Learn to pour a proper pint, n00b.

SL,

I forgot who I was confusing you with, but I should have remembered you were not from Seattle, and were instead from Minnesota. Maybe Nolanfan. Don't know why.

RDH,

Meh. I bought a sixer, so I'll be more careful next time. I don't always use the utmost precision for beer that doesn't call for it, and there was no indication that this was bottle conditioned beer.

Wookie: My brother said the exact same thing regarding the apple flavor in Moonglow. For whatever reason, I haven't been able to pick that out. I'll be on the lookout for it in my last bottle.

Today I tried what seems to be a fan favorite among beer clubbers: Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout. It's been sitting in the fridge for a while waiting for this moment. Pours inky black with the tiniest bit of tan head. Aroma is of coffee, chocolate, dark fruits, alcohol, and...grapefruit? The bottle alerts me that it's got a whopping 75 IBUs. Here's another shot with a hoppy imperial stout. Even upon the first taste, the hops are immediately evident. The bitter hops lead to the roasted malts I'm accustomed to with their chocolate, coffee, and caramel tastes. The palate wasn't quite as oily as the Brooklyn BCS and was more carbonated. When drinking it slightly cooler, the finish was assertively hoppy and somewhat lingering. As it warmed up, the hop aroma faded and the finish became more of a combination of coffee and the hops. I definitely enjoyed this more and more as I was drinking it. I appreciate this brew's attempt at malt and hop balance. Nobody wants a syrupy sugar bomb. I give Yeti . In my limited experience with imperial stouts (a grand total of 4), I rank this one 2nd behind Southampton Imperial Stout. Speaking of...

On Saturday I went back to the Hop Devil Grill with some friends and was surprised to see that they still had Southampton Imperial Stout on tap from the Daze of the Devil. This was the 2004 vintage. I don't believe this was bottled (or even produced) last year, but I may be wrong. Poured dark as night with a pretty sizeable tan head. The aroma was delicate and inviting, smelling of chocolate and roastiness. I also thought I caught oats in there. The taste was just as delicate as the aroma. Tasted of chocolate with some coffee accompaniment. A great silky feel on the palate...just beautiful. Finish was bitter chocolate. This was so unlike the other imperial stouts I had tried, where the flavors and aromas seemed to be very aggressive. A very welcome change. I convinced a friend of mine to have a glass of this with me and he absolutely loved it too. He said I was spoiling him by introducing him to craft beer. If only all of my friends were that easy to convince. This beer was a real pleasure to drink @ $6.50 for 12 oz. Southampton Imperial Stout earns and a half in my book.

I'll be attending the BA Extreme Beer Festival in Boston on February 10th for the afternoon session. Anyone else going?

All,

I noticed this thread was lacking quite a few classic American beers so I am going to review Miller Lite, a real classic tonight.



The beer has a great yellow dehydrated pee color to it. I poured it out into my glass and immediately smelled the amazing aroma of a true AMERICAN pilsner beer.



The taste is quite complex. I taste hints of water, and a bit of hops. I was a bit disapointed by how the head seemed to dissipate almost immediately after pouring the beer out.

The cost is about $0.65 for 12 fluid ounces.

Overall I rate this out of 5 's.

This is a true AMERICAN beer you can't miss. It might be a bit hard to find in your locale but I managed to snag a case (YES A WHOLE CASE!!!) in my local supermarket. (Giant located in Northern Virginia)



MMMMMM a true AMERICAN classic!

I almost forgot... This beer won the gold medal at the world beer cup for "American-Style Light Lager" Just another reason why you really can't miss this one.

It's possible that their bottles were a bit young. A green apple flavor (at least one that's not supposed to be there) can be an indication of acetyldehyde & generally means that the beer needs to condition more.

Nice review.

MrWookie,

Im probably gonna head to Beers of the World this weekend. Can I get some recommendations here. So far my "advanced" beer tasting has been limited to Harpoon IPA (it was alright, I didnt like the finish), Harpoon Ale, and Harpoon Unfiltered Wheat (it needed a hint of fruit).

Hmmm, there are a whole lot of things I could recommend you. Pretty much everything I've tried here I got at BotW. Here are some greatest hits in some categories you might be thinking about. The beers are all American unless specified.

Safe, solid, cheap: Brooklyn Brown

Intro to unusual flavors in beer w/o breaking the bank: Ommegang Abbey Ale (Belgian style), Dogfish Head Raison D'Etre, Allagash Belgian White, Julius Echter Hefeweissbier (Germany)

Balla Imports: Chimay Blue (Belgium), Unibroue La Fin du Monde and Trois Postoles (Canada), Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier (Germany)

Hops!: Ithaca Cascazilla, Dogfish Head 60 min IPA, Dogfish Head 90 min IPA, Great Divide Old Ruffian Barleywine, Stone Arrogant Bastard, Stone Oak Aged Bastard (balla).

Dark!: Stone Smoked Porter, North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, J. W. Dundee's Porter (local, and v. cheap), Dogfish Head World Wide Stout (v. balla).

If you're looking for an improvement of the Harpoon UFO, then check out the Belgian whites an the German Hefe's. They're much improved.

I had the Chimay Blue on Friday and it was, in fact, balla.

Tonight's beer review is North Coast's Red Seal Ale. I paid $8.98 for a sixer. It packs 5.5% ABV.



The beer pours a golden color with a hint of red. I guess when I purchased something named RED Seal, I was expecting, oh, I dunno, a red beer. This looks more like an APA.



It smells like an APA, too. The hopping is mild, and so is the malt. Taking a sip, this is an easy drinking beer, but it's not too exciting. The hops are kinda flat, and there's not too much to the malt. I'd definitely reach for Flying Dog's or DFH's pale ales over this one. I'm going to give this beer . I'm kinda sad I picked up a sixer. This was a surprising let down from North Coast.

Today I got an eagerly anticipated package in the mail containing beers that I otherwise couldn't obtain here in the New York area. The one I tried tonight is from Bells Brewery in Kalamazoo, Michigan. This is their Kalamazoo Stout. I took pictures, but my USB cable has gone missing

The cool thing about Bells is that they print a batch number on the back of their bottles and you can look up the batch number on their website to see when it was bottled. Mine was batch 7289, bottled on March 9, 2006. Poured pitch black with some thin tan head. Aroma is of coffee and nuts, but not in that brown ale way; the coffee was the more assertive aroma. The taste brings the same flavors plus some chocolate and I thought I may have caught some licorice in there. I love the very malty front followed by the coffee and bitter chocolate finish. Just the right amount of lingering for me. I really enjoyed the nuttiness this one had. The palate was moderate to sligtly watery, but that's ok. This isn’t supposed to be an impy or anything. Too bad this was the only bottle I got. Apparently they distribute to Pennsylvania, so maybe I'll be able to pick up more when I go to Philly this weekend. This beats out Rogue Shakespeare as my favorite stout. 4.25

Wookie,

I'm a fellow WNYer in Amherst right outside of Buffalo and just stumbled onto this thread.

Couple buddies of mine went to Belgium in the fall for a beer tasting trip and found quite a few of the beers they loved there here at a place right around the corner from my apartment. They had an awesome time there FWIW, too bad I couldn't make the trip when they went.

Ive never been much of a beer enthusiast but this thread coupled with all that I hear from them has me looking to expand a bit. Aside from some of the Ellicotville Brewing Company samplings I have had when going skiing down there and various Sam Adams offerings and occasional New Castle I am definitely a n00b.

Swinging in to a place today after work to see what kind of selection they have although most, if not all of my buddies recommendations have already been reviewed here (DFH 90, Arrogant Bastard, GD Yeti) among others.

Great thread though, will post my thoughts when I have a few different beers under my belt.

Sounds great. Good to have you on board .

I just thought I'd point out that simply because someone has written a blurb about a beer in this thread doesn't mean that you can't try it and write your own thoughts. We all have different palettes, and your tastes may be aligned closer to someone else's, which spurs them to try a beer they otherwise wouldn't have. If you're making a point to go out and drink some beer outside your normal target, go ahead and post your thoughts; it won't hurt, and it certainly could help.

Will do!

This is what I came back fromt he store with. Not sure which to start with but from what I read from this thread and heard from my buddies, all are pretty good.

That looks like a practically perfect beer run to me . Lots of different tastes there, so I'm sure you'll find something you really like. Is there much of a craft beer scene up in Buffalo?

Thats not a question for me, more for my friends who are pretty hardcore into beer.

There are some good pubs in the area that offer a good variety of beer. My buddy told me there was a tasting event coming up that I might get in on with them. As for places to purchase stuff, there isn't much aside from the place I went today AFAIK, which isn't much

I actually drove by a Home Brew store right down the street I never knew existed, too bad I don't have the room/time to get into that.

Yeah, that's a pretty sweet assortment, all stuff I give 4 or higher. You'll be running the gamut of great beer, although the Ommegang and Chimay Blue are pretty similar. I prefer the Old Rasputin to the Yeti (it's cheaper, too), but if you can't find the OR, I'd never dream of turning down a bottle of Yeti. It's a great beer.

Tonight's beer is Schneider's Weisen Edel-Weisse. I liked Schneider's Hefeweisse, and I was curious about this one. I wasn't sure if it was a different variety, or if it was merely an organic version of the original. I paid $3.49 for a half liter, a little more than the original, for a 6.2% ABV beer, which is also a little more than the original.



The beer pours a little lighter in color than the other Hefes I've tried, and the head isn't as persistent. There's still a lot of carbonation, though.



The beer smells different from most of the hefes. It smells citrusy, and it doesn't have the banana and clove smells. Sipping, it's pretty acidic, and it's not as sweet as most Hefes. The wheat malt flavor comes through a little stronger, though, as do the hops. I think I like this beer a little less as I'm going through it. At first the malt was enjoyable, but later, the citrus sharpness was a little grating. I was thinking 3.5, but I'm going to give this beer . This is a somewhat different beer than a traditional Bavarian hefeweizen. The malt, hops, and citrus flavors are nice, but it's not as rich as the regular versions. I think this is the first organic beer I've tried, and it doesn't do much to convince me that organic beer is all a marketing gimmick.

Well, I've got another beer review for tonight. This was another impulse buy where I didn't know what I was getting into. I bought Rogue's Smoke Ale for $5.69 for a 22 oz. I don't know the ABV. It's advertised as an amber ale with a strong flavor of smoke and hops. Smoke is a flavor usually reserved for stouts and porters, so I decided to give it a go.



The beer pours a cloudy light brown with a decent head that doesn't hang out all that long.



Even as I'm pouring the beer I can smell the smoke. The hops come through somewhat, too. Unsurprisingly, smoke is the first thing on my tongue, too. It's quite strong. The hops are in the finish, and the malt is in between. The smoke dominates, though, and it kinda drowns out all the rest. This beer isn't at all sweet. It took me a while to settle on just how much I liked this beer because such a dominant smoke flavor is unusual. I'm going to give this beer and a half . The balance isn't all that great, but the flavors are good. It's also something that's difficult to find in any other beer. Scotch lovers could consider giving it a whirl. It's pretty expensive, though, and I don't think it comes in 6 packs. I don't know how much of this beer I'll be buying, but it was cool to try.

With dinner tonight, I had a bottle of Yuengling's Porter. Having found a great budget porter in the JW Dundee's, I figured I'd give another a try. As far as I can tell, I paid $0 for this beer. I tried to pay for it, but it's nowhere on my receipt. Oh well. We'll call it a good customer discount. It normally costs somewhere between $1.50 and $2 for a 2 oz bottle.

I'm not going to bother with pics because this is going to turn out to be a negative review. The beer pours a lighter shade of dark than most porters, with the typically minimal head. It smells of very little, and it tastes that way too. This is a poor, hollow shell of a beer. The dominant flavor is a little bit of acidity. I think I actually prefer their regular lager. I'm going to give this beer just , although some of it is spite. Had a pale lager tasted like this, I wouldn't have been as hard on it since I wouldn't have my hopes up. Don't bother with this beer.

Agreed on the Yuengling Porter. I had opportunity to try it recently and it is far from good. "Hollow shell" is a very apt description.

My liver got the night off last night, but I'm back for more tonight. Tonight's beer is Rogue's Monk Madness Ale. When I bought this, I was thinking it might be a Belgian attempt from Rogue, which I'd be very curious about. Reading the bottle now, it seems they're going more for traditional malt and hops. Not that that's a bad thing . I paid $5.69 for a 22 oz. I went poking around Rogue's website to see if I could find the ABV, but it's not there. The bottle says it's 68 IBUs, and the website 108. I'm not sure which is right. Apparently this beer is new, is only available in the winter, and only comes in 22's. Heh. It looks like I should also review the hazelnut brown nectar, which looks to be sponsored by David Sklansky:



Anyway, on to the review.



The beer pours a nice medium brown color with a good but not excessive head. It laces my glass nicely.



This beer smells, well, of malt and hops. I was pretty solidly wrong about it being a Belgian imitation. The taste is great, though. It's just slightly sweet, and it's got a good dose of the floral hop flavor I love. The beer I've reviewed here that's most similar to this one is Stone's Arrogant Bastard, and I'd say I like this one slightly better. I think the hops are just a little bolder, and the malt slightly darker. I'm going to give this beer . It's a shame it's only going to be a winter seasonal and that it won't come in sixers. I could see myself drinking a lot of this beer.

If ever in Australia, try Carlton Draught. It has overtaken Victoria Bitter and is now the number 1 beer over here, yet as far as I know you can't buy it overseas through retail.

I think I'll do two reviews tonight. For my first, I'll do another from Rogue, this time their XS Imperial Stout. I paid $13.79 for a 750 mL bottle. Damn is Rogue beer expensive out here. It packs a hearty 11% ABV, though. At least this Rogue brew tells me its strength.



Rogue certainly gets the nod for good bottling. I like the seriousness of the bottle. It pours just a hair lighter and clearer than other imperial stouts I've had, but it still has a nice thick bubbly head.



The beer has the usual smells of imperial stouts: hops, coffee, dark malt, dark fruit, a little bit of caramel sweetness. Its flavor, though, isn't quite as complex. The hops come through nicely. There's a little bit of coffee. The malt, though, isn't as rich as some, and I'm missing some of the caramel and smoke flavors. Imperial stouts are generally outstanding beers, but this doesn't do much to separate itself from the pack. I prefer Great Divide's Yeti and the Old Rasputin. I award this beer and a half . Eh, maybe the pleasure I get from drinking it is on a par with some of the 4 beers I've had, but I still can't recommend buying this one. It's too expensive, and I preferred others.