August 31, 2011
The Brü Revü – Green Flash West Coast IPA
The Green Flash West Coast IPA is another beer I had on tap at Whip-In which was served slightly warm. I wasn’t sure if they meant to serve it warm, but I think the beer was better for it. This beer is hops, hops, and more hops! Definitely a West Coast IPA with a very clean hop bite and a lingering resinous hop aftertaste. This one leans more towards the piney hops rather than a strong citrus flavor with a very in your face hoppiness. While the bartendress warned me that it was really aggressive I found that I enjoyed it, although I could see where it would wear down your palate as it is a huge hop bomb. It was a good IPA especially if you are looking for a hop overload, but I would grab something with a little more balance.
August 23, 2011
The Brü Revü – New Belgium Grand Cru Abbey Ale
This beer will always have a sweet spot with me. I remember first having this beer years ago on draft at the Gingerman as part of the New Belgium’s Lips of Faith series and thinking it was the best beer on the planet. It was a perfect afternoon with my wife drinking a few beers at my favorite bar that may have influenced my opinion. I have not seen it since, so when I saw it is now available in bottles I was ecstatic. New Belgium’s Abbey Ale is one of their best beers and this one kicks it up a few notches. It has a very deep and intense flavor that strikes all the right Belgian Abbey notes with hints of raisins, figs, and that distinct Belgian yeast. While it did not live up to my memory of the greatest beer in the world, it is still a fantastic one that will always stir those memories of that perfect afternoon.
August 22, 2011
The Brü Revü – Dogfish Head Theobroma
I had this beer on tap at Whip-In on a recent visit and I have to say it was a bit of a surprise. Theobroma is part of Dogfish Head’s Ancient Ale series based on the chemical analysis of pottery fragments from Honduras which revealed the earliest known alcoholic chocolate drink from 500 – 1200 BC. It was light golden in color which was unexpected considering their use of cocoa powder and cocoa nibs. It had a distinct chocolate flavor as you would expect with a subtle chili burn on the finish. The beer avoided being an overpowering bomb of chocolate although slightly sweet and malty the flavors were well balanced and hid the high alcohol content. Dogfish Head managed to create a very original beer that was unlike anything I had tried before. It was definitely a sweet surprise!
August 18, 2011
The Brü Revü – Real Ale Devil’s Backbone
I love this beer! This is a fantastic local seasonal brew that I look forward to every summer, and why Real Ale doesn’t brew this year round is beyond me. I always love a good Belgian Tripel and this is a great Texas example of the style. It is a light golden color that deceptively hides its high alcohol content, but while the color is light, there is nothing light about the taste. It has all the signature Belgian yeast notes with some spicing and a slight hop to help balance out the flavors. It has a robust mouthfeel with a smooth balanced finish. This is a solid Tripel that makes the sweltering Austin summer all that more bearable. Now I just need a case or two to make it through the winter!
August 12, 2011
Beer Bums Meeting – August 2011 – Beers of the Gulf Coast
We quickly realized how limited this month’s theme would be as we were down to St. Arnold’s out of Houston and Abita near New Orleans as the main breweries. The Blackened Voodoo and Weedwacker may have stolen the show and the Bombshell Blonde is another good canned micro brew option.
For next month, September - Belgian style beers made in America, should be a good one!
August 10, 2011
The Brü Revü – Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron
Whoa, this is a powerful beer, and my mouth is watering just thinking about it. Dogfish Head is another great craft brewery that puts out consistently good beers that push the craft brewing envelope. The Palo Santo Marron is no exception as it is a brown ale aged on palo santo wood from Paraguay which pours black as used motor oil and looks and tastes like an Imperial Stout. The wood aging gives it a bitter but complex taste that hides the alcohol well. It had a thick and heavy mouthfeel that lets you know you are drinking something substantial while many of the flavors and aromas introduced themselves as it warmed. I snagged it from my Dad as he felt it was too “hoppy” for him, his loss! I kept taking sip after sip muttering “this is really good”. Not something I could drink all the time, but a dynamic and powerful beer that I thoroughly enjoyed.
August 8, 2011
The Brü Revü – Pike Monk’s Uncle Tripel Ale
I am a sucker for a Belgian style Tripel, so when I saw this at the store I had to grab one. The Pike Brewing Company is from Seattle and is a new brewery for me. The aroma had all the classic Tripel notes of bubblegum and Belgian yeast followed by the same classic notes in the taste with a bit of the clove spiciness and candy sweetness. The biggest disappointment was the finish. Every sip ended with a bitter back-end that was not good. Don’t get me wrong, I can take bitter as I love the hoppy IPA’s, but this bitter ending is not what I look for in a tripel. With the high alcohol content, I took my time, and as it warmed the taste and aroma remained consistent as did that bitter finish. In the end it left me a little underwhelmed as I expect a lot out of a Belgian style Tripel. It was definitely worth a try, but I will probably grab a different Tripel in the future such as Real Ale’s Devil’s Backbone or Victory’s Golden Monkey.
August 2, 2011
Pint Glass Nights - August
Misc. pint glass nights around Austin for August. Buy the beer, keep the glass.
Black Star Co-op – Mondays, at 4PM
Aug. 8 Rahr Gravel Road
Aug. 15 New Belgium
Gingerman – Mondays, at 6 PM
Aug. 1 Dogfish Head Festina Peche
Aug. 8 Rahr Gravel Road
Aug. 15 Harpoon Summer Ale
Aug. 22 Brooklyn
Aug. 29 Real Ale Lost Gold
The Tavern – Tuesdays
Check their facebook page for glass updates
Zax Pints and Plates – Wednesdays, at 6 PM
Aug. 3 Koningshoeven/La Trappe
Aug. 10 Real Ale Lost Gold IPA
Aug. 17 St. Arnold Summer Pils
Aug. 24 Sam Adams Latitude 48 IPA
Aug. 31 Ommegang Belgian Pale Ale
Flying Saucer - Wednesdays, at 7 PM
Aug. 3 Avery Maharaja
Aug. 10 2011 FS Elvis Glass
Aug. 17 Unibroue Maudite
Aug. 24 St. Arnold
Aug. 31 Lindemans’
Draught House – Wednesdays
Check their twitter page for glass updates
Please send me any other Austin locations with pint glass nights in the comments and I can add them to the list.
The Brü Revü – Samuel Smith’s Imperial Stout
I expected more out of this Imperial Stout, and I may be in the minority on this one. Samuel Smith Brewery is a British brewery that makes consistently good, high quality beers, but this one left me a bit flat. It poured black like a proper stout with a nice tan head that lingered and looked enticing. Unfortunately there was little aroma and the taste was thin and watery, definitely not what I was expecting from this highly rated Imperial Stout. I like my stouts big and bold and this one just wasn’t there. I kept waiting for more complex flavors to appear but a watery dark chocolate with a slightly bitter finish was all I was getting. It is definitely worth trying as a comparison of a British version of an Imperial Stout against the bigger and bolder American styles, but in the future I would opt for something with a little more oomph!
August 1, 2011
The Brü Revü – Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale
I really love Stone Brewery and what they represent in terms of craft brewing and their experimentation. All of their beers are extremely well done and very good, so with that in mind I tried their flagship beer the Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale. With my first taste my initial thought was “what the hell?” It had a very off-putting bitterness that was not necessarily an intense hoppiness like an IIPA and it was surprising. The label states “It is quite doubtful that you have the taste of sophistication to appreciate an ale of this quality and depth,” and I was beginning to believe them! I have to admit I was a bit disappointed. I finished the first glass and slowly poured the rest of the bottle with growing dread. By now the beer had begun to warm a bit as I left it out of the refrigerator. As it warmed, Arrogant Bastard took on a much smoother more balanced taste as the malts began to balance out the hop bitterness with a more roasty almost toffee flavor. I easily finished glass #2 and completely erased my earlier disappointment.
I realized that I fell into two traps: A) this being the summer in Austin we all want to drink a cold beer to cool off and B) in my haste for a cold one, I completely ignored the fact that most complex brews reveal themselves as they warm.
This is definitely an aggressive and sophisticated beer as the label suggests, and a very good, highly recommended introduction to Stone. Just let it warm a little first.
