Beer. Beer. And more beer.

[BillyG]

St. Arnold's is ending the Texas Wheat beer after 17 years. Boooooooooooooooo.

But!

They are replacing it with the limited edition Fancy Lawnmower aka Weedwacker that they put out last fall. A damn fine hefeweizen.

[IggytheBorg]

Drank some Victory Wild Devil the other night. I was a little leery of tjhis, as it's sort of an Americanized version of their Hop Devil variety (which, as the name implies, was really, really hoppy; a little to much so, if you ask me). It supposedly utilizes an American strain of yeast in the fermentation. The result is a hoppy, flavorful but smooth & never bitter beer. The piney, citrusy accents of the hops were front & center, with no malty sweetness cloying the aftertaste as often happens with hop forward beers. Very drinkable. Much more so than the Hop Devil. Given a choice, I'd probably still gravitate toward Stone Ruination, but still.

[V]

I like Natty Ice...

[IggytheBorg]

Drinking some leftovers from last weekend's party. Heavy Seas Brewing Co. Small Craft Warning Uber Pils and Victory Headwaters Pale Ale. The former is a bit malt heavy, and I initially didn't like it at all. But repeated exposure is causing it to grow on me. Still a little too malty for my taste, but the hop aftertaste balances it out a bit. Not something I'd buy again. The Victory is OK, mainly a hoppy bitter flavor. I have to admit I'm not overly impressed w/ Victory's output. Given a choice between this and say Stone's Pale Ale, Stone would win. BUt only by a nose.

[IggytheBorg]

Currently drinking some Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale. I had initially avoided this brew because it says on the label they used caramelized brown sugar to brew this, and I figured it'd be sickly sweet. Not so. It does have a nice sweet aftertsate, but no more so than you'd get from judicious use of malt. It is heavily hopped, however, so it has some robustness going in that balances the sweetness very nicely. It's a layered & complex beer, and a very enjoyable medium bodied drinking experience. I think I'll buy this again. It is one of the best brown/amber ales I've tried (Otter Creek Copper and Newcastle being the others). Nicely done.

[BillyG]

Had some Paulaner Hefeweizen last night, a personal favorite, and Rogue Dead Guy. Odd beer. Went down very smooth, but soon as it hits your belly it turns extremely brackish.

[IggytheBorg]

Yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about Dead Guy, either. I had it once, and I think I liked it, but every time I see it in a store, I don't consider buying it for more than a second. It was kind of heavy, as I recall. Not a warm, summer night brew.

[Captain Russ]

It's actually pretty light, but can overwhelm if one overestimates their tolerance level.

Dead Guy is always a fun way to take the train to Drunkland.

[BillyG]

Yeah, it's crazy light until it hits your stomach imo.

[IggytheBorg]

I didn't mean heavy in body, but heavy on the hops bitters. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing.

[Captain Russ]

Hops in brews have a place, but it only takes a little to ruin really good shit.

[IggytheBorg]

Currently enjoying some Left Hand Brewing Company Stranger American Pale Ale. Pretty good stuff. Got a nice malty up front profile, with just the right hops bitterness component to offset that on the finish, and an undertone I couldn't identify till I cheated & read the box again: spicy. It's not flavored with spices or anything, it just has a spice component to it. Not very strong ABV wise (at least, I don't think so; the bottles don't say), but otherwise very good all around.

[IggytheBorg]

Hops in brews have a place, but it only takes a little to ruin really good shit.

Is Dead Guy so ruined, in your opinion? I'm vacillating between yes & no myself. I really do have to try it again to make up my mind.

[Captain Russ]

Honestly, it wavers batch to batch for me.

Sometimes it is like heaven was in the brewery that day, and others it feels like I've been swindled and forced to drink boilermakers until I die.

[Shit Dickface]

Bought a sixer of Shiner Bock to share with Kathleen, got home, cracked the first one open, and the top came off way too easily then I realized that some shithead had opened the bottle, drank part of it, and put it back. Way to go, Mid-City drunks.