More recents...

Orval Trappist Ale- The first from the "Belgian list" from a few weeks ago. Pretty nice. I guess the thing that's most striking to me is the lack of hops, just based on what I'm used to. But its a very good and obviously well made beer; would totally drink it again.

Victory Storm King Stout - I think this is the first "dark" beer I've ever had from Victory. I only bought a single in a Mix6 and wish I'd gotten another: I don't think I really let this warm up to get the full spectrum of flavors--I was tired and just sorta drank it and went to bed. It did seem to have a nice balance of booze/darkness/hoppiness. Rate it an incomplete.

Brouwerij 't Gaverhopke "Bittersweet Symphony" DIPA - A Belgian take on an American DIPA. I thought this was a really great balance between Belgian skunkiness and American hoppiness. Incredibly well balanced and at less than 8%, not as much an ass kicker as some DIPA's. Recommended.

I've had a few of those. I think they're pretty good. It's no Yeti but at 1/3 the price it would be foolish to expect it to be.

I picked up a Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout that I'm looking forward to trying along with sixers of Lagunitas Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale and Hair of the Dog's Ruth.

I've only tried the Ruth which I really like a lot. Pretty complex for a pale ale with lots of citrus and floral notes. I wish Hair of the Dog made more beers because everything I've had by them has been terrific.

A couple of brewpubs down here are apparently tapping kegs of Pliny the Younger next week. I'm going to try to get out to one and try it. I don't think anyone has more than one keg of though so if it's a mad scene, I might pass.

Hoping to run into some of this, but I'm not even sure if it's making it to GA:



Oh yes.

Valentine's Dinner at the house w/ beer pairings:

FemDerris' version of a Wedge Salad with Gorgonzola, tomato, lettuce, balsamic, and chopped green onions,

Paired with The Bruery's Saison De Lente.

Filet Mignon, Pan seared Scallops in clarified butter, and baked asparagus.

Paired with Rochefort 8.

Chocolate covered Strawberries.

Paired with Brooklyn's Black Chocolate Stout.


Went over like gangbusters. Obner.

Derris, that sounds outstanding man.

No shit. Some excellent choices D.

Got a sixer of cans of this on your rec. I dig them! Not and "experience" beer, as you said, but for a regular poundable stout it's incredibly pleasant and balanced. I love the faint sweetness the oatmeal leaves behind.

Glad you liked it man. Nothing crazy to it but a good stout that I can drink on all day while working on the car is a rare find. That Wolaver's you rec'd awhile back fits the bill on that for sure also. It just seems to me that Oatmeal Stouts are way easier to drink than anything else for some reason. I've got one of the Southern Tier Oats in the fridge that I may try this weekend to test my theory.

Jesus h christ, I suddenly have a lot of beers to review. I didn't think it'd been that long, but I had to go back 5 pages to find the last post.

Stone - Sublimely Self Righteous Ale

Once in awhile I go back and try something from the brands I ignore, including Stone. Their beers are fine, they're all pretty good, but they're so incredibly pompous that it puts me off from buying their stuff. I made the mistake of reading the label on this, and eye-rolled my way through all 22 ounces.

"Yes, we damn well know our stuff here at Stone, and it would be irresponsible of us not to acknowledge how remarkable this heavenly creation of ours is."

"In this case, we find that we are compelled to point out how amazing this ale is that we rightly call the Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale. "

"Thusly, you may now revel in your own self-righteousness as you see fit with this glorious example of ours. You are genuinely welcome, as it is our pleasure. "

Settle down guys, it's good but not amazing. Let me tell you when your beers are amazing. B+


Lagunitas - Cappuccino Stout

Another great beer from Lagunitas. Just the right amount of coffee flavor, tasted like what I always want coffee stouts to taste like. Good booze kick too. A-


Ipswich - Anniversary Imperial IPA

These guys have a guest brewer buy, Pugsley, who has made some aaaaaamazing beers for them. I wanted to know what was him, and what was them, because I know their normal beers are just kinda blah. So I grabbed this one, a "special" beer but without Pugsley, and it confirmed that it's him. This was solid and decent, but showed no spark. Great price, considering how good it was, but not an experience beer. B


The Lost Abbey - Serpent's Stout

Tasted like grapes, syrup, alcohol, and dark roasted malt. It was remarkable how strong the grapey sweetness and booze kick were. Took me 2 nights to nip away at the bottle, almost 3. Respectable, not bad tasting, but not the best Fuck You stout out there. Someone could love it, but I don't prefer that much sweetness. B+


The good stuff

For the Grammys, I just needed something I could count on, so I called in the ringer. Damned near all that got me through that Nicky Minaj bullshit without breaking something.


Anderson Valley - Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout

As I said above, this was a good rec. Dependable, poundable, but the right shade of beer for when the fireplace is hot enough to melt an engine block (and yet your toes are still cold). As fine an "everyday" stout as you'll ever find. Cans are just icing on the cake. B+


Russian River - Blind Pig

Sorry Shiv, the Hop Clock is ticking on these guys. Still have the Pliny, but not for long. So this was as good as I expected, but remember that I don't tend to fetishize the "mythical" stuff too far. I expected a clean, big, sharp IPA, and it delivered. Frankly this tastes a LOOOOT like Two Hearted. Both hit a wierd / good corner of IPA Land, where they have a fruity syrupy element to the flavor that is wonderful. Big, loud, and balanced. Not worth more than maybe $8 - $10 for a bottle this big, when there's sixpacks of 2 Hearted and Lagunitas Maximus out there at $11 a sixer. Any more than that is just hype. A


Weyerbacher - Simcoe DIPA

Another one where I was like "damn that looks familiar, someone must've just rec'd it on the board" so I snagged a 4 pack. Had one last night, and it's very good. Nothing ground-breaking, but it's big and loud and hoppy, like all of these. -shrug- No alarms, no surprises. B+


Backlash - Convergence Super Saison

I think Shiv mentioned these guys here first a while back? They're finally showing up in stores. The marketing is unique / tacky, but this was a great first beer to have form them. I like this belgian IPA trend, where it's yeasty and hoppy, and not too terribly loud. So they can brew, and I'll be interested in what else they can do. B+

Oh and I mentioned it elsewhere but I finally ordered the full homebrewing setup. So that will happen, after all. First up, a big double IPA?

I've eyed that Weyerbacher many times and never pulled the trigger. Their labels are so terrible.

Haven't really tried much by them. Like their Imperial Pumpkin though.

Agree 100%.

I'm with you on the "Belgian IPA" thing, Ky--it's a mix that works well (when done well).

I rather enjoyed this interview with Jim Koch of Sam Adams

Glad you were able to get your hands on a bottle. For whatever it's worth, if you're paying $8-10 for it, its some middleman taking advantage of its scarcity. I pay $4.30/bottle for it.

I almost cracked open that Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout myself last night but when I saw it was 9% and knew i'd already had a cocktail and a glass of wine, I decided to leave it for another day and had my first Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale. I was a little disappointed in it. Just not much flavor or anything unique about it. I really like everything else I've tried by Lagunitas too and had read good things about it. Oh well...

I paid nothing - a coworker swapped me for some midwestern stuff I drove back here. I was guessing what they might go for on ebay.

As for cracking open a 9%er late, I have used the shit out of those bottle stoppers Shiv got me 2 of... can't find a pic but they just snap on, they're aluminum and rubber, and they work very well. Pour a short glass, cap it back up, and bang. Good for tomorrow.

Good read.

damnit, bring that Pliny over!

I think I like Backlash's new Declaration better than the Convergence though. I've seen a couple around but haven't picked anymore up yet.

Here's those stoppers. They don't fit on all bottles though so I just got some of these and they mostly fit on everything else.

Also, I picked these up the other day.

The chocolate is pretty good, but not their best.

Did you get one of the batches they fucked up?

Didn't hear anything about that. It wasn't "bad," it just had a very light chocolate flavor and wasn't 110% awesome like the rest of what they make.

We will apparently be getting more Hopslam in Georgia next week. I've only got 1 left, so yeah, I might buy another six. I'm not gonna go out of my way though.

A buddy was kind enough to bring over a few Hopslams for the Superbowl a few weeks ago. Still have one left in my fridge that I might crack open tonight to help me watch the State/Duke game.

Looks like it sold out pretty quick. Oh well, that's what I get for working at home.

the wife had to head to virginia for her Nama's funeral, leaving me with the boys until Tuesday. to help cope, i've stocked up:



now realizing this probably won't get me to Sunday.

Fridge envy.