TLDR Beer Club

[MrWookie]

Alright. I figured it's about time to contribute to my own thread [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]. As a follow up to KBZ's Ommegang post, I figured I'd review another of their beers, the Three Philosophers. This beer is a quadrupel blended with a cherry lambic, which is a pretty intriguing combination. When I saw this at Beers of the World, I knew I had to try it, considering how much I enjoyed Ommegang's namesake beer and Rare Vos. Not to be outdone by KBZ, here's a picture of the bottle:




This ran me $6.69 for a 750 mL bottle and was the most expensive beer put out by this brewery. Additionally, it was their strongest, at 9.8% ABV. Here's a picture of it right after I poured it into my glass:




Taking a sniff, it has a great but not overly strong smell. You catch a hint of cherries mixed in with the malt. I also smell apple with hints of some other fruit. Upon first sip, though, this beer is surprisingly subtle. The cherry flavor is there, but it's not dominant. It's also a lot less sweet than other quadrupels I've tried. For a 9.8% beer, I don't taste the alcohol at all. You could tell me this was 4-5%, and I'd believe you. The apple flavor comes through pretty well, although I'm not sure where it came from. Now that I think about it, this would be a fantastic beer for cider lovers. It's a little sweet, but not overly so. It's not at all bitter, and the maltiness is mild. Unfortunately, I was expecting something with very strong flavor -- sweet, cherry, malty, rich, and thick -- so I must say I'm a little disappointed by the fact that this is somewhat lighter in flavor. However, if you go into it as a cider lover looking to change things up a bit, you might be pleasantly surprised. This is definitely a fantastic beer to get yourself or your girlfrend (this doesn't have many of the characteristics that make non-beer drinkers cringe) drunk off of. As I said earlier, I don't taste any alcohol, and the lack of hops or overpowering sweetness make it easy to drink. I think, though, that I'm going to be picking up other varieties from this brewery the next time I go shopping, because I really dig stronger flavors. This prevents me from giving it a higher rating.

I give it a [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] out of 5. It's good, but I'd prefer a heavy, rich beer if I'm going to spend this kind of cash. However, it's a fantastic beer for people looking for something a little lighter. This is definitely the kind of beer I'd give to people who say they don't like beer.

[VelvetHammer]

Nice review Mr.Wookie! Now I got to give it a go!

[Kneel B4 Zod]

nice report. I have a fantastic beer store near me, so I'll snoop around for a blend like this to see if I can post a re-follow up

(MA has no beer delivery services)

[MrWookie]

Alright, I figured I'd do another beer review tonight. Originally, I had intended to review the Chimay blue tonight instead of the Three Philosophers, but I saw that I hadn't put it in my fridge yet. My solution? Put the Chimay in the fridge, drink the 3P, and THEN drink the Chimay! Anyway, here's a picture of the bottle:



This ran me $10.89 for a 750 mL, so it was pretty costly. It is not quite as strong as the 3P, weighing in at 9% ABV. This bottle was under considerably more pressure than the 3P. The cork nearly flew off after merely twisting it gently. Not surprisingly, it had a larger head than the 3P:



The Chimay is similar in color to the 3P, but not in smell. I smell a little wood, plum, apple, a little more sweetness, and a few other things my olfactory isn't sufficiently trained to identify. Taking a sip, this is markedly sweeter than the Ommegang 3P, but not so much as to dominate. I definitely taste the plum and apple with the malt. The plum flavor is not like the reddish purple plums with the orange flesh. It's the Italian plums like I had growing in my backyard as a kid: purple with yellow-green flesh, and that my fat dog loved to eat as they fell off the tree. Now for the important part: how do I rate this relative to other trappists I've had? Well, this is strictly better than the Orval. It has much more flavor in all areas. Relative to the Rochefort 10, though, this tastes like a different sort of beer. The Rochefort was somewhat dry and very earthy, whereas the Chimay blue is somewhat sweet and a little fruity. I might say that the Rochefort is the trappist for people who love good Scotch, and Chimay blue is the trappist for people who love fine brandy/Cognac/Armagnac. Again, this beer wasn't quite in line with what I expected, having tried the Orval and the Rochefort, but it was in line with what I like -- Fairly strong flavor, good sweetness without being too much, and I like the fruit and malt. I'm going to go ahead and give this [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]. The flavor is great, but not quite so rich as to be ideal. This is not quite as good of a beer for people looking to find an in-road for non-beer drinkers as the 3P, but as a veteran beer drinker looking for new pleasures, I like this better. As far as value goes, I'd consdier this beer slightly overpriced. It's not outrageous for an import of this caliber to cost almost $11 from the store I was shopping at, but $11 is still a lot of money for a 750 of beer.

In summary, it's not quite as ideal as something sufficently rich to get the full 5 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]'s, and it's not a particularly great value, but it's still a great beer. I'll keep searching for the ideal, though, and I'll love every sip [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img].

[nails]

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I don't know if I'd call Ruination a double IPA. To me it doesn't have enough malt to go with the hops. I think of it more as an IPA with double the hops & 40% more malt. Arrogant Bastard is more of a double IPA.


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Agreed that Ruination is on the lower end of the ABV scale (7.7%) for a double IPA. But Arrogant Bastard only runs at 7.2%, so I don't think it qualifies, either. Double Bastard (10%), on the other hand, is definitely a double.


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Dreadnaught is an awesome beer. I'm glad to hear that they've started bottling it again, but being in Phoenix that doesn't do me much good.


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I hear ya. They stopped selling Three Floyds beers in NY a few years ago, so I only get to drink it when I visit the midwest. Their Alpha King is one of my all-time favorites.


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Another good double IPA is Stoudt's out of PA. Probably one of the best I've tasted.

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I've heard raves about many of Stoudt's brews, but I was unimpressed with their pale ale and double IPA. Maybe it was because I tasted them along with other beers, which adversely affected my taste buds. I'll give 'em another shot.

[SL__72]

[ QUOTE ]
Good series of reviews. Last time I went beer shopping, I picked up the Great Divide Barley Wine (at the bottom) and was very pleased with it. I was torn at the time between picking up the double IPA and the barley wine. It looks like it was a decision I couldn't get wrong, and I'll have to pick up the double IPA next time.

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I tried two more Great Divide beers last night. The first one I tried was the Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout. It was excellent. Not quite as thick/strong as the Rogue Imperial Stout I had the other night, but I still thought it was a little better overall. I'm curious to try just the normal Yeti now though... because I doubt the Oak Aged is worth paying $7.50 vs $5.50 for 22oz...

The Barley Wine I liked but not as much as the Double IPA.

[MrWookie]

I have a bottle of the Oaked Yeti in my fridge right now, and I plan on reviewing it tomorrow or Thursday. I had the regular Yeti last winter, and it was a very solid imperial stout. I'm curious to hear your thoughts on both.

[MrWookie]

Alright. Rather than play on Party's obnoxious Monster tables tonight, I've decided to review more beer. Tonight's was Avery's Maharaja Imperial IPA. My first experiences with the Avery brewery were underwhelming, so I didn't have my hopes up for this beer. After I really wasn't digging their beer when trying my favorite styles, I didn't have my hopes up for their super-IPA, which really has to be something special to impress me. Here's a picture of the bottle:



I paid a whopping $7.49 for this beer (22 oz). It weighs in at a hefty 9.9% ABV, though, so the buzz for your buck is still in the right ballpark. Here's a picture of it right after I poured it into my glass:



It has a nice amber color and a good head. It smells just like I'd expect from an IPA -- hops! I had the first half of this beer with dinner, a rib steak with a great horseradish sauce and a tomato and cucumber salad, and the second half on its own. I thought the hops might be good with the horseradish, but I wasn't sure. Anyway, on my first sip, I was pleasantly surprised. This was clearly the best beer from Avery I've tried. The hops come through with a good citrus and flowery flavor. The beer is a little sweeter than traditional IPAs, as I'd expect, but it's not as sweet as, say, the DFH 90. The flavors are well in line with what I'd expect with beers of this style, although I'd say it's dialed back from the DFH 90. Not quite as much hop flavor, and not quite as sweet. Consequently, I can't give it as good a rating. I give it [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]. It's definitely the beer from Avery that I'm most likely to buy again, but I don't think it stacks up well compared to the competition. One thing is for sure, though. This beer packs a whallop. I don't taste the alcohol much over the hops, but at this point, having just finished the bottle, I'm sure feeling it.

[JPinAZ]

Wookie,
Try the Hog Heaven barleywine. It's very good.

[MrWookie]

Which brewery is that from?