Ballast Point Abandon Ship Smoked Lager Rauchbier

No picture here as I had only a taster, a very small taster at The Haven the other night. I've had other Rauchbier's before. Most notably the quintessential Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock. I'm always blown away by just how deep the smoky, meaty, barbecue taste is in these brews.

Ballast Point's version definitely hits the style nail on the head but doesn't bash you with the hammer. It's a toned down version of the original. It's meaty yes, smoky yes, but without becoming cloying. Part of it has to do with the fact that the body is not as thick. I don't think I would want a full pint but it was good.

Lost Coast 20th Anniversary Imperial Red

Date Night! Danielle and I went to use one of the restaurant.com gift certificates I got her for Christmas. Yes, it's now November and we haven't gotten through them yet.

Slater's 50/50 is in Anaheim Hills and it's a build-your-own-burger joint. It's claim to fame is the 50/50 burger which is 50% ground chuck and 50% ground bacon. I declined that one. My lovely wife is modeling her pure beef with brie, pesto, roasted onions and peppers, on a wheat bun. Mine, ordered rare as they would make it(served medium which was sad) is lost in the lettuce. We definitely were underwhelmed. The Counter and 25 Degrees are far superior in burger making but they don't compare to the tap selection that Slater's has.

 I ordered the Imperial Red from Lost Coast. I'm still not sure if they brought the right beer out because it was really dark and murky. Not that clear bright red that you normally get. Take a look. Small but thick head, little to no aroma which is odd for something that's Imperial. Light hop and really not much malty sweetness to speak of. It was an unremarkable beer. It was a little boring. I'd take the Ninkasi Double Red over this one.

The Black Velvet

I don't like Guinness. There, I said it. I'm not a fan. There are so many more stouts that I would rather drink. North Coast Old Rasputin, Deschutes Obsidian, Avery Out of Bounds, Deschutes The Abyss, the list goes on and on.

This is the reason that that monstrous looking layered drink was ordered. No, not by me. That puny looking port glass next to it is mine. No, this was ordered by a girl. Yes, I was teased mercilessly for my choice of drink. Yes, it was one of the worst ports I have ever had, but that is beside the point. That aberration of champagne and Guinness is the best thing that has happened to Guinness since the pub was invented. I hope I don't have an angry mob of Irishmen and leprechauns knocking at my door but it's too late now. It's on the internet so it must be true.

"Boo"ery Night at Bootlegger's

Beer and Halloween at Bootlegger's in Fullerton brought out all kinds. No I did not dress up but my lovely wife did. I'm just really really glad she eschews the whole, Halloween is a night for girls to display their whorish side. Here she is without her witch's hat and the Barnes' over her shoulder. We haven't been to Bootlegger's since they left for Germany so it was nice to be back. Justin is high school friends with the owner and head brewer Aaron.



Bootlegger's makes a LOT of different styles of beer and all of them are high quality. The thing I like the most about them is that they are not only true to style but their descriptions are spot on for flavors. If they say that there is chipotle and coffee in their Black Phoenix Stout then you are for sure going to taste it. The only exception I've found so far after tasting ALL of the beers that they have on regular offer and MOST of the beers that they have ever brewed to my knowledge is their current pumpkin ale. I got a little bit of the nutmeg, cinnamon, and normal pie spices in there but there was not much pumpkin to be had. It was still good to be sure but not a hit you over the head pumpkin ale. Here it is to the right in their half pint mason jars. Bootlegger's serves pints, half pints, growlers, and even kegs. They don't skimp on the pours either as you can see. Over the course of the night as we ate our Greek food from the food truck outside, tasted all of the beers on offer, including "the hopinator" which is their Palomino Pale that has been run through a hop back of an undisclosed variety. Citrusy to be sure. The night was great with great friends drinking great beer.

Victory Wild Devil RE-Review

I've gotten back into Belgians of late after a detour to the land of IPA's. Yes, I know this is an IPA, but it's very different from your classic IPA. I've reviewed it before here, but this one has been cellaring for 6 months or so and I figured that the time might have mellowed some of the bitterness and brought out some of that sour fruit, funkiness of "Brett."

Yes and yes. Time had definitely brought out the funk. I like this beer a lot more now. Similar to a Belgian IPA which is a little sweeter Wild Devil brings a tinge of sweetness on the backend that makes this one enjoyable.

Big Sky Slow Elk Oatmeal Stout

Sorry about the picture here, this is a seasonal that I have only had once. Big Sky isn't huge out on the West Coast yet so some of their seasonals are hard to find.

This one was real interesting, probably the lightest stout I've ever had. There's some roast on the nose and the color is more of a dark brown ale rather than a stout. The oatmeal lends to a creamy mouthfeel and with light carbonation it's smooth going down. There are some light bittering hops on the back end but the whole thing ends up being a non-event.

Not good, not bad. I usually expect a little something more out of a seasonal. Some kind of wow effect but I think for now I will stick with their IPA and my favorite brown ale ever, Moose Drool.

Deschutes Hop in the Dark

Deschutes always impresses me I've had so many of their beers and so much of their food. They are constantly pushing the envelope while keeping their quality consistent. Case in point this beer.

Deschutes is calling it a Cascadian Dark Ale and it is that. Using cascade hops along with traditional porter malts and even some oats to provide body Deschutes has created something of a hybrid. A dark IPA.

Essentially that's what this is. A mishmash of a roasty toasty stout or porter mixed with low grade IPA bitterness. The aroma is roast and a hint of pine while the taste is the opposite.

I appreciated this for what it was. A distinct departure from style and an experimental beer, but I wasn't really that enamored with it. The roast just didn't fit well with the pine and a hint of citrus. I think that's what ruined it for me, that hint of citrus. Most stouts have that back-end bitterness and it works, but this one just doesn't seem to meld well. 

Rabbit's Foot Meadery Biere De Miele

Bleh....that's what this tasted like. Ok so that's not too scientific or helpful so here's a more in depth description.

Pouring this into my new lager glasses(getting married has some perks aside from the obvious) I almost thought it was pouring out clear. It was THAT pale. The picture makes it seam darker than it was. There was a nice head and the aroma was interesting, and by interesting I mean weird. First there was some honey, good right considering this was fermented with honey. Second whiff? Apple cider and rotting vegetation. Hmmm, that's a pretty auspicious start. The taste? High class Miller Light. Yes, Miller Light, not just any crappy macro brew. I know my crappy macro brews and this was definitely Miller Light +1.

This actually got poured down the drain.

Deschutes Twilight Summer Ale

Deschutes Brewing is probably my favorite brewery of all time simply because I grew up around it. We have a communal house there between three families and I've been skiing at Mt. Bachelor since I was 3 years old. I've reviewed some of the beers here on the blog( The Abyss, Hoptrip, Hop Henge) and over the years I've had just about everything they have to offer short of the seasonals that were one shot wonders when I wasn't old enough to drink. I probably had some of those too although it was long before I actually appreciated it. 

This beer was a gift from my mom. Love you Mom! There were 6 of these beauties waiting for D and I when we got to our INCREDIBLE house in the mountains of Maui. We stayed at a spa where we had the ENTIRE house to ourselves. What a view. We watched storms roll in, the fog and mist that D and I love so much, and stood out on the balcony overlooking the island as warm rain come down on the lights below.

After that description of the setting this beer couldn't help but be good. It was! Crisp, bright, without being to acidic. A little lime, orange, citrus. Not too many bubbles. A perfect summer ale. This would definitely be my go to light beer if I could get it year round but alas it is a summer seasonal.

Mead or Braggot or, well, It had Honey and it was Good

If you've ever had mead you are probably decidedly in the minority. Mead, or honey wine, as it is often called, is a fermented beverage of primarily honey(s) and water, and, though the guidelines are somewhat vague, a braggot is a mead with other fermentables such as barley in the mix.

At the Brewcommune Homebrew meeting I went to a week or so ago I was lucky enough to get to try my second honey beverage. The first being one brewed by my cousin. I don't remember much about that one but I do remember a LOT about the one I sampled recently.

This was described as an Imperial Cream Ale which meant it was a braggot since it had more than just honey as a fermentable. Made up of 6 pounds of two types of honey, Western Sumac and Orange Blossom. Six Pounds of honey was enough to make 10 gallons. This was then aged for six years in bottle and was kicking at 17.2% ABV.

Poured out into my HIGHLY classy clear plastic solo cup it smelled of, you guessed it, honey. Floral and very sweet, it even SMELLED sticky. At 17.2 ABV there was bound to be alcohol on the nose and there was definitely a burn.

My first taste floored me. You would think that something brewed nearly entirely with honey would be too sweet but this straddled that line so well. I felt like I was drinking a meadow. Floral, sweet, and refreshing I was running my tongue through wildflowers. Despite the alcohol on the nose there was no unpleasant alcohol burn on the tongue. Smooth and viscous and perfectly sweet. This was definitely my favorite of the night. I wish I could buy it easily somewhere

Deschutes The Abyss

Deschutes holds a special place in my heart as I have mentioned before(Here and Here). I grew up skiing at Mt. Bachelor and taking family trips down the brewery's namesake river. Black Butte is synonymous with porter as far as I'm concerned.

That's why I was stoked that "The Abyss," a much exhalted beer lived up to its reputation. Going head to head with another imperial stout that had been aged in barrel, The Bruery's "Coton," Deschutes' beer came out on top as far as I'm concerned. No bias here, the deciding factor for me was that I could actually drink and finish "The Abyss." I wanted to drink "Coton" I swear. It's one of the most complex beers I have had, probably, well ever. The problem was it was just TOO much bourbon. I mean it tasted more bourbony than straight Jim Beam. So much flavor though, but I had to fight it every teeny tiny sip of the way whereas "Abyss" was a pleasure to drink.

The aroma coming off "The Abyss" was sweet but not cloying. There was a lot of roasted sugar, toffee, and licorice but it wasn't overwhelming unlike the "coton." I wanted to keep smelling the "coton" because it smelled good but there is definitely a little too much of a good thing there. "Abyss" on the other hand strikes a great balance between overpowering and underwhelming. I could have my nose glued to the glass and be happy.

The only taste knock on "The Abyss" was that I felt like it had too much carbonation. I like my stouts smooth and it was a little too prickly on the tongue. It had wonderful roasted coffee, milk chocolate, vanilla, toffee, and licorice flavors that melded together beautifully. Each rolling into the next as the taste lingered. The coffee and chocolate flavors were not bitter and the toffee was not too sweet. There wasn't too much roast in the taste but enough to balance the sweet.

This definitely is my all time favorite stout.

.

The Bruery Coton

If you are from Southern California and follow the goings on of the beer world down here you probably heard that The Bruery in Placentia recently took home Gold at the World Beer Cup in two categories:

In Category 12: Experimental Beer for their "100% Brett Autumn Maple."
In Category 45: Belgian-Style Flanders/Oud Bruin or Oud Red Ale for their "Oude Tarte."

The Bruery has some seriously experimental beers and they definitely are of a high quality.

I had the opportunity to try their most recent Anniversary brew that is going to be served at their 2 year anniversary celebration this weekend. Two of the brewers from Bruery were at the homebrew meeting I went to on Tuesday and they brought with them a bottle of "Coton" which is a 100% Bourbon Barrel aged version of their "Papier" which has been blended via the solera method ala Sherry.

As you can see the bottle itself is a work of art. Very classy in the 750ml bottle and wax sealed.

This one clocked in at a VERY healthy 14.5% ABV. I was surprised to learn that the barrel can add as much as 5% alcohol to the final brew.

When we cracked open the bottle it poured a deep black with a tan head. I could tell from across the room that this was a BIG beer. Thick and viscous I couldn't see through to the other side of my VERY classy clear plastic Solo Cup.

With 20 of us in the room and and everyone clamoring to get a taste from the one bottle we each got about a finger of beer in our cup. That was all I needed, seriously, I didn't want any more than that. I am a huge Scotch fan and I'm used to drinking my alcohol straight but that classy solo cup hit me hard.

The first whiff off the top was sweet and sticky. I have never smelled a beer so sweet. Caramel, toffee, roasted sugar and vanilla. It was almost cloying and with the alcohol ominously lingering in the background. I can honestly say I was a little scared of the first sip.

Now, I've had some big beers, and I've had some oak aged big beers, but I have never had a beer like this. This beer had the most robust flavor profile of anything I have ever tried. It is without a doubt the best bourbon aged beer I've had. That being said I didn't finish my ONE finger pour. It wasn't because it was bad, it was just hardcore. This is the first beer I've had where the bourbon actually enhanced the beer, and there was a LOT of bourbon. I could have done with less. This beer was not for the feint-hearted.Perfect carbonation mixing bourbon with sticky roasted sugar, raisins, and malty sweetness with a port like quality, quickly gave way to the burn of my nose hairs.

After drinking this I can't begin to imagine what "Tactical Nuclear Penguin"(32%ABV) and "Sink the Bismarck"(41%ABV) made by Brewdog tastes like. Scary. "Coton" was good, it was interesting, but there is no way I could ever drink more than a finger at a time of this one. This is a beer to be shared between 20 people. Perfect.

The next beer to be opened was my "Abyss" from Deschutes that I had brought. In roughly the same class as "Coton" I much preferred it to the "Coton." At 11% I could have actually drank the whole bottle by myself. Slowly, but I could have. I'll review this limited edition beer in the next post. Until then, find some Bruery beer like their "Hottenroth Berliner Weisse" that I reviewed previously or any of their many quality brews.

Victory Brewing Wild Devil

OK so I actually drank this one a LOOONG time ago, but She Who Shall Remain Nameless who was supposed to be guest reviewing for me is seriously slacking! lol! You know who you are!

I do have to give her HUGE props for bringing this one because I had really been wanting to try it since I had recently had Wild Devil's more tame NON-Bretanomyces brother Hop Devil which I was very happy with.

Wild Devil is an IPA that is entirely fermented with Bret yeast which gives it a sour, wet blanket, gamey, leathery smell. This sounds offputting I know but the affectation is very slight. This is nowhere near the sourness of a true sour. In actuality if I was given this blind I would have to really work at picking out the use of Bret because there wasn't a whole lot there.

Compared to Hop Devil the Wild had a lot less IPA character to it. There was some pineyness in there as well as some grapefruit but overall it was definitely a tame IPA. It tasted more like a good Belgian than an American IPA.

I enjoyed this bottle a lot. More so for the comparison in fermentation since everything was supposed to be the same but the yeast. It's always nice to stretch the boundaries and give myself a reference point for certain flavors and aromas.

Again, I have not been let down by Victory. Though it wasn't over the top, Wow!  It was a good sipper.

Stone+Brew Dog=Bashah!!! His Head In

We had a pretty big tragedy this weekend that definitely deserved to be mourned a little. Nobody died, well, yet anyway. That still remains to be seen. Lets just say, figuratively speaking, I'd hate to have this come back at me in court, so, everyone reading this, he's dead to us, figuratively. Tiny Tiny Man.

Instead of "mourning" however, we chose to celebrate the passing of someone who, though he professed to possess an inordinate amount of intellect, committed such a stupid, childish,  act of well, stupidity. You lost buddy, you lost.

This celebration of sorts is how I came to come into the posession of a beer I have been drooling to try. It was being sold for an unseemly amount of money by the pint at the neighborhood gastropub and I couldn't in good conscience pony up the cash. This is why, when the man at BevMo asked me like the neighborhood crack dealer if I wanted his last bottle of Bashah I jumped at him, err, it.

Bashah is a collaborative effort between the crazy Scottish brewers Brew Dog and our own American Stone Brewing in Oceanside California. When I say, "crazy" I mean crazy. Brew Dog makes a "beer" called Tactical Nuclear Penguin that is pushing 32% ABV. They've since then pushed that limit as well. Needless to say these guys are creative.

Bashah is a Black Belgian Double IPA but tastes more like a porter. Lots of roasted coffee, some carbony toasty flavors, a little bit of licorice. It was a little thin and there was not very much bitterness for being a DOUBLE IPA. There wasn't even really that bready taste that comes from Belgian yeast. All in all it tasted good but I was not blown away. Maybe a case of high expectations? I would drink it if it was cheap, which it's not. I payed 5$ for a 12 oz bottle. And at 8.6% ABV I was buzzing after already having a schwarzbier that, at 2$ for a pint was every bit as good.

Jew Beer...He'Brew Rejewvenator Hybrid Lager/Ale

The old adage, "Never judge a book by its cover," could not apply more aptly in the case of this half dopplebock, half Belgian style dubbel from He'Brew Brewing. I literally picked this beer up completely as a joke at BevMo as I was walking to check out. D and I have a lot of Jewish friends and  we kid back and forth about religion, race, ethnicity etc. I wish that everyone was as open-minded about these topics as our group is. We would have a lot less problems in the world.

As my mom is famous for saying, "Our little multicultural family" is going to have the cutest kids on the planet. But I digress, I've been in baby mode for the last few days since our German friends have brought their cute little new addition stateside for the first time. I feel like an uncle which is weird. Maybe the Hawaiian part of the family is rubbing off? How many Aunties and Uncles can one family have? I can't keep D's side of the family straight. I already told her I get a pass on names because there are waaaaaay too many to remember at our wedding.

Wow, I REally got off topic there. Back to the Jew Beer as I fondly call it. This poured a really nice coppery red color which was lighter than I expected. It had a decent sized head that was gone pretty quickly but left an aroma of chocolate and cherries that was just fabulous. This tasted almost like a "Three Philosophers" from Brewery Ommegang. It had that hint of Cherry Kriek Lambic on the back end of the finish. Malty, but not too sweet, it had a nice body with a relaxed effervescence that really allowed the taste to shine. Milk chocolate and cherries, mmmm. This one was a winner. Too bad it's a seasonal. I'll be sure to pick up more than one next year.

Pyramid Audacious Apricot Ale...Audaciously Awful

I'm not against a good beer with added flavoring. Pumpkin beers are great, I've even had a halfway decent blueberry beer from Sea Dog Brewery. Little T has a thing for fruit in his beer it seems because he even brought over a strawberry beer from Pete's Brewing that I didn't completely hate. But this, this, I took one sip and put it down the drain. Yuck, Gross, Nasty, Disgusting, Unpleasant, Sickening, Foul, Vulgar, Crass, ok that was the last of the synonyms. This beer wasn't even worth a follow up swallow. It tasted like skunked beer that had apricots fermenting in it. Gross, again. Nuff Said.

The Bruery Rugbrød Rye Beer

The Bruery is based out of Placentia but has quite a large distributorship as well as quite a following it seems. This was my first taste of what is supposed to be a traditional rye beer. I LOVE pastrami on rye with some good sauerkraut. Mmmmm, sauerkraut beer...I mean mmmmm, rye beer. I was really looking forward to that earthy, musky, rye flavor coming through on this beer but unfortunately I didn't get it. This poured a nice dark brown and had a large head that dissipated quickly, all in all a good looking pour. Slightly hazy the beer definitely had a yeasty, malty smell. There was a slight hint of the rye on the back end but the most part this tasted a bit like a porter with a little less body and a little more carbonation. Hints of coffee, roast, and toast.  Good beer, just not what I expected.

Deschutes "The Abyss" Coming SOON!

Oh Yes

Maui Brewing Coconut Porter

This beer holds a special place in my heart as it is one of the beers that will be served at D and I's wedding at Haiku Mills in Maui. I cannot wait for July 15th when I can call her my wife. I'm going to go all mushy here so skip the next 3 lines if you don't want to be bowled over by my sentiments.

D is the best thing that ever happened to me and I credit her to opening my eyes to the culinary world that I have come to love and appreciate in ways I never thought possible for reasons only few know. Ok I'm done.

On to the beer! Oh the beer, lovely lovely beer. Have you ever been dissappointed by advertising and marketing claims?

The Flowbee?

 

 Perhaps The Fishpen?

Unlike this beer they promise things that they don't deliver. This is called a Coconut Porter because it actually does have a coconut taste to it. Shocking right? Double Chocolate Stout? MMMmm sounds so good, not much chocolate there. Cappuchino Stout? Again, MMMmm, barely a buzz. But Maui Brewing delivers with this one. A not too sweet or cloying aftertaste of clean coconut. Not much carbonation and a dark chocolate brown topped with a tan head. The body is light and silky for a stout and even non-stout lovers should like this one, as long as they like coconut. It comes in a 4 pack of cans and the only thing I can think of that's wrong with it is that the fist holding the coconut? For some reason I always envision a beating heart in his hand for some reason. Morbid I know but glance at the picture and see if you see what I see. Enjoy!

Avery Brewing Imperial Oktoberfest "The Kaiser"

I first tried this Imperial Oktoberfest in November 2009 at The Twisted Vine in Fullerton, CA. It was part of a tasting of three and it blew the other two out of the water. The beer pours a nice hazy copper color with a lacy head that lasts for a long time. The brew clocks in at 9.3 ABV and you get a little bit of that alcohol on the palate but the malt bomb that characterizes this seasonal quickly neutralizes it. There are hints of orange and of course the spices that are inherent in an Oktoberfest. There is a slight hoppiness to the nose but again the bready aroma and taste overpowers it. The beer is well balanced and the body is not too heavy. I could drink this all night, except since it's not exactly a session beer you'd find me snoozing after two of these 22oz bottles. I've tried a few of Avery's other beers and I have always been pleasantly surprised. Pick a couple up you won't regret it.