HEDONIST BEER JIVE

THE HEDONIST BEER JIVE 75

2009-11-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

Every 4-6 months I drink another half-dozen or so transcendent beers, and in the name of keeping the record straight, therefore feel the need to update the HEDONIST BEER JIVE 75. This is this site’s running tally of the 75 finest beers on the planet. Sometimes stuff drops off when I try it again and it doesn’t hit me quite the same way (farewell, AVERY WHITE RASCAL); sometimes I try it again and it moves up the rankings (good to see you near the top again, DESCHUTES’ THE ABYSS); and there’s always a few newcomers who’ve blown me away – chief among them this time are BROOKLYN BREWING’s amazing barrel-aged stout BLACK OPS, and one of the greatest double IPAs ever brought to any human’s lips, LUCKY LABRADOR’s SUPER DUPER DOG.

The hard part is having to lop off beers from the bottom of the Top 75 to make way for the new ones, because in the nearly four years of publishing this blog 4-5 times per week, I’ve had some mighty incredible beers. This list doesn’t even include the fantastic STONE VERTICAL EPIC 9-9-09 I sampled last month and gave a 9/10 score to; it can’t help it if it’s only the 78th best beer on earth, right? Hope this list inspires your purchasing behavior in some way in the months to come.

1. BRASSERIE DE ROCHEFORT – Trappistes Rochefort 8 (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
2. BRASSERIE DE L'ABBAYE DES ROCS - Triple Imperiale (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
3. SOUTHERN TIER – Gemini (Double IPA)
4. DESCHUTES - The Abyss (Russian Imperial Stout)

5. UNIBROUE – La Fin Du Monde (Belgian Strong Pale Ale)
6. MOYLAN’S – Hopsickle (Double IPA)
7. BRASSERIE DE ROCHEFORT – Trappistes Rochefort 6 (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)

8. BROOKLYN BREWING - Black Ops (Barrel-Aged Stout)
9. THREE FLOYDS - Alpha King (American Pale Ale)
10. LOST ABBEY – Gift Of The Magi (Biere De Garde)
11. SIX POINT CRAFT ALES - Bengali Tiger (IPA)
12. LOST ABBEY – 10 Commandments (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
13. ST. BERNARDUS – Grotten Brown (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
14. BROWERIJ VAN STEENBERGE – Monk’s Café Sour Flemish Ale (Flanders Oud Bruin)
15. LUCKY LABRADOR - Super Duper Dog (Double IPA)

16. RUSSIAN RIVER – Damnation (Belgian-Style Strong Golden Ale)
17. AVERY BREWING – The Reverend (Quadrupel)
18. MOONLIGHT – Reality Czeck (Czech Pilsner)
19. VICTORY BREWING – Wild Devil (Belgian IPA)
20. STONE BREWING – IPA (IPA)
21. HACKER-PSCHORR – Dunkel Weiss (Dunkel Weizen)
22. LOST ABBEY - Devotion Ale (Belgian-Style Blonde Ale)
23. CAPTAIN LAWRENCE - Captain's Reserve Imperial IPA (Double IPA)
24. DARK HORSE - Tres Blueberry Stout (American Stout)
25. CAPTAIN LAWRENCE - St. Vincent's Dubbel (Dubbel)
26. BROOKLYN BREWING – Extra Brune (Flanders Oud Bruin)
27. GOUDEN CAROLUS – Ambrio (Belgian Strong Pale Ale)
28. THE BRUERY – Saison Rue (Saison)
29. DENNISON’S – Weizen (Hefeweizen)
30. BELL’S – Expedition Stout (Imperial Stout)
31. BROUWERIJ WESTVLETEREN – Trappist Westvleteren 12 (Quadrupel)
32. RUSSIAN RIVER – Blind Pig (IPA)
33. SMUTTYNOSE - Gravitation (Quadrupel)
34. 5 SEASONS BREWING – Venus (Witbier)
35. MARIN BREWING - Tripel Dipsea (Tripel)
36. MOYLAN’S – IPA (IPA)
37. RUSSIAN RIVER – Rejection (Belgian Black Ale)
38. UNIBROUE – Maudite (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
39. DE PROEF – Zoetzuur Flemish Ale (Flanders Red Ale)
40. DRAKE’S – Denogginizer (Double IPA)
41. BEAR REPUBLIC - Racer 5 (IPA)
42. LOST ABBEY – Avant Garde (Biere De Garde)
43. SOUTHERN TIER - Heavy Weizen (Imperial Hefeweizen)
44. ST. BERNARDUS - Prior 8 (Dubbel)
45. TELEGRAPH BREWING – California Ale (Saison)
46. RUSSIAN RIVER - O.V.L. Stout (American Stout)
47. LOST ABBEY – Angel’s Share (Barleywine)
50. BROOKLYN BREWING – Local 1 (Belgian-Style Golden Ale)
51. BROWERIJ DE DOLLE – Oerbier (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
52. BOULDER BEER – Hazed & Infused (IPA)
53. DOGFISH HEAD – 90-Minute IPA (IPA)
54. BRASSERIE DUPONT - Saison Dupont (Saison)
55. GREEN FLASH – Saison (Saison)
56. LOST ABBEY – Carnivale (Saison)
57. RUSSIAN RIVER – Redemption (Belgian-Style Pale Ale)
58. SIERRA NEVADA – Celebration Ale 2007 and 2008 (IPA)
59. HANDBRYGGERIET – Norwegian Wood (Smoked/Spiced Ale)
60. SOUTHERN TIER - Hoppe (Double IPA)
61. GOOSE ISLAND – 312 Urban Wheat (American Pale Wheat Ale)
62. LAGUNITAS – Imperial Red (American Strong Ale)

63. 5 SEASONS BREWING - Dark White (Dark witbier)
64. TELEGRAPH BREWING – Golden Wheat (Wheat Beer)
65. BRASSERIE DE ROCHEFORT – Trappistes Rochefort 10 (Quadrupel)
66. THE BRUERY - Orchard White (Witbier)
67. DE PROEF – Kerstmutske (Christmas Ale)
68. ST. BERNARDUS – ABT 12 (Quadrupel)
69. SILVER CITY BREWERY – Fat (Scotch Ale)
70. TWO BROTHERS BREWING - Hop Juice (Double IPA)
71. BRASSERIE DUPONT – Foret (Saison)
72. SIERRA NEVADA – Torpedo Extra Ale (IPA)
73. NORTH COAST – La Merle (Saison)
74. RUSSIAN RIVER – Damnation, Batch 23 (Belgian-Style Strong Golden Ale)
75. RUSSIAN RIVER – Temptation (American Wild Ale)

Top 12 Discontinued Beers (i.e. things we’ll never see again – these each scored over 9/10 on the HBJ rating card)

1. MOONLIGHT – 2006 Toast Malt Liquor (American Amber/Red Lager)
2. AVERY BREWING – Fourteen (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
3. IRON HORSE – Beer Shoppe Anniversary Ale (Double IPA)
4. NEW BELGIUM – Le Fleur Misseur (Belgian-Style Pale ale)
5. LAGUNITAS – Freak Out! (IPA)
6. FIRESTONE WALKER – 10 (Barleywine)
7. DOGFISH HEAD – Raison D’Extra 2005 (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)
8. DESCHUTES – 2006 Jubel Ale (Winter Warmer)
9. PORT BREWING – Hop Suey (Double IPA)
10. NORTH COAST – Old Stock 2004 (Old Ale)
11. DE PROEF & ALLAGASH – Les Deux Brasseuers (Belgian Strong Pale Ale) (Update – have been informed that this WILL be brewed again this year, so it’s not truly discontinued….)
12. AVERY - Fifteen (American Wild Ale)

THE BEST NON-BOTTLING BREWERY NO ONE’S HEARD OF

2009-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

One thing that fans the flames of the beer obsessive’s world is the fact that, thankfully, most of our chosen brewers actually bottle their wares. This mere fact ensures that we don’t typically have to travel to one set location to try a particular brewer’s creations, and can instead choose from a variety of pickup locations within their distribution areas. Moreover, there’s the ability to order online from great retailers like ARCHER LIQUORS or SOUTH BAY DRUGS; there’s ease-of-portability that comes from having a big suitcase with nooks & crannies big enough to hide 3-4 twenty-two-oz. bottles of beer in; and of course, the wonders of beer trading. All are facilitated by the glass bottle, or in rare cases, the aluminum can.

Sure, there are some people who’ll go even further when things get desperate. And when do things get desperate? That’s right, when the brewer you’ve been salivating over doesn’t do any bottling/canning. That’s when you start seeing things like “growler trades”, which are patently preposterous, and yet commendable in some odd way. That’s where I go to my local brewer, fill up a growler (i.e. a giant container) of beer from the tap, box it up, pay ridiculous fees to ship it to you, and then you get it 5-7 days later, at which point you put it in your fridge and drink it fairly quickly. That had better be some damn good beer. That had better be some beer from Atlanta’s 5 SEASONS BREWING, who, upon the evidence, I’ve decided is the best non-bottling brewery that no one’s ever heard of.

And it’s not like you’d expect it from these guys. They’re no one-man indie experimental show like Brian Hunt at MOONLIGHT BREWING, experimenting with spruce tips and such, and straight-up refusing to bottle. Nope, 5 SEASONS are a high-end, three-location, Atlanta-based chain, with beautiful interiors, fresh dinners – and oh by the way – incredible beer. I went there two weeks ago right after landing in Atlanta for work. It was my third trip there, twice to their Westside location & once to the Sandy Springs location. Not only have I yet to have a bad beer from them, I’ve had some absolute knockouts, like their VENUS witbier that I reviewed a few months ago. This time I tried two more winners, and with head buzzing & mood greatly improved after a 4-hour flight, I bestowed upon them the honorific we’re discussing presently.

Here’s what I enjoyed:

5 SEASONS DARK WHITE – Wow, we’re reviewed two weirdo white beers/witbiers in a row on this blog, after tasting zero in the first four decades of our (my) life. This has that hallowed witbier smell – orange, coriander, yeast – and yet it’s as dark as night. Like any dark beer worth its salt, this one has a vaguely roasted taste to it, which is pleasantly befuddling in light of the more broad smell/taste of the beer, which is excellent. The yeasts and orange flavors absolutely coat the tongue here, contributing to a fresh, delicious and wholly unique beer. This was my epiphany beer, where I realized I was truly in the hands of the masters at 1000 Marietta Street. 9/10.

5 SEASONS 1972 BELGIAN BROWN ALE – Well, this too doesn’t taste like a traditional brown ale at all, and hallelujah for that. It’s got a slight, very mild funk to it, and man does it taste Belgian. Bruges comes to Atlanta in this glass right here. Very carbonated and fizzy. Yeasty. Spicy. Great tang to it. Totally and utterly unclassifiable. My only regret is that I didn’t bring you a growler of it. 7.5/10.

Need it be said that, along with the BRICK STORE PUB in Decatur, this should be a must-stop for you should your adventures ever bring you to Atlanta, Georgia, in the heart of “the Peachtree State”?

CISCO BREWERS’ “LADY OF THE WOODS”

2009-11-20T06:15:00.000-08:00

I’m pretty intrigued with two facts about this beer – no, make it three. First – CISCO BREWERS are from Nantucket, Massachusetts. Me, I’ve been to Martha’s Vineyard a couple of times, and it’s great, but Nantucket was always explained to me as the poor, windblown, redheaded stepchild to not only Martha’s Vineyard, but Cape Cod as a whole. A place where only whalers, clam-diggers, and salty old sea dogs with 3 yellow teeth live. So having a first-rate brewer from there is something of a surprise, but I guess nothing should surprise me in the continued explosion of craft beer anymore.

Second, my pal Chris just sort of bought this on a whim for me, which was beyond the call. Hauled it back in a suitcase; never would have heard of it otherwise. Third, and we’re going to talk about the beer itself now, CISCO BREWERS’ “LADY OF THE WOODS” is an imperial, oaked witbier (!). Yeah, I know. That’s not something you see everyday. They make a witbier called GREY LADY; this is the souped-up version of that. It’s a bottle-conditioned, corked, 22-ounce big boy, and it’s really tasty right out of the gate. It is really, really “tangy” from the barrel aging; very carbonated and effervescent; and with an awesome, fluffy pillowtop that barely receded the whole time I was drinking it.

It tastes a little bit like chamomile tea, if said chamomile tea was an imperial, oaked, wheat-heavy high-ABV beer instead. To my surprise, it got more bitter as it warmed, in a somewhat jarring fashion, and it knocked a point or two off from its initial very high score on the HBJ point board. Still, this is a well-crafted ale, the likes of which I’ve never really encountered before, and beer dorks should probably add it to their lists. Thanks to Chris for scooping it up for me; it truly brings a figurative tear to my eye to come to grips with the ephemeral, never-see-it-again nature of beers such as this. 7/10.

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE ANCHOR CHRISTMAS

2009-11-19T06:00:00.000-08:00

If it’s November, it’s time to plunk down $1.79 for a bottle of ANCHOR BREWING “OUR SPECIAL ALE”, a.k.a. ANCHOR CHRISTMAS ALE, as I’ve been doing every year since time immemorial. As legend has it, this was the first holiday beer produced in the United States in the modern era, and it’s one of the few that actually changes up the recipe every year to produce something unique – and often wonderful – for the 2-3 months it’s on the shelves. There may be other holiday annuals that I like better than this one, but I’m never going to let a year pass without imbibing a bottle of Anchor’s.

Been a couple of years since they’ve blown me away, however, and ANCHOR CHRISTMAS 2009 is no exception. You’re hit with an incredible whiff of spices right up front, just as you would be with a batch of nutmeg & cinnamon-drenched cookies. The beer is a medium-bodied, very malty ale with a “lightly roasted” feel to it. There’s one spice in there that’s really interesting and hard to put my finger on – I could swear it’s ginger, as it has that sort of sharpness to it. The other predominant taste is brown sugar. I was quite surprised that, given what I’ve just told you, how quickly I drank this thing. Normally I like a glass of contemplative beer to go with dinner, and this beer was done & gone before we’d even sat down to sup. I recommend picking up a bottle – everyone seems to have a different take on this beer each year. HBJ’s take is 6.5/10.

MY WILD, WILD BOULEVARD NIGHTS

2009-11-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

I may have mentioned in an earlier post that I was working in Kansas City (well, Overland Park, KS) last week. Well, after a long, hard, sweaty, backbreaking day in meetin's and whatnot, one needs a cold-to-room-temperature beer or three to let it all hang loose and shake off the shackles, am I right? Given my location, I thought it was a fine time to aggressively explore the beers of BOULEVARD BREWING, based right there in Kansas City. It wouldn't be the first time. No, we actually did some damage to Boulevard beers a few years ago on another visit to KC, and then again when we traded for the first four bottles that came out of their much-renown extreme-beer "Smokestack Series". Put it this way: Hedonist Beer Jive's really impressed with Boulevard Brewing, so any chance to try their wares is a good night by us.

It didn't take place in one location, nor two. Nay, over the course of a long Thursday, HBJ tried three different BOULEVARD beers in three different crazy-ass nightspots, including "party central" in Overland Park: The Cheesecake Factory. Yeah, I know. Don't ask. Sometimes you do what you gotta do for the good of the firm. Here's what we tried:

BOULEVARD BOB's '47 OKTOBERFEST - Not my favorite style in the world, I'll be up front about it. They call it a "good all-around food beer", and since I was at the friggin' Cheesecake Factory, I wasn't eating. Some sweetness and a little bitterness, with hints of caramel. 4.5% ABV. A lager. Your basic decent Oktoberfest beer. 6/10.

BOULEVARD TANK 7 SAISON - Hey, now this one's not bad. It was labeled simply as a "Belgian-style" beer at the bar we were at, Barley's Brewhaus (yes!), so I thought it was a tripel whilst drinking it. While it might lack a lot of the punch I'd like from a typical Belgian saison, it's really pretty faithful to the style. Bready, with light citrus fruits and a lot of zing to it. I know it's not bottled right now, but it probably should be. The picture you see here is the last two swallows I had left when I realized it was definitely photo-worthy. 7/10.

BOULEVARD DRY STOUT - Served on draft at Jacks Stack BBQ. Gotta admit, this is the best sub-4% ABV beer I've had since that SAISON AVRIL earlier in the year. I could session the hell out of this beer. A super creamy stout, with the patented frothy head leading to "mustache mouth". Not too roasted or harsh, just smooth as silk and very delicious. 7/10.

FLOWERS ARE BACK! MEET THE WEED EATER

2009-11-16T08:57:00.000-08:00

FLOWER POWER, man. From ITHACA BREWING in upstate New York. You know as well as I do that there’s really no such thing as a West Coast, East Coast or Michigan IPA any more. There’s just great, good and not-so-good. Unfortunately this ITHACA FLOWER POWER falls on the short side of the ledger. Sure, I liked its bottle artwork – maybe that’s worth a half-point right there. And check the picture – it certainly “presents well”. But after the superficial stuff it gets a little shaky. Definitely one of the more bitter IPA’s we’ve had in recent months, with accents of citrus, especially grapefruit. Ordinarily all well and good, but this one’s a little off. It’s a little dry and at times reminiscent of aspirin. If they’re going after a “perfect summer quaff” they’ve fallen down a bit, as this is a little too carbonated and chalky to be something really enjoyable and refreshing. I have to think that even a hippie would be seriously bummed out on this one. 5.5/10.

LIVEBLOGGING THE BOULEVARD BREWING "NUTCRACKER ALE"

2009-11-11T19:08:00.000-08:00

I'm doing something so outrageously dorkified right now, something I've never considered doing before simply because I was afraid you'd make fun of me: I'm "liveblogging" a beer. That's right, the BOULEVARD BREWING "NUTCRACKER ALE" I'm only halfway done with is being consumed in a hotel in Overland Park, KS at this very moment, and I'm writing about it as I inhale a salad I picked up at Whole Foods at 8:45pm at night.

Here's how this turn craaaaazzy of events came to be. I work in the wireless industry, and if you know anyone who does stuff in wireless, you know that the sun, moon & stars pretty much revolve around Verizon, AT&T and Sprint. Thus, many of my trips for business are to Basking Ridge, NJ; Atlanta, GA or Overland Park, KS - particularly the latter two. I just flew here from Atlanta, in fact, and I immediately had every intention of getting some JACK STACK BBQ, GATES BBQ or one of the other half-dozen barbeque places in the Kansas City area that totally rule. Yet I'm beat - the man is grinding me down - all I want is a quick dinner and a good beer. Thus the spur-of-the-moment trip to Overland Park Whole Foods and the great liquor store next door, where I bought myself a bomber of the fabled BOULEVARD SAISON-BRETT to carry back in my suitcase. I also bought this 12-ounce bottle of BOULEVARD NUTCRACKER ALE, which I am consuming presently. Oh, and how do you like this photo? Taken in the bathroom of the Sheraton Overland Park, I kid you not. As if you couldn't tell.

NUTCRACKER ALE continues the winning streak for the most excellent Boulevard Brewing. It's their holiday ale, their "winter warmer", and I'm pleased to call it my first of the season. It smells and tastes just like it should. The spicing permeates the entire thing, and lingers for a good 10 seconds after each swallow. Very malty, with a full-bodied feel to it without being overly heavy. In fact, it's a pretty easy quaff. Cinnamon, light molasses and maybe even a touch of honey. That last taste is sort of out of left field - and I like it. In all, this is an excellent introduction to "that most wonderful time of the year". Goes great with chicken, artichoke heart & corn salad in an earth-friendly recyclable container. 7.5/10.

EEL RIVER BREWING’s “ORGANIC AMBER”

2009-11-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

There may be a few of you who came to this blog from one of my music blogs, AGONY SHORTHAND (defunct) or DETAILED TWANG (on hiatus, I guess). So it won’t surprise you that even at my advanced age I’m still out there from time to time, hittin’ the clubs, living la vida loca with my homies, raging hard, slammin’ in the pit, stagediving and getting in fistfights, and then going to bed before 11:30pm if I can. In other words – I don’t really see that much live rocknroll anymore, but when I do, at least half the time it’s at The Hemlock Tavern in San Francisco. They always seem to book the weird-ass bands I like the most, so that’s where the action is for me. They even have a decent beer selection – they were one of the first local bars I tried PLINY THE ELDER at; RACER 5 is always on tap; BOONT AMBER’s always there, and sometimes there’s even a wild card beer. Me, I like a wild card. Except when I don’t. Except when said wild card is EEL RIVER ORGANIC AMBER, as it was the other night.

It just might be that organic beers are crap across the board, I don’t know. It sure seems that way, even though that wouldn’t really make sense now, would it? EEL RIVER BREWING brew up in Humboldt County, California, and you may recall we’ve got a soft spot for that area. Their ORGANIC AMBER appears to won a host of medals, but not in my stomach. It’s a medicinal, medium-thin, chalky-as-hell concoction, really a bit of a chore to enjoy, even with hundreds of decibels pounding at your unprotected ears on a Tuesday night. No flavor, no flavor at all. OK, the flavor is 100% malt, as if they forgot to even dust this thing with hops. (They say “balanced with a liberal dose” of hops, but I think they’re lying!!!!). As I’ve said before with organic beers, I truly want to believe. It’s just that this is another in a long line of clunkers for me. Sorry if that harshes on your mellow. 4/10.

MIDDLE AGES’ CLASSY “WAILING WENCH”

2009-11-09T06:00:00.000-08:00

Thinking back to the 1980s, it’s tough to remember a time when boobs weren’t being used to sell beer. From the ubiquitous heaving-bosomed St. Pauli Girl, to the Swedish bikini team, to the Coors beer wolf chasing skirts around a table, it was just sort of de rigueur during my teenage years to link boobs = babes. Then a few things happened. One, I got a TiVo in 2003, and I never watched commercials again. I don’t even know how macro lagers are marketed these days, but I suspect from the billboards I’ve seen that it has more to do with some lame, unconvincing appeals to quality, consistency and cleanliness – and not to T&A. Two, I stopped drinking that stuff decades ago anyway – and the “microbrews” I put in their place (and how!) have been unanimously tasteful and/or irreverent in their marketing, never once calling in the flesh card to move product. I’m not actually totally against the flesh card, to be honest, but I do recognize it as an act of marketing desperation that also tells me something about the stupidity of the brewer, and his condescension for me as a drinker.

It was therefore a bit of a surprise to get this bottle of MIDDLE AGES WAILING WENCH in the mail from my pal Aaron. It’s all one can do to keep from jumping two feet in the air with one’s eyes popping out of their sockets, Big Daddy Roth-style, and shouting, “Woooo-hoooo!!! Look at those gazongas!!!”. Once you get past that, and past contemplation of the fair wench’s dazed, I’m being-filmed-for-an-Al Jazeera-hostage-video expression, it’s well past time to actually sit and drink the beer. I finally got there, and I’m a better man for it.

MIDDLE AGES are based in Syracuse, NY, and I’ve heard them described by more than one party as an underrated brewer, even in their home state. WAILING WENCH is a deep rust brown colored “old ale”, or “strong ale” you might call it instead. It’s really, really assertive. Full-bodied and super-hopped, it clocks in at 8% ABV, and has a really deep syrupy mouthfeel. I’m getting brown sugar and really strong caramel malts. And a quick, big buzz-on, too. There’s no mistaking it for an easy-drinkin’ ale – it is a real bitter biter of a beer, and my notes say “definitely not for everyone”. It was, however, just fine & then some for me, and I’m guessing for you too. 7/10.

NEW HOLLAND “DRAGON’S MILK”

2009-11-06T14:15:00.000-08:00

This is a big beer for those boys & girls who like a little grit in their beverage and don’t mind wincing when they drink. NEW HOLLAND BREWING, of Holland, MI have made appearances on this site twice before, for their RED TULIP ALE (7/10) and the recent review we provided of their BLACK TULIP ALE (6/10). Unfortunately they’re headed in the wrong direction. This DRAGON’S MILK is an oaked stout – at least that’s what it tastes like. It smells like rum, to be honest, and its 8.5% alcohol feels just a little hotter and heavier than that. While there’s some good vanilla flavor in the medium-bodied black tar liquid, there’s also a strong and somewhat gritty aftertaste that is anything but subtle. There’s a certain amount of heroism that needs to be present when taking one of these down your esophagus, and frankly I just wasn’t feeling all that heroic. 5.5/10.

HBJ IS ON THE TWITTER

2009-11-05T17:16:00.000-08:00

Hey, have you guys heard of TWITTER???!? Well, we’ve got an account over there. It’s not really a Hedonist Beer Jive account per se, and is more my personal thing, but what the heck. If you’re not aggregating this blog via Google Reader or some other cool RSS tool, Twitter’s another way to find out about any posts that happen on this site. If you’re lucky you’ll even get some navel-gazing “tweets” from me about my family, my commute, and what I’m snacking on right now. Check it out – and come follow me! – at http://twitter.com/jayhinman.

SILVER CITY BREWERY’S REVELATORY “FAT”

2009-11-05T13:29:00.000-08:00

Last night a pal dropped by with a corked & caged liquid present from Nantucket for me, so naturally I returned the favor and busted open a bottle of something weird & wild from my fridge. It was a bottle of SILVER CITY BREWERY’s “FAT”, a scotch ale that I picked up more or less on a whim while in Seattle two months ago. It’d been stowed away in my suitcase, then in my garage, and finally the final victorious transfer to the refrigerator, where I’m “allowed” by my significant other to store three beers at any given time. (Fridge space being what it is). I didn’t know a thing about it. I don’t even know where Silverdale, Washington is. I think it’s in the Northwest or something.

SILVER CITY FAT is a revelation. My pal and I didn’t talk about it much, but I’m pretty sure he was thinking what I was thinking, which was WHOA. A 9% ABV, sweet, smooth and ridiculously flavorful scotch ale, one that rides a delicious combination of malts into something that’s both smoky and dessert-like at the same time. It’s almost creamy, this one, with darker fruits & sugars like cranberry and molasses being the tastes I could grab out of this while I was busy gabbing. The alcohol in it is really hidden well, and there’s no question that this brewer’s all of a sudden on my radar. If they can make a scotch ale this fantastic, what else can they do? 9/10.

BEER DORK BACKLASH BACKLASH

2009-11-04T16:44:00.000-08:00

First there was good beer of the amber, pale ale, IPA variety – to say nothing of long-existent Belgians and Germans. Then there was big beer. Then the bigger beer. Then the beer bigger than that one. Then the limited-run, foil-sealed, imperial xtreme wood-aged monster stout, sold out of a warehouse at 6am one day a year in the freezing cold (as in this photo from Three Floyds Darklord Day). And lo, it was good, all very good for all of us, because the other stuff never went away, and there was plenty of choice and abundance for everyone. Yet some panty-waisters seem to think that because American quote-unquote “beer advocates” tend to get most excited about the big, high ABV stuff (just check the Beer Advocate 100 for quick proof), we’ve lost sight of the magical qualities of, say, the lager – or the session ale, or the ESB, or what have you.

I’m here to tell you that that’s okay. It is all part of a growing recognition and celebration of quality, craft and taste that’s going on across all food and beverage categories, not just beer. I see it in cheese, chocolate, meats, coffees, etc. Let us embrace creative destruction, and not cling to the past, simply because we once lived in it. When something has a demonstrably higher level of attention paid to its creation (think Vinnie Cilurzo and the amazing sour beers he tinkers with over at RUSSIAN RIVER BREWING), I think we can call a duck a duck, and flat-out admit that it’s better beer. Same goes for the limited-run imperial porters and stouts that people are trading and celebrating on online forums; just because some people tend to take the fetishization of these things into ridiculousness in no way diminishes how good the grand majority of them are. Complaining about this market-driven consumer trend is like having filet mignon available to you, but still clinging to your rump roast and trying to pawn it off as “just as good”.

Look, I get it – there are really satisfying lagers out there, and the <4% session ale has its time and place. I, for one, continue to love red ales, even the wimpy ones. But let’s recognize that high alcohol content delivers a certain taste that’s incredibly appealing in beer, when it is harnessed correctly. It’s not simply about getting drunk more quickly – it may be for some, but I doubt it is for the majority of us recreational drinkers; buzz comes a lot easier when it’s not coming at $13.99 a bottle. Higher alcohol, combined with barrel-aging techniques (which often brings out that alcohol), combined with creative ingredients, combined with the touch of a master brewer, has resulted in some of the most amazing concoctions called “beer” in the history of the beverage – many of them just in the past couple of years.

I just can’t accept that there’s any reason to whinge about this and bemoan the fate of the lager (for instance). Let it coexist and find its place in the new marketplace where we’re learning - in America, anyway - just what it is that makes a great beer truly great. Often alcohol's a big part of that, and I think that’s just fine.

ITHACA BREWING "CASCAZILLA"

2009-11-03T10:48:00.000-08:00

Here's a big, hopped-up red ale, just the way we like 'em. I swear I get more excited about opening a bottle of insanely hoppy red ale more than I do just about anything else save my beloved tripel; I mean just look at it. It's my first encounter with ITHACA BREWING; they've received some kudos over the years, but given that they're in New York somewhere I don't often stumble across their wares. There's a bottle of their much-beloved ITHACA BRUTE sitting in the cellar that'll make its way down my gullet sooner rather than later.

CASCAZILLA is a 7% ABV amber ale, tingling with really fresh-tasting hops, and balanced well with caramel malts. Medium bodied. A little sharp at times, actually - definitely a beer lover's beer, and not a simple, no-frills red ale. I like it, and I really like its availability in 12-ounce bottles; seems like all the heavyweight good stuff skirts that size these days. 7.5/10.

ROLL OVER, ST. BERNARDUS: SOUTHAMPTON “ABBOT 12”

2009-10-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is a mighty fine quadrupel from a Long Island, New York brewer whom we’ve praised before on this site, most recently for a FRENCH COUNTRY CHRISTMAS ALE and something called CUVEE DES FLEURS, a flowery saison I had last New Year’s Eve. SOUTHAMPTON ABBOT 12 is a tribute, I guess you’d call it, to the fantastic ST. BERNARDUS ABT 12, one of the world’s most renown quadruples, and a permanent resident on the Hedonist Beer Jive 75. I got it in the mail from The Vice Blog’s Aaron G, and now I’ve downed the two beers I was most looking forward to in his “package” (the other being BROOKLYN BLACK OPS). Well, we still have the beer with the marginally sexist label “WAILING WENCH” that I can’t wait to show my wife (what’s wrong with being sexy?).

SOUTHAMPTON ABBOT 12 proves that they’re being well-taken care of beer-wise out on windswept Long Island. It’s a very sweet, malty beer, and you could swear it just arrived off the boat from Antwerp, or Ghent, or one of the other two cities in Belgium that I can name. It’s a beautiful, dark reddish/brown, loaded with intense tastes of raisins, caramel and molasses. Imagine dark fruits soaked in sugar for days, then balanced out with deep, rich malts until near-perfection is reached. No question it’s a “treat” beer, and a real pound-packin’ parcel at 10.5% ABV. St. Bernardus himself would be awfully proud of this one, and I’m going to hunt another bottle of it down for suitcase carriage next time I’m in New York. 8.5/10.

“HOPTIMISM” – A GLASS HALF FULL

2009-10-29T16:13:00.000-07:00

This HOPTIMISM from Stockton, CA’s VALLEY BREWING is what they call a “Black IPA”. Given how much I dug their orange IPA called UBERHOPPY a few weeks ago (8.5/10), I figured going a few shades darker could go either way up or down the scale. Black IPAs are a bit of brewer “slight of hand” whereby dark, roasted malts are added to the normal hop-laden concoction, sometimes adding just color, sometimes adding a completely different taste. HOPTIMISM definitely trends toward the latter, and takes it into an unfamiliar realm. It’s very roasty and hoppy. It’s got a creamy, Guinness-like head, and a surprisingly tingling aftertaste that just doesn’t go away. It has a slight “burnt” quality I’m not wild about, and said quality increases as the beer warms and turns it almost into a harsh, charcoal-like taste. It’s an “interesting” beer. So this is an IPA? Nah, I don’t think so. What it is is a 6/10.

(Note: in my research for links to this post I found this one that indicates that it’s actually a collaboration beer between Valley Brewing, Sacramento Brewing and the Auburn Alehouse. Well shut my mouth. The Monk’s Kettle listed it only by the former, so apologies to the latter).

HEY, NOW THAT'S A PUMPKIN ALE

2009-10-28T06:20:00.001-07:00

Mere weeks ago in this space we were bemoaning the decline of the hallowed Fall seasonal, the pumpkin ale, as manifested in recent drops in quality from the offerings by Dogfish Head, Buffalo Bill's, and yes, SOUTHERN TIER. But one night - one magic, special night - changed all of that for me. I'm talking of course of the SMASHED PUMPKIN ale from Maine's SHIPYARD BREWING, served to me on draft & with a smile at the Monk's Kettle in San Francisco last week. This one, let it be said, is the early leader in the HBJ 2009 Fall pumpkin/spiced beer taste-off, and granted, while the sample size is, uh, quite low (about 3 right now), the beer is one to be reckoned with no matter what it's put up against.

I'd only had a sole SHIPYARD beer to date, a mediocre ESB if I recall, and I'll admit these fellas haven't been anywhere near top of mind. They've been distributing here on the West Coast recently, and their bottles seem to sit & collect dust wherever I've seen them. Not being a hater, just a teller of truth, my friends. Their SMASHED PUMPKIN ale is in 22-ounce bottles, and definitely earns the "imperial" label they slap on it, given its 9% alcohol content. Hey, that got you interested, didn't it? The pumpkin itself it quite muted and not the real story here - the great, mouth-enveloping spices and general tang of the thing is. It even has a mild sour flavor, perhaps in a look across the Atlantic to Belgium or something. Oh - and it's hoppy. Very, very hoppy, at least relative to my expectations. It's a really good beer and I suggest you have a bomber or two of this sitting next to you on the porch this Saturday night. 8/10.

NEW HOLLAND BREWING’S “BLACK TULIP ALE”

2009-10-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

Only one beer left after this one to ingest from my big Midwest beer trade with FRESH BEER EVERY FRIDAY blog; it’s some dark-as-ink imperial stout or something that I obviously need to wait for the onset of winter to quaff. This one, NEW HOLLAND BREWING’s BLACK TULIP, is a 22-ounce bottle of tripel that I dug into a couple of weeks ago and am just now getting to writing about. Here’s the deal: the bar has been set very high on tripels for me by the likes of UNIBROUE’s La Fin Du Monde, ST BERNARDUS Tripel and of course the standard-bearer for the style, WESTMALLE TRIPEL. The sole American “copy” of this classic Belgian beer that I’ve ever fallen over myself for was a local one, made by MARIN BREWING and called TRIPEL DIPSEA. I’m not sure if it was a fluke when I tried it 2+ years ago, but man was that a good beer. I’ve tried many a mediocre tripel, even those from Belgium, and I think it’s one of those beer styles that you’d best have your big boy pants on if you’re going to attempt to brew it.

So with that snarky dose of jadedness, let us dig into BLACK TULIP. It is still - very, very still, with little head and only the tiniest froth to speak of. My picture speaks volumes, OMG taken mere seconds after the pour!! Really carbonated and bubbling, with the ya-gotta-have-it-or-it-ain’t-a-tripel Belgian candi sugars and spices. This one has more of a luscious tang to it than most tripels I’ve enjoyed, yet less of that intense, yeasty flavor that I think makes the style stand up proud. Finishes quite dry, even a little effervescent. Oh man, the me of ten years ago would’ve just murdered the me of today for writing the word “effervescent” with regard to a beer. I guess I am what I am, and I guess NEW HOLLAND BLACK TULIP is what it is, which is a 6.5/10.

STONE BREWING’s “CALI-BELGIQUE”

2009-10-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

Here’s a Belgian IPA, that most interesting of hybrids, that actually hails from the US of A and not Belgium. Once URTHEL and LA CHOUFFE appropriated the American-style, ultra-hopped IPA a few years ago, and combined it with Belgian yeasts, tripel-style fermentation and age-old brewing processes, it was a matter of time before the boomerang effect kicked it and us Yanks started copying those. STONE BREWING came out with theirs earlier in the year and have dubbed it CALI-BELGIQUE.

This is a very crisp, very floral beer, leaning probably more to the Belgium side of the equation despite a big kick of hops. The bitterness is well-muted by the spicy and light citrus characteristics of the ale, and in some regards it’s a good thing, but overall I’m not too sure. I typed in “a little underwhelming” in my portable note-taking machine, the same one that snapped this photo. It actually got less interesting as it warmed, and that’s the opposite of how it usually works for me. It’s a lot better than the “drain pour” reviews I saw of this when it first came out – way better – but I’ll stick to the Belgian versions of this weirdo style for now. 6.5/10.

OMG OMG BROOKLYN BREWING “BLACK OPS”

2009-10-22T06:27:00.000-07:00

Remember when I said that the $20 price point was my do-not-cross line with regard to purchasing beer? Well, it wasn’t a bottle of BROOKLYN BREWING ’s rarely-sighted BLACK OPS that got me over the threshold, but the promise of receiving one in the mail. I executed a big trade recently with a gentleman who shall remain nameless, and he told me it cost him twenty-four sawbucks to procure this one for me; I therefore felt the need to respond in kind, and purchased said gentleman a >$20 bottle of RUSSIAN RIVER TEMPTATION, a beer we just raved about on this here site last week. So that’s it. I’ve done it. I’ve broken the psychological and monetary barrier I said I wouldn’t, all so I could ingest a bottle of BROOKLYN BLACK OPS. Good thing it’s hands-down one of the best beers I’ve ever had.

BROOKLYN BLACK OPS is everything I’d hoped for, one of those beers residing in the upper/upper echelon of greatness that every beer dork like myself is continually hunting for. From the first sip it was obviously to me & Barleypress, whom I shared this with, that this was something special. We were even bragging that this was likely the only bottle within the city limits of San Francisco and its 800,000+ population. Now it's gone (sad face emoticon). BLACK OPS is a bourbon barrel-aged stout, clocking in at 10.7% alcohol. Somehow it’s apparently “re-fermented with champagne yeast” – maybe some of you know what that means. It has basically been refined and crafted to the point that it’s the smoothest, most delicious “imperial” beer I’ve had all year. Incredible thin, luscious mouthfeel – creamy even - with intense flavors of chocolate and roasted coffee. The foamy head on it looks and smells like whipped chocolate mousse. We were both just taken aback by the thing, and drank it with extreme reverence and respect. I suspect that this may be my last jaw-dropping beer of 2009 and therefore of this decade; it’s going to be very, very hard to top this one. 10/10.

PRIDE OF CENTRALIA: DICK’S BOTTLEWORKS IPA

2009-10-20T06:07:00.000-07:00

I picked this 22-ounce bottle up at BOTTLEWORKS in Seattle several weeks ago, mostly on a tip from Beer Retard Chris Devlin, who educated me that this one was going fast. DICK’S BOTTLEWORKS IPA was made especially for the store by DICK’S BREWING of Centralia, WA, to mark their 10th anniversary - or so I figured. The more I look this up online, the more I’m wondering just how old the thing really was. There are reviews of it dating back to mid-2008, and if there’s one bit of orthodoxy I’m willing to break with, it’s the whole “aging” beer hoo-hah, especially with a somewhat freshness-dependent beer like an India Pale Ale. Looking at the graphics on this thing, which appear to have been created with Corel Draw in 1994, it might be even older.

Let’s get into it, shall we? This is a dark orange (never mind the photo - the iPhone doesn't have a flash!), exceptionally flavor-packed big IPA, though it’s paradoxically not incredibly hoppy, except in the aftertaste. On the tongue, it’s smooth. It’s 8.5% ABV, and is malty and very thick. If there’s a key flavor, it’s pine, and lots of it. In the hops vs. malts showdown this one definitely puts the malts on top. I daresay I enjoyed it. I wonder what it would have tasted like had it been made last month, as opposed to last year. Anyone have a perspective on this one, or did I buy the last bottle in Washington State? 7/10.

SOUTHERN TIER’S “PUMKING”

2009-10-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

I got so many fantastic-looking beers in my recent wallet-busting mother-of-all-beer-trades with VICE BLOG’s Aaron Goldfarb the other day, but I hadda bust this one out first, given that it’s only a few days to Halloween and all. I just have to say it, the last few pumpkin beers I’ve tried just haven’t done much for me, even re-tries of perennials like Dogfish Head Punkin and Buffalo Bill’s Pumpkin Ale. Surely SOUTHERN TIER would break the cycle of hopelessness and despair? With an “imperial” pumpkin ale, no less? Well – hmm – not really. SOUTHERN TIER PUMKING is a spicy, no-question-at-all pumpkin ale, but it has this thin body and weird mélange of flavors that just doesn’t quite come together in a revelatory way. Think cinnamon, nutmeg, and Chloroseptic lozenges. And I’m neither feeling sick nor ready for winter.

It’s got pureed pumpkin in the mash, and to its credit, it’s as prevalent here as if you were gobbling a hunk of pumpkin bread from grandma’s oven. It’s also cruising along at 9% ABV, and I’m thinking that this high a level of alcohol doesn’t sit well with this, uh, “flavor profile”. Granted, this is not a bad beer. When there are at least a dozen other, far better, Southern Tiers on the shelves, though, I’d probably recommend you throw those in the handbasket first. 6/10.

BALLAST POINT SCULPIN – NOT YOUR FATHER’S IPA

2009-10-16T06:23:00.000-07:00

Before I went to San Diego last week, I reckoned that if I got to drink a big tall glass of either ALPINE EXPONENTIAL HOPPINESS or BALLAST POINT SCULPIN – two of the most highly raved-about double IPAs on the planet in 2009 – I’d have done my job, and served God & country admirably. Well, mission accomplished, my friends, though the Alpine beers were not on draft at any of the three watering holes I visited. BALLAST POINT SCULPIN, currently the #12 ranked beer in the world by Beer Advocate readers, was. And oh yeah, it’s a good one, and I’m happy to say that for once I’ve tasted an IPA that breaks out of the piney vs. citrus continuum. IPAs have become hard to write about, to be honest – though the style continues to be one of my favorites, and there’s a lot of differentiation within the style, it’s all within a very contained box. It’s either bitingly hoppy, or only moderately so. It’s either floral, citrusy or piney. It might be smooth, it might be a little rough. SCULPIN’s a little different.

To start, it’s a 7% ABV beer that drinks like an even bigger one. It’s incredibly smooth, and much thinner in body than you typically get from your “big” IPAs. It’s floral and incredibly aromatic, with tastes of honey and pineapple in the distance, mixed with some bold hopping (of course). Dry and luscious, and not designed for quick quaffing but for lingering over a bit. Seriously, it’s either a bold leap forward for the IPA or at least a sideways jump. I thought it was great, and I’m going to try and hunt down a bottle or two where I can. 8.5/10.

HBJ STOMPS & POUTS AND TRIES TO FAKE A TORONADO IPA SHOWDOWN

2009-10-15T06:20:00.000-07:00

I set foot in San Francisco’s TORONADO bar a couple of weeks ago for the first time since my rant about their foul, snotty, amazingly douchy bartenders generated some nice click-throughs and some exciting re-posts & animated discussion over on Facebook. Wow, I need to smack-talk a little more often; it's way more fun than beer reviews, and "the people seem to dig it". Anyway, true to form, the main offending bartender, the one with the fake Boston accent, showed his true colors almost as soon as I arrived (keep in mind that this guy doesn’t know me from El Debarge). I’m standing there with a $10-spot in my hand, and the guy goes “One minute” while he walks over to the other side of the bar to serve someone else. No problem. As he walks back to get the guy’s beer, he looks me in the eye, and swear to god, goes “Would ya stop stahring at me? I’ll get to ya. Ya making me nahvous”. OK, “Southie”. I’d been there for maybe 30 seconds. Clown.

I think the bloom’s coming off this place’s rose in other ways, too. I used to walk into Toronado and routinely be floored by the incredible, rare and wild choices being offered up. Now other bars surprise me far more regularly, even the ultra-pricey MONK’S KETTLE (who, to their credit, seem to have made an attempt to lower prices). At Toronado it’s the same 3 Russian River taps, the same 2-3 Moonlight taps, the same 2-3 Iron Springs offerings, etc. I’d just been in Seattle four days previously, where not one but two bars up there had an imperial version of ANDERSON VALLEY BOONT AMBER on tap called HUGE’R BOONT. “San Francisco’s premier bar” didn’t have it, despite it being a more or less local beer, nor anything else particularly special. Granted, a lot of this complaining is a function of me and how I’m constantly needing to find the newest-latest (what a dork!), but surprisingly, I’m coming to the conclusion that The Toronado just might not be the #1 place for that any longer.

Anyway! There were a couple of IPAs on draft that I’d never tried before, or so I thought until five minutes ago when I reviewed my own blog and found that I rated GREEN FLASH WEST COAST IPA a 7.5/10 about 18 months ago. OK, so let’s just say that it’s a well-above-average IPA with a very, very big & bitter bite, and a strong pine taste. Love this brewer. I’m raising the score to 8/10. The other one I went with is from a local-ish (Napa) brewer called NAPA SMITH. Their IPA is imaginatively dubbed NAPA SMITH IPA. This one has a really nice tingling mouthfeel, but considerably less bite and hops action than the Green Flash. Solid, if a little plain. 7/10. I skulked out of the Toronado like a spoiled little Lord Fauntleroy with the words of Johnny Rotten performing 31 years ago and a mere 2 miles away ringing through my groggy, beered-out head: “Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated….?”.

CATCHING UP TO STONE’S “VERTICAL EPIC 9-9-09”

2009-10-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

Now that I’ve had my first STONE VERTICAL EPIC – last year’s, which we reviewed a few weeks ago – I’m all in. Let’s do this. I’ll be drinking them as long as they keep making them (mark your calendars for October 10th next year). This year’s is nothing like what I expected, but even in its “young” state, it’s amazing. I’d call it something like a Belgian-style smoked ale, maybe a dubbel crossed with a hefeweizen with a little rauchbier action as well. Any of you had one yet? What do you call it? STONE themselves say “Belgian-style imperial porter”. Really, we’re all just making this up and pretending we know what we’re talking about, aren’t we?

STONE VERTICAL EPIC 9-9-09 was enjoyed on draft at Downtown Johnny Brown’s in San Diego, CA. When I mentioned to Todd, the owner, that it tasted like a banana-infused dubbel, he gave me a big long, “nahhhhhhh, that’s not it at all”. I guess you have to love a beer that keeps the pundits guessing. There are tastes of chocolate mixed in with the banana, as well as that rich, smoked malty flavor that I’d say defines it overall. It is clean and smooth and very fresh. It runs about 9% alcohol, so an unshared bomber of this might set you back for the night and have you to bed early. You know what? I’m going to try that out and see. This is an excellent beer, definitely one we each need to hoard and stock up for the winter. 9/10.