Tag Archives: USA

Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA

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In the previous post I reviewed Dogfish Head’s 60 Minute IPA, so today it is time for their 90 Minute IPA. The bottle I have isn’t super fresh, but it was bottled in the end of March 2014, so hopefully it will still be in good shape.

dogfish_head_90_ipa

  • Brewery: Dogfish Head Brewery
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial IPA
  • ABV: 9 %
  • Size: 355 ml
  • Bought from: Online
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I wasn’t extremely impressed by the 60 minute IPA, so am not getting my expectations up too much, since the 60 minute IPA should be a ‘dumbed down’ version of the 90 minute, which was first released two years earlier in 2001. As the 60 minute IPA, this beer has also been hopped continuously (i.e. small additions of hops are added throughout the boil, instead of e.g. an addition at the beginning and end of the boil) throughout the 90 minute boil. The beer is 9.0% ABV and has a IBU level of 90. Again, I don’t have much ‘official’ information on the ingredients in the beer, but from what I’ve gathered from around the internet (homebrew forums), the malt bill consists of English pale ale and TF amber malt, the beer is hopped with a mixture of Warrior, Amarillo and Simcoe, and it is fermented with a Ringwood-related yeast strain. So, will the 90 minute IPA live up to the hype?

[easyreview title=”Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours crystal clear, and with a glowing golden-orange color. A huge fluffy white head is formed, despite the quite careful pour. The foam head collapses slowly, and leaves large patches of lacing along the glass. A really nice appearance (very similar to the 60 minute IPA)!” cat1rating=”4.5″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma is a balance between crisp hop tones, with citrus, resin and floral hints, together with a caramelly and bready maltiness. Not much alcohol is detectable. The aroma could be slightly stronger, and I would personally prefer slightly more hoppiness, especially in an Imperial IPA.” cat2rating=”3.5″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The taste begins with a sweet maltiness, lending hints of caramel, honey and biscuits. The maltiness is not as toasty as the 60 minute IPA, despite this one also containing the relatively toasty flavoured Amber malt. The hop flavours are surprisingly muted, with only the slightest hints of tropical fruits (primarily pineapple), resin and citrus (grapefruit). The finish is also sweet and only mildly bitter. Am I really drinking an Imperial IPA? This tastes more like a(n Imperial) Red Ale. I like malty IPAs, but this was way too sweet and malt-dominated even for me.” cat3rating=”3″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a moderately full body and moderate carbonation level. The sweetness really pulls down on the drinkability, and this wouldn’t be my first choice for a thirst-quencher a warm day like this. The flavours stay in the mouth for a long while though.” cat4rating=”3.5″ summary=”Again I was quite disappointed, as this was way too sweet and had way too little hop flavours and bitterness for my taste. I feel the beer would be more balanced if the bitterness level was cranked up slightly more. Maybe even 4 months is too long for a beer like this? Perhaps I would prefer Dogfish Head’s darker beers more?”]

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA

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I haven’t posted anything for a while, since I’ve been on vacation (including a two week trip to Berlin and Amsterdam), but I thought I’d review a beer I bought a while ago. I will be having a short break in homebrewing as well, since we are moving our garage brewery to a new location, and we need to do some renovating before it is ready to use. During the summer I’ve though brewed a couple of small batches (IPAs) on my old cooler + 20 liter kettle setup, which I’ll write about later. I also organized a single hop tasting with 9 beers a little over a month ago, which I hopefully will have time to write about at some point. Anyways, to the beer, which has quite a reputation in the craft beer world.

dogfish_head_60_ipa

  • Brewery: Dogfish Head Brewery
  • Country: USA
  • Style: American IPA
  • ABV: 6 %
  • Size: 355 ml
  • Bought from: Online
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This is the first time I try a beer from Dogfish Head, which is a brewery I quickly came across during my early days of my ‘beer hobby’. The brewery is one of the larger craft breweries in the USA (founded by Sam Calagione in 1995), is known for their unconventional beer, and it has featured in various TV shows (Brew Masters) and documentaries (Beer Wars) about beer. Their 60 minute IPA was released in 2003, and it is an IPA that has been hopped continuously (i.e. small additions of hops are added throughout the boil, instead of e.g. an addition at the beginning and end of the boil) throughout the 60 minute boil. The beer is 6.0% ABV and has a IBU level of, yes, 60. I don’t have much ‘official’ information on the ingredients in the beer, but from what I’ve gathered from around the internet (homebrew forums), the malt bill consists of pale ale and TF amber malt, the beer is hopped with a mixture of Warrior, Amarillo and Simcoe, and it is fermented with a Ringwood-related yeast strain. My bottle was bottled in the middle of March 2014, so it isn’t super-fresh, but still fresher then many US beers you find around here. The beer sounds interesting on paper, but does it live up to the hype?

[easyreview title=”Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours crystal clear, and it has a deep golden color (with some slight hints of orange). A massive fluffy head is formed during pour, and it collapses slowly, leaving drapes of lacing along the glass. A really nice appearance!” cat1rating=”4.5″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma is mostly hop-dominated at first, featuring tones of pine resin, mango and candied citrus zest. You can detect a slight maltiness in the background, contributing with tones of caramel and freshly toasted bread. As the beer warms up, the maltiness becomes more and more evident. Not the typical West Coast IPA aroma that one is used to.” cat2rating=”4″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The taste begins with a bready maltiness, with tones of toasted malts and caramel. These are then joined by an earthy, dank, resiny hoppiness. Some citrus and tropical fruits hide in the background, but I assume Amarillo dominated the dry hops, while Simcoe dominates the kettle hops. The finish is semi-dry and during the first sips, the bitterness seems surprisingly low for an IPA. The flavors are quite well balanced, but wished there was slightly more bitterness and a little less of the maltiness present, as it feels more like a hoppy amber ale at the moment. As the beer warms up, the bitterness level seems to increase a bit.” cat3rating=”3.5″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a moderate body and carbonation level, and it is quite easily drinkable. However, the combination of toastiness and bitterness draw away from it slightly. This would not be my first choice for a thirst quencher on a warm summer day.” cat4rating=”3.5″ summary=”Overall a great beer, but it didn’t really live up to the huge expectations. This was a malty IPA that had more focus on toasted malts than caramel. The hop profile (with more weight towards resin, earthiness and dankness) fit the toasty maltiness well though, as I feel really fruity hops tend to clash with toasted (and roasted) malts. I have a bottle of 90 Minute IPA as well, which I will be trying next. Hopefully it impresses me more!”]

Canned Imperial Stout? Ten Fidy and Cinnamon Rolls

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It’s not every day that I get a chance to drink great craft beer from a can, especially not an Imperial Stout. Today is my lucky day, since my friend Ingo (of Sad Robot Brewing fame) was kind enough to bring me a can of Oskar Blues Ten Fidy (it was released at Systembolaget earlier this spring) when he was visiting Finland recently. I have really good experiences from trying some of their other beer (Dale’s Pale Ale, Deviant’s Dale and G’Knight), so have quite high hopes for this one. I baked some Cinnamon Rolls earlier today also (recipe inspired by the one found here), which I had planned to enjoy while sipping on the beer. Hopefully the flavours will complement each other.

oskar_blues_ten_fidy

  • Brewery: Oskar Blues Brewery
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial Stout
  • ABV: 10.5 %
  • Size: 355 ml
  • Bought from: Gift
  • Beer Advocate
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I don’t have much information on this beer, but what I’ve gathered from around the internet, it is an Imperial Stout, has an ABV of 10.5%, has been brewed with 2-row malt, chocolate malt, roasted barley, and flaked oats, and has been bittered to a whooping 98 IBU. There are some rumours floating around on homebrew forums that the name comes from the fact that the final gravity of the beer is 1.050 or perhaps 10.50 degrees plato, but it is more likely that FIDY is an acronym for Fuck the Industry, Do it Yourself (this was also what founder Dale Katechis stated in their Brew Dogs episode). Anyways, it’s not everyday you get to try this complex of a beer from a can, so am really looking forward to having a taste!

[easyreview title=”Oskar Blues Ten Fidy” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours pitch-black and you can directly see the beer is very viscous. Almost looks like motor oil pouring out of the can. A tan-colored fluffy head is formed with the pour, but it collapses quite quickly, leaving brown drapes of lacing along the glass. Looks really delicious!” cat1rating=”4.5″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma is really nice as well, and I get tones of dark chocolate and vanilla in the beginning, followed by roasted malts and coffee. These are balanced by some sweet caramel tones, which hint the taste will be sweet as well. The aroma is rich and strong, even though I still have a slightly stuffed nose from just having a flu. Can’t tell at all that the beer is 10.5%, as the alcohol is well hidden behind the other flavors. Really nice and inviting aroma!” cat2rating=”4.5″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavour is similar to the aroma, beginning with some roasted tones dominating. Here, the chocolate and vanilla aren’t as strong, rather I find that the roasty and toasty malt tones are in the center together with notes of coffee. Behind this you have a slightly sweet bready maltiness, that ends in a semi-dry and quite bitter finish. I prefer slightly sweeter Imperial Stouts myself, and I like how this one is balanced by the huge bitterness. Again, I can’t tell this is 10.5% ABV. I get a slight warming feeling in the mouth, but no boozy flavours. Really nice!” cat3rating=”4.5″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a really thick and full body, which together with the low carbonation level makes this a great slow sipper. Not a beer to drink in the sun or as a thirst-quencher, but it definitely suits a cold spring evening as today. The roasty notes and bitterness draw away slightly from the drinkability, but the sweetness keeps them quite well under control.” cat4rating=”4″ summary=”Overall, a really nice beer, and one of the better Imperial Stouts I’ve tried. The flavours are complex and strong, but they come together really well, making a well-balanced and delicious package. The chocolate, coffee and vanilla notes make this a perfect dessert beer. This shouldn’t be oak/barrel-aged, so not sure how the vanilla notes have entered the picture, but they work really well! The high bitterness works well, but I think I would have preferred a couple of IBUs less. The beer paired well with the cinnamon roll, as the sweet, sugary and cinnamony notes complemented the rich and roasted flavors really well.”]

Southern Tier Un*Earthly

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  • Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing Company
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial IPA
  • ABV: 9.5 %
  • Size: 650 ml
  • Bought from: Online
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To celebrate the start of my short winter holiday I thought I’d try another beer that has been in my refrigerator for way too long. Un*Earthly is an Imperial IPA by the New York-based brewery Southern Tier. I have previously tried a couple of Southern Tier beers, one being Gemini, which is a blend of this beer and their Hoppe. I really liked the blend, so am guessing this beer should be great as well. It has been brewed with pale ale malt, carapils and red wheat, and hopped with chinook, cascade, styrian goldings, and centennial to a calculated IBU of 153. Sounds promising, but hopefully there is some hop punch in it still and I haven’t waited too long to try it.

[easyreview title=”Southern Tier Un*Earthly” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours crystal-clear with an amber-orange color. A really minimal off-white head is formed, that remains as a ring on top of the beer the entire drinking session. The surface is oily and a slight amount of lacing clings on the glass as the beer level decreases in the glass. Could have used some more head for a better appearance.” cat1rating=”3.5″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma is mainly a blend of citrusy and resiny hoppiness and a sweet caramelly maltiness. There are some floral and candied fruit tones present as well. The aroma could be stronger, but I guess the beer isn’t super fresh.” cat2rating=”3.5″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”There are some caramel and sweet biscuit tones in the beginning as the beer enters the mouth, but these are quickly overtaken by a floral, grapefruit-like, piney, resiny and earthy hoppiness, that linger in the mouth for a long time. The finish is quite sweet, almost barleywine-like, and there is a moderate hop bitterness present. Could have used a bit more hop flavors and a little less maltiness, but this might be because the bottle isn’t fresh.” cat3rating=”3.5″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The body is full and the carbonation level is medium-low. Together with the sweetness and the bitterness, it makes the beer a bit difficult to drink, and it definitely is a slow sipper. The beer feels smooth in the mouth though.” cat4rating=”3.5″ summary=”Overall, this was quite a disappointment, even though the beer was quite tasty and enjoyable. I like malty (I)IPAs, but this was a bit too sweet even for my taste. The FG of this beer is around 1.020, so it was most likely quite sweet even when fresher. The hop flavor is quite subdued, so I guess this could up to a year old. There are definitely better (I)IPAs available on the market, but don’t be afraid to try Southern Tier’s IPA currently available at the Arkadia Alko!”]

Lagunitas Maximus

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  • Brewery: Lagunitas Brewing Company
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial IPA
  • ABV: 8.2 %
  • Size: 355 ml
  • Bought from: Barley Wine, Copenhagen
  • Beer Advocate
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After a week of fermentations and analysing wort (I love my job!), I thought it would be nice to sit down and relax with a nice and hoppy IPA. This is one of the beers I brought home from my trip to Copenhagen in August. I’ve heard lots of good stuff about Lagunitas before, but have never had a chance to try them, so am looking forward to this. This seems to be categorized as an Imperial IPA on the various beer sites online, but the bottle claims the beer is only 59 IBU, so I am skeptical. I have no information on the ingredients used, so I have no idea what to expect. The bottle states that the original gravity was 1.080, which gives a final gravity of around 1.017-1.018 with the ABV of 8.2%. Not too dry, and definitely in my ballpark. Let’s see how this tastes! Unfortunately there are no freshness indicators on this, so I have no clue how old this bottle is.

[easyreview title=”Lagunitas Maximus” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours clear and with an orange-amber color. There was no yeast sediment in the bottle, so guess the beer has been filtered. A minimal off-white head is formed, that disappears as fast as it appeared.” cat1rating=”3″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”As I open the bottle I can feel some hop aroma reach my nose. The actual beer features a strong orange and tangerine hop aroma, with some tones of apricots, tropical fruits, resin and sweet caramel in the background as well. I’ve never actually come across a beer with this kind of aroma before (i.e. this strong of an orange aroma). Interesting, but not among my favorites.” cat2rating=”3.5″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavor begins with a sweet, caramelly, bready maltiness, that together with the hop tones of citrus (orange in the lead again, with some lemon and tangerine) reminds me of some citrus candy drops. You can find some grassy and herbal tones in the hoppiness as well, but they are quite subdued. The flavor ends with a sweet and only slightly bitter finish. I felt this was really imbalanced, and way too sweet to be fully enjoyable. This would also have need lots more bitterness to back up the sweetness. Again an interesting flavor, but definitely not amongst my favorites, especially with the poor balance.” cat3rating=”3″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a medium-full body and a medium carbonation level. The sweetness makes this a bit difficult to drink. At least the alcohol is well hidden.” cat4rating=”3″ summary=”Definitely disappointed with this one, as I feel this would have been so much better with some more bitterness and a slightly drier finish. The beer featured some interesting hop tones in the aroma and flavor, mostly focusing on orange and tangerine. I have no idea what hops Lagunitas have used, but maybe it could be Summit hops? I will have to give Lagunitas another chance if I see any of their other beers in the future, but this beer was at least no to my taste.”]

Hoppin Frog Mean Manalishi

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  • Brewery: Hoppin Frog Brewery
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial IPA
  • ABV: 8.2 %
  • Size: 650 ml
  • Bought from: Online
  • Beer Advocate
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I have had a bottle of Hoppin Frog’s Mean Manalishi Imperial IPA in the refrigerator for a couple of months waiting for the right time to drink it. Today I thought I’d finally try it, to make some room in the fridge. Have not tried many beers from Hoppin Frog (only the barrel-aged B.O.R.I.S.), but have heard some good things about them. Couldn’t find any official information on ingredients, but some web pages list Columbus and Summit as the hops used. This IPA features a massive theoretical IBU of 168 and it has apparently had an OG of 1.084, which means that the FG should be around 1.021 as the beer is 8.2% ABV. Hopefully the beer isn’t too sweet and still packs a hoppy punch!

[easyreview title=”Hoppin Frog Mean Manalishi” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours with a slightly hazy amber-copper color, and a slight off-white head is formed, that collapses quickly and leaves some lacing along the glass. The surface is a bit oily as well.” cat1rating=”4″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma features a combination of hop tones and caramel. The hop tones bring to mind resin, tangerine, citrus and herbs, and overall the aroma is earthy and dank.” cat2rating=”4″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavor begins with a caramelly maltiness, but it is quickly overtaken by a resiny, dank and floral hoppiness, featuring tones of grapefruit, tangerine and pine. As the hop flavors die down, a strong bitterness enters that lingers with the semi-dry finish. Really nice flavors! The flavors are well balanced and the bitterness is backed up by a strong malt backbone.” cat3rating=”5″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a medium-full body and a medium-low carbonation level. The beer is easy to drink, even with the strong flavors.” cat4rating=”4″ summary=”Overall, a very nice beer, with tons of dank resiny hoppiness and a strong bitterness. The caramelly malt backbone makes sure that the beer is easy to drink and well balanced. Not sure about the freshness of the bottle, but it is most likely at least 6 months old. Even with this age, the beer had great hop aroma and flavor. Looking forward to trying more Hoppin Frog beers in the future! “]

Beer Tasting

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A couple of weeks ago (yes, I have really postponed writing this), me and two friends gathered to drink some beer after work, and at the same time I could ‘get rid of’ / taste through some of my evergrowing beer stock to make place for more. We had nine beers on the agenda, with one of them being Lovecats, the homebrewed blonde ale, and many being beers I had tried before. The whole line-up from left to right was: Firestone Walker Double Barrel Ale, Alesmith X, Port Brewing Shark Attack, Hopfenstopfer Jahrgangsbier, Lovecats, Green Glash Hop Head Red, Lindemanns Faro, William Bros Kelpie and Dark Star Espresso Stout.



 
We began by tasting Lovecats (left in picture below), Hopfenstopfer Jahrgangsbier (center in picture below) and Firestone Walker Double Barrel Ale (right in picture below). Lovecats poured with the usual hazy orange color and quickly-collapsing white-colored head. The aroma was citrusy, grassy and also featured tones of tropical fruits, and compared to the other two beers in the lineup (and actually also compared to the hoppier beers tasted later during the evening), it became evident that Lovecats has a really strong hop aroma. The flavor began with a slight maltiness, which was joined by a grassy and citrusy hoppiness, that lingered on to a bitter and slightly tart finish. The beer had a light body and quite high carbonation. Overall, Lovecats is an okay pale ale, have brewed better though.

Hopfenstopfer Jahrgangsbier is  German Pilsener, apparently brewed with homegrown malts and hops. The beer poured with a crystal-clear golden-yellow color and a fluffy white head. The aroma was very mild, but featured sweet, malty, and perfume-like tones. The flavor was also quite sweet, with malty and bready tones dominating. There was almost no hoppiness nor bitterness present in the flavor. The beer had a light body and medium carbonation level. Overall, I didn’t really like this one. Very bland and boring.

Firestone Walker’s Double Barrel Ale is an English-style Pale Ale, fermented in oak barrels. The beer poured with a clear copper color and a fluffy off-white head. Nice looking beer. The aroma contained some herbal and earthy hops, combined with tones of oak, caramel and the slightest fruitiness. The flavor was similar to the aroma, with a caramelly and bready maltiness dominating together with a oaky woodiness and a herbal hoppiness. The finish was dry and quite astringent. The body was smooth and medium-full, and the beer had a medium carbonation level. Overall, a strange beer, but the oakiness went together quite well with the caramel and hops.



 
After this we moved on to the darker and (the only) sour beer: William Bros Kelpie (left in the picture below), Lindemanns Faro (center in the picture below) and Dark Star Espresso Stout (right in the picture below). Kelpie, which I have had a small taste sample of before, is a dark traditional ale that has been brewed with fresh seaweed in the mash tun. The beer poured clear and dark brown, almost black, with a quite long-lasting cream-colored head. The aroma was dominated by toasted and roasted malts, with slight coffee tones. There is also a minimal fruitiness present in the aroma. The flavor is also dominated by the toasted and roasted malts, and these are joined by a herbal hoppiness, and a minerally and dry finish. The beer has a quite light body and a medium carbonation level. Overall, I was not really fond of this beer, as the flavors were a bit strange and the beer felt a little light. I couldn’t really detect any seaweed, but there was a saltiness present.

Next up was Lindemans Faro, a beer in a style that was new to me. Faro Lambics are lambic (i.e. spontaneously fermented sour beers) blends which have been sweetened with (usually brown) sugar. Bottled versions are usually pasteurized, to prevent bottle-fermentation of the added sugar. The beer poured slightly hazy, with an amber color, and almost no head. The aroma was sweet and sour, with a combination of candy, sugar, a cherry-like tartness, and some funkiness. The flavor featured sweet caramel blended with a citrusy and cherry-like tartness and acidity. The flavor reminded me of some kind of sweet and sour candies I’ve eaten as a kid. The finish was slightly dry, while the body was a light and the beer had a medium-high carbonation level. Overall, a very strange beer, that I found surprisingly enjoyable I must admit. I’m not a fan of sour beer at all, but this was surprisingly drinkable (probably thanks to the sweetness).

Dark Star’s Espresso Stout is also a beer I’ve had before, and it is a stout brewed with ground arabica coffee. The beer pours pitch-black, portraying slight red tones when held up against the light, and a tan-colored head is formed, that leaves lacing as it collapses. The aroma is dominated by coffee, but there are some roasted malt and caramel tones present as well. You can definitely tell coffee has been used when brewing this. The flavor featured tones of roasted malt, coffee, ash, and some chocolate. The finish is quite dry and astringent, and I’m left wishing for some more body to back up the roastiness. The beer has a light body and a medium carbonation level. Overall, a very coffee-dominated beer that is a little light on the body. Would really benefit from some more alcohol and rest sugars.



 
We finished off the evening with the hoppy beers, tasting through Green Flash Hop Head Red (left in the picture below), Alesmith X (center in the picture below) and Port Brewing Shark Attack (right in the picture below). I had tried two of the beers before, but Alesmith’s X was new to me. Green Flash Hop Head Red poured with a clear dark amber-copper color and a cream-colored head, that collapsed leaving drapes of lacing along the glass. The aroma has lots of hoppiness featuring floral, citrusy, fruity, and pineapple-like tones. There are also some tones of dark fruits and candy-like sweetness present. The flavor features tones of caramel, toasted malt, and a resiny and grapefruit-like hoppiness, that ends in a semi-dry and moderately bitter finish. The beer has a medium-full body and a medium carbonation level. Overall, a nice beer, featuring some nice hoppiness (especially the aroma) and balance.

The next beer was Alesmith X, which is an American Pale Ale by the infamous San Diego-based brewers. The beer poured with a clear golden-yellow color and a white head, that collapsed leaving some slight lacing along the glass. The aroma was hoppy, featuring floral, citrusy, and grassy tones. The aroma also featured some mild caramel tones. The flavor featured a light maltiness coupled with a citrusy hoppiness, that finished in a dry and bitter finish. The beer had a medium-light body and a medium carbonation level. Overall, a better-than-average pale ale, but nothing very special. The hop tones were nice, but felt like the beer was lacking something.

The final beer of the evening was Port Brewing’s Shark Attack, previously tasted here. The beer had a very similar appearance to Hop Head Red, with a dark amber color and a cream-colored head. The aroma featured tones of dark fruits, raisins, red fruits, floral and citrusy hoppiness, and slight alcohol. I definitely remembered this being a lot hoppier and the last bottle I had was even much older (this one was only 3 months old). The flavor featured tones of caramel, dark fruits, malts, and a grapefruit-like hoppiness. The flavor finishes semi-dry and quite bitter. The beer featured a medium-full body and a medium carbonation level. Overall, a nice imperial red, but this was a lot maltier and less hoppy than I remembered. Still very enjoyable and a nice end to the evening.



 
All in all it was a good evening, with some really nice beers. The last three beers were among my favorites of the night, and something really surprising was that Lovecats had the most hoppy aroma of the lot.

Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye

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  • Brewery: Bear Republic Brewing Company
  • Country: USA
  • Style: American IPA / Rye Beer
  • ABV: 8 %
  • Size: 355 ml
  • Bought from: Gift
  • Beer Advocate
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I haven’t tasted any commercial beers made with rye before, only a homebrew by my homebrewing neighbor Juhani (thanks for the tasting, the beers were both interesting and tasty!), but I am very interested in doing so, since I have heard that the rye lends a spicy character that sounds intriguing. Bear Republic are a craft brewery from California, and have tried their Racer 5 and Big Bear Black Stout before which were really nice. I wasn’t able to find any official information on the ingredients used in the brew, but homebrew recipes circulating around the web suggests it contains Pale Ale, Rye, Munich, Wheat and Carapils malt, and Columbus, Centennial and Amarillo hops. The IBUs should be around 80, so this is bordering to an Imperial IPA. Lets see how it tastes!

[easyreview title=”Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours with a clear dark amber, almost brown, color, and a large, but compact, cream-colored head is formed, that slowly collapses leaving drapes of lacing along the glass. Beautiful appearance.” cat1rating=”5″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma contains both caramelly and malty tones, lending tones of a sugary and almost raisiny fruitiness, combined with a piney, resiny and even grapefruity hoppiness.” cat2rating=”4″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavor begins with a caramelly maltiness, drawing to tones of brown sugar and again an almost raisiny fruitiness. These are joined by a resiny, grapefruity and dank hoppiness, combined with minimal peppery tones (is this the rye?). The finish is semi-dry and quite bitter. The flavors are quite balanced, and this beer definitely has a strong malt backbone to back up the bitterness. The alcohol is well hidden behind the complex flavors present.” cat3rating=”4″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a medium-full body and medium carbonation level, making it quite easy to drink. This is definitely more of a slow sipper, but still very enjoyable.” cat4rating=”4″ summary=”A really nice beer, featuring a strong malty backbone combined with a resiny and dank hoppiness and a biting bitter finish. There were some spicy notes present which I guess are from the rye, and they fitted really well with the hoppiness of the beer. This beer really got me interested in brewing something with rye myself!”]

Alchemist Heady Topper

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  • Brewery: The Alchemist
  • Country: USA
  • Style: Imperial IPA
  • ABV: 8 %
  • Size: 500 ml
  • Bought from: Online, ~8 euro
  • Beer Advocate
  • RateBeer

 

Time to try another highly rated IPA (ranked number 3 all-time on Beer Advocate and the 5th best Imperial IPA on RateBeer) I recently acquired: The Alchemist’s Heady Topper. Alchemist are a craft brewery from Vermont, USA, currently only brewing a single beer (Heady Topper, their Imperial IPA). The reason for this is that their brewery was destroyed with Hurricane Irene last year, and they have now just recently reopened. They produced a wide range of beers before, but are now only concentrating on brewing their flagship beer perfectly. The new brewery also features a canning line, so this IIPA should be extra protected from UV light and oxygen. Alchemist are very secretive about this brew, so I have no information on the ingredients used to brew it. The website states that the beer is 120 IBU. The can suggests you should drink the beer directly out of the can, but I wanted a look of it as well, so I poured it into a snifter. Let’s see if this lives up to the hype!

[easyreview title=”Alchemist Heady Topper” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours with a hazy golden-yellow color (some hints of orange), and a slight white head is formed, that collapses quickly leaving some lacing along the glass. There are hop particulates floating around in the beer, suggesting that this is gonna be a really hoppy beer. The surface is oily as well.” cat1rating=”3″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”Wow, you can smell this beer from a couple of meters away. The aroma is extremely hoppy, with tones of grapefruit, mango, tropical fruits, resin, grass and lemon zest. As a hop-lover I can say this is the best smelling beer I’ve ever had.” cat2rating=”5″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavor is as hop-dominated as the aroma. There is almost no sign of any maltiness, as the flavor begins with a citrusy and resiny hoppiness, featuring tones of grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, pine and earthy herbs. The flavor clings onto the every exposed surface of the mouth, and it finishes with a bitter and quite dry finish. This beer is balanced completely towards the hops, but the bitterness is not over the top, and it still is enjoyable to drink. In fact, I really like this beer. Maybe not the tastiest beer I’ve had, but definitely top 3. You really have to like hop flavors to like this one though” cat3rating=”5″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a medium-light body and a medium carbonation level. The beer is a little sticky and oily because of all the hoppiness, and the bitterness withdraws some points. This is still surprisingly easy to drink!” cat4rating=”4″ cat5title=”Overall” cat5detail=”A fantastic beer, filled with amazing hop aroma and flavor. This beer is concentrated solely on the hops, but the beer still manages to be interesting and tasty. The hoppiness is complex, and features a wide range of flavors. Definitely lives up to its hype. If you ever get the chance to try it, do it! Beware though, you have to love hops!” cat5rating=”5″ overall=”false”]

AleSmith IPA

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  • Brewery: AleSmith Brewing Company
  • Country: USA
  • Style: American IPA
  • ABV: 7.25 %
  • Size: 650 ml
  • Bought from: Online, ~8 euro
  • Beer Advocate
  • RateBeer

 

I recently got hold of some beers from AleSmith (their IPA, Old Numbskull and Speedway Stout), and will be trying the IPA first. AleSmith’s IPA is the top-rated IPA at RateBeer and 9th-placed American IPA at Beer Advocate, so expectations are naturally high. I couldn’t find any official information on the ingredients used in the beer, but homebrew recipes floating around online suggest a malt bill consisting of 2-row backed up with light caramalts, and a hop bill consisting of Columbus, Simcoe and Amarillo. AleSmith’s webpage informs me that the OG of the beer was 1.072, meaning the FG should be around 1.016-1.017 to give an ABV of 7.25%. A surprisingly high FG for a West Coast IPA, but it should be right down my alley (as I’m not a fan of super-dry (I)IPAs). Of course there is no freshness indications on the bottle, but it should hopefully be quite fresh. Let’s see how it tastes!

[easyreview title=”AleSmith IPA” cat1title=”Appearance” cat1detail=”The beer pours with a slightly hazy golden color (some hints of amber), and a slight off-white head is formed with the pour. Some lacing is left along the glass as the head collapses.” cat1rating=”4″ cat2title=”Smell” cat2detail=”The aroma is mostly hop-dominated, with floral, citrusy (grapefruit and orange) and resiny tones present. There are some hints of caramel hidden behind the hops as well. I wonder if the aroma has suffered slightly on the way over from California.” cat2rating=”4″ cat3title=”Taste” cat3detail=”The flavor starts off with a honey-like and caramelly maltiness, that is joined by smooth tones of grapefruit, resin and pine. I feel the hop flavor is ‘raw’, i.e. it reminds me of the aroma of dried hop cones and that is a good thing, and it finishes off with a pleasant bitterness and a semi-dry finish. The beer is well balanced, and the components come together nicely, with the caramelly malt backbone balancing the hoppy flavors and the smooth bitterness fantastically. Still feel the beer is lacking a bit of freshness, as the hop flavors seem a bit subdued.” cat3rating=”4″ cat4title=”Mouthfeel” cat4detail=”The beer has a medium body and carbonation level, and it is easy to drink for such a big beer. The beer has a smooth and slightly oily mouthfeel.” cat4rating=”4″ summary=”Overall a great beer, combining a nice maltiness with tons of hop flavors in a easily drinkable package. Even though there was plenty of hoppiness present, it felt as if the beer wasn’t super fresh, which was a shame. Alesmith seem to know what they are doing, and it is not a surprise that this beer is highly ranked.”]