As I intimated in my last post, it is somewhat odd for many people to think that a Lager can be black.  Many of us have been weaned on cheaper domestic Pilsners/Lagers, so to think about a Lager that is anything but blond sends many into a Delirium Tremens.  I'm not going to go into too much detail here, as I have already written on the subject of Lager beer, but Lager is more of a technique and yeast issue than a color-of-the-beer issue.  Suffice it to say that a Black Lager is still an anomaly in the beer world. This particular beer takes its inspiration from a traditional German black beer.  The style was all but lost until the collapse of the Berlin Wall.  The isolation of black beer from the Western world was over, so how would it be received?  It appears that it has gained some serious steam and the Boston Beer Company has helped with the phenomenon.  Here is my review on Sam Adams's version. The color was obviously Black to very dark Brown in tint.  It had a tan brown head that had a very nice retention.  It looked nice and could be mistaken for a Porter style ...

I suppose this post should have gone up yesterday, but seeing as my wife is out of town and I have all four of my little ones to myself, and that on Thanksgiving (driving around to see family) Thank Heaven for Beer had to take a back seat. Anyhow, I thought it fitting to regurgitate some beer history.  We all have learned from an early age that Thanksgiving is traditionally a holiday commemorating an autumn feast held together between the Plymouth colonists (pilgrims) and the Wampanoag Indians.  The feast was actually quite a traditional event for the Natives who were celebrating the bounty of the harvest. I must point out, beer played a most pivotal role here.  In fact, we would not even have "Thanksgiving" without it.  You see, those sailing on the Mayflower were traversing to the new world with hopes of not only religious freedom (less than half the voyagers were actually separatists) but also of being land owners and growing crops in the rich soil.  According to the charter granted to them, they could only settle down and set up shop between the 38th and 41st latitude lines.  Plymouth Rock (Cape Cod) lies just north of this legal designation.  ...

There were a few beers that came to mind when I thought about this week's brewski.  I considered Black Out Stout by Great Lakes.  I thought about a German Black beer, too.  Ultimately, I landed on Samuel Adams Black Lager.  This is not to besmirch the character of any of these brews, it is simply a matter of availability.  I think this will include the maximum amount of people in our beer-sharing endeavor.    Well, as most of us know, Friday is one of the worst days of the year.  The dreaded "Black Friday" is coming.  How can those of us who do not want to shop, think about shopping, or even think about thinking about shopping cope?  My suggestion is that we have our own Black Friday here at thank heaven for beer.  That is where this Black Lager comes in.  I guess in some ways we will fit into the consumer market on Friday, but personally, I plan to buy this one thing.  And drinking a beer is always a good deal.  By the way...a Black Lager, what's that all about?

I just finished drinking an English Ale with a bit of Venison Bratwurst.  How was it?  Very nice. Here at thank heaven for beer we have all sorts of interests.  From one of my first posts on here, you might know that I like to hunt a little.  I like game because of its lack of fat and lack of growth hormones.  Maybe I'm crazy, but I like the taste of beer with a nice bit of wild game.  It doesn't even have to be deer, duck, or squirrel.  The point is trying beer with anything that you eat.  It doesn't matter that if it is wild game or goat...whatever it might be.  I tried some Ethiopian beer with Ethiopian food (goat) not too long ago, and it was wonderful.  Have you ever tried goat, deer, elk, moose or anything outside the normal routine with beer?  Why not give it a try?  If you don't hunt, maybe you know someone that does.  I bet you could get some deer meat that you could marinate and drink a beer with.  A nice earthy tasting beer with the taste of an earthy animal can be a perfect match.  It could be that a pleasant ...

Ok, it's not just in Guinness, as we experienced this past Friday as we drank Wexford Irish Cream Ale. I remember the first time I bought Guinness Draught in the can.  My first thought was, "Who screwed up?"  But then I examined the can and realized that the little ball in my empty can must be a result of the most brilliant minds of science (beer science) for the purpose of simulating Guinness off the tap.  I was right.  But not knowing how something works bugs me, and I am guessing bugs a lot of other beer drinkers.  So here's whats in your beers: Typically beer is carbonated with CO2.  In the can this CO2 is in the beer itself, and in the can.  That's why when you pop the top of a canned beer it goes, "pshhhht."  That is the preassurized CO2 that rests on the surface of the beer escaping the can.  When the CO2 escapes, it agitates the beer, as does the action of pouring, causing some of the CO2 mixed in the liquid to escape.  You see this in the form of the head that floats on top of your beer.  (Don't worry, even though I know the ...

Thus far we haven't tried a beer that has the can draught system.  These widget beers are fun to watch develop during the pour.  While pouring, the beer looked pretty hazy until the creamy head developed on top.  In terms of appearance, this beer had a golden-orangish body.  The head was thick and creamy, almost acting like an off-color meringue; if the foam were touched, it would develop some peaks that look like the pie topping.  Once settled, the beer did not look volatile in the glass like some of the more spritzy beers we have tasted.   The aromas the head gave off were slightly metallic, nutty, and a had a touch of alcohol.  There was no noticeable hop aroma.  The only other aroma I noted was a woody quality.  There was a very slight hint of fruit and honey in the beer.  Believe it or not, I also caught a hint of a peppery silver Tequila on the nose.  This was about it on the nose.  The thick, creamy, and foamy head felt like eating a spoonful of Cool Whip.  The heads on the draught beers are comparable to getting a Guinness on tap.  The widget used in the draught beers have tended to add a new bitterness to most beers, but it was ...

This Friday we'll be drinking Wexford Irish Creme Ale, and we hope you will be too!  Odds are you can pick this up just about anywhere...I called around.  Wexford comes in little pint size nitro-can and pack a modest 5% ABV punch.  The widget (more to come later!) in the can provides a smooth creamy texture (and plenty of head).  I haven't had this beer, but I am pretty curious.  From what I can tell it should be pretty malty/bready/yeasty with minimal hop presence. I guess going into this I beer I have Boddington's pub ale in mind...but this presupposition is probably based more on the beer style and packaging. Anyhow, pick up a pack and drink with us this Friday!  (And for those of you who disdain the flavor of beer, you can participate by buying this Wexford Towel off ebay--it's only a penny right now!)

I just wanted to make a quick note on here.  With all the incessant Christmas music starting to blare in ever store that you visit, it's time to mention that seasonal Christmas beers will be coming out.  We will be trying a few but you ought to pick one up on occasion.  You might find some delightful surprises.  I would suggest some Thanksgiving beers but there are few to choose from.  If anyone knows of a Turkey Leg Lager, Mashed Potato Porter, or Stove Top Stout let me know.  Actually, there should be some Sam Adams Cranberry Lambic (although not really a Lambic) coming out before too long.  Anyway, stay tuned for some Christmas beers hitting the shelf before long.

In order to continue our style series and given that we just drank a Double Bock, I think that a discussion on Bock beers is appropriate.  First of all, a Bock is still in the family of Lagers.  Although top fermenting (i.e., Ale Yeast) can be be used in this beer at cooler temperatures, it is preferable to use Lager Yeasts in this style.  So what does Bock mean?  The thinking on the subject is that Bock beer originated in Einbeck Germany but began to be pronounced Bock as it moved geographically.  Bock was simply intended to indicate "strong."  However, due to the corruption in pronunciation, it became associated with a Ram or male goat.  This is why a goat is often pictured on the labels of this style of beer. The reason that these beers had to be strong was because of their long storage periods, shipping times, and sustaining qualities.  In fact, German Monks would often drink this style when fasting food.  These beers are certainly strong in nature.  They are rich and malty with little emphasis on hops.  What about Double/Doppel Bocks?  Essentially the term means extra or double strong.  So, if you wish to drink a Double Bock, expect a little extra.  Sam Adams makes a Triple ...

Typically, this style of beer doesn't hold rank in my "favorites" category, but I was pretty excited to drink it.  It has been a long time since I last had this beer.  I vaguely recall picking it up shortly after I discovered the world of beer outside of canned pilsner.  I am sure back then the little dangling white plastic ram on the bottle is what enticed me into buying it.  Anyhow, the taste has since vanished from my memory. Appearance:  The beer pours with a thick head that dissipated quicker than I'd expected...not much lacing on the inside of my glass.  It is not quite black--brownish read in color--and pretty translucent.  Swishing it a little I could tell it was not as thick as I'd expected. Smell:  I think this brew makes fragrance discernment easy for the untrained nose since the wafting ingredients are strong and distinct.  You can easily pick up the roasted malts.  There is strong irony smell.  Caramel/mocha/coffee/nuttiness is very noticeable from the malts.  There is also a very distinct fruit smell; noticeably, cherries.  Hmmmm...this description sounds like candy! Taste:   Thank goodness it doesn't taste like candy.  I am most definitely not a sweet tooth, and overtly sweet ...