Stone Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA

I enjoyed my one bottle of Stone Brewing Company's 10th Anniversary IPA on the deck last night, enjoying the cooler evening temperatures.  This double has it all and Stone has been doing it for a decade.  The color was beautiful, the hops are impressive, and the taste is phenomenal.  Too bad we have to wait a whole year to get beers that are this good. 

 

 I also enjoyed the story on the back label (although I needed a magnifying glass to be able to see it).  The name ruination comes the concern that the hop level would ruin the palate.  I prefer the saying on the front of the bottle that the beer has been "...ruining palates for ten years."  Great fun and a great beer.

Cheers,

Zymus

Positive Contact: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

I always enjoy the zymological creations of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and Positive Contact continues this tradition.  Based on the ingredients (cider, farro, cayenne pepper, and cilantro) listed on the label, I was prepared for my gustatory sense to be overwhelmed.  It did not happen...the ingredients were well balanced and the whole thing just worked. I liked the fruity character that had a subtle undertone of herb (I did not taste cilantro specifically) and just a touch of cayenne burn (I would have preferred slightly more).

This beer continues the brewery's tribute to musicians they enjoy.  This time it is Dan the Automator and the band Deltron 3030.  The beer was intended to be sold as a 4-pack of 750 ml bottles (really?) and included with the 4-pack was a vinyl EP record containing some tracks from the hip hop band.  The title of the beer is one of the names of the tracks.  All very interesting marketing.  Fortunately, my beer-seller was selling them as singles.  I declined the EP partly because I'm not much of a hip hop fan, but mainly because I got rid of my record player more than a decade ago.   How about a flash drive with .MP3s next time? Just a suggestion.

Cheers,

Zymus

Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

Last night I enjoyed my yearly bottle of 120 Minute Imperial IPA from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery.  Each year I somehow manage to find one or two bottles of the limited release beer.  The beer totally assaults the senses (in a good way).  Clocking in at an IBU of 120 and an alcohol by volume  level of 15-20% (probably 18%, according to the brewers website), this beer leaves an great impression.  The warmth created by the alcohol is more similar to drinking a brandy than to drinking a beer.  Highly recommended.

I do wonder why the brewers website lists a range for the alcohol level. I assume it is because the levels differ from year-to-year.  But if this is the case, why not put a year on the bottle and the actual stats for that year's 120 minute IPA?  The label does say that it "ages well," and I have a few in my beer cellar, but I do not know which bottles are from which years. These aged beers will be enjoyed a decade or so from now and I'm sure I'm going to be wondering exactly who old they are.

Cheers,
Zymus

New Holland Brewery: Mad Hatter Beers

I've been enjoying beers from New Holland Brewing in Holland, Michigan for years.  One of my favorite series of beers that they make are the ones in the Mad Hatter series.  The beers cover a wide range of styles and the labeling scheme plays off of the perennial favorite character the Mad Hatter.  The character, from Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, represents fun, goofiness, and a little insanity.  Perfect qualities for a beer.  Here are a few labels:

I love the sly and slightly crazy characters wearing the hats.  But what does the card in the hat with the writing "10/6" mean?  I did a little research.  Apparently, in the original illustration of the Mad Hatter in the Lewis Carroll book, the Mad Hatter was depicted with a top hat that had a card in the brim that read "In This Style 10/6."  No one is really sure what this meant, but some think it was an order slip that in his madness the Hatter forgot to remove. (In the old days, hatter's used mercury in making hats.  The mercury is easy absorbed into the body and causes cognitive deterioration.   Hence, hatters tended to be a little off leading to the observation "Mad as a hatter.").  Kudos to New Holland for including part of the card on their mad hatters.  People now celebrate Mad Hatter day on October, 6th (10/6), for obvious reasons. 

Cheers,
Zymus

Samuel Adams Limited Release Beers

The Boston Beer Company continues to produce interesting and satisfying craft brews.  I particularly enjoy their Limited Release series of beers. These beers are self-described as being produced for the beer voyager.  I kinda like that description. Many of the beers in this series are the brewer's version of classic or vintage styles. They are released in 650 ml bottles, each with an interesting label.  Releases that are successful, sometimes come back as a second batch.  Here are the ones I have tried along with a brief description.

Besides having a great name, Cinder Bock is a smoked (rauch) bock style beer (9.4% AV; 25 IBU).

Dark Depths is a heavy Baltic India Pale Ale (7.6% ABV; 55 IBUs) with lots of flavor.  I think this one could use a few more IBUs, but it is still a great beer.

Tasman Red is a Red India Pale Ale (6.75% ABV; 60 IBUs).  The beer highlights Australian hops, particularly ones from Tasmanian and Victoria.  

Griffin's Bow is an English-style Barley wine that has been aged in oak (10% ABV; 45 IBU).  This beer is right on the mark.  Superb.

Norse Legend is a beer style native to the Vikings called sahti (7% ABV; 16 IBU) and features juniper berries  both in the brewing and aging of this beer.   It is a very interesting beer.

Verloren is a gose-style beer (6.0% ABV; 15 IBU).  Prior to having this one, I had never heard of this beer style.  According to brewers, gose is an old German beer style that was common in Leipzig, Germany.  Interestingly, it does not adhere to German Beer Purity Law of Reinheitsgebot, because in addition to water, malt, and hops, the beer has coriander and salt.

The Vixen is a interesting mix of sweet (cinnamon, chocolate) and spicy flavors (chili)--hence the name (8.5% ABV; 20 IBU).  I really like beers that have a subtle chili burn in the aftertaste and this beer has it just right. 

All of these beers have helped me along my personal beer-voyager route. I look forward to the future releases.

Cheers,
Zymus

Cigar City Brewing

On a vacation near Tampa FL this past Winter, I had a chance to sample some of the local beer.  I was very impressed with the beers I had from Cigar City Brewing.  http://cigarcitybrewing.com/

I tried Jose Martin, Improv, Auld Alliance,  and Holy Mackerel (2012). All were excellent and  highly recommended.

The biggest surprise I had was a beer called Humidor Series: India Pale Ale. I had assumed that the name just went along with the theme of the brewery, but I was pleasantly wrong.  This IPA had been aged in Spanish cedar, the same wood used for cigar boxes.  When I tried the beer, it had an excellent subtle taste of cigar.  It brought me back to the last time I had a craft cigar floating on the Colorado River on a houseboat with a bunch of friends.

I know it sounds a bit weird, but this combination really works well.  When I get hold of another bottle I'm going to drink it while I puff on a Macanudo.

Cheers,

Zymus

Royal Oak Brewery

Last summer I went on a brewpub crawl with my wife and a few friends.  We unexpectedly ended up in Royal Oak, Michigan which was hosting its annual Arts, Beats, and Eats festival.  The city was packed with visitors.  We made our way to the Royal Oak Brewery, which was a first-time visit for me. Here's the website: http://royaloakbrewery.com/

The place has the feel of a casual restaurant, despite the fact that the back of the bar is lined with stainless steel brewing kettles.  We ordered samples of several beers, all of which were good.  None of the beers pushed the limits, but all were well made and refreshing.  The appetizers we ordered were also quite good.  A nice place to stop on a stormy summer day.

Some of the wares.

As we were enjoying the wares, we heard a loud rumbling outside, followed by a flood of people entering the brewpub.  A Michigan summer squall had hit and people were taking shelter where they could find a great pint.  Smart people!

The Royal Oak Brewery

 
Someone switched the television over to the news so that the weather situation could be surmised.  Indeed, there were several thunderstorm cells moving across Michigan.  As we looked at the screen, we saw that our ride home would be interesting--between Royal Oak (upper right corner) and Ann Arbor (center) was an impressive storm cell followed  by another right behind it.

Storm cells in Southeastern Michigan

Indeed, we had a lightening-filled trip home.

Cheers,
Zymus