CS Booze Club.

[Victory Sabre]

I like the tearm "swillies" for those type beers. Fits pretty damn well.

[Jester]

From Avery Brewing in Colorado, it's Old Jubilation Ale (8.3% ABV), a winter ale. And I got three, with no idea how it was. Amusingly, I had gone to a great little beer bar tonight to try a different beer that I'd heard good things about, because I had seen a friend of mine mention on Facebook they had tapped this the other night, and I really wanted to try it. Glad I went when I did, because I got some of the last of it before the keg kicked. But, while I was there, I discovered they had this beer on special for $4 a bottle, as they were trying to move out some stock. A winter ale, from a brewery I like, on the cheap? Hell yeah! So I asked for one unopened, to stick in my backpack and take home for later consumption. Guy next to me ordered one for there, tried it, said it was awesome. So I got two more to take home with me. Guy next to me ordered another of the same, and that was the last one. So I had a hand in killing off two different beers in one night! Yay me!

Back to the Old Jubilation....Black with a tan head. Smells like a winter ale should, which is hard to explain, but I'll try: a bit rich, sweet, and malty, with hints of spice. Perhaps a bit of coffee hiding in there too. Taste is richer and maltier than the nose, with the sweetness and spice still there, but toned down. And can't really get much coffee on the taste, which is just dandy by me. Overall, a pretty damn tasty winter ale. Perfect for one of the few semi-chilly days we get down here. (Don't ask. You'll just hate me more.) Score: 7.5.

Which makes me glad I got three. Far, far better than the winter ale I had the other night from Cigar City! And definitely not a "swilly."

[Victory Sabre]

Leinenkugel's Big Butt Doppelbock

Dark brown color. not much head to it. kind a sweet nose to it.

taste: oh, no. very sweet. I am not a fan of sweet stuff, and this is not good to me. it tasts like soda pop. I am not a fan of this beer, but if you like sweet things, go for it.

2.5 out of 10

[Victory Sabre]

American Sky Brewing Snap Your Cap. 10.5%ABV & 35 IBU.

A nice scotch ale with a thick frothy head. Very dark brown color. not much nose to it at all.

Taste: damn good Scotch ale. nice smooth flavor going down. it is a pretty strong beer, but it isn't obnoxious strong. not bad and a 7 out of 10.

[Victory Sabre]

Rolo Tony Brown Town from Oliphant Brewery - 10% ABV.

I am at home drinking this. I did have a sample of it at the brewery, and it was good, so I got a growler of it.

It's really black colored, with a bit of head that dissipates quicky. I do smell maple syrup in the nose.

Taste : wow. The growler was in my trunk, so the beer is extremely cold. I really like it cold. There's a bit of sweetness, but not obnoxious like other beers I've had. It maybe a stronger beer, but it doesn't taste strong. It could be dangerous, because it doesn't taste strong. A very good beer, and another hit from this brewery. I hope they someday bottle their beers for transport elsewhere.

7.5 out of 10

[Jester]

From Smuttynose, we have Really Old Brown Dog Ale (11.1%). Dark caramelly brown color with reddish highlights. Pleasant, inviting, toasty nose. Sweet brown sugar taste with sweet liquor overtones. A bit too sweet for my tastes. Drinkable, but it's a bit cloying. I must say, it's a bit disappointing coming from Smuttynose, whose beers I generally enjoy. 5.5.

[Jester]

From Anderson Valley, it's Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout (5.8%). Dark as night and pours like motor oil. Sweet! Subtle but malty nose. Malty and rich, yet subtle. Tasty, almost light, kinda wish it had more flavor. Decent, but forgettable. Had such promise. 6.0.

[Jester]

Sprecher Oktoberfest (Wisconsin, 6.0% ABV): Hazy and brown, with hints of red, as many Oktoberfests are. Really nice nose, with autumnal spices. Decent Oktoberfest, but not gonna hold a candle to the great ones. Drinkable but not all that memorable when compared to the really good ones. Still, decent. 6.0.

[Jester]

From Southern Star Brewing in Texas, it's Old Potentate Seasonal. Not sure what the style is, beyond seasonal, as that is all it says on the can. Likewise, the can is quite silent on the beer's ABV. But a quick check of the old web tells me it's a winter ale with an ABV of 7.2%.

Dark brown, with a thick creamy head. Subtle nose, with a good balance of maltiness and sweetness. Oh, now that's good. It's a touch watery, but that is a minor quibble, as overall it is quite smooth, with a creamy mouthfeel. As with the nose, a very pleasant balance of malt and sweet, but in a refined way. Subtly and sneakily good. Good stuff. 7.0.

[Jester]

From Avery Brewing in Colorado, the self-described "Demons of Ale," I have a Samaeus, which is an oak aged ale with a very mild ABV of 15.47%. Yeah, nothing dangerous here. Yikes!

A tan/brown color, with lots of sediment floating in it. The nose was noticeable immediately upon opening the bottle. It is very strong, and very liquor-like. Gee, I can't imagine why. If I'm gonna be honest, the nose is not altogether all that pleasant. Actually, it's a bit off-putting. I'm not sure if this is what Avery intended of if this bottle has gone bad. And I lied. It's not a bit off-putting. It's quite a bit off-putting. As in, I'm trying to build up the fortitude to taste it. Me, being hesitant about tasting beer. Right. I know.

The taste is not nearly as scary at the nose. Yes, the liquor aspect is strong, but it is more of a sweet bourbonesque type of flavor than whatever the hell the nose was all about. It is pleasant, but clearly quite strong. This is a beer to be sipped...slowly. And sip it slowly I shall before I score it. For a while. I think I like it, but this is clearly a brew to spend time with.

Some time later....

The beer grows on you. You've gotta sip it, but once you get to that point, everything else just flows. My score? Still a bit sweet and liquorish for me, so I'd say 6.5.

[Jester]

From Germany, it's Würzburger Hofbräu, a Pilsner style beer. Light yellow color with white head. Pleasant beery nose. Cool, refreshing, light, and still flavorful. Good with spicy food, as I know from the fact that I'm risking it with a burger that has fresh jalapeños on it. Not a huge Pilsner fan, but this one is pretty damn tasty. 6.5.

[Jester]

From Sapporo Brewing, we have Stone Warrior Dark Ale (5.0% ABV). Now, Sapporo is a Japanese brewer, but the bottle claims this was brewed by them in Canada. So I'm gonna just assume this is a Japanese beer that's brewed in Canada, rather than trying to figure out if that's true or if it's something far more complex. Frankly, I'm more interested in the beer than the brewer.

Color is dark brown with surprisingly high clarity for a dark ale, and sporting a small white head. The nose is odd...somewhat malty, but with a sweetish nose reminiscent of cola. The cola similarly continues in the taste. Very light body, somewhat sweet and carbonated, with some small maltiness, but in the end, it's a bit too light for a dark ale, and comes across more as an alcoholic soda pop. Which, from a beer perspective, is not generally all that impressive. 4.5.

[Jester]

From one of my favorite breweries, Terrapin in Athens, Georgia, it's Midnight Monk, a Belgian style Black IPA (9.8% ABV). Flat black color with almost no head. Nose is hoppy, but with malty undertones. The taste is kind of reversed, with a definite malt backbones with some hoppy notes. But definitely a malt-first beer. Very interesting balance between he malt and the hops. I rather like it....it's almost (but not quite) like licorice in its odd but pleasant taste. It's definitely not for everyone, but I give it a solid 7.0.

On a side note, Vic and I have been tracking our beers this year, and this makes my 100th different beer (repeats of beers we've already drank in the year don't count) so far this year, on the 35th day of the year and the 33rd day I've drank this year. (I took two days off due to illness.) While there will definitely be an ebb and flow throughout the year, currently I am on pace to drink over 1,040 different beers in a year's time. Although it will definitely get tougher, especially as I've already exhausted many of my "default," go to beers. On the plus side, 30 of those 100 were complete new to me, beers I'd never had before. And no, samples don't count towards the total.

[Jester]

Weyerbacher Insanity, ale aged in oak barrels (New Hampshire, 11.1% ABV). The last oak barrel-aged high alcohol beer I reviewed in here was....intense. Good, but not necessarily my favorite. I'm hoping the good folks at Weyerbacher can have more success with it.

This beer is deeply reddish brown and hazy, with very little to no head. The nose is very subtle, only giving off a vaguely pleasant sweet aroma. Like the earlier-reviewed Samaeus, this has a liquor taste to it, but it is not nearly as over the top as the Samaeus was. This is more refined, more reasonable, and less threatening. And definitely tastier. Smooth, balanced, tasty, a bit sweet, a bit liquory, but definitely a pleasant drinking experience. I'd enjoy this again. A solid and enjoyable 7.5.

[sms001]

Sprecher

They make a surprisingly good bbq sauce though, and one of the best creme sodas I've ever had. None of their beers have ever knocked my socks off.