January 2006 Archives

The New York Times dining section offered a review of barleywines this past week. Yes, they brought in two master brewers to assist, but the article is still a wine review first and foremost. 

I'll be the first to admit that one shouldn't be pounding barleywines(*) and that barleywines are somewhere between beer and wine when it comes to flavor profiles and general approaches.  At the same time, I'd appreciate a review that observes the distinction between the pretention of wine reviews and the realities of beer.  One can describe flavor and body and color and finish of any beverage without becoming completely ephemeral and illusory the way wine reviewers often do.  There's plenty of good beer being made that deserves full and fair coverage to explain what's going on... but wine-snob B.S. isn't the way to introduce better beer to people who grew up with the myth of Joe Sixpack.

Wow.  I'm rarely speechless after drinking a beer.  "Flavorful" is an understatement... I'm still trying to sort out everything going on -- clearly this is not your standard red/amber ale. 

Characteristics: Rich amber color, medium to heavy body, wide mix of flavors exploding sequentially across the tongue with a long, lingering, malty-sweet finish.

Minor Gripes: The label describes Red Tail as having a "dry" finish -- if that's true (and if I got an appropriately aged six pack), then I don't want to see a "wet" finish.

Bottom Line: This is NOT an everyday beer... it's very rich and somewhat challenging. Perhaps the most "volatile" beer I've had in some time -- the flavor profile varies widely with the temperature and presentation (straight from bottle, chilled stout glass, chilled pint glass, room-temp pint).  That's all good -- just not quite what I expected.

Rating: 6.5/10

The good people at the Wharton School of Business offer a bi-weekly newsletter (free registration required) looking at trends and theories in business (something other than the infamous case-study approach of their rivals up the coast in the People's Democratic Republic of Cambridge).  Being Wharton, they generally have something relevant to say -- and being in Philadelphia, they reflect some of the no-nonsense, cut-to-the-chase attributes I'm now discovering about a city I once wrote off as little more than a place to consistently purchase Yuengling Porter. 

The latest issue of Knowledge @ Wharton takes a run at the current attempts by Anheuser-Busch (and, to a lesser extent, Miller Brewing) to move the marketing of beer out of the Stone Age.  As the article deftly explains, the damage is likely done for anyone already of drinking age (legal or not)... beer as low-brow beverage seems to be hard-coded at about the time kids become aware of advertising for beer.

In other news, CNN is currently running a video story (nasty javascript link I couldn't grab) about TurboTap, a device that supposedly reduces foam while allowing for higher tap pressure -- faster pours without ticking off the patrons.  I'm not entirely convinced, especially about the claims that the device also works for Guinness, but then again I prefer a proper two-minute two-stage pour on my stouts.

The Boston Globe today offers a recipe for Guinness ice cream -- though it's really a frozen custard.  Boston may have great ice cream shops (or "shoppes"), but custard is more of a midwestern experience (and even a religion in Milwaukee).

I believe in cooking with beer (and routinely throw a bottle of whatever dark beer I've got on hand into my vegetarian chili) but this recipe seems a little extreme.  More precisely, I don't see it working right.  I'm afraid you won't be able to taste the Guinness due to the molasses, and someone who cheats by using vanilla extract (instead of real pods and seeds as called for in the recipe) will run the risk of screwing up the custard from all the alcohol (there's not a long-enough boil to burn it off). Plus, the recipe merely points to the last, most critical step -- "process the custard in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions."  Until I see Irish Cream Stout as "flavor of the day" at Kopp's Custard, I'll pass.

Wolaver's is the organic side of the Otter Creek Brewery. I am definitely a fan of these guys (even though I was disappointed by the Copper Ale) -- and the Oatmeal Stout (originally sampled at the "DC Greenfest") is part of the reason why.  It seems that they've moved this beer to a seasonal / occasional schedule, which is a mixed blessing -- I'd like to get it year-round, but perhaps it's nice to anticipate the seasonality (getting back to the old days or something like that).

Characteristics: Medium body, dark brown color, slightly bitter finish on a full, round middle.

Minor Gripes: Somewhat uneven bitterness quotient from bottle to bottle -- within the same six-pack -- an unusual result (but ultimately not a death-knell).

Bottom Line: A good domestic interpretation of Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout. Doesn't quite have the full complexity of Smith's, but I've never had relatively "fresh" Smith (i.e. anywhere in the UK).

Rating: 6/10.

Even if this beer stunk worse than warm swamp water (which it doesn't), I'd encourage you to give it a try.  Louisiana's famous Abita brewery is donating $1.00 per six-pack to continued rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Katrina. 

Characteristics: A solid golden ale -- similar to Belgian golden/abbey ales without the overbearing alcohol kick-in-the-teeth (e.g. La Chouffe).  Light to medium body, rich gold color, late malty finish tempered with a little citrus.

Minor Gripes: Could use a little more flavor at the start of each sip -- the early carbonation overwhelms the subtle release.

Bottom Line: Good beer, good cause, good luck finding it (somewhat limited release, and despite its release in late fall 2005, I just saw it for the first time here in DC in mid-January). 
 

Rating: 6/10 (plus another .5 for the charitable aspect).

Truth in advertising, indeed... It's dark and it's a lager.  I was hoping for something closer to the German dark weissbiers (Erdinger comes to mind) but the Sam Black has no presence at all.

Characteristics: deep brown-t0-black color, light body, more maltiness and a little less bitterness than the familiar Boston Lager.

Gripes: Not enough flavor to sustain any interest.  Best served ice-cold (like yellow American lagers).

Bottom Line: If you want to impress someone by drinking a dark beer without the complexity of "dark beer" taste, this might be the way to go.  It reminds me of a recent marketing campaign for Newcastle Brown Ale -- trying to create a distinction between color and weight/body. 

Rating: 4/10 (perhaps as high as 5.5 for those who prefer lagers).

Simple, easy drinking -- very much an everyday beer.  I first picked this up because I liked the picture of the dog on the packaging and wanted a brown... and I've gone back many times since.

Characteristics: Rich brown color with amber overtones in the light, light-to-medium body, slightly fruity but with a dry finish. 

Minor Gripes: Somewhat limited store distribution here in DC, and I haven't seen yet it in a bar or restaurant.

Bottom Line: Since Newcastle bottles don't seem to fare well in transit to the US, this has become my default brown ale -- it's that good.

Rating: 7.5/10