Beer Club, Volume Two - India Pale Ales

So when I first envisioned creating Beer Club, the first goal I had was simply to find some people who would discuss all the good beers I was suddenly drinking. Since IPA's/Double IPA's are my favorite style of beer it was natural that I'd be drinking a lot of them (25 of the 95 beers that I've rated so far). Oktoberfest was too natural of a fit for the first Beer Club meeting since so many of them were coming out right before the first meeting.

The next meeting wasn't so natural to anybody but me and the more I thought about it the more I thought I might have made a mistake by picking IPA's so quickly in our lineup. Sure I had open minded people but still there were plenty who just weren't big fans of IPA's. Maybe I was just talking myself into it as well but I kept telling them that they just haven't had the right ones and that the concept they had in their minds of IPA's (bitter beers) wasn't completely accurate and I'd prove to them that they did like (the right) India Pale Ale's after all. (A little background if you're not completely familiar with the style, click here - India Pale Ale)

Another big part of the reason that I chose IPA's is because I figured I had some pretty good knowledge about them and could pick out a pretty good lineup. So while I wasn't going to learn much about the beer I knew that I could be a more effective leader/president/founder of BC/HMFIC and everybody else would be better off because of it. No use in the blind leading the blind this soon in the life cycle of the group.

After searching my brain's database and emailing Alvey at the Four Firkins, these are the ones that I came up with for tasting:

Founders Centennial IPA

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA
Founders Harvest Ale
Stone India Pale Ale (IPA)

Two Hearted Ale

Surly Furious

I knew that the night would wrap up with Furious because I've been spreading that gospel for awhile now and Bell's Two Hearted and Stone's IPA have been two of my favorites ever since I've tried them. I wanted to throw Dogfish Head in the group even though it wasn't one of my favorites just because I knew it was a popular beer from a popular innovative brewery.

The Centennial and the Torpedo were on Alvey's advice and the Harvest Ale was a last minute addition by me. I didn't really want two from Founders but they were different enough from each other and I just fell in love with the Harvest Ale when I had my first one.

So, the group was a bit mixed up from last month's with Paul U, Kris, Mike and Pat returning and Phil and Brent joining as guest stars. All of the tastings went pretty well and people started to realize (much to my relief) that I was correct in that they did like IPA's, just didn't know which ones.

The star of the night was unquestionably the Founders Harvest Ale. I felt bad for the Stone IPA because it followed the Harvest and I couldn't believe how little support the Stone got until I started tasting it myself. Harvest was a TOUGH act to follow. Bell's definitely was well liked and the Furious performed like I thought it would (very well).

In retrospect I'm going to have to go back and re-rate some of these on Rate Beer because some of them lost a little bit when compared side by side to others and others gained a bit. I'm going to stay on record that Two Hearted and Stone's IPA are two of my favorite India Pale Ales, Founders Harvest Ale is officially my second favorite and Furious just cannot be stopped no matter what I put up against it. It is the godfather of all beers.

In hindsight, I may have still made a mistake by picking IPA's so early for the club even though they went over much better than anybody expected them to but at least everybody can get right to ordering one in the bar or picking some up from the store. In fact, I picked up some Harvest for Paul and for Kris when I made my run for more the next day.

I'm very pleased at how well the meetings have gone so far. People have been open minded and talkative and very receptive of everything way beyond my wildest dreams. Who knows? Maybe this thing has some legs and will be a fixture for a long time. I certainly hope so.

Catching up with beers from the last week or so

Finally I get a chance to sit down and recap the last 10 days or so. Let's start off with a new source for beer that I discovered at my nephew's birthday party while chatting about beer with my brother-in-law's brother. Princeton's Liquors (http://www.princetonsliquors.com/) in Maple Grove was a very pleasant surprise for me. The Four Firkins and the Liquor Barrel remain my go to places for obvious reasons but these guys had some new stuff that I hadn't seen before and they give you a 10% break on bottles if you buy six at a crack.

I checked it last Monday before the kickoff of the opening double header of Monday Night Football. I decided to rate a few that I had tried before (and one that I hadn't) while cleaning up the bar after Freedom Fest the Saturday before. I started with the...

Surly Hell
As I stated when I first tried it, it reminded me of what I think Heineken (German for a skunk's ass) and Rolling Rock are trying to do. Although I found out at Surlyfest (more on that to come) that if you don't drink Surly plenty cold, that skunky aroma rears its ugly head. I gave it a 3.8 on Rate Beer and said:
16 oz can from Golden Valley Liquor Barrel. Light golden yellow in color, medium foamy white head. Slight yeast aroma and (perhaps due to unconscious suggestion from reading the description) fresh bread as well. Slightly bitter flavor from the hops but smooth and light on the palate. Not usually one of my favorite styles of beers but this is probably the best one that I’ve tried.

Hoegaarden
One of the summer's greatest surprises. I picked this up from the Firkins for the gal after asking what a good next step for a Blue Moon drinker would be and little did I know how much I'd like it myself. Too bad it's made by InBev. Oh well, I think this is still my favorite Belgian that I've tried so far. It got a solid 4.0 on Rate Beer for me and earned the following comments:
Pale yellow pour with thick foamy white head. Fresh, yeasty wheat aroma with some spice coming through. Clean taste with a hint of citrus and the coriander does make an appearance along with other spices. Light mouthfeel with a smooth finish. Great beer.

Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat
This one has been a bit of a Jeckle and Hyde for me. I loved it at the Point tasting at the Four Firkins but the first bottle I had at home didn't seem to have the same flavor. Each one has been a bit different for me but I still can recommend this, especially to someone who likes the lighter side of beer. I gave it a 3.2 on Rate Beer because it did what I expected of it and said:
Yellow pour, slightly cloudy. Aroma is wheat, faint citrus to it. Not a lot of flavor, slight wheat/yeast with a hint of orange. Not overly flavorful but as the description says, great beer to drink while enjoying summer activities as it is quite refreshing.

Founders Breakfast Stout
This is a bottle that I picked up at Casanova the last time I made my Stone/Dogfish Head/New Glarus run. I was saving it until I saw that the Four Firkins got some in and also that Princeton's carried it. A couple neighbors were watching MNF with me and I was exposing them to some new beer and they both gave this a taste when I cracked it and actually really liked it which surprised me because of what I know their tastes normally are. This was so damn drinkable and flavorful and definitely one of my top new beers. I can't wait to get some more of this. It got a 4.4 from me on Rate beer.
Thick black pour with a brown head. Heavy chocolate aroma with a hint of coffee. Smooth, definite chocolate flavor with a fantastic lingering sweet finish.

The rest of the week was pretty uneventful for me in regards to new beers even though I really wanted it to be a prolific beer rating week for me. Oh well, a nice treat for me was Wednesday night when I found out that Famous Dave's had Bell's Two Hearted Ale on tap. Why doesn't everybody?

The weekend in review is coming very soon.

Sam Adams Imperial Stout and the weekend review

Saturday night after the Renaissance I had a Hop Juice and then switched to some Bacardi Anejo with a Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA as a night cap.

Sunday my only beer of the day ended up being a Samuel Adams Imperial Stout that I've been looking forward to trying for a few weeks now. After how much I've really loved the stouts that I've tried, I figured this one would fall right in for me. I was disappointed.

I was a little bit nervous when I read that anise was one of the flavors in the beer because black licorice is one of my least favorite flavors in the world. I'm not sure if that was what I didn't like about it, but there was one flavor that lingered for me that I couldn't put my finger on that made this not so drinkable for me. I finished it and it grew on me a bit (I started drinking it a bit colder than I ideally should have which probably didn't help) but I don't see myself buying it again.

Here's what I wrote on Rate Beer where I gave it a 2.6:

12oz bottle from the Crystal Liquor Barrel. Poured deep black color, not too thick. Quickly fading light brown head. Aromas aren’t too powerful, slight chocolate and coffee notes. The malted barley really comes through in the taste as does the coffee and chocolate, again in a non aggressive way.

Today the beer of the day was a Bell's Two Hearted Ale. That has to be one of my five favorite beers right now along with Furious, Stone's IPA and a couple others that I haven't thought of yet. I'd like to finish by saying it's good to have a Monday included as part of the weekend review. Life is good.

Officially Rating an Old Favorite

Last night I stopped by the Liquor Barrel to pick up a bottle of the Rogue Somer Orange Honey Ale for LeeAnn and figured I'd pick up an extra couple for myself. I also noticed a Half-E-Weizen (MoM Hefeweizen) from Rogue so I grabbed a bottle of that to try.

I saw they still had the Horizon Red Ale from Summit too so I bought a six of that since it's so popular and hard to find. It grew on me the last time I had it so it's getting another try. was reading about the Imperial Line from Sam Adams and bought a four pack of the Imperial Stout. Looking forward to trying this one day soon.


I swung by Buffalo Wild Wings to try their new flavors and when I got home I decided to pair them with a Two-Hearted Ale. Draft Magazine was right, it was a fantastic pairing.

After that I went to Mainstreet and instead of my normal Furious fest I decided to do official tastings and ratings of a couple beers that should have been rated long ago.

We'll start with the second beer I rated, Newcastle. I hate to say it but it really fell flat. I expected it to be a lot richer with more flavor and since I came around last year and started liking it, I was really disappointed. It didn't hold up at all to the stuff I've been drinking lately. It had no aroma at all and the taste was just not really there. I gave it a 2.2 on RateBeer:
Pours deep brownish red color, little to no aroma. Very small flavor, a slight malt note and a bit sweet. Overall not a very flavorful beer.

The other beer I rated was Guinness Draught. As you can see I had one at home just the other night but decided not to rate it because it has been in my fridge for a few months and I wanted to go with it on tap to get a better feel for it.

This beer held up much more than I anticipated. It has been my favorite beer to pour ever since I poured one with the widget and getting it on tap doesn't disappoint. Easily the best looking beer out there and the aroma, while not too strong is very nice. The thick creamy head gives it great mouthfeel and while the flavor itself is a bit weak, it's still money. Very low ABV (4.1%) and its ability to fill you makes it a great beer if you want to have a few but still need to drive home as well. Guinness belongs in the Beer Hall of Fame. I gave it a very solid 4.0 on RateBeer.com:
Guinness is the beer that I wish I could give a 20 for appearance. When they put that cascading beauty in front of me I could watch it for hours if I didn’t want to drink it so badly. It pours a deep brown color and cascades like a waterfall. Thick creamy head with coffee and chocolate in both the aroma and taste. Very smooth mouthfeel and goes down without effort. My only knock is that it could use a bit deeper flavor to it but overall this is a classic beer.

Cheers and happy Friday!
Mike

Getting my goose on...

Tried the Goose Island Bourbon County Stout last night. I've been looking forward to this one since I've read lots of good things about it. I bought one bottle during my "stock up on imperial stouts" trip and after reading what I read and realizing that this might not be easy to restock, I figured I'd give the bottle a try so I knew if I needed to go buy some to stash away.

Here's what I wrote on RateBeer.com (4.3 rating):
Black thick pour into the snifter with a thing brown head that dissipates quickly. Aroma is charred, smokey with the strong ABV coming through. Thick, chewy, syrupy mouthfeel. Definitely can taste the charred oak, bourbon element to this and some molasses. Great sipping beer.

This IS the ultimate sipping beer. It has been years since I've tried the Sam Adams Triple Bock and I only vaguely remember it but the smell of this conjured up some of those vague memories. It has so much going on that it's tough to pull out specifics but I did go back for more bottles.

Unfortunately the Four Firkins didn't get their shipment in but I did get the two bottles they did have along with four more of the Rasputin, a Samuel Smith Imperial Stout, a Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti from Great Divide and a six pack of Hoegaarden. Another $48.65 goes into my hobby.

They were also sampling the new Summit, their German Style Kolsch. I wasn't too fond of it. It was OK but the aroma was a bit on the skunky side and the taste was nothing to write home about. It was the first tasting at the Firkins that didn't lead me to buying some of the product. Oh well, their batting average is still better than Tony Gwynn's back in the day. Makes me look forward to cracking that Triple Bock again one day.

My rating for it was a 2.2:
Tried some of this at a Four Firkins tasting. I love Summit and most of their beers but this one didn’t do it for me. The aroma was a bit skunky to me and the flavor was better but still not one I’d buy.

Had a Two-Hearted Ale to finish off the night. It was a productive day for the beer blog