Anchor Humming Ale:
Hello friends, neighbors and, to any newcomers out there, a special hello (welcome baskets are given out first come-first serve after the review).  As we continue our look at the Anchor line we must ask ourselves a question: Does beer sing?  Ok singing is a little too narrow of a category, how about: Does beer hum?  Well according to ancient tradition beers “hum“ especially when they are good.  Humming has been used from Robin Hood to Herman Melville in terms of describing “strong and effervescent ale with a lot of character.”  Well, Anchor’s Humming Ale, a seasonal ale, certainly fills in that definition nicely though it has a great brewer and base to build on. The beer itself is Anchor’s Liberty Ale used with a New Zealand hops that give this beer a more distinctive hop character than the Liberty Ale.  The beer pours very a hazy golden color with a very large crisp white head almost three fingers in thickness and a nose of floral notes and hops.  As mentioned before, the beer’s taste is very similar to those of the Liberty Ale but this beer carries a heavier mouth feel as well as a more sour/skunk then I remember the Liberty having.  The aftertaste is a mellow sour flavor that really reminds one of pale ale more than IPA but we must remember that West Coast IPAs are what the rest of us call pale ales so, semantics aside, this is a good hop driven ale.  Again, worth a spot in your sixer.  Oh and beers hiss, they don’t hum.