CS Booze Club.

[SuperRTL]

I introduced my roomie to Woodchuck Pear Hard Cider draft over the weekend. I'd forgotten how much I loved it and he'd never liked a cider before. It's definitely a summer drink, though. Looking for good stuff for the winter.

[Jester]

Helped my friend celebrate his 40th birthday yesterday. Technically his birthday was the 26th of October, but as that was in the middle of the insanity of Fantasy Fest, he had his part a week later, when all his Parrothead friends were in town. (Yes, he's a Parrothead. No one's perfect.)

For his birthday, I bought him a bottle of Ron Centenario XX Anos, a lovely 20 year old rum from Costa Rica. Which I've had before, as we have it at my bar, but I always forget how damn tasty it is. Great sipping rum, but you can mix it as well, though I would never add more than an ice cube or two to it. Highly recommended, very smooth, with hints of brown sugar and vanilla in it, and only the slightest rum burn on the finish. You can't miss the bottle, either, as it comes completely wrapped in a very light leather. Yes, seriously. And that's a good way to know that you have the twenty year version, which is the best one that Centenario makes. At least that I've had.

I've tried the hot buttered type drinks and didn't really like them...but I can do with a nice mulled spiked cider. Yummm.

One of my favorite bars down here makes a hot mulled cider when it gets cold down here (well, cold for us), which they normally add Captain Morgan's too, though I usually get it with a better rum. Absolutely wonderful stuff!

I introduced my roomie to Woodchuck Pear Hard Cider draft over the weekend. I'd forgotten how much I loved it and he'd never liked a cider before. It's definitely a summer drink, though. Looking for good stuff for the winter.

I am fortunate enough to work at a bar that stocks this on draft. Wonderful stuff! (Whatever you do, though, absolutely avoid Woodchuck's Summer Cider. Tried it at World of Beer in Coconut Creek, and it's just simply dreadful.)

[Jester]

Time for a beer review. And rather than review three beers once each, I'm going to review one beer three times.

No, seriously.

I recently had Young's Double Chocolate Stout on draft, having only ever had it in cans. So I took some notes on it on my cellphone:

"First time on draft...great color, black with creamy tan head...wonderful rich malty nose, very chocolatey...rich chocolate taste, not as chocolatey as I remember the can being, but still wonderful. Score: 8."

Now we're going to see if my memory of the can is correct, AND how Young's is in a bottle, as I have one of each in my fridge.

As I generally prefer cans to bottles (though some of the new craft brewers are changing the world on that typical bias), the can first.

Pouring like muddy water, but the most beautiful muddy water you've ever seen, this stuff looks great. Dark, thick, rich....wonderful. I should note that this can seems to be like Guinness cans, as when you open it a special thingie in it (don't you love my technical terms) causes much carbonation and cascading. (Someone who knows more about this particular item, please feel free to comment. I just drink the stuff!)

The nose? Smells like a fresh-baked brownie. No, really. A fresh and gooey chocolate fudge brownie. And luckily for me, I already know that there are no disgusting walnuts in this beer!

The taste is smooth, and not as dark as you would expect. Creamy, and rich, and cocoa-ish. (Again with my technical jargon....) I should note here that, much like a good Guinness, this beer is holding its head for a good long period.
Still a good quarter inch head on it, and it's been sitting patiently while I've been typing, having only had one lovely sip.

Upon further drinking, the chocolate character makes itself more well-known, though still not overpowering. I may have been misremembering this beer when I said the draft wasn't as chocolatey, but either draft or can, you will be happy with Young's!

And now the bottle....

It might be my imagination, or it could be because of the lack of the thing that makes it cascade from the can, but the bottled version seems darker. Naturally no cascading, but it does have the same rich, creamy, tan head, though this one seems to dissipate faster.

The nose seems a bit less chocolatey, but still rich and delightful. Definitely more subtle, if nothing else.

Hmmm...it will take a few sips for my palate to adjust and detect any real differences....

There is a difference in texture, due to the difference in carbonation, but overall, the bottled version seems to have about the same taste as the canned version.

The chocolateyness doesn't seem to increase as much in the bottled version as the canned version, but it seems to start out at a higher initial level anyways, so that seems to balance out.

In the end, be it draft, can, or bottle, Young's is a fantastic beer, which I highly recommend, and give it a score, in any of the three mediums, of a solid 8.

Enjoy!

[thansal]

Disclaimer: I reference Guinness through because they are the ones to originate the little ball.

As I'm a sucker for gadgets, and love stout (though Guinness is actually one of my least favorite), I did some research on the little ball thing when they first came out.

It comes down to the fact that Guinness (and most other stouts) uses Nitrogen as well as CO2 for it's bubbles, which is why you get the distinctive head and smaller/fewer bubbles in the beer itself.

When on tap (as I'm guessing Jester is familiar with) the mixing is done via use of a different blend of gasses, and is helped along by a different tap system. To mimic this in a can they have to get the nitrogen in there some how, which doesn't work as it doesn't dissolve in beer as well as CO2 does. The ball is simply a small plastic ball with a tiny hole in it that is filled with nitrogen ahead of time, and then floated on top of the beer. Just before canning is complete they put in an extra shot of liquid nitrogen. Once canning is complete, the liquid nitrogen turns into a gas, increasing the internal pressure, forcing some amount of beer into the ball, thus condensing the nitrogen in the ball.

When you open the can this all sorta goes in reverse, the nitrogen/beer in the ball is forced out, rapidly combining the nitrogen with the beer, and giving you the nice head and smaller bubbles.

It's not perfect (a poured pint is still better), but it's much better than a flat pint :P


PS:
Totally not a fan of Youngs, or most chocolate stouts for that matter. They tend to be too sweet for me (much like Guinness). I mean, I will take one over an IPA (or when no other good beer (implying that youngs is good, not the reverse) is around), however I would rather have another stout or a porter my self.

I would totally be down for having it on tap one of these days though.

[Jester]

Excellent explanation. Thank you. But that brings up the obvious question of: why do they have that in cans, but not in bottles?

[thansal]

Excellent explanation. Thank you. But that brings up the obvious question of: why do they have that in cans, but not in bottles?

Because they do! The balls are not used for the obvious reason that they would block the pour completely :P

The bottle ones are not as common though (Why? I dono) and are shaped like tubes with little flanges on them. I only know of Guinness Draught coming with these, and are interestingly, designed to be drunk from the bottle, instead of pouring out (like the cans). I'm not as familiar with these, however a quick google says that it releases extra nitrogen each time you tilt the bottle, so it keeps a head on the beer in the bottle. Not sure how it works exactly though.

__________________________________________________ ___________

So.

I have sitting on my counter 3 bottles of Hudson Whiskey.

Why?

Because my friend bought them and left them here with the expectation of drinking them here. However, he has gone off to kill Bambi this weekend, so they sit there, staring at me...

I have tried 2 of Hudson's offerings, the Baby Bourbon, and the 4 grain bourbon.

I did enjoy the hell out of the Baby Bourbon. It's smoother than I generally associate with bourbon (not that I have much experience), and had lots of great flavors. Decidedly a drink I enjoy.

The 4 grain (one of the ones on our counter), is different than the baby. I would say it's a bit harsher, and kind of a bigger flavor, not necessarily my favorite, though I did enjoy it with some ice.

The other 2 are unopened, their single malt and their Corn Whiskey, and will stay unopened until we can get him back to our place (hopefully next weekend). I'm looking forward to trying the single malt, as I don't think I have ever actually had a single malt whiskey. The corn I'm unsure about. I assume it's good, but in my mind, un-aged, corn spirits is moonshine. So I guess I'm lookign forward to the corn also, just to know wth it is.

Yes, I have a whiskey friend, it's helpful as I know I like Whiskey, but I didn't have any one to drink it with (well, no one that knew anything about it).

[Jester]

I'm tired, unmotivated, a little sweaty from riding my bike home from downtown, thirsty from same, and feeling a bit down.

Perfect time for a New Beer Review!

Before I get to today's particular selection from the craft beer section of my fridge, I do want to comment on another beer I had today. I was eating lunch at a new place in town, and had already quaffed my first Sam Adams, but when I went to order a second, it turned out they were out of Sam, and offered me a Blue Moon instead. Since that seemed better than their other options at the moment, I took the Blue Moon....only to realize that it was not the regular Blue Moon at all, but one of their seasonal beers, in this case their Winter Abbey Ale.

It was tasty, a little rich, with some flavor, and worth drinking, but in the long run, it was ultimately rather forgettable. Since it was at least tasty I'll give it a 6, and if your watering hole has this, it might be worth investigating, since your individual mileage may, as always, vary.

Now, on to my fridge! And today I shall be trying Florida Beer's Conchtoberfest. This is the Conch Republic, it is their version of an Octoberfest....get it? Now, Florida Beer makes decent beers (their flagship being the Key West Sunset Ale), but nothing overly impressive, so I am starting out not expecting to be impressed by this offering of theirs either.

The color is a little light and a little red for an Octoberfest, but everyone has their own variations, so this may not be a bad thing. Just a different thing. The nose is all German, with plenty of forward malt making itself known. This is a very good thing in an Octoberfest!

Actually, surprisingly tasty. It is a bit light for an Octoberfest, but the expected flavors are there, and it is a refreshing little Marzen. Also may be the best thing I've had by Florida Beer Company, so bravo to them for it. (Also better than the aforementioned Blue Moon Winter Abbey Ale.) I am pleasantly surprised, not only by the taste, but by the fact that I am giving a product of FBC a score of 7. Well done, folks, well done.
And this is something odd. I somehow didn't notice it when I bought it, brought it home, or even when I got it out of the fridge, but just now I noticed that the bottle is not clear, brown, or green, as most beers are, but is actually BLUE glass. Nice touch. Different. Probably more expensive for them to buy. Again, well done.

[Jester]

Well that Conchtoberfest went down rather quickly. Guess it's time for a new beer!

Next up: from Highland Brewing Company (which is in the very famous part of Scotland called North Carolina), we have a Gaelic Ale. Some time ago, I reviewed HBC's Octoberfest here, and as I recall, it was decent, but nothing special....or perhaps even worse than that. Too lazy to bother looking back through my posts at the moment, but suffice it to say that HBC did not stick in my head as a brewery I would simply HAVE to check out again (as others, such as Breckenridge, Terrapin, and Hoppin' Frog, very much have).

Well, the Gaelic Ale LOOKS good. Nice ruby amber color. Off to a good start. The nose continues the positive outlook. It's nice, earthy, with a hint of oranges, and a general sweetness characteristic of red beers. They can call it Gaelic Ale, but clearly this is a red. At least, to the eyes and nostrils. The final judges, of course, shall be the taste buds. Interesting. Very interesting. And this is not necessarily the "wow, I've got to try more of this" interesting, or the "this is highly unusual and a very pleasant surprise" interesting, but somewhere along the lines of the "yes, that is the tie they bought him for Father's Day" interesting. It IS a red, but that hint of oranges on the nose is far more than a hint here, with a definite sour citrus element to the beer that is a bit offputting. There are a lot of flavors in this beer, without question, but the problem is, they don't all work in harmony. Frankly, this beer really doesn't work. Will I finish it? Yes. It's not horrible, just not that great. But, will I get another one? No. And after two mediocre outings with HBC, I don't see myself hunting down their product in the coolers of the local beer mongers. Final score: 4. And it scored that high only because the red base is solid, but they had to go and mess it up with....something. This beer, as my teachers said way too often about me to my parents, did not live up to its potential.

[Jester]

One more beer review? Oh, alright....if you insist. Let me wander over to the fridge and see what jumps out at me.....

From Red Brick Brewery in Atlanta, Georgia, we have the Smoked Vanilla Gorilla, part of their Brick Mason Series. One of the main guys at my main beer monger, who kind of knows my taste, was convinced I would LOVE this. The bottle is distinctive, being very dark brown, bordering on black. Amusingly enough, the beer could be described the exact same way, as long as you added the phrase "with a creamy tan head." The head dissipates very rapidly though (as I was typing the last sentence, actually), which is a worrisome sign. The nose is that of an earthy and sweet maltiness, but without any particularly distinctive aromas catching the senses. The taste is....interesting. VERY heavy on the smoke. I was expecting more vanilla and less smoke, especially since "Vanilla Gorilla" is in far more prominent font than "Smoked." The smokiness borders on being obnoxious, but doesn't quite cross into that realm. But it is very prominent. The vanilla is far subtler, but lends a certain crafty sweetness to the beer that juxtoposes nicely with the smoke, balancing it out a bit. This is a dark beer, without question, and if you are looking for something light and easy, the Gorilla is NOT your friend. It finishes sweetly, smoothly washing down most of the smoke, and leaving me with a perplexed and bemused smile. I don't know quite HOW to qualify or classify this beer.

This is truly an interesting beer, in both the best and worst senses of the word. This is not an every day beer, but it is a beer to be tried and savored from time to time. And I can't imagine this being anything but AWESOME with a really good barbecue meal. The Gorilla is confusing and complex, but it is certainly not boring. I think it gets a score of 7.5, but I'm still not entirely certain, even with a fourth of it gone.

I have been let down by so many "smoked" beers in the past, but this one brings out the best in that idea, reminding one of the sweet smoked meats a great barbecue place will bring you. This beer's a winner, for sure. Though clearly it is not for everyone.

Smoke 'em if you got 'em!

[KiaKat]

So.

I have sitting on my counter 3 bottles of Hudson Whiskey.

Why?

Because my friend bought them and left them here with the expectation of drinking them here. However, he has gone off to kill Bambi this weekend, so they sit there, staring at me...

I have tried 2 of Hudson's offerings, the Baby Bourbon, and the 4 grain bourbon.

I did enjoy the hell out of the Baby Bourbon. It's smoother than I generally associate with bourbon (not that I have much experience), and had lots of great flavors. Decidedly a drink I enjoy.

The 4 grain (one of the ones on our counter), is different than the baby. I would say it's a bit harsher, and kind of a bigger flavor, not necessarily my favorite, though I did enjoy it with some ice.

The other 2 are unopened, their single malt and their Corn Whiskey, and will stay unopened until we can get him back to our place (hopefully next weekend). I'm looking forward to trying the single malt, as I don't think I have ever actually had a single malt whiskey. The corn I'm unsure about. I assume it's good, but in my mind, un-aged, corn spirits is moonshine. So I guess I'm lookign forward to the corn also, just to know wth it is.

Yes, I have a whiskey friend, it's helpful as I know I like Whiskey, but I didn't have any one to drink it with (well, no one that knew anything about it).

BWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

We sell these. They're HUGELY popular, for $40 half-bottles.

The Corn Whiskey is moonshine. You've got it exactly right. Artesinally-produced moonshine.

Because these are small-batch whiskies, they'll differ from bottle-to-bottle - Batch 24 will be different from Batch 25, sometimes significantly. And these whiskies really do differ. The newer ones are much better than the older ones.

Their rye is the best of the five offerings. The single malt is ok, as is the Baby Bourbon, but I found the Four Grain to be pretty interesting, with more complexity. You can't approach it as you would a standard Bourbon, as it's not a corn mash, but rather a mix of all four whiskey grains. The sweetness will not be pronounced in the least, and there will be a bit of earthiness from the barley and rye grains.

Frankly, for the price, give me either Bulleit or WhistlePig.

[thansal]

Yah, the prices put me back a few when I saw his total buying them, even after a nice discount for being army.

I didn't notice that the bottles were individually labeled until today when I was randomly looking them over.

So, I have a question for Kai:

As a (iirc) Tri-state (former tri-state?) liquor store worker, do you know anything about Kings County Distillery?

I'm going to an event at AMNH this Monday called "Speakeasy: Prohibition-Era Cocktails", and Kinds County Distillery will be there as the oldest legal distillery within the city (at 18 months).

[KiaKat]

I know of it, but haven't tried it yet. They don't have upstate distribution (I'm up near Albany), so we haven't been able to try it. They don't self-distribute, so I don't really know why it's a problem to get them upstate, but they seem to be somewhat... unfocused.

Let me know what you think!

[Jester]

Unless I'm mistaken, I have not yet reviewed this beer here, which surprises me greatly. But after a bit of searching, I can't find a review of it by me here, so at the risk of repeating myself repeating myself repeating myself, here we go.

This is a beer I already know I love, Peg Leg Imperial Stout, from Clipper City Brewing Company out of Baltimore, Maryland. Peg Leg is part of their Heavy Seas series.

Pouring it is like pouring motor oil. As you may know from reading some of my past reviews, this is a definite plus in my book. The color continues the mechanical lubricant metaphor, as it is deep, dark, and thick, with only slight carbonation. The nose is rich, malty, and earthy, with a definite hint of chocolateness. (My reviews, I'll make up words if I damn well feel like it!)

But the most important thing, the taste. Oh, the taste. Rich and malty, unquestionably a stout, and with definite notes of chocolate and coffee, though neither are dominant, but merely accents to the star attraction, the roasted malt, which simply shines here.

If you like a rich and malty stout, find some Peg Leg Imperial Stout. The only way it will disappoint you is when you find you have no more. Score: A well-deserved and deeeeelicious 8.5.

[Jester]

Alrighty, time to read and respond to GK's weekly post, but to do that, of course, I'll need a beer to go along with it. Lemme see what I have in the fridge today....

An unusual choice for me today: Steen Brugge, a Belgian Tripel. I say it's unusual, because with a few exceptions, I don't generally like Belgian beers. (St. Martin's Tripel, however, is a taste of heaven that I recommend to anyone that wants a truly great beer experience.) The label says it is a "Tripel Ale with Spices." That's different. Also on the label it says "Brewed in Belgium. With Gruut." I haven't the vaguest idea what "gruut" is. I'm hoping it's not a biotoxin.

First thing I notice as I pour the Steen is how very carbonated it is. More than most beers. Which has caused a very large head, which is not dissipating very quickly, thus delaying my review. Damn it. Well, anyways, the color is a lighter golden amber, just a few shades darker than your typical crappy American macrobrew.

The nose smells almost like a typical beer, and at first you think it's nothing special, but if you dig a little deeper, really inhale it, you will find that it is actually slightly smoother, with a slight honey sweetness to it. There is some promise here.

But the ultimate test is, of course, taste. *sigh* It's tasty enough, and I am sure many people would enjoy it, but it has that odd, uniquely Belgian taste to it that I rarely enjoy. I'll finish this beer, to be sure, because I don't hate it (and I don't believe in alcohol abuse), and it's decent enough, but I can't say I really love it, or that I would get it again. Score: 5, though if you like Belgians, give it a try--and a review, as I admit I am not normally a fan.

Now I really want a St. Martin's Tripel.

[thansal]

So, as I mentioned, I went to a lecture last night on Prohibition, and Kings County Distillery was there with samples of their craft.

Their craft is currently limited to an unaged corn whiskey (NY Corn, and some Scottish malt), and a Bourbon.

Everything is apparently done in very small batches, and that includes their barrels for the bourbon.

The moonshine was really surprisingly good. It was smooth and clear, with a couple of nice flavours.

The Bourbon was really great. A gain, very smooth, a lot of vanilla flavor and a really nice smokey finish.

The 3rd offering, which they can't sell yet, was Chocolate Whiskey. Created by simply steeping the used husks from a Williamsburg (where they are located) chocolatier in their whiskey.

It was really surprisingly wonderful. The chocolate flavors really came through, but with out totally overpowering the whiskey. Again, amazingly smooth, very rich, and I seriously can't wait for them to get it licensed. They are trying to not call it Chocolate Flavored Whiskey as the law demands, Chocolate Whiskey is right out, so they are seeing if Chocolate Infused Whiskey would fly.