TLDR Beer Club

[JPinAZ]

To all the lurkers following this thread: don't worry about how it will turn out, post your reviews. I've been reading this thread since TLDR was the Mod Forum flavor of the month & always thought, "I should do a review" of whatever I was drinking then or had in the frige. I never posted because I wasn't sure what to write. Get a piece of paper & a pen & write down your impressions as you drink. Tell what you like & what you don't. If it helps, have one or two before you post. I would have done that, but since the two reviews I've done were both wine bottle sized & 8% & 7% more than one bottle wasn't necessary. And if I did have more than one bottle I'd be asleep & unable to post. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[steelcmg]

So I stumbled upon this thread "Newbie to The Lounge" and think this thread is awesome. I'm a huge fan of good beer from micro brews. Next month I will be attending 2 beer festival's one in Philly (March 3) and the other in AC (March 10). Both events are around 30$ for 4 hours of drinking great beer from more then 50 brewers.

I was wondering if any of you will be attending either of these events?

Also I am going to try to get my one buddy to post some reviews along with me here. Since he trys to drink something different each week.

[MrWookie]

Steel,

Great to have you, and I look forward to the input of you and your friend. I think someone mentioned one or both of those beer events specifically a while back, but you'd have to peruse the last 100-200 posts.

[kidcolin]

Wook et. al.,

SLACKERS.

Tonight I picked up 4 brews: two 750 mL from Ommegang: Three Philosophers and Hennepin (Farmhouse Saison); a 4 pack of Duvel that came with a nice tulip glass (not gonna lie.. a big incentive to buy it); and a 6 pack of Sierra Nevada's Bigfoot Barleywine (a great beer at a great value). Tonight's review is the 3 P's. Sorry no pics.

I first tried Ommegang's dubbel last weekend (no review). My main appeal to it is it's brewed in Cooperstown, where a good friend of mine is from. I was very impressed with that brew, so I had high hopes for 3 P's.

I poured it into a tulip glass. It pours a dark amber color, bordering on red. Very aggressive head. The nose was pretty dynamic; notably cherry (as the bottle indicates) and some other dark fruits, as well as maple and caramel.

The taste is much the same. The malt character of this beer is amazing. Very rich. Tastes of caramel and maple come through, again very rich, with the maple and cherry really coming through in the aftertaste.

As I slowly progressed through the 750 mL bottle, I was impressed with how drinkable it was, and how the flavors came through as the beer warmed.

Very drinkable, very delicious. I really dig this brewery and look forward to trying the Saison. I give this beer [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

-Colin

[MaxxDaddy]

Well, it appears we've been called out. I actually have quite the backlog of brews to go over. The first one is another Jolly Pumpkin brew, Luciernaga - The Firefly, which they describe as their Grand Cru. A 750 ml bottle ran me $9 in PA, and it weighs in at 6.5% ABV.

According to the label, Luciernaga is brewed with coriander and grains of paradise. I looked up grains of paradise on wikipedia; apparently it'll contribute some sort of peppery taste/smell. It poured a light, cloudy orange with ample head. The aroma was full of citrus, coriander, and some yeast funkiness. The taste was pretty interesting, in that it was dominated by citrus and pepper; quite the combination. It finished pretty dry and citrusy. I shared this with some friends and we weren't really sure what to think. It's certainly quite different than any beer I had previously tasted and I enjoyed it for what it was. [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]

Next up was Founders Breakfast Stout. It's described as a "Double chocolate coffee oatmeal stout" on the bottle. It contains 8.3% ABV. It poured inky black with a thin layer of tan head. The aroma was predominantly coffee and chocolate, as to be expected. The taste was similar to that of the Kentucky Breakfast, in that it seemed that the roastiness was overdone. However, it wasn't as overdone as the Kentucky version. The flavor was predominantly coffee, though the chocolate and oatmeal were present as well. The finish was coffee and chocolate as well. The mouthfeel was very nice on this one...very full. The sort of overdone roasted flavor is rather different than the one I experienced with Dragonslayer; it's tastier IMO. So while it's not my favorite stout, it's still pretty good. [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]

Last, but certainly not least, is Kuhnhenn's A Few Shillings Too Many Scotch Ale. I had this last night over at Hop Devil Grill, as it was Kuhnhenn Night there. It's been aged for six months in bourbon barrels and weighs in at a huge 12.5% ABV. I got a 12 oz. glass for $6.50. It came in a goblet and was dark brown with a trace of tan head. The aroma was full of malty sweetness, caramel, bourbon, and cherries...very inviting. The taste was lovely; huge malt flavor, toffee, caramel, and cherries. The texture was silky and thick...it clung to roof of my mouth. Definitely some alcohol presence in there, but you'd never believe 12.5%. There must have been a lot of effort put into this one...what a wonderful treat. [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]

[MrWookie]

KC,

Shortly after this last post, I went to drinking strikingly little beer for about a week, as I had to get my data together for a conference on the beach in GA. Then I was at the conference, and all I was drinking was copious amounts of (free) Bass. Now I'm back!

All,

Time for a review. Tonight's beer is another brew from Allagash, this time their Tripel Reserve. I paid $6.79 for a 750 mL bottle of 9% beer -- really, not all that expensive. Apparently this is from batch #83. I believe this is the beer that is dumped into the bourbon barrels to make the Curieux, which has been the best beer I've reviewed in this thread.



The beer pours the usual cloudy gold color, but for the style, it has surprisingly little head. Many tripels have almost uncontrollable billows, but this beer didn't really start foaming until I swirled the stuff in the bottom to mix in the yeast.



The aroma is good, but, well, pretty standard for the variety. There's a little bit of spice, some apple, apricot, and peach, but they're somewhat mild. That's largely how I'd describe the flavor, too. It's not as sweet as some tripels, nor is it as acidic. The depth of flavor is good with the spice, fruit, and malt, but it is milder than, say, the LFDM. There's no doubt that this is a great beer, but I must confess it's somewhat of a disappointment. I'm going to award it [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img][img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]. Calling that a disappointment is kinda funny, but Allagash has set the bar extremely high with their Curieux and their white. It's a little cheaper than the LFDM, and it's a little milder, so this might be a good beer to pick instead if you're unsure if you'll like tripels. Another fine beer from Allagash, but it does benefit from the time in bourbon barrels.

[ScottieK]

Last night, my gf and I attended a five course dinner at Turtle Mountain Brewing Co. in Rio Rancho, NM. The dinner was a promotional event for Stone Brewing Co. from San Diego. I’ve seen their beers mentioned throughout this thread, so I’m probably not breaking any new ground here. Each course was prepared by TMBC’s head chef and paired with a beer from Stone. At $50 a plate, I was expecting some excellent food and brew. One of the head marketers from Stone, a guy named Arlen, was at the event to talk about the beers, the history of Stone, and to answer any questions we had. TMBC makes some great brews also (like a molasses porter), and their head brewer was in attendance, as was the head brewer from Tractor Brewing Co. in Los Lunas, NM.

Before we started, Arlen talked about how Stone got started. Their thing is making beers with a lot of flavor. They are designed to challenge your palate, not to be popular with everyone in America. They freely admit that they go to the Great American Beer Festival and don’t win medals. They are actually proud of that. Stone is definitely anti-big beer and all about being a unique microbrewery. Anyways, on to the dinner! I’ll concentrate on the beers, but the food was pretty damned good too.

First course – Stone Pale Ale with sun-dried tomato and fennel salad

This was a good choice to start the evening. It is a flavorful Pale Ale, more robust than Bass. It has a good balance of hops and malt flavors, with a deep amber or copper tone. It’s not a typical pale ale…I wouldn’t make a black and tan out of it, because it might actually clash with the Guinness. It looks and drinks more like an Amber. This is the first beer that Stone started brewing, and they consider it one of their flagship beers. The salad was made with a Stone Pale Ale dressing, and had just sun-dried tomatoes, fennel, celery, and onions in it. No lettuce or spinach. They went pretty well together, or maybe I just like sun-dried tomatoes. Pale Ale – 4/5.

Second Course – Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale with green chile and cherry beef ribs

Arrogant Bastard doesn’t taste like any other beer I’ve ever had. Arlen asked us what fruit flavor profile this beer has, and someone said “grapefruit.” “That’s right!” This ale has all kinds of different flavors, and it is a little tart like a grapefruit. Others at the table suggested banana and raspberry. It’s a very dark copper, almost brown, and has some hops to it. The closest thing I can compare it to is a dubbel or trippel with a lot of kick and more pronounced fruit flavors. It has an ABV of 7.2%, and you can taste that alcohol. I enjoyed the glass they gave me, but I don’t think I could drink this all the time. Arlen said they submitted this beer at the GABF in some category (it really doesn’t fit into one), and a judge wrote on the comment card “too much flavor.” You got that right. The beef ribs were huge, a meal all by themselves. The sauce combined spicy green chile with the sweet-tartness of cherries and really complemented the beer. They may have even put some of the beer in the sauce as well. Arrogant Bastard – 3.5/5.

Third Course – Stone IPA with cinnamon and nutmeg-roasted game hen, rice, and vegetables

The Stone IPA is the first Stone beer I ever had. Stone brews an anniversary IPA every year, and this is their first anniversary IPA. My friend turned me on to hoppy beers, and this one fits the bill. Arlen mentioned that Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. introduced Cascade hops to the California market, and that Cascade hops is what most California brewing companies use. Not Stone. They use Centennial and Columbus hops for this IPA, and they dry-hop it for two weeks. It comes in at 77 IBU’s and 6.9% ABV, but you can’t really taste the alcohol over the hop profile. If you like IPA’s, this one is awesome. Hops seems to be all the rage nowadays, but this one isn’t too hoppy. The game hen was also a meal by itself, and paired well with the beer. The smell reminded me of Thanksgiving. Stone IPA – 4.5/5.

Fourth Course – Stone Ruination IPA with goat cheese and pear pizza

Arlen told us that for each anniversary IPA, they doubled the hops from the previous year…until it got so hoppy that it would actually clog the tanks. Ruination IPA is a blend of their second, third, and fourth anniversary IPA’s. Three hops profiles combined into one beer. It is one of the hoppiest things I have ever had, more hoppy than Hazed and Infused. You can smell the hops just floating up from this thing, very floral. The only beer I’ve had that is hoppier than Ruination is something called “Hop God” at Il Vicino and maybe a couple barley wines. Ruination has over 100 IBU’s and 7.7% ABV, and it will knock you on your butt. It does have a little more malt than the regular IPA, but it’s no match for the additional hops. I like hoppy beers, but this is too hoppy for me to have more than one or two. Out of four people at my table, only two of us could finish this one. The pizza was interesting…it had goat cheese, pears, and roasted macadamia nuts on it, but I didn’t see how it went with the beer. Ruination IPA – 3.5/5. It’s a good beer, just too hoppy for my tastes.

Fifth Course – Stone Smoked Porter with porter crème brulee

I love porters, and I love scotch. So what happens when Stone blends the two? Although this porter has the usual coffee and chocolate tones, it also has peaty and smoky flavors you might find in a scotch like Bowmore. This comes from a peat-smoked specialty malt that they use in the brew. It only has an ABV of 5.9%, and it’s something I could knock back a couple of on a cold winter night. Like all of Stone’s brews, this one is packed with flavor. It is an odd combination, but it works out somehow. It’s also got the dark mahogany or even black color, dark tan head, and a great mouthfeel. I chewed it like the guy on the Sam Adams commercials. The crème brulee was excellent and had a little flavor and color from the porter. They complemented each other very well. Stone Smoked Porter – 4/5.

We had a great time and ate way too much. My only wish was that they had let us sample some of their other beers, like the Anniversary Ale, Vertical Epic, or the Imperial Stout, instead of giving us two IPAs. But the five beers we had are the ones they brew year-round, and the others are special releases. You can check them all out on the website. They should be available in 21 states for purchase by the bottle or six-pack, and I can find the IPA, Arrogant Bastard, and occasionally the Smoked Porter on tap in some bars around Albuquerque. Overall, I recommend anything from Stone Brewing, but be prepared for a jolt to your taste buds.

http://www.stonebrew.com/

ScottieK