I reviewed Anchor's Steam beer some time ago, and if I recall correctly, I enjoyed it. Today it's time to try their porter offering. It comes in the same 12oz bottle, and has an unknown alcohol content (I suppose liquor laws in the US do not require that information to be given). It has a bit of information on the label giving a dubious claim that Anchor is one of the "most traditional" breweries in the world.
Upon opening, I eagerly sniffed up the roasted malt aroma. It was strong. It poured black, with a finger-sized dark tan head that lasted a long time. Initially, there were a lot of bubbles, but they became hard to see in the darkness. The aroma was unchanged from when I opened the bottle.
The first sip was pretty good. While the beer was fairly bitter, it was quite balanced; my lips got a bit sticky from the residual sugar in the malts, but the flavour wasn't sweet at all. The roasted malts stood proudly. The beer was incredibly soft in the mouth, but there was ample carbonation. This beer was pretty much what I expected of a porter. I would probably drink this beer again if it was available locally.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Friday, March 16, 2012
Lucky Buddha
I have reservations about today's beer. It comes from China. On the plus side, it comes in a really cool 330mL green "fat buddha" bottle. It has 4.8% alcohol/vol. Can't really tell much from the outside of the bottle, as there is almost no labelling.
Upon opening, I detected a faint aroma of hops. Then it disappeared. It poured a disgustingly pale yellow colour, with a medium-sized white head that disappeared quickly. There were a few small bubbles. The aroma was hard to pinpoint; not very much of it. The closest thing it smelled to was a domestic.
Fortunately, the beer had more flavour than aroma. There wasn't much flavour, but it was slightly sweet. The feel in the mouth was fairly soft, and there was absolutely no bitter aftertaste. The only reason I can think of to buy this beer is for the bottle. Everything else about the beer is sub-par; it even made Tsingtao look good.
Upon opening, I detected a faint aroma of hops. Then it disappeared. It poured a disgustingly pale yellow colour, with a medium-sized white head that disappeared quickly. There were a few small bubbles. The aroma was hard to pinpoint; not very much of it. The closest thing it smelled to was a domestic.
Fortunately, the beer had more flavour than aroma. There wasn't much flavour, but it was slightly sweet. The feel in the mouth was fairly soft, and there was absolutely no bitter aftertaste. The only reason I can think of to buy this beer is for the bottle. Everything else about the beer is sub-par; it even made Tsingtao look good.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
No beer
I haven't had a beer in over a week. Ugh.
Don't worry, it's not because of choice. It's more because of necessity. I got a decently bad stomach bug a week and a half ago, and I've only recently recovered. Slainte!
Don't worry, it's not because of choice. It's more because of necessity. I got a decently bad stomach bug a week and a half ago, and I've only recently recovered. Slainte!
Monday, February 27, 2012
Innis & Gunn Original
Today's beer comes in a 330mL clear bottle. It has 6.6% alcohol/vol. The bottle has a slightly unique shape to it, with the "Innis & Gunn" embossing. The beer claims to be oak aged, with hints of toffee, vanilla, and oak.
When opened, I certainly did smell the vanilla and oak. The toffee was a little harder to find. It poured a beautiful clear golden colour with a medium-sized white head. There were an average number of bubbles. The aroma had not changed much since opening the bottle, only getting weaker.
The first sip was pretty good. You certainly can taste the oak. This beer tasted a lot like scotch. There was very minimal sweetness to the beer, and I couldn't find any of the claimed toffee flavour. The beer had a fairly soft feel in the mouth. I found this beer to be pretty good. The scotch angle has me hooked. I would certainly look for this beer again.
When opened, I certainly did smell the vanilla and oak. The toffee was a little harder to find. It poured a beautiful clear golden colour with a medium-sized white head. There were an average number of bubbles. The aroma had not changed much since opening the bottle, only getting weaker.
The first sip was pretty good. You certainly can taste the oak. This beer tasted a lot like scotch. There was very minimal sweetness to the beer, and I couldn't find any of the claimed toffee flavour. The beer had a fairly soft feel in the mouth. I found this beer to be pretty good. The scotch angle has me hooked. I would certainly look for this beer again.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Wychwood Brewery Hobgoblin
This looks like an interesting beer from an interesting line of beers. It comes in a uniquely shaped 500mL brown bottle with 5.2% alcohol/vol. The label is in a few different languages, and you would have to be a multilinguist to get all of the information on it. For example, there is an ingredients list but it's in Italian. Yet the beer's description is in English and French. There was a best-before date on this bottle of August 1, 2012, so I was well in the clear in terms of getting a possibly expired beer.
When opened, I was puzzled by the initial aroma. If my nose wasn't lying, I could smell... vinegar? The beer poured a dark amber colour, a far cry from the "ruby" promised on the label. There was a thin off-white head which disappeared almost instantly. There were a few streams of small bubbles in the beer, but they were hard to see due to the darkness of the beer. The aroma after the pour was remarkably different from when I opened the bottle. It had a sweet caramel scent to it.
The first sip was fairly average. The beer had a mild sweetness to it, and had a fairly soft feel in the mouth. There was only a modest bitter aftertaste to it. Overall, I found the beer quite approachable. On the other hand, there was nothing spectacular about it either. I'd probably skip buying it.
When opened, I was puzzled by the initial aroma. If my nose wasn't lying, I could smell... vinegar? The beer poured a dark amber colour, a far cry from the "ruby" promised on the label. There was a thin off-white head which disappeared almost instantly. There were a few streams of small bubbles in the beer, but they were hard to see due to the darkness of the beer. The aroma after the pour was remarkably different from when I opened the bottle. It had a sweet caramel scent to it.
The first sip was fairly average. The beer had a mild sweetness to it, and had a fairly soft feel in the mouth. There was only a modest bitter aftertaste to it. Overall, I found the beer quite approachable. On the other hand, there was nothing spectacular about it either. I'd probably skip buying it.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Orkney Brewery Dark Island
Today is my second Scottish beer. My first one was less than spectacular, probably due to an expiry date SNAFU. This beer has an amazing label. I really dig the artwork and info on it. It even gives the UK government's guideline amount of drinks for the average adult! It comes in a 500mL brown bottle, and has 4.6% alcohol/vol. The label even tells you what to expect in terms of colour, aroma, and taste. I purposefully didn't read it in detail, because I didn't want to be prejudiced.
Upon opening, I was greeted with dark malts. The aroma was very much like that of a Guinness: roasted dark malts with chocolate and coffee. When poured, it formed a thin light brown head that disappeared quickly. The beer itself was a nearly-opaque black. The aroma gained a slightly sweet fruity hint to it.
The first sip was fairly smooth. The beer was fairly bitter, and had a very dry finish. The flavour was mostly dark malt. A tiny hint of coffee and chocolate, but barely noticeable. The feel in the mouth was exceptionally soft. Considering that I had just come back from a run, this beer really hit the spot. As such, my judgement may be a bit skewed. I enjoyed this beer, and would definitely buy it again. Doubly so if I found it in a pub.
Upon opening, I was greeted with dark malts. The aroma was very much like that of a Guinness: roasted dark malts with chocolate and coffee. When poured, it formed a thin light brown head that disappeared quickly. The beer itself was a nearly-opaque black. The aroma gained a slightly sweet fruity hint to it.
The first sip was fairly smooth. The beer was fairly bitter, and had a very dry finish. The flavour was mostly dark malt. A tiny hint of coffee and chocolate, but barely noticeable. The feel in the mouth was exceptionally soft. Considering that I had just come back from a run, this beer really hit the spot. As such, my judgement may be a bit skewed. I enjoyed this beer, and would definitely buy it again. Doubly so if I found it in a pub.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Ayinger Oktoberfest-Märzen
Ever since I tried Sam Adams' Oktoberfest, I've been wanting to try a different brewer's to see what they have in common and how they differ. I'm excited to try today's beer, since Ayinger is brewery well-known for its lagers (especially its doppelbock). It comes in a 500mL brown bottle with an unknown alcohol content. Some days, I hate US beer labelling laws. :(
When opened, I was greeted with a nose full of sweet malt. It reminded me more of Fort Garry's eisbock than Sam Adams' Oktoberfest. It poured a dark amber colour, with just a slight cloudiness. There was a thin white head that disappeared quickly. Lots of microscopic bubbles. The aroma was fairly unchanged from when I opened the bottle.
The first sip was delicous. The beer was incredibly malty, and slightly sweet. It tasted almost like toffee, and a hint of honey. There was almost no hops to it. The feel in the mouth was incredibly soft despite the carbonation. If I ever manage to find this beer again, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
When opened, I was greeted with a nose full of sweet malt. It reminded me more of Fort Garry's eisbock than Sam Adams' Oktoberfest. It poured a dark amber colour, with just a slight cloudiness. There was a thin white head that disappeared quickly. Lots of microscopic bubbles. The aroma was fairly unchanged from when I opened the bottle.
The first sip was delicous. The beer was incredibly malty, and slightly sweet. It tasted almost like toffee, and a hint of honey. There was almost no hops to it. The feel in the mouth was incredibly soft despite the carbonation. If I ever manage to find this beer again, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
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