Stone Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

This is THE best time of year! Baseball is in the postseason, Football is in high gear, and Hockey is just beginning (Basketball starts too, but I don't really follow it). All four sports at once! And if that isn't enough, it's the time of year that stouts and porters become an absolute necessity for the beer lineup.

Last weekend, while watching another poor effort by the Philadelphia Eagles vs. the Redskins, and another Sunday of awful play-calling, at least I was able to enjoy a couple things... The Phillies, led by Pat the Bat, beat the Brewers to make it to the NLCS, and this fine brew by Stone:

Color/Appearance: 1/2 thumb of head served in my goblet. When held up to light, nothing got through. Nothing but pitch black stouty goodness. The color of the head was a very inviting as well: biege/dark grey. I was tempted to scoop some off the top to taste because it looked amazingly creamy, but thought better of it and just dove right in.

Smell: Like smelling mom's cookies baking in the oven. A noticed sweetness to the smell, but not too overpowering, with subtle scents of oats and roastiness.

Taste: Sweet to start with a roasty bitterness created with the hops and chocolate on the tale end. The roasty smell comes through in the taste as well, especially on the finish. When I let the tastes roam I really am able to enjoy the combination of the oats and chocolate working together to give it a very filling and sweet taste. I did notice a bit of an alchohol aftertaste, but nothing that would take away from the beer.

Mouthfeel: Coats very nicely. On first taste, it starts off smooth, followed by a very zippy bitterness. Seems to be lightly carbonated, which is to be expected.

Drinkability: 8/10. Coming in at around 9%, and being a pretty heavy stout, I am quite content after 1-2. Seems to be the kind of stout I'd want to come back to (just like their imperial Russian Stout). I just hope that since it's an anniversary beer, that it isn't limited to this year.

Green Flash Hop Head Red Ale

My dad bought a case of this from Shangy's out in PA and I have been secretly taking from him. Finally I review it as the case is now gone.

Appearance: Poured one fat finger of head and a deep ruby red color that glows when held against light. Looks cloudy and secretive but very tempting to taste.

Smell: The aromatic qualities of this are hard to decipher. It is Amarillo dry hopped and has piney, resinous hops. Vague traces of yeasty bakery type malts.

Taste: Hopped up for sure! The hops clearly dominate the flavors and I straight up love it. Simply refreshing and bitter.

Mouthfeel: Perfectly carbonated that just mellows out as you let it linger in your mouth. IPA type aftertaste :) Thick for a red ale I feel.

Drinkability: 9/10. Finally a red ale that I like. Well, its not your normal red ale due to the hops and shocked there was only 45 IBUs (I was expecting around 60-70). Would definitely buy again (FYI - I drank their IPA and Imperial IPA before). West coast hops are whats up. Served out of a tulip glass from a 12 fl oz bottle.

Ithaca Cascazilla Red Ale

Let's give this another go. Time for round 2 of getting back in the review game. We picked up the Casca Zilla at the same Wegmans in Syracuse as the Abbey Ale. (Pic is coming when I get home, blah blah...)

Appearance: Dark amber with two fingers of head, this one just screamed "drink me!"

Smell: The aroma immediately was floral and a little spicy. The hops are at the forefront with a little nut malt in the background. An interesting but great mix I feel for a red ale.

Taste: The nuts and spices make a great combination as the beer makes its way down your throat. The 6.5% abv is definitely noticeable and provides a great kick, almost comparable to an IPA.

Mouthfeel: Heavy, but not thick. Not overly carbonated, but still tickles the mouth with the alcohol feel.

Drinkability: The 6.5%abv is perfect for this red ale, strong enough of a kick, but light enough to drink more than a few in one sitting. This was my beer of choice from my few days in the Thousand Islands. I am a big fan of red ales and that doesn't change with this one. My review probably doesn't do it justice, but I will try to leave comments later to clarify.

Serving type: Bottle
Glass type: Pint glass

Ommegang Abbey Ale

Wow, it has been a hell of a long time since I have posted a review. Hope I still have some sort of ability to review beers. On the way up to the Thousand Islands in NY, the girlfriend and I stopped at a Wegmans in Syracuse and came across this beauty. I have never had it before, and don't really know if it's any good, but I have wanted to try more Belgians, so here goes nothing. (Pic will be added once I head home)

Appearance: Dark orange/brown glow, about a finger of head, very bubbly, very inviting. The head holds for quite a while, keeping the smell and flavor trapped in the beer.

Smell: Sweet malts kiss the nostrils with a slight hint of caramel. Maybe its just my hiatus from beer reviewing, but the hops seem very faint and a little dank. I need to get back to practicing distinguishing the hops and malts. Or maybe its exactly what Ommegang was going for...lets go with this theory.

Taste: The malt smell translated well into the taste, with the sweetness being the first noticeable aspect. The hidden characteristics of an oaky/caramel flavor become prevalent on the aftertaste. Very little hops if at all, which makes me think my smell assessment was correct. This is a great balance of malts and hops for this style though, as I feel any stronger acidity from the hops would ruin the flavor.

Mouthfeel: An interesting sensation as the beer floats around. It is simultaneously light, heavy, chewy, and thin. It is perfectly carbonated as there is a slight tickle on the roof of your mouth, but not that blast back up the throat and nose.

Drinkability: I decided to do the first four sections before dinner and then decide on drinkability while having the rest of the beer with a pasta and salad dinner. Surprisingly, this 8.5% abv beverage went pretty well with food and can be drank a few in a night, but I personally would save it for night time. I don't feel its a refreshing afternoon bbq brew like I was somewhat expecting, but still a very good beer all around. The label boasts fruity aroma, yet I just didn't see it. Give it a try, maybe I missed it. I would still drink this again and recommend it. (Girlfriend's analysis: "Good." That's riveting stuff right there.)

Serving type: Bottle
Glass type: Pint glass (I know, I should have used a snifter or my Duvel glass, but I gotta deal with being a snot's throw from Canada and five hours from home.)

Interesting article in the NYT

The Other Extreme: Low-Alcohol Beers

I came across an interesting article yesterday on the New York Times website. The craft brew awareness is really just beginning to fully blossom in the United States (even Bud is making an "American Ale" that they are positioning as a craft beer). But this article brings to light a Renaissance occurring within the still-young craft brew phenomenon in the U.S.

Many of the beers that Jimmy, Mike, Alex, and myself have tasted and reviewed on this site are full-flavored, high alcohol, punch-you-in-the-face, beers. But it appears (at least this article offers us) that craft brewers across the nation are beginning to find a refreshing challenge in brewing low alcohol beers, that don't skimp you on the flavor. In the article, the author also interviews Jason Ebel of Two Brothers Brewery, whose Cane and Ebel Hopped-up Red Rye Ale was reviewed by me almost two months ago.

REACTION:
My initial reaction is that the full-on Hopheads will continue to steer towards the high ABV's. That's just the way it is. I understand the negatives that the author presents at the end of the article: "real" beer drinkers will always go high %, low % beer's taste gets lost in all the extreme flavors, etc.

I really think it has another side to it, though. Consider all the people on the "fringe". All the people that are intrigued by craft brew and "really want to get into it", but they are intimidated by the extreme flavors and high ABVs. Perhaps these low % beers could act as stepping stones for these "fringe" beer drinkers, providing them with a brew that has a good amount of flavor, but not as extreme as the high ABVs. It's just a thought, but in this growing market of craft beer, it's definitely worth a try.

Bell's Kalamazoo Stout

The Darkness comes through again with another beer for me to indulge in. Please convince him to be part of us Hopheads dammit!! I had this stout to go along with my desert consisting of dark chocolate and gingersnap cookies. This lil' 12 ouncer was served in my mini Pocono beer fest pint.

Appearance: aka. The Dark Knight, this Batman was pitch black with a nut brown 1/3 finger foam head of glory.

Smell: Complex meteoric scents of roasty and toasty malts oh my! Dark chocolate and almond odors.

Taste: Very balanced and complex, I feel like every kind of malt and hops are in this one. Savory bittersweet/dark chocolate combined with a dark french roast coffee. I wish I could have this instead of coffee in the morning!

Mouthfeel: (SIDE NOTE - As I swirled the stout in my mouth and let it sit, I knocked over my beer, lost half of it! and it poured all over the left side of my keyboard, down my desk, onto my desktop and then the carpet. Fu*k me in the ass). Thick and creamy, the way I like my women. Carbonation lightly tingles and leaves a wonderful bitter velvety finish, almost like an IPA in a way.

Drinkability: (SIDE NOTE 2 - Some of my keys on my keyboard are starting to stick from the beer party foul spillage. Its as if somebody peed on my keyboard, university Vee-Tranny style.) Awesome. 9.5/10 and chills at 6.0% abv. Would have this beer either at the beginning or end of the night. I thought it would be weak sauce since it wasn't an imperial, but it exceeded my expectations. You can grab this stout from Bell's year round.

Urthel Hop-It Belgian IPA

Some fleeting thoughts on this beer:

I brought a nice big bottle of Urthel's Hop-It along with me for some delicious sushi at a restaurant that happens to be BYOB.

Appearance was pale, living up to the moniker I'm paraphrasing off the bottle "hoppy blonde ale."

The style "Belgian IPA" is no joke, though I would place it on the more Belgian end of the flavor spectrum. There was some bitter hop smack to the finish, but to my nose and taste buds (however distracted by sushi they may have been), the trademark Belgian sourness was up front and center.

Mouthfeel was light and bubbly. Good texture to go with my sushi.

I almost let the light feel fool me, until halfway through the bomber bottle I remembered this was a 9.5% Belgian. Maybe limit yourself to one bottle a night?

Overall it was a very interesting beer to drink. I don't get Belgians very often, as I'm usually drawn to the punch-you-in-the-face-with-hops offerings our American brewing brethren have to offer. Hence my purchase of the one called "Hop-It." I liked what I tasted though, and would recommend to any IPA drinker wanting a stepping stone over into the land of Belgians.

Urthel Hop-It Page
Thanks to Jimbo for the photo of his bottle of Hop-It. FYI, the bottle I got had a new, different label.