15 October 2009

Sameul Adams Brewery - Boston Lager (Boston, MA)




This is my second rating for a Sam Adams beer.  The Irish Red did not rate well with me, so let's see how the Lager measures up.  The color is orange-yellow, with a big white foamy head.  I can smell some citrusy oders, some mild malts and a little yeast.  The taste is slightly sweet and flowery with a tight hop zing at the finish.  This is much better than I remember from a tasting of it a few years ago.  I remember it having a really bitter finish that stuck around for a while.  Either that was a bad batch or my taste buds have changed.  Overall this brew is quite good and makes up for the bad experience I had with the Irish Red.

Rating:  B+

Samuel Adams Brewery

14 October 2009

Rules for drinking beer

What rules?  Rules?  We don't need no stinking rules!

Well, actually these are more like guidelines that always should be followed for a great beer drinking experience.

1.  Never drink beer out of the bottle.  That is a big no-no.  (Although Guinness Draught in cans and bottles have a widget that allows you to drink directly from the container while giving it a fresh tap poured taste.)  Always pour your beer into a suitable glass (check this out this post).  What I mean by pour is not the same type of pour that you would use when pouring a soda.  It's more like dumping the brew out instead of pouring.  Start from about a foot above the glass and tip the bottle over, letting the beer fall out violently into the glass.

2.  Never drink your beer out of a chilled glass.  All this accomplishes is to water the beer down as the cup warms up.  (Condensation)

3.  Not all beers are meant to be enjoyed at typical refrigerator temperatures (34-38 degrees Fahrenheit).  Most lagers should be served in the mid-forties, while some ales (especially browns, porters and stouts) should be served at around fifty degrees.  As the beer warms up, more flavors and aromas are released, making for a tastier drink.  So let your beer warm a little before drinking.  Some beers (not naming names, but you can probably guess that they come from the mega U.S. breweries) must be choked down at near freezing temperatures to keep the unpleasantness at a minimum.

Follow these simple rules and you'll have many good drinking experiences in the days ahead.

Of course, the last rule is to NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE.

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. - Porter (Chico, CA)



Sierra Nevada is one of the most popular craft breweries from the U.S., and from tasting this porter I can see why.  This ale has a dark walnut brown color with a dark tan head.  It has a nice chocolate aroma with a full bodied, chocolate malt taste with a hint of hoppy spicyness that finishes smoothly and pleasantly.  I can hardly wait to try other offerings from this brewery.

Rating:  A

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Scottish & Newcastle (part of Heineken International) - Newcastle Brown Ale (Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England)




Me and the family were eating at Andolini's in North Chuck last Sunday when I noticed that Newcastle Brown Ale was on tap.  I remember drinking it a few years ago but didn't remember much about it so I decided to try it again.  Right off, the experience started going down hill.  The aroma has a strong alcohol scent with a weak malt smell.  The taste has a weak malted flavor with a strong alcohol presence, with way too much carbonation.  No wonder I didn't remember it.

This beer doesn't live up the the hype.

Rating:  D+

Newcastle

Sameul Smith - Nut Brown Ale (Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England)




Here is another brew from England, Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale.  The color is dark reddish-brown, with a thick tan head.  The aroma is heavenly, consisting of nuts, caramel, and cocoa scents that gets the mouth watering.  The taste has a slightly sweet nutty and roasted malted flavors, followed up by a perfect and mild, slightly dry hop finish.  There is absolutely no wateriness at all present in this full flavored brew.  A nutty aftertaste lingers for a while that is very pleasant.

This is a beer that every beer lover should try and definitely keep in their private stash.  Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale is truly a World Class brew.

Rating:  A+

Samuel Smith's Old Brewery

Budweiser Budvar Brewery (Budějovický Budvar) - Czechvar (Czech Republic)




Here is the world famous Budweiser!  Not the Budweiser from Anheuser-Busch, but the first Budweiser from Bohemia.  There is a long history of disputes about trademarks and names between the U.S. and Czech companies that you can read about here and here.

Anyway, to the beer.  It has a pale yellow color with a white head.  The aroma has some flowery and earthy notes with the typical pilsener skunky smell.  A slightly sweet, citrusy flavor with a mild hop finish is quite tasty.  Overall, it's a really smooth and crisp beer and a great example of the pilsener stlye.

Rating:  A-

Czechvar

Morland Brewing - "Old Speckled Hen" (Suffolk, England)




Here is my first rating of a brew from across the pond.  Nothing really stands out in the aroma, maybe some mild malts.  Its taste is a mild maltiness with a even bitterness from start to finish, but nothing really special.  I guess that this is what the English call a "bitter".  It's not bad, but not my style.

Rating:  C

"Old Speckled Hen"