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Beer 22
Name: D.O.R.I.S. The Destroyer
Brewery: Hoppin’ Frog Brewery
Location: Akron, OH
Brewing Since: 2000? That’s when they started bragging about it.
Website: http://www.hoppinfrog.com/
Sight: Dark as dark can be with just the slightest tan pencil line of head
Scent: Malt, malt, malt… and alcohol.
Texture: Modified malts and bitterness.
Taste: Surprisingly balanced for a so-called “D.O.R.I.S.”
Thoughts: This beer is not really memorable for being especially good in any one area but rather for being all-around delicious. Regarding the matter of the acronym. Its a bit of a stretch, right? Its not really “Double Oatmeal” (or maybe it is). I think its more likely that the beer is (or should be called) a Russian Double Imperial Oatmeal Stout or R.D.I.O.S. Kinda catchy, right?
How to Drink: I’d say this beer is great inspiration for developing new acronyms in your own life or better yet, for developing acronames for other items in your life. So now your beers is named DORIS, perhaps you could name your toothbrush or your television set. Remember, be creative, mix-match adjectives
Beer 21
Name: Smoove Cherry Ale
Brewery: Big Sky Brewing Company
Location: Missoula, MT
Brewing Since: 1995
Website: http://www.bigskybrew.com/
Sight: Brown with some red hues becoming lighter at the bottom, almost orange.
Scent: Oh its cherry alright. The smell reminds me of a few kreik lambics I have smelled (and tasted).
Texture: Bubbly but I think that’s what I would expect from a beer of this type.
Taste: Starts sweet and cherrylicious but finishes malty. Very unusual combination.
Thoughts: Cherry but not as dry as a lambic, so good in that respect. Strange combination of tastes but it grew on me. Regardless of the beer, the label art works wonders.
How to Drink: I think the back of the label says it the best: “Smoove Cherry Ale is flavored with cherries from The Orchard at Flathead Lake. We produced a very limited quantity of this beer to celebrate Valentine’s Day, so sit back and relax with your sweetie, listen to the smooth sounds of Barry White and be thankful that Big Sky Brewing’s Smoove Cherry Ale was there.”
Beer 20
Name: Anniversary XVI Barleywine
Brewery: Uinta Brewing Company
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Brewing Since: 1993
Website: http://www.uintabrewing.com/
Sight: Dark amber, strong tan head.
Scent: Alcohol, but I expected alcohol when sniffing a barleywine
Texture : Mostly smooth in my mouth with a few bubbles, alcohol
Taste: Nice malt, good amount of sweetness, unexpected hops and, of course, that loveable alcohol flavor you expect in a Barleywine.
Thoughts: Forget for a minute that this beer is from Utah. Does that matter? Should we judge a beer based on regional reputation? Do we do it anyway? If another craft brewery arose in coastal Delaware, could they escape comparison to Dogfish Head? ANYWAY… this barleywine is tasty, not just for a beer made in Utah. Its not the best barleywine I’ve ever tasted but in this extreme category, its sweet and balanced flavor allows it to hold its own.
How to Drink: Four pack = save two, drink two — that’s what I always say. Or drink it in a high-backed chair with your legs crossed and your robe open on a cold winter night.
Beer 19
Name: Quercus Vitis Humulus
Brewery: Otter Creek Brewing
Location: Middlebury, VT
Brewing Since: 1991
Website: http://www.ottercreekbrewing.com/
Sight: Medium to deep amber, the same brown as the bottle, bubbles slow to form, quick to dissipate
Scent: Strong aroma, carries well, able to smell it across the room, neither hops nor malt overly discernible
Texture : Smooth … a little too smooth, probably the grape juice
Taste: Probably the grape juice but something is holding back the maltiness until the very end of each sip.
Thoughts: Just because it’s Latin, doesn’t mean you can just name your beer with three nouns. Three nouns does not a sentence make. Ocean bird lamp. Heading past the name they chose, I liked this beer because it blends styles and does not follow any rules. If you are going to acknowledge rules, you might as well either follow them as best you can or dismantle them.
How to Drink: Try this instead of your favorite wine, its closer in taste to a white than a red but has more of a body than most whites. Swirl it and sniff it if you want. Or save it for a few years, I’d bet it ages well.
Beer 18
Brewery: River Horse Brewing
Location: Lambertville, NJ
Brewing Since: 1996
Website: http://www.riverhorse.com/
Name 1: Hop Hazard Unfiltered American Pale Ale.
Sight 1: Darker than I would have thought… ncie layer of sediment at the bottom.
Scent 1: A lot of hops and a bit of malt scents.
Texture 1 : Somewhere between medium and full-bodied.
Taste 1: Bitter and hoppy but not as hop hazardous as I expected.
Name 2: Oatmeal Mil.k Stout Ale [Redux]
Sight 2: Opaque, that’s for sure + fleeting tan head.
Scent 2: Malts, malts, malts, and maybe some tang (is tang smellable?)
Texture 2: Excellent mouthfeel and body. Hangs around in my mouth for a spell.
Taste 2: Bitter and roasted flavors but not as aggressive as some other stouts.
Thoughts: I thought that I would be drinking a Flying Fish beer for my New Jersey beer but I came across these beers before I came across any beers by Flying Fish other than Exit 1 Oyster Stout (Oysters are the rats of the subtidal zone BTW). While I despise the name “river horse” as or not as a nickname for a hippopotamus, I have liked the beers produced by this brewery, misguided as they may be. I bought three and due to a sickness/coagulation of gnocchi in my stomach from Bucca Di Beppo, I could only drink two. Too bad I could not take a sip of the Imperial Cherry Ale or whatever the flip the third beer I bought is called. I left it in the hotel mini-fridge for either the cleaning staff or the next tenant to enjoy. Cheers!
How to Drink: First, avoid ever going to a Bucca Di Beppo. Second, avoid going to a Bucca Di Beppo UNLESS you can get the pope room (party of 12 needed!). I liked the two beers that I tried so you should drink them while forgetting that a New Jersey company named its self after an animal most of its employees have never seen. I’d say either beer would go well with a good burger (veggie of course) or while trying to figure out why people in New Jersey named their beer company after an animal native only to southern Africa.
Beer 17
Name: The Dogfather Imperial Stout
Brewery: Laughing Dog Brewery
Location: Ponderay, ID
Brewing Since: 2005
Website: http://www.laughingdogbrewing.com/
Sight: Ink Black withoatmeal colored head.
Scent: A few roasted malts but the heavily roasted smell present in some dark beers is not prominent in this one. I think I can detect a hint of hops.
Texture: Frothy mouthfeel, not to heavy in the front, body increases towards the back of my mouth… body and bitterness.
Taste: Like I said above, the bitterness hits me in the back of my throat. Nice balance.
Thoughts: I am automatically predisposed to like anything either “Oak Aged” or otherwise barrel aged. I guess the “Bourbon Barrel” sticker on this bottle means it was aged in a bourbon barrel. I am automatically pre-indisposed (?) to blatant copywrite infringement. C’mon Laughing Dog, I understand that doing the Godfather logo in dog form is pretty much the most irresistible thing in the world for you guys but show some restraint or “heel” if you want to get all dog about it.
How to Drink: Despite having two fake bullet holes in it, I’d say this is a good beer to drink most nights of the week, days of the week, or mornings of the week. Not too toasted, not too bland. Too much dog, almost all around (hopefully not in the beer).
Beer 16
Name: Black Pearle
Brewery: RJ Rockers Brewing Company
Location: Spartanburg, SC
Brewing Since: 1997
Website: http://www.rjrockers.com
Sight: Black but almost not believably so. I feel as though its going to turn brown any second now.
Scent: Hoppy + dark malts
Texture: Almost a full body.
Taste: Well you have the bitterness from the hops and you have the flavor from the dark malts and they mix together and, I’m just not sure I like it.
Thoughts: This big bottle’s cap is covered in wax. Wax on a beer bottle is like a button fly on jeans. Sooner or later, you’re going to end up embarrassed. I would like to taste this company’s offering of their “Ninety Minute Octo-Hopped IPA” without the dark malts. I would say that only then can I tell if I really just don’t like this beer or it is just that I’m still pissed off about spending 10 minutes getting it open.
How to Drink: Start by getting your sharpest knife and use it to cut a few circular lines in the wax that covers the top of the bottle. The first circle should be cut just below the cap, the second circle should be an inch lower. When you have freed a space below the cap use the tip of the knife to clear the wax from the three or four of the divots of the cap. This should allow for enough room for your bottle open
Beer 15
Name: Menage A Frog Ale
Brewery: Issaquah Brewery
Location: Issaquah, WA
Brewing Since: 20th Century sometime
Website: http://www.rogue.com/locations/rogue-breweries.php#1
Sight: Golden, noticeably unfiltered.
Scent: Yeasty with a nice dose of tripel spiciness
Texture: full bodied, it hangs around for a while in the back of my throat
Taste: A whole lot of pilsner goodness, nice and bitter. I can taste the “free range water” listed as an ingredient. You can take solace in the fact that the water had a good life before it was put into this bottle.
Thoughts: Does is matter (for my 50 states adventure) that this beer, brewed in Washington state, is owned by Rogue? No, not to me and it shouldn’t matter on your 50 states quest. Duvel owns Ommegang but I would still count it as a Pennsylvania brewed beer.
How to Drink: I’d say you could drink this beer if you are feeling saucy or if you are eating something really spicy or saucy and spicy. It might also be good while either on a mysterious vanishing island or watching a television show about a mysterious vanishing island.
Beer 14
Name: New Grist
Brewery: Lakefront Brewery
Location: Milwakee, Wisconsin
Brewing Since: 1986
Website: http://www.lakefrontbrewery.com
Sight: Golden, Pilsner colored.
Scent: Reminds me more of my visit to the Jack Daniels distillery than it does to a beer brewery. Maybe its the sorghum.
Texture: Light but not without flavor. Maybe its the rice.
Taste: A bit like Bud but also a bit different. In that difference lies the flavor. Maybe that’s the sorghum I taste.
Thoughts: I started off wondering what is sorghum. Perhaps you would have started there as well. Its a grass and when you (I) go down the path of thinking about brewing beer with things besides barley, you (I) start to ask yourself at what point does beer stop being beer and start being something else... My digressive conclusion is that its not the ingredients or the amount of alcohol more than it is the process.
How to Drink: Really, its not bad. If (IF [IF]) I was in the mood for a Budweiser, I would go get one of these instead. So should you. I could imagine going to get a six pack of this beer every once in a while.
Beer 13
Name: Abbey Ale
Brewery: Abita Brewery
Location: Abita Springs, LA
Brewing Since: 1986
Website: http://www.abita.com
Sight: Dark amber with clumpy white head.
Scent: Mmmm yeasty, mmmm spicy.
Texture: Full bodied and frothy.
Taste: Sweet but not overly so, light bitterness, excellent Belgian flavors.
Thoughts: Its a good Belgian-style Abbey Dubbel. I’ve had better but not many as authentic. I like that they donate 25 cents from each bottle bought to a local monastery.
How to Drink: Wait until you are in the mood for a thick, full bodied Belgian… on the eve of a large, local, Belgian beer festival, perhaps?
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