The BR Beer Scene Year In Review - 2011 Version!

Hey everyone!  

I must say it has been a fantastic year for my blogging and beer drinking habits, as I look back on all of the "resolutions" I set for myself at the beginning of 2011.  Did I accomplish all of them?  Honestly, no, I didn't.  Let's take a quick look though before I get into some goals for 2012.

1. Visit at least 6 breweries.  I accomplished this one, visiting the Tin Roof Brewery in Baton Rouge, Parish Brewery in Broussard/Lafayette, Freetail Brewery in San Antonio, Saint Arnold Brewery in Houston, No Label Brewery in Katy, and the Bozeman Brewery in Bozeman.  Each of them presented a unique experience and I would (and almost certainly will) visit them all again!
   
2. Get published somewhere other than my blog.  Hmmm, in a way I did accomplish this as the Raise A Glass radio show featuring myself and Jay Ducote of BiteandBooze.com is on the air and published on iTunes.  It wasn't really the point of the goal, but I suppose it does meet the letter of the law. 
   
3. Keep Homebrewing.  Mission accomplished here, I brewed several beers throughout 2011 and also a mead.  I plan on doing even more homebrewing in the future now that I'm done with resolution #7 which you'll see later! 
   
4. Enter a Homebrew contest.  I never really did this, but I did serve some homebrews at the Tin Roof Homebrew Appreciation Night.  Still though, I can't say that counts because it wasn't a contest, just an open house/tasting.  Strike 1. 
   
5. Drink a beer stronger than I ever have before.  This was accomplished twice over... once with the Brewdog Tokio* Imperial Stout and also with the Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA.  Check!
   
6. Continue to get in better shape and lose weight as I simultaneously continue to enjoy beer and write about it.  Well, I can't honestly say that I accomplished this one.  I didn't gain much, but I am up about 5 pounds from the start of the year.  So crap... strike 2. 
   
7. There are 365 days in 2011... I think I should try 365 new beers.  This was the big one, and I accomplished it with flying colors, drinking around 460 (and counting for another day) new beers this year.  I finished it off with a Westvleteren 12 as number 365 back in October.  I did fall behind in blogging about all the beers, but can you really blame me? That's a lot of brew! 

So there you have it... 7 resolutions, 5 success stories and 2 strikes.  I guess it takes 3 strikes to be out, so I'll keep on blogging about beer! 

My goals for 2012 will be a lot simpler and mostly focus on that Resolution #6 that I failed to accomplish but also some aspects of the rest.  Check back tomorrow for that post! 

Who Wants Some 28% Ghost Deer From BrewDog?

I know I'd try it... BrewDog announced on their blog the plans for a 28% fully fermented beer called "Ghost Deer" that will be served on tap through a stuffed deer head.  Yeah, you read that right... here's the picture!

Unfortunately this is only going to be available at the Edinburgh pub... dammit!  I'm not sure what to think about the deer head (some sort of European stag I'm sure) as a tap, but the guys at BrewDog are pretty serious about taxidermy and this wouldn't be their first beer to be served via the art.  Unlike the crazy strong Tactical Nuclear Penguin and Sink The Bismarck, this Ghost Deer is fermented fully to achieve the 28% alcohol rather than a process where they freeze the other beers and skim the ice (water freezes first) off the top to concentrate the alcohol.

I won't have the chance to try this one, but I like that breweries out there are doing this stuff!

Beer Travels: The Ginger Man Pub in Houston, TX

Alright, time for some more beer travels!  I've been going mostly to Houston lately, and that includes a couple of trips to The Ginger Man Pub in Rice Village.  This place has a reputation for being one of Houston's top beer bars, so I had to check it out!  It turns out the reputation is well earned.  There is a large bar with a great assortment of taps, and plenty of seating inside and outside.  The Ginger Man Pub concept has multiple locations now, but Houston was the original, so it was definitely the best one to check out first, right? 

 

The first trip was around 7 on a Friday night... and I expected the bar to be a little more crowded but Mandi and I met up with my old roommate Chris and his wife Emily and grabbed a table near the back of the bar with no problems.  They had a cask of Dogma on hand from BrewDog especially for American Craft Beer Week, but unfortunately I had tried that one before!  That didn't stop me from trying it again later, but I started off with a new beer to me, the Live Oak (@liveoakbrewing) Liberation IPA out of Austin, TX.  While I was trying that one out Mandi went for a Shiner 102 Double Wheat from the Spoetzl Brewery (@shinerbeer) and we switched out... always nice to have a drinking buddy to help me try all of these new beers! 

 

From there I tried a (512) IPA and then the Dogfish Head Brown Ale, both very solid beers.  (512) Brewing (@512brewing) is out of Austin, hence the area code, and Dogfish Head (@dogfishbeer) is of course the super popular craft brewery out of Delaware.  After those two I went for a canned craft beer because I was all out of new draft beer options.  That meant it was time for Ska Brewing Modus Hoperandi IPA.  Ska is a brewery out of Durango, Colorado that has embraced the movement to canned craft beer.  I've had their beer in bottles before, and on tap since, but it's still nice to see more breweries go towards cans as an option. 

Eventually the place filled up and started to really get loud, but it was never jam-packed like some bars get.  We also tried the "Beer Companion" meat & cheese & fruit plate which really hit the spot to add a little food to the stomach along with all the liquid bread.

More recently I went back with the same group on a Sunday afternoon... it was mostly empty but still was open after lunch on a Sunday, so props for that!  This trip was just for a pint each after lunch, but Emily was kind enough to let me try her Ommegang (@breweryommegang) Rare Vos ale so I could count it on the list!  I went with a Brooklyn (@brooklynbrewery) Blast Pale Ale, Brooklyn Brewing's double IPA which I absolutely loved.  This was definitely one of the best DIPAs I've tried recently and would highly recommend it to anyone who likes their beers hoppy.  

And now, after two trips to The Ginger Man Pub in Houston, I can say that I'll be back. It's a perfectly sized beer bar with the right ambiance and character to add to the beer drinking experience rather than take away like some places tend to do. I've experienced really good service both at the tables and at the bar on both trips, so I look forward to even more pints (and cans) of good beer!

Resolution Check-in At The Halfway Mark!

Okay, so I guess it's a day early... and July 1 isn't REALLY halfway through the year thanks to February being a bastard month, but it's still close enough for me.  Let's see how I'm doing on all those resolutions!

1. Visit more breweries: I set a goal to visit 6 breweries and am at 4 so far, so I'm on pace for sure.  So far I've visited Tin Roof in Baton Rouge, Parish Brewing in Broussard, Freetail in San Antonio, and Saint Arnold in Houston.  I was hoping to check out the new No Label Brewing this weekend in Katy, TX, but they are apparently closed on the first Saturday of every month.  Dammit.
   
   
2. Get published somewhere other than my own blog:  Hmmmm, technically I guess I could count this as accomplished, as Restauranteers has picked up my blog feed for their site, as well as Louisiana Brews.  Still, that's not me writing for someone else, it's just them using my content and linking back to me.  So... I'm iffy on this one.
   
   
3. Keep home-brewing: So far this is still going on... I bottled a noble pilsner last week, and have a peach witbier in secondary as we speak.  I haven't been brewing as MUCH as I anticipated, but I also still have a nice stockpile since I've been focusing so much on resolution #7. 
   
   
4. Enter a home-brew contest: I haven't done this one yet... but there are a few on the horizon that have potential to satisfy this resolution.
   
   
5. Drink a beer stronger than I ever have before: Check and check.  I tried the 18.2% abv Tokio Imperial Stout back in February, and on a trip to San Antonio I tried an 18% abv Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA. 
   
   
6. Continue to get in better shape and lose weight as I simultaneously continue to enjoy beer and write about it: Well, I haven't been the best at this one, but I am only 8 pounds up on the year.  The last few weeks I've decided to really get back to dieting and exercise and to save the beer drinking for the weekends when I'll allow myself to cheat a little.  I'm sure I'm still going to drink during the week from time to time when tastings arise, but I'll try to avoid it as much as possible.  And hopefully I'll finish the year lighter than when I started it.
   
   
7. There are 365 days in 2011... I think I should try 365 new beers: As of writing this, I'm at 229 new beers in 2011, and at the end of June I should be at 181.  I'd say 48 beers ahead of schedule is looking pretty solid.  And I have another 12 or so at home just waiting to be drank and reviewed.  Boo-ya!
   

And there you have it... 7 resolutions and making solid progress towards accomplishing them all!  Cheers everyone, and thanks for all the help, especially on those last two.

IPA Time At The Black Labrador Pub In Houston

A few trips ago to Houston I met up with some friends at The Black Labrador Pub for some beer and dinner... I knew they didn't have the best beer selection around but they DID have a couple of good IPAs available, including one I had never tried before.  To kick it off, I went for that new one, the Bridgeport IPA from the Bridgeport Brewery (@bridgeportbrew) out of Portland, Oregon.  I had previously tried the Hop Czar IPA from these guys and enjoyed it, so why not try a new one?

 

Served on-tap... in a standard pint glass.  It was a clear amber color, with a finger or two of foamy white head. Pretty good retention and lacing!

It had a nice citrus hop smell, not too rough... and a very palatable hop-dominated flavor. A very solid IPA and a good start to the evening!

After that I went for a Hardcore IPA from Brewdog out of Scotland.  This was a much hoppier and more bitter IPA, that I would recommend to any hop heads out there.  It only came in bottles (despite the picture... that's the bottle label on a pint glass!) but was worth the price.  The two IPAs were a great compliment to good friends and some fish & chips.

India Pale Ale (IPA)

Quick Review: BrewDog Dogma

Here's another one from Scottish brewers BrewDog, that I happened to see and pick up at Spec's on a recent trip to Houston.  I'm pretty sure it can be found around Baton Rouge as well, chances are Calandro's and maybe a few other places have it.  They have other BrewDog beers for sure.  In fact, I recently featured their Tokyo* Stout as it was my first beer above 14% abv ever!  I also wrote about their Punk IPA toward the end of 2010, a very tasty IPA. This one is their Dogma ale... a spiced beer brewed with honey, kola nuts, poppy seeds, and guarana.  Obviously I know all about honey, and I know guarana is the stuff they use in a lot of energy drinks, but I'm not too familiar with kola nuts or poppy seeds as a spice.  Well... here goes nothing! 

I poured this one into an imperial pint glass... it's a slightly hazy brilliant amber color with a ridiculous beige head. Phenomenal retention and lacing... good looking brew.

It definitely smells spiced, with an amber ale base. It's hard to pick out the exact spices, but I can tell that there's definitely some honey in there.  It's tasty though, pretty good.

The nuttiness comes out strong in the taste, more than any other flavor. I'm not familiar with kola nuts but it's pretty obvious that's what's up. It's also very boozy, tasting way stronger than 7.8% to me. The other flavors are there as well, just mostly unfamiliar to me.

The booziness throws off the mouthfeel for me, but other than that I really like this one. It's certainly something interesting and new to me, and I'd definitely try it again to get a better handle on all the flavors.  A very different beer for me, but a good one.

My Rating: B

BeerAdvocate: B

Spiced Beer

Review: BrewDog Tokio* Imperial Stout

I picked this one up at Martin Wine Cellar a week or so back thanks to a tip from a friend about a beer available in Baton Rouge that clocked in at over 14% alcohol.  I still don't know why this BrewDog offering is spelled "Tokyo" in some places but "Tokio" in others, but either way, at $15 per bottle it had better be good!  Since it's final count in 18.2% alcohol, I invited Dustin over and we proceeded to give this one a taste. 

For tasting, I poured from an 11.2 ounce bottle into a Samuel Smith's snifter. It's dark brown, you can tell it's not black when held up to the light. There's a small tan head, not much retention or lacing, but I wouldn't expect too much head from a beer this strong.

Whoa, the aroma is complex and boozy. It has hints of dark fruits, caramel, boozy spice, tingles the nostrils a bit with the alcohol kick. It's good but it makes me a little nervous of trying this one!  I've never had a beer be so overwhelming on the alcohol, even the ones I've tried that came close to this one in the 13 to 14% range.

The taste is similarly complex but not so boozy that I don't enjoy it. It has the same flavor profile as the aroma. Dark fruits from the cranberries and the jasmine is there too. There is still a caramel note but I don't get the chocolate roasted flavors of a typical imperial stout.

It has a good mouthfeel despite the high abv that is unmistakable. I'd definitely drink another at some point but this isn't meant to be a session beer. It's hard to score the drinkability when I consider the price as well. Still, I'm liking this brew and I'm damn glad I've tried it.  It's certainly not for everyone, but it fulfilled one of my resolutions, counted towards the 365 in 2011, and was certainly an interesting beer to have experienced.

My Rating: B+

BeerAdvocate: B

Imperial Stout

Beer Run: BrewDog Tokyo* & St. Bernardus Gift Pack

Yesterday evening, after enjoying a peaceful "snow day" from work , I headed over to Martin Wine Cellar to pick up a BrewDog Tokyo* because it's the only beer I know of available in Baton Rouge that clocks in at over 14% abv.  14% was my previous high, and one of my resolutions was to break that record, so the 18.2% Tokyo* Imperial Stout will do the trick!  At $15 I don't know that I will go back for another, but it's something I should try at least once.  (My bottle says "Tokio*" but the BrewDog site says "Tokyo*" and the bottles they show have it with a Y... so I dunno... maybe it's an American market copyright thing?)

While there, I also noticed a gift set I couldn't pass up... a St. Bernardus 4-pack, complete with St. Bernardus chalice.  I'm a total sucker for any beer gift sets that come with glassware, and at $21.99 it's really not a bad deal anyway for 4 world-class beers and a glass.  I know that would buy a lot more than 4 buds, but I'll save that for tailgating.  My blog post a long time ago on the St. Bernardus Abt 12 and St. Bernardus Witbier is still the most-viewed post on my site, and although this pack doesn't include the Witbier it does include two new ones for me, the Pater 6 and Prior 8, both dubbels.  I'm looking forward to those new beers a good bit!

 

I also picked up  a few other singles of some new beers... might as well build up the stash while I'm out and about, right?

Cheers, and stay warm!

Three New Reviews!

Some more beer reviews from a recent beer run to Calandro's!  This time I grabbed a few packs of smaller bottles, and a handful of bombers... here's round one, the multiple beer packs!

The first one I tried was a Limited Series from Full Sail Brewing, this is their #3 recipe.  I've had the #1 a few years ago before I started writing the blog, but I totally missed #2.  This current version is a German Pilsner recipe, and is available at Calandro's for only $8.99 per 6-pack.  The aroma on this one is much bolder than the appearance lets on... good hops with a hint of caramel malts.  The taste is more of the same, very well balanced and super easy to drink.  At this price I could go back to this one plenty and enjoy every one.  For another good example of a German Pilsner, check out the Abita S.O.S. if you can still find it anywhere!

I also saw some Fischer Tradition Amber, and had to pick up a 6-pack.  I used to drink this stuff like crazy with my cousin Travis when they had it in the big flip-top bottles at the Chimes.  It disappeared from the local markets for a while, but apparently it's back, although now in smaller bottles in 6-packs.  Officially this one is a Euro Dark Lager, and it's definitely a darker amber color than a traditional lager would be.  Unfortunately on re-visit to this one there's just not much to it.  The smell is faint, and the flavor is undermalted and somewhat boring.  I know I used to really enjoy this stuff, but either the beer has changed or my palate has... probably the latter.  At $12.99 for a 6-pack, I don't think I'll be buying any more of these any time soon.

The last review for this post is the BrewDog Punk IPA.  BrewDog is a Scottish brewery that has a reputation for really extreme beers (like the 32% abv. Tactical Nuclear Penguin) but this is one of their relatively tame standard offerings.  The smell is hoppy with some really nice pine flavors and a subtle hint of malts.  The flavor is hop dominant as an IPA should be.. again a pine flavor to them and a hint of caramel at the back. Good blend for an IPA and I really like the way the malts compliment the hoppy hit. I'm a big fan of this one, really a top notch IPA in my opinion. Easy to drink, well balanced, but not mild at all on the hops.  It's a bit pricey at $12.99 for a 4-pack, but still one I'd consider going back for.  It's also about to be released in cans... interesting and I'll be curious to see how the bottles and cans compare as far as flavors go. 

That's it for now... I have four more bombers from this trip to review, but I've only drank one of them so far, so it's going to have to wait a few days at least!