Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Brewtopia!
On Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend this year's Brewtopia, held at the Javits Center.
Though the prices were higher this year, the event space was much bigger and more spread out. The tasting session was very relaxed and never once did I even bump into another person accidentally.
Some of the downsides were some of the advertised breweries did not show up, and the food was terrible, though that is the fault of the Javits center.
This year the guidebook was really well done, and the tasting glasses were plastic, so you didn't have to walk on any broken glass.
Here's a rundown of the beers I was able to sample... Of course, none of these will count toward my goal of the 365 for the year, but I will put them on my overall list.
These are in no particular order.
* Rodenbach Grand Cru - A Flemish sour, which is not a style I really like yet.
* Southampton Saison - A very good version of the style. Southampton rarely disappoints.
* Southampton Pumpkin Ale - Pretty much the best pumpkin ale. Ever. Think liquid pumpkin pie.
* Victory Moonglow Weizenbock - An old favorite, I had to have a sip of this.
* North Coast Brother Thelonious - Good version of a Belgian ale. I need to try more from this brewery... I'm looking in your direction Sammy.
* Lagunitas India Pale Ale - The main reason I'm not counting these is because at a certain point in the tasting, my taste buds just got overwhelmed and died.
* Olde Burnside Ten Penny Ale - A scottish ale. Good but not my favorite style.
* Lagunitas Sirius Ale - A hoppy cream ale, definitely something I want to try again.
* Smuttynose Old Brown Dog - Another older one I wanted to try again.
* Great Lakes Holy Moses White Ale - Tried this one on the way out.. will have to look for it again.
* Erdinger Weissbier Dunkel - A dark wheat beer. I prefer the classic style.
* Brooklyn Oktoberfest - Haven't had this all autumn, so I needed to get down.
* Paper City Blonde Hop Monster- This was all out of whack. Wayyy too hoppy and no malt backbone to balance it out.
* Avery Karma Ale - A Belgian ale. I think this was the very last beer I tried, and by then... I couldn't tell anything apart.
* Jacobsen Saaz Blonde - A Belgian ale brewed by Carlsberg, but not yet available in the states.
* Ithaca Finger Lakes Apricot Wheat - I think I had this at last year's festival too. Decent fruit beer. I think apricot is one of the better fruits to use in beer.
Man... I can't remember any of the others I had and the list is not with me at the moment. I'll update again if I forgot any.
If you missed Brewtopia, definitely get down with it next year.
Now, here are the latest 5 beers that count toward my goal:
301) Victory Whirlwind Witbier - Victory can do no wrong. This is a good witbier with orange flavors and some spice. Speaking of Victory, they are bringing some good stuff in tonight at Collins Bar.
302) Hair of the Dog Ruth - An excellent golden and hoppy ale.
303) Lagunitas Censored - Malty strong ale with a nice copper color to it. But it was not anything special. I was a little disappointed.
304) Hop Back Entire Stout - A rich stout with some bitterness. Not something I'd rush to have again but not entirely bad.
305) Dogfish Head World Wide Stout - A 2003 bottle. Simply amazing. Alcohol is hidden pretty well and this is like drinking port wine. Is it the best beer I have ever had? I have to say no, but for a moment it did challenge my existing favorite.
The other Brewtopia beers I forgot to list above are as follows:
* Dogfish Head 90 Minute Imperial IPA - Still a top 10 beer.
* Allagash White - Always a treat to have this witbier.
* Saranac Pumpkin Ale - Not bad but nowhere in the same league as the Southampton.
* Singha - Don't know why I had it. I was just standing at their booth. I took a sticker from them, so I felt I should have a sip of their beer. Usually I only have this with Thai food.
* Cerveza Aguila - Standard lager from Columbia. Tastes like corn.
* Stone India Pale Ale - Ate some nachos at the food court, which was horrendous. I got a couple glasses of this to go with my meal.
* Ayinger Brau Weisse - A Hef I always have love for.
* Lemongrass Wheat - From the homebrewer's guild. I don't know who made it but give yourself a pat on the back.
Just got back from the Victory event at Collins so let me throw this one up.
306) Victory Dr. Decibels Brown Ale - No pic... sorry. This was available on cask. I have to say for the first time I was a little disappointed in Victory. This felt thin and there was a lack of complexity. Come on Victory, you can do better than this!
306 for the year leaves just 59 to go! Having 33 new bottles waiting in the fridge, I think I just need to buy 18 more bottles, assuming the Beer of the Month club doesn't send me anything I've already had in the final 2 months of the year.
Though the prices were higher this year, the event space was much bigger and more spread out. The tasting session was very relaxed and never once did I even bump into another person accidentally.
Some of the downsides were some of the advertised breweries did not show up, and the food was terrible, though that is the fault of the Javits center.
This year the guidebook was really well done, and the tasting glasses were plastic, so you didn't have to walk on any broken glass.
Here's a rundown of the beers I was able to sample... Of course, none of these will count toward my goal of the 365 for the year, but I will put them on my overall list.
These are in no particular order.
* Rodenbach Grand Cru - A Flemish sour, which is not a style I really like yet.
* Southampton Saison - A very good version of the style. Southampton rarely disappoints.
* Southampton Pumpkin Ale - Pretty much the best pumpkin ale. Ever. Think liquid pumpkin pie.
* Victory Moonglow Weizenbock - An old favorite, I had to have a sip of this.
* North Coast Brother Thelonious - Good version of a Belgian ale. I need to try more from this brewery... I'm looking in your direction Sammy.
* Lagunitas India Pale Ale - The main reason I'm not counting these is because at a certain point in the tasting, my taste buds just got overwhelmed and died.
* Olde Burnside Ten Penny Ale - A scottish ale. Good but not my favorite style.
* Lagunitas Sirius Ale - A hoppy cream ale, definitely something I want to try again.
* Smuttynose Old Brown Dog - Another older one I wanted to try again.
* Great Lakes Holy Moses White Ale - Tried this one on the way out.. will have to look for it again.
* Erdinger Weissbier Dunkel - A dark wheat beer. I prefer the classic style.
* Brooklyn Oktoberfest - Haven't had this all autumn, so I needed to get down.
* Paper City Blonde Hop Monster- This was all out of whack. Wayyy too hoppy and no malt backbone to balance it out.
* Avery Karma Ale - A Belgian ale. I think this was the very last beer I tried, and by then... I couldn't tell anything apart.
* Jacobsen Saaz Blonde - A Belgian ale brewed by Carlsberg, but not yet available in the states.
* Ithaca Finger Lakes Apricot Wheat - I think I had this at last year's festival too. Decent fruit beer. I think apricot is one of the better fruits to use in beer.
Man... I can't remember any of the others I had and the list is not with me at the moment. I'll update again if I forgot any.
If you missed Brewtopia, definitely get down with it next year.
Now, here are the latest 5 beers that count toward my goal:
301) Victory Whirlwind Witbier - Victory can do no wrong. This is a good witbier with orange flavors and some spice. Speaking of Victory, they are bringing some good stuff in tonight at Collins Bar.
302) Hair of the Dog Ruth - An excellent golden and hoppy ale.
303) Lagunitas Censored - Malty strong ale with a nice copper color to it. But it was not anything special. I was a little disappointed.
304) Hop Back Entire Stout - A rich stout with some bitterness. Not something I'd rush to have again but not entirely bad.
305) Dogfish Head World Wide Stout - A 2003 bottle. Simply amazing. Alcohol is hidden pretty well and this is like drinking port wine. Is it the best beer I have ever had? I have to say no, but for a moment it did challenge my existing favorite.
The other Brewtopia beers I forgot to list above are as follows:
* Dogfish Head 90 Minute Imperial IPA - Still a top 10 beer.
* Allagash White - Always a treat to have this witbier.
* Saranac Pumpkin Ale - Not bad but nowhere in the same league as the Southampton.
* Singha - Don't know why I had it. I was just standing at their booth. I took a sticker from them, so I felt I should have a sip of their beer. Usually I only have this with Thai food.
* Cerveza Aguila - Standard lager from Columbia. Tastes like corn.
* Stone India Pale Ale - Ate some nachos at the food court, which was horrendous. I got a couple glasses of this to go with my meal.
* Ayinger Brau Weisse - A Hef I always have love for.
* Lemongrass Wheat - From the homebrewer's guild. I don't know who made it but give yourself a pat on the back.
Just got back from the Victory event at Collins so let me throw this one up.
306) Victory Dr. Decibels Brown Ale - No pic... sorry. This was available on cask. I have to say for the first time I was a little disappointed in Victory. This felt thin and there was a lack of complexity. Come on Victory, you can do better than this!
306 for the year leaves just 59 to go! Having 33 new bottles waiting in the fridge, I think I just need to buy 18 more bottles, assuming the Beer of the Month club doesn't send me anything I've already had in the final 2 months of the year.
# posted by Nick @ 11:29 AM 
