Game Day Beer Review: Sierra Nevada / Cigar City Yonder Bock Tropical Maibock

The Location: Residential neighborhood, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Date: Thursday, July 17th

The Time: 8:15pm, Eastern Daylight Time

The Weather: 81 degrees, soft breeze blowing
 

The Scene: Backyard beer drinking

The Music: Mandolin Rain, Josh Kelley

The Beer: Sierra Nevada / Cigar City Yonder Tropical Maibock, Sierra Nevada / Cigar City Collaboration (7.70% ABV)

The Review: Yonder Bock poured a deep copper penny color with the whitest of white, fluffy heads; considerable lacing developed on the glass surface as the head receded.   The smell was mild and bready, with the faintest hint of tropical fruit scents.  The beer's taste was malt-forward, succeeded by tropical fruit favors including pineapple and guava, and followed by the drying effect of  a well-hopped beer.  Yonder bock has a medium mouthfeel, and is well carbonated and tingly on the tongue.

The Feel: Summer evenings are tailor made for relaxing, and this beer more than fits the bill.

 

Game Day Beer Review: St John Brewers' Island Hoppin' IPA

In which Ed definitively proves that some beers just taste like vacation:

 

I am confronted with a kaleidoscope of colors on the illuminated bar of  Grand Palazzo -- orange and pink and yellow and somewhere in the background, the orange brown of St. John Brewers' Island Hoppin' IPA (St. John USVI, 6.2% ABV).  Our bartender keeps bringing out something new, something even more colorful than the next.  It's all strikingly similar to the neon display beneath the sea that I've witnessed each day I've been here.  Beautiful royal angelfish, immaculate polka dot box fish puffing at the sand, vivid purple damselfish frolicking through the coral -- all of these have turned at least one of their eyes to me as I grope my way through the sapphire blue water behind them, an awkward stalker from a far away world.  But yet I still return to the familiar, and Island Hoppin' IPA has much of that: flavorful hops abound, and the firm feel of a substantial foundation of the style holds the line.  Yet there's something more there -- a sniff  of fruit?  A touch of mango or pineapple? It's hard to discern, as I'm lost in the islands on a journey that takes me to an indefatigable supply of abandoned beaches with sugar sand and plastic blue waters.  With mask and snorkel always at my side, I contemplate the joyous repetition of our days.  But like the IPA, I remember there's something more substantial to return to, even than this paradise.  Just not quite yet....

Island Hoppin' IPA, a foundation of the familiar with a bashful hint of the color of the islands.  A-

Game Day Beer Review: Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Barleywine Ale

 

 

The Location: The farlieonfootie corporate office, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Date: Sunday, December 8th

The Time: 5:01pm, Eastern Daylight Time

The Weather: 75 degrees, air conditioned environment.

The Scene: Arsenal vs Everton on a televised replay. Co-workers off doing whatever it is co-workers do, while the boss catches a late afternoon recap of the day's action, feet on desk.

The Music: Whatever She's Got, David Nail

The Beer: Bourbon County Brand Barleywine Ale, Goose Island (12.10% ABV)

The Taste: The booze is eminently smellable, indeed almost all-enveloping, as soon as the beer is poured. The nose also mixes the scents of vanilla and bourbon into the action. BCB Barleywine has an oily mouthfeel due to its high ABV, but it offers decent carbonation. We tasted dark chocolate, butterscotch and bourbon, with some sweet malt and toffee also present asnd accounted for. Make no mistake about it: this is a big beer, and it warms your insides as it goes down.

The Feel: A great game deserves a great beer.

Game Day Beer Review: Brouwerij Huyghe Delirium Nöel Belgian Strong Dark Ale

The Location: A private home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

The Date: Saturday, November 30, 2013

The Time: 5:15pm, Eastern Standard Time

The Weather: 75 degrees in the air-conditioned indoors

The Scene: The loud sounds of children, excited to be hanging ornaments on a Christmas  tree, the room a veritable beehive of activity. Holiday music plays in the background. 

The Music: Silver Bells, Colbie Caillat

The Beer: Delirium Noël, Brouwerij Huyghe (10.00% ABV)

The Taste: Poured from the bottle into a goblet.  Appears an always-lighter-than-expected reddish-brown color with a thin head that rapidly dissolves. The beer offers notes of Belgian yeast, honey, apples and sweet malt on the nose. Delirium Noël has the definite tartness of a fermented apple juice, mixed with malty sweetness and a ton of grape esters. It's nicely boozy, but not thick in its mouthfeel. It's a wonderfully complex beer, one that surprises us by its depth every time we try it. Noël is a genuine holiday treat. 

The Feel: As close as we get to winter in South Florida. 

Game Day Beer Review: Cisco Brewers' The Grey Lady Witbier

The Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida.

The Date: Saturday, November 16th, prior to the kickoff of Brazil vs. Honduras.

The Time: 5:47pm, Eastern Daylight Time

The Weather: 74 degrees, moderate breeze blowing from the east.

The Scene: The scent of paella cooking on an outdoor gas-fired ring, soccer balls and footballs flying nearby, a group composed of adults and children receiving a thumbs up from the Honduran woman across the parking lot.

The Music: Bring it on Home, Little Big Town

The Beer: The Grey Lady Witbier, Cisco Brewers (4.50% ABV)

The Taste: Drunk from the bottle.  Notes of lemon with a peppery spice, with a slight bit of orange on the back end; Coriander and yeast also upfront in the taste profile.  Relatively dry finish for a witbier. It's sweet and sour co-mingled in a bottle.

The Feel: Saturday Night + Paella + Soccer + Friends = Good Times 

 

 

Game Day Beer Review: Evil Twin Brewing Ryan and the Beaster Bunny Saison

Photo by Mosman on Flickr

The Location: The Laser Wolf, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Date: Thursday, November 14th, Boys' Night Out.

The Time: 10:00pm, Eastern Daylight Time

The Weather: 74 degrees, cool enough to break out the jeans but not the requisite flannel shirt.

The Scene: Small crowd standing at bar admiring a well-thought-out beer list, moderately tattooed woman fluttering like a moth to the flame that emanates from the heartbreaker that is Correspondent Ed.

The Music: Alt Rock / Nu Metal

The Beer: Ryan and the Beaster Bunny, Saison, Evil Twin Brewing

The Taste: So well balanced it's unreal.  Coriander, clove, pepper and citrus notes all present and accounted for.  So is the Belgian yeast strain and the farmyard funk.  This beer is not as overly bitter as some other examples of the style, with the orange citrus moderating the hops to perfection. These guys killed it with this one.

The Feel: What's not to like?

Game Day Beer Review: Russian River Supplication American Wild Ale

The Location: Napa, California, in the heart of the American wine country.

The Date: Saturday, November 9th, after a tough day of touring vineyards on a bike.

The Time: 4:00pm, Pacific Daylight Time

The Weather: 66 degrees, sun just beginning to lower in the perfectly blue California sky, trace humidity.  Best described as "the absence of weather."

The Scene: Feet on table, the University of Miami and Virginia Tech playing college football on a nearby television, with a small group of people relaxing near the hotel bar.

The Music: I Drive Your Truck, Lee Brice

The Beer: Supplication, Russian River Brewing

The Taste: Tart cherries and a mild funky taste, but not nearly as sour as one might expect -- the sourness being just about perfectly offset by a brown sugary sweetness.  The pinot noir barrels that the beer was aged in make themselves readily apparrent.  There's a saying in the wine business that it "takes a lot of great beer to make a great wine," and there's no better example of that than this beer from the ultra-talented Vinny Cilurzo and crew.

The Feel: Life doesn't get much better than this.

 

Game Day Beer Review: Anchor Brewing Anchor Steam California Common Ale

No trip to Northern California would be complete without sampling one of the state's best known and oldest beers, Anchor Brewing's Anchor Steam California Common Ale. The granddaddy of the craft beer movement, this beer was one of the first that truly opened our eyes to what American beer could be -- and we're happy to see that approximately 25 years after we first tasted it, Anchor Steam is still holding its  head up proudly. 

The beer poured a crystal clear copper color with a bright white head that left behind considerable lacing, even on the plastic airline cup from which this beer was drunk. Anchor Steam smelled primarily of caramel malt, with the mildest touch of hops just barely noticeable. 

Smooth malty goodness dominated the flavor profile; floral and hop notes also shone through. Anchor Steam could be the perfectly balanced beer: it was medium-bodied and tingly on the tongue. An American classic: A-

Game Day Beer Review: 21st Amendment Back in Black American Black Ale

Somehow at 35,000 feet over Texas on a recent flight out to the American west coast it seemed fitting to drink a California beer, so we had previously asked the crack farlieonfootie aviation staff to make certain the corporate jet was stocked full of a brew that would slake the considerable thirst worked up during our 5 hour trip from Florida.....

Which is not exactly how we came to be drinking Back in Black, an American Black Ale produced by San Francisco-based 21st Amendment Brewery. For those of you not hip enough or old enough, the 21st Amendment was the very fine piece of legislation in the United States that repealed the nasty little brutish lapse in American social mores known as Prohibition. 

Back in Black was poured from a 12 ounce can into a plastic cup -- the G5 somehow being found absent of the Riedel crystal beer glasses more typically used (Note to self: remember to ask Correspondent Scott who else was on that last flight he took).  Indeed, however, even in plastic the beer appeared as a darn black (or brown, at the very least) color, topped by a extra thickish mocha-brown colored head -- who knew a plastic cup could retain such considerable lacing?

The scent of sweet malt rose immediately  from the cup, followed by a tiny, bitter-ish hop note. Roast coffee was the flavor we recognized first and foremost, with the taste gradually becoming a bit metallic in the middle before the swallow ended with a large dose of hops. We don't know nor do we care to delve into the subtleties of the somewhat opaque style often referred to as a "Black IPA"  (Is it an IPA?  Don't think so....  Or an American Black Ale?). What we do know, however,  is that this beer wasn't half bad, and that if the flight had lasted much longer we would have been hard pressed to turn down another. B

Game Day Beer Review: Staatliches Hofbraühaus Hofbraü Original Munich Helles Lager

The Location: Lockhart Stadium Parking Lot, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Date: Saturday, November 2nd, the final game of the NASL Fall season.

The Time: 6:45pm, prior to a 7:30pm Ft. Lauderdale Strikers' kickoff

The Weather: 78 degrees, heavy cumulus clouds lingering overhead and partially blocking the sunset. Moderate breeze blowing through the parking lot.

The Scene: Children throwing and kicking balls, cars looking for open spots, adults gathered around a charcoal grill, and the smell of grilled meat and smoke mingling delightfully in the nearby air.

The Music: Small Town USA, Justin Moore

The Beer: Hofbraü Original, Hofbrahaus Munich

The Taste: In a word, refreshing. Aromatic hops and malt in almost the perfect balance. Caramel, bread and biscuit were all present and accounted for. This is how a good German lager should taste.

The Feel: Perfection.

Game Day Beer Review: New Belgium Lips of Faith Yuzu Imperial Berliner Weissbier

This beer was drunk several weeks ago and reviewed largely via memory, so don't be too literal in your interpretation -- it's more an impression of what we remember about the beer than anything else.  And there are some times in which our memory serves us better than others....

That being said, the first time we drank New Belgium's Lips of Faith Yuzu Imperial Berliner Weiss it was poured into a snifter from a 22 ounce bottle during a recent gathering at Correspondent Ed's -- obviously, the beer was drunk prior to the police shutting down the affair, a rather common experience from our observation (in fact, Ed didn't so much as flinch when the handcuffs were placed on his wrists, and he has the stone-faced "perp walk" expression down cold).

 

The beer was a pale yellow/gold color, and whatever white head it initially expressed itself with quickly disappeared.  Yuzu struck us as clearer than some other Berliner Weisses we've drunk -- if clarity is your thing, this might be your sour.....

 

If you judge a beer by how it smells and tastes, however -- as most people tend to  -- maybe it's not your beer.  We smelled a wheaty citrus scent, and by and large the taste followed the nose.  The beer wasn't nearly as sour as we would have liked -- especially coming as a Lips of Faith offering.  Overall, we had kind of a "meh" reaction to Yuzu -- hoping for more of everything: more citrus, more sour, more tartness.  In fact, we wanted more of everything except this beer. 

 

Don't get us wrong: it's not a diaster by any means, it's just not something we'd seek out on a regular basis.  And not because of it's taste, but because it could have been so much more.  Yuzu is the victim of high expectations and low follow through:  C+ 

 

Game Day Beer Review: Revolution Anti-Hero American IPA

(6.50% ABV) Anti-Hero poured a burnished copper color with a white head that really stuck around. We drank this beer at Reilly's Daughter, an Irish pub located at Midway Airport in Chicago, Illinois, during a recent business trip. We poured the beer from its can into a plastic cup; not the ideal presentation, but hey, sometimes you have to play the hand you've been dealt. 

We smelled primarily hops and pine emanating from the cup. We got much of the same upon tasting Anti-Hero, with the strong flavor of grapefruit also mixed in. There was a nice malt backbone that ran throughout the flavor profile and served to take the edge off.  

It's wasn't near as harshly bitter as some of the west coast IPA hop-bombs, but also not as mild and restrained as the east coast versions of the style.  Instead, Revolution played this one right down the middle -- befitting its location in the center of the country. 

This is a very good beer: A-

Game Day Beer Review: Brasserie Dupont Saison Dupont

(6.50% ABV) Poured into a chalice from a 11.2 ounce bottle on a recent Sunday while reviewing the weekend happenings in the Barclay's Premier League. The beer poured a murky orange-gold color with just a little bit of a white head showing around the edges. The carbonation was active and immediately noticeable, but due to the caution with which we poured the beer, the head was not hyperactive.

Saison Dupont smelled mainly of citrus and yeast. This quintessential farmhouse ale -- the epitome of the style for our money -- was dry and yeasty upon tasting, with the beer's flavors neatly mirroring its smell. We found some green apple and grains in the upfront taste, and just a hint of clove and maybe even vanilla on the finish. The beer was highly carbonated and active on the tongue. It's a genuine Belgian treat: A-

Game Day Beer Review: Rodenbach 2010 Vintage Oak Aged Flemish Red Ale (Barrel 144)

(7.00% ABV) The 2010 vintage Rodenbach poured a murky brown with an off-white head that disappeared almost immediately. 

The beer was poured into a chalice from a 750 ml bottle at the home office, and smelled mainly of a sour funk, with some depth to the scent offered by the wood aging. 

The sourness in this beer was at near perfect levels. We tasted cherries, crisp apples and grapes in the beer -- it was lip-puckering perfection in a glass. The Rodenbach finished relatively dry, and the alcohol made itself apparent only near the end as the beer warmed. 

The Rodenbach was highly carbonated and refreshing as hell. We absolutely loved this beer -- it's a classic of the style. A 

Game Day Beer Review: The Alchemist Heady Topper Imperial IPA

(8.00% ABV) To paraphrase U2, there's been a lot of talk about this next beer, maybe, maybe too much talk. We decided to see what the Heady Topper madness was all about, and discover for ourselves if the Vermont-based beer lived up to the hype.

Heady Topper was drunk from the can, as instructed. Okay, we cheated a bit, and poured just a teeny bit into a glass so we could see what this baby looked like. The rest was drunk from the can, as instructed right at the top -- we promise!  Ok, truth be told, we actually drank this beer from a glass, but it was a specially-designed glass -- one suited for IPAs, and designed by none other than Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada, both of whom know a thing or two about beer. So much for following directions, but then again we've never been too good about that....  Despite the instructions, we recommend drinking it from a glass if you have a good one. 

The beer was a hazy light yellow color, and came with a head that was white as the driven snow and just didn't want to leave. The smells of hops and pine resin were almost overwhelming, amazingly concentrated. The hoppy bitterness made itself apparent right away upon tasting, but it wasn't overwhelming. It stays there throughout the entire taste, but this beer was much smoother than many IPAs we've had over the years.

Heady Topper's mouthfeel was moderate, as was its carbonation.  It may not be the best beer we've ever had, but is is very well balanced and quite delicious. A

Game Day Beer Review: Cigar City Florida Cracker Witbier

(5.00% ABV) Poured from a 12 ounce can while watching a sumptuous night of  Cup qualifiers. Florida Cracker -- an oft-misunderstood term in today's world, but one that originally referred to the crack of the bullwhip used by old time Florida ranchers to drive their cattle through the dense undergrowth of the peninsula's backwoods -- appeared a murky gold-orange color, with a thick head of soapy white bubbles that dissipated rather quickly, leaving virtually no trace behind.

The scent of citrus and Belgian yeast were immediately apparent on the nose. Orange notes in particular stood out when lifting the beer up close for a smell.

The beer displayed plenty of clove on the initial taste, but it faded rather quickly and was subsumed by the orange flavor and a certain peppery spice. 

The beer had a light mouthfeel with plenty of carbonation. All in all, Florida Cracker is yet another stellar  effort from one of our very favorite breweries. B+

Game Day Beer Review: 7venth Sun Brewery Wolfman's Berliner Weissbier

(3.5% ABV) Poured from a growler into a tulip glass one hot summer weekend (aren't they all in Florida?). Wolfman appeared a clear-as-a-bell straw color with a whispy thin white head that was gone before we could even properly take note of it.

The beer smelled most profoundly of wheat, with some slight funk thrown in at the very end.

It was easy drinking all the way, and not as sour on first grasp as one might have expected. The wheat shone through on the initial taste and never really left. The beer was sparkly on the tongue and a real thirst slaker.  We love just about everything produced by this small Dunedin, Florida-based brewery, and this effort was no exception.  A-

Game Day Beer Review: Birra Amiata Contessa American IPA

(7.00% ABV) Poured at the home office from a 22 ounce bomber on a lazy weekend afternoon. Contessa appeared a hazy orange/gold color with a massive head of soapy white bubbles. The beer was so well carbonated that some of the foam made its way out of the bottle even before the beer made it into the glass.

 

The beer displayed grass and lemon notes on the scent. The citrus notes made themselves apparent as soon as the bottle opened.

It was fizzy on the tongue, and just bitter enough on the finish to keep the initial lemon and floral freshness honest. It's nowhere near as bitter as some of the west coast hop bombs that currently rule the American scene, but we loved it nonetheless.

Contessa was highly carbonated and very light on the tongue. The beer was seriously refreshing: why anyone would choose to drink a macro beer over something like this little Italian gem is beyond our comprehension. A-

Game Day Beer Review: Evil Twin Brewing Justin Blåbær Berliner Weissbier

(5.75% ABV) Justin Blåbær was poured on draft at Hops and Pie in Denver, Colorado during the week of the Great American Beer Festival. Blaeber poured an off pinkish-purple color with a thin, whispy head of delicate white foam that left behind no lacing whatsoever.

Blåbær had a blueberry funk smell thing going on in the nose. There was definitely a certain lactic sourness to the beer's aroma.

The tart soutness was the first thing that hit the tongue, although the blueberries and lemon shone through on the finish. The beer was very light, somewhat fizzy, and extremely refreshing. We loved it. A-

Game Day Beer Review: Anderson Valley Fall Hornin' Pumpkin Ale

Fall Hornin' was poured from the can into a pint glass on a recent autumn weekend. The beer was a brilliantly clear, tannish-red color with a mocha-colored head that was composed of bubbles of mixed sizes.

The fall offering from Anderson Valley smelled mostly of unidentifiable pumpkin pie spices, but we did discern cinnamon and just the a slightest hint of Band-Aid. Pumpkin spices dominated the upfront taste, as well, and we tasted the cinnamon and perhaps some nutmeg, as well.

The sweetness of the malt was a little more than we would have liked to have seen -- this is not something that we would choose to session.  The beer had a medium mouthfeel with average carbonation. B