A Flowery Song

Background: The third batch of this collaborative brew to be made, but only the second to be released (the one brewed in Jolly Pumpkin’s facilities is undergoing extended barrel aging, like many of their beers). See my notes on the first here. This release uses the same recipe, but was brewed and aged at Nøgne Ø in Norway.

Nose: Prominent sage, hint of hops.

Taste: Sage and spicy rye on the first sip. Juniper influence makes itself felt. Medium hop bitterness in the finish. Solid nutty malt backbone.

Overall: Comparing my notes to last year’s, it’s evident that (as would be expected) these beers are fairly similar. I don’t have a perfect memory or another bottle to compare, but I think this one is slightly heavier and sweeter, and the alcohol isn’t particularly noticeable. What I said then stands: an intriguing and drinkable special beer, but not an everyday beer.

Background: The first (and so far only) pumpkin beer from Jolly Pumpkin, this golden ale is flavoured with pumpkin, cacoa, and spices.

Nose: Dry, tart, with hints of cinnamon and chocolate.

Taste: Dry, tart, with hints of oak and squash. Very negligible spice influence, really.

Overall: Good beer. But while it’s what I expected from a Jolly Pumpkin beer, it’s not really what people expect from a pumpkin beer.

Background: Limited availability, brewed in a small batch, and according to the internet evidently very hard to find. None of which I knew when I bought a couple of bottles, since I rarely go out shopping for specific beers. Fortune favours the me. Anyway, it’s a Double IPA and I can’t currently convince Bell’s website to cough up information instead of PHP errors.

Nose: Candied orange peel. Other than lots of hops, the alcohol is very evident.

Taste: Piny resinous hop flavour, pithy grapefruit hop flavour, herbal leafy hop flavour, high hop bitterness, dry hoppy finish. Oh, and there’s probably some malt in there somewhere. The hoppiness does a great job masking the alcohol, as I can’t taste any of the 10+% ABV that was so evident on the nose.

Overall: This beer has never heard of the concept of ‘balance’. It’s interesting to drink in despite of that, but not something that I personally would class as great. If you love hops and don’t mind a beer that’s just hops, you should definitely grab this one if you run across it.

Hops.

Background: Brewed to celebrate Sierra Nevada’s 29th anniversary, this is a big bold IPA showcasing Cascade, their favourite hop variety.

Nose: Toasty malt and citrusy hops, mainly clementine with a bit of grapefruit.

Taste: Solid, tasty caramel malt, with toast and honey character. Medium hop bitterness, but mainly the Cascades contribute a bunch of citrus flavour, with a bit of herbalness. Slight sweetness to start, then a long hoppy finish.

Overall: Sierra Nevada knows what they’re doing when it comes to IPAs, and this one does not disappoint.

Background: The first entry in Avery’s Barrel-Aged Series, this sour ale was fermented with two strains of Brettanomyces then aged in Zinfandel barrels for six months. Bottled 10 February 2009.

Nose: Very rich and complex, with earthy barnyard funk and a deep red fruitiness. Cherry, raspberry, pear, and clove influences.

Taste: Very dry, lots of tannic oak influence. Rounded, silky mouthfeel. Notable vinuous red wine influence, with blackcurrant and cherries. Dark malty background with some saddle leather from the brett accompanying.

Overall: An excellent start to what I hope will be a long and fruitful series of beers. Pack in lots of flavour, while remaining somewhat approachable for less seasoned sour beer drinkers.

Background: This seasonal ale from Sierra Nevada is an American IPA made with Chinook, Cascade, and Centennial hops.

Nose: Lots of floral and citrusy hops.

Taste: Sweet caramel malt, aggressive fruity hoppiness fading into a grapefruit pith finish.

Overall: Excellent. Well-balanced and exceedingly drinkable.

Background: The 26th entry in Harpoon’s 100 Barrel Series was guest brewed by Steve Stewart, head brewer and owner of Stewart Brewing in Scotland. Brewed with Scottish malts and American hops. Released February 11, 2008; 5.4% ABV.

Nose: Gentle caramel malt, light fruitiness, and not much else.

Taste: Cleanly malty, with moderate estery fruitiness and restrained hop bitterness. Some nutty, roasty, and herbal influences leading into a long, dry finish.

Overall: I quite like it. Very drinkable, full-flavoured but light-bodied.

Background: Purported to be the first in a line of barrel aged beers from the brewery, this bottle-conditioned Arbor Brewing product is a blend of a young Belgian-style ale with a three-year-old barrel-aged sour ale.

Nose: Indistinct dark dried fruit, strawberry esters.

Taste: Malty and earthy, with overtones of orange and light spicy phenols. Very, very light lactic sourness, and a light barnyard leather funk to remind us that our friend Brettanomyces came along for the ride.

Overall: If you happen to have two of the 240 bottles of this, I’d recommend cellaring one for another year or so to let the wee bugs do their work. It’s decent now, but some age should give it more complexity.

Background: Collaborative brew between everyone’s favourite Michigan brewery, everyone’s second-favourite Norwegian brewery, and Stone. Brewed on Stone’s equipment, but the recipe was worked out via emails between the three head brewers and they all helped with the brewing. The recipe incorporates juniper berries from Italy (standing in for Norway, since they were unable to source any from there), white sage from California, and chestnuts from Michigan. In addition to the other spices, caraway seed was added as a complement to the 25% rye in the malt bill.

Nose: Green, herbal hops, followed by a touch of sage.

Taste: Lots going on. Very clear sage note, with spicy rye and juniper also quite evident. Caraway and a medium hop bitterness come through in the finish. Indistinct hop flavour; if I had to hazard a guess, I’d say an English hop variety. The 9% ABV starts to become evident after a few sips.

Overall: Very unique. Definitely not a session beer, but for an occasional taste sensation it’s quite nice. (Especially since I love sage.)

The Mission: “You’ve got three weeks, is what I’m saying: go find a smoked beer.” Direct and to the point.

Probably the most well-known example of a smoked beer is the German rauchbier, where a portion of the malt used is dried over a beechwood fire. The other widely available smoked malt is peated malt, while various craft brewers have smoked their own malt over anything from apple wood to alder wood (okay, so that’s not all that far).

A less traditional method, while not something I’ve heard of being used, would be to directly smoke the beer itself.

The second beer I’ll be covering is an example of second-hand smoke. I’m sure everyone’s heard of barrel-aged beer, but how many of you have considered that it introduces two possible sources for a smoky flavour? First, whisky barrels are usually charred before use, which can carry over into any beer aged in them. Second, what if the barrel came from a heavily peat-smoked whisky like Bruichladdich or Lagavulin? Even a less smoky whisky such as Highland Park introduces some smoke character.
(continue reading…)