CS Booze Club.

[deadbody]

Vic, the central waters bourbon barrel stuff is seasonal. Not in liquor stores right now.

Plus they have had some issues with infection in the last year. This made me a sad panda.

Let me know if you are headed by Minneapolis. I may have a few bottles in the fridge that I can share.

[Victory Sabre]

Well if the weather is crappy Sunday, I might be in the cities to to Canterbury to play poker. if the weather is good, I'll be outside all day, enjoying my first true day off since early May.

[Jester]

Ask And Ye Shall Receive.....

And now, the review of the third of the beers that our friend Victory Sabre sent to me. (I've been busy drinking other beers elsewhere. I do live in a party town, ya know.)

From Third Street Brewhouse in Minnesota, I have Lost Trout Brown Ale (4.9% ABV). Very, very dark for a brown ale. Basically, it's pitch black, though it didn't pour like a motor oil as many darker beers do. But then, you don't expect such things from a brown ale, so it's okay. The nose is incredibly malty. Another surprise.

The body is a little light, and the beer is a bit thin. And those criticisms are akin to saying a hot sports car doesn't get good gas mileage. Because this is a really, really good brown ale. The malt character is almost that of a black ale, and it seems to be missing on the brown sugar characteristic I expect in a lot of browns, but then you get that bit of brown sugar sweetness on the finish, almost soda-like.

I like it. A solid 7.

And now....the fourth Vic beer. From Olde Main Brewing Company in Iowa (my first Iowa beer!!!), Sodbuster Stout Ale (6.0% ABV). THIS pours like a motor oil! Dark, black, seemingly viscous, as if Darth Vader were pouring you some of his home brew. The color is obsidian, the head is nonexistent, the beer almost dares you to defy it. Good start. The nose is a bit sweeter than I'd expected. Not that it's sweet. It's not. It's subtle, and malty, and has a suggestion of mocha....but there is a hint of sweetness as well. Unusual.

And now as I taste it, I shall say something I've never said before, and never thought I'd ever say. Iowa rocks. Because they produced this beer. It's dark and malty, but restrained and balanced at the same time. Tasty without going over the top with the malt. It is, dare I say it, an eminently drinkable stout. The bitterness one expects from stouts is held in check, and this is tasty. A solid 8. Thanks, Iowa! And thanks, Vic!

[Victory Sabre]

I had a tough time deciding between the Sodbuster and their Off-kilt-er. I'm glad I chose the Sodbuster. it's a good sold beer from Ames Iowa.

Now for a review.

Sam Adams Summer Ale.
Golden when poured. I don't really notice much in the nose department. The taste it's got a citrus taste, sadly it also has some skunk to it. I'm not the biggest fan of Sam Adams, and this is another reason why. 3.5 out of 10.

[Jester]

Odd. I've had the Sam Summer, and while it's not outstanding, I've never noticed any skunk to it. Methinks you got a bad bottle. (By the way, if you get a chance, try their Cold Snap. To me, it's the second best thing they've ever made, after only their Black Lager.)

Moving on, beer 5 from Vic.

Schell Schocked Grapefruit Radler (Iowa, 4.6% ABV): First, I must note that while I love citrus fruit, I despise grapefruit and grapefruit juice. So I've only ever tried two previous grapefruit beers, one of which I didn't particularly care for, and one which I didn't mind so much. But on to this beer.

Color is light yellow, just a shade darker than what you might expect from Bud Light. Nose is slightly lemony. Beer is totally lemony, with a slightly tart grapefruitish finish. Overall, the tastiest grapefruit beer I've had, and unlike the other two, I would drink this again. Because it's tasty, unlike Shiner Ruby Redbird. And unlike Stiegl Radler, it actually has some alcohol in it. (Stiegl is a wussy 2.5%.) Overall, not too shabby. Would probably go well with the salmon loaf I'm cooking, if it was still around when the loaf was done, but as the loaf still has 20-30 minutes, that seems highly unlikely. Would definitely pair well with some foods, especially seafood or a pasta with light sauce (anything that goes well with lemon), and would be very refreshing on a hot summer day. Or most days in the Keys, really.

Score: a high 6.5.

[Victory Sabre]

The Sam Adams I had is at the bar from the tap. I've had some good Sam Adams beers, their Octoberfest comes to mind. Sadly this wasn't.

Next review. Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale.
Amber in color. A citrus nose to it. Taste - there's a hoppiness to it, but very slight. The citrus flavor, almost lemony, overshadows it. This is a pretty good beer. 6 out of 10.

Forgot to add this. I almost didn't send the Shocked, because it was so off the wall. After reading your review, I am glad I did.

[Victory Sabre]

Final review for the night, unless I do something stupid and drink when I get home.

New Belgium Snapshot Wheat.

Almost white in color. there is a foamy head on this pour. I really can't get any nose off of it. As for the taste, well I'm stumped to be honest. I just don't know how to describe this or what to make of it. Because of that fact, I have to give it a 3. Even as I keep drinking this, I'm still confused by it. it might be a good beer for some, but not for me.

[Jester]

The Sam Adams I had is at the bar from the tap. I've had some good Sam Adams beers, their Octoberfest comes to mind. Sadly this wasn't.

Three possibilities. 1. The keg was fried. It happens. 2. The lines weren't cleaned as well as they should be. This also happens. 3. We have different palates. Yes, of course, this happens too.

Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale.

6 out of 10.

Speaking do differing palates, I love most of what Oskar Blues does....but I detest their flagship beer, Dale's Pale Ale.

New Belgium Snapshot Wheat.

My first thought was that you had sent me this, but upon peeking into my fridge, I realized you'd sent me Slingshot by Back Pocket.

My second thought was, oh, it's a New Belgium product. Duh.

I've had two beers by those nitwits that were worth drinking. Their Coconut Curry Wheat was surprisingly tasty, and their 1554 black beer is easily their masterpiece, not simply because most of the rest of the stuff they produce is utter garbage, but because 1554 truly is magnificent. And for me to admit that about a New Belgium product isn't easy, I'll tell ya.

[Victory Sabre]

My first thought was that you had sent me this, but upon peeking into my fridge, I realized you'd sent me Slingshot by Back Pocket.

My second thought was, oh, it's a New Belgium product. Duh.

I've had two beers by those nitwits that were worth drinking. Their Coconut Curry Wheat was surprisingly tasty, and their 1554 black beer is easily their masterpiece, not simply because most of the rest of the stuff they produce is utter garbage, but because 1554 truly is magnificent. And for me to admit that about a New Belgium product isn't easy, I'll tell ya.

I, also, have never been to impressed by what New Belgium has produced. I could never figure out what that beer I had was, and will stick with my 3 for it.

A note about the Slingshot: I gave one to my friend Adam. He loved it so much that he gave me $20 to go to Iowa and get some more (I was going there anyway). He was VERY happy when I finally was able to get them to him a few weeks back.

[wolfie]

Sam Adams Summer Ale.
Golden when poured. I don't really notice much in the nose department. The taste it's got a citrus taste, sadly it also has some skunk to it.

Odd. I've had the Sam Summer, and while it's not outstanding, I've never noticed any skunk to it.

Not a beer drinker, but what colour is the bottle for SASA? There's a reason why beer bottles were traditionally dark brown (a couple actually), but a lot of beers are now sold in clear bottles.

Reason 1: Way back when, it was prohibitively expensive to get a truly clear glass, so for a lot of things that didn't need to be clear, they'd throw in a colouring agent to get a uniform shade (cheaper than going for truly clear glass). For the insulators on telephone poles, green was the traditional colour.

Reason 2: A lot of the compounds from the hops are light-sensitive. If exposed to ultraviolet, they'll break down VERY quickly and go "skunky". Dark brown was the best colour for keeping UV out of the beer.

[Victory Sabre]

SASA is golden in color. The beer came from a keg at the bar. I might give it another chance, just in case the lines weren't cleaned out properly, and hope for the best.

Edit- I saw a SASA at my friend's house in a bottle, and the bottle was dark.

[Victory Sabre]

Well, back to my summer beer mini tour.
Goose Island 312 Pale Ale.
Color somewhere between golden and amber.
Decent head when poured from the tap.
There is a nose, but I can't finger it.
Taste, the nose continues into the taste of the beer. like the beer from NB, I really can't describe the taste. Unlike the NB, I do like it. I'll give it a 5.

[Victory Sabre]

Continuing on, well, I've got a bad feeling about this one to be honest.
It's called a Slice Of Summer.
It's made with Angry Orchard and Sam Adams Summer Ale.
It's a very light golden color.
For the nose, thed Angry Orchard sticks out.
Taste - the Angry Orchard dominates. I'm not the biggest apple ale fan, but at least it's better to me than the SASA by itself. 4 out of 10.

[Jester]

Victory Sabre Beer #6. From New Glarus Brewing Company in Wisconsin, Snowshoe Ale (5.7% ABV): medium to dark brown with ruby highlights. Interesting somewhat fruity nose. And I mean interesting in a good way. Oh, that is delicious. Sort of a combination of the bite of an amber with the sweetness of a winter. Well-balanced, tasty, has some heft to it. I could see drinking this whiles sitting by the fireplace and watching the snow fall....if I had a fireplace, or lived anywhere where snow actually fell. Absolutely delicious. I want to drink this with a good steak or roast. Or even just with a top notch burger. Best one of the bunch so far. Score: 8.0.

If New Glarus starts selling their stuff where I can get it, I'm gonna get me some Snowshoe Ale. If you live where they do sell this, go get some.

I, also, have never been to impressed by what New Belgium has produced.

Agreed. But trust me when I say, if you ever see their 1554 in the store, buy it. They defied their usual run of the mill dreck and really nailed that one.

It's called a Slice Of Summer.
It's made with Angry Orchard and Sam Adams Summer Ale.

Well, that's interesting. I had a guy at the bar today who started to order that mix, which I'd never heard of, but then when he found out we had Shipyard Summer Ale on draft, went for that with the Angry Orchard instead. He said it was delicious.

I have to ask you, was this a draft mix at a bar you were at? Or a bottled version from Sam Adams? (They make Angry Orchard, ya know.) Or did you hear about it and mix it up at home.

I live on a small remote island where we don't get all those fancy schmancy bottled draft mixes and such.

[Victory Sabre]

Ok, time to cut me off. I tried to post, but deleted me post.

To the SASA and AO combo. It's part of the Old Chicago Baseball mini tour. it started yesterday, and it's #6 on the minitour. It's made wit AO on the bottom and SASA on top. Brandon, the bartender, while not as cute as Kate, rocks! Kate also rocks!

Final review tonight in this waterlogged tundra.
Bell's Oberon Ale.
Color is golden, again
Nose, none, really
Taste is like the nose, none really. just not much flavor to me. I'll give it a 4.

Edit - Jester, glad you loved the New Glarus Snowshoe. it's a very good beer. Sadly, it's onlt available in the land of cheese. Whenever I go close T
to the land of cheese, I cross the border to get their products. New Glarus really produces good beer. Irv, and the other Wisconsion citizens have a really good brewery.