Archive for Beer

Guten Tag! Since this is the lovely month of October, you’ve no doubt seen beers that share the same name. Octoberfest or Oktoberfest ale, are common this time of year. Generally these dark tan ales have a slightly bitter flavor with smokey overtones. Many breweries claim to have the best brew, so I took a few popular ones to a taste test.

Sam Adam’s, Octoberfest, bottle. We start with a dark copper color with a smokey aroma. This ale has a slightly bitter aftertaste and is very malty. Many people use this as a basis for all Octoberfest beers, which isn’t a terrible thing, but you must remember that Sam Adam’s is the gateway beer. The gateway to other possibilities and flavors, so keep exploring.

Harpoon, Octoberfest, bottle. Lighter in color than the Sam’s, a tan color, not very bitter and very smooth. This had an almost creamy taste to it and a little bite toward the end. I found this to be very enjoyable and not as heavy as Sam

Otter Creek, Oktoberfest, bottle. This had the brightest color of the three, a golden quality. It was very smooth with a slightly bitter taste. Not as spiced and smokey as the other two, which gave way to a good crisp taste. This was the easiest to drink of the three.

I only wish that I had a chance to try Spaten’s Octoberfest, but I couldn’t find any anywhere. Octoberfest ales can be confused with Autumn ales and other fall beers. Remember: Octoberfest beers come from a rich German and Bavarian heritage and are the start of the dark beer season. Next time you grill a few brats or German sausage with a bed of sauerkraut, crack open some German heritage to wash it down. Auf Wiedersehen.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve subjected myself to a study of different pumpkin beers in order to find The Great Pumpkin. Here are my results:

Wolaver’s Organic, Will Steven’s Pumpkin Ale, bottle: not heavy on spice with a slightly bitter flavor. A funny smell that wasn’t really pumpkin. Not very impressive overall, it was a good try though.

Smuttynose, Pumpkin Ale, tap: smelled like a can of pumpkin pie but had too much bitter aftertaste. Think of a pale ale with some pumpkin spice. Not my favorite but it was more convincing than the Wolaver’s.

Shipyard, Pumpkinhead Ale, tap: light aroma with no bitter flavor and very carbonated. Smooth like a golden ale. Sadly, it was too watered down by the end of the pint.

Post Road, Pumpkin Ale, bottle: (this brewery was bought out by the Brooklyn Brewery) this ale had a good aroma. It was a step up from the Shipyard. The spiced flavor was very consistent throughout, not overpowering.

Blue Moon, Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale, bottle: smooth pumpkin flavor and taste. Not bitter at all with no strong aroma. This one used to be my favorite.

Dogfish Head, Punkin Ale, bottle: strong pumpkin smell and solid flavor. No filler here, and consistent throughout with spice, you can almost taste the nutmeg. If you can find this ale, you’ll make the switch in no time.

There you have it folks, the fruits (or gourds, I guess) of my research. This year The Great Pumpkin goes to: Dogfish Head for this very consistent tasting ale. Well, those were all the pumpkin beers I could grab, maybe I missed a few. Have no fear there always is next year. See you around the patch.

Bottle/Tap: Bottle

The other night I had a funny craving: a cheeseburger with bacon. Stopping by the grocery store, I picked up ground beef and smoked bacon, then headed home. While grilling I applied barbecue sauce to the burgers and even grilled the bacon. To top this all off I decided to have a Trout River Chocolate Oatmeal Stout. Remember this: dark beers go great with smoky grilled foods.

I’ve had two other beers that advertise chocolate on the label: Sam Adams’ Chocolate Bock and Rogue’s Chocolate Stout. Both of which were very good and reminded me of melted Hershey bars.

I opened the Trout River, poured it into a glass, and was immediately struck by the aroma of chocolate. Since this is a stout it was obviously jet black in color with a little foam on top. It looked very appealing.

Oatmeal is a common ingredient in most stouts, and there was a hint of oatmeal here. Actually, if you added raisins to the chocolate and oatmeal, you’d have a pretty good cookie recipe. There was a little taste of bitterness, but for the most part this stout was very smooth.

Thankfully, the bacon and burger were grilled to perfection by yours truly, and the smoky flavors were only complimented. I never though I’d have chocolate for dinner, although I have had cake for breakfast, so I guess it all works out.

Overall, I really enjoyed Trout River’s Chocolate Oatmeal Stout much more than their Red Ale, which I’ve had before. The time of year is approaching when darker, full bodied beers will be more common place, I’m just trying to jump the gun.

Tap/Bottle – Bottle

Only twice I’ve subjected myself to high potency beers: La Fin Du Monde and Sam Adam’s Imperial Pilsner. Usually, I avoid anything over 5 or 6% when I’m out and about, and this past Tuesday I was tricked.

Victory Brewing is one of the new lines of beers to have been added to Strangebrew’s roster. After a pint of delicious Bass, I decided to try one of the new offerings. Based on name alone, I chose the Golden Monkey Ale. What I envisioned and what I got were two different things. The words ‘golden ale’ usually bring up thoughts of a calm summer afternoon, but not this time.

The beer was served in a 12 ounce bottle; this should have been a hint. Second, the aroma was a little off. Finally, after a quarter of the bottle, I read the label: 9.5% alcohol by volume. Suddenly, I felt the urge to consume more nachos.

If you managed to try Sam Adam’s Imperial Pilsner last fall, it was intensely hoppy. Golden Monkey can be likened to the Imperial Pilsner, yet it tasted slightly better due to whatever spices Victory mixed in the brew.

The one characteristic of beers that are 9% or above is that they all begin to taste similar. Due to the alcohol content it really dilutes the flavor, and you can’t taste much else. This is why I avoid high alcohol beers.

Halfway through the bottle the flavor smoothed out a bit. I managed to finish it and peel off the label for future reference. For beers like this, you often need the right mindset before you pop the top, not totally be taken by surprise. I’m intrigued to try more by Victory Brewing; I just hope that the rest of their line isn’t so intimidating.

Tap/Bottle: Tap

I need to drink outside my comfort bottle and sample something different. I am no big fan of the IPA, but for the sake of journalism, I will travel to new frontiers.

At Strangebrew, I ordered an old favorite: French Onion soup. Some days you feel like a nut, some days you feel like soup. To go with my soup I picked a Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA.

60 minutes has nothing to do with consumption time. It coincides with the brewing process and the length of boil time the wort endures. During this time, hops are continuously added for either 60, 90 or 120 minutes, thus increasing bitterness. The longer the boil the stronger the bitter.  Trust me on this, none of these beers are for sissy Budweiser drinkers.

The color of this beer was seductive enough that I thought nothing of the flavor, until I tasted it. According to my buddy, the look on my face was priceless. I will say this: Dogfish Head makes a fine beer. I just can’t seem to get them down too easily.

Thankfully, my soup arrived, which meant I had something to wash the beer down with. The 60 Minute IPA is slightly easier to get down than the 90 Minute, as you could have figured. The 60 starts off deceivingly smooth and nails you with the bitter when you least expect. However, the 90 is bitter all over. Having never tried the 120, I only can imagine how strong it must be.

I do have a slight bias against IPA’s, I don’t always enjoy bitter beers. I’ll drink them when I want some excitement. Maybe I’m just too weak for IPA’s, oh well. If you feel up to the challenge and enjoy strong flavor, give this one a go.

Tap/Bottle: Bottle

Rule of Citrus: None

Besides sampling plenty of Woodstock Inn beverages on our camping trip, I also brought a mix of Flying Dog ales. I’ve noticed Flying Dog in many stores, but I’ve never purchased any of their products. At first I was intrigued when I found out that Ralph Steadman was the artist in charge of the labels. Anyone familiar with Hunter S. Thompson will know who Ralph Steadman is and his brand of drawings.

On the first night of the trip Ed, our resident Bass Master, had come across some white perch on his last fishing trip. With his expert knife skills, he cleaned and prepared the fish so I could cook it over the stove.

The Tire Bite ale blended very well with the Old Bay seasoned perch. Tire Bite is a golden ale, very smooth and refreshing. With a crisp taste and finish it was pretty tough for me not to finish the whole pack I brought.

You can’t really screw up a golden ale- they might be the best tasting beer. Although you can get some that are very watered down, Tire Bite had a good blend of flavor and water.  I have to add Tire Bite to my list of ales to look for next spring and summer.

This was my first foray into Flying Dog products, and it won’t be my last. I just need to work my way up to the double bocks and barley wines they offer.

Located on the bustling main street of Woodstock, New Hampshire, you are sure to find the Woodstock Inn and Brewery. On our usual Labor Day camping trip, we made a pilgrimage to the Inn for food and beverages. Besides great food, there is also great beer, and with a sampler option on the menu I opted for four brews from light to dark.

First up, we had the Loon Golden Ale, a dry and crisp beer. With a golden color and slight hop flavor this proved to be a good start to lunch.

Second was the Pemi Pale Ale. Normally, I don’t like pales and IPAs, but this ale was much smoother than most I’ve tried. Pales are a good way to break into IPAs with just enough bitter to keep your taste buds active.

Coming in third we had the Red Rack Ale. In the tradition of a Killian’s Irish, the Red Rack fairs better. With a little more bite than your average red ale, you could say the Woodstock Inn enjoys bitter beers. I too enjoy this ale.

Last but not least was the Old Man Oatmeal Stout. I like a good stout more often over a porter, and this stout was perfect. It was smooth with a hint of oatmeal flavor, some bitters for the back of your throat. This reminded me of the Espresso Porter from Keene’s Elm City Brewery. This was a good way to end off the sampler and lunch.

Another successful trip made better by good company, great food and fine beer. If you happen to be lost in moose country, I suggest stopping in for a Train Wreck Sandwich and a sampler. Happy trails.

Bottle/Tap: Tap

Rule of Citrus: None

After a long absence, I returned to Strangebrew Tavern this past Tuesday with my usual company for some nachos and beverages. A few more taps had been added to the bar, and I noticed that the summer beers were quickly running away. I decided to grab a White Sail by Otter Creek and take it for a spin.

I’ll be happy when college season starts, and the bars are less hectic; still we got a table and waited for our appetizer to arrive. I was a little disappointed to find that the beer wasn’t terribly cool when I received it; room temperature is close to what it turned out to be. However, that didn’t dismay the flavor of the beer itself. With no overpowering aroma, I sampled some to find that it actually tasted a little watery. Imagine pouring half a pint of beer and then finishing the rest with water, which is almost what it tasted like. I will admit that it wasn’t very bitter at all, quite smooth, but not a whole lot else.

I do enjoy Otter Creek’s Stovepipe Porter and various dark beers when the air is right, but White Sail left me wanting more. I really was hoping for some kind of a zing in there, and since the tavern was busy I couldn’t ask for a lemon slice to try my theory. Maybe I got a bad keg, but this beer wasn’t bad and it wasn’t too great. If you are looking for something that is not too strong so you can wet your whistle, I do suggest this ale. I will admit that it helped wash the jalapenos down.

Like a stain that won’t come out of your favorite shirt: it’s Beer Spots. This is, obviously, part 3 in my series to enlighten folks about where to find good beer close to home. Sadly, this will be my last installment, until I find more spots that catch my taste buds. Let us now migrate to the Queen City herself, Manchvegas, more affectionately known as Manchester.

The North End Superette is located at the corner of Elm St and Fir St. One of my favorite spots, it is relatively close to Strangebrew and boasts one of the largest selections of beer in the state. The staff may not be able to point you to something suited to your taste, but there is plenty from which to choose. They offer ‘mix and match’ cases, along with keg specials. They carry many domestics and micros with a solid selection of imports and even a small wine area. For a very tiny store, it is a gem on Elm St to anyone looking to experiment.

Drinking Consultants, located right off Exit 6 on 93 North at Candia Rd, lives up to its name. This store might be my favorite.  The staff is very knowledgeable, and you can mix and match a six-pack for $8.99, depending on what you get. That part is crucial to any beer taster, why buy a whole six when you can try six different beers instead? A convenient location, these guys also boast a large beer selection, which they live up to. I completely recommend this store based on name alone. You certainly should consult them if you plan on trying anything out of your normal suds range. Plus, that blue awning is visible from the highway; you literally can see it a mile a way.

Tap/Bottle: Bottle

Rule of Citrus: None

As summer is coming to a close I’m trying to squeeze in a few more summer beers before the weather gets cold. This week we have the Apricot Wheat Ale from Sea Dog Brewing Company. These guys are known for the Blueberry Wheat Ale, and if you like that, chances are you’ll enjoy the Apricot Wheat.

Apricots come up a lot in beer: Unibroue, Magic Hat’s #9, they add something distinct to the flavor of beer. If anything, the apricot seems to help smooth out the bitter flavors and add a little bit of sweet to the mix- fruit isn’t always a terrible thing in beer.

Picking up a six, I decided to pair this ale with some steak tips that I had purchased from a local butcher. Grilled to perfection, I sat down to begin my taste experiment. Opening the bottle of Apricot Wheat I smelled all the apricots and hoped it wouldn’t turn out to be like Summer Shandy’s faux lemon-scent. Instead I was treated to a delicious flavor of apricots, not overpowering at all mind you, and a good beer taste. The steak tips were tangy, and the beer really helped to level out the tastes.

I have yet to try Sea Dog’s IPA or other traditional beer varieties, I haven’t gotten around to them yet, but I will. I will say that the fruit beers they put out have not disappointed me yet. If you want a beer with real fruit flavor and not just a smell, I do recommend Sea Dog. Now if only someone would figure out a way to create mango chutney flavored ale, then I’d be excited.