This particular beer is a Belgian Triple Blonde Ale and the only one that I've tried from Green's brewing.  I had this a couple of nights ago, which gave me a few days to process the brew.  By the way, it is gluten free...some of you will be happy about this. Like the name indicates, the beer is very blonde in appearance.  There was very little head and it was not very stable, which is not typical for a lot of Belgians (see Duvel review). As I sniffed the beer, I noted a very grapish aroma which can also be characterized as winish.  The alcohol aromas also came through very plainly as a vodka-type smell, which also came through noticeably in the taste.  Of course, this beer is 8.5% alcohol. Upon tasting the beer, the alcohol was very up-front.  There was a nice fullness in the mouth, which gave the impression of hard cider.  The beer ended with a dry woodiness.  Overall, I thought that the beer lacked balance.  The primary reason for the lack of balance was that the alcohol flavors dominated a style which is normally very subtle in its alcohol qualities.  I hope that this is not the end of the quest ...

Not your average Wheat beer.  Schneider and Sohn's makes a very nice lines of beers, which are not necessarily conventional.  There are so many good beers that come out of Germany, especially Bavaria, it is hard to call one great.  However, this particular brew is one example of German beers at their finest.  This beer is actually an ice version of the normal Aventinus beer, which despite being the same beer as this is actually quite different.  Being an ice beer, this is quite thicker and more assertive than the non-ice version of the beer.  So, if this is Eisbock too much for you, Aventinus is a good alternative.  (I've posted about Eisbock in another article in case you want to know a little more.) After the initial pouring of the beer, the head was small but retained very well.  It looked like a Belgian beer head in its fineness of carbonation, although Belgian beers heads are generally more billowing.  Aventinus was very actively effervescent in the glass, which made it appear to be a lively beer.  It was very deeply brown with reddish and violet traces of color.  What a lovely beer.  So much sensory data. If there was a lot going on in the glass, it was ...

It's been quite a long time since I have had any of the Chimay Ales.  At the time that I drank them, I knew they had a reputation of being very good beers.  As time goes on, you develop your palate and taste stuff very differently.  I imagine that I'll taste this even a little differently in five years.  One thing has not changed: it is a very good beer that deserves to be tried.  By the way, the reason that I bought the three beers (i.e., the Red, White, and Blue Chimay, which would have been fitting for the Fourth of July) is that they came in a three pack with a "25 year of Chimay in America" anniversary glass.  Here is how I see the beer with my current tasting abilities. The appearance of the beer closely resembled its bottle's red label.  Fine carbonation was a major feature in the the head of the beer, which helped to maintain its long stable head.  Creamy--that is a good way to describe the appearance of the head.  As I looked at the glass, I saw just how effervescent (like Coke, pop, or soda, whatever you might call it) the beer really was.  The aromas and tastes of the beer were ...

Thank you for giving me this beer, Matt.  I really do appreciate trying a new beer, even if I don't like it.  Unfortunately, I have to say this about Leinenkugel's Berry Weiss.  They do have some other beers that I like much better than this one (their Oktoberfest is an example).  Here is a review of the beer. The beer looked hazy like many wheat beers do, but it did have a reddish tint from the berry juices that were added to it.  Head retention was not long but also not absent.  There was little hop aroma, which is also common among wheat beers.  The yeast and grains came through on the nose of the beer, but berry was the overwhelming aroma on this Berry Weiss.  Beyond this there was very little going on.   What I really want to talk about is the tastes of the brew.  I felt that there were very little wheat qualities to the beer because is was drastically overwhelmed by the fruit juices.  The beer has a sweetness and slight tartness because of the berries and (I suppose) honey.  Leinenkugel is to beer what Ludens is to cough drops...it really didn't do anything for me despite its sweetness.  Drinking the beer was like drinking a ...

Doing this review is certainly one of the least Bourgeoisie things I've done.  Imagine paying anywhere from $160-$230 dollars for a 24 ounce bottle of beer, even if it does come in a hand-crafted vessel.  Now it is true that different boys like different toys, so I feel a little better in that respect.  I spend my money on beer...what can I say?  As some of you may know, Sam Adam's makes the strongest and most expensive beer in the world.  Utopias comes in at an amazing 26% abv.  It is an astounding achievement to make a beer that strong.  There is no distilling, nothing but grains, and a whole lot of very robust yeast strains in this beer.  Believe me when I say producing a beer of this strength is already a feat.  Since I sipped on some of this Utopias the other night, I thought I'd offer a review of it.  From the beginning of the pour (1 1/2 to 2 ounces suggested) Utopias does not look like a common beer.  In fact, there is no carbonation, no head, and a thick tracing on the glass.  The beer sits there with a thin clear line of liquid sitting on top of a beautiful whiskey-colored body.  As the ...

In continuation of our Christmas beer binge, I'm posting about this Bison Christmas Ale.  As I might have mentioned before, a lot of Christmas Ales tend to be very spiced, which can be a real turn-off.  So, let me say that some beers we try will probably be this way.  However, this Bison beer is not overly spiced.  Bison beers come from the great state of California.  The company releases Organic beers that are usually very good.  For instance, I've often enjoyed their Chocolate Stout.  Another of their popular brews is an India Pale Ale.  I suggest that you try some of their repertoire. Bison Gingerbread beer was a very deep Mahogany color with little head retention.  I thought it looked very nice in the glass.  The aromas that were evident in it were certainly dominated by the spices in it.  I caught cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger in the nose (I'm glad I noticed these aromas before I saw that they were used in the beer...it's nice to know that you were right on).  In addition, there was a bit of banana odor that came through, giving the beer a banana nut bread quality (both in aroma and taste).  As I said, the ...

Last night I drank this beer that I've not had for about 4 years.  I remembered really enjoying it at the time, especially with a friend and some Davidoff cigars.  It went excellently with those smokes. Samuel Adam's Chocolate Bock is considered one of their extreme beers, if you look at their website.  They have four "extreme" beers: Chocolate Bock, Millennium, Triple Bock and Utopias (the strongest and most expensive beer in the world).  While the Utopias and company are more extreme, this one is not so much extreme as it is extremely good.  The pour:  There was a fair amount of carbonation in the brew with fair head retention.  It had a deep brown color with touches of Crimson.  The beer looked almost as smooth in the glass as it did in the bottle.  By the way, the label on the bottle might be the most beautiful on earth.  It's pewter and almost rococo label speaks to its cocoa beauty inside.  The bottle and look of the beer is truly an achievement in of itself. The aroma of the beer was floral and simply popped.  Chocolate, roasted grains, and yeast were prevalent.  The taste of the beer is really the awesome part of the brew.  Since this Chocolate Bock is put on top of cocoa, it ...

What an interesting and glorious name.  What else can one say about this beer?  We might as well behave like the dog on the bottle and go for it (I mean trying the beer).  I've mention some information on Porters before when I wrote about Stouts.  I'm also planning on writing an article about them later on.  Now to the beer. Upon pouring the beer there was a lovely dark brown liquid with hints of deep red.  This particular beer had fairly low head retention and carbonation.  The lower carbonation is perfectly appropriate to the style (many actually prefer it).  The beer looked ready to drink right when it was poured.  I love a beer with a beautiful bouquet, and this one fit that category.  There were nice caramel and toffee notes to this beer.  Additionally, I noted the smell of the alcohol.  Really the few things that I noted here dominated this beer.  Sometimes the emphasis of a few points makes a beer better than convolution with too many ingredients.   As for the last of the beer, it had a roasty and slightly sweet coffee flavor.  It almost smacked of the aftertaste when drinking a mocha latte; so, there were slight chocolaty notes.  Along with these flavors there was a dry maltiness and a ...

In an effort to talk about more beers, we are planning to review an additional beer or two a week.  This will happen on top of our Drink It with Us Friday beers.  We want to beginning building a database a beers for those who visit to scroll through.  We're also hoping that this will create wider exposure to our site.  The first beer in this series hails from Belgium.  The Oerbier website has a history and blurb about this beer and its others; check out their site.  It may take a little bit of looking to get this beer, but it is worth it.  I found mine at the Hop Shop in Indianapolis.  Without further ado, I will offer my thoughts on this beer. When I poured this beer, there was an extreme amount of carbonation.  Who's to say that this isn't appropriate to the style?  I'm sure it is intended in the brew.  The extra carbonation may come from an extra does of candy sugar in the bottling process.  Of course, Belgian beers are known for utilizing candy sugar in the brewing, as well as conditioning, process.  Either way, the head was creamy and slightly bitter.  The head retention (because of the high carbonation) lasted a virtual eternity.  ...