Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Surly: Abrasive

I'm not a huge fan of mail oriented beer trades, and it has nothing to do with being against it, but as I've mentioned a billion times, give or take, I love making the journey. But then again, sometimes my excess of one thing leads to me obtaining another. In this case a fine user from Beer Advocate offered me some excellent hoppy beers in exchange for some Goose Island Bourbon County Barleywine. Then, Bam! Surly Brewing Company's Abrasive Ale is on my table and I'm drinking it. Abrasive Ale has an impressive perfect score with over 2,000 reviews, so it's no joke of a beer. Canned on 1/7/14 it was also nice and fresh.  
Surly pours a nice dark amber, with a head that fills up the nose with citrusy hops jumping out of the glass. And it looks immensely sticky on the sides of the glass. Definitely a blast of Citra hops in this guy, not to mention some piney resiny hops to balance out a good fresh floral nose with a good bitter finish. The malty sweetness is pretty big as well, with nice caramel and a warm and toasty alcohol burn. It's an amazingly balanced beer despite being so massive, and it's hype is certainly warranted. Hopefully it ends up in Massachusetts sometimes, because I have no idea if I'll be in Minnesota anytime soon. 

Monday, February 17, 2014

Baxter: On the Count of 3

I fucking love canned beer, and one of the best selling breweries of the past few years has been Baxter Brewing. Baxter was the first brewery in New England to exclusively can their beer. They exploded onto the scene with their Stowaway IPA, a few years back and I was hooked ever since. It seems like just yesterday at Charlie's Kitchen I had my first Stowaway. Now, in celebration of their 3rd anniversary, they've released a very special beer. On the Count of 3, an Imperial Hefeweizen made with traditional German yeast but brightened with some excellent west coast hops.
I have no idea why my picture makes it look this dark, but in reality it pours a much lighter wheat color. The citrusy hops blend with a tart banana smell, a combination of the strength of the beer and the german yeast, which produces plenty of esters that give us that banana smell. It's the perfect balance though, with not too much banana, not too much booze, and an excellent level of hops. I know hefes are supposed to be lighter and drinkable, but this beer transcends it's brothers with excellent balance making it both easy to drink and complex in a finish. congratulations on 3 years Baxter, hopefully you'll have plenty more.

Monday, February 10, 2014

Hoppin' Frog: Barrel Aged Boris

No fun February is in full effect. What is no fun February? It's where I tighten up the purse strings, pay off all debts, and clear out some stuff in the cellar that should probably be drank. Enter
Hoppin' Frog's Barrel Aged B.O.R.I.S, an oatmeal imperial Stout aged in Whiskey Barrels. I've always been slightly weary of HF beers due to the high price tag, but shelling out $20+ for a barrel aged beer is completely different. Tack on a 96 rating from Beer Advocate and it seemed like $20 bucks was nothing. 
Me and Barrel Aging, or barrel aging and I have had a mixed relationship, with vanilla sludge and horrible wood grossness seeming to be the mainstream norm. But slowly I'm being broken down by excellently aged beer in whiskey barrels. Obviously Bourbon County, Jack's Abby's barrel aged beer, and now BORIS. This beer delivers in all the ways it should. 
This beer pours a wonderful black crude oil, with a mocha head that rolls up maybe half an inch before it fades. It drinks super creamy, with vanilla, coffee, roasty malt deliciousness and a distinct whiskey burn in the finish. As it warms up it just picks up a nice little heat from the barrel that adds even more enjoyment from this beer. There's nothing about this beer that isn't amazing, from it's creamy mouthfeel to the excellent sweet burn in the back of my throat. This is a beer worth seeking out and drinking now and I'm hoping I can drink it later too. When this cold long month is over I hope I can still find one somewhere sitting on a shelf, and I'll grab it without a second thought.