Jan. 27, 2012. Today’s beer: Dogfish Head’s Palo Santo Marron. Excellent. So dark. So Sweet. So strong. The color of the beer as I poured it into a glass looked like molasses. Very thick pour with very little head. Strong, molassesy sweetness as well. Barrel aged in Paraguayan Palo Santo wood. This does seem blessed by the tree saint. The description on the bottle claims a caramel and vanilla flavor. I think it is more reminiscent of molasses than caramel, but there is a vanilla undertone mid sip that sneaks in after the initial taste, but is gone once the beer moseys down the back of the throat. Very strong at 12%, but not dominated by the alcohol as many barley wines are.
Jan. 28. Today’s new beer: Stone’s Ruination. A very good
heavily hopped beer. Over 100 IBU. What else is there to say? Super hoppy and
not at all subtle. Blasts you with hops, and then sends in reinforcements.
Another excellent hoppy member of the Stone Family. Gotta love Stone. Great
beers, and ridiculously funny, self-promotional descriptions of their beers on
their bottles
I also revisited an old favorite Sudwerk’s Marzen. I hadn’t
had something from Sudwerk in quite some time. This used to be one of my go-tos
since I lived in Davis in the early 1990s. Sudwerk is a great
brewery/restaurant, and one of the few places the provides beers that are
produced in as authentic a German style that you’ll find this side of the
Atlantic. They alsoserve in liter glass mugs! There are few things that make
one feel as manly as sitting and drinking a liter at a time. As great as the
beer is, I do miss the early days when the process and recipe were still being
perfected. Each batch was unique and always delicious. But, once they started
getting into bottling, the need for consistency led to a more stable and
predictable result. Still one of the best, most flavorful Marzen’s available.
It’s too bad that other brewers don’t attempt them since it is a great style.
It has more complexity and flavor than most lagers, yet retains the
drinkability and smoothness of a lager. Slightly burnt caramel flavor with a
nice subtle hoppiness. (Jan 28, 2012)
Jan. 29. Today’s beer: Sierra Nevada’s Tumbler 2011. This is Sierra’s fall brown beer. Good solid brown. Not quite as much of a caramel flavor as many browns. It has the skilled balance of hops and malt that Sierra has down to a science, but despite their being a large craft brewer, you can still taste the artistry as well. Good everyday fall beer.
Jan. 30. Today’s beer: Lagunitas’ Imperial Red. I came
across this just a couple of days ago, and since I’m a sucker for anything that
Lagunitas brews, I bought a 6-pack. So glad I did. How to describe the beer . .
. Wow. The first sip is very powerful. It’s like standing in the dark and all
of a sudden being hit by flood lights. The flavor is all-enveloping and
comforting. Great balance of carmely malt and flowery hops. Beautiful reddish
hue. Limited head. Pretty powerful at 7.8%ABV, but drinking it you’d never
suspect.
Jan. 31. Today’s beer: Ballast Point’s Sculpin IPA. Tasty,
but pretty average IPA. Well balanced hops. Starts with slightly floral piney
flavor and finished on the bitter side with kind of a spicy character that
morphs into black licorice. Nice medium caramel color. As good as it is, it is
in my mind still in the middle of the pack of IPAs. I’ve only tried one other
Ballast beer, the Calico Amber, which I think is better than this. For as
strong a reputation and the following it has, I wasn’t blown away. It may come
down to the type of hoppiness that I’m looking for in an IPA. I tend to prefer
the more floral flavor, and while this one starts out that way, the finish goes
in a different direction.
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