The Hobby Drinker Blog
Sticky* This blog is a mirror of new posts from https://theuniverseami.blogspot.com, Ceit’s original blog.
brighten up the evening
It’s practically spring in Madrid, rain almost never stops, the temperatures are in fact quite pleasant, and yet it still feels like the beginning of the year. I turn to my stouts for stabilization. While many have cheeky, punny names, this one is very straightforward – Bourbon Barrel Aged Chocolate x Coffee Imperial Stout 2025. It’s one of Arpus’s special brews, a bit more expensive than I typically allow myself, but I’m thinking of it as an appeal to karma. And it does sound like a damn special beer. Arpus makes some real crowd pleasers, in spite of their unpretentious naming. Even people who aren’t especially fans of beer like their sours. I have been witness to such miracles.
Deliciously slick pouring, appetizingly dark color, nice mocha head, although it fizzes away. There’s a good pinch of bourbon aroma with some chocolate/vanilla background. It has a typical rough around the edges essence of many barrel aged beers, like you have to look out for splinters. But of course, the beer itself has practically no roughness at all. There’s just a bit of bubbliness, to keep you aware that it’s there, but it’s an overall smooth and syrupy sensation. There’s a definite weight and robust mouthfeel; unsurprisingly, this imperial stout is no pushover. Some dried fruit flavors start to push through after a while, adding complexity and depth. I can’t say that I detect a great amount of coffee, but there is a hint of smoke that starts to puff out once you really get into the glass. Arpus doesn’t bother giving their beers fun and clever names, but all the creativity and energy definitely goes into the beer itself. If I had to choose, I would support the emotional investment in the beer, hobby drinker that I am.
Supplier: HIdden Beers
Price: €13.99
can’t complain
This bottle came as a gift, which is the only reason I have it. I won’t look a gift beer in the … bottlemouth. Anyway, it’s one of Mahou’s special beers, Reserva, with the tiny statement “cerveza extra” on the back. It is a nice bottle, I have to say, a little bit artsy and somewhat of a retro silhouette. I wonder if those old-style beers Mahou was producing more than a good ten years ago were the beta version of this one. One of them anyway, the one that was eventually just called Cerveza Extra. I enjoyed those past-referencing labels they used, reminding their customers of the company’s history and footprint in the city. Maybe they stopped using those names because people got salty that they moved out of town for more modern facilities. Just for reference, those beers were Amaniel – Lager, Maravillas – Extra, Jacometrezo – Ale, and Marcenado – Wheat. They are with their blander names but retro labels on this page: http://www.legaval.es/coleccion-casimiro-mahou/
Very dark honey color, and exeptional head. It goes down eventually, but it takes it time. Quite a thick lagery aroma, with honey and grain filling the nostrils almost overwhelmingly. The beer itself follows the hints given by the aroma. It’s thick feeling and heavy, with a slathering of honey-sweet that gives way to more expected bitter at the end. I think it just might be the development of that old retro red. I’m not especially a fan of Mahou, although there are a few interesting beers in their collection, and I’m not especially a fan of lagers. As far as both of those things go, though, Reserva is a solid and pleasing offering.
ray of light
I thought I had heard that stouts were in vogue. I thought I had heard that people were seeking out the darkness. I thought I had heard that there was finally a little balance on the beer shelf. O foolish drinker, paying mind to what you hear! I hadn’t been to Hidden Beers for a while, holidays you know, so I went on down expecting to find something special. I did, but…there wasn’t much else to go with it. Must I settle for IPAs and sours? I have to admit they can also be surprising and well worth your time. But I can pick out something a little special from that group too; a TDH NEIPA? That’s a new one! It’s from solid providers Prizm and Verdant, who have made some tasty collaborations in the past. Let’s see if Jus D’Orange continues the trend.
Opaque and juicy looking, sort of a natural orange juice appearance. It’s bubbly at first, but the head starts thin and vanishes in no time. Not a strong aroma, just whispers of caraway and sesame. The flavor is also sedate, but with a depth to it. It tastes very planty, unsweetened and undrowned in extras. I feel like the Mosaic was scantly used in comparison to the other two hops, at least from what I remember of Founders (?) Mosaic IPA at Roll. That was years ago, of course, and memory can be a treacherous thing. The taste is refreshing and summery, a bright spot for a dark weekend, but there is also some heaviness to the beer itself. It isn’t aggressive, but it sits with confidence and gives the impression that it won’t be pushed around. It’s able to present itself as an all-year possibility, a font of freshness in warm weather, a warm blanket in the cold and damp. It wakes up a little after warming up, but it’s still pretty much a softy. I was told to expect a “bomb” of a beer (in a positive sense), but I don’t think it’s that explosive. Really, it’s probably a more broadly appealing beer because of it.
Supplier: Hidden Beers
Price:€7.90
over the horizon
Since I’ve been travelling, I don’t have a store of beer to start the year with. Didn’t make a lot of sense, although I could have left it in my closet; without the radiator my room is pretty cool. I’ll just have to use my present!
It is a special beer, since it was created by my brother-in-law for his brewpub, but which he has sold to be run by more business-interested people. So, no more Warm Fuzzies. It was a limited edition anyway, but there’s always a chance you can get a repeat when the same people are involved. The new brewers don’t use the same water source, so even the same recipes don’t come out identical to their past selves. While the majority of the collection were lighter beers, ales and sours and easier drinking options, there were also some pretty solid stouts. I seem to remember a lot of barrel-aged ones, but being far away I can’t swear to it.
It doesn’t look extra dark and thick, but pours nicely and has good color. The off-beige head doesn’t build up too much and relaxes quickly. The bourbon aroma is front and center, drowning out anything else. The taste is something of a surprise; it’s very woody to start, and winey over the tongue. It doesn’t seem to have the weight that I’ve experienced with other barrel-aged beers. It’s remarkably smooth, in fact, given the alcohol content of over 13%. The wine flavor ripens into raisin, but the beer stays pretty crisp, not descending into sticky fruitiness. It’s not quite what I was expecting, but it is undoubtedly a special beer, not only because of its extinction. The warmth of it sneaks up on you, and by the end of the can you can definitely feel that 13%. There are those warm fuzzies!
dvanactý
On the twelfth day of Beermas I went and got for me
Twelve thunders thundering
Eleven drinkers drinking
Ten drug lords delivering
Nine priestesses priesting
Eight pirate maids a-sailing
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
It’s the end! Another Beermas drunk through! There were some stretches in meaning and metaphor here and there, but there’s always one that just doesn’t fit like you hope for. This final beer is a good finale. It was the label that caught my eye with the wild sky and moody color palate, but then I saw the brewery: Laugar. Hooray! And then I saw the style: Imperial Stout with marshmallows. Double and triple hooray! Nimbus carries a threat of rain and dark days, but with a sweet surprise, or maybe a consolation. The solstice is over anyway, so we’re on the way to brighter and brighter times.
Beautiful pour wit a sensible amount of mocha head. It doesn’t look quite as thick as number ten, but still presents body and substance. There’s a vapory whisp of marshmallow in the aroma, riding a stout dragon through the storm clouds of the can. The smell is disarmingly light so when you take a sip it’s a real wallop. While not the thickest beer ever, there’s a good amount of weight that floods over the tongue, and the touch of marshmallow sweetnes gives the whole thing an essence of s’more. It’s silkier than Midnight Call, really in keeping with the stouts from Laugar. Even though they produce some heavy hitters, and Nimbus comes in at 10.5%, the majority of their stouts are easy to pour down the hatch, even dangerously so. This is quite a climax to my Beermas; sometimes the stars, or the clouds, align.
Supplier: La Buena Cerveza
Price: €7.18
elfte
On the eleventh day of Beermas I went and got for me
Eleven drinkers drinking
Ten drug lords delivering
Nine priestesses priesting
Eight pirate maids a-sailing
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
It’s close enough to a pipe, even though it isn’t a pipe by any means, that porrón. Things flow out of the spout and that’s enough for me. I don’t think a weiss is exactly the beer to pour down your throat like you would using that device, but maybe one with a good amount of syrup would be easy to take. As far as quality goes, it’s Garage, so clearly a quality beer. And from the right city for the style. I just wonder what P9 is supposed to refer to.
Are people just filling cans to the tippy top anymore? There is a little liquid escape as soon as there’s an opening, but nothing too serious. I was expecting a light orange or even barely yellow beer, what I remember from weisses, but this is a very floral rosy peach color. Even the head is barely tinged pink. Not like the flamingo from a few years ago, but a very happy appearance. It has a tangy and fruity perfume, sort of a strawberry scent, but from a sticker or a doll. I associate weisses with a sharper smell, somewhat acidic and grainy, but this one is soft and slightly juicy. Could just be my memory, I don’t often indulge in the style. The first sip is definitely tangy, like a sour candy. And much like those candies, the sour wears off and you’re left with a calming sweetness covering your tongue. On the side it says “fruited sour ale bursting with raspberry and passion fruit”. Ah, yes, it all makes sense now.
Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €4.30
décimo
On the tenth day of Beermas I went and got for me
Ten drug lords delivering
Nine priestesses priesting
Eight pirate maids a-sailing
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
Hey…isn’t that a scene from a Tarantino movie? Not the famous one, that other one, less famous and sillier. Well, maybe not, it’s been a while since I’ve seen it, or any Tarantino movie for that matter. Suggestions for holiday films? Ok, not only is it stirring film nostalgia, it’s an imperial stout (finally!) and from La Quince. A safe bet if I’ve ever heard one. Maybe I’m stretching the definition of lord, but I imagine people in illegal occupations do a lot of leaping. If not physically, then morally and philosophically. Collaborator Seven Island is a Greek outfit, so philosophy is almost certainly a part of this beer. I seem to recall an earlier collab with Yria that resulted in a stout that would leave you one the floor – almost literally, since it was a seventeen percenter. Midnight Call looks powerful, but manageable. Let’s find out!
First time in a while I don’t get a good head on the first pour, but there is a little beige crown there. While not pitch black, it’s a pleasing dark brown, hot fudge syrup if I had to compare it. The aroma is pretty standard stout, a little toast and earth. Wow, it’s a real mouth filler! The taste is surprisingly subdued for such thickness. It hits hard with bitter, but then there’s a support structure of something sweet. Could it be the oats? It has kind of a breakfast element to it. There’s a tingling to the sip, like a thousand teeny tiny bubbles at once. It does leave a sticky residue on the lips, although no unpleasant aftertaste or other problems. Is it one that you’d get a hankering for at midnight? A secret treat that has to come under cover of darkness? That might make it more exciting, but stouts are a pretty acceptable indulgence. I would call for this beer any time.
Supplier: La Mundial
Price: €7.50
ninth
On the ninth day of Beermas I went and got for me
Nine priestesses priesting
Eight pirate maids a-sailing
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
There are fewer beer labels with women on them than you’d think, given how women are used to sell things. I’d say it’s a mark of the integrity of the craft beer sector, but we all know that is unfortunately not true. Yes, there are duchesses and queens, but this is the first time I’ve seen a priestess. Given the experience I’ve had with people from Segovia (which is little), it’s not such a surprise that Sanfrutos would find it fitting to name a beer after such a character. It is a West Coast IPA, so something light and sharp, connected to nature and spirit, is what I’m expecting to find. Let’s see what kind of fortune teller I am.
It’s darker than expected but still clear golden hue. The head starts out fluffy, but bubbles away rapidly. It smells like honey, like a hopped mead almost, which certainly goes with the color. The taste is bittersweet, a one-two punch delivered in a mouth-filling liquid. Knowing it’s a West Coast style makes me look for pine and spice, and in a ghostly aftertaste I think there’s a little pine forest there. In spite of its aleness, it feels right for the time, heavy and covering, with notes of field and forest, not as refreshing as some less, let’s say spiritual brews. Of course, less refreshing is not less enjoyable, and there are times when you want a little weight to let you know you’re alive.
Supplier: La Mundial
Price: €6.10
osmý
On the eighth day of Beermas I went and got for me
Eight pirate maids a-sailing
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
I would like very much to have an all stout Beermas, but it would require a lot of stretching of the gifts. Maybe I’ll be feeling flexible next year. For the moment, we have La Grua’s North Shore, a DDH NEIPA. I’m not sure if there’s any history of pirates in the brewery’s area, although the community of Cantabria is on the coast. Actually, a golden beer is more appropriate for a pirate to be stealing, fossil fuels weren’t a thing when the romantic pirates were having their heyday.
It releases a tiny geiser of hop aroma, snappy, catnippy, jungly. No beer explosion though, and it pours very nicely. Not as heady as others, and cloudy like the past couple of weeks. There’s a wave of brightness in the sip, and an almost honeyed finish. Dry hopped beers in my experience have a bit more bitterness and edge, while this one has the NEIPA part of its background clearly coming out on top. If anything the dry hopping took off any edge a NEIPA can have. It gets more and more candylike, kind of like a flat soda, or a low-sugar lemonade. I guess I can imagine it’s sweet like pirate rum.
Supplier: Más Que Cervezas
Price: €5.91
siebte
On the seventh day of Beermas I went and got for me
Seven boney swimmers
Six geese post-laying
Five gold nuts
Four obvious non-kiwis
A three-time remade masterpiece
Two guarding lions
And a crow glaring silently
It’s not swans, but it’s definitely swimming. Or at least it’s something that used to swim, until being snatched up by undead hands. Somehow I think O Fortuna has several levels hiding in its name. It’s a complicated beer, DDH West Coast IPA, and to go with that it’s a collaboration between three, count ’em three, breweries. The magic of working together on a concoction has a fairy tale ring to it, three witches brewing up a potion that can only be counteracted by seven feathers of seven swans from seven seas, or some mystical folk numerology like that.
We’re back to clear, golden, blinding white headed brew, with a heavy and spicy aroma fitting of West Coast IPAs. There’s a mix of snappy hops and pine, and a sort of hot marmalade. The blend of perfume is reflected in the taste, although there’s more sourness and grain on the tongue. It dances and sparkles on the tongue, like fingerbones tapping. There’s a sweet center hiding in a ball of roughage and savory herbs, hard to identify exactly, but always peeking out. It’s like the setting sun in a mostly cloudy sky.
Supplier: La Buena Cerveza
Price: €7.40
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