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The Hobby Drinker Blog

the mascot

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Still with Guineu and its fox, now an amber ale.  Again, it looks like a very solid offering, although nothing special or extra creative.  Simple Birita, casual, unfussy.

It seems extra heady, and it has a rich dark orange color. Interesting aroma, a little honeyed and not very fruity. There’s a little bit of orange in the taste, but it’s more watered down than I expected. The first seconds of the sip give a bubbly heads-up but then it does down and practically disappears. It’s a good beer for sitting and relaxing but not thinking too much about. A little snack to go with it would mix well. Something kind of woody starts to come out after a few minutes, giving the beer more body and a little more interest, although it’s not the kind of taste that I particularly favor.

howl

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I look askance at Rauxa at first; I just had a stunning imperial stout and now I just get a regular IPA?  OK, it’s Guineu and it’s been specially picked, but not even imperial, DDH, some other sparkly attraction?  The label, while subdued, gives a hint of wildness and some secret that it will be worth your while to find out.

Slightly cloudy, but sunny color, and a stunning puffy head. Another whipped cream topping, almost like a float. It’s not very aromatic, but the taste comes out like a jack-in-the-box, surprising in its sharp bitterness and power of lasting flavor. There’s a tingle of mandarin, but it’s almost a doubly bitter IPA compared to a lot of modern American style examples. A little something starts to develop over time that seems like window cleaner to me. It might be a nod to the pine essence of certain hops. The beer has an oddly smooth feel, but with a scratchy coating, kind of like a crumbly hard candy filled with liquidy gel. And all of it a big bad IPA wolf. No, wait, it’s a fox. Big bad IPA fox.

just one more

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Just what I was hoping for, another stout!  And it is an imperial, and a pretty good alcohol content too.  Oso Brewing has put on an almost sinister label, warning the weak off it I guess.  Called La Penúltima, it plays on Spanish drinking culture, where every drink the next to last.  At 15% I wonder if this one wouldn’t send you home right after, though. 

It pours out like chocolate syrup, and even has a little bit of that smell around it. It isn’t an overly sugary kind of chocolate, a little bit sharp, something you wouldn’t actually drink on its own, but use as a flavoring. The beige head deflates a little but stays firm looking if a little thinner. The chocolate carries over into the taste, giving the beer a rich chocolate shake feeling. It’s dark chocolate of course, so not cloyingly sweet, but there’s hardly any bitter to be noticed. It doesn’t leave much aftertaste behind, but there is a kind of feeling of weight that does stay. Oddly, the beer itself feels very smooth and light. It is a lot like a gourmet milkshake, with the high quality dark chocolate and natural, fatty milk. It’s a treat for sure, maybe so much that it has to be…the ultimate.

a call back

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There are plenty of breweries on the box and I think they all make plenty of beers.  But, it isn’t too surprising to find a couple that I already know in there, if they were quality products.  La Quince does pretty reliable when it comes to that, and I have in fact had their Llipa! IPA before.  It was even in last year’s beer calendar!  Worse performances have had encores, I would guess.

Looking just like I remember, bright and shiny golden color and perfect head, at least for a little while. The sharp pine aroma is immediate and summery. A whole medley of flavors rolls out on the tongue, from melon to peach to minty pine. The hops are quite strong and forestal, not so much on the tropical side. The beer is not overly bitter, however, balancing its components well. Although it has a very noticeable presence in the mouth it is more of a summer beer, in my opinion. It goes with warm sidewalks and strolling people, not so much scarves and jackets. There is a lightness to it that just shouts sunlight. I guess a lot of people do look for an extra point of brightness while they grump about winter evenings, though, even if they enjoy the Christmas season.

wandering now

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Kind of a ’60s reminiscent style on the label, but it sounds like a more traditional leaning beer – kellerpils.  I guess it’s a reminder of the goal of any brewer, to make a product that people long to have in their glasses, but there are lots of ways to get there.  Normally similar, only a few have significant differences of make-up or difficulty.  Everyone heading the same way to the same place of happiness, not with Santiago, but with Sanfrutos.  Time to mark out some Caminos Paralelos.

Very light in color and not a hint of cloudiness, also very classic head. The aroma is pure German lager, lots of grain, a little grass, practically honey sweetness. Flavor is surprisingly light as well. I was expecting either a striking bitter or a rounded breadiness, but the beer is almost difficult to even feel in the mouth and the taste is really subdued. It is more bitter than anything else, but there’s a tad bit of corn and cucumber sneaking around too.

vroom vroom

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It’s not a black beer, but it is pretty dark, and strong besides.  Attik Brewing offers Hot Rod American Strong Ale for another rainy December day, with a label that ought to warm the table.  It looks exciting, and vaguely dark and dangerous.

It has the dark color of a strong beer, with a light beige and resistant head. There’s a little bit of apple floating around in the air, again hitting the notes of strong beers in memory. For some reason I expected a thicker and sweeter entrance, something like a barleywine, but it is not like that at all. It’s strongly bitter, playing up the ale part of its build, with a bit appley sweetness wandering in only when most of the sip is already down your throat. The bitter never goes away either. Although it’s not a heavy or sticky beer, echoes of sharp bitterness remain much longer than you expect. Good to keep you from chugging it down too fast, I would imagine.

answering somebody’s prayers

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In this holy season it only makes sense to have some kind of blessed beverage.  Of course, if I were demanding something of a deity I would have other things in mind.  For most people, though, I suppose La Quince’s God Save The Session IPA would be a gift from heaven.

It looks somewhat watered down, very light, clear straw color, but abundant and snowy head. The aroma is also quite pleasant and nicely noticeable. Typical IPA, very bright and citrusy, with only the barest hint of dark fuzz underneath. The flavor is a little flat at first, kind of metallic. But, then notes of bitter hops start to poke out and a little chaser of orange follows. Like other session IPAs, it feels very light and leaves little trace once it’s gone down. It isn’t a surprising beer or an exceptionally creative one, but it is solid and does the job beautifully.

beaufrutal

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Ah, I remember this one!  It’s still not a black beer, but it’s something special – Oso Brewing’s Frutal III, a Berliner Weisse with strawberry and blackcurrant.  You’d expect something on the sweet side, but the sour of the weisse really dominates.  I got my first taste this summer at Gaztambirra, impressing, although not quite inspiring, my drinking/debating buddies.

It’s a little lighter than I remember, but I might be remembering a late-night beer a little unreliably. It does have the bitter-fruity aroma and the slightly pink head. The beer appears to be full of bubbles and somewhat cloudy. It is a bit wine-y again, with a sharp and bitter tanginess, like cheap wine and grapefruit juice mixed together. It also has a feeling of unsweetened cranberry juice. I don’t really detect any strawberry, but the blackcurrant might be there in the tang. The color is right for the season, but it’s a light and tickly beer, not what I look for an a dark near-winter night. I find my weisses are better suited to a summer evening. Well, looking forward I guess.

the shinning

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Oh well, back to pale ales I guess.  It’s not a familiar beer, Hoppit, but given the quality so far I don’t think I have anything to worry about.  I feel like Ben Plantada American Pale Ale has some double meanings it might or might not want to share.

It is the very picture of it’s style – clear golden color, almost whipped cream head, maybe slightly more citrus than necessary in the aroma, but it’s fitting for an APA. The flavor is surprisingly heavy, with a big load of mandarin. It’s not sugary sweet, but there is a good amount of fruit. It’s a pretty big feeling beer, a lot of sun and a lot of brightness emanating from it. Despite the weight it isn’t heavy-handed, just firm, a real pick-me-up kind of beer. It’s not demanding but good back-up. On a rainy December night, it really lights up a room or conversation. Well done, or should I say well planted?

lit up

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Well, back to lagers, but this is a smoked lager, so at least that’s something different.  This is Althaia’s Mediterranean Lager Ahumada.  I guess after Spain got smoked out of the World Cup it’s a fitting choice for the collection.  I also like how the label shows the grill but the smoke is coming out of the bottles nearby.

I’m used to my smoked beers looking, well, smokey, but this one pours out almost like water. It does take on color in the glass and builds up a nice fluffy head, as well as having that distinct rauchbier aroma. It definitely tastes like a rauchbier, perhaps a little sweeter than some of the classics. It’s more of a maple syrup sausage than a bacon or schnitzel flavor. There’s some hint of breading, or maybe pancake crumbs. It also has an oddly slick feel to it, like the outside of a fatty sausage, sliding over your plate instead of politely sitting for your fork. It’s perfectly pleasant, though, not icky-slippery like you might expect. While other rauchbiers seem to have their place at the barbecue, this lager feels like it just wants to sit down to breakfast.

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