Beer. Beer. And more beer.

[IggytheBorg]

Drinking my way a few beers a night thru a case of Flying Dog Woody Creek White, their summer seasonal. Really good. Nice spicy unfiltered wheat profile. Slightly sweet, refreshing aftertaste. Great warm weather beer.

Also, Weyerbacher last Chance IPA is an excellent example of that style. Assertive but never overpowering hop bitterness, almost undetectable malt.

[IggytheBorg]

Tried some of the Sam's Oktoberfest a little while ago. Meh. lot of malt sweetnes, which never gets cloying, but just didn't light my fire. I have come to the conclusion that I much prefer hops forward bees. Malt balancing is OK, but I think I'd take overly bitter over overly sweet. Stll looking for a champion Oktoberfest for this year's Hallowe'en porch sit.

[IggytheBorg]

Forgot to mention I tried some fLYING dOG dOGTOBERFEST, AND THIS WAS DAMNED GOOD. Probably te best Oktoberfest I've ever had. Sweet caramel malt flavor, as one expects in a marzen, but not overpowering or cloying at all. It had it all over Sam's.

[IggytheBorg]

As Itype this I am drinking Sam Adams Dark Depths Baltic Lager. This is really good shit. Extremely complex, it has a nice medium bitter hop forward start, balanced almost immediately by a sweet malt finish, with citrus notes on the aftertaste. One of the most wel balanced beers I have ever had. Dark le stout, too, w/ a big, foamy head. Just awesome.

[IggytheBorg]

I used my B'Day Amazon Gift Card to purchase Garrett Oliver's "The BrewMaster's Table", & I'm planning on being a beer matching madman this vacation. He goes to great lengths to describe some notable examples of every style, with flavor profiles described & food pairings suggested for all of them. While I didn't match it w/ anything, I drank a couple classics (according to Garrett) I hadn't yet had last night: Hoegaarden wheat beer, & Fat Tire Belgian Style Amber ale. Both of these are great. They're classics for a reason. The Hoegaarden has a wonderfully light, citrusy flavor, and a remarkably dry, clean finish (with maybe just a hint of the coriander it's spiced with). I had one on tap at the office X-mas party last week, which was even better, but the bottled variety is delicious. Can't wait to pair this w/ a goat cheese omelette. The Fat Tire had a bready core, with very mild bitterness, & a clean finish. I'm absolutely kicking myself for not trying this one sooner. According to Garrett, this one used to be even better, when they first started making it, and mass production has taken a little of the shine off it (although it's still awesome, even in Garrett's opinion). It's heartbreaking that I'll never get to try the original version.

I also bought an Ommegang Hennepin, A Sam Adams Griffin's Bow golden barleywine, a Dragon's Milk Bourbon Aged Stout, a single bottle of Smuttynose Old Brown Dog, & a Samuel Smith's Pale Ale. Almost all of them are for planned food pairings later this week. My brother bought me a 12 pack of Mexican beers, which was all I had on hand until last night's foray to the best local beer store here in MB. I tried pairing Dos Equis Amber with the turkey (amber is like the utility infielder of beer/food pairiings; it seems to go w/ almost everything), but this is such a flavorless mass produced ber it did nothing for the dish. However, wile I didn't pair it w/ anything, I have developed a new respect for Sol. Much more pleasant & complex than any other Mexican beer I've had to date.

[Abraham Smashington]

so fucking happy that I found a store by my place that sells Surly: Furious

SOOO O GOOOODDD MMAANNNNN

[IggytheBorg]

Tried Garrett Oliver's suggestion of a goat cheese omelette with Hoegaarden Belgian witbier. It didn't set my palate on fire or anything, like the Sam Adams & my chili did. But he said: "this beer will be more refreshing than any glass of orange juice you've ever had". And it was. Definitely a good, & highly recommended pairing.

[BillyG]

The Woodchuck Fall Cider tastes like xmas. I want it forever.

[IggytheBorg]

Tried some of the Sam Adams Double Agent IPL. yes, IPL. I was in the mood for something hoppy and bitter, like an IPA, and this beer promised it was heavy on the piney, citrusy hop flavors. It filled the bill quite nicely. It is described as an IPA brewed in the lager style, & with a different kind & quantity of malts, "for the cean finish of a lager". Maybe it's just the power of suggestion, but it really did seem like it finished cleaner than an IPA would have. No appreciable aftertaste. Good stuff, and only 5% ABV, so it won't get ya plastered like some IPA's can. It paired well w/ the stilton-like blue from Valley Shepherd, lifting the creamy cheese paste from the palate & cleansing it with hop grapefruit bitterness. It also stood up well to my wife's turkey chili (heavily fortified w/ habanero hot sauce). looking forward to drinking the rest.

[BillyG]

Karbach Brewing Firefighter Saison is out, and fuuuuuuck I hope they don't keep it around just as a seasonal. Great beer.

[BMichaelKrol]

I haven't had a decent beer since I had the Black Metal stout a few months back.

[IggytheBorg]

Anybody had that pre-prohibition recipe Batch 19? I had a 6 of it in my hand the night I bought the Sam's, & the description intrigued me enough to make it a must buy sometime soon. Curious what you all thought of it, if you've had the pleasure.

[IggytheBorg]

At Garrett's suggestion, bought some Humboldt Fog aged chevre & paired it with some Ommegang Witte. I was a little less than impressed. Witte seemed really watery to me. No body at all. That turned me off so much, as did the overly high (IMO) carbonation (it felt/tasted more like club soda than beer), that I didn't really notice the taste much. I did detect a somewhat grassy/hay - like flavor, and some sweetness, but the above mentioned flaws so detracted from it that I ddin't find them pleasant.

[IggytheBorg]

Also, Edmund Fitzgerald is a delightfully smoky Porter. Exceptionally well balanced between the malty sweetness & hop bitterness playing off the smoke as wellI'm not really that big into porters; IMO they tend to be overly malty & cloying, & I rarely if ever find myself reaching for one. But Garrett's review had me intrigued enough (as did Ingrid's review several years ago) to overcome my usual prejudice & give it a go. I'll probably buy more of this, and plan on pairing the two I have left with a grilled steak and a grilled burger (the smoky notes suposedly play well off the carmelized/smoky flavors in grilled meats). And if you drink enough of it, it can get you wrecked!

[BMichaelKrol]

If you have the opportunity, pick up a Sam Smith's strawberry beer. It's well worth your time.