Harvest Ale

Beer Name: Harvest Ale
Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing Company
ABV: 6.7%
Serving method: 12-oz bottle in a pint glass
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: It's "DOB" was 0?/29/11... it was partly scratched off.

Apparently Southern Tier actually does put dates on their bottles, but they come off very easily. As in just rubbing my finger against the date makes it rub off. What kind of adhesive are they using, wishes?

Harvest Ale is a copper-colored beer that pours with a light head (just under half an inch I'd say) that quickly fades, leaving a light lacing pattern behind. The aroma is fantastic, with citrus hops, mainly grapefruit, and caramel maltiness. If the flavor is half as good as this aroma is predicting, then this beer will be... well, pretty average. Maybe I should be shooting for at least 3/4 as good.

Well, I'm not sure I can be exact with the percentages, but this is a pretty tasty beer that doesn't quite live up to the aroma's hype. Although it's classified as an ESB, it drinks like a mild IPA. It has a light hoppiness to it, but it's balanced nicely by the malt. The finish is slightly bitter, with an aftertaste that lingers a bit, but not too long. There's a little carbonation, probably just above what I'd consider "light" carbonation. The overall bitterness increases as it warms up, so take that into consideration depending on your enjoyment of hops.

Final thought - I enjoyed this beer, but I think it would have been better paired with food. It seems like the perfect beer to drink with a meal, as it has a good flavor that wouldn't overpower any foods, but also wouldn't be covered up. I'm not really an expert on food pairings though, so I don't know what it would work with. Probably something with BBQ sauce.

-Jon

Old Thumper

Beer Name: Old Thumper Extra Special Ale
Brewery: Shipyard Brewing Company
ABV: 5.9%
Serving method: 12-oz bottle
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown, best by Dec 2010

So this beer has been hanging out in my fridge for a while for some reason or another, probably because I forgot about it or had other beers to drink or it was in the back behind some other beers and I couldn't see it. The point is, this is long overdue.

The first impression I get from this beer is that is sort of smells like bread. I am not sure if that's a possible beer smell, but there's something starchy going on here. Or grainy. Or buttery? Is that even a possibility? I really have to learn more about beer. Whatever goes on in bread is also going on here, ok?

The taste is alright. There's some breadiness happening here too. Maybe some malt or caramel as well. It's got a sweetness to it, but I don't know if it fits with the other flavors. There's also a medium carbonation in this beer, which is probably too much. I believe it would have been better if it had been a little flatter, like a British beer. Especially since this seems like a beer that is brewed in imitation of a British beer.

Final thought - I don't know, I just don't care for Old Thumper. I want to like it, because it has an awesome name. It's also got a sweet label, but those things don't really come into play here. I don't think I'll be drinking much more of this in the future, especially since Shipyard has some other stuff that is much better.

-Jon

Extra Special Oak

Beer Name: Extra Special Oak
Brewery: Element Brewing Company
ABV: 7%
Serving method: 16-oz pint poured from a 25-oz bottle
Born/Bottled/Shipped on: Unknown

Ok, so maybe I bought all the different Element beers at the same time. They've just got so many bottles of them there, what was I supposed to do? Leave them behind? I just couldn't do that.

Extra Special Oak is Element's take on the Extra Special Bitter style of brewing. Since you might not know (I didn't), "bitter" is the name they use in England for pale ales. Extra Special ones are bitters that have at least 4.8% ABV, and this one clearly qualifies there. And the "oak" part comes because I believe that this beer is aged in oak casks. That makes a lot more sense that using oak in the brewing process. I am not positive about that last part though, so don't go around telling people that this beer is aged in oak casks like it's a fact.

ESO smells like beer. I can't pick up on any specific scents, but there's probably oak in there, and possibly some vanilla. I am just not sure what oak smells like. Maybe I'll go outside and smell some acorns or something. Probably not though. It has a light brown opaque color and not much head when it's poured, and the head disappears quickly.

The first taste of the ESO gives a slight feeling of carbonation, but not too much. There are some hints of some kind of spice, and then a taste of vanilla at the end. The beer doesn't have a strong aftertaste, and despite being called bitter, there really isn't much of a bitter taste.

Final thought - Extra Special Oak is a good beer, but I prefer Element's other offerings instead. I think it's definitely worth a try, especially if you like pale ales. I will stick to my dark beers though.

-Jon