Golden Cap

Brewer: New Holland

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1005) Sweet, spicy, and effervesent.

Rating: 4 glasses

Undercover Investigator Shut-Down Ale

Brewer: Lagunitas

Style: Strong Ale

Tasting notes: (1005) A bottle @ Avalon.Sweet malt dominates with loads of hops in the background. Lagunitas calls is an Imperial Mild. I thought is was close to a good English Barleywine.

Rating: 5 glasses

Saison Rue

Brewer: Bruery

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1005) A bottle @ Acacia. A saison with a kick of rye and a hint of brett. May rate 5 glasses.

Rating: 4 glasses

Framboise

Brewer: Lindemans

Style: Fruit Lambic

Tasting notes: (1005) A perfect pairing w/ Mother's Day brunch. Raspberry Sweet Tart. Good w/ dessert. Upgraded from 2 glasses. (0706) Moved to 2 in new rating. Sweet and fruity but still beer. A little is nice but a good portion of 750 ml was too much. I was glad, not sad, to see the empty.

Rating: 4 glasses

Arrogant Bastard

Brewer: Stone

Style: Strong Ale

Tasting notes: (1005) On draft @ Joe's Inn. Still rough but much more mellow than I remember. Sort of like drinking cracked barley. Upgraded from 2. 0706: Moved to 2 in new rating. 602: Loads of flavor. Sort of a Barleywine with a rough taste with more hops and a bitter end taste. I much prefer SNBFBW.

Top 100: 29 December 2005. (Neither March 2007, 2009 or June 09, 2010.)

Rating: 4 glasses

Maerfant Damse

Brewer: Steenberge

Style: Tripel

Tasting notes: (1004) On draft @ Mekong. Candy sugar, apples, and a spciy finish with a tiche of hops. Pleasant, a tiche sweet, and easy drinking.

Comment: An called it "Naked Draak", I think I have the correct brew but may have the wrong name.

Rating: 5 glasses

Gulden Draak

Brewer: Steenberge

Style: Strong Belgian Dark Ale

Tasting notes: (1102) A yeasty, spicy, dubbel w/ a clove kick. Downgraded from 6 glasses. (1008) A bottle @ Joe's Inn. A clove fizzy? Thought about a downgrade. (1004) On draft @ Mekong. Yummy, complex, flavorful, and easy drinking.. Tiches of candy sugar, malt, yeast, caramel, and spicy hops. I think it tastes like a Dubbel. The brewery calls it a dark tripel. I call it good.

Previous ratings: 6 glasses

Rating: 5 glasses

Stockyard Oatmeal Stout

Brewer: Goose Island

Style: Oatmeal Stout

Tasting notes: (1005) A tiche bland. Downgraded from 4 glasses. (1004) A nice stout with pleasant light smokey chocolate touches. Great value @ $5.99/6 pack. (0904) Pleasant stout and a great value. (0711) Needs more kick. @ $5 it may be worth another try. (0701) Last of a 6 pack. Chocolate and coffee smell. (0612) Pleasant and a good value. Charcoal and sweet malt. Needs a bit more kick and a little thin.

Comments: This is a contract brew for Trader Joe's by Goose Island. I don't know if the recipe is the same as the Goose Island Oatmeal Stout.

Rating: 3 glasses

Pure Brewed Lager

Brewer: Samuel Smith

Style: Lager

Tasting notes: (1004) A bottle @ Edo Squids. Grainy.

Rating: 2 glasses

Red's Rye PA

Brewer: Founders

Style: Rye Beer

Tasting notes: (1005) Ditto w/ some sweetness @ first. (1005) Very nice. Hoppy red ale w/ a tiche of rye. Might rate 5 glasses. (1004) Nice hoppy, rye bite.

Rating: 4 glasses

Witbier

Brewer: St. Bernardus Style: Witbier Tasting notes: (1004) On draft @ Mekong. Ditto. (0703) The perfect wit - light, refreshing, yeasty, fruity, and extremely quaffable. Rating: 6 glasses

Hop-It

Brewer: Urthel

Style: Belgian IPA

Tasting notes: (1004) A bottle ordered by mistake @ Water Grill. A hopped-up Belgian Pale Ale.

Rating: 4 glasses

Saison

Brewer: Dupont

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1105) Complex w/ a slight perfume sourness. Dry and refreshing. Upgraded from 5 glasses. (1004) Complex and funky. Fruity @ first and dry @ end. Upgraded to 5. (0709) Complex and funky. I did not like the sour taste at end but the flavor became more appealing as I sipped. Very refreshing. Upgraded from a 1. (0606) A funky saison. I did not like the bitter, sour, ??, aftertaste.


Previous ratings: 1, 4, and 5 glasses
Rating: 6 glasses

Sparkling Ale

Brewer: Bell's

Style: Tripel

Tasting notes: (1003) On draft @ Mekong. OK. A tiche of sweet.

Rating: 3 glasses

Batch 9000

Brewer: Bell's

Style: Strong Ale

Tasting notes: (1003) On draft @ Mekong. An massive, over-the-top, and sticky sweet mixture of chocolate, molasses, and hops.

Rating: 4 glasses

Oarsman

Brewer: Bell's

Style: Berliner Weissbier

Tasting notes: (1304) A bottle @ Avalon. Ditto as before. An easy-gonig sour. Solid 4. (1003) On draft @ Mekong. Light, lemony, and flavorful. May rate 3 glasses.

Rating: 4 glasses

Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout

Brewer: Great Divide

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (1003) On draft @ Mekong. Complex mix of roasty malt and chocolate with undertone of oak. Upgraded from 5 glasses. (0707) Sweet malt up front w/ hint of vanilla, alcohol burn, and burnt bite at end. (Too) easy drinking.

Top 100: 29 December 2005, 10 March 2007, 25 November 2008, and 24 May 2009.

Rating: 6 glasses

Saisonnière

Brewer: Urthel

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1008) On tap @ Mekong. Nice, easy drinking w/ an interesting dry funky finish. May rate 5 glasses.

Rating: 4 glasses

Elwood Thompson Fresh Farmhouse Ale

Brewer: Blue and Gray

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1003) An odd collection of fruit, funk and sour flavors. OK w/ food.

Rating: 2 glasses.

Noble Pils

Brewer: Samuel Adams

Style: Pilsner

Tasting notes: (1003) Pleasant. I wanted more hops.

Rating: 3 glasses.

Jefferson's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout

Brewer: Bluegrass

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (1008) On draft @ Joe's Inn. Too much bourbon and vanilla. Overbearing. Downgraded from 4 glasses and then from 3 a few days later. (1003) On draft @ Joe's Inn. Ditto. (0608) A pint at CAH. A good stout with vanilla with a touch of bourbon. The bourbon grows as the beer warms. Very (too?) smooth, not a sipper and the alcohol was totally hidden. I wanted more bite and body.

Rating: 2 glasses.

IPA

Brewer: Lagunitas

Style: IPA

Tasting notes: (1003) Cask ale @ Mekong. Crisp, clean, and hoppy. Rates at least a 5. Let's split the difference and go 3 to 4. (0805) Downgraded to 3. (0709) A bottle @ Mekong. Sweet malt, spicy hops. Pleasant and good w food.

Rating: 4 glasses.

Brown Sugga' (cask)

Brewer: Lagunitas

Style: Strong Ale

Tasting notes: (1003) Cask @ Mekong. Very nice, muted, balanced, and complex.

Rating: 5 glasses.

Cappuccino Stout

Brewer: Lagunitas

Style: Stout

Tasting notes: (1003) Cask ale @ Mekong. Very nice stout, with nice dose of coffee. Rates at least 5. Let's split the difference and go 3 to 4. (0810) A bottle in Harrisonburg. Coffee! A little one dimensional and a tiche thin.

Rating: 4 glasses.

10

Brewer: Trappistes Rochefort

Style: Quadruple

Tasting notes: (1002) A 1 mn 4 mn old bottle. Complex and quaffable. Luxuriant mouthfeel. Wonderfully balanced.

Previous review.

Top 100: 29 December 2005, 10 March 2007, and 5 March 2009.

Rating: 7 glasses.

Old Viscosity

Brewer: Port

Style: Strong Ale

Tasting notes: (1003) A bottle purchased 1 yr and 11 mn ago. Baltic Porter and muted Arrogant Bastard. Downgraded from 5 glasses. (0806) A bottle purchased 2 mn ago. A mixture of Baltic Porter and Arrogant Bastard. Lots of coffee, especially when cold, w/ a hoppy finish. Better when cold - was thinking about 6 glasses. A sipper as it warms. A charcoal bite emerges as it warms. Alcohol blast throughout. Bourbon is present but subdued.

Rating: 4 glasses.

Siberian Night

Brewer: Thirsty Dog

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (1003) A 1 yr. 11. mn old bottle. Bittersweet chocolate w/ a hint of soy. May be better fresh. (1002) A 1 yr 10 mn old bottle. A disappointment. A tiche of soy, some sour, some bitter chocolate. Downgraded from 7 glasses. This serving would rate at most 4 glasses but I dropped the rating to 5 based on previous tastings. Click here for previous review.

Top 100: 29 December 2005 and 10 March 2007. (Not 10 April 2009.)

Rating: 5 glasses

Hottenroth Berliner Weisse

Brewer: Bruery

Style: Berliner Weissbier

Tasting notes: (1001) Lemon-lime tartness and refreshment.

Rating: 3 glasses

Solid Rotation

I am thinking keeping a small stock of three beers on hand. The three beers are: Sierra Nevada Stout, Starr Hill The Love, and Smuttynose Finest Kind IPA. Each of these is reasonably priced and a good example of the style. The diversity of styles and flavors would let me find something to match almost any occasion or food.

I would plan to supplement my standards with some occasional treats and seasonal releases. Some highlights would include: Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, Founders Imperial Stout, Bigfoot, Hibernation Ale, and a variety of Belgian ales, sours, and gueze.

The Love

Brewer: Starr Hill

Style: Hefeweizen

Tasting notes: (1008) Very nice - slight banana and clove. May rate 5 glasses. (1005) Last of 2 6's. Good but downgraded from 5 glasses. (1002) On draft @ Joes's Inn. Would be 6 glasses if not for Weihenstephaner. (1001) Lemony fruit, a tiche of cloves and a touch of banana. Refreshing. May be overrated at 5 glasses but fond memories from my first tasting and drinkability push it up from 4.

Comment: The Love was the hit at a beer festival I attended a few summers ago.

Rating: 4 glasses.

Imperial Stout

Brewer: Founders

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (1308) A number of bottles over the last couple of years. The beer is wonderful but I am downgrading from 7 glasses. Maybe my taste for big imperial stouts is diminishing. (1102) A fresh bottle ($3/bottle). Very nice. Smoke, chocolate, and hops w/ alcohol breath, (1001) A 1-yr. old bottle.
Wow! A little chocolate milkshake, a little chocolate syrup, some charcoal, a hint of bourbon, a wonderful mouthfeel and hoppy, smokey, charcoal bite. Wonderfully balanced and the alcohol is totally hidden.

Rating: 6 glasses.

Golden Ale

Brewer: Legend

Style: IPA (?)

Tasting notes: (1010) On draft @ Joe's Inn. A bit of pale malts followed by some harsh hops. Not sure if the glass was worth the happy hour price. (0903) On draft @ Joe's Inns. A tiche sweet, w/ a funny finish. I wondered if the line was clean. Not much hop. May rate a 2.

Comment: The Legend web site does not list Golden Ale. It lists Golden IPA and Pale Ale. A poll on the web site lists Golden Ale and Pale Ale - I guessed Golden Ale = Golden IPA.

Rating: 1 glass.

Aventinus Weizen Eisbock

Brewer: Schneider

Style: Eisbock

Tasting notes: (1001) Complex. Aventinus on steroids? Baked apples w/ cloves and nutneg followed occassionally by an alcohol blast? Upgraded from 5 glasses for being a great example of the style. (0811) Sweet apple cider w/ a touch of clove and nutmeg. More than sippable. Downgraded from 6 glasses. (0604) Sweet prunes and alcohol. A class of 1.

Comment: Eisbock formed by freezing the beer and removing some of the water, thereby concentratinng the flavors and alcohol. I read once that it was discovered when beer was shipped via railcars and drinkers noticed differences in the winter.

Rating: 6 glasses.

Baltic Porter

Brewer: Smuttynose

Style: Baltic Porter

Tasting notes: (1001) Figs and prunes and slightly smokey bite. (0803) Sweet chocolate, coffee, figs, prunes, and alcohol blast.

Comment: This bottle had aged some. I think just under two years.

Rating: 6 glasses

Shakespeare Stout

Brewer: Rogue

Style: Stout

Tasting notes: (1001) Ditto. as previous review. Nice smokey bite at end.

Comments: Downgraded from 6 glasses; it doesn't seem as "full" or "thick" as I remember it.

Top 100: 29 December 2005 and 10 March 2007. (Not on 3 August 2009.)

Rating: 5 glasses.

Bigfoot Barleywine-Style Ale

Brewer: Sierra Nevada

Style: Barleywine

Tasting notes: (1103) A fresh, 2011, bottle. Malty and long bitter finish. Hops were strong but not overpowering. The sensation of biting into a grapefruit with lots of pith emerged as I drank the beer. (1101) A 2010 bottles about 1 year ago. Yummy caramel and honey and subdued bitterness and long bitter aftertaste. (1101) A 2006 bottle cellared almost 5 years. Marvelous sweet barley malt followed by pungent yet restrained piney hop bite. A tiche of chocolate in the malt? Is the chocolate sherry? Best beer ever? (1003) My favorite beer? (1003) A fresh 2010 bottle. What's for dessert? (1001) A fresh 2010 bottle. Smoother than I remember w/ a bite that grows. Fantastic. (1001) A 2006 bottle cellared for almost 4 years. Marvelous sweet barley malt followed by pungent yet restrained piney hop bite. A tiche of chocolate in the malt? Previous Review.

Comment: The beer is getting better and better with age.

Top 100: 29 December 2005 but not 10 March 2007 or 26 September 2009.

Rating: 7 glasses

Ichtegem's Grand Cru

Brewer: Strubbe

Style: Flanders Oud Bruin

Tasting notes: (1001) Pleasant blend of sweet and tart apples and vinegar. Very easy drinking and quenching. May rate 5 glasses.

Rating: 6 glasses - 4 glasses

Saison - Brett

Brewer: Boulevard

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (1308) Nice with a touch of bret. A glass on draft @ Mekong. Downgraded from 6 glasses. (1101) Mellowed over the year. A wonderful quaffable saison w/ a touch of pineapple. May rate 5 glasses. (1001) Ginger ale and pineapple. Sweet up front and w/ slight citrus bite at end. Quaffable.

Top 100: 9 January 2010. Not available 29 December 2005 or 10 March 2007.

Rating: 5 glasses

World Wide Stout

Brewer: Dogfish Head

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (0912) Prunes cooked in soy sauce. Interesting in a freak-show kind of way.

Top 100: 29 December 2005 but not 10 March 2007.

Rating: 1 glass

Monster Ale

Brewer: Brooklyn
Style: English Barley Wine
Tasting notes: (0912) A draft @ Mekong. Big sweet dark malt. Upgraded from 4 glasses. (0710) A 2006 bottle. A little caramel, a little chocolate(?), a little sherry, and a little too hot. Might age well.
Rating: 5 glasses

Twelve

Brewer: Weyerbacher

Style: American Barley Wine

Tasting notes: (0912) What a differnce a year made. Sweet apples, a dash of sherry, and some rye. English barleywineish up front with a slight sourish hop bite at end. Probably a 4 for this bottle. The rating is a weighted average. (0811) Malt, tart apples, lemon flavor, with husky hop bite. Didn't fit.

Rating: 3 glasses

1809

Brewer: Weihenstephaner
Style: Berliner Weissbier
Tasting notes: (0912) Green apples. Refreshing and easy drinking. Reminds me of a fruity, slightly tart, Belgian Pale Ale. May rate 5 glasses.
Comment: A contract brew for Dr. Fritz Briem . Dr. Briem has a passion for reviving forgotten sytles. He is also the driving force behind 13th Century Gruit.
Rating: 4 glasses

Vintage Ale

Brewer: Fullers

Style: Old Ale

Tasting notes: (0912) A 5-yr old bottle dated 2004. A luscious and subdued blend of spice, malt, and lactic acid. May rate 7 glasses.

Top 100: 29 December 2005 but not 10 March 2007.

Rating: 6 glasses

2009 Vintage Ale

Brewer: Trader Joe's
Style: Strong Belgian Dark Ale
Tasting notes: (1101) Eh? Too much licorice. Downgraded from 4. (1101) Nice beer. Good value. (0912) Interesting, complex and smooth. Some clove, some chocolate, and (??) nutmeg, cinnamon, hazelnut, and licorice. May rate 5 glasses. A terrific value @ $4.99.
Comment: A contract brew w/ Unibrue.
Previous rating: 4 glasses.
Rating: 3 glasses

Peche Mortel

Brewer: Brasserie Dieu du Ciel

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (0912) Sweet coffee w/ a dash of vanilla. Easy drinking.

Comments: Brewed w/ coffee. Peche Mortel = mortal sin.

Top 100: 29 December 2005, 10 March 2007, and 26 December 2009.

Rating: 5 glasses

Pride and Joy

Brewer: Three Floyds

Style: Pale Ale

Tasting notes: See previous review.

Rating: 5 glasses

Calva Reserva

Brewer: Smisje

Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale

Tasting notes: (0912) Baked apples and very easy drinking. Purchased after tasting @ Mekong a few days earlier.

Rating: 4 glasses

N'Ice Chouffe

Brewer: d'Achouffe

Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale

Tasting notes: (0912) A year-old bottle. First sips were wonderful - complex, malty, and slightly sweet and malty. As I drank, the spices emerged. They were neither bad nor my cup of tea.

Rating: 3 glasses

Winter Solstice

Brewer: Anderson Valley

Style: Winter Warmer

Tasting notes: (0912) A brown ale w/ spices? Upgraded from 1 glass. (0912) A big malt bomb w/ spices. Well crafted but missed my mark.

Rating: 2 glasses

Rose de Gambrinus

Brewer: Cantillon

Style: Fruit lambic

Tasting notes: (0912) An interesting brew. A little too sweet and fruity, not enough tart. May rate 4 glasses.

Comment: Great artwork on the label.

Rating: 3 glasses

Aventinus Wheat Doppelbock

Brewer: Schneider

Style: Weizenbock

Tasting notes: (0911) A bottle @ Can Can. Cloves and bananas. Nice, but seemed thinner than I remembered. Downgraded from 7 glasses, especially when followed by Orval. Previous review.

Top 100: 29 December 2005, 10 March 2007, and 14 October 2009.

Rating: 6 glasses

The Gift (WinterBock Lager)

Brewer: Starr Hill

Style: Maibock

Tasting notes: (0910) A well made bock, some toasty malt w/ a tiche of sweet, spices, and hops. Simply another malty brew (bocks ad Scottish ales) that does not fit my taste buds. May rate one glass.

Rating: 0 glasses

Ten FIDY

Brewer: Oskar Blues

Style: Imperial Stout

Tasting notes: (1102) A fresh bottle shiiped from the brewer. A great example of th style. Viscous, dark, chocolate and cofffee flavors, a battle between sweekt, bitter, and astringent, w/ hops lurking in background. Thoufht about a downgrade to 5 glasses. MAY be better w/ age. (0911) A 1.5-yr. old can. Delightful. Viscous pour. Dark chocolate w/ a perfect amount of bitterness. No sourness. Upgraded from 5 glasses. Previous review.

Top 100: 15 December 2009 and 03 May 2009 but neither 29 December 2005 nor 10 March 2007.

Rating: 6 glasses

Baltic Thunder

Brewer: Victory

Style: Baltic Porter

Tasting notes: (0911) A bottle purchased one year ago. Lager flavor w/ figs and prunes and a tiche of smoke. Very nice on a cool Fall afternoon tailgate party w/ smoke ribs and chili. Previous review.

Rating: 5 glasses

Anniversary Ale - Sixteen

Brewer: Avery

Style: Saison

Tasting notes: (0910) A nice, easy drinking Saison. A tiche sweet and more amber color. Some funk. May rate a 5.

Rating: 4 glasses

Abbey Ale

Brewer: Ommegang

Style: Dubbel

Tasting notes: (1105) Fruity, spicy, complex and interesting but not my cup of tea. Downgraded from 5. May be better w/ age or on draft. (1103) A 12 oz. bottle recently purchased from TWB. Fruity, yeasty, clove, cinnamon?, burgundy?. Downgraded from 6 glasses and thought about 4. (1012) On draft @ CAH. Fruity, yeasty, a tiche of clove, and a dose of hops. Very nice. (1005) A bottle @ Belga Cafe. Good but not as great as I remembered. Downgraded from 7 glasses. (0910) A 1-year old bottle. Deliciously complex: malt and dry and a tiche of sour and bitter and burgundy wine and yeasty. Upgraded from 6. Ages wonderfully. Click here for a previous review.

Previous ratings: 4, 6, 7, 6 and 5 glasses

Rating: 5 glasses

Dale's Pale Ale

Brewer: Oskar Blues Style: Pale Ale Tasting notes: (1103) A 6-pack from Best Value. A bit musty. Thought about a downgrade to 3 glasses. (1004) On Draft @ Water Grill. Hoppy with a little funny sour taste. I wondered if the line was clean. (0910) On draft @ Joe's Inn. A nice, hoppy, pale ale. It blurs the line between pale ale and IPA. Thought about upgrading to 5 glasses. (0806) 3rd of the 6. Downgraded from 5. Tastes "tinny". (0806) 2 from a 6er. Some piney hops. Good but not great. Downgraded to 5 and thought about a 4. (0805) A can from CK. Very pleasant. A little tiche of sweet malt, a nice dose of hops. Very drinkable. May rate a 5 based on taste but gave it a 6 for the style and drinkability. Would be a wonderful session beer. Rating: 4 glasses

Mekong Beer Night

Here is a picture of me enjoying a special beer at Mekong Restaurant in December 2009.

Beer Alley

Here is a picture of one of my daughters and a male friend in front of the Beer Alley at the home store for Whole Foods.