Southern Star Buried Hatchet Stout:
Howdy all, welcome to small brew day and we are going to highlight what has easily become my favorite small/craft brew in the country: Southern Star.  Located out of Conroe, TX this little brewery that is on that needs to be watched but I’m fearful they don’t really have much in the way of marketing or distribution at the moment (outside major population centers in Texas). Now going into this review I thought I had already let my dear audience know about this great brewery before now but, alas, I have been keeping all of y’all in the dark and for that, I apologize.  So let’s get acquainted with one another shall we?  Today’s brew is a nice American Stout known as Buried Hatchet Stout, a good strong black beer that is what a more recent “chocolate” stout should have been a few days ago.  Hatchet pours strong, with a thick coca colored head that doesn’t dissipate for a while and allows the nose of chocolate and coffee to come out very well.  The stout drinks silky smooth with a coffee front end and a chocolate and toffee mid tongue and back end.  Notes of cream show up here and there in the sips and add to the silk like finish of the beer.  A strong beer at 8.25% ABV this beer is a great fall or winter beer and for all you lovers of chocolate beer, this is one to try, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.  This is a beer that I will be happy to repurchase in the future.  

21st Amendment Bitter American:
Greetings and salutations beer lovers, drinkers and space program admirers.  Once again, we dip our sample mug into the vat at 21st Amendment Brewery and what a beer we got in return.  I’m a big fan and student of the space program and it’s history so any beer that rolls in even a suggestion of the early history of NASA and I’m sold.  Once again the can art is a big seller for yours truly and I have to admit I feel a but like Homer Simpson when finding beer with a monkey on the can and being totally infatuated.  Quick side note: Is the monkey happy, drunk or high?  Honestly he looks like he’s been hitting the bong before heading space side and now he’s got David Bowie’s “Young Americans” blaring in his helmet.  Back to reality, the beer pours well with a nice head on it that last for a few minutes before retreating to the edges of the glass.  The nose is citrus and malt that blend together nicely and there is plenty of carbonation in beer, even after drinking on the beer for a while there were still lines of ascending bubbles in the beer.  The flavor is a mix of malts and some bitterness from the hops that stay with you through the whole sip, never deviating from the front end of the sip to the back end with a bit of dryness as an after taste.  Probably one of the best pale ales I’ve had so far this year but in the pantheon of beer tasted this year, it’s in the top third right now.  I have to admit the can art intrigues me more than anything but of the two 21st Amendment beers I’ve had so far, this is the better of the two.  

Rascal's Wild Red:
Hello all and welcome to a shift outside normal.  Sweet lagers aren’t that uncommon, hell, look at the malt liquor section of any corner store and you’ll see what I mean.  However, there are some sweet lagers that have moved beyond the convenience store cooler and into the beer section of your local grocery store/package store and they have carved out a small niche in the market.   Most popular is the Anheuser Busch’s fruit based lagers, in particular the dark red colored Rascal’s Wild Red.  Made with raspberry this beer is an interesting one to review.  The lager pours well with only a slight head on it that dissipates very quickly.  The nose is very sweet, bringing back childhood memories of sugary powdered drinks made from a cartoon character that busted through walls.  The lager drinks like a mix of beer and the aforementioned powder with lots of carbonation and a mild hop under taste.  The raspberries cut in and out of the taste while the sweetness is constantly there.  It’s different, not good or bad, just different, maybe it’s the reminders of those childhood drinks, or the over carbonation that don’t sit well with me, but it’s another check mark on the list and time to move on.  
 

Blue Moon Belgium White:
Greetings beer lovers.  We all agree there are greatest hits that exist in the pantheon of beer, and while the majority of the beer drinkers out there will differ on the vast majority of what should be in that list I firmly believe that to those who have tried it, Blue Moon Belgium White would be on their list.  The beer is a classic, bridging that gap between those funky Smurf lovers and their beers and us American beer drinkers.  A Colorado brew originally called Bellyslide Belgian White (originally brewed at Coors Field Sandlot Brewery in the mid 90’s), the marketing guys got wise, changed the name to Blue Moon (Richard’s White in Canada).  The beer pours cloudy with a constantly moving hazy thanks to it’s unfiltered nature and gives off a nose of oranges, wheat and a undertone of coriander.  The taste is one of a toned down wheat beer that doesn’t have any lemon bite that seems to show up in most unfiltered wheat but replaces it with an orange zest flavor that is highlighted by the orange slice that traditionally accompanies a Blue Moon.  A good beer that used to be one of my favorites in the summer time though I will admit this is probably my first Blue Moon in a year or so, and while it was nice to enjoy, I know that there are plenty of other very good summer beers out there right now.  If you haven’t tried it yet, it deserves a shot from you, it just make it’s way into your greatest hits as well. 

Real Ale Phoenixx Double ESB:
Evening one and all and welcome to the beer merry-go-round. Today, lets head to the beautiful Texas hill country and dip our toes into the brew vats of Real Ale.  I’m honestly not that familiar with Real Ale, I know and enjoy their Firemans #4 Blonde Ale and have several others of theirs awaiting sampling in the zoo that I call a beer pantry.  For my first Real Ale review, I wanted to try the last beer I sampled at Big Texas Beer Fest, the Phoenixx Double ESB is a great brew, though I’m am drinking this way out of season (it’s a winter release).  First, let’s clear something up on the ESB front so there won’t be any other questions later.  ESB, or Extra Special Bitter a type of beer in the pale ale line that are so hopped up (HA!) in casks that they produce their own line of flavor and strength beyond those of the typical pale ale.  Usually a good one of these beers are around 7% ABV though they can get down to below 3% (called Boy Bitters); luckily Phoniexx is 7.2% ABV.  The beer pours a nice caramel color that reminds you of Shiner and gives you a nose of caramel and toffee with a bit of spice.  The taste of the beer is very hoppy and bitter with traces of caramel floating in and out of the sip.  The back-end of the beer is skunky and dry thanks to the abundance of hops and, contrary to it’s pale ale brethren, it finishes smoother than most pale ales out there.  As I said before, a good beer that is a great way to introduce the Real Ale into the review family.  If they keep up this standard, Shiner may have a run for their money on my favorite Texas brewery. 

Pyramid Apricot Ale:
Greetings one and all, here is to hoping that this beer and it’s review find all of you happy, healthy and, hopefully, wealthy (to all those which the last adjective apply, we need to chat about grants and giving to your local beer reviewer).  For today’s brew, I wanted to revisit a beer that first got my attention during the Big Texas Beer Fest back in April.  Pyramid was doing a good job of staying under my radar up until that faithful day in April and then I ran across their table (or ran into) during that wonderful drinking adventure and discovered their Apricot Ale.  Now apparently I’ve been living in a cave on this one since pretty much everyone but me knew of this beer so, with egg on my face, I’ve finally decided to bring it you in my own way: a review.  Brewed out Seattle, this beer pours a nice hazy gold color, indicative of the beers flavoring and forth coming taste.  There wasn’t much of a head to speak of, it dissipated before I could get the camera out but there is a nice aroma wafting from the tulip glass. The smell reminded me more of dried apricots than fresh- come to think of it, I’m not really sure if I’ve really smelled a fresh apricot, something to work on in the future.  The taste highlights the namesake very well and, unlike Dogfish Head’s Aprihop which takes the Apricot makes it a subtle flavor, Pyramid makes the Apricot front and center of the flavor profile.  The taste is very uniform heavy on the apricot and a touch of hops (almost completely opposite of the Aprihop) and there is a bit of carbonation burn on the back-end of the sip.  A really good beer, it’s available year around and should make a good spring beer for sure, though I think it’s flavor profile is a bit sweet for a summer beer (for me at least) but it’s a free country so feel free to make up your own mind.  Till tomorrow, same bat time….

Goose Island 312:
Howdy folks and welcome to the State Fair of Texas…I mean state of beer.  Wow, bad joke right off the bat, how much worse can it get?  I have no idea but let’s test the waters, shall we?  Today’s beer doesn’t move our way here in the Lone Star state, mainly because no one has a good reason for it to get past Arkansas and therefore we Texans are denied a pretty good line of beer.  Goose Island is one of those beers I heard about for years- how great it was, the variety of beers they have, their quirky nature- but I never had the opportunity to try it until a few years ago with a day trip to Chicago to catch a Cubs game then grabbed a drink at Goose Island’s Wrigleyville Brewpub afterwards where I discovered a type of beer that remains scarred to me and will share with y'all starting in a few weeks (and no, I haven’t reviewed a bottle of this type of beer yet so don't bother combing the archives- unless you want too).  One of the main brews for Goose Island is their 312 Urban Wheat Ale, named after the first area code Chicago ever got in 1947.  The brew is a nice wheat that gives off a subtle nose of citrus and spice but mainly gives a beak full of wheat and bread.  To me, it is the taste of this beer that allows it to stand apart from most wheat brews.  While being unfiltered does allow it to carry more flavors thanks to particulate matter lazily floating in your choice of drinking receptacle, the real surprise is the clarity that the citrus cuts through the malt and delivers a very refreshing sip.  Top the lemon taste off with a hint of back-end smoothness and you have a nice, well balanced brew that is good for those outdoor grilling days in the heat.  I do with it was available here though, heck, any Goose Island really.  Right now I have to rely on friends visiting Chicago or Chicago friends visiting to bring back some suds (or, as in this bottle's case, drive to Fayetteville for work and bring back a bottle with me).  Either way, if you are ever in the Chi-town area and have an interest, go by one of the two Goose Island Brewpubs, they are worth checking out for one’s own education and enjoyment. 
 

Young's Double Chocolate Stout:
Greetings a salutations friends and welcome to another day of beer reviews.  If there is one thing to get someone interested in drinking your beer: add an “exotic” ingredient.  While these can range from the mundane to the interesting to the down right “what the…?”.  Probably the most widely used ingredients (or at least mention in flavor profile) is chocolate which is a flavor that  shows up most often in your darker beers like porters and stouts.  Today’s beer, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout is one such beer that not only claims chocolate in their beer but DOUBLE chocolate which means that this must be a beer like no other.  I envisioned a can of beer born of a breeding program using chocolate milk and a good smooth stout.  Well, I got something like that but not quiet living up to my expectations.  The beer pours very Guinness like with a silk like flow and a good thick creamy head and a bit of the carbonation that Guinness is known for (to be fair the bubbles lasted about 15-20 seconds before totally vanishing).  The nose is very minimal with just hints of chocolate and coffee.  The front-end of the flavor profile is very smooth coffee like with touches of cream and the taste moves to a more heavy coffee flavor mid tongue and the finish is nice with a touch of coca but nothing that isn’t in other dark beers.  So where is the chocolate? It’s there, but it wasn’t noticed until well after finishing my first couple of sips of the glass.  I took note of chocolate when I exhaled through my nose which seems to stir up the coca in the beer and, well, there it is.  Yeah, kind of buzz kill for me too.  Well, that itch has been scratched, now onto another beer. 
 

Oskar Blues Old Chub Scotch Ale:
Hey everyone, and welcome to another day of beer drinking and what a day it is.  Through the course of this little project I knew that I would come across types of beers that I had never tried before and, perhaps, liking some and disliking others.  One such type of beer is Scottish Ales which I first discovered  back on my first day of Rahr beer week with their Iron Thistle ale and low and behold, I liked it, a lot.  Now we have a chance to revisit this delicious type of beer with Oskar Blues’ Old Chub.  Now, first off, how can you resist a beer that has quotes from an obscure Mike Meyer’s movie on it? If you don’t get the reference, no worries I didn’t either till I did a bit of research.  The quotes are from “So I Married An Axe Murderer” and were spoken by Stuart Mackenzie, Mike Meyers’ second character from the film.  If you want to know more, look it up under quotes from the movie on IMDB.  Now, back to the beer.  The beer pours well, showing it’s nice deep amber color and gives off a nose of roasted caramelized malts that gives a hint of smoke as well.  The beer drinks very smooth with only the slightest hint of hops bitterness, but make no mistake, malt is the name of the game on this beer.  There is bit of smoky after taste and a mouth feel more akin to Guinness and you get hints of coca and coffee floating in the middle of the sip and the aftertaste.  This drinks so differently than many other beers I’ve tried so far this year that it has quickly moved up the chain on new beers to the number 1 spot.  Yep, you read that right, this beer is now numero uno in my book and who knows when it will be replaced but, for now, meet the new king of newly discovered brews.  Hail to the king, baby.  

New Belgium Shift:
Good day ladies and gentleman, I hope this finds you all well and happy.  New Belgium is one of those breweries that you probably think of as a cult brewery than anything else, but really, it’s pretty mainstream but in a good way.  Sticking with an idea of normal beers turned unique, New Belgium has taken the Pale Lager and given us something to not only be enjoyed but savored.  Shift is a tall boy beer (16 oz) available in 4 packs and sports a respectable 5% ABV.  The beer pours well with a decent head that doesn’t really give off much a nose until you actually plant your beak into the glass and get a nice whiff of grass and breads with a touch of lemon every once and a while sniff.  The brew taste is very crisp and clean with a touch of hops and that citrus/lemon flavor again while the aftertaste brings out a slightly roasted flavor which is surprising given that this is a pale lager which usually means anything but roasted flavors.  A great warm weather beer, this is just another notch in the belt for New Belgium. Good job guys, keep it up.  

Laughing Skull Amber Ale:
Greetings friends and neighbors.  They say laughter is the best medicine and, at times, it can be and if that is the case, does drinking a beer named Laughing Skull mean you are drinking good medicine?  Perhaps that is something for future research by someone else.  For right now, let us talk about this tittering noggin and it’s attributes.  Brewed out of Redbrick Brewery in Atlanta (or is it Hot-lanta?) which was brought back from the brink in early 2008 and subsequently reestablished as a regional brewer.  Laughing Skull was brought back as well and is one of their signature brews.  The beer pours well and even in an ice cold glass the head is small and not too thick with a nice even dissipation once it starts to evaporate.  The nose is one malts with a touch of caramel that wafts in and out of a roasted smell as well.  The beer has a nice malty taste with a bit of sweetness in the middle of sip but really uniform otherwise and doesn’t leave much of an aftertaste.  Is it good?  Yeah, it is, but there is nothing about it that makes it set apart from the other hundreds of medium bodied ales out there.  Sadly, I’m seeing this as just another check mark on the list and now it’s onto another beer. 
 

Dogfish Head 75 Minute IPA:
Hello, I’m Johnny Cash.  God I love that line, if you’ve never seen a video of the man do that little intro, then do yourself a favor and YouTube it.  Johnny was my way of dipping my toe into the water of country music and well, I did and subsequent listening to similar artist have shown that country music is more of a live action glamour shot show than music, but that’s a topic for another day.  When I first visited Rehoboth and the Dogfish Head brew pub I noticed almost immediately a banner saying Johnny Cask 75 minute IPA.  Being a literal kid in a candy store, I was overwhelmed by my choices on tap and slipped by the Cask brewed 75 minute IPA and went for the famous 120 minute.  I wish I did do that because after reading about the cask brewed 75 minute, I was really close to drooling.  Well, alas, I got a bottle of the 75 minute IPA (minus the cask) and features a drawing of young Johnny wearing Groucho glasses.  The reason for the disguise? Well, per the bartender, current laws won’t allow them to sell the cask strength brew so they have a disguised Johnny on there as a nice tongue in cheek joke for those in the know.  So how does it pour/smell/taste?  Well, to me, like a 90 minute (the beer is blend of the 60 and 90 minute IPAs with maple syrup) and that is not a bad thing at all seeing how that is probably the best widely available IPA out there.  The nose is a nice subtle grapefruit with a touch of sweet maple and has a nice balanced head that stuck around for a good portion of it’s consumption.  The beer tastes like a slightly toned down 90 minute that has a sweet undertone that only really shows up in the back-end.  Now, per the website, this is distributed in Texas when it’s available so who knows when that is, but something to keep an eye out for.  In the pantheon of Dogfish IPAs, this falls into a tie with Aprihop as the third best IPA out there. 
 

Dogfish Head Aprihop:
Well hello there, let’s talk beer. What did you think we were here for, cupcake recipes?  That’s pintrest, this is beer and good beer at that- well, ignore April and a few days in March and it is.  To show you that we are all about the good beer here, we’ll review a Dogfish Head beer.  Yes, Dogfish Head, that little brewery in Delaware that consistently churns out beers that seem to be assembled by throwing darts at a big board of ingredients and then, some how, making them work in harmony.  To a lot of us hop heads, the Dogfish IPAs are the key line of beer and rightly so- the entry level 60 minute is something to admire while the 120 minute may just be heaven sent.  So what would happen if you take a slightly souped-up 60 minute and combine it with a nice balanced fruit like apricot and let magic happen?  Well you get Aprihop, a seasonal release that, here is Texas, was released for the equivalent of a lightning bolt from a Spring strom.  The beer pours very well, the color a nice golden color and a good head that seemed to stay rather large due to the cold glass.  The beer has a nose of heavy hops that stay hoppy and not venture into the grapefruit territory that stronger IPAs are known for and that maybe due to the fruit in the beer or just the fact that it’s really a mild IPA.  The apricot shows up in the drinking portion of the beer, mainly underneath the notes of hops and citrus that are the backbone of this beer.  The taste isn’t really noticeable; in fact, if you weren’t looking for them, the apricot would slip by.  The back-end was very typical of an IPA with a skunk taste and at times, I could taste the apricot while others I couldn’t.  A great beer, really good, a perfect spring beer and it’s a shame that it lasted so shortly here but lives like a never dying weed in the Mid-Atlantic (my latest trip up to Delaware/Maryland/Virginia area showed that there are stores with cases of this stuff just sitting around).  Hopefully we have another chance to get this beer next year, it’s well worth your and your taste buds time. 
 

Guinness Draught:
Greetings and salutations all and welcome to a special day of beer review.  Today we look at what is probably my favorite beer for a long time and is still in my top beers.  Guinness Draught is a special beer to any beer drinker by being loved or hated, no one really tolerates this beer.  Maybe it’s the fact that this beer has it’s own special glassware, or it maybe the fact that it takes a while when poured from the tap or that it goes really well with whiskey (Irish is best of course).  I don’t know the reasons for one to hate this beer, but to each their own, but all you haters don’t know what you’re missing.  The beer is really light for a stout, almost velvet smooth in the taste which blends a nice coffee and coca blend.  The best part of a Guinness is the head, it’s creamy, thick and adds a cream taste to the aforementioned blend.  There really isn’t much of nose, just the ethereal alcohol smell with a hint of coffee.  The beer itself is light in the ABV with only 4.1% (hell, Coors Light is 4.2%) but that just means you can enjoy more of it, right?  Well, best enjoyed from a draught, from the can or bottle is good as well though there seems to be a taste difference, the can being more mellow and metallic.  A great beer, probably best known for it’s ability to be in a mixed beer ( e.g. Black and Tan, Snake Bite, etc), any way you try it, it’s worth the effort.   

Samuel Adams Summer Ale:
Greetings all, and welcome to a beer review reminiscent of those long hot summer days of New England.  Now I’m sure it gets toasty for an hour or two in the greater Boston area, but really, it doesn’t touch what goes on here by a long shot.  That being said, I’m weary of a summer beer coming out of the area, especially when a majority of the beers from there are heavier and more cold weather based.  Samuel Adams does its best to buck this trend with a their classic Summer Ale, a beer brewed with Grains of Paradise, a rare pepper from Africa with history dating back to the 13th century in brew making.  The beer is a mellow one taking notes of flavor from shandys, hefeweizens, and a touch of pilsner and rolling them all into a familiar yet unique witbier.  The beer’s nose is one citrus and spices that don’t really come out until your first sip or two but provide a unique and welcoming addition. The taste is crisp up front with the spice of the grains and essential oils from the lemon peels come through the malt taste that seems to ride the whole length of the tongue like a roller coaster.  There is a nice after taste of malty spice that is mellow but memorable.  A good summer beer though I think I’d lean more towards the Coastal Wheat when given between the two, but hey, variety is the spice of life and you can do way worse than this one when choosing your summer drinking.  

Breckenridge Lucky U IPA:
Hello all you beer drinkers, lovers, and readers, let us visit Colorado for today’s brew shall we? Breckenridge Brewery is one of those small town/small breweries that give craft brewing a good name ala Shiner and Abita.  Breck offers a solid line-up that, while not having a major standout, all the beers are strong in their quality and appeal to the masses.  As with most breweries, the good people at Breck offer an IPA to us hop heads and (thankfully) it’s a good one.  Lucky U IPA is a charity beer for the Tivoli Brewery restoration in Denver and is a good hop beer that should keep us hopheads happy.  The beer pours well with a decent nose of grass and mild citrus wafting through the neck of the bottle.  While the picture doesn’t show it, the brew has a nice copper color that is clearer than most IPAs of late and seems to carry a bit more carbonation in it than other IPAs.  The brew has a front end taste that is very similar to most other beers of this type with a grapefruit and grass flavor that mellows nicely towards the back-end of the palate to a surprising malt like finish that seems rather out of place for a IPA.  Coming in at 5% ABV, this beer shows that it was made for the middle of the road and newer IPA drinkers.  The beer is a good one and a good intro to the Breck brewing family. I do recommend this beer to all those looking for something different enough but could still pass as mainstream in a crowded room.  Till tomorrow folks…

Dogfish Head Pearl Jam Twenty Faithful Ale:
Greetings to all and a special greeting to all you grunge fans out there (you unwashed masses).  Today, lets celebrate something special to anyone who was a music fan in the early 1990s: Eddie Vedder singing clearly.  Well, that is maybe too much, maybe being able to understand the majority of the lyrics is more apt.  Anyway, last year, Cameron Crowe released a documentary on Pearl Jam called “Twenty” to celebrate the 20 years of PJ and the album “Ten”.  Not to be out done, Dogfish Head released Pearl Jam Twenty Faithful Ale, their own tribute to the aforementioned parties and made sure their marketing for this release was limited to the good people of Rehoboth and that was about it.  Now, limited marketing can mean good or bad things; the product can be stellar and word of mouth alone will do the advertising for you or the product is a let down and you were afraid of it hitting the market.  Now knowing that the good people of Dogfish Head have purposely dumped thousands of gallons of bad 120 minute down the drain on national TV; product quality shouldn’t be in question and thankfully it isn’t;  so here you go guys, free word of mouth. The beer pours well, pouring a dark golden color with a good head that doesn’t overpower the nose of grapes, currants (which it is brewed with) and a bit of grain.  The taste is very Belgium with a hop heavy front end that moves to a balance of hops and mellow fruit that hangs on just a bit on the back-end before giving up the leader position to the hops again.  Not a strong ale at 7% ABV, it is definitely one of the more drinkable Belgiums I’ve run across this year.  I enjoyed it but not really high on my list of something to come back to right now.  Maybe with time I’ll be interested in revisiting it but I’m starting to think the novelty of the beer was greater than the beer itself. 

Newcastle Founders' Ale:
Ah Newcastle, what a good and misunderstood beer you are.  Most people that encounter you are not impressed by your taste and most of those are drinking you incorrectly.  I have found through experience that Newcastle is best enjoyed in a room temperature glass and the beer itself floating around 55 degrees to allow the flavors in the beer to develop through out the drinking process.  With Newcastle’s limited release brew, Founders’ Ale, that knowledge and habit is put to use once again.  An English Pale Ale, this beer is designed to be a bit milder than a typical pale ale and I would have to say that the good people at Newcastle got most of it right.  Can’t tell you how it pours (thanks for the paper cups Hampton) but it does sport a questionable  nose of damp dog and just plain alcohol.  The taste begins sweeter than any pale ale I’ve ever tried with a bit of unidentifiable sweetness (most reviewers I read said honey) and oak and quickly evaporates into a very subtle hoppiness that doesn’t dry out the mouth or throat but leave a feeling of slight film on the back of the tongue which, while noticeable, doesn’t distract one from the beer.  Overall it’s okay, nothing to rush out and get.  I love regular Newcastle and while that love might be leaning this review into a slightly more positive review than it could otherwise be, I feel that the effort is well meant, just the result isn’t there.   

Widmer Brothers Pitch Black IPA:
Greetings and salutations friends and neighbors!  Welcome to another day of beer and today we explore a familiar beer with a twist.  Now in hunting for beers for this little endeavor, I have noticed that there about many more IPAs out there than anything else.  They come in different variations ranging from time amount hopped (90 and 120 minute….drool) to number of times hopped to blends and collaborations.  Well now we have color variations too, gone is the cloudy blonde/orange, replaced with a licorice black color and a new twist on the category of beer.  Widmer Brother’s Pitch Black IPA is my first venture into the world of Black IPA’s and apparently it’s a growing world. My last trip to the adult beverage store showed at least 2 other forms of this IPA out there but I was sticking with just the one that I have for the time being (well, that and the fact that I have somewhere around 60 IPAs in the beer pantry right now).   Sporting 6.5% ABV, this one runs about middle of the road as far as ABV goes in IPAs.  No idea how it pours since this was drunk straight from the bottle - Hampton Inn doesn’t stock real glassware- but the nose is what you’d expect with a nice hoppy nose that blends smells of citrus and earth into a nicely rounded smell.  The beer taste is a combo of a mildly hopped beer with touch of a silky stout and the back end of a strong pale ale.  The front of the taste is citrus with a bit of bite that is smoothed out nicely by the carbonation and a roasted malt flavor.  The back-end comes alive with skunk and a heartier bite that I can remember from some IPAs but find a lot more in pale ales.  A delicious beer, I do like it and I am willing to try some others that are out there to compare and try to find yet another IPA that I enjoy.  Man, I thought the whole purpose of this “challenge” was to find different beers, not variations of the same.  Oh well, could be worse; I could be trying variations on malt liquor all year.

 

Heineken Dark Lager:
Well hello all, come and sit down; let’s chat about beer and what all.  Let’s revisit the douche beer line again with Heineken, but this time, lets throw the frat boys and metros for a loop and talk dark beer.  Yes, a dark Heineken, which seems odd since we are all accustom to the green bottle and it’s lager contents.  Luckily this beer is different in bottle color (brown vs. green) and it’s taste is more akin to a blended beer than a lager.  The beer pours well with good carbonation and head and a nose of of caramel, roasted malts and a hint of chocolate (basically very similar to a Bock beer).   The taste is a velvety smooth roast of caramel malts and a lager back.  There isn’t much of an aftertaste but a slight hop flavor does linger on the roof of the mouth and back of the tounge.  A much better beer than it’s blonde sibling and probably the light blonde sibling as well (haven’t tried that one yet so it’s just an assumption on my end).   Not bad, probably wouldn’t be my first choice in a dark beer but an occasional bottle would be welcome. 

Landshark Lager:
Greetings one and all and welcome to the shores of Margaritaville, that little “paradise” of sand, sun, trees, grass skirts and, ugh, Jimmy Buffett.  Okay, lets clear this up, I think the man makes fun songs and throws a decent concert but damn, every single melody sounds the same.  It does! Listen to a best of CD of him and tell me that the vast majority of those songs aren’t the same ones with the addition/subtraction of an instrument and the speed of the beat.  Alright now that I’ve probably managed to upset a lot of y’all, let me try to redeem myself with talking about Landshark Lager, the official beer of Margaretville (I remember when it was Corona but that’s reserved for my forth coming nostalgia column).  The beer pours okay with a light thin head that disappears very quickly and leaves just a hint of foam around the interior edges.  The nose is strong of smooth malts and very similar to most lagers and doesn’t really impress.  The taste is almost the same as Budweiser with a sweetness on the front-end with almost no aftertaste to speak of save for a bit of dryness.  So, a really oh hum lager that doesn’t do much to set itself apart from the usual suspects and unless on special somewhere, I don’t envision ever drink this on purpose.   
 

Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager:
Hello all and to all those feeling a connection tonight; I think I might have the answer for that feeling:  Voodoo.  Now before you go off and diminish this review because it deals Voodoo, a religion born of African diaspora, Catholicism, and Western African Vodun read up on the history of it, you’ll be surprised.  Probably the most interesting character of New Orleans Voodoo was Marie Laveau, I suggest reading about her and what is known about her life.  Okay enough history, lets talk really important things; beer being the chief one at this time.  Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager is the beer that screams our to be drunk on Bourbon in the summer time.  It really does, honest.  The beer pours well with a slight head and good carbonation and gives off a nose of caramel malts, smoke and spices.  The taste is complex on the front end of the sip of malts mixing with a smoky taste that dissipates with the carbonation to a typical lager finish of sweetness.  This was my first foray into the world of Dixie beers and I mistakenly thought that all Dixie products were this good and complex but, alas, not really.  They aren’t that bad but when compared to Bayou Teche or Abita, they pale in comparison.  At least try this once if you haven’t, out side a sample, roll with what you like, it’s NOLA, who’s going to judge you?  

Shipyard Applehead Cider:
Greetings friends and neighbors.  As it’s been a while since we touched a bottle of cider, if figured it was high time to return the realm of alcoholic apples, opinions be damned.  I do have a confession to make though, I bought this bottle based mainly on the art of the bottle.  Can you blame me?  Look at it, it totally brings back memories of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and the badassness of the Disney cartoon.  Ah memories…  Anyway, Shipyard Brewery’s Applehead is one of these ciders that is made for people like me, not sweet, heavy in apples and has a caricature of the headless horseman.  The cider pours poorly for a carbonated beverage with very little head on it though plenty of carbonation is present in the cider.  The nose is sweet, smelling of baked apples and cinnamon.  The cider taste is very mellow, reminding me more of cinnamon apple sauce though not as sweet.  The aftertaste is mellow and dry leaving the taste of freshly eaten apples on the back of the tongue.  A good cider though it is a little too natural tasting for me straight out of the bottle.  I would think this would be awesome in winter, heated with Red Hots to form a nice spicy hot cider or just warmed a bit on the stove top for hot hard cider.  A middle of the road cider that shows promise and makes me curious about the rest of the Shipyard line.  

Shiner Light Blonde:
Howdy y’all and after being overseas these past few days, let us come back home to Texas and cuddle up with a loved one.  That loved on, Shiner beer, has rolled out a new beer into it’s permanent line up and it’s probably the first disappointing beer I’ve had from them.  Shiner’s Light Blonde is the attempt of our beloved Spoetzl brewery in creating a unique light beer and it comes out tasting like every other light beer out there.   I first tasted this beer at the beer fest in April and was whole unimpressed by it then; I dismissed that to the fact that it was being poured out of a bottle that had been open for a while and only slightly chilled but really, it seems that the beer itself is just underwhelming, no matter the circumstances. The beer has a nose of sweet malts much akin to a Budweiser and a bit more carbonation than that found in the usual suspects.  The beer tastes very familiar strong notes of malt and barley on the front end and almost nothing but a light hop taste on the back-end that vanishes within 30 seconds or so.  Very average beer in taste and satisfaction but still it’s a Shiner and if it’s available with the usual suspects, I’d take it in a heartbeat but other than that, I really don’t see this beer crossing the threshold of my home again by my own actions.  
 

Coopers Original Pale Ale:
G’Day mates! Welcome to the third and last day of Coopers (for now), and while this is a sad day, there is a lot to be happy about.  We have found a new and awesome stout, sparkling ale is good and then there is the Original Pale Ale.  I have strong reservations about pale ales, so far during the course of this “challenge” I have found pale ales dropping the ball more often than not, really bringing nothing besides mediocre hops and bite to the offering plate of beerdom and really, besides Shiner’s Wild Hare, have been to extreme for most people to really enjoy unless it’s what they know and accept.  Well it’s high time that we make room on the top shelf for another Pale Ale.  Coppers Original Pale Ale is good, really good.  It pours well giving a nice head on the beer that, while small and thin, sticks around on the rim of the glass throughout the beer and gives off a nose of citrus, grass and hops.  The beer taste is clean and very carbonated, very champagne like with tons of carbonation and a bite.  The flavor is hop filled with a note of lemon riding the tongue till the back end of the palette where it, the hops and the carbonation almost vanish into a clean aftertaste that is hardly noticeable.  A good find, a great recommendation (thanks Sarah!) and since it’s available and most World Market stores, it’s easily accessible for most.   
 

Coopers Best Extra Stout:
Once again, Hello all.  Today we continue our stateside availability of the best Australian beer, Coopers, and their Best Extra Stout.   To let it be known,  I have a soft spot for stouts, mainly for their versatility in the kitchen and their complex tastes as well as their varied glassware styles.  The first time I ever learned about beer mixing with something besides a glass was with a Guinness ice cream shake and if you’ve never had one, you’re missing something great in life.  Coopers Best Stout is one that could easily replace Guinness in that magical shake and amp up the flavor potential without even getting creative on the additions to the shake (I like a splash of coffee and chocolate syrup to accompany the Blue Bell Homestyle Vanilla). The beer pours well though the ice cold glass caused the beer’s head to stick around quite a while but it’s coca coloring is nice contrast to the almost black brew below. The beer is very flavorful with a but of a malty kick a the front end that quickly moves to the standard chocolate notes that most stouts have as well as the coffee undertones and, surprisingly, a touch of fruits.  The after taste is smooth though very dry and it does tend to linger longer than a Guinness would and that’s my biggest complaint about this beer which is splitting hairs at this point. Really good, will be getting a couple more to add the pantry for future cooking use and maybe, just maybe, drinking. 
 

Coopers Sparkling Ale:
Greetings once again world travelers!  Today we are crossing the Tasman Sea to the continent/country of Australia and try their line of beer: Coopers a craft brewer who makes not only beer, but also home brew kits and have their own Clydesdale team (seriously, they do, though not as many as Budweiser).  We’ll start off their line with one of their oldest brews, Sparkling Ale, the so-called “pinnacle of the brewers craft”.  First severed in 1862, this beer sports a respectable 5.8% ABV and is said to be enjoyed slowly and slightly “rocked” before pouring (to stir up sediment).  The beer pours nicely with some cloudiness from the yeast and, when fully poured, the fugitive yeast appears almost cinnamon like on the thin but hearty head on the beer.  The nose is very earthy, filled with grains and malts with touches of alcohol and apples for spice and variety.  The beer tastes very grassy with a touch of fruit as well as hops.  The back end is a balanced try taste that ends well with a touch of bitterness and skunk.  Not bad at all, very interested to try the rest of their available line up this week.   

Steinlager:
G’day all and welcome to a week of celebration and merriment (I guess).  This week, the British Empire is celebrating 60 years on the throne of Queen Elizabeth as well as being the week marking the celebration of the Queen’s birthday in New Zealand and Australia.  So we let us take some time and visit our friends down under and their line of beers.  First, lets visit the home of Peter Jackson, Hobbits, psycho puppets, killer sheep, really bloody zombies and more sheep.   Steinlager from New Zealand Breweries is a nice embodiment of a beer genre that has been given a bad name thanks to our usual suspects here in the States.  The beer is your typical lager, pouring well and very clean with moderate carbonation and a small head that dissipates very quickly.  At a relatively average 4.8% ABV, the beer makes you curious with a nose filled with grains and malts with hints of a fruity sweetness.  The beers taste begins very sharp actually, hitting you with a semi-sweet/acidic apple flavor that blends with the malts to give this beer taste that is evolved beyond that of the rice based sweetness of a regular Budweiser.  The back-end of the taste turns more typical of a lager with a strong grain taste with a touch of hops floating around to keep things a bit sour but still interesting.  Not a bad beer, not the greatest either but still worth trying and one worth revisiting to see if the magic happens for me again. 

Abita Turbodog:
Hello all and welcome to the first installment of Airport Bar Beer.   Today we come from the bar at the Jazz Lounge at New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International Airport located outside the Gate C entrance (I think).  As with any trip to the great city of New Orleans, Abita beer is almost a must have and today is no different.  Turbo Dog is probably the most often found of the Abita family, finding it’s way to many restaurants, bars and personal coolers across the Abita distribution area.  While the amber may be their “entry” beer (and a dime a dozen), the Turbo Dog is unique enough in taste and name to draw people in a lot easier than another amber or bock.  The beer pours well, and honestly I was surprised by the color of the beer, thinking it would be lighter than the dark molasses color that you see here.  There wasn’t much of head on the beer though the one that did form was dark in color and emitted a nice roasted malt and chocolate nose.  The beer itself leaned more towards caramel and roasted malts though none overpowered the other which leant itself to a very pleasing balance.  The taste is of a bittersweet coca with the malts leading the way throughout the sip, providing a uniform experience throughout.  There is a bit of a burnt aftertaste with mine but nothing to powerful or unpleasant, just different.  I’m really glad I got to have another go at this beer again, I don’t recall this ever being really high on my list of Abita favorites but sampling it again has brought it to the main fold of favorite Abitas.  I don’t think I could drink a six-packs worth, even over an extended time frame, but slipping in a single when building a six-pack in the future is definitely possible. 

Paulaner Hef-Weizen:
Guten tag mein Freunde! Today I drink and review what some consider to be the best Hefewezen out there, and really, who am I to disagree.  Paulaner Hefe-Weizen is a natural cloudy wheat beer that is brewed according to the laws of 1610 (check) that were laid out to make sure that all German Weizenbiers are made with quality ingredients and made well.  This beer even has pouring instructions on the web and a bottle comes with a reinforced bottom for extra hearty German Prosts among you and all your buddies.  The beer pours well, and if you pour it correctly (remember the website instructions) will result in a nice head about two fingers thick and a very cloudy appearance.  The nose is of more floral notes than wheat though an undertone of grass and lemon do come through on the beer.  The taste is very clean and crisp with lemon, wheat and malts dominating the tongue through the entire drinking process and leaving a very bread like after taste.  For a while this was my favorite Paulaner beer but that was before Breckenridge and their version of Oktoberfest and getting to try their Oktoberfest Marzen and…well, October can’t get here soon enough to review that beer.  Anyway, the Hef is a great summer beer though I can only do one, maybe two max due to its heavy nature, but that’s okay, beer’s like this are meant to be savored, not downed like cough syrup.  

Abita 18th Star Biere de Garde:
Bonjour a nouveau everyone!  Okay, I promise no more French after today, but this is a special occasion.  A few times a year (if not less), Abita puts out a premium draft beer that is only available at select restaurants and bars in the New Orleans area.  Tonight we review one of these beers, 18th Star Biere De Garde which is an unfiltered French farmhouse ale and means “beer that has been kept or lagered” and is aged 3 months before distribution.  The beer arrived via tap in a nice chilled pint glass from my bartender as I was researching the beer’s name, which is in two parts, the latter being divulged already and then there is the “18th star“.  Anyone have any guesses?  Anyone?  No?  Alright here’s one for the cocktail party conversation circuit: 18th star refers to Louisiana, the 18th state to join the union and which is celebrating it’s 200th anniversary of statehood in 2012.  How about that, you’re getting a beer review and an education.  You can thank me later.  The beer’s is very light in color, almost a white beer and the nose is of citrus and wheat.  The taste is the interesting, being more akin to champagne than a beer with a lot of carbonation and a very dry aftertaste.  The flavor is a heavy wheat one with a back note of lemon that lingers throughout the sip till the dryness takes over.  Very impressive, wish this was more widely available, but then again, maybe not. If the was then it’s unique flavor might have been compromised by mass production and we wouldn’t want that issue.