The Hobby Drinker Blog
Sticky* This blog is a mirror of new posts from https://theuniverseami.blogspot.com, Ceit’s original blog.
warmer upper
I was pointed to a number of almost experimental stouts on the shelves of Más Que Cervezas, it’s so hard to choose! In the end I went with a whisky barrel aged stout. It felt better than the bourbon barrel one, and it seems like both a less complicated and an extra packed choice. I have partaken of Kees before, and probably a stout, since that where I see them most represented on these shelves. This is a promising Caramel Fudge Stout, lovingly (I’m sure) aged in Craigellachie whisky barrels, and canned in standard yet playful design. I hope I don’t regret having a light lunch.
A little sparse where head is concerned, but good color and aroma. It has a deep, rich caramel smell with a toasted edge. It’s resonant where others can be thin and shrill. The flavor is not quite as substantial, although it does deliver on stout, caramel and a drop of whiskey. While the beer looks opaque and thick, it’s rather thin on the tongue and slides down the throat without complaint. Even the whiskey doesn’t give much resistance. It doesn’t feel like it’s 11.5% with all the smoothness, but it doesn’t take long for a little buzz to kick in. Strong it is, after all. There’s a feeling of relaxation about it, like it should be poured in a snifter and sipped in front of a fire, or in a mug to go with a terrible comedy. I don’t know why it feels more like a bad comedy than a good one; maybe the good one would be too distracting.
Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €7.18
digging for history
Darker and darker are the days, finally raining a little bit. If we had a good old downpour, that would clean up the streets too. But as always, I’m in the mood for dark beers no matter the weather, so it’s just a flimsy excuse to pull out a porter. And what a porter it seems to be! The Kernel’s Victorian, historic London porter, presented by Stigbergets no less. It looks to be on the heavy side for a porter at almost 6%, but there’s a strange cheeriness to the can. Even though those badgers remind me of Edward Gorey illustrations somehow.
A membrane of bubbles forms on the sides of the glass, but also a respectable head. It does descend, but only slowly, gradually getting more and more Swiss cheese holes in it. This is a brown porter rather than a black stout, but it’s a tarry and precious stone kind of brown. There’s a mild smokey roast aroma, but no smoke alarms. It has a heavy and earthy taste, but the beer still manages to be very drinkable. There’s a little plumminess raising the flavor off the ground, but it doesn’t quite get to sweet, exactly. It has the feel of a spectator’s drink, one you have while watching a game show. Especially trivia, when you always know the answers without the pressure of being on the stage.
Supplier: Be Hoppy
Price: €5.50
right name for the times
It’s a crazy time we’re living in, and good beer does much to steady the pulse. While I’m always open to a new possibility, I also tend to rely on old standards. You can only take so many surprises. Oso Brew is a reliable choice, if more focused on lighter beers. This is an oatmeal stout, one I might have had during a Sunday chat, with a mildly dizzying label and a fitting name: Delulu.
Much more subdued than Affogato, so it’s been unmolested in the fridge. Not as impressive headwise, but respectable. There’s more earth and nature in the aroma, no hint of sweetness. It carries over into the taste, although there is also a milky balance to it. Like other oatmeal stouts, it’s smooth and with a touch of breakfasty grain. I’m getting kind of a medicinal taste, something almost cola-like, which is a surprise. Not altogether unpleasat, though. It is a bit surprising how robust the beer is, given its relatively modest alcohol content. Oso has always seemed like a maker of tasty but delicate beers, even their IPAs have a lightness and fleeting quality that you don’t find often, but Delulu really holds its own. It’s well-balanced, certainly, a centerpiece of a drink. Oso, you’ve done it again!
Supplier: Be Hoppy
Price: €4.50
is there a mug on amazon?
We’re waiting for the shitty fridge to be moved out to the balcony so the cooling system can be cool. How can that be the solution? Why not replace it with a fridge that works in the space that was constructed? Why not buy an appropriate appliance in the first place? In the meantime, beer! My imperial stout seems to be cold enough, although it looks like it did get knocked over today. Hopefully this morning so it’s had some time to relax. It’s a promising one too, from Garage, very trustworthy. It is a coffee stout, which can be a little overwhelming, but I’m willing to give it a shot with its vanilla essence. I hope Affogato Tears doesn’t leave me in tears…nah, like I said, it’s Garage.
A little jumpy, so maybe not felled too long ago. No disasters, just a few drops over the edge. Although extra-bubbly on the side of the glass, the bubbles appear static and the head maintains itself well. It’s a chocolate milk kind of head, mostly creamy with a few intruding bigger bubbles. The liquid is going for dark coffee colored rather than black, but that makes sense with its development. There is a good whiff of coffee too it, although it’s not as roasty as most coffee. Maybe cold brew leaves the aroma a little watered down. The first sip rushes in with the coffee flavor, but some vanilla creamer is right on its tail. Given the alcohol content it’s not a surprisingly heavy beer; while not syrupy it lies heavy on the tongue and slurps its way down the throat. The chill and vanilla really solidify the connection to iced coffee or frappuccino for me, more than simple cold brew.
Supplier: Be Hoppy
Price: €8
true names
Now is the time to delve into the darkness (as if it’s never that time for me), since the stores are stocking a greater variety of stouts and similar beers. A lot of them are fancy pastry and barrel aged stouts, with a few classic examples mixed in. How can I resist those flavor bombs, though? I can’t, that’s the answer. Which brings me to tonight and Yanawa, double vanilla imperial stout, in a can that looks like Big Cat Rescue might sponser it. Well, maybe not, they lean heavily into AI these days. I am almost fooled into thinking it’s a northern Spanish beer with the Basque coming first on the label, but it turns out to be French. True, Anglet is part of the French Basque Country, but I don’t really know how much Basque is present there. They certainly think highly of themselves and their product if the name is any indication. Who wouldn’t want their business to be known as La Superbe? Let’s see if it lives up to the presentation.
It’s a little floofy, coating the side of the glass in tiny bubbles and supporting a kingly crown of dark mocha foam. There’s not a huge aroma coming off it, but there is a hint of quality chocolate, which is due to the vanilla I guess. The taste is weighty, with a good load of vanilla and an undercurrent of toast or coffee. It starts out smooth, but builds up a tickly body over time. There’s a wink of high-falutin’ bonbons, with the sweetness, the smoothness, the feel of luxury treats. Although it starts off easy and light in feel, it develops some stickiness and grabbiness. It doesn’t have the complexity or surprises that some other beers have had, but it’s definitely tasty and satisfying, after so long without indulging in my stouts (who am I kidding, I had some at the bar last weekend), BY WHICH I MEAN my Saturday special in my own space. A fine choice to curl up with a good book or movie!
Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €7.37
taste the music
I went looking for stouts as usual, and lo and behold, they have appeared for the fall! We will see them soon enough. I got caught up with a sour first, a strawberry and black currant number. Funny how they get stored near the stouts, maybe they’re going alphabetically. This sour bears the name Syd and is part of Drunken Bros. Memorial Series, which I didn’t think about at first, but now I suppose it must be named for a certain punk musician. Well, no, after a little research it is a different musician altogether that the beer is namesake for. Wrong spelling for the punk’s name anyway. In any case, it does look more fitting for this other Syd, with the somewhat psychedelic design on the can and the ruddy color scheme.
A little explodey, possibly from not being chilled enough, but no real disaster. It very much has a natural strawberry appearance, with a calm orangey salmon pink, not so much black currant. Abundantly headed, not so well-endowed aroma-wise. There are tantalizing hints of bread and jelly, a morning sort of smell, maybe triggering a wake-up response. It does not taste like toast and jelly, though, it tastes exactly like a fruit sour beer. There’s the tang with some sweetness underneath and a clean and smooth feel down the throat. Strawberry sours often have some kind of dustiness to them, and do not tend to be desserty really, and there’s a touch of that, but there’s also an almost syrupy currant nectar playing alongside it. My impression is that currants themselves are not that sweet, maybe even astringent like cranberries, but a black currant drink always carries a heavy load of sweetness. A warmer beer, more settled, starts to show more character and bite, giving a little bit of sting on the way down. It’s not quite winter yet, and doesn’t even completely feel like fall, and this beer has a fitting last gasp of summer in it to my palate.
Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €5.19
down to darkness
Finally I have another dark beer in my hand! It’s been a bit of time. I would have liked something sturdier, but a porter can also be very enjoyable, with its layers and details that make you stop and think about what you’re really drinking. Drunken Bros. Remastered Porter might have crossed my table before, but this is “remastered”. And it looks like there have been some additions to the ingredients list for some extra flavor sensations. It’s not a pumpkin beer, nor a pumpkin pie beer, but there might be some dessert elements.
A handsome chocolate syrup colored liquid, and a mocha head, it starts out well with its appearance. The aroma is smoky, with a whisper of fruit. Maybe raisins? The orange is not especially noticeable, which I appreciate. However, it does pop up when you take a nice soothing sip, a little orange drink in a watered-down coffee. It’s an interesting balance of typical black beer warmth and a little citrus to lighten the load, probably making it more attractive at all times of the year. There’s a weird prickliness about it, it’s not as smooth as it seemed like it was going to be, but that gives it some punch and something memorable. I have the wish in the back of my mind for something heavier, more seasonal…I guess it’s time to go shopping.
Supplier: Hidden Beers
Price: €6+
mediaticly recommended
One of my semi-secret treats to myself is watching videos on The Craft Beer Channel. They are a UK based channel, so a lot of their content is focused on the products of their nation, as is fitting. I’ve head them mention St. Austell’s Proper Job IPA more than once, and especially recently, so if there’s a choice to be made for something not stout, maybe go with something that has a presence among the experts? It’s unseasonably warm these days still, so this is a style that would be more popular among the masses. Also, this is heavily hopped, so just what people who feel a little nostalgia for the early days of craft might be looking for.
It looks like a picture dictionary entry of beer, with the right color, head and bitsy bubbles. The aroma is lagery at first, with grain and grass, but the hop tickle comes in at the end with a touch of spice. It tastes like a standard English IPA, maybe a little less bitter, but not very fruity and wild like its modern counterparts. Despite the simplicity of flavor there’s also a depth there, a towering brightness that illuminates your mouth and prepares you for launching a blistering opinion on that classic film you just saw (totally a classic/totally overrated). Since it isn’t an extra strong IPA, it has a gentle and friendly feel, very much for the street or a party that you don’t want to miss too much of. It’s another last gasp of summer, although we might be past those by now.
Supplier:
Price: €6+
what do you expect?
Picked up a few new gems from Hidden Beers, reopened after the summer holidays. I didn’t get my email in correctly though, so the exact prices have flown off into the ether. They’re a little over 6 euros each, that much I can be sure of. Close enough? I was hoping for more stouts or themed beers, but there wasn’t much to be had. There was this DDH double IPA, with a season appropriate design. Leave it to Germans to give us just what we need when we’re on a beer hunt. Sudden Death’s Devil In Disguise might burn a hole in my throat if DDH beers of the past have given me anything to go by. It might start out nice, you know, in disguise, but eventually that fiery devil will have to come out.
Bright and sunny looking liquid and frothy laundry-white head, this devil definitely appears friendly at first glance. The aroma is sweet on top but layered on nuttiness and savoriness. The savory comes out first in the flavor, followed by a melony feel and peachy finish. There’s some pith lurking in the aftertaste, but it’s very smooth in feel in general. It starts to develop almost a candy flavor, with a mix of lemon and butterscotch. It’s not the rough and tumble DDH I was expecting, but maybe that’s part of the disguise. Maybe there’s a big pile of grassy, caraway sediment on the bottom waiting to surprise me. No, there is not. The beer remains pleasant, smooth and weirdly desserty to the end. I don’t think I want to complain much about it though, it’s been unseasonably warm and a sugary treat gives you energy to get to the shade.
Supplier: Hidden Beers
Price: €6+
can’t undrink
Is this the first Saturday of a series of terror? Will darkness descend and drive us into madness? Probably, but it’s not so dark today! After my taste sensation last week, I have something that’s almost more of a palate cleanser, although only for hobby drinkers like myself. It’s an Oso-Prizm collab, and I have had some mindblowing Prizms recently, at a respectable 8.5%. It promises a basket of fruit, although more in taste references than in actual fruit puree as an additive, and I notice with interest that there are three, count ’em three, grains in the ingredients list: purity-compliant barley; exception-demanding wheat; because-they’re-there oats. With all the curiosities, the name makes a lot of sense. Let’s indulge in some Clickbait DIPA.
It’s cloudy and lemony colored, pillowy headed and lightly spiced. Very lightly in fact, there’s hardly any aroma at all. I suppose there’s a hint of fruit in there, just an echo of a can of mandarins or pineapple opened hours ago. I am once again surprised by the explosion of flavor that comes with the first sip. It’s a tangle of tropical tastes, I can’t really pull them apart at first. I also feel a real weight to the beer, maybe from the triplet grain content. It’s one of the less citrusy IPAs, with more of a peach and mango character, and that squeeze of pineapple on top. It’s like the last echo of summer vacation, with a yellow-y orange sunset belying the coming dark evenings. It’s a candle in a pumpkin, sending out just a few rays of light from squirrel chewed holes (that was a crazy photo to come across). It’s a torch leading the way…down what road, we can only wait and see.
Supplier: Lambeer
Price: €7.50
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