I have to admit it: even when I posted that I didn't know what to expect from Jolly Pumpkin Ale, I sort of already knew.  When I saw that they put out a Flanders Red style sour, I knew that's what I'd end up drinking...despite my self-deception.  I think one of the most interesting aspects of Jolly Pumpkin's beer is their incorporation of local wild yeast and the use of barrels for souring.  From what I understand, they don't pitch wild yeast in their beers at all.  That is to say, they don't buy cultured wild yeast from a company to put into their beer.  That's a fun and interesting approach that is, in part, responsible for the fact they have a cult following.  At any rate, I had to try the La Roja. The Pour: You can see for yourself (above) how lovely the pour and head really were.  Of course, I picked a glass that was particularly conducive to maintaining head and was evocative of a lambic glass.  The head was well retained and had a nice, creamy, off-white hue. I'd call the body, which had a nice touch of haze,  a copper-orange.  I'd also like to note that ...

You might notice that we've recently posted pretty general Sip with us Saturday posts.  Sometimes it's just nice to break from the normal approach to the Saturday beers.  We find that often times it's hard to have people sipping the same beer.  The solution is to pick a beer that is pretty mass market, which is often very uninteresting to people.  Otherwise, we sort of get stuck excluding people. That being the case, we wanted to encourage more opportunities for participation.  As a result, we are going to do a "Something You've been Saving Sip with us Saturday" (say that seven times quickly).  I'm being coy and not telling you what I'm drinking, but I'd love to see multiple reviews generated at once.  So if you want to participate using your chosen format, then send me your review through the contact page and your review will be posted along with mine.  Crack something you've been saving...and make it part of our (I'm mean "you," too, when I say "our") site.

Many of you know that I normally don't go after an IPA.  I find rye beers interesting, though, so I struck a compromise.  Hop Rod is a Rye P.A. of sorts, and it's not something I would normally pick up.  However, since it was "Gamble with us Saturday," I decided that this might be just the beer for the occasion—and who knows, I might be able to find out whether or not it was actually a good beer.  I've reviewed one or two other things by Bear Republic, and they've been okay but not great, so I was hoping that my gamble wouldn't turn up to be snake eyes. The Pour:  I'm assuming it's due to darker rye malts that this beer was a slightly darker version of an IPA.  Not black or brown, just deeper.  A touch of haziness was part of the overall appearance of Hop Rod, while the body was active and propped up a stable head, which incidentally, left very nice lacing as I drank it. The Nose: Ever ubiquitous and perhaps starting to grow on me (to an infinitely tiny degree), grapefruity hops were a part of the nose. The citrusy nose was under-girded by a touch ...

I know that some among us can't get Jolly Pumpkin's stuff.  I live in Cali, and Jolly Pumpkin is in Michigan, so I've never really seen anything from them...except recently.  I'm curious to try their products and find out about the brewery, which means I thought this would be a good format.  Any of you who can find a Jolly Pumpkin beer could pick one up, drink it, and tell us about it.  I figure that you'll have a better chance finding some Jolly Pumpkin beer rather than a specific one.  I've got two options, so I'm going to pick one and review it. Sip with us Saturday and tell us all about how jolly this beer made you.

Even though it's owned by Heineken, Murphy's still makes a great stout.  I have a personal preference for this over Guinness any day of the week, so that's why I thought it would make a nice Sip With Us Saturday beer.  If you get a chance to drink it on tap, it's a must.  For now, I just bought the draught can.  Here is what I think of it. The Pour: Watching that pour settle is one of the greatest joys about drinking a beer in the draught system.  The soft, creamy, and extremely stable head sits, once it makes it's way to the surface, atop a deep black body (with some red hints) while the slowly active body pushes carbonation to prop up of the lovely sight.  The head is clingy and sticks to the glass, leaving a residue from the previous sip. The Nose: Hints of coffee, caramel, and a deep roast give the beer a soft, dry aroma.  I've always thought the aroma also smacked of mint tobacco and hints of licorice.  Touches of smoked peat also gives the beer an subtle touch of roundness. The Taste: The tobacco (very subtle mint) and licorice are dominant features of the brew. ...

Sorry I'm so late on posting the Saturday beer.  I've actually had the idea to do this for a while but forgot to get it up this week.  Normally, we mention a beer to try.  Sometime you can get it and sometimes you can't.  However, this Saturday is one for the gamblers.  I'm going to pick up a beer that I normally wouldn't take a chance on or wanted to try but wasn't so sure about.  It's that simple.  Just pick up a beer that is a little bit of a risk or out of the norm for you and report back to us to tell us how it went. I'll be posting my story soon.

Koningshoeven Dubbel is a special beer...actually all beer brewed with passion is special...but Koningshoeven brews are truly unique, flavor aside.  To begin with, they are a Trappist brewery.  Only seven breweries in the world can use that trademarked word (Trappist).  In order to be a Trappist brewery, the beer must be brewed under the supervision and responsibility of a monk, who lives according to the rule of St. Benedict.  Proceeds of a Trappist brew not only support the monastery but also charity towards the poor and disenfranchised. Koningshoeven is unique among Trappist breweries in that while 6 of the 7 Trappist breweries' domicile is Belgium, they are located in the Netherlands.  Next time your chic friend goes to order an Amstel Light, steer them in the direction of a Koningshoeven beer.  Not only does it taste better, but they will be uplifting the poor of the world through their purchase. So how did this Dubbel treat me? The Pour: The beer is beautiful.  But aren't all Trappist beers?  I hear it is because the yeast is actually derived from angel sneezes.  Anyhow, the beer really is a great looking beer.  It is deep brownish purple with smaller carbonation bubbles.  The head is great, but ...

I love the simple goodness of this stout.  I'd drink it over Guinness any day of the week.  Many among us are surprised that this beer hasn't achieved more popularity.  Well, we are going to try to raise Murphy's awareness this week.  It just so happens that it will happen on Saturday this time around.  Join us if you can for a Sip with us Saturday of a session type stout.  I may even make my Irish Stew again...it was pretty stinking good last time.

It just so happens that this past Saturday, right as I was opening up a bottle of Sam Adams' Noble Pils for Sip With Us Saturday, my wife Sandra called from the living room, "Do you want to watch the movie Beer Wars?"  If anyone has seen the movie, they know that Sam Adams brewery and founder Jim Koch get plenty of face time.  I typically do not drink much Sam Adams, so it was a nice intersection of coincidence.  The film and the Noble Pils made me appreciate the Boston Brewing Company just a little bit more. Sam Adams came up in a recent discussion in which we wondered if they listened to their customers, since  overwhelming disdain for a particular beer has been expressed. It seems that Sam Adams' still has their ear to the ground since Noble Pils was voted into distribution by the public, and from the quality of the beer, I would be willing to be that Sam Adams has decided to step up their game as more (1400+) craft breweries are now a part of the once exclusive craft beer industry. The Pour: Sam Adams pours like a Pilsner should.  The golden straw color beverage is crystal ...

With the super bowl, a near religious experience for many Americans, in mind, this weeks Sip With Us Saturday beer is an easy to find, low alcohol, session beer:  Samuel Adams Noble Pils.  This beer is only 5.2% ABV, and is new to the market, the result of the public's voting it in during Sam Adams' 2009 Beer Lover’s Choice election.  It is intended to replace the White Ale as the seasonal Spring beer. Sam Adams describes Noble Pils as: Samuel Adams® Noble Pils is brewed with all 5 Noble hops for a distinct hop character and fresh taste.  Deep golden in color with a citrusy hop aroma, Samuel Adams Noble Pils is a traditional Bohemian Pilsner.  The honeyed malt character from traditional Bohemian malt is balanced by delicate yet pronounced citrus, floral, and piney notes from the Noble hops. What struck my attention in reading the description is that Sam Adams nonchalantly proclaims that there are a definitive five noble hops.  In reality, only two hop varieties are nobly agreed upon as "noble," those two hops being Czech Saaz and Tettnanger.  Some also are gracious to include Spalt and Hallertau.  I do not know what fifth variety Sam Adams includes, but I ...