#86 Moonlight Brewing - Old Combine

Old Combine comes from Moonlight Brewing is a little brewery up in Santa Rosa which distributes only locally and only in kegs.  They are probably most well known for their popular black lager, Death and Taxes.  Old Combine is another lager of theirs, which is brewed with barley, wheat, oats and rye.
It might make a good session sipper; only 5% ABV, and a pale golden color.
Appearance:  Pale golden.  Hazy.  Thin white head, good lacing.
Nose:  Grassy and floral hops.
Palate:  Spicy rye bite.  Nice light hop bittering.  Big carbonation.  Slight lager yeast sour notes.
This beer has a medium/high body, the only thing that might keep it out of the session category.  I nice beer, but wasn't exceptional to me.
7 out of 10 

Day 80, 3.21.11., Goose Island - Demolition Golden Ale

Here is the last bottle of Goose Island I'll probably ever drink.  Let me explain.  Anheuser-Busch/InBev may be the beer Antichrist, and as of March 28th* they are also the new majority stake holders in Goose Island Brewing.  And as a general rule I don't contribute to A-B/InBev's coffers by spending my hard earned beer money on their crap.  And regardless of how good Goose Island's beer is or will be, I just can't support the whole thing.  [Rant now concluded]
I should say that I have really liked the three or so beers I've tried from Goose Island.
Demolition is a Belgian style golden ale.  It certainly IS golden and totally clear with a thinish head without a whole lot of lacing.
The nose offers dusty honey and floral notes, backed up by sour fruit, cherry especially. 
On the palate, the hops come across with a nice spice and a nice bitterness.  There are also some lemony citrus notes and floral hop flavor.  It's 7.2% ABV and 40 IBU.
I thought the beer was quite good.  The news about A-B/InBev left a bad taste in my mouth though.
7 out of 10.

*I know that this blog is dated 3.21.11., but it was actually written on 4.17.11., since I'm still so far behind in my blogging.

Day 79, 3.20.11., Westoek

Westoek is a Belgian Triple.  I don't know much about it, but I found it in a bottle and then I drank it.
It's cloudy and golden amber, and although it nearly leaped out of the bottle when I uncapped it, I found the head a little thin and fairly bubbly, especially for a Belgian ale.  The nose is slightly lambic-y with the sourish nose of brettanomyces making a strong presence.  The aromas are also musky with peppery and spice notes.  And if that's not enough, there are fruity hints as well; subtle banana and overripe apricot.
The palate is crisp and very effervescent, with bitter orange and sweet spice and cardamom.  I was a little surprised though.  Compared to the aroma, the flavor is almost boringly simple. 
Good not great.
7 out of 10.

Day 77, 3.18.11, Alaska Brewing - IPA

For whatever reason, I've long classified Alaska Brewing as one of those just ok micro brews. Maybe the fact that I can get the amber ale at Safeway is a turn off. Although I can get Lagunitas IPA there too. So maybe I'm being an elitist asshole.
At any rate I never really pay Alaska any attention. It gets no respect, no regard. But now that I've tried the IPA, will I change my tune?
Its a golden yellow beer, clear and crisp with a white creamy head. It has some lovely aromas of herbal hops,paired with musty, dusty earth. The body is in the medium to light range, and it offers a nice crisp finish.
As for flavor, the bitterness is subtle and resiny; not overbearing.  there are some really nice fresh floral herbal hop notes. Overall, I think it's a rather muted IPA, but perhaps I'm swayed by all the doubles and imperials I've sipped lately. It's actually a nice easy drinking IPA. I was pleasanly surprised.
7 out of 10

Day 75, 3.16.11., Firestone Walker - Double Jack

Here's another that Derek insisted I try.  Twist my arm.
Firestone Walker hails from Paso Robles, Ca.  They've been operating since 1996 and they make some terrific beer.  The Double Jack is FW's Imperial IPA.
The beer is pale golden and crystal clear.  It has a thick white head with good lacing.  The aroma is all hop, with floral and spicy notes.
On the palate there are lemon and orange notes. There's a little hop flavor and a LOT of hop bitterness.  The body is big enough to balance out the big bitter punch.  There is also a definite detectable alcohol flavor; not surprising with an ABV of 9.5%
I think this is a good strong IPA, but I don't find it especially well rounded.
7 out of 10.

Day 73, 3.14.11., Monteith's - Black Beer

Lesley and I went to dinner the other night at ZuZu in Napa.  It's a tapas place.  We thought it was quite good, although the server was kinda weird.  But I drank a couple of beers there too.  The second one I had was my good old friend Saison Dupont.  But before that, I tried a beer from down New Zealand way.  It's called Monteith's Black Beer.

In the glass, this beer is... well... black.  It has a creamy lingering head and dark roasty malt aromas.  The palate is mild and lightly bittered.  It's medium bodied and has a really lovely velvety smooth mouth feel.
I don't think this is an overly complex beer but it's a very good easy drinking dark session beer.

7 out of 10

Day 72, 3.13.11., Uncommon Brewers - Baltic Porter

Here's another micro beer in a can.  Uncommon Brewers are located in Santa Cruz and list three beers on their website's list of brews.  I tried a can of the Baltic Porter.
In the glass it looks a lot like a stout. It's dark black and has a thick, creamy, beige head.
On the nose I picked up on a little smoke, a good amount of coffee beans, and a subtle hint of licorice.  Come to find out, the beer is brewed with licorice root and star anise.  Cool.  I like when my palate is confirmed.
The palate has strong hop character and bitterness.  Backing that is a good amount of brown sugar and some malty bitterness.  It's topped off though with that classic roasty dark malt character.
The body of the beer I found a little too thin.
I originally gave the Baltic Porter a six of ten, but then I realized it was too cold.  Once it warmed up to about 55º, the flavors were much more cohesive.
7 out of 10

Day 71, 3.12.11., Mikkeller - I Hardcore You

If you follow this blog closely, you'll know I've taken a real shine to Mikkeller.  Now, Mikkeller has joined up with BrewDog for an Imperial IPA.  So if you also know about my love for IPAs and my growing interest in BrewDog, then you and I will agree that I Hardcore You may just be my personal beer trifecta!   

(Since I have yet to blog a beer from BrewDog, here is 107 words on them: 
BrewDog is a Scottish brewery started by two 24 year old dudes in 2006.  They make myriad beers mostly in classic styles, but with innovations and twists that are more often seen out here in the Pacific Coast brewing world, than in the more traditional European model.  For instance, the first time I heard of BrewDog was in Portland on my bachelor party trip when my brothers and buddies and I tried their Paradox bourbon cask aged imperial stout.  I remember it was awesome, intense and way over priced at the fancy restaurant we had dinner at.  Don't remember much more.  What?  It was my bachelor party.)

I have to say though, that this one was a little disappointing.  The problem is not that the beer is not good, it is good, but I've come to expect amazing from Mikkeller.  
This beer is golden red and fairly clear.  It's pretty thick and viscous.  It has Big bold resiny hop aroma and flavor and strong bitterness.  I called this one a 7 of 10.  Here's why: it's quite unbalanced.  The only balance to the big hop punch was the full body.  But there is really not much maltyness or sweetness.  
I still love Mikkeller but this, I thought, was not their best.

Day 70, 3.11.11., Avery duganA IPA

Derek came up from San Diego and brought me some beers. This was one That he ranted and raved about, so I was excited to try it; Avery duganA IPA.
It's orange and cloudy with a thick foamy head. Not surprisingly, the nose on this IPA is all about hops. The hop aroma is the dry hop type, that is fresh and flowery and green. Dry hopping, by the way, is the process of adding hops tothe finished wort (unfermented, sweet beer)after the boil process is complete and allowing the hop character to infuse cold into the beer. It's a process that is common among IPAs and the hop aroma in duganA is precisely the goal of dry hopping. And although I don't know for certain that dry hopping is involved in this beer, my spidey sense tells me it is. Back to the beer.
The nose also has notes of bitter orange and some dank wet pine notes too.
The palate is full of Bitter, sticky hop flavor. It's a full bodied beer with lots of
piney resiny hoppieness. This beer has bitterness on top of bitterness.
In my mind, IPAs come in two types: the fresh, floral, herbal, crisp, light kind and the sticky, resiny, thick, piney kind. This one is definitely the second one.
8.5% ABV 93 IBU
7 out of 10

Day 69, 3.10.11., 21st Amendment - Monk's Blood

Here's a special release from 21st Amendment.  Monks Blood is a Belgian dark ale brewed with candi sugar, vanilla, figs and cinnamon and aged in oak.  I picked up a can for my ferry ride a while back... Yeah, I've got a backlog of beers to tell you about.  Stay tuned.
Anyway, back to the Monk's Blood.  This is a big old dark Belgian with a full creamy body and a bubbly beige head.  It's a beautiful dark chocolate brown.
On the nose, the fig sure comes through with nice notes of dried dark fruit and some earthy hints.
This beer has a very nice malty sweetness offset by a good hop character.  The oak comes through as well along with more nice earthy notes.  It culminates with a nice lingering mouthwatering finish.
This is really an intriguing beer with a lot of interesting stuff going on.  Solid, interesting beers in cans coming from 21st as usual.  worth a try!
8.3% ABV, 34 IBU
7 out of 10.

Day 68, 3.9.11., Hair of the Dog - Fred

Here's a beer from Portland Oregon Hair of the Dog Brewing Comany's Fred.  The bottle tells me it's a 'golden special ale' that's 10% alcohol by volume.  It's 65 IBU.  Hair of the Dog also seems to take a lot of pride in making bottle conditioned beers, meaning that a secondary fermentation happens in the bottle and carbonates the beer naturally.  It shows in Fred, with a little sediment.  It's cloudy and pale golden with a big fluffy white head that lingers.
The bottle also tells me that the brewer uses pilsner malt and rye as well as Belgian candy sugar and northwestern hops in this beer.  The hops are immediately evident on the nose.  The come through fruity and herbal.  There are citrus notes as well as some banana.  The palate is, for some reason, nothing like I expected it to be.  Firstly it's quite sweet, definitely a result of the candy sugar.  There are caramel notes as well as some subtle spice.  This is all backed up by some really delicate hop flavors and some bold bitterness.
Fred has quite a full, rich body too.  It's a little decieving for this pale beer.
They call it a 'special' beer, and it certainly is.  It's very unique, and there is a ton going on.  There are lots of interesting subtle flavors.
Definitely not a daily drinker for me, but a fun study in beer.  I'd give it a 7 out of 10.

Day 67, 3.8.11., Moylan's - IPA

Also over at Moylan's, I tried the IPA.  Sometimes I feel that trying s brewery's plain old IPA is a good way to evaluate the brewery as a whole.  In Moylan's case it was hard to pass up the double IPA and a triple IPA, but the good news is, there are 299 more days to give those a try.

The IPA is crisp golden and clear.  It has a light foamy white head.  The nose is really nice with big floral herbal hops.  It's very fresh and green.
On the palate, there's some mild meyer lemon notes, as well as a fair amount of malt backing.  The malt character creates a nice contrast to the beers sharp peppery bitterness.  It's fairly intense without being too unbalanced.
A nice easy drinking, well bittered IPA.
6.5% ABV
7 out of 10

Day 62, 3.3.11., Gulden Draak

Here's a beer I've been meaning to drink for a really long time.  My brother John swears by it.  It's a dark Belgian strong ale called Gulden Draak.  It pours very dark amber brown with a thick creamy head.  The nose offers aromas of caramel or burnt sugar as well as dark dried fruit and Belgian yeast.  Alcohol is also prevalent on the nose, which is not surprising for a beer that comes in at 10.5% ABV.
On the palate, this beer is big and malty, with the alcohol content also playing a big role here too.  There's dried fruit and candied fruit flavors that finish off the alcohol notes and round it down nicely. It's sweet, but not overbearing, with some bitter character on the back palate and some interesting sour fruity notes. The sourness is really rather strong, a sour cherry kind of flavor that tweeks the back of the tongue.
I will say that this beer is definitely not my general preferred style, (it's much too sweet and malty) but I think it's a very well executed ale.  It's strong and interesting, but not all that complex.  
7 out of 10

Day 57, 2.26.11., Rahr & Sons - Ass Kisser Double IPA

So my pal Derek has been ranting and raving about Rahr & Sons for a while now.  He never seems to have a glass or a bottle in an outstretched hand when he does rant and rave though, so I have yet to try them.   Rahr & Sons opened in 2004 in Forth Worth, Texas and currently produces 5000 barrels per year in a dozen or more styles.

Today I tried their Ass Kisser Double IPA.  It's a fairly cloudy amber beer with a nice lacy white head.  On the nose, this beer offers spicy hops and caramel as well as sherry notes and dried plum.  On the palate, Ass Kisser has a full fruity body with some intense, concentrate, dried fruit flavors.  Maybe some apricot and more plum.  All of that accompanies a big hop bitterness that finishes leaving the mouth dry.
There's lot's going on in this beer, but It's not spectacular.  Definitely good, and from what I gather pretty damn exceptional if judged against the other Texas brews.  I will also say that Ass Kisser is some sort of specialty beer coming from Rahr.  It's not listed on their website as either a 'year round' or 'seasonal' offering, and the packaging is completely different from the others.  So I'm eager to try some of their more conventional offerings.
9%ABV, 7 out of 10

Day 53, 2.22.11., Thirsty Bear - Cask Conditioned Meyer ESB

So I've worked in the SOMA neighborhood of San Francisco for about three months now and am just now getting around to trying out Thirsty Bear, a brew pub that lives just a few blocks from my place of employ.  I know very little about the place, except for the fact that they have an awesome logo of an ursine beast dumping a punt down it's gaping gullet.  Bears always eat things all at once. 
So John and I stopped in for a few tastes the other afternoon.  It seems like a pretty cool spot with a fairly typical pub menu (although we didn't eat) and about 7 beers on various taps.  I went straight for the cask conditioned ale, because I think I really love it.  As we drank though, we discussed whether I actually only like the idea of cask conditioning and hand pumping.*  I think I'd better continue drinking beer until I figure it out.
This day they had their Meyer ESB on the hand pump.  It's an interesting beer.  The nose has some very interesting grassy, earthy hop notes as well as dried flower.  It's deep amber with some very fluffy foamy white head. 
As the style's name suggests (Extra Special Bitter) this is quite a nicely bittered beer.  Occasionally the bitterness comes across sour as well.  It's all balanced out nicely with full malty backing and some intriguing smokiness.
It seemed like each sit of this beer was different that the last, which made it a fun beer to drink.
30IBUs, 6.4%ABV, 7 out of 10.



*Cask conditioned or real-ale means that the cask the beer is stored in is also a vessel in which the beer is conditioned.  Residual live yeast allows for secondary fermentation, giving the beer a very light effervescence and helping to mellow the beer.  No carbon-dioxide or nitrogen is added and the beer is drawn out of the cask and into the glass via a hand pump.  The bartender literally pumps the tap handle up and down to exchange the outside air for the beer in the cask.  Also, the casks are kept at cellar temperature.  So the result is essentially a warmish flattish beer with a creamier head and some interesting added character.  It's a British thing.

Day 52, 2.21.11., Hinano

Here's a beer from Tahiti.  Another bottle of beer that's more well traveled than I am.  The official website calls it a 'Deluxe Lager' at 5% ABV.  I would sooner call it a 'blond lager' at 5% ABV.

Regular readers of this blog will remember that I have a rocky relationship with beers from the tropics.  We're ever dubious of each other.  Actually, I'm not sure how it feels about me; I'm dubious.
But here's the good news: Hinano is terrific.
It's a cloudy blond with a big white head.  On the nose, there are fruity notes, including some interesting sweet lemon aromas.
The flavor of the beer offers some of the yeastyness that I generally associate with lagers, and it's very well integrated into a beer with enough body to keep its character interesting but keep it nice and refreshing. 
It's really well hopped to, with the perfect amount of bitterness.  This beer is a perfect refreshing lager to enjoy on a hot day.  Or perhaps a hot location.  Like Tahiti.  Pairs nicely with lawn chairs.
7 out of 10

Day 50, 2.19.11., Anderson Valley Brewing - Nettied Madge Black IPA

One more from AVBC before we move on, Nettied Madge Black IPA.  This one means well dressed prostitute, my favorite kind.
I've been really into Black IPAs lately.  It's just such a match made in heaven: nice dark roastyness and big hops.  For me, that is pretty much exactly what I want in a beer.  well, quite often anyway.
This one is nice and dark black with good creamy beige head.  On the nose, this beer has a good amount of coffee, and subtle hints of burnt sugar and vanilla.  The last two are way back in there, and then occasionally you get a nice little tiny whiff.  Totally cool. 
The body is not overly heavy, I'd say medium-light, which makes it nice and easy drinking.  but it's big on roasty character and big on hops.  The hop bitterness is really nice and clean.  Nice beer.
7 out of 10.

Day 48, 2.17.11, North Coast Brewing - Cask Conditioned Red Seal Ale

We stopped into the pub/tasting room in Fort Bragg's North Coast Brewing Company.  I'm always excited to visit a brewery, because oftentimes they have beers on tap that aren't otherwise available.  Such was not the case with North Coast, as I'd had all twelve of their offerings previously, save one: the cask conditioned version of their flagship red/pale ale, Red Seal.
Our bartender worked her tail off hand pumping glasses and pints for the Sunday lunch rush.  She was also busy pouring 12 item samplers about once every five minutes or so.  We collectively kept her on her toes.  Well done, we appreciate it!
It was forced from it's cask into a glass of nearly solid head, which slowly cascaded into a beautiful copper red beer with a nice dense foamy white head.
There is plenty of malt on the nose, as well as some bitter orange and a touch of hops.
The hops come through much more fully on the palate, and is nicely rounded into a beer with some nice malt body and a fair amount of citric sour character.  I've always thought Red Seal was a decent basic red ale, but I really did  prefer it cask conditioned.  It was just lightly effervescent, but with a nice creamy head and not overly cold.  7 out of 10

Day 45, 2.14.11., Maui Brewing - Coconut Porter

I think it actually tastes better when served like this...

While we're drinking porters, here's another.  Maui Brewing makes this one with toasted coconut, puts it in cans and ships it back to the main land.  I've tried a couple others from Maui Brewing, and have found them pretty good.
This porter is a little heavier than St. Peter's, and has a bit more sweetness.  It poured dark black and pretty viscous.  The head is thick, off-white and quite creamy, just lovely.  On the nose, there's really nice notes of dark roast coffee beans, and hints of sweetness, caramel and maple syrup. 
On the palate, the dark malts are certainly present, and a good bit of hop bitterness is there too.  Some slight sweet notes round out the beer really nicely.  I didn't really identify any of the flavors or aromas as coconut specifically, but it didn't undermine the beer for me.  Quite good.  7 out of 10.

A word on cans:  I love good beer in cans.  Environmentally friendly, easy to pack, good for the beer.  These are some of my favorite canning micro brewerys:
Maui
21st Amendment
Oskar Blues
Big Sky Brewing
Anderson Valley Brewing
Try 'em out.

Day 44, 2.13.11., St. Peter's - Old-Style Porter

Here's a line of beer's that always looks interesting on the store shelves; St. Peter's.  It's a brewery up and running in Suffolk England since 1996.   It comes in a cute little squat bottle with an oval label.  From what I understand, they produce lots of classic styles including stouts, porters, and bitters and then some fruit beers and even a gluten free.  Today I'm giving the Old-Style Porter a try.

Now I will say this, porter is not one of my favorite styles, so it's not one I have a lot of experience with, and therefore don't know a whole lot about.  I consulted Beer Advocate to find that porter is one of the first beers that was 'engineered' to suit the public's taste.  In the late 1700's brewers made a dark, strong ale by blending three beers, including one old stale ale.  Also, dark malts were added to hide imperfections and cloudiness in the beer.
So the results are a dark brown beer, light-ish in body and a solid acid character from the old stale beer.  And based on these quick notes, St. Peter's seems to be right on target.
The Old-Style Porter is deep amber brown with quite a thin bubbly head.  (seems appropriate considering it's 1/3 flat beer)  It's nice and roasty, but easy to drink and medium bodied.  The palate has lots of that roasty character, along with plenty of nice hoppieness, with strong bitter and acidic finish.  A nice little beer. 7 out of 10.