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lager

not even a bite

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Without a beer in the fridge! Woe is me! I planned to make a trip to the American store in search of worthwhile pickles, so maybe there will be a new beer for me too. They tend to have a couple in the fridge. Actually, this time they weren’t in the fridge, but there were a couple of choices on the shelf. Barking Squirrel seems familiar to me, but I can’t find any opinion of mine about it. Maybe I had a different brew at some point. The day is sunny, but now with a cold wind, so something intermediate might be acceptable. Oh, who am I kidding, there’s nothing like a stout, any time, any place! Next time, next time…

Sloppy, sloppy…

Explosion! Apparently the journey was so strenuous that a couple of days in the fridge did not calm the beer. Didn’t lose too much, but there was a puddle to clean. The beer is indeed amber, but extra bubbly and with an excited but short-lived head. Some appley aroma but not much else, and in taste it is more or less the same. No apple flavor, but a sweetness, malty, soft and yet weighty. It is on the sweet side of a toasty beer, almost like a Belgian triple, but lite. It’s pretty easy to drink, leaving little aftertaste, but with just a touch of spice, giving a feeling of warmth and coziness beyond the typical amber lager. It’s not a bad beer once you get it in the glass, maybe not as quenching as a regular IPA or as fantastic as a stout (I have my prefernces, sue me).

Sloppy, sloppy…

Supplier: Taste of America
Price: €4.10

can’t complain

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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.

hop day

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Right in the middle of my Arriaca flight, with a hoppy lager. While a more modern style, I’m expecting something of a traditional bent, much like their ales. My can is a little dirty, which I didn’t notice before, but it must have been something that happened on the shelf. The shitty fridge isn’t going to have dirt raining down from the top, is it? Nobody’s complained about food contamination yet. I’m a little disappointed that Arriaca does not list their hops like some other breweries do; it would be interesting to compare the varieties used in their styles.

This one has aroma that leaps out of the can. It’s not quite head-butting, but it makes itself known. The look is classic lager, bright golden color and bright white head, which really fills up the top of the glass. It takes its protective role seriously for this beer, I see. The taste is also practically an homage to traditional lagers, with sweet maltiness and just a touch of hops to cover up excess grain (not that I suspect excesses). It’s a bright call to arms, more energetic than the session IPA, although not too much more complex. It has a few layers to it, with the malt and a touch of lemon and honey. The frothy head decreases little by little, but pouring out the rest of the can revives it to its original glory. It’s a well balanced hoppy lager, with both components clearly detectable, but in a way that complements each other rather than fighting for attention.

rosy gateway?

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What desperation is this, a Mahou beer? Are all the beer stores shuttered forever and the craft breweries wiped from the face of the earth? No, although I feel a little embarrassed. I guess my face can go with the beer – La Rosé de Mahou. It’s supposed to be a lager “with a fruity touch”, something for people who want to explore different flavors in beer. It feels like they’re trying to push their not-ABI/not-Heineken side, like when they picked up their share of Founders as a “family company”. Being the industrial beer that it is, I doubt there’s going to be any of the weirdness that fruity sours give off in scent, and I kind of doubt that the flavor is going to be that strong. It is a Mahou, after all. Although, most of the craft styles that the Spanish macros have made have been perfectly acceptable, so I might be in for a treat.

It does look a lot like a rosé, with a fluffy head on it. Very similar to some sours too. It’s an interesting aroma, slightly fruity, although that might be psychological, but mainly malty sweet. It’s lager sweet at first, but the taste deepens and develops a little bit of herbalness. It has the mouthfeel of a bock, although one that leans a little syrupy. I get a hint of licorice too, even kind of an artificial raspberry flavor. Although sweet, it’s probably too heavy to be one of the more refreshing hot weather beers, but that weight with its color could make it festive. It has the potential to be a gateway beer, one that people who don’t really like “real” beer can enjoy drinking, only graduating to the more bitter, less soda-y at a later time. I’m not sure who the target consumer is, to be honest. They might be trying to fool the more unsophisticated wine drinkers rather than rope in young beginner beer drinkers. Who knows? We have to take risks if we want to get stuff sold, I guess.

sunny days

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What kind of year starts out with early summer temperatures before spring even officially starts? A damn hot one, I bet. Also full of fire, apparently. It’s getting to be a good time to be a minimalist, who doesn’t need a lot of time to pack up and isn’t too concerned about losing a few things here and there. Beer, though, you can just grab and drink. Especially a lager beer. Enter Basqueland’s Santa Clara Lager.

Lemony yellow and light head, with a mild bready aroma. It’s definitely the kind of beer that people typically look for when the weather gets warmer, although it also has its year-round fans. The flavor is much toastier than the smell, heavier and harsher. It really perks up the drink, to be honest, the aroma was a little too subtle to be very interesting. The feel is pleasant, with just enough body to be noticeable, but not overwhelming. It’s a sweet little lager, not too bad for the beach, but with enough bite to keep it safe on the street.

Supplier: Hop Hop Hurra
Price: €3

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.

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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