Allagash Black Belgian Style Stout

Beer Log: Sunday night after the Texans whipped up on the Jaguars
State: Chilling out at home, the wife is frying up pork chops, going to put the baby down soon.

Allagash Black Belgian Style Stout
We actually had this in our cellar for what must be years, this one is Batch 14.  Anyway we had this with us at our friend's house for the game but did not open it up.  Anyway let's crack 'em.  Mixed in with the pork and cajun seasoning smells in the air, I get a chocolate and jolly rancher like nose on this one.  Maybe something akin to star annise.  This deep brown beer with tan head has a great malty flavor at first, I'll take some dark caramunich for $200 Alex.  Also it feels like cinnamon, a pinch of raisins, and sweet chocolate come all over the tongue after it warms up a touch.  This is one of those beers that makes you thirsty as the very dry nature of the beer and it's sheer effervescence get's it right off the tongue just as you are really ready to take it all in.  I love the slight banana ester as well.  A perfect marraige of a black stout and belgian styles. Shouts out to Tatiana Silva.  5 Stars!!!!

Beering in the Burbs: Cypress and Sugarland

As any good Cy-Fairian knows, the place with the coolest restaurants for beer in our neck of the woods are in straight up Cypress and dragging as down to Sugarland.  So we made it up to Rockwell Tavern to catch up on some specialty brews.  Always nice to have a good beer bar without having to pack a lunch to get to the bar.

Beer Log: May 4, 2012

Ranger Creek Strawberry Milk Stout
Deep black with a great lasting tan head. Taste has a nice chocolate stout flavor with a nice fruity aftertaste.  Very drinkable with low hops.  I'm going to assume that I'm getting that strawberry in there, however the flavor can be overpowered by the chocolate stoutiness, however Ranger Creek did not fall for it.  4 stars once again for the San Antone.

Karbach Hop Baron
Nose has a noticeable hops with feint chocolate notes.  This black beer is basically the stout version of the Rodeo Clown.  Awesome!  Clean hops with light roast and chocolate.  4 Stars.

No Label Jalapeno Ale
Oh boy.  I've never been a pepper beer guy, no matter how much I've tried.  I'll keep trying as I do not want any particular type of beer to be off limits to me (there used to be a time I didn't like hoppy beer).  Anyway we are in the burbs and so that means I'm drinking No Label.  Jalapeno nose comes through just barely.  Beer has strong flavor but no bite.  Some hops and malt in there but not overdone.  Aaaaaaaaaaand not long after that I start coughing and I'm getting that heat.  2 stars, but I'm not a pepper beer guy anyway.

A couple weeks later I make it back down to the Flying Saucer in Sugarland with the family.  We tried to kill some time with the baby by going to City Park but the mosquitoes jacked us up.  No wonder they call the baseball team the Sugarland Skeeters.  The Skeeters... HA!

Beer Log: May 19, 2012

New Belgium Prickly Passion
For a company where even the damn JR Crickets in Atlanta has Fat Tire on tap and in the neon sign, New Belgium is showing their naked ass with all these various beer styles.  These guys are hitting it at both ends apparently.  Congrats to the New Belgians.  So anyway the Prickly Passion has an orange amber color with light head.  The beer has nice banana, sour apple (I guess pear), nose.  Nice moderate sourness in the flavor with low carbonation.  Beer has something like a brett sour and cinnamon to it.  Maybe something akin to pine needles like thing for the hops.  Light sour aftertaste.  This beer is all over the place.  Just wish they took down the ABV to make it more session-able.  High 3 star - Low 4 star.

Great Divide 18th Anniversary
No nose but great malty oak, wood, vanilla and pine hops.  To put it simply, just amazing.  After that my daughter got my beer book and wrote all over it.  She did managed the words "Beer is Good".

Catching up: New Belgium, Indy, Lagunitas

Just going through the my beer notebook and wanted to clear some things out.  I've had some fantastic travel this summer mostly family related, lot's of time in DC which I've already chronicled, as well as some beering out on the Ohio River.  Lastly I finished up my most recent travels back in Midtown Atlanta once again, and that part of town is absolutely great for beer, with many spots within decent walking distance.

Beer Log: April 15, 2012
State: Hanging out with the family at Petrol Station, absolutely starving.

New Belgium Dig Pale Ale: 
For some reason we could not find this beer on Untappd, which is weird for a New Belgium beer.  Didn't feel like spending the time to add it in, so I figured I would just hang out and write my notes.  Amber color and clear with a decent finger or so of head.  The taste has a great hops and malt.  Beer is very clean with lemon like character which I'm attributing to the hops, yet it's balanced.  I love the slight sour aftertaste and nuttiness and caramel flavor of the malt just peaking through.  4 stars for the New Belgians.

Independence Easy Riser Stout
Now I've been hunting the durn Mandarin Saison between when I had this beer (April) and when I'm writing this up in the blog (September), I've not seen it.  Damn shame.  That beer was unreal!  ANyway the ERS is a deep brown with a tean head, great coffee ground and roasted malt nose.  Beer has a dry character with coffee and chocolate.  It's dry yet very poofy (if that makes sense).  How about I call this like Saint Arnold Santo but with more kick all the way around.  High 3 Stars.

And later on...

State: Just had some Lazy Magnolia beer at the house, and now going to split a bomber with the Misses while watching some Bill Maher.

Lagunitas Bavarian-Style Dunkelweizen
Nice cloudy orange color in the sunlight (I'm BLIND) with a thin white head.  The nose makes me think of Halloween candy and banana.  I actually wrote "mmm, sweet sugar wheat beer".  Nice softness and light bitterness.  Taste of sugar sweetness, lemon hops, and banana flavored bubblegum.  No hint of 9% alcohol content.  Loving life.  4 Stars. 

Deep Ellum, Buffalo Bayou, New Belgium... who you kicking out of the Hot Tub?

So I'm hanging out with the wife and child and we actually elected to skip the Flying Saucer party downtown.  Just too much with the baby.  But we did compromise and make it the Sugarland location for some Texas Beer.  Hold up....

Beer Log: Right now
State: Watching the Bootleg Storage Wars aka Storage Hunters
Man Storage Wars kills Storage Hunters.  All we have are big stereotypical black women.  Damn shame.

New Belgium Lips of Faith Belgian Style Blond
Pour this one in our Oak Aged Yeti Snifter.  It has a nice golden straw hue that is a little cloudy.  Thin white head.  Nose has a great limon and banana nose,  Taste is not as sour as I thought, more a sugar cookie sweetness with a wet yet dry aftertaste.  High carbonation and very drinkable.  A nice mixture of sweet and sour, smooth and dry.  A battle of extremes that juxtaposes just right.  I could drink this one all day even with 8%+ ABV.  High 3 stars.

So at the Saucer I went ahead and grabbed a couple of beers from the great state of Texas.  Some of the new stuff.  You know what, I'm actually going to let the Voice annotation on my Droid Razr 2 stand and not correct it, save the links and some capitalization.  Figured this would be fun.

Beer Log: Earlier Today
State: At the Flying Saucer in Sugar Land

Deep Ellum Dallas Blond on cask
clear install color, with a great malti nose. fantastic like honey crackers and light caramel what flavor, makes with yes to the hospital make it worth it. I get a nice chance of ok as well which really as a nice touch to what should be a great session beer and they can get it in a can in time for football season.

Buffalo by you 1836
amber color in clear with this and why Ted. That beer has a great multi band Steely know as well as Chase. I get something like it ok meal cookies and some great lights soda pops. Check that's probably tiny hops. I am really enjoying this beer. Another great session beer for the tailgate. Go Texas.

Beering in DC Metro: Red Line

So after pounding a Budweiser at the wedding just to get the Wedding Badge on Untappd, we all get together in Silver Springs to play some cards with the old crew.

Turns out the fricken red line is all screwed up with Construction and once we get to the Red line transfer, we actually have to take the bus.  We didn't time this just right so my friend and I were about 45 minutes early as we hoofed it through a very nice Silver Springs, MD.  We call up our boy and he starts bitching that he said 8:30PM.  So we end up taking a very slight detour and walk to Firestation #1 Restaurant and Brewery to watch some preseason ball, have some local beer, and ham it up with the townies.

State: Belly up to the bar and I just go ahead and order the flight.  My friend doesn't drink but gets a banana split.  The Jets are playing the Giants and I'm over here yelling to everyone that I just want to see Tebow.  I don't care for the Jets, I DO care about GOOD TELEVISION.

As we were engaged in deep philosophical conversation about Rex Ryan and the new rules assisting passing quarterbacks, I did not get the most thorough of notes on the beer, so pardon me..

Beer Log: August 18, 2012

FH1 Avenue Golden Ale
Clear and light straw. Light nose and light flavor of cracker and a pinch if metal. 2 stars.

FH1 Stout
Dark brown and cloudy. Deep beer with a body like guinness. Light coco roast with a pinch of lemon. Low 3stars.

FH1 IPA
This ain't working out too well. Maybe a little sour and whatnot. Smooth like an English pale ale. AT is all bready.

Later on in the flight I get a soda hoppy Heavy Seas Loose Cannon IPA.  That was some good stuff.

It looks like FH1 has elected to go the English style of beering as opposed to what I would call American.  That actually makes a lot of sense as this makes the beers a little beter for mass consumption, but I've never been an English style beer guy.  German yes, Czech Hell Yes, American West coast shit yeah, Mexican Si, but never got into the English.  I'm sure I'll have to catch up one of these days.

Beering in DC Metro: Green Line

Good to be back on the horse. I've been out of commission these last few weeks as I had some knee surgery.  The MRI seemed to show a slight meniscus tear but during the scope they found it was just a chondromalacia patella or knee ice sickles.  This is caused when your knees are not exactly aligned and will eventually get all screwed if you try to lead an active lifestyle with high impact sports.

I was a band nerd in high school but did the following pursuits since turning mid college:  Power weightlifting for two years, rugby for 3 years, long distance running for 5 years, and now mixed martial arts.  I've been laying on my couch and basically unable to work out for weeks, and it's killing me.

Well now my knee is all cleaned out and after I finish rehab, I'll just have to warm up very well and make sure my legs are nice and strong.  Afterward, should not have much more of a problem.  Not only that but I'm going to bias toward low impact activities.  I really enjoy kayaking but may take up mountain biking. Golf may kick up a bit and will continue yoga.  MMA will remain, though I may switch to just Brazilian Jitz and cry as I put down my kickboxing.  Damn that will really suck.  Distance running may have to go by-by in place of 10K max running and distance cycling and maybe even get some swimming going.

But before that I managed to visit some old college buddies in the DC area for one of their weddings.  Very sweet that all the old crew is getting married.  Anyway, my friend and I elect not to rent a car and to just hang out utilizing only the Metro, which worked out well all weekend as we made our way to Dupont Circle area and Silver Springs

Beer Log: August 15, 2012
State: At Bier Baron, just relaxing getting some dinner

So we make it to Dupont Circle's metro stop and it is BUTT NAKED out there with Washington Nationals fans.  They are simply everywhere.  Turns out the last thing you want to do is ride the Green Line at all during a Nats game.  Folks are pretty fired up for the team.  Luckily we were going to the big money part of town, which means we minimize the amount of hooligans we'll run into.  As my friend is a huge Yankees man and I'm a 'Stros fan. So we hoof it over to Bier Baron as we have not been here in ages.  We go down to what I can only imagine was the dungeon, belly up to the bar, and order some local beer...

Port City Wit
Yellow cloudy with a thin head. Nose is fluffy banana and clove. Taste is the same. High quality wit beer, mild carbo, some lingering bitter bite. Three stars.

Port City Pale
Clear amber caramel nose. Nice light hoops and malt. Clean, no butter. Crisp. Loving it  4 stars

Later on that night we make it out to Birch and Barley, but my phone was nearly dead, so I couldn't take any notes or log them in on Untappd.  Hate when that happens.

So the next day we hit the golf course and then score some killer chinese food.  Along with it we stop by the liquor store and grab some Yuengling and Amish Four Grain.  No review for either but they were great session beers for us throughout.

to be continued...

Divine Reserve 12

Aaaaaaaaaaaand the race was on.  I managed to get about three six packs and a bomber today in the great hunt for Divine Reserve.  Of course, I'll be drinking this beer at every bar I can find for this weekend (assuming any makes it lasts that long).  Twitter was going crazy today with people more doing jokes about the beer than where to find it.

Beer Log: Right now
State: Watching the Russians screw it up on the balance beam, slight heartburn from the crawfish spaghetti

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 12
Pours a somewhat murky ruby amber with a very thin head in my Old New Orleans Rum glass.  The beer tastes very caramel sweet with some  faint hops barely holding on.  I can say things like ruby, plum, raisin, and caramel, maybe a pinch of chocolate all in that order.  But what I can really say is that the beer is probably not all that ready yet for consumption.  I think I'll great out one say once every 6 months and see how it changes.