BEER REVIEW TIME!  Today we will be discussing Sweetwater Brewing Company’s Festive Ale.  I wrote this review on 15 Dec 2012… apologies for the late posting.

I picked up this sixer of beer the first day I got into town to visit my family for Christmas in Birmingham, AL this year. I’m always excited to get as much local or local-esque beer as I can wherever I travel, and particulary when I travel to Birmingham because… well, let’s be honest. Alabama isn’t exactly known for its progressive politics, and if I can’t get my hands on good politics in this state, I’d like to at least get my hands on some good beer.

The six pack tells me that the Festive Ale is brewed only one day a year, and that it combines a “touch of spice with a s#/@!load sleigh load of malts and hops” to keep you warm and toasted all night long.  SOLD!  Love ltd edition beer, love spices.

Unfortunately, I was rather let down with all build up…

• Appearance:  Nice, dark brown.  Glimmer of medium caramel in bottom of glass when held to the light. Small head dissipates quickly after pouring.  (*cough*) 4/5.
• Smell:  Not gonna lie, this has a strange smell.  Heavy on the molasses, caramel, and malts.  There is something off about the smell and I can’t figure out what it is. I don’t pick up the scent of any spices, and the label doesn’t list which spices were used in the brew to begin with so I don’t actually know what I”m even searching for. 3/5.
• Taste:Taste is off, too. Honestly, this tastes like a homebrew that got some unwanted wild yeast in it and then kind of soured. I don’t taste any spice.  Picking up the heavy malts/molasses in the taste as I did in the smell. Lighter, less robuts taste than I might expect from a winter ale.  Oddly, hints of smokiness. 2/5
• Mouthfeel:Eh.  Mouthfeel is weak. Needs more carbonation. 3/5
• Drinkability:I’m finishing this pint of beer because I don’t pour beer down the drain.  I wouldn’t buy this again. 2/5

Overall this was uninspiring.  DAMMIT, ATLANTA.  I expected more from you.  I have yet to try your 420 beer, though.  Maybe you can make this up to me…

-Mary Mac

BEER REVIEW TIME!!  Today we will be discussing Straight to Ale’s Monkeynaut IPA.  I reviewed this beer when I took a trip home to Birmingham, AL, for this most recent holiday season.  I wrote this review on 14 Dec 12.

Beer Name:  Monkeynaut
Style: IPA
Brewery: Straight to Ale Brewing, Huntsville, AL
ABV: 7.5%

A little background.  Straight to Ale was established in 2009.  They regularly brew and serve Monkeynaut IPA, Brother Joseph Dubbel, and Lily Flagg Milk Stout.  I have been foloowing Straight to Ale brewing for over a year now on facebook, biding my time and waiting patiently for an opportunity to visit their brewpub in Huntsville, AL, since their website states that they are a draft-only brewery, available at local bars and restaurants.”  Imagine my surprise tonight at Publix when I found this lovely six pack of Monkeynaut IPA… in cans, no less!  I picked up the pack from the refrigerated section ASAP and barely even batted an eye at the fact that it was one of my least favorite styles (I would have much preferred it to be full of Lilly Flagg Milk Stout, but beggars can’t be choosers and after having this beer, I’d choose it any day anyway!).

• Appearance:  Beautiful, medium caramel color.  Crisp and clear.  Darker than a “typical” IPA.  Head retention impressive. Lacing impressive!  Thick suds stick to sides of pint glass. 4/5
• Smell:Definitely get that bitter hops smell, but it is very nicely balanced with a welcome sweetness.  Fruity sweetness, in fact. Nice and citrusy smelling. 4/5
• Taste:That’s a damn good IPA. Nicely balanced. Grapefruit and citrus tones coming through and something else even a little sweeter… can’t put my finger on what. But the balance between the citrusy hops and malty sweetness is welcome.  I typically shy away from IPAs because the balance is so off.  The beer has a strange aftertaste.. like, almost chalky.  Kind of strange but not something I’m overly concerned about, especially considering that I am (what!) legitimately enjoying this IPA. 5/5
• Mouthfeel:Full bodied and easy on the tongue.  Great carbonation. 5/5
• Drinkability:I am halfway through this beer and have a nice buzz.  It is a 7.5% for Chrissake! This is possibly the only IPA I’ve ever had that I a). not only want to finish entirely, but b). also would like to drink another one. Despite being a 7.5%, this alcohol is not featured prominently and you think you’re drinking a “light” beer when in fact you are just getting drunk.  Is that a good or a bad thing?  YOU DECIDE.  I give it a 5/5 in terms of drinkability. 5/5

I sipped this beer in my parent’s kitchen. Dad drank one with me and mom had a sip of ours.  Their contributions follow:

MOM’S CONTRIBUTION: 
*sniffs*
*wrinkles nose*
*sips*
*puckers lips*

Ew.  I don’t like this.

*examines can*

Straight to Ale? What does that mean?

*met with silence and sideways glances from me and Dad*


DAD’S CONTRIBUTION:
Dad said that this is “what an IPA should be” and then proceeded to down half of the can in about two gulps.

-Mary Mac

BEER REVIEW TIME!  Today we will discuss Chatoe Rogue’s First Growth Pumpkin Patch Ale.

I received a very thoughtful winter solstice gift a few days ago, which included three bottles of some really hard-to-find or limited edition beers.  One of them was Chatoe Rogue’s First Growth Pumpkin Patch Ale. I eyed it longingly for a few days before I finally decided to pop it open on Sunday night and share it with my roomies.  What a treat it was!

Appearance: Nice caramel color with beautiful orange undertones. The beer is a pleasure to look at. Crisp and clear and the color of a perfectly baked pumpkin pie. The brew does not have very much head retention.  I give the appearance a 4/5 but only because I prefer nice fluffy heads on my ales.  The color is exquisite.

Smell:  Mmm.  This beer smells like a freshly roasted pumpkin.  Nice nutmeg and clove complements.  5/5… this is what a pumpkin beer should smell like.

Taste: Holy. Shit.  This beer rivals Shipyard’s Smashed Pumpkin, which has long held the place of Number One Crush in my heart when it comes to pumpkin beers. I have always loved Smashed Pumpkin because Shipyard uses actual pumpkins in their beer, not extract.  Rogue has now presented me with the most excellent of rivals to Shipyard’s ale. If you take a look at the label I posted in the picture, you will see that their beer tastes like an actual pumpkin because… well, they used pumpkins that were picked 77 miles away on their GYO farm, driven immediately to their brewery, roasted, and tossed into their brew kettle. Remarkably, pleasingly, and dare I say surprisingly, this beer tastes the same way it smells!  So many pumpkin beers are a let down because they smell like pumpkin and only taste like pumpkin pie spice. I’ve found it difficult to discover pumpkin beers that deliver the same taste as they exhibit in the smell.

The roasted pumpkin flavour is balanced nicely with that nutmeg and clove taste that I smelled coming through before I tasted it. And I even get a nice and buttery taste on my tongue to complement the pumpkin and spices.  What I’m saying is that this tastes like a pie.  What a treat.

The hops are balanced precisely as they should be. Just, just, just enough to knock off the too-sweet edge that may have otherwise occurred.  Beer Advocate told me that they only used one type of hops flower: Rogue Micro Hopyard Rebel Hops.  So, kudos on that, too, Rogue!  Lovely hops taste and very well balanced.

5/5 on the taste.  Because this is easily the most well-balanced, freshest, and thoughtful pumpkin beer I’ve ever had.

Mouthfeel:  Great mouthfeel.  I would be happy with a little more carbonation, as I mentioned in the Appearance section.  On the other hand, some people like that silkier, smoother mouthfeel!  I give it a 4/5.

Overall Drinkability:  The abv is like 5.6% I think. I don’t taste any etoh. I got nothing more than a really pleasant buzz off the serving I had.  Low abv, no harsh etoh taste or fumes, and tastes like a pumpkin pie reincarnated into delicious beery form means a 5/5 on this brew’s drinkability.

Well done, well done, Rogue. 

Rainbow Lazer Lavender Blonde: A REVIEW.

Okay people.  I brewed this lavender blonde ale on 15 Oct 2012, bottled it on 21 Oct 2012, and first opened it on 26 Oct 2012.  A LITTLE EARLY… but necessary.  (Cindy and I were hosting a beer tasting of our tea infused brews on 26 Oct 2012 at Kaleisia Tea Lounge in Tampa, FL, and I waited a little late to brew the beer… which meant we had to open it before it was done conditioning).

When we first opened it at the beer tasting, it was a little wild.  Hadn’t bottle conditioned long enough, so the flavors hadn’t had the full amount of time to mellow out (specifically the lavender). Also, the mouthfeel was a little rough.

This afternoon, however, I’m hoping that will have changed.

LET US BEGIN:

Appearance:
Well look at the pictures!  It is beautiful (both the beer AND the ridiculous label). The head is quite fluffy, with excellent retention.  I poured it about five or seven minutes ago (which is when I took the picture), and I am still seeing a nice layer of foamy bubbles on the top.  The color is a nice medium caramel, cloudy but not sediment-y, and golden hues around the edges and bottom when you hold it up to the light. 

Smell:
I added some centennial hops in at the zero minute mark of the boil, and boy can I smell them.  I also majorly get the lavender smell.  Hits you up front.  Smells delish. Nothing smells off.  Which mostly just means everything was cleaned properly when I was brewing.  SCORE.

Taste:
Oh yes.

…Ooooh yes.

This beer has mellowed right the fuck out and is now *quite glorious.*  Like I mentioned before, when we first opened it on 26 Oct, it was not fully bottle conditioned.  Today, however, it tastes a little bit like heaven.  Like a sexy angel’s breast.  (What?!)  Okay when we first popped the top off and drank it, we got hit with those centennial hops right up front and then the lavender came flooding in and actually  masked any of that initial hop flavor.  It was a little rough.  Now, though, these flavors have melded together and work gloriously well with one another.  The sequence of flavors has, in fact, flipped. I taste the lavender up front, and if I put the glass down and close my eyes for a second, the centennial hops come right through at the end and sweetly dance on the back of my tongue.  Really wonderful. 

Guys, this is actually the taste I was going for.  I am really super thrilled with this.  About a year ago, I had The Bruery’s Orchard White ale, which was a white beer brewed with lavender as well as a couple of other herbs.  It blew me right away.  (You can find my review of it here: http://beerwedrank.tumblr.com/post/16066330957/beer-orchard-white-brewer-the-bruery. Anyway, ever since I had The Bruery’s ale brewed with lavender, I have wanted to recreate that flavor somehow.  I am really, really happy with how this has turned out — definitely in the same vein as The Bruery’s creation, but unique!  My own creation.

A lot of what I said in the review for the Orchard White stands true for the Rainbow Lazer. It smells and tastes light and perfume-y, which is a result of the lavender. I think it lends it a delicate scent and flavor.

Mouthfeel:
Twenty times better than when we first opened in on the 26th.  Much more mellow.  Nice and full bodied mouthfeel, but all that roughness has calmed down with another week of bottle conditioning. Perfect. 

Drinkability:
Guys I could drink 3 Orchard Whites in and evening, and I could drink 3 Rainbow Lazers in an evening, too.  But I wouldn’t want to spend a whole evening drinking this; I would prefer to sit on my back porch on a sunny Florida autumn afternoon, sipping it from a chilled pilsner glass and contemplating the nature of space and time. Which is exactly what I’m doing.

What I’m saying is that this is totally drinkable.  Goes down easy and induces philosophical thought, good feelings, and deep breathing.

A note:  Now that I am halfway through this beer, I get to see what sort of lacing it leaves around the inside of the glass.  It is really quite nice. Not anything crazy, just a scant tracing of bubbles.  Very pretty.

Cheers y’all.  To drinking whatever tastes good to you.

-Mary Mac

Brewing Company: Cigar City Brewing; Tampa, Florida
Name: Cubano Espresso
Style: American Brown Ale
ABV: 5.5%
Serving type: draught 
Price: $5

Aroma: Straight up smells like chocolate espresso.

Appearance: Nice head, slight retention. Dark, clear brown. Some light comes through the bottom.

Taste: Nice, sweet taste, good balance. Nice feeling on the lips, but not as foamy as I’d like. Not as thick or milky as I’d like either. Medium carbonation - goes down a little bubbly, but in a nice way.

Finish: Tingles in the throat. Beer-ish coffee aftertaste, slightly bitter. Filling. Feeling a buzz.

The smell alone is worth getting a glass.

Rating: 3.5/5

Recommended.

Brewing Company: Cigar City Brewing; Tampa, Florida
Name: Peppermint Maduro Brown Ale
Style: Brown Ale
ABV: unknown (probably around 5.5%)
Serving type: draught - cask
Price: $4

Aroma: Smells like peppermint bark. Candy. Delicious.

Appearance: No head, small retention. Medium/dark brown, light shines through.

Taste: Tastes like warm peppermint bark. Light, refreshing, mild. Goes down easy. Okay balance. Smells better than it tastes.

Finish: Super sweet aftertaste of malt.

Pretty good but not awesome. Slightly underwhelming. I think I’d like it more if it were a stout.

Rating: 2.75/5

Meh.

Brewing Company: Sweetwater Brewing Company; Atlanta, Georgia
Name: Blue
Style: (blueberry) fruit beer / Belgian Wheat Ale
ABV: 4.6%
Serving type: 12oz bottle
Price: unknown

Aroma: Smells hint of blueberry. Cold crisp scent of wheat.

Appearance: Nice thumb-sized head, little retention and very little lacing. Clear, light wheat-tan color. Lots of bubbles!

Taste: Crisp taste of blueberries after taste of wheat. Very interesting going down throat, slightly tart. Very light taste. Light body, med-high carbonation. Bubbly and crisp - not exactly my style.

Finish: Strong blueberry finish. Can’t really feel or taste alcohol.

Not as good at the Sea Dog Blue Paw. It would probably taste better with some fresh blueberries in it. Would be a good summer afternoon beer, I may try it again come summer time. I wouldn’t buy a bottle to drink at home, but I’d take it to a party or have a pint at a bar.

Rating: 3/5

Recommended.

Brewing Company: Samuel Adams; Boston, Massachusetts 
Name: The Vixen
Style: Chocolate Chili Bock
ABV: 8.5%
Serving type: 22oz bottle
Price: $5.99

Aroma: Smells deep, dark, roasted, chocolatey.

Appearance: Nice head, small and tan. Decent retention, barely any lacing. Head reappears when swirled with light lacing. Black color, opaque.

Taste: Smooth, velvety. Distinct chocolate taste. Good, high carbonation. Medium body, goes down easy. Hints and undertones of cinnamon and chili.

Finish: Leaves bubbles on the lips and in the throat. Mild aftertaste. I can definitely feel the alcohol after just a few sips.

Rating: 4/5

Recommended. Very interesting. Worth it for the price.

Brewing Company: Tampa Bay Brewing Company; Tampa, Florida
Name: Black Velvet
Style: Bourbon cask aged vanilla stout
ABV: ~7.0%
Serving type: draught - cask
Price: $5
4.5 months old, tapped (and drank) on Feb 2. 

Aroma: Smell is faint, hints of smokiness. Vanilla and cocoa are prominent. Wonderful smell. Smells like than it tastes. 

Appearance: Gorgeous head, thumb-sized, light tan color, great retention. Beer is dark brown, almost black, very opaque - when it was just poured I could see the sediment falling to the bottom, so it was slightly cloudy. There was just a little light shining through the bottom. Very nice lace - doesn’t even drip, just sits beautifully on the glass. The head stays with the beer - went down a little, but stayed pinky-finger thick through the rest of the glass. Sediment at the bottom of glass at finish. :)

Taste: Very creamy - goes down really smooth. Sweet, but not super sweet. Has a dark, warm taste. Full body, light carbonation. Bubbles on side of glass, looks like cola. Feel holds true to the velvet name. The first sips tasted a little hoppy, but hoppiness dimishes with each sip. Feels like drinking milk. Very filling. Feeling tipsy half way through the glass. 
Seriously, I’m in love with this beer. I’ve said that before but this time I mean it.

Finish: Incredibly smooth finish. Wonderful aftertaste - can’t quite place it… chocolate? coffee? not exactly. Leaves a warm, happy feeling in my mouth. By the end, I’m full and drunk. Solid drunk, bro (I actually wrote that in my notes). 

Rating: 5/5

Highly Recommended.

May I also add that the bartender was sexy as hell. And he guess the ABV just by tasting it. No joke. 

<3, c.

Brewing Company: Brouwerij van Hoegaarden; Belgium
Name: wit-blanche
Style: witbier
ABV: 4.9%
Serving type: 11.2oz bottle
Price: unknown

Aroma: Smells like a budlight. Smells citrus-y and wheat-y.

Appearance: Thumb sized white head, going down quickly and then completely disappearing, no retention or lacing. Beer is a bright wheatish colored yellow, slightly cloudy/tranluscent. I can see a lot of bubbles. 

Taste: Light, crisp, high carbonation. Light body, a little sour.

Finish: Barely any aftertaste. Mediocre, at best.

Uninspiring.

Rating: 2.5/5

Not Recommended for an evening in, but it would probably make a good party beer because I think I could drink a lot of it.