CS Booze Club.

[NecessaryCatharsis]

New reviews:

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Now I have to decide between the Double IPA and the Shelterbelt. this is not going to be easy.

How are you still able to type

[Victory Sabre]

Very simple, they were about 3 oz each.

Now on to how I solved my serious dilemma: I got them both.

Tonight, when I get home from work, I will be reviewing the Chocolate Stout from West O Brewing out of Okoboji Iowa. I have a feling it will blow me away, since it took a gold medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival in the Sweet or Cream Stout Category in Denver.

I was shocked to see it in Mankato this morning because i had no idea it had crossed the border.,

[Victory Sabre]

West O ChocO Chocolate Stout

Pitch black, and pours like motor oil. Nice dark head, but it goes away fairly quickly. The nose is, well, chocolate.

Taste : oh my oh my oh my! CHOCOLATE! I have had other ones that were amazing, well, this takes it to the next level. It is so rich in chocolate flavor. It is so smooth going down. Yes, I can see why this little brewery in northern Iowa won the award.

9.5 out of 10

[Victory Sabre]

Haymaker IPA from the Mankato Brewing Company, out of Mankato Minnesota. 6.8% ABV, 92 IBU, & 1.062 OG

92 IBU, I might be in for a treat.

Nice amber color with a thick head. The nose has a lot of hops in it.

Taste : for 92 IBU, it seems week in the hops department at first. The hops kick in later, with a pleasing, to me, hop bite. This is a very nice IPA, and I will get it again when I am next in the Mankato area, unless it's a Sunday, then I am SOL.
7 out of 10

[Victory Sabre]

My 151st unique beer for the year is

MOAR Historical India Pale Ale from Bent Brewstillery in Roseville, MN. 4.7 ABV 47 IBU

Light golden in color, with an insanely thick head. I could only get half of the can in the glass. The ose is got a decent hop smell.

Taste : for only 47 IBU, his beer has a pretty nice hop bite. Fairly easy to drink, and also enjoyable. I do love high octane IPAs, but this low one tastes pretty damn good.

6.5 out of 10

[Victory Sabre]

Continuing on with beer #152, another Mankato Brewing Company beer.

Duly Noted American Pale Ale. 5.4% ABV, 40 IBU, 1.046 OG
Golden colored, with A frohyhead. Hops on the nose.

Taste : fairly standard APA. It is good, but nothing that blows me away.

5.5 out of 10

Beer 153 will be Shell's Shocked. I did, and Jester has also reviewed it.

I am trying to only drink Minnesota beers this week, because it is Minnesota craft beer week, though I failed already with a Xingu a few nights ago.

[Jester]

Very simple, they were about 3 oz each.

For those who have never done flights of beer, it's important to understand that a flight by definition is a selection of small samples. In the beer flights I've seen, each beer is anywhere from 3-6 oz, making things far more manageable. The whole purpose of a flight is to sample different beers, which is hard to do if they're all full-sized.

Not that I'd be above that particular challenge, mind you.....

Now on to how I solved my serious dilemma: I got them both.

Woulda been my advice.

I am trying to only drink Minnesota beers this week, because it is Minnesota craft beer week, though I failed already with a Xingu a few nights ago.

The words "Xingu" and "fail" never belong in the same sentence together, unless it's along the lines of "I failed to drink the Xingu they offed me, so clearly I fail at life." Or perhaps, "That beer failed to live up to the awesomeness of Xingu."

When you're drinking Xingu, you are not failing. Period.

[Jester]

A new Innis & Gunn! Happy day! (Well, new for me, anyway.) And its a morning beer, coming on a day off where all I have to do is get a haircut, make a bank deposit, and do some laundry.

Innis & Gunn Rare Oak Pale Ale (Scotland, 5.8% ABV): from their label: "Golden ale with natural flavour matured over Scottish oak."

Golden in color with extremely high clarity. Basically, I could read a newspaper on the other side of the glass. Smooth, pleasant, beery nose. Very smooth, slight bite, a bit of caramel. Fantastic beer. Very drinkable, very tasty. Would go with any food, for any reason, except perhaps dessert. 8.0.

Not surprising, coming as it does from one of my favorite breweries. If it was legal to marry a brewery, I'd marry I&G. Few mornings of doing nothing can be as awesome as this morning of doing nothing!

Edited to Add: For anyone that knows of my love for the number 3, it seems highly appropriate that this beer, from one of my favorite breweries, would be #333 on the year. And I'm a third of the way to my goal of 1,000 unique beers in a year!

[Victory Sabre]

Yes, Jester, you are right about the Xingu. It is like Guiness - nectar of the gods. And you've also seen me at the point where I can no longer physically drink. I would even have to turn down Xingu at that point, and it would pain me to do so.


Now to another review, and another new Minnesota beer, to continue with Minnesota craft beer week.

Mankato Brewing Company Organ Grinder Amber Ale - 5.6% ABV, 30 IBU, 1.050 OG.

Light amber colored, with a thick, frothy head. There is no nose.

Taste: Well, fairly standard Amber Ale. There is a slight sweetness to it. Not too bad, fairly easy drinking beer.

6 out of 10.

[Jester]

And you've also seen me at the point where I can no longer physically drink.

About 3-4 beers usually does it.

Okay, that was semi-joking. The following isn't:

My 5'1" 100 lb niece could out drink you. My 4'11" 125 lb (mostly boobs) female friend could easily outdrink you.

The upside is, you're a cheap date, Vic.

[Jester]

Form the Czech Republic, Holba Classic Pale Beer, "Pure beer from the mountains," as the label says (4.2% ABV). Golden in color, high clarity. Beery nose. Flavorful with a light body. Refreshing and tasty. Decent. 6.0.

[Jester]

From Sixpoint Brewery out of Brooklyn, New York, I have a can of Bengali (6.5% ABV), which doesn't say on the can what kind of beer it is, but since it does say it is 69 IBU's, chances are good it may be a bit too hoppy for me.

Color is dark amber, with a thick white fluffy head. Nose is very hoppy. Uh oh. Actually, not bad. Not as hoppy as I'd expected. Tasty. Hoppy, yes, but still tasty. I'd drink it. Actually, that's just what I'm gonna do, as I spend some quality time with my DVR, which I never got around to doing this morning. Score of the beer: decent 6.0.

[Jester]

From Humboldt Brewing in Pasa Robles, California, it's Humboldt Brown, an "ale brewed with hemp (5.7% ABV).

Dark brown color, virtually no head. Nose is funky: hints of coffee, chocolate, brown sugar, hops, and something, well, dank. Interesting taste. Dunno that I can put my finger on it. Sort of a watery coffeeish mocha malty light dank funky thing. Odd, but nice. Interesting, but meh. I had higher hopes for it. No better than a 5.5.

[Victory Sabre]

Tonight will be a detour from he Minnesota craft beers. Tonight iItake a leap across the pond, and, based on the name, I think it will be good

Old Engine Oil Black Ale from Harviestoun Brewing in Scotland. 6% ABV

Pours and looks as expected, like old engine oil. Thre is very little head. The nose is chocolate.

Taste : not bad. There is a slight chocolate taste to it. I do get the malts, as well. There is also a slight smoke flavor to it. I wasn't expecting that, but like it. Yep, very good.

8.5 out of 10.

I also picked up something I will revew down the road, and it was my most expensive, per ounce beer purchace ever. I got a bottle of Avery Brewing Annual Barrel Series Batch #4 that clocks in at 16.9% ABV. It set me back $16 for a 12 oz bottle. I hope it will be worth it.

[Jester]

Old Engine Oil Black Ale from Harviestoun Brewing

I've said for years that if a beer poured like motor oil, I'd love it. So several years ago, when I was at my favorite liquor store up in Miami, and saw that beer there, I naturally had to buy it. It did not disappoint. That was my first beer by that brewery, and my first beer from Scotland. It would not be my last in either category, much to my great pleasure.

On my recent vacation, at one of the World of Beers I stopped at, I noticed, directly in front of where I was sitting, an Old Engine Oil bottle sitting in the cooler. Bu this one looked a bit different. I asked the bartender if I could see it, and upon closer inspection, discovered it to be the "Engineer's Reserve" version. My mind: "Holy shit!" I also noticed that this was the only one in that cooler. When I asked about that, the bartender told me it was the last one. I said, "Not anymore, because it's leaving with me." She asked if I wanted it put in the cooler until I left, and I told her no, because I didnt want to chance forgetting it or someone else getting it, and besides, it was going in my truck for much later consumption. I brought it all the way back to KW, and am waiting for the right day to drink it. Maybe my birthday.

If you're wondering, the Engineer's Reserve is a 9.0% ABV version. I can only imagine.....for now.

I also picked up something I will revew down the road, and it was my most expensive, per ounce beer purchace ever. I got a bottle of Avery Brewing Annual Barrel Series Batch #4 that clocks in at 16.9% ABV. It set me back $16 for a 12 oz bottle. I hope it will be worth it.

A few months ago I purchased my most expensive beer to date, at $50 for a bomber sized bottle, though with a discount I received, it was "only" $35. It was so worth it.

Now, will that mean your Avery is worth it? Dunno. Avery is a fine brewery, so I imagine so. But it's a crap shoot. And that is part of the fun of this exploration we're on!