Skip to content

Let's Learn Beer!

Facebook Twitter Instagram

Let's Learn Beer!

Twitter Youtube Instagram Facebook

Let's Learn Beer!

Twitter Youtube Instagram Facebook

Let's Learn Beer!

Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube

la quince

summer treat

  • by

It’s true that stouts aren’t the beer of choice in a Madrid summer for most people. It’s not a surprise, I can’t fault them too much. But dammit, why can’t there be just a couple floating around for us lovers of darkness? Well, at least packaged stouts aren’t too hard to find, and very tempting ones too. La Quince astonished me with their Vanilla Black Velvet years and years ago, and it’s still a class act, although different years give slightly different results. Part of the fun! They also have different versions of Black Velvet, sometimes with different collaborators, but this is the old team of La Quince and Guineu, back with a new variety – Doughnut Black Velvet Pastry Stout. I now what you’re thinking, it’s going to be far too heavy for the current temps, but I say a little sugar water/beer is just the thing to get you up off your sweaty ass.

It’s extra foamy, very resistant dark milk chocolate head. I was expecting a little more aroma from the get-go, but it’s pretty subdued. There’s kind of a sweetish smell, but there’s a little bit of milk that’s just a tiny bit too old floating on top. It also seems kind of … meadowy? Clovery maybe? The taste is smooth at first, and very much Black Velvet. The doughnut doesn’t weigh it down very much or add excess sugar. Weirdly, it’s toward the middle of the sip that you notice the fizziness, so the beer actually ends feeling more like a soda or sparkling wine even though the flavor is unmistakably stouty. It’s quite pleasant and not at all a burden of a drink on a summer evening. Sure, some might prefer a fruitier or zippier style, but this is a remarkably light pastry stout and a tasty evening beverage. La Quince (and Guineu), you’ve done it again!

Supplier: Labirratorium
Price: €4.75

rewind

  • by

Times change but processes are always the same. It’s not so strange for businesses to close after a few years, some sooner than others, but it’s usually a little sad when they go. You get used to having them there in the background, even if you don’t patronize them super often. It’s going to be time to say goodbye to another beer store, this time near Retiro, so not too surprising that costs might catch up to them. It was a convenience, though, if you spent some time in the park and then went and got a good beer (or two) to take home. RIP, Birra Y Paz, these last few purchases will be your legacy. La Quince Vanilla Black Velvet is definitely something legacy worthy. My introduction to it was my first experience of glory with a craft beer.

Rich and chocolate syrup smell, deep dark color, only light head. It’s malty and bitter, very stouty flavor, not as sweet as more recent pastry stouts, but with that touch of chocolate that blew my mind all those years ago. This particular batch or bottle is a little bit dusty, not smooth or syrupy, although it goes down easy and doesn’t have any distracting aftertaste or leavings. It has a more classic feeling to it, more of the echoes of beers of old being reflected in a craft brew than the craft beer shining its own dazzling light. This classic from La Quince (and Guineu) may have its off years and less successful variations, but it’s hard to say that it’s ever not good. The starry-eyed beeriness that I get from it awakens some nostalgia and some determined hope for the future. Good beer is here to stay and arriving over the horizon.

Supplier: Birra Y Paz
Price: €4.50

T(welve)-9

  • by

On the ninth day of Beermas I went and bought for me
Nine night owls hooting
Eight maids not for cleaning
Seven avian vampire teasers
Six plans a-hatching
Five collaborations
Four miles of nowhere
Three tropical tree eggs
Two staring wings
And an icy raven looking needy

Am I wasting a bird on dancing ladies?  Perhaps.  But damn if Night Owlers NEIPA didn’t call out to me for that night out.  It’s La Quince and Salama Brewing, another collab from the wise owl.  Can’t think of one that hasn’t turned out delicious.

Rather opaque, sort of lemonade cocktail look, very fleeting head. It’s not terribly fruity or spicy in aroma, with just a whiff of bitter hops and a tail end of bread. The flavor is also subdued, but with a more typical NEIPA bent, that layer of sweet orange juice. It doesn’t quite get to bitter, although there is a less sugary part, more mealy or pithy. Something in the aftertaste comes across as sharp, acidic, but it is also very temporary, like the head.

a call back

  • by

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.

answering somebody’s prayers

  • by

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.

en_USEnglish
es_ESSpanish en_USEnglish