Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Recent Rundown
WHAT Y'ALL THOUGHT Y'ALL WASN'T GON' SEE ME?!!
I'M THE OSIRIS OF THIS ****!
Yeah...
Here is recent rundown of the latest beers I have had. Before that... check out my Flickr photos of the Flaming Lips show from last night. AWESOME!
278) Samuel Smiths Organic Ale - This is an English bitter and it was pretty good. Pale orange color and a nice foamy head. The aroma is fruity with hints of toffee. Bitter finish.
Went to David Copperfield's with Anthony last week... and they had tons of Oktoberfest beer on tap!
279) Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest Märzen - This is a spectacular Oktoberfest. Very malty and toasty. Perfect beer for the fall.
280) Legacy Heavy Handed Hops (Triple H) - Amazing IPA. After sampling another IPA at the bar, I definitely had to go with a pint of this one. I didn't get a photo... I was way to into this one from the get-go. Floral hop aroma... very vibrant. Bitter flavors and incredibly drinkable.
Picked up a few more European bottles from the supermarket this weekend.
281) Nikšićko Pivo - A pilsner from Montenegro. Absolutely horrendous. There is no balance to this one.. Its all over the place. Highly undrinkable with a nasty aroma.
282) Birra Tirana - Not a bad lager from Albania. Nothing special but its drinkable and has a little flavor to it, better than a lot of popular lagers.
282 down and 83 to go. I just got another shipment from the beer of the month club, so expect me to pick a beer from there for my next one.
I'M THE OSIRIS OF THIS ****!
Yeah...
Here is recent rundown of the latest beers I have had. Before that... check out my Flickr photos of the Flaming Lips show from last night. AWESOME!
278) Samuel Smiths Organic Ale - This is an English bitter and it was pretty good. Pale orange color and a nice foamy head. The aroma is fruity with hints of toffee. Bitter finish.
Went to David Copperfield's with Anthony last week... and they had tons of Oktoberfest beer on tap!
279) Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest Märzen - This is a spectacular Oktoberfest. Very malty and toasty. Perfect beer for the fall.
280) Legacy Heavy Handed Hops (Triple H) - Amazing IPA. After sampling another IPA at the bar, I definitely had to go with a pint of this one. I didn't get a photo... I was way to into this one from the get-go. Floral hop aroma... very vibrant. Bitter flavors and incredibly drinkable.
Picked up a few more European bottles from the supermarket this weekend.
281) Nikšićko Pivo - A pilsner from Montenegro. Absolutely horrendous. There is no balance to this one.. Its all over the place. Highly undrinkable with a nasty aroma.
282) Birra Tirana - Not a bad lager from Albania. Nothing special but its drinkable and has a little flavor to it, better than a lot of popular lagers.
282 down and 83 to go. I just got another shipment from the beer of the month club, so expect me to pick a beer from there for my next one.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Southampton Publick House
Let me begin first by saying how thrilled I am that the NY Mets have clinched the NL East for the first time since 1988.
I was at the game with Jeff and Chris, and I posted a video of the final out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI8XYqnXa28
Anyway... this past weekend I went with Jeff to the Southampton Publick House to enjoy some beer. I knocked a ton off my list.
It was the first time I had actually been to the brewpub. While the food wasn't all that great, they did give the tasty dinner rolls.
And the beer is awesome. It's reason enough to visit out here.
However, before visiting here we stopped at a couple local wineries. First was Channing Daughters, where Jeff is a wine club member. It was my first time there and the wines were not bad at all. They were closing early due to a wedding, so we were lucky to arrive for the last 15 minutes.
Then we stopped at the ultra-pretentious Wolffer Estate. They charge $25 for a "tasting" of their best wine, supposedly rated a 96 by some nutcase. On top of that, they charge a ton just for the regular tasting alone. A tiny artisanal cheese plate also costs a pretty penny.
The wines were so bad the whole time I was trying to convince Jeff that we should just up and leave without paying.
They had us taste a 100% oak barrel fermented butter bomb Chardonnay which had vomity aromas and a sulfurous rotten egg finish. I couldn't quite tell if it was scrambled or sunny side up. I know I had another word to describe the aroma while we were tasting it, but its probably better that I don't remember it. Jeff said he couldn't get the aftertaste out of his mouth for almost an hour, until we got to the Southampton Publick House.
When we arrived, it was too early to eat and the dining room wasn't open, so we sat in the bar area listening to the dreary music and ordered up some brew.
272) Southampton Montauk Light - I came with the mindset that I was going to try a lot of beer today, so I started light. Not much of an aroma but this is probably brewed for the "summer weekends in the Hamptons" crowd that must stroll in looking for a Bud Light. Better than any of the macros.
I then ordered up the sampler. You can get either the 4 house brews or the 4 plus any seasonals they have. So I went with the full 8.
The Beer Menu
Top Row (L-R): Golden Lager, Montauk Light, IPA, Secret Ale
Bottom Row (L-R): 80 Shilling Scottish Ale, Espresso Stout, Belgian Amber, Burton Ale
273) Southampton Golden Lager - Lager brewed in the Munich style. Pretty crisp with a bit of a hop bite on the finish.
274) Southampton Burton Ale - A bitter. Pretty drinkable but the taste is different. In doing some research I found they add minerals into the beer, like they do in Britain, and I'm guessing that's where it came from.
275) Southampton 80 Shilling Scottish Ale - First time I've had a Scottish ale. Mostly you taste the malt in this but there is some floral aspects as well.
276) Southampton Belgian Amber - Couldn't find much info on this, so maybe it must be a new release. Excellent take on the classic Belgian style ale.
277) Southampton Grand Cru - For dinner I ordered up a bottle. Jeff got the tripel while I went with the Grand Cru. This is a Belgian strong ale with aromas of spice and orange. Flavor is rich and fruity. 9.5% alc. so be careful. Lucky I was not the driver.
277 down leaves only 88 to go. We still have 103 days left in the year so no rush. This week I've got tons of Mets games to go to so I don't anticipate doing more than a new bottle or two before Friday.
I was at the game with Jeff and Chris, and I posted a video of the final out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI8XYqnXa28
Anyway... this past weekend I went with Jeff to the Southampton Publick House to enjoy some beer. I knocked a ton off my list.
It was the first time I had actually been to the brewpub. While the food wasn't all that great, they did give the tasty dinner rolls.
And the beer is awesome. It's reason enough to visit out here.
However, before visiting here we stopped at a couple local wineries. First was Channing Daughters, where Jeff is a wine club member. It was my first time there and the wines were not bad at all. They were closing early due to a wedding, so we were lucky to arrive for the last 15 minutes.
Then we stopped at the ultra-pretentious Wolffer Estate. They charge $25 for a "tasting" of their best wine, supposedly rated a 96 by some nutcase. On top of that, they charge a ton just for the regular tasting alone. A tiny artisanal cheese plate also costs a pretty penny.
The wines were so bad the whole time I was trying to convince Jeff that we should just up and leave without paying.
They had us taste a 100% oak barrel fermented butter bomb Chardonnay which had vomity aromas and a sulfurous rotten egg finish. I couldn't quite tell if it was scrambled or sunny side up. I know I had another word to describe the aroma while we were tasting it, but its probably better that I don't remember it. Jeff said he couldn't get the aftertaste out of his mouth for almost an hour, until we got to the Southampton Publick House.
When we arrived, it was too early to eat and the dining room wasn't open, so we sat in the bar area listening to the dreary music and ordered up some brew.
272) Southampton Montauk Light - I came with the mindset that I was going to try a lot of beer today, so I started light. Not much of an aroma but this is probably brewed for the "summer weekends in the Hamptons" crowd that must stroll in looking for a Bud Light. Better than any of the macros.
I then ordered up the sampler. You can get either the 4 house brews or the 4 plus any seasonals they have. So I went with the full 8.
The Beer Menu
Top Row (L-R): Golden Lager, Montauk Light, IPA, Secret Ale
Bottom Row (L-R): 80 Shilling Scottish Ale, Espresso Stout, Belgian Amber, Burton Ale
273) Southampton Golden Lager - Lager brewed in the Munich style. Pretty crisp with a bit of a hop bite on the finish.
274) Southampton Burton Ale - A bitter. Pretty drinkable but the taste is different. In doing some research I found they add minerals into the beer, like they do in Britain, and I'm guessing that's where it came from.
275) Southampton 80 Shilling Scottish Ale - First time I've had a Scottish ale. Mostly you taste the malt in this but there is some floral aspects as well.
276) Southampton Belgian Amber - Couldn't find much info on this, so maybe it must be a new release. Excellent take on the classic Belgian style ale.
277) Southampton Grand Cru - For dinner I ordered up a bottle. Jeff got the tripel while I went with the Grand Cru. This is a Belgian strong ale with aromas of spice and orange. Flavor is rich and fruity. 9.5% alc. so be careful. Lucky I was not the driver.
277 down leaves only 88 to go. We still have 103 days left in the year so no rush. This week I've got tons of Mets games to go to so I don't anticipate doing more than a new bottle or two before Friday.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Tonight's the night!
Not for #365 of course but for the NEW YORK METS to clinch the NL East!
I'll be in the city watching that go down for sure!
Here is a recap of some of the recent goings-down on the beer front!
Wednesday night was the NYC premiere of Sly Fox at the Collins Bar! I met up after work with Chris and Kaval and we got ourselves a little bread and cheese, popcorn, and a table in the back.
266) Sly Fox Pikeland Pilsner - Right out of the gate with this awesome pils. No wonder its won so many awards. Perfectly crisp with bitter finish. It stands up to the best of the German pils.
I'll be in the city watching that go down for sure!
Here is a recap of some of the recent goings-down on the beer front!
Wednesday night was the NYC premiere of Sly Fox at the Collins Bar! I met up after work with Chris and Kaval and we got ourselves a little bread and cheese, popcorn, and a table in the back.
266) Sly Fox Pikeland Pilsner - Right out of the gate with this awesome pils. No wonder its won so many awards. Perfectly crisp with bitter finish. It stands up to the best of the German pils.
267) Sly Fox Simcoe IPA - This is part of Sly Fox's IPA Project, the 7th in a series where each beer focuses on a different hop variety, in this case, Simcoe hops. Simcoe is a bittering hop with a piney aroma, and those characteristics come out in this very good IPA.
268) Sly Fox OReillys Stout - Pretty good dry stout. Good coffee/chocolate flavors from this. Nice creamy head up top as well.
At this point, I should mention a little story from this night, courtesy of Kaval himself:
"The funniest fucking thing happened tonight at Collins Bar. Chris, Nick and I met up for a few EXCELLENT pints.
Well, there was complimentary popcorn, bread and cheese. We had a round of popcorn and it was pure salty goodness. Then, Nick and I decided to make Chris go to the popcorn machine and get more. He stood his ground and wouldn't do it. He went so far as to place our popcorn basket on the next table and take a firm swig of his beer to solidify his defiance.
Well, the conversation switched to baseball and Jeter and captains, yada yada yada. Suddenly Nick went DEAD SILENT for a good 2 minutes.
Out of nowhere his thoughts become audible in mid-thought: "FUCKING POPCORN!" and looks Chris dead in the eye.
Chris sprung up like a wrestler fighting off a pin, fetched the popcorn and came back to the table faster than a Reggie Bush sprint.
Good shit..."
Last night I also met up with Kaval but this time at David Copperfield's. We bought our tickets to Brewtopia, and will be attending the Saturday afternoon session on 10/20, to be followed by game 1 of the World Series. If you haven't, be sure to get your tickets.
Had the mindset of just going in for a couple and having a southwest chicken sandwich with onion rings instead of fries, but wound up sticking around for a while and had 4 beers in total. While waiting for Kaval, I patiently sipped on a Unibroue Blanche de Chambly, which I hadn't had in a long while.
I left my camera home so there are no pics of the beers, but I wound up having 3 new ones.
269) Kelso Nut Brown Lager - This is a dunkel brewed by Greenpoint Beer Works, same folks who brew everything for Heartland Brewery. The quality is overall about the same. Some nutty flavors but overall nothing special.
270) Legacy Hoptimus Prime - Legacy just had an event at DC's. This is one of the best names for a beer I have seen in a while. A decent double IPA with citrus aromas and piney hops. Bitter but with decent malt backbone to balance it.
271) Rogue Imperial Porter - Bitter chocolate flavors dominate this Baltic style porter. A big and robust brew with a smooth finish to it.
Currently that's where I stand. I considered having another new one just now for lunch but I'll pass. I've got a good lead once again. 271 down leaves 94 to go!
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
100 To Go!!
Today's title is a giveaway, as I've gotten through 265 beers for this year and now have only 100 to go. It's been a while since the last update, and I haven't had as many new beers as I wanted over the last week, thus diminishing my lead a bit.
I went to numerous Mets games but didn't even have 1 beer, because I refuse to pay that price for crap.
On the brighter side of things, my local Stop & Shop is now carrying a small selection of decent beer. I was surprised to find yesterday that they had bottles of Duvel, Hennepin, Ommegang Abbey, Chimay, Schneider Weiss, Samuel Smith... and maybe a few others I dont remember. It's a good sign indeed, and my guess is they're taking a page out of the Whole Foods/Trader Joe book.
So do you want some beer notes? I thought so...
261) Youngs Old Nick - This is a barley wine from England. Of all the barley wines I've had I would say this ranks somewhere in the middle. The pour is a dark red brown with a thin head atop. On the aroma we get malt along with hints of raisins and toffee. The flavor is sweet with a tinge of alcohol in there. Finishes with a slightly bitter bite.
262) Struise Witte - A Belgian witbier, and apparently one of the top rated in the world. But I wasn't really feeling it. Maybe I need to re-rate this one? But it just didn't have the backbone of a Hoegaarden, Allagash White, or the Millstream. Aroma had faint hints of peaches and grapefruits. The body was thin as a wisp and it went down like water. I have 2 other bottles of this and I'm hoping this review will prove to be way off after having the next one.
263) Magic Hat Hocus Pocus - Picked up a 6 pack of Magic Hat on the way to watch the first Giants game at my friend's apartment. It was missing one so I swiped this from another sixer to make a full. This is an American wheat beer. No bitterness at all really. Slight citrusy taste. Good for summer but I would have preferred an Oktoberfest to go with my football.
264) Magic Hat Circus Boy - Labelled as a hefeweizen but it doesn't taste like one. Now reading the notes on Rate Beer, it is brewed with a lot of lemongrass, thus deviating from the classic hefeweizen recipe. Like the above I just drank it from the bottle. Mostly a lemon and grainy flavor.
265) Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA - Had this one last night. One of the so-called "Extreme Beers." Weighs in at a whopping 21% alc. by vol. As per the brewer's notes: "Brewed to a colossal 45°P, boiled for a full 2 hours while being continually hopped with high alpha American hops, dry-hopped every day in the fermenter for a month, and aged for a month on whole leaf hops". 120 IBUs. The pour is that gold/caramel color you see below. The aroma is sweet with the sugar and alcohol pretty much attacking your nose. Not much evidence of hops. Flavor profile is again also sugar and alcohol. The 21% is well hidden... but the malt seems to be completely smothering the hops. Its unbalanced and I'm guessing it gets such a high score because of the alcohol content. Like when U2 puts out an album they get an automatic 4 stars just because its U2. The mouthfeel on this one is definitely full bodied. As heavy as they come. I'd rather have a better imperial IPA at 10ish % than this anytime. Overrated.
That's where we stand now... 100 left to go, 109 days left in the year.
Tonight Sly Fox makes their NYC debut at the Collins Bar. They plan on bringing in a ton of their beers, though I think I'll just stay for 1 or 2 and head home. Thursday Big Daddy Cal and I are hitting up Copperfields and I'll add another couple there. Stay tuned.
I went to numerous Mets games but didn't even have 1 beer, because I refuse to pay that price for crap.
On the brighter side of things, my local Stop & Shop is now carrying a small selection of decent beer. I was surprised to find yesterday that they had bottles of Duvel, Hennepin, Ommegang Abbey, Chimay, Schneider Weiss, Samuel Smith... and maybe a few others I dont remember. It's a good sign indeed, and my guess is they're taking a page out of the Whole Foods/Trader Joe book.
So do you want some beer notes? I thought so...
261) Youngs Old Nick - This is a barley wine from England. Of all the barley wines I've had I would say this ranks somewhere in the middle. The pour is a dark red brown with a thin head atop. On the aroma we get malt along with hints of raisins and toffee. The flavor is sweet with a tinge of alcohol in there. Finishes with a slightly bitter bite.
262) Struise Witte - A Belgian witbier, and apparently one of the top rated in the world. But I wasn't really feeling it. Maybe I need to re-rate this one? But it just didn't have the backbone of a Hoegaarden, Allagash White, or the Millstream. Aroma had faint hints of peaches and grapefruits. The body was thin as a wisp and it went down like water. I have 2 other bottles of this and I'm hoping this review will prove to be way off after having the next one.
263) Magic Hat Hocus Pocus - Picked up a 6 pack of Magic Hat on the way to watch the first Giants game at my friend's apartment. It was missing one so I swiped this from another sixer to make a full. This is an American wheat beer. No bitterness at all really. Slight citrusy taste. Good for summer but I would have preferred an Oktoberfest to go with my football.
264) Magic Hat Circus Boy - Labelled as a hefeweizen but it doesn't taste like one. Now reading the notes on Rate Beer, it is brewed with a lot of lemongrass, thus deviating from the classic hefeweizen recipe. Like the above I just drank it from the bottle. Mostly a lemon and grainy flavor.
265) Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA - Had this one last night. One of the so-called "Extreme Beers." Weighs in at a whopping 21% alc. by vol. As per the brewer's notes: "Brewed to a colossal 45°P, boiled for a full 2 hours while being continually hopped with high alpha American hops, dry-hopped every day in the fermenter for a month, and aged for a month on whole leaf hops". 120 IBUs. The pour is that gold/caramel color you see below. The aroma is sweet with the sugar and alcohol pretty much attacking your nose. Not much evidence of hops. Flavor profile is again also sugar and alcohol. The 21% is well hidden... but the malt seems to be completely smothering the hops. Its unbalanced and I'm guessing it gets such a high score because of the alcohol content. Like when U2 puts out an album they get an automatic 4 stars just because its U2. The mouthfeel on this one is definitely full bodied. As heavy as they come. I'd rather have a better imperial IPA at 10ish % than this anytime. Overrated.
That's where we stand now... 100 left to go, 109 days left in the year.
Tonight Sly Fox makes their NYC debut at the Collins Bar. They plan on bringing in a ton of their beers, though I think I'll just stay for 1 or 2 and head home. Thursday Big Daddy Cal and I are hitting up Copperfields and I'll add another couple there. Stay tuned.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Beerfest!
The other night I went to see "Beerfest" with Chris and it is hilarious.
I definitely recommend you go see it. It is the kind of comedy that will offend many, but if you like that kind of humor you will love this. Some of the writing is just genius.
I'm surprised it did so poorly at the box office... further proof that the American movie-going public is clueless.
Anyway, here's a beer review for you...
260) Waimea Bay Pale Ale - This American pale ale comes from Hawaii, as one might guess from the name. Didn't think it was that great, honestly. Has a grapefruit/citrus flavor to go with some caramel malt aroma, but the taste just wasn't up my alley.
Tonight I've got the Mets game.. unfortunately it looks like they'll clinch on the road.
After the game I've got a barleywine waiting for me.
260 down, 105 to go.
I definitely recommend you go see it. It is the kind of comedy that will offend many, but if you like that kind of humor you will love this. Some of the writing is just genius.
I'm surprised it did so poorly at the box office... further proof that the American movie-going public is clueless.
Anyway, here's a beer review for you...
260) Waimea Bay Pale Ale - This American pale ale comes from Hawaii, as one might guess from the name. Didn't think it was that great, honestly. Has a grapefruit/citrus flavor to go with some caramel malt aroma, but the taste just wasn't up my alley.
Tonight I've got the Mets game.. unfortunately it looks like they'll clinch on the road.
After the game I've got a barleywine waiting for me.
260 down, 105 to go.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
BXL again
Friday night took a trip over to BXL Cafe and had a few new beers. They do a good job on their frites by the way.
257) Tripel Karmeliet - This was just awesome. This is an Abbey tripel, the best I have had so far from this style. This is made with 3 grains. Scent of alcohol and fruity yeast on the nose. Flavor is the same with some sweetness in it. Nice finish with a touch of bitterness.
258) Leffe Brune - Excuse the poor photo below. They turned the lights down after 7pm and it became hard to take a good photo. The one below makes it look like a stout or a porter. This is an abbey dubbel with a deep brown color. Flavor is that of caramel malt with some dark fruit in there as well. Not bad.
Over the weekend I also had another new one, this time from a bottle that was brought back from Belgium as a gift.
259) Bourgogne des Flandres - This is the very first Flemish sour ale I have had. I was afraid it would be too sour and I wouldn't be able to drink it but I rather enjoyed it. The color is a dark red brown with a tan head that fades quickly. The aroma carries with it a hint of cherries. The flavor is actually sweet... definitely a hint of dark cherries, with only a bit of sourness mostly on the finish.
That's where I stand now... 259 for the year and 106 to go. That's still 11 days ahead so I admit I've been slowing it down a little.
This week there will be no going out as I have tickets to all the Mets games but next week I will surely hit up a bar or two.
In my next post, look for a review of "Beerfest" along with any new beers I have between now and then!
257) Tripel Karmeliet - This was just awesome. This is an Abbey tripel, the best I have had so far from this style. This is made with 3 grains. Scent of alcohol and fruity yeast on the nose. Flavor is the same with some sweetness in it. Nice finish with a touch of bitterness.
258) Leffe Brune - Excuse the poor photo below. They turned the lights down after 7pm and it became hard to take a good photo. The one below makes it look like a stout or a porter. This is an abbey dubbel with a deep brown color. Flavor is that of caramel malt with some dark fruit in there as well. Not bad.
Over the weekend I also had another new one, this time from a bottle that was brought back from Belgium as a gift.
259) Bourgogne des Flandres - This is the very first Flemish sour ale I have had. I was afraid it would be too sour and I wouldn't be able to drink it but I rather enjoyed it. The color is a dark red brown with a tan head that fades quickly. The aroma carries with it a hint of cherries. The flavor is actually sweet... definitely a hint of dark cherries, with only a bit of sourness mostly on the finish.
That's where I stand now... 259 for the year and 106 to go. That's still 11 days ahead so I admit I've been slowing it down a little.
This week there will be no going out as I have tickets to all the Mets games but next week I will surely hit up a bar or two.
In my next post, look for a review of "Beerfest" along with any new beers I have between now and then!
Friday, September 01, 2006
Bender!
Yup... I drank 'em all last night...
the whole 6 pack...
...of course...
...when they are this big...
...its not such a big deal!
Finally opened the 6 pack of Kirin I bought in Japan. Now... Kirin of course doesn't count towards my goal but after seeing this for sale, I had to have one.
The equivalent is a little more than 2 regular cans of beer. It was strange, just downing them one after the other, in these little cans. I wish I could say I could use this size of can as a method of controlling the amount of beer I drink but there is just no way. They're too easy and too fun to drink.
So I also had a new one the other night from my Beer of the Month club shipment.
256) EKU Pilsner - The head is very foamy on the pour and leaves a lot of lacing down the glass as you drink. Aroma is faint like most pilsners but you can pick up notes of grain and hops. A light and refreshing beer.
That's beer #256 with 109 to go. Stay tuned for the next update where I should make some progress over the long weekend.
