Okay, so Retha and I went out for Chinese food and scorpion bowls. While we were there we noticed a beer that was in Michael Jackson's book... so here's our review:
Tsing Tao:
This was an amazing beer. We started with sniffing the bottle. The bottle was interesting with the name printed both on the label and in the glass of the bottle. Then the first taste. So good. This beer was agreed to be great by all of the people we were with. Retha, Wes, Bob, H, Dibz, and I all agreed this was a great beer. I highly suggest it to any one who wonders about the beverages of the orient. 4.5 steins out of 5.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Friday, September 28, 2007
Brews 13-15
So Tonight we have a special guest star to the blog, his name is Bob, and he wraps that shit tight yo. Any who here we go for tonight.
South Hampton Secret Ale
This brew wasn't so bad, it's a dark ale which as we have said earlier we are not fans of. Over all the 3 of us felt it wasn't too bad. The flavor is pretty strong, Matt and I went with a bloodish flavor. Bob kept getting a bitter taste in the back of his throat. I enjoyed the beer myself. It's definitely one of the better dark ales that I've had. I really liked that it didn't have a strong aftertaste, i mean as far as dark ales go.
In the end we gave it a 3.5 steins out of 5.
Hoegaarden Witbier-biere Blanche
I don't care how cool, funny, sexy, dirty, or STD infested hoes are this is beer sucked. "This smells like utter," is what Bob said while Matt said, "This tastes like beef jerky," and I would have to agree with Matt. If I could imagine the taste of ass, I would say that it tastes like bee jerky and ass. This beer was fucking nasty! "I hope this didn't cost much," was Bob's comment. Yeah sadly it cost about $3. It definitely wasn't worth it, and I would never buy it again. Matt doesn't think it's that bad, while I think he's crazy.
Because of Matt we give it 1.5 steins out of 5.
Radeberger Pilsner
WOOHOO for Pilsner!!!! So, clearly I'm a pilsner fan, and I really enjoyed this brew. It went down nice and smooth, the aftertaste was just right, and I thoroughly enjoy how refreshing the taste is. The guys well, Bob didn't have a problem with it and Matt's taste buds are clearly fucked up because he tastes burnt hair (I'm sure he'll be okay someday, but for now lets all just go with it). I'm just excited for a Pilsner!
This baby gets 3 steins out of 5 (I blame the guys, I would have rated it a little higher)
South Hampton Secret Ale
This brew wasn't so bad, it's a dark ale which as we have said earlier we are not fans of. Over all the 3 of us felt it wasn't too bad. The flavor is pretty strong, Matt and I went with a bloodish flavor. Bob kept getting a bitter taste in the back of his throat. I enjoyed the beer myself. It's definitely one of the better dark ales that I've had. I really liked that it didn't have a strong aftertaste, i mean as far as dark ales go.
In the end we gave it a 3.5 steins out of 5.
Hoegaarden Witbier-biere Blanche
I don't care how cool, funny, sexy, dirty, or STD infested hoes are this is beer sucked. "This smells like utter," is what Bob said while Matt said, "This tastes like beef jerky," and I would have to agree with Matt. If I could imagine the taste of ass, I would say that it tastes like bee jerky and ass. This beer was fucking nasty! "I hope this didn't cost much," was Bob's comment. Yeah sadly it cost about $3. It definitely wasn't worth it, and I would never buy it again. Matt doesn't think it's that bad, while I think he's crazy.
Because of Matt we give it 1.5 steins out of 5.
Radeberger Pilsner
WOOHOO for Pilsner!!!! So, clearly I'm a pilsner fan, and I really enjoyed this brew. It went down nice and smooth, the aftertaste was just right, and I thoroughly enjoy how refreshing the taste is. The guys well, Bob didn't have a problem with it and Matt's taste buds are clearly fucked up because he tastes burnt hair (I'm sure he'll be okay someday, but for now lets all just go with it). I'm just excited for a Pilsner!
This baby gets 3 steins out of 5 (I blame the guys, I would have rated it a little higher)
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Beers 10-12
Well, after an interesting find last tasting, Retha and I have decided to make notes on the brews as we go... As you can tell by the last post of the last session, I was very good...
Beer 10: Alba Scots Pine Ale
Hated it. Retha tasted the pine (I did not). But I did taste a very distinct mustard-esque after taste. In my opinion the beer is very sweet on the way down, which made it less enjoyable. According to Michael Jackson's info blurb in the book, no hops are used in its creation (parts of pine trees are instead). Perhaps that is why this beer is so terrible. I was excited to try it because I am a huge fan of Jessica Alba, and I was grossly let down. This beer gets 0.5 Steins out of 5.
Beer 11: Ebulum Elderberry Black Ale
"Wow I like that one." ~Retha. And I would have to agree. A very interesting black ale with an after taste that reminds me of Crack Jacks. Mmmm a nice blast to my youth ::drifts off into a euphoric gaze:: ... Oh! Right! The beer... an extremely smooth caramelish taste that was quite surprising. We were expecting a dark beer that would make us go "wooleh." But this is not a meal on its own and it certainly isn't that thick. It also carries a very sweet aroma. All around a great beer. An easily granted 4 steins out of 5.
Beer 12: Fraoch Heather Ale
So this one is all mine considering Matt can't taste a thing...I blame the pizza. Anyway, I give the smell a huge blah. Damn that was smelly. The taste was just as bad. It didn't go down smooth and it tasted like a caramelish ewwww. Upon further tasting after the pizza Matt said that he got a quick caramel taste. Over all it was pretty nasty. Tis was difficult, but we gave it 2 steins out of 5.
Beer 10: Alba Scots Pine Ale
Hated it. Retha tasted the pine (I did not). But I did taste a very distinct mustard-esque after taste. In my opinion the beer is very sweet on the way down, which made it less enjoyable. According to Michael Jackson's info blurb in the book, no hops are used in its creation (parts of pine trees are instead). Perhaps that is why this beer is so terrible. I was excited to try it because I am a huge fan of Jessica Alba, and I was grossly let down. This beer gets 0.5 Steins out of 5.
Beer 11: Ebulum Elderberry Black Ale
"Wow I like that one." ~Retha. And I would have to agree. A very interesting black ale with an after taste that reminds me of Crack Jacks. Mmmm a nice blast to my youth ::drifts off into a euphoric gaze:: ... Oh! Right! The beer... an extremely smooth caramelish taste that was quite surprising. We were expecting a dark beer that would make us go "wooleh." But this is not a meal on its own and it certainly isn't that thick. It also carries a very sweet aroma. All around a great beer. An easily granted 4 steins out of 5.
Beer 12: Fraoch Heather Ale
So this one is all mine considering Matt can't taste a thing...I blame the pizza. Anyway, I give the smell a huge blah. Damn that was smelly. The taste was just as bad. It didn't go down smooth and it tasted like a caramelish ewwww. Upon further tasting after the pizza Matt said that he got a quick caramel taste. Over all it was pretty nasty. Tis was difficult, but we gave it 2 steins out of 5.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Brews 4-9
Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale
We were pleasantly surprised by this brew. We are two people who don't prefer drinking pale ales but will enjoy one from time to time. I think that this is perhaps my most favorite pale ale. The hoppy overtones compliment the various flavors enclosed. As for pale ales, we highly suggest this one. 3 out of 5 steins.
Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter
For the 5th of our brews we tried Smith's Pale Ale, which I found very good. The ale had a sweet smell with a hint of coffee-ish. As for the taste it was enjoyable. Being the type of person that does not enjoy pale ales I find this beer surprisingly tasty. Sadly the aftertaste ruined the beer for me. It left me with the taste of old coffee in my mouth and that is not cool with me.
I give this beer 3 out of 5 steins.
Christoffel Blond
Number 6 is a very interesting Dutch lager. My number one suggestion is to open away from the face. I had never experienced a bottle such as this, so when I opened it the carbonation exploded into my face. We had a good laugh about it as we poured the beer. From that, the first sip was terrible. The second just as bad. In theory this would be a very delicious brew. However, the hops are far too large of an ingredient. If the brew master took the hops down a little this brew would be amazing. The hops just over power all of the other undertones. Because of this hop domination, I have to score it a 1 stein out of 5.
Anchor Brewing Co. Liberty Ale
The 7th brew truly let us down. We expected so much more from something characterized as an "American ale." By this point we were truly feeling our beer; and this poor taste still cut through. This beer has a very bitter yet tangy taste. Much like the previous, I wouldn't suggest this to anyone unless they really loved their pale ales. It wasn't bad but it certainly is not my beer of choice. However, it did have more of a taste to it than the Christoffel Blond; so I'll have to give it 2 steins out of 5.
Spaten Oktoberfest
Number 8. This beer definitely grew on me as I drank it. The first few tastes were alright. I've definitely had worse, but also had a lot better. I find this to be somewhat bad qualities in a beer. I want to like it from sip one to gulp done. I would categorize this brew as either dark or red (more on the darker side of red). A little pale, yet intriguing taste. I give this a 2.5 steins out of 5 (simply because I didn't like it at the start).
Westmalle Dubbel
Wow. 6 imported beers in a night. Number 9 (said to be the best by the gentle men at the liquor store) was... alright. A strong coffee taste to start with strangely no after taste at all. a very sweet aroma with an interesting like tangy taste (to compliment the coffee). I would have to agree with the men at the store. This is a fine beverage and I am glad to have ended the night with it. I don't know if it's the best we've had tonight, but it is damn good and I would suggest it to any friend who has the money for it. 3.5 steins out for 5
We were pleasantly surprised by this brew. We are two people who don't prefer drinking pale ales but will enjoy one from time to time. I think that this is perhaps my most favorite pale ale. The hoppy overtones compliment the various flavors enclosed. As for pale ales, we highly suggest this one. 3 out of 5 steins.
Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter
For the 5th of our brews we tried Smith's Pale Ale, which I found very good. The ale had a sweet smell with a hint of coffee-ish. As for the taste it was enjoyable. Being the type of person that does not enjoy pale ales I find this beer surprisingly tasty. Sadly the aftertaste ruined the beer for me. It left me with the taste of old coffee in my mouth and that is not cool with me.
I give this beer 3 out of 5 steins.
Christoffel Blond
Number 6 is a very interesting Dutch lager. My number one suggestion is to open away from the face. I had never experienced a bottle such as this, so when I opened it the carbonation exploded into my face. We had a good laugh about it as we poured the beer. From that, the first sip was terrible. The second just as bad. In theory this would be a very delicious brew. However, the hops are far too large of an ingredient. If the brew master took the hops down a little this brew would be amazing. The hops just over power all of the other undertones. Because of this hop domination, I have to score it a 1 stein out of 5.
Anchor Brewing Co. Liberty Ale
The 7th brew truly let us down. We expected so much more from something characterized as an "American ale." By this point we were truly feeling our beer; and this poor taste still cut through. This beer has a very bitter yet tangy taste. Much like the previous, I wouldn't suggest this to anyone unless they really loved their pale ales. It wasn't bad but it certainly is not my beer of choice. However, it did have more of a taste to it than the Christoffel Blond; so I'll have to give it 2 steins out of 5.
Spaten Oktoberfest
Number 8. This beer definitely grew on me as I drank it. The first few tastes were alright. I've definitely had worse, but also had a lot better. I find this to be somewhat bad qualities in a beer. I want to like it from sip one to gulp done. I would categorize this brew as either dark or red (more on the darker side of red). A little pale, yet intriguing taste. I give this a 2.5 steins out of 5 (simply because I didn't like it at the start).
Westmalle Dubbel
Wow. 6 imported beers in a night. Number 9 (said to be the best by the gentle men at the liquor store) was... alright. A strong coffee taste to start with strangely no after taste at all. a very sweet aroma with an interesting like tangy taste (to compliment the coffee). I would have to agree with the men at the store. This is a fine beverage and I am glad to have ended the night with it. I don't know if it's the best we've had tonight, but it is damn good and I would suggest it to any friend who has the money for it. 3.5 steins out for 5
Beers 1-3
So, my friend Retha and I were in a Barnes and Noble one day looking for books. We then stumbled upon a book of the "500 Best Brews" by: Michael Jackson. Now, we are both avid drinkers and we found quite a bit of amusement in this. So I took it upon myself to spend the $10 to purchase it. As we thumbed through the book we both noticed that we had only both had 3 beers listed. We found this to be a huge problem. We have made drinking all 500 brews a goal. We intend to taste and blog all 500 beers in a year's time.
The first beer we've both experienced was Sapporro Yebisu. I had this at a Chinese food restaurant. It came in a nice chilled bottle. However, it came with a sort skunk aroma. But I didn't let this bother me. All in all it was an alright brew; nice alcohol content, and despite the aroma a nice taste (followed by a par after taste). I give this beer 2.5 steins out of 5.
The second beer we both had we shared together, was New Castle Brown Ale. I really enjoyed this brew. An incredible flavor, nice price and an even better after taste. This was my first brown ale and I must say that new castle impressed me. I definitely give this a 4 steins out of 5.
The third beer that we had both had was Duvel. This was a very interesting beer that came highly recommended by a colleague of mine. So we were very interested in trying it. My number one first bad impressions was the price. $15.50 for a four pack. Now I'm sorry but I am a poor college student. I have to fund the tasting of 500 beers and that price is too steep. However, Retha and I are dedicated to bring you guys the skinny on all these brews; so I coughed up the cash. This was a very fair beer. No where near what I expected. The taste was that of an average beer. But what was the trick was the after taste. This beer brought a nice wine after taste. Plus the alcohol content of amazing. One and a half Duvels and I was definitely happy. This is a nice 3 out of 5 steins. Simply because of the price and the averageness of the taste.
-Matt
The first beer we've both experienced was Sapporro Yebisu. I had this at a Chinese food restaurant. It came in a nice chilled bottle. However, it came with a sort skunk aroma. But I didn't let this bother me. All in all it was an alright brew; nice alcohol content, and despite the aroma a nice taste (followed by a par after taste). I give this beer 2.5 steins out of 5.
The second beer we both had we shared together, was New Castle Brown Ale. I really enjoyed this brew. An incredible flavor, nice price and an even better after taste. This was my first brown ale and I must say that new castle impressed me. I definitely give this a 4 steins out of 5.
The third beer that we had both had was Duvel. This was a very interesting beer that came highly recommended by a colleague of mine. So we were very interested in trying it. My number one first bad impressions was the price. $15.50 for a four pack. Now I'm sorry but I am a poor college student. I have to fund the tasting of 500 beers and that price is too steep. However, Retha and I are dedicated to bring you guys the skinny on all these brews; so I coughed up the cash. This was a very fair beer. No where near what I expected. The taste was that of an average beer. But what was the trick was the after taste. This beer brought a nice wine after taste. Plus the alcohol content of amazing. One and a half Duvels and I was definitely happy. This is a nice 3 out of 5 steins. Simply because of the price and the averageness of the taste.
-Matt
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)