Dogfish Head Bitches Brew

2/7/20

A 1 pint, 9.4 fl oz champagne style bottle, gifted to me by my brother-in-law on Christmas 2016! I put off drinking this year after year, winter after winter, and it went from one fridge to another. My hesitancy was due to my reluctance to commit to a 9% beer that amounts to over 2 high gravity brews, but I guess that's a part of the experience. As much as I now enjoy low gravity beer, it's a good thing to indulge in this type every now and then.

As for the experience: big chewy malt in the nose. Raisins, currants and almond milk. Dark nougat head with a pitch black body as expected. A little boozy up front, then spicy hops and bread crust with a dark, dry, malty finish. Heavier body, but fits the style. Sipping on this one!

As I sip, and as it warms, it's a deeply intense, chocolate and port-wine-flavored beer.

It's fitting.

Today marked the first real snow day of 2020 in southwestern Pennsylvania. I dragged my daughter on a sled through the snow a half dozen times, up and down our backyard slope, racing through the cold air in heavy boots, and this is just type of delicious and intoxicating unwinding I needed.

This one brought me back a decade in terms of the experience of searching out the aromas, flavors and feel. I can almost see myself in my brown recliner, stretching out with something special after an evening visit to Guntown Beer. I swear I smell a little Shelter Pale Ale in here. Well done Dogfish!

St. Stefanus Blonde

Notes from 3/8/14

On the bottle: Cellar release 4-2012

It states on the bottle that the brew is not released from a cellar until it's matured for 3 months, putting this beer at about 26 months old (more aging than the brewery suggests, but how bad could it really be?).

A lively yellow-golden appearance with an incredibly active flow of carbonation bubbles, which doesn't let up even after several minutes. Egg white head. Spice in the nose. Lemon, yeast, grass, banana and pineapple. The aroma is complex.

Spicy with an underlying sweetness in the taste: black pepper, cinnamon and ginger-like flavors. The hop bite and bitterness is toned down overall, which is undoubtedly due to the extended aging. As good as this beer is, I probably should have opened it before the year ended.

As it warms, a pronounced yeast flavor and aroma is steering my senses toward the hefeweizen style. A light-medium bodied beer with complex flavors and aromas. At 7% ABV, a sipper that's strikingly drinkable and highly recommended!

Thanks to my friend, Ricky, for the Belgian beer.

Note: the bottle was signed by the brewmaster; the signature looks like Jef Versele.

Yards Brewing Co. - Brawler Pugilist Style Ale

Style: Dark Mild Ale

Dark brown in appearance with a hint of ruby red.

In the nose: cold coffee, nutty aroma, milk chocolate, hints of dark fruit, toasted waffles and bread crust.

Dark malts and coffee are at the forefront of the taste. A mild bitterness aids in the beer being exceptionally balanced. It reminds me of the picture from an edition of Michael Jackson's World Guide to Beer showing old English men sitting in a pub (during the day) drinking mild ale with their dogs on leashes.

Long story short...it's my kind of beer* (who am I kidding? I've got a broad palate when it comes to brews). Malty, tasty, balanced, low in alcohol content, and derived from a style of English origin. Highly recommended!

*I often tell people I enjoy German lagers and English ales. This statement should not be misconstrued as me saying that I only enjoy imports. While I do imbibe imports on occasion, I more often than not drink American craft beer, but most of the craft beer I drink is derived from German lager styles such as pilsner, Munich helles, hefeweizen, etc, and English ale styles such as brown ale, porter, stout, pale ale, and more. In other words, I more often than not would choose an American craft beer within the English parameters, rather than an American craft beer within the American parameters. While I don't have anything against the American craft brewer's tendency to over hop the brew, I prefer the English brewer's appreciation for balance.

Harpoon Octoberfest

I've decided to start paying more attention to proper serving temperatures. As a result, I let this octoberfest style brew warm up for about 30 minutes before popping the cap off.

Ruby amber-brown appearance with a delicious looking off-white, beige head. The head settles down after a few minutes. Carbonation bubbles rise to the top. Fairly clear and transparent despite the darker body. Appealing.

An aroma of chewy, sweet malts comforts the nose. Sweet caramel. A hint of alcohol and herbal hops marks the outer edges of the aroma.

The taste: earthy hops, brown bread crust, black pepper, bready malts, alcohol. A warming mouthfeel. This brew would certainly complement an end of fall night on a porch.

I had heard a lot of good things about this brew before I got a chance to try it. I wasn't at all disappointed. Recommended!

Sly Fox Helles Golden Lager

This will probably be one of my last helles beers of the summer, with just a few bottles of Spaten left in the fridge. Worth noting about this brew is the unique can design that allows the drinker to pull the top completely off and drink directly from the can if he or she prefers. As for me, a glass is used almost always.

Straw-golden appearance with a white head that settles down to a modest rim. Hazy body with carbonation bubbles showing. Certainly appealing in appearance.

Smells of grain with a note of grape juice; cidery. No hop aroma to speak of. Mild, but sort of sweet and friendly to the nose.

Balanced in the mouth with a nudge of hops, spicy/peppery hops flavor, and a grape juice-like sweetness. Simple and refreshing with an easy-going finish. Recommended for taking the edge off and relaxing in the evening.

Rooney's Lager

The label on the bottle says this is "a golden lager with a sligh malty sweetness, delicately balanced with the spicey, zesty notes of the Tettnang and Saaz hops. Lengthy cold conditioning delivers a smooth, crisp sessionable lager." Can't argue with the appearance: gold, and the head on top is fluffy white, sitting gently on a steady stream of carb bubbles. 

The nose is very nice, giving off grassy notes under a sweeter, floral, basil-like aroma. Yeast and a bit of booze also passes through.

Bready malts in the mouth up front. Balanced toward the bitter end with bittering hops and a mild dose of peppermint hop flavor that dashes through in the finish. Light-medium bodied, easily quaffable. Recommended.

Catching Up: Brooklyn Dry Irish Stout & 21st Amendment Sneak Attack Saison

I hate to say it, but I've been so busy lately that I'm just now getting around to posting a few brief reviews I did in the month of April. Here it goes:

Notes from 4/6/13

Brooklyn Dry Irish Stout

Near black appearance with mahogany-brown at the edges. Smooth, roasty, chocolate malt aroma. Chocolatey malts with hop bitterness that carries thru to the finish. A good dose of nuttiness and hops flavor broadens the entree. Recommended for anyone who wishes a certain ubiquitous dry stout had a little more depth in flavor.




Notes from 4/7/13

21st Amendment Sneak Attack Saison

Canned on 12/16/12. Poured in a wine goblet; appears hazy golden-yellow with a small head. Phenolic, band-aid aroma; ginger spice. Smooth bitterness and a very dry finish. Cloves in both the nose and mouth. Peppery flavoring hops. Spicy and acidic, with spices that linger on the palate (peppermint). A brew with a warming quality. Recommended!

 

 It's May! I'm looking forward to the summer seasonals that break out of the citrusy-lemon mold and push clean pilsners and Munich helles style lagers on the American public. Cheers!

Indian Brown Ale by Dogfish Head Brewery

Notes from 3/16/13

12 fl oz bottle, 7.2% ABV

Described on the bottle as "a clean, well-hopped brown ale brewed with caramelized sugar and hopped liberally and often." Very dark brown; almost black. Fluffy, nougat colored head [Full disclosure: I bought this bottle around the beginning of the new year (I think it was New Year's Eve), so it has naturally mellowed].

The aroma is rich with roasted coffee notes and dark, chocolately malts. A medium-heavy body with malts lying a notch above the now mellowed hops which, nonetheless, still carry a flavorful presence. Chocolate, hop bitterness, coffee, caramel and roasted notes.

Labeled as an Indian brown ale, at this point in the beer's life I wonder what separates it from a robust porter; fresh and it might be a different story. That said, a delicious brew!

Highly recommended!

Penndemonium by Penn Brewing Co

Notes from 3/8/13

1 pint 6 fl oz bottle purchased for $6 at Guntown Beer in Canonsburg, PA.

Grassy nose from the bottle. In a pilsner glass, lots of carbonation bubbles rising to the top. Frothy white head with lacing sticking to the glass. The body is a light bronze color with hints of amber-orange under the light. The head is beginning to recede.

A caramely, spicy hops flavor blend up front during the first taste. Bread crust, crackers, pepper, booze and ginger ale. A cough syrup-esque, waxy, even chalky film has begun to form on my tongue (subsides later on).

Spicy in the nose with a little sweetness. Lively yeast aroma, pepper mint and wet grass. Herbal, savory and warm.

Some might say syrupy, but I find this to be very smooth in the finish.

Recommended!

Church Brew Works Pipe Organ Pale Ale

My last review of 2012...it's been quite a year :) Thanks to all who read this blog from time to time.

Pipe Organ Pale Ale is orange-amber with a dull glow. A tiny head recedes to a stable, bubbly rim.

Fruity in the nose: pineapple, peach. Some amber malts underneath the hops comes through faintly.

A pleasant, light touch in the first taste. Balanced hops and malts mostly, with just a bit more bitterness. There's some peachy hops flavor, but the beer is dry overall.

A simple, approachable and purposely sessionable pale ale. It won't blow anyone away, but it's a solid beer that won't crush you after a few, which is its big draw for someone like myself.

Appearance: 3   Aroma: 3.5   Taste: 3.5   Mouthfeel: 4   Overall: 3.5 out of 5
 

Wolaver's Alta Gracia Coffee Porter

"Ale with coffee and vanilla beans"

USDA Certified Organic beer.

Near black. Dark mahogany brown hues under the light. Dark beige head, like the foam
of soda pop. Solid retention.

In the nose are sharp, rich coffee notes; freshly ground. Some sweetness is discernable;
could be yeast, could be residiual sugars, might be both. Another glance at the label
reminds me of the vanilla beans addition to this brew. Notwithstanding other
complexities, roasted coffee is the most prominent element in this beer's aroma.

Medium-heavy bodied, dark roasted coffee flavor, bittering hops with a coffee-like
astringency, dark chocolate dryness on the tongue, and a sweetened finish round
this brew out. A number of layers keep it interesting and worth examining with the
palate.

Certainly unique and unlike other porters. It doesn't play the modern fence
between porter and stout. It's porter-ish, but more coffee-ish than anything. Standard
bearer for a new style, perhaps? Category: Coffee Ales. Sub-Category: Coffee Porters.

I can't think of another beer it reminds me of. Search this
out and take it home. Lastly, cocoa flavors become more pronounced as the beer warms
up.

IPA Showdown: Great Lakes' Commodore Perry vs Bell's Two Hearted Ale

(A few weeks back)

Stopped into Guntown Beer today knowing I wanted to buy a beer or two, but unsure of what I was in the mood for. I ended up picking up 2 previously had IPAs, both of which I enjoy: Great Lakes' Commodore Perry and Bell's Two Hearted Ale. I've decided to try one after the other because they have different perspectives on the style to offer.



Commodore Perry has an "enjoy by" date of 12/30/12 on the right side of the label.

General notes: 7.5% ABV; tawny-orange body; bubbly white head with good retention. Lacing sticking all over the glass. Peachy in the nose; herbal; leafy; alcohol heat. Creamy taste; booze; bitter back end; peppery; spicy hops.

Overall, not for the faint of heart. Especially suitable for cold winter nights at a bar or one's home, but not as approachable as say, Dogfish Head's 60 Minute IPA or Saranac's India Pale Ale. I'd guess the heat and bitterness lingers too much for most folks to really enjoy this one. That said, I'd certainly recommend this to anyone with a well established beer palate.

On to Bell's Two Hearted Ale...



Two Hearted Ale has a "packaged on" date of 09/06/12 on the back label.

General notes: 7% ABV. tawny-orange, amber body. A bit darker than Commodore Perry. Fluffy white head. Bright and fruity in the nose; pineapple. Tinny/penny-like in the taste at first. Smooth. Bitter in the back end, but disappears gently. Floral and fruity hops. Creamy. Dry finish with fruity tones lingering lightly.

Overall: much more approachable than Commodore Perry. Great Lakes' offering isn't off balance, just overly alcoholic, while Two-Hearted is very balanced, just bitter enough, and pretty refreshing. You want more, instead of anticipating and fearing the heat. Bright fruits and a citrusy flash help the approachability of this beer.

Uinta Brewing Co's Punk'n

Notes from 10/28/12

Punk'n (Harvest Pumpkin Ale), 12 fl oz "Ale brewed with pumpkin & spices." Oddly enough, the left side of the label says "3% organic ingredients." That said, I don't expect the green movement to recommend this on the merits of organic ingredients.

Pours brown amber with a fluffy, egg-white head. Damn near opaque for the color.

Pumpkin spices are pleasant in the nose and not over the top. Floral; toasted squash; dark bread; cinnamon and brown sugar.

Ghord/pumpkin taste hits the buds subtly (autumn vegetable hint). Not too spicy; pretty reserved, including the bittering hops.

Good choice if looking for a pumpkin beer beyond the mediocre, ubiquitous options.

Appearance: 4    Aroma: 4    Taste: 3.5    Feel: 3.5    Overall: 3.5 out of 5
An original photo (I take them every once in a while)...