  Safe to say this is my favorite beer.

 

[salazaro44]

Cracked open an enjoy byand didn't realize my fridge is on too high of a setting now that the cold has set in. It was partially frozen. Hoping that wasn't the case with my last Black Tuesday

 

[Comparison Ford]

Cracked open an enjoy byand didn't realize my fridge is on too high of a setting now that the cold has set in. It was partially frozen. Hoping that wasn't the case with my last Black Tuesday

Reckon it shouldn't be a problem. Can't see a beer that's almost 20% alcohol freezing that easily.

 

[wallyhopp]

Looks like Deschutes Abyss releases this week "nationwide"... I gotta search around a bit for it. I hope since I'm within their footprint, I can find something for a reasonable price.
---------
So of the six beers I tried yesterday, I didn't care for the highest rated (BA score).. Go figure..

Abita: my score: 6.5/10 BA score 73/100
Boulder: my score: 8.5/10 BA score 82/100
Big Sky: my score: 8.5/10 BA score 82/100
Rogue: my score: 7.5/10 BA score 85/100
Goose Island: my score: 7.0/10 BA score 81/100
Tommyknocker: my score: 8.2/10 BA score 77/100

I was much closer to grading the ones I liked closer to their average scores than I could with the beers I didn't like..... A trend is building here

I was 8, 10, and 11 off from the beers I wouldn't buy again. And just 3, 3, and 5 off from the beers I found to be okay to purchase again.

 

[wallyhopp]

Drinking on a Stone Double Bastard Ale to end the night

Wow. The bottle description is right. I am not worthy.

Nice medium to dark red color. Head retention and lacing is the best I've seen in a beer.

I'm learning here. I let this one sit out of the fridge for about 90 minutes and have been really milking this bomber.

Flavor wise. I am tasting big hints of that deep fruit/raisin flavor I know is present in ten fidy. Here the hop blast really makes my cheeks pucker like nothing I've tried before. There is a bitterness that lurks here. There is quite a bit of a booziness smell and taste. Drink ability is well done here. I smell and taste maybe a bit of bourbon/smoked wood flavor.

World class. Nothing about it has any elements of off tastes or flavors.

I would love to try this again. What a treat

This beer gets some pretty high marks for me. Seek this out. Easily worth the 7 bucks for the bomber
http://www.tayloreason.com/corkscrew/beer/beer-review-stone-brewing-double-bastard-ale/
That review is pretty much how I feel about it... Not for everyone in the slightest.. You have to love hops.. You have to love that deep raisin flavor.. You have to love that burnt caramel/wood flavor. And you have to love it all mixed together in a 11.2% abv serving..

 

[fade on you]

Enjoying this tonight, this is recommended.

 

[digital022]

Double Bastard was one of the first "big beers" I ever had. I just did a vertical tasting of '09,'10 & '11 & Southern Charred (barrel aged Double Bastard). The heat and hops on the '09 had really smoothed out and was a touch sweeter when compared to the '11. These beers age pretty well. 

Southern Charred is an awesome beer. A bourbon barrel does wonders to Double Bastard. Strong flavors of toffee, vanilla, and wood come across in the taste and aroma which I love in bourbon barrel aged beers.

 

[stillin729]

I finally had a Bell's Cherry Stout

I LOVED it

 

[jbug88]

Looks like Deschutes Abyss releases this week "nationwide"... I gotta search around a bit for it. I hope since I'm within their footprint, I can find something for a reasonable price.

It's my mission for the next week Wally. I'm going to stop by my local Total Wine on the way home from work.
BTW, our first batch of home brew is set to be cracked open this sunday. I'll let you know how it is.
Thanks for the advice again..

-J-

 

[Comparison Ford]

Didn't realize Double Bastard is what's hot in the streets right now.  Drank it for the first time Monday, so it's my turn to give it its day in court:

I've walked past this beer a million times.  Same goes for Arrogant Bastard, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, and any other variation.  Just never appealed to me for whatever reason.  After hearing good things about the Oaked Arrogant and Double Bastard, and seeing that the new batch just came out I figured I'd finally give it a go.  Pours a deep, deep, transparent amber color with a soapy head that dissipates extremely slow. Honestly one of the best looking beers I've ever seen.  Aroma is sweet and malty, with notes of caramel and dark fruits.  Taste is surprisingly different.  You get the caramel in the front of the mouth, you get toffee, you get bready malts, you get a little of the dark fruit...but this beer has an intensely hoppy/bitter finish to it with a little of the smoked oak flavor @WallyHopp  mentioned.  Stone does a great job of creating beers that feel like a delicious punch in the face after every sip (RuinTen, for example). This is one of those beers.  You couldn't pound this beer if you wanted to.  Overall, this is one of the boldest beers I've ever had, but it's one I wouldn't mind purchasing again.  Would love to try a bourbon barrel-aged version of this.  9.4/10

 

[bankstevens]

ZOMBIE!