Being Average and Some Mojo

It’s hard for me to think of myself as an “average” craft beer drinker. When I hear that word “average”, I immediately think of boring, sub-par, ordinary, and dozens of other words that have the same connotation of being nothing special. But, I think it’s time to give this word a new meaning, or at the very least a new connotation, because I don’t consider calling someone an average craft beer drinker an insult. The average craft beer drinker knows a lot about beer, they know what they like, they may not know what a plato is, but they can tell you what an IBU is. The average craft beer drinker is the one who has yet to take a plunge into starting a brewery, devoting their life to the promotion of beer, and one might also include writing about beer on a weekly basis. The average craft beer drinker may be a little snobbish, but mostly towards what they like. They tend to be genuinely excited about trying and sharing new craft beers and the experiences surrounding them. So, don’t scoff at the word average, but hold it up in esteem for what we should consider to be the norm for those who love craft beer, and for those that know nothing about it - let’s turn the novice into an average craft beer drinker.

With that said, this week’s beer is from a brewery we've reviewed beer from before - Boulder Beer Company. For those who follow the site regularly, the last beer we had from Boulder Beer Company was Cold Hop, and we weren’t to impressed. This time we are trying their Mojo IPA, which was picked out by one of the Gentlemen - G, and Boulder has this to say about their Mojo:

Mo-Jo: 1: A magic spell or charm; magical power; 2. Herbaceous ale that summons hop attacks. Pale in color but packed with flavor, MoJo reflects the perfect balance of hop bitterness and malt character. The unique Amarillo hop creates a big citrus flavor with an ultra-crisp dry finish.

Mojo has an alc./vol. of 7.2%, and unknown IBUs, which is something I really like to know about a beer - especially an IPA. Mojo poured a light white head, little to know body, and it dissipated quickly. The head was lacking some Mojo. I found it to be a golden color with a cloudy quality, orange tints, and a mild amount of carbonation. G found it to be clean, and light on the bubbles. Head - 6.5, Look - 10. G and I both found the smell to be light, and we noticed sweet citrus notes. The Amarillo hop’s citrus smell was dominating, but the overall smell of the beer wasn’t strong. Smell - 21.

G and I both had similar reactions when we took our first sip, which was - clean. This IPA was smooth. The first flavors that jumped out were the citrus flavors from the hops. The aftertaste was what they promised, a bitter dry finish. Palate - 8, Aftertaste - 8.5. Mojo has some good citrus flavors upfront, but not much of a middle. This is a very balanced IPA, probably the most balanced I’ve had, but with that said I wasn’t able to taste or notice any real malt character. The carbonation was stronger than I expected, but that accentuated the citrus flavors. G found the beer to be more full flavored than me, and again I wanted the overall taste to be just a bit bolder (no pun intended). Flavor - 26.

Boulder Beer Company’s Mojo IPA is a clean and balanced IPA that is refreshing and a definite departure from the West Coast IPA style of strong hops and alcohol. This beer won’t blow your mind, but it will satisfy your palate. If you want an escape from the hop blasting IPAs you normally drink, or if you're someone who isn’t to fond of IPAs - Boulder Beer Company’s Mojo IPA can be an escape or a refreshing entrance into the style. With an Overall Taste of 42.5/50, Beer Fusion gives Boulder Beer Company's Mojo IPA:

Rating: 80/100

 

Beer Fusion Radio Ep. 2 On The Road (Click to Listen)

Beer Fusion goes on the road this week, and experiences Yakima Brewing Company, Snipes Brewing Company, and Whistran Brewery. This is Beer Fusion's first time on the road, and we bring you our thoughts, likes, and dislike from the trip. 

Belgium Beer Wednesday: The Finale...

Today is the last installment of Belgium Beer Wednesday, or is it? No, but it is (for now).  You might be asking yourself, what will February hold? Or, if you read last week’s review, you might be anxiously waiting to hear what the new region might be. Well, you will have to wait a little longer, because first we’ve got some Belgium Beer to review. In order to finish off the last Wednesday of a region, we’ll be reviewing two beers instead of one. To finish off Belgium, we have Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat NV’s Duvel and Brouwerij Bavik’s Petrus Oak Aged Pale Ale. So, let’s get into the Duvel.

You can read Duvel’s description of their website here.

The Duvel has an alc./vol. of 8.5%, which I found surprising once I poured the beer, and discovered it’s pilsner like golden color. The head was fantastic, strong white with creamy qualities that stuck around leaving reminisces down the glass.  The color, as mentioned, was a clean light golden color with a mild carbonation. I would have liked to see a little more of a golden color. Head - 10, Look - 13. The smell was a light malt with hints of hops, the alcohol was present and paired with a sweet fruit smell. The smell wasn’t overpowering, nor did it stand out as something special, but, instead, was a nice clean smelling ale. Smell - 20.

Once I took a sip, the ale left a nice full body in my mouth with a mild carbonation to bring out what tasted like sweet pear. There was also a strong water presence in the middle of the drink. The beer begins so well, I was hoping for a similar middle, and finish. The aftertaste brought out the hops with a bitter dry finish, but nonetheless clean - not much lingers around. Palate - 7, Afterraste - 6. The overall flavor of this ale is truly in the beginning. When the beer hits the tongue the flavors unleash - hops, yeast, sweetness, and a pleasant alcohol presence, but unfortunately they do not stick around. I wanted more of a middle to this beer, and I wish that it also had a strong aftertaste. Again, there was an unusually present taste of water in this beer, which I found strange. Flavor - 20.

This beer is a great beer for how light the color is. I really expected something that was similar to a pilsner, but instead I got an interesting ale. I really would have liked to taste more prominent flavors, but all in all this beer is nothing too exceptional. For the light color it is, but compared to other ales it’s solid - not stand out. Duvel is definitely a beer I will drink again, especially if I want something to give me a perception of a light beer, but taste nothing close to it. Beer Fusion gives Duvel:

Rating: 76/100

Next is Brouwerij Bavik’s Petrus Oak Aged Pale Ale, and if you know what looks to be Dutch, you can check out their website here.

Petrus was a little weaker in the alcohol category with a percentage of 7.3. It poured with a weak white head that quickly dissipated. It had a golden honey look to it in the light, but away from it there was noticeable red tints. Petrus was clean and had a little less rising carbonation then the Duvel. Head - 4, Look - 10. The smell was a mix between sweet berry, and sour cherries with present alcohol notes. I could also smell hints of sugar with a vinegar smell rounding off the sourness. Smell - 16.

When this beer hit my tongue my lips puckered. Sour. Petrus had an initial full body presence, but that quickly turned into strong carbonation and incredibly sour fruit taste. The finish wasn’t anything special, just more sourness and left a dry feel in the mouth. Palate - 5, Aftertaste - 5. The flavor was much better than the Duchesse De Bourgogne , but the very strong sour cherry taste mixed with vinegar notes was not appealing. The carbonation is strong, which really brings out the sourness, but that is the only major player. This beer doesn’t have supporting players. The sourness is so strong that that is all my palate is getting. I really would have liked to taste something else in the beer besides sour fruit. Flavor - 15.

The Duchesse was a better-looking sour, but Petrus is a better tasting one. However, Petrus continues to reaffirm my feelings towards sours, which is I don’t like them. This is a more manageable beer, but the Belgium sour has yet to win me over. Beer Fusion gives Petrus Oaked Aged Ale:

Rating: 55/100

With all of that said, that concludes our trip to Belgium. Next Wednesday we will either set sail, take a plane, or find our way to the Chunnel and begin our tour of beautiful Scotland. So, there you have it - Scotland is the region of February!

Welcome to...Hop Henge!

Close your eyes, no seriously, close your eyes, trust me, I promise nothing bad within my control will happen. So, close your eyes already. Now, open them so you can read this, and imagine vast open highlands, rolling hills green with grass, bright from the glow of a full moon. Feel the gentle wind against your face as it blows across the plain, and smell the crisp moist ocean air.  You relax, and sounds of chanting and the warmth of torches enters growing closer with every breath. You can only see the glow and hear the chanting, but still no person or persons. Closer and closer they come, and finally you can make out these people - these people in robs - covering them from head to toe. As they continue to near, their torches, with the glow of the moon, uncover giant monuments, and it’s then you can understand their chants. You can understand that they’re saying, “Hop Henge”.
 

I first had this week’s beer a couple years ago while I lived and went to school in Eugene, OR. That was also the last time I had Deschute’s Hop Henge Experimental IPA. Hop Henge was one of my first experiences with strong IPAs, and it really stood out as something special - at the time. Since then, I’ve experienced several different variations and strengths of IPAs, with my favorite still being Dogfish Head’s 120 IPA. So, when I saw Hop Henge at my local beer store, I was instantly reminded of all the good times surrounding my first experience with it, but I also became curious about how much my taste buds have changed and if my opinion of this beer, I once considered phenomenal, had changed.

Deschutes has a rather long write up about this Bond Series beer:

First brewed in 2006, Deschutes Brewery’s Hop Henge Experimental IPA reappears this year with more extreme hop flavors than ever before. The new formulation is the epitome of the brewery’s experimental style and commitment to innovation, while gratifying their unquenchable thirst for beautifully balanced hoppy beers. The newest incarnation of Hop Henge uses several new hop processes and techniques to create a truly unique and unexpected beer.

Several pounds of Centennial & Cascade hops are in each barrel with a heavy dry-hop presence to top it off. A blend of crystal, pale and carastan malts creates an overall biscuity characteristic that is dense and muscular, building the alcohol base to support the monstrous hop profile.

Hop Henge is 9% alc./vol. and has an IBU of 95, which immediately makes you think mmmm hoppy or wow hoppy. Two of the Gentleman joined me in trying this brew this week, G and Stohn, with Stohn trying it in spirit from across the state. Last time I had this beer it was drunk very cold, but this time we had it slightly cooler than room temperature. Hop Henge poured with a very creamy two finger head that stuck around for a while, which I really like seeing. The look was a rich honey color with a mild carbonation coming up from the bottom; G described it as a clean honey amber color. Head - 8.5, Look - 15. G and I found the smell to be very hoppy, and there was a nice citrus, almost lemon zest, aroma that accompanied the hops. There was also notes of alcohol, but I found the overall smell to be rather light. Smell - 22.

My first sip was somewhat what I remember and what I expected, which was hops. Hops are very much the key player and reoccurring emphasis for this beer. It wasn’t surprising with the 95 IBUs that it left me with a fuzzy tongue, as well as tastes of lemon zest and slight sweetness. Both G and I didn’t find the hops overwhelming, but just incredibly present. Palate - 8. G found the aftertaste to be creamy with no bite, but just a solid good taste. I continued to taste the hops, but I got more of an alcohol bite with a resulting dryness. Aftertaste - 8.5. Not to sounds like a broken record, but for a beer named Hop Henge it isn’t surprising that the overall flavor of this brew is from the hops. It is a full body beer that has citrus and sweet notes, which are a nice addition to the overall bitterness of the beer. The alcohol isn’t as intense as I would have expected, but still present, and enough so that it creates a solid IPA. Flavor - 21.

Deschute’s Hop Henge is a solid strong IPA. It also represents what most of us craft beer drinkers expect out of a West Coast IPA - hops and alcohol. Now, was it as phenomenal and as "experimental" as I remember it to be from a couple years ago, no, but it’s still a good solid beer. All three of us enjoyed this beer and would buy it again, but compared to some other IPAs in this category of high IBU/Alc. it doesn’t stand out. It does however stand on its own. With all that said, if you’re looking for a solid Pacific Northwest IPA that defines the style, but doesn’t try to redefine or veer outside its style - Hop Henge is a definite buy. This is why Beer Fusion gives Deschute’s Hop Henge Experimental IPA:

Rating: 83/100

Belgium Beer Wednesday - Duchesse De Bourgogne (revisited)

UPDATE: Since writing this review some months ago, and hundreds of unique beers later – my opinion on sour beers has changed monumentally. My affection for the very unique and complex flavors that come from the multitude of different sours has become just that – affection. I have since tried Duchesse De Bourgogne, and liked it very much. I could easily take down this review, but that would go against the purpose of this blog – to showcase an average beer drinkers’ journey in craft beer. What does upset me is those so-called “aficionados” that look down on those that don’t particularly like a given style. To like sours doesn’t make you a part of the “beer elite”, and to think of the beer world as such is insulting to the craft beer movement. I’m a Beer Geek, not a “Beer Snob” or “Beer Aficionado”, because I strive to positively influence the craft beer industry. Do I recant my feelings of this beer on that January day? No! Can I admit that my tastes in beers have expanded and I’ve gained growing respect for beer I once dis-tasted? Yes! Lastly, if there is a style you do not like today, don’t be afraid of trying it again tomorrow (figuratively) and the day after. There is no guarantee your opinion of that style will change, but who knows maybe it will. Cheers!

Today is our third installment of Belgium Beer Wednesday, which also means we are two weeks away from the first Wednesday of February and a new regional focus. There will be more on that next week. Before I get into this week’s beer, I want to talk a little bit about how we go about tasting beer here at Beer Fusion. I know I’ve talked about our new grading process, but I haven’t talked about the process before we open the beer. Some of you may research the beer you purchase, or even go online once you buy it and get some history and specs on the style and such, but I find that unfair to the review. There’s always going to be bias in a review, i.e. you like a beer from one brewery, you are probably going to continue to give positive reviews to that brewery’s beers, because you just like their beer (or give them the benefit of the doubt on an average beer). So, to minimize bias as well as hold true to our motto, “Exceptional Brews Experienced by Average Drinkers”, I do what a lot of average craft beer drinkers do with a new beer - I read the bottle. If the bottle tells me it’s an IPA, then I expect an IPA, but if the beer does not give any information about its self, well then, I simply experience the beer. I mention this because it’s very important to my experience of this Wednesday’s beer - Brouwerij Verhaeghe’s Duchesse De Bourgogne.

Duchesse De Bourgogne doesn’t state a whole lot on the bottle:

Belgium top-fermented reddish-brown ale, a blend of 8 and 18 months old beers following the careful maturation in oak casks.

But, after reading the bottle, it sounded pretty good. I’m a fan of brown ales, and there are a couple red ales I’ve had that I enjoyed - seemed like a good marriage.

Duchesse De Bourgogne comes in at 6% alc./vol., which seemed kind of low considering the maturation process. I expected about 8% plus, but I don’t know their brewing process. I would also like to say that this was my first beer since my wisdom teeth were pulled, so I was rather excited and in need of a good beer. Duchesse De Bourgogne poured a beautiful head, which is something I’ve been missing with some recent beers. It poured about 2 fingers high, and was a strong creamy texture with an off-white color. The look was also fantastic, it had a deep dark brown color with reddish tints; light barely made its way through the glass. A medium amount of carbonation was rising from the bottom, but it was a very good-looking beer. Head - 10, Look -15. The smell was a little surprising. It had a very sweet smell with sour notes. There was a faint aroma of wood (oak) present that had slight whiskey qualities, but the sweet citrus fruit smell was dominating. Smell - 20.

For those of you keeping score we are at 45pts, and I want to say that aesthetically this beer is fantastic, but looks and smells aren’t as important as the flavor. I took my first sip and my initial reaction was very sour w/ a bittersweet finish. I wish I had a picture of my face after taking that sip, because it must have been hilarious. I probably resembled a young child when you force-feed them something they don’t like. In short, my first sip wasn’t pleasant, but I kept with the beer. Palate - 1. After the initial shock, the aftertaste became more sweet and faded quickly. It resembled sparkling grape/apple cider. Aftertaste - 2. The overall flavor was a very young dry white wine or even a non-alc. cider. This beer had no alcohol notes/qualities, and did not resemble anything close to any beer I have tasted beer. And, what I mean by that is it didn’t resemble beer at all. Flavor - 2.

Once I finished enough of the beer for the review, I needed to get more information about this style of beer, and I came across a style I’ve never heard of - Sour Ale. Apparently this is a growing movement for brewers in the United States, and with that knowledge - I PLEAD, PLEASE DO NOT CONTINUE. I’m open to new beer styles or old traditional ways of brewing, but only if they are good. Only if they taste like beer, or some form of beer, and their characteristics are not entirely congruent with some other type of fermenting beverage i.e. wine or malt liquor. I don’t drink sour milk, so I do not want to drink sour beer. It’s safe to say that I truly did not like this beer, and I do not recommend it. I’m sure there’s a huge following for sour ales, but I can guarantee you this - that’s a following I will not be apart. With all of that said, keeping in mind the overall flavoring rating of 5, Beer Fusion gives Duchesse De Bourgogne -

Rating: 50/100

Coffee or Beer? Mocha Death!

It’s Sunday at Beer Fusion, and that means a beer review. Unfortunately, there was no tasting with the Gentlemen, no bar adventure, or anything truly exciting to write about this week; mostly due to me getting my wisdom teeth out a couple days ago. There is, however, one exciting thing to write about this week, and that’s our reviewed beer - Iron Horse Brewery’s Mocha Death.

I had the pleasure of drinking this dark ale with some homemade Irish stew while watching the BCS National Championship. Now, I have nothing to say about the National Championship besides I still love my Ducks. Instead, I want to give all my focus to this ale, because it’s less disappointing. In fact, it’s not at all. On Iron Horse’s website they have this short blurb about Mocha Death:

beginning october 1st, iron horse brewery will be offering mocha death. for this seasonal offering, we started with irish death. irish death is our dark smooth ale that presents a full malt flavor laced with caramel, chocolate, dark fruit, and a touch of sweetness. to this heavenly ale, we added fresh, locally roasted espresso beans and pure cocoa. the result is a bit of confusion. "should this go in my coffee mug, or my pint glass?" answer: both. this beer is up front with enormous coffee aroma, with the cocoa playing the sideline. until the taste. Lacking bitterness, the flavor comes forward with a rounded balance of coffee blending gracefully with the creamy malt body and soft cocoa flavors. dark beer, chocolate, and coffee. you're welcome.

Mocha Death comes in at a 7.8% alc./vol., which is unnoticeable. The Mocha Death poured a small off-white head that quickly dissipated. G tried the beer on his own, and sent me some notes, and he thought the head was great. My only real aesthetic complaint about Mocha Death is its head, so taking G’s notes into account - Head 8. The look and color of this beer is awesome, a deep dark brown, near black, with mild carbonation. This beer does not smell like beer, but coffee, which I love. I’m a coffee addict; I drink water, coffee, and beer. So, when I took a whiff of this beer, I felt as if I found a beautiful marriage of two of my favorite beverages. Once you get past the coffee aroma the hints of dark chocolate makes there way through, as well as the strong roasted malt. Look - 15, Smell - 25.

Once I finished all the technical stuff, I was truly excited to taste this beer. I had all kinds of expectations based on the smell and look. As Iron Horse states above, this is an enhanced version or re-imagined version of Irish Death, which is a favorite of mine, so I didn’t want this to disappoint. After much staring and sniffing, I took my first sip, and once it hit my palate... confusion. Mocha Death really made me wonder whether this is a chilled coffee or a confusingly unique dark ale. It hit the tongue with a light carbonation, and followed with a very smooth creamy aftertaste present with strong cocoa that grew with more drinks. Palate 8, Aftertaste 9. The true flavor of this beer is a creamy, coffee, cocoa beer with strong roasted malts with peculiar hints of vanilla. There’s definitely a lack of bitterness that’s normally present in many west coast dark ales, but for this beer I think it’s perfect. Normally, I’m disappointed in a lack of hoppiness/bitterness, but for this particular ale the overall sweetness pairs perfectly with the coffee, cocoa and Irish Death. Flavor - 29. 

If you love coffee, chocolate, and beer, and have been wondering how to have them all at once - Mocha Death is the answer. It doesn’t have the complexity of some other coffee and beer pairings, but the simplicity of this beer is what makes it special. I’m usually the first to complain and criticize for lack of complexity, but, sometimes, complexity in beer is the ability to recognize how a couple of bold flavors can be put together to make a “simply complex” beer. 

Rating: 94/100 

Belgium Beer Wednesday - Gulden Draak

It’s Wednesday, and you know what that means! Belgium Beer Wednesday, and this Wednesday’s Belgium beer is Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.’s Gulden Draak.  This beer comes in a unique bottle that I found pretty cool. Its bottle is coated in a white paint or some other kind of coating, which is great because it doesn’t let light pass into the bottle. As the website mentions, it’s a great beer to cellar and age. The brewer’s website has a very interesting story about the image on the bottle:

Did you know that the Gulden Draak is named after the golden statue at the  top of the Belfry in Ghent ? The statue was originally donated to the city of Constantinople (now Istanbul in Turkey) by the Norse king Sigrid Magnusson in 1111, during one of  the first crusades. Approximately a century later, Boudewijn IX, Count of Flanders, ordered it to  be transported to Flanders. In 1382, the cities of Bruges and Ghent even waged a battle over  this statue. And who do you think won?

Gulden Draak has an alc./vol. of 10.5%, and it can be labeled as a barley wine. It pours an off white head that’s about 2-3 fingers tall, but without a thickness normally seen with other ales with heavy head. It instead has a very bubbly head that quickly dissipates. I would have liked to see a creamier/thicker head. Head - 8. The color is a deep reddish brown with noticeable carbonation, and the smell is pleasing. It smells of sweet fruit, raison, with paired alcohol notes. A nice roasted malt smell similar to bittersweet chocolate mixes with the fruitiness, and the end result is a beer that is just nice to smell. Look - 13, Smell - 23. When this beer first hit my palate it was so creamy I could nearly chew it. Gulden Draak tasted very balanced and smooth. Palate - 10. The aftertaste was reminiscent of cinnamon/raison with a yeast and malt presence. The alcohol was most noticeable in the aftertaste, which, with the other described ending flavors, provided a rather bitter finish. Aftertaste - 10. The best way to describe the overall flavor of this beer is balanced. The strong malt flavor makes itself more and more present with continued drinking, and the alcohol and hops bite at the end also increases (i.e. gets a longer bitter finish). The fruitiness gets a little too sweet with continued drinking, but it adds a unique complexity to the overall ale. Flavor - 26.  This beer is unique and very complex, but I felt that it had a little too much going on at times with the combating flavors (bitter and sweet). The Chimay last week was balanced perfectly, but Gulden Draak doesn’t quite have the same balance. The balance is just below perfect, and has only a couple aesthetic flaws; this is why we give Gulden Draak:

Rating: 90/100

Beer Fusion Radio Ep. 1

Click on the Title to listen. 

This episode includes best beers of 2010, best beers to drink at and/or watching a sporting event, and a first taste of Elysian's Men's Room. Also, a correction - Blue Moon is brewed by Miller/Coors not InBev.

A Day of Beers

Here at Beer Fusion, Saturday has become our tasting day for the New Year, and this last Saturday was a fun day and night of beer drinking. Unlike previous weeks, this week we have a couple reviews. One beer in particular I was very excited to try, but I will be getting to that in a bit. With the end of the holiday season that means the end of holiday eating for most people, and I’m no exception. January has become a strict month of clean eating, and that, sadly, means reduced beer drinking. Hold your gasps of outrage please. So, Belgium Wednesdays and Saturdays have become my beer drinking days, with Saturdays being somewhat of a cheat day. And that cheat day this week was full of a couple new beers - Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found and Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s Triskaidekaphobia 13th Anniversary Tripel Ale, as well as a brewery review of Kennewick, WA’s Ice Harbor Brewery.

With Kevin out of town this week, G was the only Gentleman over to help review. I asked each of the Gentlemen this week to pick out a beer for a review. Unfortunately, Stohn’s choice of Ninkasi’s Tricerhops was unavailable here (an amazing beer though), and with Kevin out of town the idea didn’t quite work out, but G kept with the idea and brought over a surprise. I got a message from G Friday telling me he picked up something special, but he wouldn’t tell me what it was. He came over Saturday with the bottle still in the brown bag, and at this point my curiosity and excitement had peaked. It was Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found. Lost Abbey has been a brewery I’ve wanted to try for a while, and Lost and Found has been a particular brew by them that I’ve wanted to drink. Lost Abbey has this to say about their Lost and Found: 
 
Lost and Found- Modeled after the great Trappist and Monastic beers that inspired the founding of our brewery. A richly deep garnet colored ale created from a blend of Domestic and imported malts. As part of our commitment to interesting brewing endeavors, Chef Vince created a special raisin puree for this beer. Malts, raisins and a fantastic yeast strain working in harmony produce a beer of amazing complexity and depth.
 
Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found has an alc./vol. of 7.5, and pours a cloudy dark brown with red tints and low carbonations. Look 15. The head is strong, 2-3 fingers high, with an off white color. Head 8. The smell is reminiscent of the Chimay Blue from earlier in the week. G right of the bat noticed the raisons and figs aroma, and we both noticed a lemon zest. The smell is incredibly fruity with a mild hint of alcohol. Smell 21. G and I both had a similar reaction when we tasted this beer, which was “wow”. The flavors hit the palate with an explosion. The texture is creamy and sweet, and the aftertaste for me was very strong. G felt the aftertaste was smooth on the tongue with more fruitiness, but I, on the other hand, found it rather bitter and dry - similar to dried fruit. Palate 9, Aftertaste 8. The overall flavor was a similar balance to the Chimay Blue, which was a marriage between sweet and bitter. The velvet creamy texture from the malt and yeast gave the fruity flavor a full body, and the hops finished with bitterness paired with dried fruit. The alcohol didn’t make itself present, but for this ale that was a good thing. Flavor 24.

Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found is a well-crafted Belgium style ale that lives up to the hype and attention. It’s not an everyday drinking beer, but one that will be purchased on special occasions. Its flavors are complex and full, but not as perfect as some other Belgium styles. This is why we give Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found an 85/100.

Rating: 85/100

Next was Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s Triskaidekaphobia 13th Anniversary Tripel Ale. You might say it's unfair to try another beer after drinking Lost and Found, but we care to differ because of the difference in styles. By no means was I comparing the Triskaidekaphobia to Lost and Found, but I was comparing it to my last favorite tripel - Victory’s Golden Monkey. 

Snoqualmie Falls website doesn’t have much information on their beers so I’m without a link or write up from the company, but I can tell you it has 8.6% alc./vol., and an insanely creative name. Triskaidekaphobia pours a golden honey color with a noticeable amount of carbonation, and as G put it, “carbonation, carbonation, carbonation”. The head was white, and about a finger high, but quickly dissipated. Look 12, Head 5. The smell was a strong white grape smell, which was reminiscent of white wine and Dogfish Head’s Midas Touch. Apart from the white wine smell, the yeast was really present in the aroma. G loved the smell, I, on the other hand, wasn’t to taken by it. Smell 18.  Once again, G and I had the same reaction to the initial taste, which was “wow”, but this time it was a different “wow”. We both were really taken back by the incredibly strong carbonation bite paired with the strong alcohol bite, and strong yeast presence. The aftertaste was something I truly did not care for. It was dry and tasted like white wine (which I don’t like). G found it to be long and bitter. Palate 6, Aftertaste 2. The flavor was very reminiscent of desert wine, but incredibly dry desert wine. There was a mild malt texture, but mostly the taste of yeast and carbonation. Flavor 18.

I don’t know if the intention for this beer was to have such a strong white grape smell and taste, or if it’s an ale that is meant to be aged. Both G and I’s thoughts on this ale was it’s to young. It tastes as if it needs to aged one-way or the other. As this beer is right now, both of us have no intention of buying it again. This is why we are giving Triskaidekaphobia a rating of 61/100.

Rating: 61/100

After G and I finished trying these two beers, we opened up what was left of some beer in our growlers to discover both of our beers had flattened out completely. But, we didn’t let that stop us, we quickly decided to head over to a local brewery in town called Ice Harbor. 

Ice Harbor is the best brewery in the Tri-Cities (there is one new brewery I have yet to try). Unfortunately, none of the breweries in the Tri-Cities can compare to many of the breweries in Oregon and on the west side of Washington. This is my quick opinion on the matter, which may make its way into a podcast discussion. Tri-City breweries are afraid to push the envelope and brew extreme beers, and what I mean by this is beer that has an uncontrollable personality. Don’t get me wrong, Ice Harbor makes solid beer, but it’s nothing that stands out of the crowd of numerous other craft breweries. While I was there on Saturday I tried a seasonal called Hop Warrior, I was told it was a 68 IBU beer, which was strange since the regular IPA would be 2 IBUs stronger than this imperial. One sip let me know that this is not a 68 IBU beer, but much higher. The Hop Warrior was a very cloudy deep golden color that left a bitter fuzz on your tongue. Though this beer was nothing that stood out from other imperial IPAs, it was a good traditional west coast imperial IPA. I next asked for a beer that best represents Ice Harbor, and I was given their regular IPA, which tastes very similar to the Hop Warrior, but not as hoppy and lower alcohol - it even look similar. If you want to try the best beer the Tri-Cities has to offer go to Ice Harbor, but don’t expect innovation; expect well-crafted beer that stays true to the style in which it was brewed. Also expect a very comfortable atmosphere, and great food. 

Overall, this last Saturday was a great start to the new year for beer drinking. I’m excited for what beer has to offer in 2011, and I’m excited to share that with all of you. I hope you are able to make it over to Ice Harbor to try their seasonal Hop Warrior, which, like I said, is a solid imperial IPA - just don’t ask for specs on the beer. And, for your next special occasion I recommend picking up a bottle of Lost Abbey’s Lost and Found. Feel free to let me know in the comments what you are drinking, and if there are any beers you would like to see reviewed. Cheers!

Belgium Beer Wednesday - Chimay Blue

*Note* Due to a memory card issue there is, sadly, no photo today.

Today is the first Wednesday of the New Year, and it’s also the first installment of our Belgium Beer Wednesdays. This wednesday’s Belgium beer is Bières de Chimay’s Chimay Blue, but before I get into this special beer I want to talk about Beer Fusion’s new rating system. We will no longer be giving letter grades, but instead all beers will be judged on a 100pt scale. Here is a quick break down of that scale, Taste is 50pts (Palate (first impression) 10pts, Aftertaste 10pts, and Overall Flavor is 30pts), Smell is 25pts, Look/Color is 15pts, and Head is 10pts. Bières de Chimay’s Chimay Blue is our first beer graded on this new grading scale, but luckily for Bières de Chimay they produced a truly special brew.

Chimay Blue is a Trappist beer, and when I first read this on the bottle I had an idea what this meant, but, luckily, the bottle’s description explained everything for me.

The registered trademark “TRAPPIST”  certifies that his ale was brewed within the wall of an existing trappist monastery under the control of the trappist community. A major part of sales revenue is used by the monks to support charitable works. The exceptional yeast isolated by Father Theodor, combined with the purity of the highly protected water of the abbey’s wells, gives Chimay its unique richness. Since 1862, Chimay”s secondary fermented ales have neither been pasteurized nor filtered and only natural ingredients are used.

After I finished reading this on the bottle, I was excited - an unfiltered and unpasteurized beer sounded uniquely delicious. Chimay Blue is their top fermented beer, and has an alc./vol. of 9%. The ale poured with a strong white head with brown tints that reminded me of the Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary head, which gave me high hopes for the flavor. Head - 10. The Chimay Blue was a cloudy brown/amber/maple color, and the smell was fruity, and had alcohol and floral notes. The smell was incredibly pleasant, and was enjoyable just to smell the ale. Look - 15, Smell - 25. 

My first taste impressions of this beer was - refreshing, which was surprising considering its alc,/vol.. It had a sweet yet bitter taste that was perfectly balanced, and finished with a creamy finish on my tongue. The resulting aftertaste was a slight bitter hop taste, which I loved. Palate - 10, Aftertaste - 10.  Initially, the alcohol presence made itself subtly present, and after several drinks it remained present, but with a balanced subtleness that was perfect. The overall taste had notes of fruitiness, roasted malts, and a unique taste that can only be contributed to the yeast. The ending bitter hop taste balances the sweet fruit and malty flavor flawlessly. Flavor - 30.

Overall Taste - 50

Bières de Chimay’s Chimay Blue is one of the most complex, balanced, and delicious beers I’ve had in a long while. After a couple weeks of average beers, it was a breathe of fresh air to taste a beer as special as this. If you see Chimay Blue buy it! There is no need to think it over.

Total - 100!

A Sahti in 2010

Happy New Years! It’s 2011, in case you forgot. But, before Beer Fusion enters into the New Year, we have one last beer to review from a tasting in 2010.

Last week, my good friend Erik was in town from San Francisco, and he came and joined G, Kevin, and I for a taste of New Belgium’s Sahti. What I was not expecting was for us to end up with three other beers to try after the Sahti. This review is only for the Sahti, but I must say I was very happy with Lagunitas’ Brown Shugga, Elysian’s Bitfrost Winter Ale, and Bear Republic’s XP Pale Ale. Now back to the beer at hand, I chose the Sahti for this week, because I found it interesting. For those who don’t know what a Sahti is, it’s a tradition Finnish beer style made with juniper berries along side or instead of hops. When I first picked this beer up I had no idea what a Sahti was, but, instead, I thought it was a creative name given to some kind of ale by New Belgium. After reading the side info on the bottle about the beer, and doing some research - my curiosity really peaked. So, this is what New Belgium has to say about their Sahti:

Inspired by Finnish Sahti, a traditional rye ale brewed with juniper, our Sahti Ale is a hazy amber ale with a sturdy mouthfeel and a crisp and lively finnish. Brewed with Pale, Crystal, rye malts and whole oats, our version is bittered with Cascade and finished with Cascade and Amarillo hops. Juniper boughs are added to the mash and juniper berries, orange and lemon peel are pitched in the whirlpool creating a festive olfactory of citrus and juniper notes.
                   
New Belgium’s Sahti has an alc./vol. of 7.2% and a very low IBU of 26.4. I poured the Sahti at room temperature, and it had a light amber color with red tones. Stohn tried the Sahti cold, and found that it really lacked in flavor. At room temperature the qualities of the beer were much more pronounced. We all found the head to be light and subside quickly, and there was quite a bit of carbonation. The smell of the beer was very fruity to me. I was able to smell the sourness of the lemon, and got an almost white wine smell as well. G was really able to pick out the rye and yeast. Now for the taste - yeast. This beer has an overwhelming taste of yeast, which was surprising considering the fresh crisp tastes described by New Belgium. The beer was smooth aside from the yeast taste, and very light, well carbonated, with hints of lemon. G, aside from tasting the yeast, tasted the sweetest flavors than any of us. As the beer settled in the glass more flavors were pronounced, but so was the yeast and the rye. The aftertaste wasn’t bitter, but crisp and clean. The aftertaste had me thinking. With the IBU as low as it is, and the style (Sahti) traditionally made without hops, or with the option of being without hops, I wonder why they even bothered to use hops in their recipe. All four of us were unable to taste the juniper berries, and we found that rather disappointing.

New Belgium’s Sahti is not a bad beer. It’s a different kind of beer. I feel as if the inclusion of hops might have offset the juniper berries, or maybe there wasn’t enough added into the recipe, but, either way, for a beer that has a tradition of being brewed with that distinct quality I wanted that flavor to stand out. This Sahti is a beer we’re happy we tried and experienced, but we all agreed we would not buy this beer again. With that in mind we rated this Sahti a C+, and we recommend trying a different, more traditional, Sahti instead.

Rating: C+

Beer Fusion Radio Ep. 0

This is a little teaser for the upcoming Episode 1. Click the title, which is a link to the episode to listen.

Cheers!