Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale Review #49

Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale
Style: English Pale Ale
Core Beer
ABV: 9%
"Jenny's House"- The Label's House Looks From The Forrest Gump Movie
12oz Bottle Poured Into A Dogfish Head Pint Glass

Copper-colored ale is medium-bodied and highly hopped. Its flavor is delightfully complex: tangy fruit at the start, with an assertive hop crispness and a long malty palate that one well-known beer writer has compared to the flavor of freshly-baked bread.

Smuttynose Brewing Company
Microbrewery
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Peter Egelston
1994


Appearance:
Translucent Coppery Depth With Glints Of Amber And Garnet, When Light Fractures The Body
Fizzy Three-Fingered Head
Lite Sheet Of Paper-Thin Sudsy Film Retention
Ring Lacing
Unfiltered Clarity
Soft Carbonation
Small Bubbles

Aroma:
Cedar
Caramel Notes
Walnuts
Red Berries
Mustard Pretzels
Cardboard
Touch Of Cinnamon
Aromatically Enticing

Mouth Feel:
Tangy/Bitter Balance
Light To Medium Frothy Body
Creamy Mouth Feel
Chalky Mineral Finish
Super Drinkability
Really Refreshing
Nice Dry Texture

The flavor is up front slight dry and hoppy with flavors of citrus and pine. In the middle you get some notes of peach and grapefruit in the middle. As the beer warms up it grows more intimate, a hint of maple is added with crunchy apple and succulent orange pops out. Then you get some pleasant meatiness of malt notes and caramel, toffee with some breadiness on the finish. A decent brew, but not my cup of tea and there are better options out there.

2 1/2 Out Of 6
Don't Want A Sixer 

North Coast Old Rasputin Pics

North Coast Old Rasputin Review #48

North Coast Old Rasputin
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
ABV: 9%
Draft Served Into A Snifter Glass At The Amada Restaurant


A rich, intense brew with a robust palate, a fruity nose and a warming finish. Very complex.

North Coast Brewing Co.
Microbrewery And Pub
Fort Bragg, California
Mark Ruedrich & Tom Allen
1988

Appearance:
Thick Onyx Color With A Deep Ruby Hue Around The Edges
Frothy Thick Espresso Head
Head Dissipates Slowly, Stays To The Last Sip
Intermittent Lacing On The Sides Of The Glass
Separated Carbonation
A Thin Web Of Tan Bubbles Is Left On The Surface, That Separates And Move To The Edges Of The Glass

Aroma:
Rich Chocolate Nectar
Dark And Bittersweet Chocolates
Luscious Coffee
Wine Aroma
Dark Fruits-Currants
Molasses
Vanilla

Woody Earthiness


Mouth Feel:
Heavy/Full Bodied Stout
Beautiful Drinkability- This Will Put You On Your Ass If You Have To Many, You Have To Proceed With Caution.
Warming Alcoholic Finish
Complex Stout
Velvet Mouth Feel
Sweet/Bitter Balance
Long Lasting Finish, That Turns Into A Dryer, Bakers Chocolate Feel After 30 Seconds Or So
Dessert/Wine Stout- Goes Great With Assorted Cheeses And Or Cakes

The perfect balance of hoppiness, with a great burnt malt body and a ripping alcohol bite. This stout comes with nice chocolate and coffee notes, with a mouth feel of creamy deliciousness. In the middle you get a nice almond and orange peel type flavor that warms you up. With such a cocoa, coffee dominance the beer is not overpowered with sweetness, which makes this a stout you can keep drinking. The taste sits in your mouth seemingly forever. This is a stout that is not to be chugged like a neanderthal, it needs to be swirled and sipped, to get the subtle nuances of flavors. “Where Have You Been All My Life” quality imperial stout.

5 Out Of 6
Want A Sixer

Yards George Washington's Tavern Porter Review #47

Yards George Washington's Tavern Porter
Style: Porter
ABV: 7%
Ales Of The Revolution
12oz  Bottle From A Yards Mix Case From The Brewery, Poured Into A Yards Snifter


Yards has recreated General Washington Tavern Porter - a dark beer brewed with molasses. General George Washington originally created this porter to satisfy the thirsts of his field officers. Washington's fondness for Colonial Philadelphia-style porter is reflected in this historic recipe.

Appearance:
Dark "Ace Of Spades" Black Color
No Light Escapes Clarity
Thick Mocha Sheen Bubbly Head
Long Standing Head Retention
Giant Web Lacing
Smooth Carbonation


Aroma:
Expresso
Roasted Coffee Beans
Maraschino Cherries
Nestle Quick
Splash Of Spiced Rum
Raisin Heavy


Mouth Feel:
Think And Luscious Mouth Feel
Substantial Alcohol Warming Feel
Full Bodied
Very Sessionable Beer
Sweet/Tart Balance
Not A Overly Rich Porter, So It Is Refreshing
Complex Porter
Malty Finish


Solid flavors focuses on roasted malts, chocolate syrup and a nice tootsie roll flavor, with a dark raisiny fruit pucker and a raunchbier smokiness late. It's a 7% ABV that is fairly well concealed. Damn good general and president and by following his recipe, a damn good brewer.


4 1/2 Out Of 6
Want A Sixer
















   

Stoudts Pils Review #46

Stoudts Pils
Style: Classic German Pilsener
ABV: 4.7%
Regular Rotation
12oz Bottle Poured Into A Peroni Pilsener Glass

 The driest and most delicate of our lagers. Stoudt’s Pils is characteristic of the traditional European Pilseners. Straw-yellow and assertively hopped with Saaz hops, this frequent medal winner has a refreshing bitterness and refined hop aroma.

Stoudt's Brewing Company
Adamstown, Pennsylvania
Ed and Carol Stoudt
1987

Appearance:
Dumb Blonde Color
"Sexy Looking Beer"
Massive Porous Head
1/4in. Head Retention Throughout
Crystal Clear Clarity
Sheet Lacing
Tornado Quality Carbonation

Aroma:
Noble Hops
Pilsner Malts
Corn On The Cobb
Stable Straw
Golden Crisp Cereal
Honey
Lemon


Mouth Feel:
Easy Drink ability- A Good Session Pilsner
Smooth Mouth Feel
Medium Bodied
Well Balanced Beer
Straight Forward Full Palate, It Is No B.S.
Dry Hop Spice Finish
Refreshing Foe Sure

The taste is of light sweet malts that is quickly checked by a balance, but well footed hop bitterness. Nice flavor of malts and some vinegar in the middle. Herbal hop spice lingers on the finish. Nice bold peppery flavors on the palate, that fills you with glee on each sip. At first sip I wrote this beer off, but as I kept going and it warmed this beer intrigued me. The pilsner is a lot better than the massed produced shit out there

3 Out Of 6
Want A Sixer

Southern Tier Imperial Crème Brûlée Stout Review

Appearance
Pours a deep, dark, raw umber, verging on black, with about one finger of toffee-colored head.

Aroma
Burnt sugar, vanilla, heavy butterscotch and light alcohol heat. If I’d been blindfolded, I would think this was actually crème brûlée custard with a touch of alcohol. Dave and his party also noted merengue and coffee in the nose, with which I wholeheartedly agree.

Taste
Sweet vanilla, caramel and butterscotch are balanced by a dry hops bitterness, leaving desiccation on the sides and back of the tongue. Each sip finishes with vanilla-sweet alcohol heat. Some in Dave’s party caught a bit of astringency on their palate, but that was not the case for neither him nor I. We only felt the heat intensity from the alcohol.

Mouthfeel
Creamy, medium-heavy body with minimal carbonation; just what I’m looking for in an after-dinner beer. Like Dave and his party, I noticed that the brew left a lasting impression on the palate, long after it was swallowed.

Overall
One of my favorite seasonal brews, Imperial Crème Brûlée Stout never disappoints. It’s not a beer I could drink a ton of but then, it wasn’t brewed with session drinking in mind. Consensus in Dave’s party was that the 2011 may be even better than the 2010 a year from now.

If you haven’t yet had a chance to pick this up, I highly recommend it (and I think Dave would agree).

Cheers!

Yards Poor Richard's Spruce Tavern Review #45

Yards Poor Richard's Spruce Tavern                               
Style: Ale
ABV: 5%
Ales Of The Revolution Series
From A Yards Variety Case
12oz Bottle Poured Into a Yards AOTR Snifter

Tavern Spruce is brewed to celebrate and commemorate Ben Franklin’s 300th Birthday. Yards are proud to bring you this historically brewed spruce/molasses beer. Brewed with Norwegian Spruce tips and a whole dwarf Alberta Spruce. 

Yards Brewing Company
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Tom Kehoe and Jon Bovit
"the Yards Guys"
1994

Appearance:
Dark Caramel Color
Molasses Color Rocky Head
Short Lived Retention
Night Time Clarity
Light Lacing
Moderate Carbonation

Aroma:
Evergreen
Pine Needles
Woodsy Spruce
After Swirled It Has A Sawdust Aroma
Sarsaparilla
Juniper Berries
Dark Prunes
Spicy Malts
Christmas And Poinsettias Aromas

Mouth Feel:
Spice/Sour Balance
English Mint Tea Mouth Feel
Complex Rich Palate
"Winter Returns" Beer
Mild Refreshing And Quenching
High Drinkability- You Can Knock A Few Back And Not Get Sick Of It

At first taste there is a whole lot of spice upfront. Then the spruce hits you right away, layered with a gingery spice. The taste then dissipates into a minty metallic flavor. There is a lot going on in this beer, which isn't bad in this complex beer. Overall a nice, quality Yards beer that can be enjoyed at any time.

4 Out Of 6
Want A Sixer