Hoegaarden Brewery--Original White Ale

I like to shorten the names of beers and breweries. For example, instead of saying “give me a Yuengling” I will say, “give me a Yueng” or “Heineken” may become “Heine.” You can understand my concern when I first thought this Original White Ale was made by a brewery called HO-GAR-DEN. The possibility for confusion by my friends and family when I would inevitably refer to this beer as a “Hoe” could be disastrous; even worse than when I started referring to Goose Island’s Honkers Ale as just “Honkers.” Thankfully, the box explains that it’s WHO-GAR-DEN. Whew!

Now that that is cleared up we can have a Who without confusing anyone, except for any Dr. Seuss aficionados out there wondering if this was the beer they drank in Whoville. If they did have Hoegaarden White Ale in Whoville, it would provide an alternative explanation for why the Grinch wanted to “steal Christmas”—he wanted all the beer!

To the point, Hoegaarden is an unfiltered wheat beer, which means there are little floaters in it, so don’t be surprised, they are supposed to be there. The first sip of this beer reveals a little bit of spice that some people won’t like, but I found this to become more subdued after a few sips. Many craft beer Belgians will offer more full-bodied flavor than the Hoegaarden White Ale, but it’s moderate temperament could make the White Ale a good springboard into higher-intensity Belgians. Perhaps you might call it a gateway beer.

All in all, this is a good, mild, Belgian wheat beer. Try it, it’s kind of refreshing. All the Who’s in Whoville are doing it.

Stay Classy,

-Captain Z

Sawtooth Ale--Left Hand Brewing Company

Sawtooth Ale is an American Style extra special bitter.  It has a standard Amber color and 5.3% ABV.  The Left Hand website lists the many awards it has won for various categories including the 1994 Great American Beer Festival gold medal in the traditional beer category.  Their site does not list any "pairings" for Sawtooth but I'll tell ya what it goes great with a big bowl of empty schedule with a side of sweat pants. 

This has been my favorite from Left Hand for a while. It's a shame it has taken me this long to get to review it.  It's nice because I generally tend to stay away from hoppy beer, but Sawtooth is exceptionally well balanced with a slightly malty taste.  It is an extremely casual beer that almost goes down all too easily.  I really do mean that, it will be gone faster than you're prepared for. 

You can't necessarily compare it to the almighty Milk Stout, but Sawtooth definitely stands on its own.  Try it, you'll like it; it's worth checking out. 

Stay thirsty,
-Thirsteve

Samuel Smith Imperial Stout

A good stout in the winter is just a wonderful thing. It’s like when you were a kid and came in from building a snow fort and had hot chocolate. Except the stout is cold and gives you a buzz.

Samuel Smith’s Imperial Stout is a masterpiece of stouts. But what makes it imperial? Well, the Russians of course. According to Samuel Smith’s website, this beer was brewed to survive the long journey from Yorkshire, England to Imperial Russia. Thankfully, Samuel Smith has now perfected transporting their beer and not only can it make the journey to Imperial Russia, it can also make its way to the Cleveland, Ohio grocery store where I got it.

When they weren’t sipping on vodka, these Russians had good taste in beer. Samuel Smith’s Imperial Stout is smooth and silky. It pours a very nice, brown, foamy head which lingers for a good while. Like many stouts, this one touches on notes of coffee and cocoa. Some stouts have more of a toasted flavor that the Imperial Stout most decidedly does not have. It falls on the sweeter side of the taste spectrum.

The flavors are rich, but not overpowering, so it is easy to pour a glass and look down a few minutes later only to realize you drank it all already. Or maybe your fiancé drank half of it while you were in the bathroom. I guess everybody likes this stout!

If you want to feel like Russian nobility, set your vodka down, put on your ushanka (http://goo.gl/H579t) and grab a Samuel Smith Imperial Stout.

оставаться стильной!

-Comrade Z

P.S. For more info check out Samuel Smith's website: http://www.samuelsmithsbrewery.co.uk/

Apricot Ale--Pyramid Breweries

If you could make any fruity flavored beer, what would it be? Raspberry? Blueberry? Apricot certainly wouldn’t be the first thing that came to my mind, but Pyramid Breweries pulls it off with their Apricot Ale.

This Apricot Ale puts an interesting twist on unfiltered wheat beer. Quick beer-101: unfiltered wheat beer uses wheat in the brewing (duh!) and comes in many different varieties, but is usually hazy because some yeast remains in the beer (unfiltered).

Pyramid Apricot Ale is a great summer beer, refreshing and different from other fruit flavored beer options. Also, the more familiar flavor of fruit in this beer could make it a good entry for the new beer drinker who is still developing taste for a good brew.

Mix it up, grab some apricot ale, but not if you don’t like apricots—it really does taste like an apricot.

Stay Classy,

-Captain Z

PS read more about Pyramid Apricot Ale on their website:

http://www.pyramidbrew.com/our-brews/apricot

Sam Adams—Double Bock



Bock chillin on the window sill.

Let me just start off by saying our founding fathers were awesome, not only did they build our country; they brewed some beer while they were at it. They never teach you this stuff in school, but I have a feeling that they had a few Double Bocks in them when they dumped all that tea in the ocean at the Boston Tea Party. I am glad that the Boston Beer Company gives us a reminder through their Sam Adams brand that our country was founded on beer.

Now, to this Double Bock…I probably wouldn’t recommend having this beer at your July 4^th BBQ. It’s no “session beer.” On the other hand, if you love malty beer, and I mean really love malt, this may just be your beer of choice when you want to feel classy.

Honestly, I think that the Boston Beer Company might have taken this one a little too far, with half a pound of malt per bottle to brew this beer it’s a little sickening (sweet). Also, you can sure taste the alcohol because it is 9.5% ABV, making this is a real sipper.

What I really enjoyed about this beer were the coffee and chocolate flavors. You don’t have to be a beer snob to recognize that this beer has some serious flavor going on!

By the way, did I mention this beer has 323 calories per bottle? With enough malt for a loaf of bread, drinking this beer is also equivalent to eating a loaf of bread. Except that it will give you a buzz. One of these beers has enough calories for like 7 weight watchers points, so totally worth it. (You’re allowed like 2000 points a day right? Or is that calories? Shoot, there goes the new year’s resolution.)

Stay Classy!

-Captain Z