TLDR Beer Club

[milesdyson]

MrWookie, these statements are not the same.

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What most people mean when they say "I don't like beer," is "I don't like pale American lagers."

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Yeah, it does, but usually it's the bitter hop flavor that puts people off of beer.

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There's very little hop flavor in pale american lagers. So it is possible that she likes all these weird microbrews but not B, M, or C.

In the end, I do agree that this is extremely unlikely.

Basically what you're trying to do is find beers that she, as someone who would say she doesn't like beer, should not like. People who say they don't like beer should not like really hoppy beers until they have developed a taste for them. In other words, most people who have never tried them will be put off by their strong, atypical flavors upon first trying them. If she says she likes those beers, she is most likely lying, but it doesn't have much to do with her also not liking typical american lagers, in my opinion.

[MaxxDaddy]

Well KB4Z, in any case, be glad this girl is willing to try new beers. My girlfriend placates me by taking a sip of whatever I'm drinking, gives me the "it's alright," and goes back to the white wine. Oh well...

Got a new review today. I picked this one up a week ago and is a fitting follow-up to my Schneider Aventinus review. I give you: Schneider Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock. I bought this 12 oz. bottle for $4.49 and it contains a huge 12% ABV.







This poured very dark, between reddish-brown and black, but no head formed. My glassware may be to blame for that though, perhaps I didn't clean it thoroughly enough. This is my first eisbock, and what an experience it was. For those unfamiliar with the eisbock style, it was an accidental creation in which the original beer partially froze to yield a much more concentrated version, with the water separating out. As far as I know, this is the only wheat eisbock.

Upon first opening it, I caught a whiff of berries followed by red wine and then the cloves I’m used to from wheat beers. Later on the aroma became more like a port, if I recall port correctly. Simply spectacular from an aroma standpoint. The taste was also port-like, with dark fruits, caramel, and cloves in the mix. Very slick on the palate and the finish was alcoholic. What did you expect from something 12% ABV? I liked this a bit better than the regular Aventinus. This seemed a bit more complex aroma and flavor-wise. I must say that this is the best beer I’ve had thus far on my journey into the craft beer world and I've got to go back and get me some more. [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] and a half [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

[Kneel B4 Zod]

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Not only are they both not bitter, they're both on the sweeter side. What most people mean when they say "I don't like beer," is "I don't like pale American lagers."

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heh. I went into my local homebrew shop tonight (brewing a Dry Stout btw) and asked the grizzled homebrew guy the same question I asked you guys. his answer was "it's probably b/c she's only tried terrible beers".

also, wookie you mentioned the sweetness, which I didn't realize. that's a good call.

[MrWookie]

KB4Z,

I thought of another sort of beer to try: fruit wheat beers. There are a number of these out there, such as Abita Purple Haze and Sam Adams Cherry Wheat that she might also find more appealing than crappy lagers.

Miles,

Yeah, I should have been more clear. "I don't like beer," means "I don't like crappy American lager." "I don't like THAT beer" often means "I don't like hops" when said by a novice beer drinker.

Maxx,

Nice review. I'll almost certainly be picking up the Aventinus and Aventinus Eisbock next time I'm out shopping (not too far away. I'll check on the Moonglow, too, and see if I have anything else to add to your reviews.

[kidcolin]

Quick review. No pics because I have no batteries.

Last night I tried a 22 oz.'er of Lagunitas' Cappuccino Stout, limited release. Brewed with real coffee. I had high hopes for this beer, because coffee is probably my favorite thing in the world.

The beer poured a typical stout color. As I was pouring the beer, the coffee scent came through strongly. It had a nice, three finger head. Once the beer settled, the nose was underwhelming. I would've liked a more prominent scent.

The taste was good, but nothing amazing. F fairly typical stout. A nice roasted flavor, but again, I could've used more coffee undertones. I did notice that I enjoyed the second half of the 22 oz. bottle more, as the beer warmed a little bit. The coffee flavor came through better, and it had a bitter aftertaste (which I like). Perhaps I served it too cold. I give this beer [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], but I'd be willing to try it again and try not to chill it as much.

[MaxxDaddy]

I completely forgot to report my weekend beer trip. So this past weekend at Hop Devil Grill in NYC, they had their Daze of the Devil Strong Ale festival, where they featured over 15 beers with 8+% ABV. They offered 4 and 12 oz. servings of the heavy hitters. They had quite a bunch of rare stuff that generally isn't available in the New York area, so it was a little slice of beer heaven. The beer I most looked forward to was Kuhnhenn Raspberry Eisbock, which is made in Michigan and is only sold in 6 oz. bottles. Apparently, the keg at the bar was one of the only two ever made. I won't be rating everything I tasted, because quite frankly, I don't remember many of them. I'll give you two: Russian River Pliny the Elder and the aforementioned Kuhnhenn Raspberry Eisbock.

Pliny the Elder is an Imperial IPA from Russian River out in California. This was the only beer I had a 12 oz. serving ($8, 8% ABV) of because I was drinking it with lunch. I’m not much of a hop head, but I figured I wouldn’t be seeing a beer like this on tap in New York for a while and I should be developing my tastes anyway. It had a nice golden hue with some creamy white head. Pleasant aroma of pine and grapefruit. The taste was more on the grapefruity side. Though I’m not much of a fan of grapefruit itself, I did enjoy this particular flavor. Plenty of hop bitterness to go along, as was expected. Didn’t catch much alcohol in the taste though and the bitterness didn’t linger too long in the finish; both pluses. It seemed very well-balanced to me. In my very limited experience, this is a really good IIPA and would love to have it again. [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

I only had a 4 oz. serving of the Raspberry Eisbock, which went for $6 (10.6% ABV). They must put some kind of effort into making this bad boy for that price. Had a reddish-brown color with no head in the tiny glass. I couldn’t believe what I smelled: chocolate-covered raspberries. Simply amazing. And the taste...boy did it ever deliver. Just wonderful. Again, a nice melding of chocolate and raspberries with some caramel hints as well. It also had that port feel that the Aventinus Weizen Eisbock had. It felt very silky and thick on the palate and the alcohol wasn’t very discernable. The finish was predominantly raspberry. This is definitely a dessert beer...hell, it could easily be dessert too. I don’t care how much it cost for the sample, it was totally worth it. As close to perfect as I've tried, so for the time being, Kuhnhenn Raspberry Eisbock gets a full [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

[RunDownHouse]

Maxx, you're in NYC? Have you ever gone to this Belgian beer bar on (I think) 4th and 6th? Sort of hard to find, as they don't really have a sign out front. Tons of Belgians on tap, more bottled, and they've got a cool little courtyard you have to walk through to get to the bar which is perfect for smokers or just hanging out and drinking outside when its nice. Reminded me a lot of beer gardens in Budapest, actually.

[MaxxDaddy]

I've never been there, but is it called Vol de Nuit? I looked it up through this handy website: Beer Mapping

Thanks for the suggestion RDH.

[MrWookie]

Wow. That site is sweet. Cool find.

[SL__72]

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Wow. That site is sweet. Cool find.

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I haven't posted in this thread for a long ass time, but I had to to second this! This site is sweet.

/edit Awesome, I just found a brewpub whose beer I really liked at the Autumn Beer Review beer tasting festival a couple of months ago and it is a lot closer to me then I thought!