Year of Beer

#366 Delirium - Tremens

2008-09-05T19:51:00.002-05:00

This is the beer entry in the Year of Beer. Somewhere along the way the count got off but I know this is the 366th beer because I started on September 6th and with the leap year I got one extra beer in the middle to reach the goal a day a short of a calender year. This is a repeat of the first beer so I can judge how far I have come in understand the taste of beer, the whole goal of this. I will make some final post in a few days about my favorite beers and final thoughts.

This beer has a strong Belgian spice flavor, with a hint of fruit. The color is a pale yellow and very cloudy, bit of sediment can be seen floating around. The head pours thick and active, it quickly fizzes down to a low covering with mild retention.

The flavor of this beer is full of Belgian spice with strong clove flavors, and some hint of banana. There is a bit of residual sweetness and a hint of malt. A very slight hint of alcohol is present in the taste, but it is appropriate for a 8.5% beer. The mouthfeel is thick and effervescent with bubble fizzing down the through. The finish is full of Belgian spice and a little dry.

This is a really tasty beer, my opinion on that has not changed over the year. I understand that it is the Belgian yeast giving the beer so much flavor, and a great hint of fruit. Still a good beer to enjoy on occasion.

#364 Stone Mill - Pale Ale

2008-09-04T21:41:00.002-05:00

This is an Anheuser Busch or InBev product. This is a certified organic beer, brewed with organically grown hops a barley.

There is a light malt aroma with a little fruitiness. The color is light brown with lots of red highlights and plenty clear. The head pours light and has poor retention.

The taste is light with some malt sweetness and a bit of syrup taste. The hop flavor has floral notes but is very muted. The malt sweetness and light hop blend together well. The mouthfeel is thin with lots of carbonation. The finish is sweet.

This is a really enjoyable beer. Nothing crazy or over the top just a basic beer with light tastes all well balanced. Organic or not this is a good beer.

#363 Shipyard - Export

2008-09-03T21:11:00.002-05:00

This beer has an odd candy or honey aroma. The color is a light gold and clear. The head pours very thick and has good retention sticking around long after the pour.

The taste is much like the aroma, sweet with some honey candy flavor. There is a clear hop flavor with some floral and grass notes, and there is a mild bitterness. The main flavor of this beer is the odd sweetness. The mouthfeel is thin with some carbonation. The finish is sweet.

I don't like this beer. I have no clue what the style is supposed to be and this sweet taste is bugging me.

#361 Boulevard - Bully! Porter

2008-09-01T12:39:00.003-05:00

This beer has a light malty aroma with a hint of earthiness. The color is black with a some red highlights shining through. The head pours thick with good retention and large bubbles.

There is a strong roasted malt flavor with some coffee and burnt toast characteristics. The malt has a little sweetness, that is over powered by a tannin flavor from the dark malt. A hint of hop bitterness is present, but again the roast malt is strongest flavor. The mouthfeel is thin with good carbonation. The finish is roasty.

This is really tasty porter, strong dark malt flavors and lots of roast. Might be a bit heavy on the tannin flavor, but thats all.

#360 Charleville - Tornado Alley

2008-08-31T21:19:00.003-05:00

The aroma is malty with some hints of smoke. The color is a medium dark brown with red highlights. The head pours thin and dissipates quickly.

There is a smoky malt flavor to this beer. The malt is sweet with caramel and toffee flavors. The smoke flavor is noticeable and by no means overpowering. The only hop characteristic is a mild bitterness, the smoke might be covering the hop taste. The mouthfeel is medium and smooth. The finish is sweet and smoky.

This is a pretty tasty beer, the smoke taste is dominate but not over powering. A good use of smoked malt.

#359 Shipyard - IPA

2008-08-30T11:50:00.005-05:00

There is a light hop aroma with floral notes. The color is light brown with some red highlights and pretty clear. The head pours thick with large bubbles, and hold a good retention.

This beer has a good balance of malt and hops. There is a clear malt flavor with some grain notes with some tannins and hints of caramel. The hops have a piny flavor, and a mild bitterness. The mouthfeel is full with some carbonation. This beer finishes with a little bitter with a hint of grain.

This is an easy drinking basic IPA. No over the top hop flavor, and a good balance of malt.

#357 Leffe - Blond

2008-08-28T21:26:00.003-05:00

Leffe is brewed by InBev the new owner of Anheuser Busch, expect to find this beer showing up on store shelf across the country.

There is a light aroma of Belgian spice, with a hint of honey. The color is a light orange and very clear. The head pours medium with slight retention.

The taste is sweet, with some light malt flavors and honey notes. The spice taste is present and not too strong. There is no noticeable hops and only a touch of bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium and smooth. The finish is sweet with a very light spice note.

This is a basic Belgian blond, nothing really great but nothing wrong. This would be a fine daily drinking beer. So far this is my favorite InBev beer.

#356 Charleville - Hoptimistic IPA

2008-08-27T19:31:00.002-05:00

There is only a slight hint of floral hop aroma to this beer. The color is a light brown and very clear. The head pours light with low retention.

This beer has a lot of sweet malt flavor, with caramel notes. The hop flavor is very light, just a hint of floral hops and some bitterness. The malt flavor is more akin to a amber ale than an IPA. The mouthfeel is medium with some carbonation. The finish is sweet with some tannins.

There is not near enough hops in this beer for it to be an IPA, the hops would not be high for an amber ale. As an Amber Ale this isn't bad, nothing wonderful, but Amber ales normally arn't that amazing.

#355 Kona - Long Board

2008-08-26T21:00:00.004-05:00

This beer has a classic lager aroma, light malt and no hops. The color is straw and very clear with plenty of bubbles coming up from the bottom. The head is medium with medium retention.

There is a strange sweet taste to this beer, a slightly off fruit taste. The strange taste is kind of earthy and sweet and not right. There is a normally light malt taste and sweetness, and a hint of hops for bitterness. The mouthfeel is light and refreshing. The finish also has the stange flavor.

I do not like this strange taste, it is unexpected in this beer, and I do not know what it is. It does not taste like an infection, but it could be a dirty bottle. I don't know what is wrong but I am unhappy with this beer.

#354 Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes - Cuvée Du 8ème

2008-08-25T20:39:00.003-05:00

This beer has a light malty aroma mixed with the sour. The color is a muddy brown without any light passing through. The head is low with poor retention.

This beer tastes earthy with hints of malt. The sour flavor is less pronounced that the Cuvée Du 7ème, but sour is still the main flavor. There is some hints of fruit blending with the wild yeast sour flavor. The mouthfeel is thin with low carbonation. The finish is a little malty sweet with a light sour taste.

I like this beer more than the Cuvée Du 7ème, but I am still not a fan. I just don't care much for sour beer.

#353 Orkney Brewing - Skull Splitter

2008-08-24T20:26:00.002-05:00

There is a malty, slightly aged raisin aroma to this beer. The color is a light brown with some light shining through. The head pours medium with little retention.

This beer has a malty aged beer flavor. The malt is sweet with a molasses quality, and some grain flavors. There is also a clear aged beer oxidization and raisin flavor, maybe a little too much aged flavor. There is no clear hop taste. The mouthfeel is smooth with low carbonation. The finish is sweet with some molasses hints.

This is an ok beer, little too sweet and maybe too much oxidization for my taste. A good example of a strong old ale. An acceptable beer to sip on.

#352 Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes - Cuvée Du 7ème

2008-08-23T22:40:00.003-05:00

There is a pronounced sour lemon aroma to this beer. The color a medium brown and very hazy, looks almost muddy. The head pours thick with has moderate retention.

This is a very sour beer, clearly soured with wild yeast. The only clear flavor is a lemon like sour taste, and a little earthiness. This beer is very dry, no sweet tastes. The mouthfeel is thin, with little carbonation. The finish is sour and lemony.

I am not a fan of sour beers and this is a perfect example of what I don't like. The only taste is sour, and nothing else.

#351 Jolly Pumpkin - Oro de Calabaza

2008-08-22T20:49:00.002-05:00

There is a hint of sour fruit aroma, a little lemony. This beer has a golden color with some haze and flakes of sediment on the bottom of the glass. The head pours thick and pillowy with good retention.

The taste is fruity with a well blended spice profile. The lemony fruit flavor is delicate with some honey sweetness. The spice is well rounded with Belgian characteristics and the fruit flavor. The mouthfeel is smooth and creamy with a ton of carbonation dancing across the tongue in each sip. The finish is light and fruity with a shadow of spice.

This is a wonderful beer, one of the amazing finds mixed in with so many other beers. I love the fruit and spice, the a mouthfeel alone makes the beer worth drinking.

#350 Kiuchi - White Ale

2008-08-21T19:52:00.002-05:00

There is a strong aroma of spice and orange peel to this beer. The color is a pale yellow and very cloudy, much like a wheat beer. The foam is medium with good retention.

There is a lot of spice taste to this beer, with a more Christmas beer flavor than Belgian spice characteristic. There is a clear orange taste with a hint of sourness enhancing the flavor. The mouthfeel is full and well carbonated. The finish is spicy with orange flavors.

I really like this beer, there is a lot of fun spice and orange flavors, while still being easy to drink.

#349 Hofbrau - Hefe Weizen

2008-08-20T21:41:00.002-05:00

This beer has a yeasty aroma with a bit of green glass skunk. The color is a pale yellow and very cloudy. The head pours thick and has poor retention, quickly leaving the only a slight bit of foam.

There is a definite wheat taste to this beer, almost like raw grain. A bit of fruity orange and spice flavor is also present, blending well with the wheat. There is a ever so slight bit of skunk taste to the beer, far less than noticed in the aroma The mouthfeel is light and well carbonated. The finish is fruity and light.

This is a nice light beer, refreshing with some subtle flavors all blending well.

#348 Ray Hill's - American Pilsner

2008-08-19T21:05:00.002-05:00

Ray Hill is a member of the St. Louis Brews the local homebrew club I am also member of. Ray Hill first made this beer as a homebrewer, he later approached Anheuser Busch about brewing his beer. One thing lead to another and AB brews the beer at one of their smaller breweries, distributes it on their network and Ray Hill is responsible for marketing and getting shelf space. A really supprising story of a Homebrewer hitting the big time in an odd way.

There is a hint of tangy hops in the aroma of this beer. The color is straw and very clear. The head pours medium and has a bit of retinition keeping the top of the beer covered.

The taste is a little sweet with some tangy flavors. The tangy taste is likely from the hops but they are not very bitter. The mouthfeel is light, highly carbonated and effervesant. The finish is clean and refreshing.

This is a really light refreshing beer. This is not my prefred style and it is very similar to the common Bud Light, but with more flavor. This is like a tastier Bud Light or Budwiser.

#347 Fort Collins-The Kidd Lager

2008-08-18T20:39:00.002-05:00

This beer has a roasted malt aroma with a hint of smoke. The color black with a bit of red highlight shining through. The foam is moderate with low retention.

The taste is malty with a rich roasted taste and only a hint of coffee flavor. The roasted flavor tastes almost smoky, but might just be from the level of dark roast. There is some lager chalky flavor, but overall the taste is malty. The mouthfeel is stingy and well carbonated. This beer finished clean with some malt taste.

This is an ok beer, just a ton of roasted malt flavor, and a bit of lager taste. I would be happier without the lager flavors.

#346 Left Hand - Rye Bock Lager

2008-08-17T20:34:00.002-05:00

The aroma of this beer is slightly spicy and grainy. The color is brown with plenty of haze. He head pours very thick, to the point of over carbonated, but has only mild retention.

The taste is grainy, with rye spice flavors. The rye spice flavor is very predominate tasting a little akin to the rye seeds in rye bread. There is a bit of sweetness that balances against the spiciness. The mouthfeel is over carbonated and stingy not the normal smooth taste of a rye. The finish is a little spicy.

This is a really enjoyable beer, easy drinking and a fun rye flavor. I think this beer is over carbonated, the cork blew off the bottle without much encouragement. I will likely pick up another bottle of this.

#345 Fort Collins - Major Tom's Pomegranate Wheat

2008-08-17T20:33:00.002-05:00

This beer has a wheat and fruit aroma. The color is a dark yellow and very clear. The head is thick with moderate retention.

There is a light fruit flavor in this beer, and surprisingly dry for the fruit flavor. Overall this beer does not have much flavor beyond the dry fruit taste. The mouthfeel is light and smooth with a clean finish.

No big flavors just a light enjoyable beer. This is a wonderful example of a summer beer.

#344 Fort Collins - Z Lager

2008-08-15T11:55:00.003-05:00

This is a Rauchbier, a German style beer using smoked malt.

There is a light smoke aroma present in this beer along with some caramel malt notes. The color is a light brown with some orange highlights shining though. The head is low, but keeps the edge of the beer covered.

The taste is smoky with some malt tannin flavors. There is some light fruity hop characteristics with a bit of bitterness. The tannin flavors are similar to the Fort Collins Red Ale likly caused by similar grain bills and mashing techniques between the two beers. The smoke taste is mild and not over the top like some beers. The mouthfeel is like with moderate carbonation. This beer finishes smoky.

I don't normally like smoked beers but I really enjoy this one. I think it would go great with a meal. The smoke taste is appropriate balanced with the other malt flavors.

#343 Fort Collins Brewery - Retro Red

2008-08-14T17:07:00.002-05:00

This beer has an aroma of sweet caramel malt with a not of grain. The color is a reddish brown that is easy enough to see through. The head is low, with little retention.

The taste is malty with caramel flavors and some hints of tannins. There is a definite grain taste like eating fresh crack grain. The tannin flavor is not too strong but is might be masking any hop flavors, because there is no hop characteristic. The mouthfeel is full with low carbonation. The finish carries the taste though malt and grain, just a little dryer than the start.

This is a nice malty Red Ale, I like the grain taste and the slight tannins. This would be a great beer any day.

#342 Macheson - Triple Stout

2008-08-13T20:36:00.002-05:00

The aroma is rich and malty with an almost chocolate note. The color is black without any light shining through. The head is pours thick and has low retention, fizzing down the a light cover quickly.

The taste starts with a dark malt sweetness like chocolate. There is an almost old ale taste of dried fruit or raisins. The dark malt has only a little roasted flavor mainly the sweet taste, almost fruity, like a chocolate covered fruit. The mouthfeel is thin and smooth. The finish is clean with a little sugery sweetness.

This is an ok beer, I would like a more roasted flavor that an sweet flavor. But there is nothing really wrong with this beer.

#341 O'Fallon - Wheach

2008-08-13T12:40:00.002-05:00

This beer has an aroma of fresh ripe peaches, almost no beer related aroma. The color is a light yellow with plenty of haze, common for a wheat beer. The head is present but not overly thick, this beer was from a bar so the bartender might have tried to avoid any foam.

The taste is peachy and bit sweet. The wheat flavor is present but not very strong. The main flavor is peach, no malt or hop flavors are present. The mouthfeel is smooth with plenty of carbonation. The finish is fruity, like the rest og the beer.

This is a tasty summer time beer, but I think more than one in a sitting might become over kill with peach flavor.

#340 Rch Brewery - Ale Mary

2008-08-11T20:47:00.002-05:00

There is very little aroma to this beer, only smell is a hint of hops. The color is a light brown with a little be of haze. The head is very thick with really good retention.

The taste is pretty bland, a little malt sweetness, and a hint of fruitiness. The bitterness is the most pronounced flavor and it not very strong. The mouthfeel is well carbonated and medium. The finish is a little bitter with hints of fruitiness.

This is a pretty boring beer, not much going on in the way of flavor. Just some bitterness and light malt flavors. The foam might be the most exciting part of this beer.

#339 Great Divide - Samurai Ale

2008-08-10T20:36:00.004-05:00

This beer has a yeasty aroma with hint of malt and hops. The color is cloudy straw that is still quite clear. The head pours very thick and sticky with good retention sticking to the side of the glass.

The taste is a little sweet with, no clear malt flavor. There is some tart flavor that likly comes from a light amount of hops. The yeast aroma is still present in the taste, just some noticeable yeast flavors. The mouthfeel is light and refreshing with plenty of carbonation. The finish is clean with just a hint of the tart flavor.

This is a pretty basic beer, would work fine as a lawn mower beer. I don't care much for the tart flavor, but as a basic beer this is fine.