So Long 2011

Since I won't be drinking any new beers tonight, and anything new I drink tomorrow night probably won't be remembered, I think I can safely say that my Mmmm, beers! writing for the year is finished. Let's reminisce a bit, and take a look forward to what 2012 might bring.

First of all, I doubt that there will be as many posts next year. I would like to try 100 new beers, but I also would like to go back to some of the ones I really liked and enjoy them again. As the days were ticking by this year, I realized that sometimes I forced myself to drink something new when I was really in the mood for a classic like BBC's Coffeehouse Porter. That's just silly.

I think maybe I should try something like New Beer Wednesday, since I have such easy access to package stores (I think Kate and I counted 5 within a mile of our house), including Ryan & Casey. R&C has a fairly huge variety, although I'm sure there might be that one guy who might be reading this who has been somewhere else with a much bigger selection and will feel the need to scoff. Whatever bro, no one likes a story-topper.

I'm really looking forward to my next trip to Table & Vine, which will proceed with me being armed with a gift card. That will probably kick off the incoming year with a whole slew of new beers, as I've already begun constructing a game plan based around beers I've wanted to try but was hesitant to buy due to their price. Not an issue now. I might even write a whole post about how exciting it is to shop for beer with what is essentially a blank check.

If you haven't noticed yet, these paragraphs are not really linked in any coherent way.

I have been looking into the necessary steps for gaining a certification in beer knowledge and what not. Perhaps you've heard, but I've kind of potentially decided that maybe teaching mathematics is not the career for me. Most careers are actually not that appealing, but I think that a career in the beer industry might work out. There are 3 levels of certification, so we'll see what happens. I'll keep you posted.

I think that this year might have been unfairly dominated by stouts and IPAs. And pretty much exclusively American beers. And while I enjoy supporting the American beer culture, I feel that I need to expand my global drinking. There's too much beer out there to limit myself. I will try to limit myself to only 40% of my new beers being stouts and IPAs and at least 1 beer in 10 being from outside the US for the next year. This seems like a good goal, and it will allow me the freedom to drink my favorites as well.

I'm looking forward to a new year of new beer. Hopefully I can get you to drink some good stuff too.

-Jon

Hope Street Bitter

Beer Name: Hope Street Bitter
Brewery: The People's Pint
ABV: 5.1%
Serving method: 16-oz draught in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

I don't usually drink a lot of ESBs, but I don't really know why. Maybe I've been a little too focused on the IPAs and stouts. But I suppose that if I'm going to be a world-renowned beer expert, I need to expand my preferences. Just not white ales, because coriander is gross.

Hope Street Bitter is a light brown colored beer, sort of coppery. It didn't have much head when it arrived, but then again, it's an English-styled beer and those seem to be lacking in the head and carbonation departments. The aroma was hoppier than I was expecting, and also had some graininess and a little bit of malt.

I am not really sure what to look for in a bitter, so I'm not sure if this was a good representative of the style. It's a pretty light beer, with a little bitterness from the hops along with some bready flavors. There's also a sweetness to it. The beer is not very carbonated, so it's lacking something in the mouthfeel. The beer has a pretty noticeable aftertaste, but it's nothing bad.

Final thought - At first, this beer was nice and hoppy (without being too hoppy) and very enjoyable. As it warmed up though, the nice flavors disappeared and it became watery and sort of disappointing. Luckily, it's easy enough to drink that you can plow through it before it loses its appeal.

-Jon

Red Rock Ale

Beer Name: Red Rock Amber Ale
Brewery: Opa-Opa Steakhouse & Brewery
ABV: 6%
Serving method: 12-oz bottle
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Born 11/5/11

I'm a little bit surprised that this beer hasn't been featured here before. Has it really been over 16 months since the last time I drank one? Time sure flies.

I was drinking these bad boys straight from the bottle, but I've had enough on draught to know some of the important details. Red Rock is a redding copper colored beer that has a little bit of head, but that's not really what it's all about. The aroma is a mixture of light hops and malt, and everything here seems to be in balance. Nothing too outstanding, but nothing bad either.

Much like the aroma, everything is here in balance. There are some nice malty flavors with very light hints of fruitiness. There are also some grassy hops, but nothing bitter. The whole thing has a little bit of a roasted or toasted flavor. Good carbonation for the flavors, and the beer is easy drinking.

Final thought - I like the Red Rocks, so long as they are nice and cold. This is not a beer that stands up to a temperature shift very well though, so be sure to keep them well refrigerated.

-Jon

Midnight Special

Beer Name: Midnight Special
Brewery: The People's Pint
ABV: 8.4%
Serving method: An unknown amount in a snifter
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

Yup, the beer was served to me in a snifter. I felt super classy. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like doing the necessary calculations to determine the volume of said snifter, so that particular value must remain a mystery.

Midnight Special is a very dark beer, practically black, that did not have much head on it, but the small amount that was there left a pretty heavy lacing pattern behind while sticking around for much of the glass. The beer has a very hoppy aroma, but doesn't have the malt that I was expecting from both the description and the style.

Wow, this beer packs a bitter punch. The hops from the aroma were not lying about the hoppiness of the beer. There is a little bit of malt in the background, but mostly you're looking at a big hoppy blast with every sip. The finish is a little bit dry, along with the bitterness. Despite all of that bitterness and dryness, the beer is still pretty smooth. It has a little bit of carbonation, so the whole thing is fairly easy drinking.

Final thought - This beer was a little too intense for me. It packed quite the hoppy punch, but it didn't have the malty balance that seemed to be called for. I think I'll stick to their Pied pIPA for my daily hop requirements in the future. This is not a beer for the faint hearted hop haters out there.

-Jon

Husky Imperial Stout

Beer Name: Husky Imperial Stout
Brewery: Big Time Brewery & Alehouse
ABV: 9% (maybe)
Serving method: 16-oz draft in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

It was very difficult to find any information about this beer or brewery other than the fact that it is out of Washington and has a website that is in desperate need of updating.

I chose the Husky Imperial Stout to go with my giant plate of barbecued food because I generally love stouts and also because it had a cool name. The beer arrived with a very thin layer of head that lasted for quite a while and left a good lacing pattern that only faded because I took quite a long time to finish this beer. There are big aromas of creamy coffee and chocolate with some roasted notes.

This beer feels so thick and rich that it's like drinking a beer milkshake. Every single sip was a giant taste explosion. There is a whole lot of flavor going on here, mostly some bitter coffee with a little bit of roasted chocolate. The beer has a very creamy mouthfeel, although the flavors really dominate your tastebuds. There is a light carbonation here, so the beer is fairly easy to drink other than it's giant ABV.

Final thought - This was a very tasty beer, but after a whole day of drinking beers and a plate of 4 kinds of barbecued meat I sadly could not finish it. I know, it's very sad. But don't take my inability to finish as a condemnation of the beer, which was actually very good. Just don't wait until the end of a long day to try it.

-Jon

Alpine

Beer Name: Alpine Black IPA
Brewery: Otter Creek Brewing
ABV: 6%
Serving method: 16-oz draft in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

After an afternoon spent drinking, the plan was to head over to Red Bones to cap the evening off with some more beer and some delicious barbecued meats. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), there was a very long wait, so we had to get another beer at another beer establishment.

That beer ended up being the Black IPA (which is apparently called "Alpine") from Otter Creek. I was starting to lose my concentration at this point, so this might not be a completely accurate review. Comes with the territory though, and you didn't pay anything to read it, so suck it up and deal.

The Alpine Black IPA is a, probably pretty obviously, dark beer that poured with about a finger of head. The retention for the head was pretty good, and it left a good lacing pattern behind. There is a nice aroma of hops here, but there's also a whole lot of roasted maltiness going on as well.

The Black IPA (or American black ale) style is supposed to be a mix of the hoppiness of an IPA and the maltiness of a black ale, and Alpine delivers. There are piney and citrusy hop flavors up front, and the deep roasted malt flavors follow those up. The finish is slightly bitter, but nothing too harsh on the tongue.

Final thought - I am not sure where the name Alpine comes from, because the bottles are not labeled with it anymore. Other than that little issue, this is a good beer, and I'd definitely have some more.

-Jon

The Buk

Beer Name: The Buk Pale Ale
Brewery: Wormtown Brewing Co.
ABV: 5.5%
Serving method: 16-oz draft in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

This beer marks the 100th beer review of the year, meaning I actually accomplished something I set out to do without giving up in the middle like I usually do after I get bored. Hooray! Go me!!

The Buk is a special beer from Wormtown that only seems to be available on draft in the more eastern portions of Massachusetts. Whatever, elitist jerks. It's a fairly light beer, sort of a golden amber color, more on the golden side. It has a fairly hoppy aroma, but also some wheat- or bread- or grain-like scents in there. It arrived with a good sized head that slowly faded, leaving some lacing behind.

I didn't know what exactly to expect from this beer, since "pale ale" encompasses a wide variety of flavors. Luckily, this one is technically an American pale ale, which is the type I prefer as they tend to be hoppier than their British counterparts. There's a nice balance of the hop bitterness with the grainy malts here, and the whole thing works well. The beer has a good amount of carbonation, which works well with the flavor and gives it a nice drinkable quality.

Final thought - I would drink this beer again. You know, assuming I can find it. It's possible that, after drinking the Hoptical Illusion, my palate was set up to enjoy this beer with its more balanced flavor. I think that I was going to enjoy it no matter what though.

-Jon

Hoptical Illusion

Beer Name: Hoptical Illusion
Brewery: Blue Point Brewing Company
ABV: 6.8%
Serving method: 12-oz bottle in a Weizen glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

If you're wondering, the answer is yes: I ordered this beer strictly because of the name.

Hoptical Illusion is a coppery orange beer that started off with a nice head that mostly faded away in the first few minutes. A thin layer remained, and it left a moderate lacing pattern on the glass. There is a strong hoppy aroma, mostly citrusy. There is also some maltiness, but it's only faint.

Lots of hoppiness and bitterness in this beer. The hops have a nice citrus quality to them, but there isn't enough malt in the background to give it a nice balance. It's also incredibly dry. And what I'm saying here is that after each sip, I feel like I need to drink something else to get my saliva flowing again. This beer is pretty highly carbonated, which, when combined with the bitterness and dryness, makes it a little bit rough in the drinkability department.

Final thought - This is alright, but wouldn't be one of my top choices for IPAs if there were others available. It's a bit too dry for me.

-Jon

Applehead

Beer Name: Applehead
Brewery: Shipyard Brewing Company
ABV: 4.5%
Serving method: 12-oz bottle
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

Is this the spiritual successor to the widely loved Pumpkinhead? Only a bottle or two can answer that question.

Applehead is a sort of coppery beer. I guess the best description of its appearance would be that it looks like apple juice. You can try to force some head during the pour, but, much like its pumpkin cousin, this beer just does not produce any kind of head. And, it follows from that, it also doesn't produce any lacing. That's just how it goes with this type of beer. There is a strong spice aroma, sort of like an apple pie.

Hmm. I taste lots of spices, but I am not tasting much apple. If I really concentrate, I think I can convince myself that I'm tasting in the background. But it's definitely overpowered by the flavors of the spice. The beer is very lightly carbonated, and it's super smooth. If you enjoy the flavor, you could easily drink a bunch of these in a sitting.

Final thought - Needs more apple. It has a lot of apple pie spice flavor, but it's missing the actual apple. Not a bad beer, but not something I'd be looking forward to year after year.

-Jon

Fumata Nera

Beer Name: Fumata Nera
Brewery: High and Mighty Beer Company
ABV: Unknown
Serving method: 16-oz draft in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

I should probably be concerned that this beer is not even featured on High & Mighty's website. Does that mean that they aren't proud of it? Or that they don't want people to know about it because it didn't come out deliciously? Good thing I had already finished drinking it before I decided to read up on it.

Fumata Nera is Italian for "black smoke," which makes sense as this is a smoked rye beer. It's a very dark beer, but the degree of darkness is hard to specify because the restaurant is a pretty dark one. The beer arrived with very little head, but there was a think layer that stuck around for about half of the glass, and it left a good lacing pattern behind. There was a very strong aroma of smoked malts.

As expected, this beer's flavor was very much in the roasted department. I believe this is the kind of beer that Kate says tastes like meat. Lots of smokey malt flavor, and maybe a little bit of hops bitterness in there as well. This was a nicely drinkable beer that went along nicely with some food, but would have been enjoyable without it as well.

Final thought - Whether or not the brewery is proud of it, I would drink this beer again. I will throw in the caveat that it seems like a beer that is going to be more enjoyable on draft than from a bottle though.

-Jon