Beer Advent Final Thoughts

The Craft Beer Advent Calendar 2014 is complete.  It has been a really interesting 24 beers with a lot of variety and a veritable world tour of brews.  My wife asked if I’d be interested in doing this again.  ABSOLUTELY.  It was a fantastic experience that gave me the opportunity to try beers that I might never have the chance to try again.  I certainly hope I can for some of them, others…I’m okay not having them again.

So, let us wrap up the post with some statistics.

We had 24 beers all of which were a different style or variation on a style.

We visited

United States (3) Israel Netherlands (2) Germany (2) Brazil (2) Guyane Francaise England (2) Belgium Norway

Austria Scotland Iceland Mexico New Zealand Australia Italy Finland South Africa

We managed to hit 6 continents through this with the following stats

·         Europe (Scotland, Finland, Norway, England, Iceland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, and Italy)

·         North America (United States, Mexico)

·         South America (Guyane Francaise, Brazil)

·         Asia (Israel)

·         Africa (South Africa)

·         Oceania (Australia, New Zealand)

Certainly the majority of the beers came from the European countries with absolutely NONE coming from Canada.  We had some repeat countries as listed above with 3 coming from the United States as the top contributor.

My favorite beer for the entire 24 days?  It’s actually rather funny that I should have my favorite beer on the fourth day of the Calendar!  My favorite beer from the entire calendar comes to us from:

Peak Brewing Company in Portland, Maine and is the Hop Blanc

What a journey it has been.  I’m glad to have taken it and hope that you all following along enjoyed it as well.  Please continue to follow me as I blog at my new home: www.beerwinnipeg.com

I hope to see you all there!

- Beer Winnipeg

Beer Advent Day 23 & 24 | Mosco & Entendez Noel

We are almost at the end of the calendar.  Only one more beer after today!  I will be posting it today as well because I had meant to post this last night and then got busy with working on the launch of my new blog.  Luckily it is basically ready to go!

First thing I’ll be doing is moving all these posts over there.  I still have the 24^th beer and the final recap of what we saw in the Calendar.  Once that is done then I’ll put a new post up explaining the goal of the new blog and then we will go from there.  I have a back log of beers to review from my time in the Maritimes and I am excited to tell you about them. 

Today’s beer comes to us from Israel making it another Asian beer.  The beer is called Mosco and is brewed in the Judean Mountain in the village of Zanuch in Israel.  Annoyingly the website is down for them to update it and so I can’t find any information the brewer or brewery other than its location.  Seems that a variety of the beers in the calendar are trying to sabotage my ability to review them.  Oh well, we shall just move into the beer style and its review.

The beer is a Strong Blonde ale brewed in the Belgian method, So a Beligan Pale Ale essentially.  Blonde ales are very pale in color and are usually clear, crisp and dry.  Being brewed in the Belgian style means that it will use wheat malts which will make it cloudier than you’d expect but it should still hold the same coloring.  Blondes are from the Pale Ale variety of beer and usually have a lighter body with a subdued malt character and large hop profile.  They aren’t hoppy by any means, but they typically are not malty either.  Think of Coors or Coors light. Onto it then!

Rating: 67/100

Appearance:  Cloudy with a straw coloring and quite a bit of yeast sediment.
Smell: Yeasty on the nose with caramel malts and grassy/lemony notes from the hops.
Taste: Cool and crisp with a dry finish.  Slight fruitiness with a sickly sweetness making it taste far more alcoholic than the 6.5% abv should account for. Not as crisp as I would expect as the wheat malts make for a creamier mouth feel so the taste is subdued a bit on the end.
Mouth feel: Light body with creamy mouth feel with good carbonation.
Overall: Not the best Belgian style beer I’ve had in this variety nor even in this calendar.  The yeast sediment is a big turnoff for this style of beer as was the overly sweet character to it.  Overall this beer was below average for its style and not really a good showing for this calendar.
Do I like it: No, I did not enjoy this beer.  The sweetness was too much, it didn’t have the body and flavor that I would expect in a Belgian beer. I would not be interested in drinking this one again.

Well, what a journey: 24 beers from around the world in a variety of different styles. This process has given me a great deal of insight into brewing and breweries around the world.  I feel I have learned a great deal and I respect and appreciate beer a lot more than I did before this.  I certainly hope I have been able instill in some of you the same sort of sense of appreciation.

Our final beer comes to us from Sound Brewery out of Washington State in the USA.  Founded by Mark Hood and Brad Ginn, two seasoned home brewers, Sound Brewery began brewing in Poulsbo in February of 2011.  They have been brewing some award-winning beers that are Belgian inspired as well as traditionally northwest style beers as well.

The beer that has been given to us for the very last beer of this calendar is the Entendez Noel Belgian Quadrupel. Sitting at 11.5% abv this is certainly a strong beer, bordering on a barley wine that promises to bring a good bitterness along with the warmth of malt.  Sitting at 50 IBU it is certainly up there with a good hoppy IPA for bitterness and having been brewed in the Belgian style, it promises to be a strong upfront beer with lots of complexity.  They’ve used Trappist yeast, Belgian Pilsner malts, cane sugar, and Motueka hops.

Quardrupels are a beer that is traditionally brewed by the Trappist Monks of Belgium.  Trappist Monks are renowned worldwide for their brewing abilities and rarely sell beer outside of their monasteries.  My brother had the opportunity to purchase 6 beers from one of the Trappist monasteries in a very limited release (100 cases of 6 beer each) in Toronto.  They were going for $100 a case, not cheap.

The name represents the strength of the beer and originates from the use of X on the bottles which indicated this.  So, a single would be marked with an X and indicate a weaker beer.  This is the strongest beer brewed by Trappist monks and would have been marked XXXX.  I’m rather excited to give it a try as it is the last beer of the Calendar.

Rating: 82/100

Appearance:  Clear amber colouring with no head.  Was concerned it was flat upon opening, luckily it just wasn’t.
Smell: Lemon notes, hoppy notes, some sweet honey smell and a bit of the caramel malt.
Taste: At first taste it is a light bodied, well balanced, sweet and hoppy beer with good citrus notes and some honey sweetness in there for flavor.  As I continued to drink the alcohol (11.5% if you remember) started to show itself making it taste like alcohol and overshadowing the other initial flavours.
Mouth feel: Light body with creamy mouth feel with light carbonation.
Overall: Nice, well-balance quardrupel that is better cold than warm.  As it warms the alcohol comes through a lot stronger and overpowers the other flavours.  They are quite nice though initially and this beer is well balanced and when I first sipped it I was surprised that I didn’t taste the alcohol.  As far as quadrupels go that is a good thing and this was definitely a strong contender.
Do I like it: No, I did not enjoy this beer.  It was good to begin with but as I continued to drink it the alcohol came through too strong.  Perhaps it is because it is such a strong beer and not my cup of tea, but it overpowered everything else for me and made it more of a chore to drink.  If I drank this one again, it would be outside on a cold Winnipeg day so that the beer would stay at that initial temp.

I have one more post that I will do for the Advent Calendar.  I will be summing up the 24 beers we have tried indicating their styles, location, and choosing my overall favorite.  In that post I will also be officially launching my new blog as I should have everything finalized and organized.  I hope that you will continue to follow along as I blog about beer both reviews and news.

Beer Advent Day 21 & 22 | Winter Bock & Final Countdown

Well, today wasn’t a bad day, although one of the beers in my advent calendar had gone bad as it had not sealed properly.  I opened it, poured it and right away could tell it had turned.  No carbonation at all and a sour smell.  I did taste it and the taste had turned also.  I will not include a rating of this beer only details about the brewery as I did not feel it was fair to rate a beer that had turned.

The beer today is from Fürst Wallerstein Brauhaus in Wallersten, Germany.  Founded in 1999, it is a large scale operation that produces malt based beverages including beer.  The beer that we had in the advent calendar today was their Winter Bock.  We have seen a bock before, they are a strong lager made in Germany with a variety of subtypes.  In this instance a winter bock is a bock that has been spiced, in this case with molasses and a bit of pepper, to give it a more winter warmer/ale style flavor.

There are not many details that I could find on the brewery, so I apologize for the curtness of this post.  As I said, the beer had gone bad, so I moved on to the next one!  I will post that as well today!

Two beers in one day, I must be spoiling myself!  Really, I had meant to post these yesterday as that is when I had tasted them.  Sadly it was a busy evening and there were a number of things to deal with and I did not get to them.  So, there will likely be three posts today as I have today’s beer to try as well.

The 22^nd beer from the advent calendar was a Winter Saison produced by the gents at Rooie Dop, a brewery out of the Netherlands.  Interestingly enough, while these gents do brew small batches at their own brewery located in Utrecht, their large batches are brewed by the Brouwerij De Molen who produced our 19^th beer!

Rooie Dop is a brewery that wants to make some flavourful and sometimes experimental beers.  They do a lot of collaboration with their beers and don’t really care about the rules for brewing particular styles of beer, they “care about flavor” as they say on their website.  The brewery was started y three friends some years ago.  Mark Strooker is the one who calles the shots at the brewery and is an IBU extremist according to his profile (I like this guy).  Overall the brewery sounds unique, creative, and over all talented based on being rated one of ratebeer.com’s 2013 best.

The beer we get to try today is a Winter Saison.  Again, Saison’s are broadly defined pale ales that are higher in alcohol content, highly carbonated and generally spiced.  They are traditionally a Belgian style of beer which means they include the wheat and barley malts which produce a creamier mouth feel.  This particular Saison is called “Final Countdown” and was produced using smoked malts and rye.  It was specifically made for inclusion in this year’s Advent Calendar and that is pretty exciting. Onto the beer!

Rating: 80/100

Appearance: Cloudy amber colored beer with good head that dissipates rapidly.
Smell: Smoke and apricot are right at the front.  Interesting combination that isn’t unappealing, actually.
Taste: Very smoky with a hint of fruit notes in there.  Sweet malty balance that goes well with the smokiness of the beer.  Reminded me a little bit of being at a  campfire though, which wasn’t wholly appealing, but not terrible either.
Mouth feel: Good carbonation, creamy mouth feel, light body.
Overall: Definitely a unique beer for me.  I’ve had smoked beers out of Germany before which taste like you are drinking the campfire.  This one was lighter and had that pleasant creaminess of a saison.  As a Saison I’d say it was good with a unique flavor balance and some risks taken that turned out pretty okay. 
Do I like it: I enjoyed this beer for the risk that was taken in producing it.  Adding smoked malts to a saison is an interesting idea that I didn’t know if it would work.  Overall it worked well enough to taste good, but I wouldn’t drink it again.

Beer Advent Day 20 | Vixnu

Well, it has been nice being back in the city and getting settled back in after a holiday.  It’s been nice being back and getting into a bit of a routine once more.  I’m going to try to catch up on the beers as much as I am able.  Looking forward to blogging about some of the ones I had in the Maritimes, but I’ll wait til the calendar is complete for that.

Today’s beer comes to us from the Colorado brewery located in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil.  It is one of the oldest craft breweries in Brazil and was founded in 1995.  Rather than try to copy American and European style beers they decided to use local malt, cassava flour, unrefined cane sugar, coffee and hops to create uniquely Brazilian beers.

The beer in the calendar today was their Imperial double IPA called Vixnu.  It is made using local malt and dry-hopped with American hops. Rapadura, a traditional Brazilian candy, is added as well to add a unique sweetness.  I’m excited to give it a try, so let’s get to it!

Rating: 79/100

Appearance: Dark Orange Amber, slightly cloudy with quite a bit of sediment floating around inside. Good head which retains well.
Smell: Very malty nose with loads of caramel and some floral and pine hop notes.
Taste: Very hoppy with the cane sugar sweetness that finishes off on the tongue.  Good piney hops as well as woody and resinous flavours with slightly herbal notes.
Mouth feel: Good carbonation, coarse mouth feel, light body.
Overall: The floaties inside were a little off putting.  Made it difficult to swallow not knowing what they were.  After getting past that, this is a well-balanced and nicely hoppy double IPA.  It is not the best one that I have tasted in this style.  Fairly average but surprisingly smooth for a 9% beer. 
Do I like it: I don’t dislike it.  The beer is a reasonably well-balanced double IPA with good hop and nice sweetness.  Sadly, the floaties were a bit off-putting and made it difficult for me to find the appeal.  The flavours were reasonable and while there are other double IPAs I like a lot more, this one wasn’t bad.

Getting close to the end of the Calendar.  I may double up on my reviews to try and get more than one done during the day.  I’m excited to get through the Calendar and given that the days have all passed, I guess there is no reason to wait.  I still enjoy the excitement of finding out the new beer each day.  In any case, thank you for following along and Happy New Year!

Beer Advent Day 19 | Winterporter

Good day everyone.  I am glad to be back in Winnipeg once more and to get back to blogging about the rest of the Advent Calendar beers.  I apologize for not posting much while I was away.  I took notes and have lots to blog about, I just was busy spending time with family and friends and could not find the time to sit down at a computer.

Today’s beer comes to us from the Brouwerij de Molen in the Netherlands.  It is a Winter Porter aptly named “Winterporter”.  The breweries name means “The Mill” and is located inside a historic windmill building called De Arkdulf, which was built in 1697.  As well as a brewery they also have a retail business on site and a restaurant which creates food to pair with their beers.

Founded in 2004 by head brewer Menno Olivier, this brewery can produce 500 litres per batch with an annual production of 500 hectolitres.  The equipment at the brewery includes converted dairy tanks which are used as fermenters and the bottles are still capped and corked by hand.  Today the brewery is able to produce 2500 litres at a time and has an annual production of 6000 hectolitres due to the purchase of a new building 200 meters away from the mill.  One interesting thing about this brewery is that they do not dispose of unsatisfactory beer.  Instead, this beer is distilled into a “beer liqueur” at 20% abv and is then sold as well, reducing the spoilage of the beer and allowing them to still make profit off bad batches.

Porters are style of beer we have seen already in this calendar and are a dark style of beer that was originally developed in London from well-hopped beers made with brown malt.  Originally this style of beer was created by mixing an old ale (stale or soured), a new ale (brown or pale ale) and a weak one (mild ale) to combine and create a new beer altogether than balanced the flavours and left a pleasing beer that was neither like the new nor the old.

Porters and Stouts are of the same stock.  In fact, when Guinness first launched its world renowned stout it was as a focus on the mass-production of Porter.  At the time there were two strengths of porters, either X or XX.  Stout at the time simply referred to a strong or robust ale, it has since developed due to the advent of coffee roasters and many of the malts that they could use to impart both colour and flavor, but originally this was its meaning.  Porters were part of this thread.

This Winter Porter is essentially a Winter Warmer, a malty, hopped dark beer that has reasonably high ABV (6.5%).  Its light body adds some differentiation from the stouts and warmers we have had, as well as being brewed in the traditional porter style.  I’m excited to give it a try, so let’s get to the beer!

Rating: 73/100

Appearance: Dark brown in the glass allowing little light to pass but showing ruby highlights when held to the light.  Strong head that retains well.
Smell: Chocolate notes on the nose with a light sour fruity note as well as some yeastiness mixed in there.
Taste: Some sour fruit notes, reminded me a bit of grape juice to be honest, with some chocolate notes and a finish earthy/hoppy bitterness.
Mouth feel: Low carbonation, smooth mouth feel, light body.
Overall: Not an overly appealing beer with the sour fruit notes in it.  The light body is deceiving when drinking such a dark beer.  For a porter it is not bad.  I have certainly tasted better but this one brings some interesting tasting notes that I wasn’t expecting. 
Do I like it: I do not like this beer.  It’s not a bad beer by any means, it just is not a good beer either.  Having just returned from the Maritimes and having some fantastic stouts, porters and other beers, I find this one to be lacking in some areas. 

As a final note, over the holiday I decided that I will branch out and start my own blog as a sister site to my brother’s beer blog out of Toronto.  I’m not ready to give details yet and I hope that I will still be invited to blog here from time to time.  I will be finishing the Beer Advent calendar on this blog before moving my posts over to the new one.  Keep an eye out as I’ll give more details when I get closer to being ready to launch.

Bonus Beer Review 1 | Tante Blanche

Good day folks, and hello to you from New Brunswick.  We arrived here are safe and sound and have been happily enjoying the company of family and friends.  I had the opportunity to get down to the local LC and check out what new craft beers are in from local or regional brewers.  Surprisingly there are a few!  In fact there are some just opening on Monday which I plan to visit at the actually brewery (keep an eye open for the post).  Remember that this beer is NOT in the Advent Calendar.

Today’s beer comes to us from Petite Sault (little jump) brewery located in Edmunston, NB.  It’s really close to the border of Quebec and has a predominately French population which is why the brewery name is French as are all the beer names.

Opening just this past year in 2013 this brewery is located in downtown Edmunston in an old police station that has been renovated.  The primary contacts André Léger, Mychèle Poitras and André Morneault but they are supported by the community, friends, and family including over 80 shareholders!

They have a variety of different beers in different styles but they follow the traditional Belgian style of brewing combined with local flare and experimentation.  The particular beer we are trying is a Belgian White (wheat) beer called “Tante Blanche.” or “White Aunt”.  Brewed with the traditional ingredients of Barley, Wheat, Hops, and a hint of orange, this one promises to be quite good.

Rating: 86/100

Appearance: Golden brown, slightly cloudy, good head that retains well.

Smell: Orange and Apricot notes on the nose followed by the slight citrus notes of the hops.

Taste: Orange and apricot come through balanced with the malt and the hops to create a really smooth drinkable beer.  The tastes work very well together and while drinking it I could find no complaint compared to the Jeune Geule we had the other day or the big names.  It is a strong Belgian white that I’m excited to find here in the Maritimes.

Mouth feel: Creamy mouthfeel from the wheat malt combined with mild carbonation for a smooth finish.

Overall: Strong, well balanced Belgian white beer that blends well and has a nice flavour profile.  For a Belgian white I can find no complaints and feel that this is a very strong beer.  Compared to the Hop Blanc and the Jeune Geule that we have seen on this blog already, this one is right up there with them in respect to quality and style.

Do I like it: I really do.  I am finding that I really enjoy the Belgian whites as I try them more and more.  The combination of flavours with the creamy smooth texture makes for an overall appealing beer that drinks well and tastes great.  I still like the Hop Blanc better because it combines this style with the hoppiness of an IPA which I also love.  This one displaces Jeune Geule for my second favorite beer of all the ones I’ve blogged about.

Beer Advent Day 18 | Jeune Gueule

Well folks, here we have come at last.  The last day that I will posting with the calendar.  I will be back posting the final beers when I return from my trip.  In the meantime I will be making every effort to post on beers I am trying while on the trip, so you don’t feel like you’re missing out.

Today’s beer is another South American one!  It comes to us from Well folks, here we have come at last.  The last day that I will posting with the calendar.  I will be back posting the final beers when I return from my trip.  In the meantime I will be making every effort to post on beers I am trying while on the trip, so you don’t feel like you’re missing out.

Today’s beer is another South American one!  It comes to us from GUYANE FRANÇAISE, or French Guiana, located in the northeastern region of South America bordering Brazil (to the south) and Suriname (to the west) with the South Atlantic Ocean on its eastern side.

Founded in 2010 as an amateur microbrewery, they brewed their first beer in 2011 and opened their brewpub doors in Cayenne.  In 2012 they grew to allow 10 times as many people into their brewpup and began selling their beer throughout French Guiana.  This is also the year they introduced there second two beers, the Weiti (which we get to try today) and their blonde.  Today, in 2014, they have finally begun to export for the first time, to Canada!

Now, their Weiti is a White beer (wheat beer) that has been flavoured, lightly, with oranges.  They use malted barley and wheat to give it the specific white beer characteristic of being creamy.  Like many wheat beers, this one is not filtered to allow for the flavouring of the oranges to remain intact.  This beer would likely be reminiscent of Shock Top or Rickard’s White (I would guess) and I am excited to see!  On to the beer!

Rating: 85/100

Appearance: Golden brown, cloudy, with a significant head that retains until consumed.
Smell: Strong citrus smell, the orange really comes through.
Taste: As I expected, quite a lot like Rickard’s White and Shock Top.  Creamy orange flavor that goes down smoothly and is packed with malty sweetness to go with the tangy citrus notes from the orange.
Overall: While this one is a more traditional Belgian Wheat Beer, the citrus notes add quite a bit to the balance and over all flavours of this beer.  The fact that I would put it above Rickard’s White or Shock Top in terms of balance, flavor, and overall quality of a Belgian white is a strong nod to this South American microbrew.
Do I like it: I do, quite a bit, like this one.  While it is not as strong as the Hop Blanc was, lacking the nice bitterness from the hops, it is a strong Belgian Wheat Beer that brings a lot to the table.  It is certainly something I’d drink again and definitely one of my top choices so far.  Maybe Belgian Wheat’s are my new style?

Be sure to check back from time to time as I attempt to post updates as often as possible from the road.  I can’t guarantee a post every day, but I’ll try!  Thanks for following!, or French Guiana, located in the northeastern region of South America bordering Brazil (to the south) and Suriname (to the west) with the South Atlantic Ocean on its eastern side.

Founded in 2010 as an amateur microbrewery, they brewed their first beer in 2011 and opened their brewpub doors in Cayenne.  In 2012 they grew to allow 10 times as many people into their brewpup and began selling their beer throughout French Guiana.  This is also the year they introduced there second two beers, the Weiti (which we get to try today) and their blonde.  Today, in 2014, they have finally begun to export for the first time, to Canada!

Now, their Weiti is a White beer (wheat beer) that has been flavoured, lightly, with oranges.  They use malted barley and wheat to give it the specific white beer characteristic of being creamy.  Like many wheat beers, this one is not filtered to allow for the flavouring of the oranges to remain intact.  This beer would likely be reminiscent of Shock Top or Rickard’s White (I would guess) and I am excited to see!  On to the beer!

Rating: 85/100

Appearance: Golden brown, cloudy, with a significant head that retains until consumed.
Smell: Strong citrus smell, the orange really comes through.
Taste: As I expected, quite a lot like Rickard’s White and Shock Top.  Creamy orange flavor that goes down smoothly and is packed with malty sweetness to go with the tangy citrus notes from the orange.
Overall: While this one is a more traditional Belgian Wheat Beer, the citrus notes add quite a bit to the balance and over all flavours of this beer.  The fact that I would put it above Rickard’s White or Shock Top in terms of balance, flavor, and overall quality of a Belgian white is a strong nod to this South American microbrew.
Do I like it: I do, quite a bit, like this one.  While it is not as strong as the Hop Blanc was, lacking the nice bitterness from the hops, it is a strong Belgian Wheat Beer that brings a lot to the table.  It is certainly something I’d drink again and definitely one of my top choices so far.  Maybe Belgian Wheat’s are my new style?

Be sure to check back from time to time as I attempt to post updates as often as possible from the road.  I can’t guarantee a post every day, but I’ll try!  Thanks for following!

Beer Advent Day 17 | Marmalade Porter

Well, we only have 2 beers left before I take a break from this.  It’ll be hard to leave 5 beer behind in the calendar undrunk.  Alas, they will be all the sweeter when I return and can try them in quick succession and post my final days of beer!  Luckily I’ll be trying some fantastic brews while away and will blog about those so you don’t feel like you're missing out!

Today’s beer comes to us from Yorkshire, England.  The Wold Top Brewery is located on 600 acres of farmland in Yorkshire.  Owned by the family for generations, the traditional farm was not bringing in enough revenue.  The decision was made to diversify - after 8 years of planning and discussing, in 2003 they brewed their first beer.  Since then they have grown to include numerous traditional recipes and brew many beers that are distributed around the UK.

Being on a farm, brewery owners Tom and Gill use ingredients that they grow right on site.  Leaving space between their crops to allow for biodiversity, they make every attempt to brew using sustainable methods and local self-grown ingredients!  The beer we will be trying from them today is a seasonal that is typically brewed as a cask ale (a beer brewed and served from an oak cask) that they have bottled for limited distribution.  The beer is called the Marmalade Porter!

Porters, like stouts, are dark and heavy beers that have been malted heavily.  They are rich and often flavored with chocolate, coffee, or caramel malts to give them some balance to that richness. This one uses both barley and corn malts. It was rare to see corn malts in a beer until recently when the numbers of those with gluten intolerances soared.  Now we find corn and even sorghum malts used in beers to make them “gluten free.”  This one is not 100% gluten free - while it does meet the requirements for those who simply have an intolerance, it would not be good for those with celiac.  On to the beer!

Rating: 75/100

Appearance: Rich dark brown with no apparent head.
Smell: Chocolate, coffee, caramel and sweetness are apparent in the smell.  Hints of orange at the end.
Taste: Rich and heavy with a strong malt flavor and good sweetness.  Has an odd metallic taste to it and a strange after taste that I attribute to the use of corn malts.  Flavors are good and it is not overly sweet.  Not a high quality porter but a unique one in the use of corn malts and the flavor profile.
Mouth feel: Rich and full bodied with mild carbonation.
Overall: A standard porter. Nothing spectacular about it but it also does not have anything really dragging it down other than the metallic taste and the odd aftertaste.  The choice of malts was a good one, other than perhaps the use of corn malts in this case.  The flavor profile is nice and provides for a good balance.  Corn malts in a porter where malts are super important is a risky choice.  I don’t think it worked here.
Do I like it: I didn’t not like it, I’ll say.  It is definitely not my favorite beer and one that I likely wouldn’t want to have again.  It is a beer that I’d be fine drinking if there was nothing else but not one I would seek out to drink again.  Overall it’s an average porter and an average beer.

Beer Advent Day 16 | Bersalis Kadet

My wife thinks that as this beer calendar progresses I am becoming more difficult when it comes to my reviews.  I was thinking about it, and I honestly might be.  Not because I am treating the beers differently, I believe, but because I am trying so many fantastic beers it is difficult not to compare them to one another.

There are 3 more beers until I am off for my travelling. Today’s beer comes to us from the beer-soaked land of Belgium. Oud Beersel brewery brings to us their Belgian Ale “Bersalis Kadet.”

The brewery started in 1882 and is located about 10 km from the Brussels city centre in the southwest of the capital. It is one of the last remaining authentic lambic breweries and is known of its lambic beer brewed in the tradition brewing method.

Lambic matures up to 3 years in wooden barrels before being blended to make Oude Geuze, which is the young form, or first fermentation of the lambic beer.  Sour cherries undergo fermentation in this immature lambic beer and after a second fermentation Oude Kreik is created, which is the matured version of this beer. This spontaneous fermentation and unique brewing process is possible because of the presence of special micr-oorganisms in the region.  It is only possible in this region due to the existence of what they call “wild yeast” native to the Zienne valley where Brussels is located.

Luckily for me, because we’ve already tried a beer like this (Krampus), this particular beer brewed by Ould Beersel is a Belgian Ale that is brewed in the standard method. It is a Belgian beer brewed in the style of a lager.  Lagers are a type of beer that is fermented and conditioned at low temperatures.  The most common one consumed is a pale lager but other types include pilsners, and Märzen style lagers.  Let’s give this one a try!

Rating: 73/100

Appearance:  Clear golden brown/amber hue with significant head that retains very well.
Smell: Yeasty on the nose with caramel malts and grassy/lemony notes from the hops.
Taste: Cool and crisp with a dry finish.  Slight fruitiness with a good sweet from the malt and a dry bitter finish from the hops.  Good summer beer very reminiscent of a pilsner in flavor with its lightness and dry crispness.
Mouth feel: Light body with crisp carbonation.
Overall: Crisp, cool and refreshing this beer certainly brings a lot to the table.  The sweetness is not overpowering but nor is it really there.  There is some lacking in the flavor department as things tend to drift off as you get to the finish.  While dry and bitter from the hops, it’s not really anything noticeable.  This beer is good, but it lacks overall for other beers of the category..
Do I like it: I did enjoy the beer.  It was refreshing.  The flavors, while not overly noticeable, were still appealing and provided a nice good beer to go with a meal.  It’s like they say, you don’t want a beverage to overpower your meal.  This one would certainly be a good food beer as it allows the flavor of the food to come through.  

Beer Advent Day 15 | Karoo Red

My wife and I were going over in our heads the countries and continents we have already seen so far this month.  We were figuring out which continents we have yet to visit of the 6 featured.  So far we are only missing Africa and Asia.   I guessed that we would be seeing a beer from South Africa shortly and lo and behold, today’s beer is from Africa!  South Africa to boot.

Porcupine Quill Microbrewery is located in the Valley of 1000 Hills, Bothas Hill, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa.  Bothas is 600km southeast of Johannesburg and is on the eastern edge of South Africa right on the ocean. They produce beer under 3 labels: Porcupine Quills, Dam Wolf and African Moon. They produce a total of 8 beers under the labels in a variety of styles.

The brewery is located in the same building as a deli in the Bothas region and they serve locally made food as well as their local brew.  The brewery itself is a 6 barrel brewery system imported from the UK.  Another rather small brewery, they are only producing 980 litres of beer at any given time.  The system can only use whole flower hops as opposed to manufactured hop pellets, which are used in many other brewing processes.  This gives a fresher hop flavour to beer and combined with their chemical free production method makes for a very “wholesome” beer.

One important thing to note is that this brewery does what is called “natural bottle conditioning” for the beer. Conditioning has to do with how the beer becomes carbonated. While many larger breweries will artificially carbonate beer by forcing CO2 gas into the entire batch of beer, bottle conditioning is more traditional for small batch beer.  It is, actually, how home brew is carbonated.

At the end of the fermentation process some residual yeast is still in the beer.  Extra sugar, typically dextrose as it dissolves best, is added just before bottling.  This allows the beer to carbonate while in the bottle.  This results in a yeastier smell and flavour to the beer as well as mild sediment.  It is however also a more natural way of carbonating the beer.

The beer we are trying from them today is the Porcupine Quills Karoo Red. It's an American amber ale that has been highly hopped with Williamette whole flower hops to give it a pronounced bitterness.  Coming in at 49 International Bitterness Units (IBU), it's right up there with any IPA.  Similar in style to the Hopped Red Ale we had from Australia, I’m curious whether the makers of the Calendar consider this to be a different style simply because it is called a Red Ale rather than an India Red Ale.  Either way, I am excited to give it a try!

Rating: 77/100

Appearance:  Cloudy amber with no noticeable head.
Smell: Caramel, yeast and floral notes from the hops.
Taste: Sweet malty caramel that flows smoothly into bitterness that is enjoyable for those who like it.  Certainly well-hopped.  Balance is right for a hoppy beer with the sweetness making way for the bitterness on the finish and allowing it to shine as the star.  The hops in this beer are one that carry a citrus flavour that blends well with the other flavours, caramel, malt, and slight yeastiness from the natural bottle conditioning.
Mouth feel: Medium bodied beer that is well carbonated and has a coarse mouth feel.
Overall: Excellent hoppy red ale that shows of the flavour of the Williamette hop while still balancing well with the sweet malts.  The yeastiness from the bottle conditioning detracts somewhat from the overall flavour of the beer and brings the overall flavour of the beer down a bit.  While it is a decent red ale, there is certainly room for improvement.
Do I like it: Yes, I did like this beer.  I am a big fan of hops and I love having the opportunity to try ones which are being showcased.  Having a single hop in a beer and allowing it to shine is an excellent way to give someone the opportunity to really taste a particular hop.  Most IPAs and hopped beers use multiple hops to create broad flavour profiles.  I really enjoyed getting to try the Williamette hop and I’d be happy to see it show up in other beers.

Beer Advent Day 14 | Imperial Schwarze Gams

We are now on the 14^th day of the beer advent calendar.  I wanted to take a minute to remind you that I will be travelling and so I will not be reviewing the last 5 beer until I return from my trip.  I will be having the opportunity to try some unique beers and will be taking notes on them so that I can blog about those as well.

For today’s beer we have flown back across the ocean and have arrived in Austria.  The brewery Loncium, located in the village of Kötschach-Mauthen, Gailtal, Carinthia, near the Italian border has produced the beer that we will be trying today.

The brewery itself was founded in 2007 and has been expanding since then.  They are far away from being any sort of corporation and take to heart the nature of craft beer by producing small batches of what they like to call “artisanal beer.”

They don’t provide many details of themselves on their website but they do talk a lot about craft beer and the importance of it.  They even go into its history and paint a wonderful picture of small batch brewing.  The beer that we have the pleasure of trying today is the Imperial Schwarze Gams or an Imperial Dark Bock.

Bocks are a style of beer that are dark in colour, malted, and lightly hopped.  They were first brewed in the 14^th century by German brewers.  Originally brewed in Einbeck, the style was named for that town.  When it spread to Bavarian region the inhabitants mispronounced the name as “ein Bock” (a billy goat) and thus was born the beer we now call bock.  As a visual pun to this mistake, most bocks have a goat on the label.

In Austria, where this beer is from, Bocks are typically only brewed at Christmas and Easter time which makes its inclusion in the advent calendar no coincidence.  I’m excited to give it a try, so let’s get to it.

Rating: 80/100

Appearance:  Pours a clear dark brown with a short loose tan head that diminishes rapidly leaving a thin skim.
Smell: Mild smoke, floral notes, chocolate, vanilla, and liquorish notes on the nose.
Taste: Sweet taste that combines well with mild smoke and bitterness to provide a complex flavor profile that includes the vanilla and chocolate notes as well.
Overall: Body is a little light for a bock but the sweetness and balance make up for that.  The beer is an excellent addition and is great for these cold winter months. Good example of a bock from Austria.
Do I like it: I’ve really grown to appreciate bocks.  There malty flavor profiles and complexity bring a lot to the table and are very flavourful.  This one does not disappoint and I did rather like. I would be happy buying this one.

Beer Advent Day 13 | Blackfriar

So begins the second half of the CraftBeer advent calendar.  The first half of it was rather good.  As a recap on the countries we have visited so far we have: Norway, Finland, England, United States, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Mexico, Iceland, Brazil, and the United States.  So, thus far we have visited 11 unique countries on 4 different continents!

Today’s beer takes us back to the United Kingdom, this time to Perth in Scotland!  Perth is located to the north of Edinburgh, 42.8 miles away and within the city we will find the brewery who has made us our beer today - the Inveralmond Brewery.

Founded in 1997, this brewery has certainly made a name for itself in Scotland.  The head brewer, Ken, officially joined the brewery in 1999.  A year later he smuggled some yeast to Scotland from the Czech Republic giving the brewery the claim of having the only “official” Czech Pilsner in Scotland.  In 2002, they won Champion Beer of Scotland, no easy task, and continued to grow from that point on.

In 2009 they had grown too big for their original space and laid the ground work to build their brand new brewery.  They moved into the new brewery in 2011 and have continued to expand their production from brewing 8000 pints at a time to now brewing over 32000 pints at any given time. When their local team, St. Johnstone, made it to the Scottish cup for the first time in 130 years, they brewed a special blue beer to show their support.  They are truly a Scottish brewery through and through.

The beer we have the pleasure of tasting from them today is their Blackfriar Scotch Ale.  It's named for one of the three ancient orders of monks who are central to the history of Perth.  The monastery of the Blackfriar was built in 1231 and was the location of the assassination of King James I by traitors. 

Scotch Ales are strong ales which are traditionally known as a “wee heavy” in Scotland. Scotch ales are typically very malty and balanced with hops to land somewhere in the middle ground between sweet and bitter.  This particular beer has been brewed with not only barley malts but also wheat which will give it a heavier, creamier feel.  Balancing with four different kinds of hops this brew promises to have a number of flavor notes and I’m excited to see what it tastes like.

Rating: 78/100

Appearance:  Copper brown beer, clear, 1” of head that retains well.
Smell: Chocolate notes as well as the floral notes of hops.  Smells a bit of caramel as well at the very end.
Taste: Malts come through at the beginning with a creaminess that comes from the wheat malt.  Balances really well with the hops providing a mild bitterness to combat the sweetness of the malts.  Flavours of chocolate come through from the chocolate malt used in the beer.
Overall: Creaminess is really pleasant and goes well with the richness of the malts and the balance of the hops.  This beer has flavours that work well together with the specific body of it and I really found that I was enjoying the beer while drinking it.   The use of wheat and barley malts was really smart and added a lot of character to the beer.
Do I like it: I’m not a huge fan of this style of beer. While I wouldn’t necessarily seek this one out at the liquor store, I did enjoy it and would be happy to drink it given another opportunity.  I feel the hops came through really well to balance the sweetness.  Overall, a beer I really enjoyed.

Beer Advent Day 12 | Biére de Nöel Holiday Extra Strong Ale

We are official at the halfway point in the beer advent calendar.  It’s been quite an interesting experience thus far.  Lots of opportunity to try unique beers, and only halfway done!  That means 12 more beer to go!  Fantastic!

Today’s beer comes to us from Big Sky Brewing Company in Missoula, Montana.  This is the second American beer we’ve come across in the calendar.  Big sky was started by Neal Leathers, Bjorn Nabozney, and Brad Robinson.  It all began with Brad and Neal, home brewers since the 80s, when they first came together they began producing a series on their local cable access station called “Beer talk”.  It was a show about Brad and Neal tasting various beers and commenting on what they liked and did not like.  This brought attention to the duo and showed their passion for beer.  Sadly neither of them were business savvy.  That’s where Bjorn came in.

Neal started brewing test batches while Bjorn and Brad raised the capital.  After about a year and a half, Big Sky Brewing was officially ready to open its doors.  They brewed their first batch of beer, Whistle Pig Red Ale, in mid-June of 1995.   They started out as a draft only brewery but today they are one of the 50 largest breweries in the U.S. selling a total of over 46,500 barrels (2.5 million 6 packs) of beer a year.  They sell in over 24 states so it’s a beer you might be likely to run across.

The beer we are trying today is not one of their standard brews.  It’s a seasonal beer (not to be confused with the style) that they bring out only around this time of year.  It is the Biére de Nöel Holiday Extra Strong Ale.  This is a limited edition beer from the company brewed in the style of a Belgian Dark Ale.  It sits at about 10.13% alcohol/volume.

Belgian Darks offer a really wide range of characters.  The colours can be in a variety of hues from amber to light brown to deep garnet.  Flavours range between dry and spiced to sweet and malty.  Most usually have low bitterness but this one comes in at a pretty good 35 IBU (international bittering units).  The average IBU of IPAs (the hoppier style of beers) come in at the 40+ range.  I’m pretty excited to give this one a try, so let’s get to the beer!

Rating: 66/100

Appearance:  Amber brown with 1” of head that retains very well.  Cloudy with some signs of possible sediment.
Smell: Very sweet smell.  Malts come through strong giving a caramel aroma with slight berry notes and the distinct smell of alcohol.
Taste: Sickly sweet with a strong alcohol after taste.  This is clear a strong ale as the taste is somewhat overwhelming.  Malts are clearly noticeable and add to the sweetness of the beer.  Flavours are limited by the overtone of the alcohol leaving a bitter aftertaste that isn’t wholly pleasant.
Overall: When brewing, alcohol is created by the yeast digesting the sugar in order to create alcohol as a by-product (among other things).  Many strong ales have this trouble of being overly sweet with a strong alcohol after tone that overshadow any of the malts or hops used in the brewing process.  Good ones can balance this out creating a flavourful enjoyable brew.  Sadly, this one was not able to do so and the alcohol and sickly sweetness of the sugar and malts overwhelmed any other flavours.
Do I like it: There are many good examples of strong ales that are balanced and provide a full flavour beer that is still strong in alcohol. Sadly, this beer was not very balanced and was not really that enjoyable. I found myself cringing at the sweetness combined with the alcohol after tone.  This is not a beer I would buy.

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Since we're at the halfway point, here's a quick refresh of the first 12 beers of the Beer Advent Calendar:

Day 11 | Tropical Christmas Saison
Day 10 | Gædingur Stout

Day 9 | Cucapá Honey Amber Ale

Day 8 | Weltenburger Kloster Anno 1050

Day 7 | Nuclear Free ANZUS IPA
Day 6 | Fat Man, Red Suit, Big Sack
Day 5 | Krampus
Day 4 | Hop Blanc
Day 3 | Chateau Civrac Old Ale
Day 2 | Hippa Heiki Extra Special Bitter
Day 1 | Gød Advent

Beer Advent Day 11 | Tropical Christmas Saison

The question was asked of me this morning if I am getting beer'd out.  I think I likely would be if all of the beer were the same. Luckily with 24 different styles from 17 countries, I think I’m going to be excited 'til the very end... and then sad.

Today’s beer comes to us from Brazil.  This is our first South American beer of the calendar.  The beer comes to from the Wäls brewery located in Belo Horizante, the capital of the Minas Gerais state in Brazil.

Founded in 1999 the brewery wanted to bring beer to the demanding consumer.  They chose the tourist region of Belo Horizante as the location for their dream and started brewing beers based off the Belgian, Czech and English styles.  Dare, invent and believe is the spirit by with the brewery creates its beers.

The brewery itself produces a number of different styles of beers and employs some different methods such as oak barrel maturation and brewing in the champenoise style (sparkling wine/champagne method).  They have enough storage for 2500 bottles to mature at any given time.

They like to produce unique beers from the standard Pilsner, to Hoppy Vanilla Cookie, and the one we are trying today which is their Tropical Christmas Saison, a flavoured strong beer sitting at 7% alcohol/volume.

Saison (French for season) is a broadly defined pale ale that is generally around the 7% mark for alcohol, highly carbonated, fruity and spiced.  This particular one has had raisins, figs, orange peel and coriander added to it during the brewing process to create the “Tropical Christmas.”  This style of beer originated from beers brewed during cooler less active months in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, and it is thus a Belgian style beer similar in many ways to the Krampus that I tried a little while back.  Let’s give this one a try!

Rating: 81/100

Appearance:  Clear, golden, and light bodied with minimal head that retains well.
Smell: Figs are noticeable right on the nose with the coriander and citrus from the orange close behind. 
Taste: Very light and crisp on the front with citrus and the flavour of the figs and the coriander coming through at the end to create a dryness that results in a refreshingly dry beer.  The coriander leaves your mouth dry and works well with the sweetness to create a fairly well balanced beer.  It would make a fantastic summer beer which makes sense as Christmas is during the Brazilian Summer, go figure.
Mouth feel: High carbonation, light bodied, crisp.
Overall: Refreshing, light, citrusy with not too much spice or fruit flavouring to overwhelm the taste buds.  This is an excellent saison in that it really fits what it is trying to accomplish.  The flavours are truly Christmassy and given that it is summer time south of the equator, the refreshing crispness of the beer works well.
Do I like it: Considering that I was expecting the Krampus, which I did not like, I was pleasantly surprised with this beer.  It was delicious.  While it is not my favorite style of beer I found myself enjoying the flavours and the crispness of this particular saison.  I dare say, I would drink it again!

Beer Advent Day 10 | Gædingur Stout

I believe the best thing about this craft beer advent calendar is that I get to try beers I would likely never have an opportunity to try.  While I do travel a lot and partake in “beer tourism” as much as I can, there are still some beers that I would be unlikely to find.  I believe that today’s beer is one of those.

Today’s beer comes to us from a small brewery in the Flókadalur valley region of Iceland called Gðingur Brewing Ltd.  This region is located in the northern part of Iceland near the northern coast about 360 km from Reyjavik.  The brewery was founded in 2011 with the purpose of using the local flora and Icelandic culture to brew new and exciting beers.  The brewery is run by 3 people.  Arni is the owner of the brewery and the farm from which they get their ingredients.  Birgitte is a partner to Arni in the brewery building.  She is also a seamstress.  Joe is the brewer in the operation and responsible for the beer that we are going to be trying today.

The brewing system that they use at Gðingur Brewing is a British 6 barrel brewery system.  While you can create most types of beers using this system, it is a lower yield system that can produce 980 litres of beer at any given time.  Given that, they are one of the smaller breweries we have had the opportunity to try. They produce 4 beers at present, a lager, a stout (which we are trying today), an IPA and a pale ale.  There stout is brewed using roasted malts from the farm.  This is the first stout that we are going to have a chance to try as well.  Two firsts today!

Stouts are a dark beer made using roasted malts or roasted barley, hops, water and yeast.  Traditionally the term stout was used to describe the strongest (most alcohol) porters, typically around 7-8%, produced by a brewery.  There are numerous styles of stouts ranging from Dry Stouts, to Porters, and Oyster stouts.  While they had lost popularity in the early 20^th century after the First World War, they have started to have a bit of an upswing due to the growing popularity in craft beer and breweries.

When I think of a stout I think of a beer that is on the exact opposite end of the spectrum from an IPA.  Rather than hopping to bring out that floral and bitterness from the beer, malts are used to bring out rich sweet flavours like chocolate, coffee, and caramel.  Stouts are a very heavy beer as well often considered almost a meal.  I am really excited to try this stout today and see what this small Icelandic brewery has in store! On to the beer!

Rating: 79/100

Appearance: Black like the depths of the ocean with 1” of foamy head.
Smell: Chocolate, caramel, and smoke notes.
Taste: Rich and deep almost like milk with chocolate notes right on the front.  Flows into mild bitterness that leaves a smokiness in the mouth.
Mouth feel: Silky smooth and full bodied.
Overall: The flavours of the stout go well together. The sweetness is definitely there on the front but then it blends into a bitter smokiness on the finish. This stout is well balanced and quite a good example of a stout.
Do I like it: I used to drink stouts quite a lot.  Their heavy nature tends to make them something I am less like to reach for these days.  This is an excellent example of a stout and I did rather enjoy it.  Good balance between the sweet and the bitter and I really rather enjoyed the smokiness on the finish.  Something I would not likely buy, but would be fine drinking.

Beer Advent Day 9 | Cucapá Honey Amber Ale

We are approaching the halfway mark on the beer advent calendar.  There has been only one of the 8 beers I’ve tried already that I have not liked, which is fantastic. The excitement for each beer also has not diminished.  I’m always very excited to see what the next style and region the beer will be from!

Today’s beer comes to us from Mexico! Cerveceria de Baja California, to be exact. This brewery, founded in 2002, is located in the City of Mexicali. They are one of the few Mexican microbrews and produce beer under the label Cucapá Beer.

The name for the beer comes from one of the tribes that live in the Mexicali Valley.  The Cucapá tribe were the first settlers in the region. Their love for water and nature led them to live in the Colorado River Delta.  The tradition of nature, the water of the river, the geographical location and the initiative of being the first people to explore the region is what makes Cerveza Cucapá as unique as the Cucapá tribe's ancestors.

Mexico had been predominately made up of Macro breweries which left an opening for a gourmet microbrewery.  Seeing this, the founders of Cerveceria de Baja California opened their doors as a brewpub initially in 2002. By 2004 their popularity had grown and they began considering how they might be able to expand. In 2007 they had expanded their production and bottling to be able to sell their beer to a wider market. They brew beers ranging from Blonde Ales all the way up to Barley Wines.  Today, we have the opportunity to try their Honey Amber Ale.

Amber Ales are a name given to a Pale Ale that has been brewed using a proportion of amber malt and sometimes crystal malt.  This produces an amber colour that ranges from light copper to light brown.  Again we see how simple changes in the brewing process can lead to different styles and flavours of beer.  Despite there being no real difference in the style from pale ale other than the malt choice, it is still a unique style with its own unique flavours.  This particular beer, however, has honey that has been added during the brewing process, often in place of dextrose or another sugar, which gives it a wider flavour profile.   This is the second North American beer in the kit.  Onto the beer!

Rating: 72/100

Appearance:   Clear, light brown with good amount of head.  Retains well. 
Smell: Honey is very apparent along with the smell of apple and pear.
Taste: Starts off bitter and then melds into a honey sweetness.  Balance is off as the bitterness tends to linger longer than it should.  Honey flavour is not as apparent as you would expect from a honey amber ale.
Mouth feel: Coarse mouth feel, medium body, excellent carbonation.
Overall: The honey flavour is there but this beer lacks balance.  The bitter notes are not outweighed by the sweetness of the malt.  The bitterness is almost metallic leading me to believe it is not from the hops themselves.
Do I like it: I do not like this beer.  It wasn’t terrible but it was not something that I would seek out and purchase.  By happenstance I was eating spicy food while drinking this beer. After the initial tasting with a clean palate and taking notes, I continued to try the beer with my food.  I noted that after eating spicy food the balance of the beer was much better.  The flavours melded better and the honey was more apparent.  Given that I base my scores off clean palate tasting, this will not enter into the scoring.  I felt it was important to note though for those who may try this beer.

Thanks for following along.  Appreciate it!

Beer Advent Day 8 | Weltenburger Kloster Anno 1050

Today’s beer is a special one.  It comes to us from the Weltenburg MonasteryBrewery in German and is called “Weltenburger Kloster Anno 1050.” For those who may not know, the Weltenburg Monastery is the oldest monastery brewery in the world and the second oldest brewery.  The main reason for the popularity of the Weltenburg Abbey Beer is due to the high art of brewing: they follow the brewing tradition of the Benedictine monks and also must follow the Bavarian purity laws.

Bavarian Purity Laws were established in 1487 when Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria promulgated it.  The law specifies three ingredients – water, malt (barley) and hops – for brewing beer. The law was established to make eliminate competition between brewers and bakers for rye and wheat.  Limited the grain to barley they made certain that there would be affordable bread for citizens.

The law was replaced by the provisional German beer law in 1993 which allowed other ingredients such as yeast, wheat malt and cane sugar, but would no long allow unmalted barley. One of the reasons yeast was never included in the original text is it wasn't until the 19^th century that Louis Pasteur discovered the role of microorganisms in fermentation.  While the change from the original law allowed for brewers to use different ingredients, many German breweries still follow the original law and brew using the strict method laid out within it. Weltenburger Kloster (Weltenburg Monastery) is one of those breweries.

Before refrigeration it was nearly impossible to brew beer in the summer due to the hot weather.  Brewing ended with the coming of spring and most beers were brewed in March (Märzen).  These brews were kept in storage until the end of summer where they’d be brought out and served with the remaining bottles served at Oktoberfest.  Because of this tradition, it has become a beer associated with the Oktoberfest.

The beer we are trying today is called a Märzen beer. This style of beer originates in Bavaria around the 16^th century and is also known as an Otoberfest beer. The style is characterized by a medium to full body, malty flavor, and clean dry finish.  I’m excited to try this one. Let’s get to the beer!

Rating: 80/100

Appearance: Clear, medium copper amber colour that pours with about two fingers of head which dissipates leaving a thin cap. 
Smell: caramel malt, floral notes from the hops.
Taste: Honey sweetness with hint of lemon and just a hint of bitterness on the finish. Different than other similar style beers but still very tasty.
Mouth feel:.Coarse mouth feel, medium body, perfect carbonation.
Overall: A very tasty brew overall.  Excellent flavors that meld perfectly together to give you a really fresh, crisp and refreshing beer.  This would be the perfect summer beer.
Do I like it: I very much liked this beer.  It is different than what I would normally seek out, one of the reasons I love this calendar.  The flavor profile of this beer is just fantastic. It is sweet and smooth while at the same time being crisp and refreshing.  The sweetness is not overwhelming but rather a good compliment.  Very good beer from this, the second oldest brewery in the world!

Beer Advent Day 7 | Nuclear Free ANZUS IPA

Today is the 7th day of the beer advent calendar.  One whole week has gone by with a new beer each and every day.  It’s been quite exciting each day and I think this is something any beer lover should try to invest in if they can. 

We are sticking in the same region today for our 7th beer.  While we had an Aussie beer yesterday we are jumping islands and finding ourselves in New Zealand.  Today’s beer comes to us from Croucher Brewing Co and it is the “Nuclear Free Anzus IPA.” This is the first true India Pale Ale in the calendar. India Pale Ales are hoppy beers within the broader category of Pale Ale.  They are lighter in colour and are incredibly unique as the variety of hops used and the hopping method can significantly change tastes.

Croucher Brewing Co is located in Rotorua, a small town in the northeast part of the island near Lake Rotorua in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand.  Rotorua means “second lake” in Maori - the full name being “Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe.” It is best known for its geothermal activity, having many geysers, bubbling mud pools, thermal pools and the buried village (a village buried by the  Mount Tarawera eruption in 1886).

Croucher Brewing Co was founded by Paul Croucher.  It began as a dream in the 1990s that slowly developed into a non-commercial brewery in 2004.  Paul entered the Beer NZ brewing competition and won the non-commercial category. This gave him and his business partners, Richard Croucher and Nigel Gregory, the confidence to forge ahead as a commercial brewery.  In 2006 they opened as a commercial brewery and in August of that year won a bronze medal for their Croucher Pale Ale.  They have continued to grow over the years winning numerous awards and producing many styles of beer.

The Anzus IPA  we are trying today was made using Australian, New Zealand and US hops.  The name of the beer itself is quite important.  ANZUS was a military alliance between Australia, New Zealand and the US (hence the hop choice) formed in 1951 in the shadow of the developing cold war. As the south pacific became a testing ground for nuclear weapons in the 80s, relationships became strained between these three super powers as NZ banned Nucelar Weapons in their territories and the US refusing to confirm or deny if they had any on board their ships.  This lead to then NZ Prime Minister David Lange famous quote during debate saying “If you hold your breath just for a moment... I can smell the uranium on it as you lean towards me...”(2 minute mark of the clip)

The beer itself is an attempt to repair relations, so Croucher Brewing Co says. Let’s see what the “best hops” from these three regions can produce. Onto the beer!

Rating: 86/100

Appearance: Clear golden brown with a 1” head that dissipates slowly. 
Smell: Pear, apricot and green olive on the nose.
Taste: The front is incredibly smooth, light bodied, with the pear, apricot and citrus coming through in flavor. The combination of hops makes for a unique taste that finishes with just the right amount of bitterness and leaves a sweet fruit taste on the tongue.
Mouth feel: Smooth and light bodied.
Overall: This is a very good IPA.  The combination of hops from three countries is interesting and works. The flavor profiles of the hops work well together and provide you with a very well balanced beer.
Do I like it: As I have said many times, I love IPAs. This one does not disappoint.  It brings full on hop action that isn’t too overwhelming even for someone who doesn’t drink a lot of IPAs. The light body provides a crisp and refreshing beer. This is certainly a beer I’d buy and be happy to drink. This is a close second as my favorite beer so far.