Three Craft Beer Bombers for 5$ and Under

The post was inspired by dearavocado.

Werewolf abv 8%

This Belgium-Style strong ale is from Lithuania. I found this beer to be very drinkable and I even preferred the taste to other Belgium-Style beers that are more popular like Delirium or New Belgium. Lithuania is not the hippest region for beer in America and as a result has fared poorly on rating websites. This beer, however, is worth a pour and you may be surprised that some of the tastier beers are not the most expensive.

... and let's not forget about that badass label.


Victory Helios, abv 7.5%

This Belgium-Style Saison is dynamic and tasty. First of all, farmhouse ales like this one usually start at 10$ and they go up from there. If you have never had a Saison or farmhouse you should start with this one. The Helios has a light citrus nose and a banana-bready overall taste experience. It is the spicy finish that makes this beer interesting and memorable.

A Rich Man's Pamosa:

1 Part Orange Juice
4 Parts Victory Helios

Serve with pancakes or sausage biscuits.

Yazoo Sue, abv 9%

The Sue is a smoked porter and is a monster when it comes to flavor. This beer is rich and dark with the smokey malt flavors that envelope the drinking experience. The Sue blows the other Yazoo products out of the water. This beer is for dark beer lovers and holds its ground when competing with larger brewing companies like Stone and Sierra Nevada. A Beer Named Sue should make all Nashvillans proud to call Yazoo their own. 

Serve this beer with pulled pork or in a frosted mug with vanilla ice cream. 

--AS

Dry: a Refreshing Alternative to Pale

I like to believe that my taste in beer does not very from season to season and that my pallet is not so petty. The reality is that I am sucker for seasonal releases and what those seasonal beers are dependent on the time of year. I can say that I do not follow the dark beer in the winter and pale beer in summer model.




Beer does not have to be over hopped to be enjoyed during the warmer parts of the year. Some of this years late spring releases have proved this. Beers that I have been getting excited about recently have all had a dry quality to them that I have found very refreshing as the weather heats up. I just like good beer and my pallet is rarely dictated by season or weather. What a brewer wants to produce at a certain time affects us all and I hope this summer to see me seasonal releases that are a little more creative then the regular IPA.

Here is a very brief and dry list:

Lagunitas Lucky 13

This beer almost didn't make the dry list because of its sweetness but it still has dry qualities and meets the non-pale criteria. This red ale smells like sweet barely and oats. There is very faint honey on the pallet and has a sweet and dry finish. A good red ale should be balanced with no one flavor or ingredient out playing another. This beer goes down easy and is a good addition to Lagunitas' outstanding line-up of seasonal gems.

Southern Tier Plum Noir Imperial Porter

The Plum Noir by Southern Tier is the next beer that put dry on the radar. When I first saw the Plum Noir I thought of the Pumking and Chokolat beers that were released  last year. These two beers set a high flavor standard and were not ashamed to go over the top. The Plum Noir, respectively, is not very plumpy but is still highly enjoyable. There is a little bit of ripe plum right on the beginning and some dark fruit on the pallet but that is about it. After the initial shock of not being over the top this beer is balanced, well made and satisfying. The Plum Noir is made to play well with chocolate and Nat Sherman cigarettes.


Sweet Water Dank Tank Some Strange Black IPA

This is the first beer I had this year that got me thinking about dry qualities in beer and it set a pretty high standard. Despite its confusing name and terrifying packaging this beer was large and tasty.The Dank Tank had an excellent metallic/floral nose with just a hint of almond. On the body of the beer was a lot of malt with some dry sherry notes which I was surprised to find. The "Pale" part of the beer which is the hops came in toward the finish and added a bit of kick on the end. This particular incarnation of the Dank Tank was a whopping 10% alc content and this came through on the pallet. I typically do not mind a little "heat" on my beers and this Black IPA did not let me down. The Dank Tank Black IPA is, as the name suggests, a very dark beer but the carbonation and the dry notes make it very palatable in warm weather.

Southern Tier 2x Steam

This beer is the inspiration for this reflection on dry delicious beers. I tend to gravitate toward rich beers with loads of flavor and the 2x Steam was a break from that trend. This beer is made in the traditional steam beer style which was originally the beer of the lower classes in California around the turn of the century. The "steam" is a reference to the mist made by the carbonation. The 2x is a re-working of this old style and has a vaugue connection to the steam-punk philosophy. This lager has a sweet barely bouquet and pours a rich brown. The malt flavors in this beer are uncommon and refreshingly dry. There is a dry finish and no sticky mouth feel. This beer is made with three different varaties of malt and I imagine the dry quality comes the pislner malt. Wherever it comes from I would like more of it. This beer would pair well with anything prepared on a grille or re-heated in the microwave. 

Buying Beer for Others

Buying beer for a party or a get-together can be nerve racking and is almost a good excuse to have guests bring their own bottles. Having beer in the fridge for guests is at the same time polite and hospital. If your guests are not well known to you (like your wife's friend's husband or friends of your friends, co-workers, etc...) having some good beer on hand can serve as an ice-breaker.

three tips for buying for others:

     1. buy beer you wouldn't mind getting stuck with after the party is over. This is not the time to spend loads of cash on beer that you want people to think you drink. If you like Shiner Bach get it for your guests. Find out what they like and maybe make plans to get it next time and you can try it for yourself.

     2. drink what you serve your guests. If you are a craft-brew-only drinker don't serve your guests PBR while you are drinking a bomber of Corsendonk. If you are not going to share the nice stuff then hide it. If you happen to know that your guests like craft-beer then split one with them and drink a less expensive beer with them afterward.

     3. never underestimate the power of free beer. If a guest turns his or her nose up at free beer than maybe use that as a sign they should not be invited back. If someone offers me a cold Budweiser (which is not my favorite variety of cheap beer) I will thank them and tell them I take mine cold. 

Growlers: a sidenote within a subculture

The Growler
(or 'flaggin' as my British co-worker refers to.)

My wife and I recently moved into a new rental and I found a growler in the fridge. This prime piece of real estate (the growler I mean) was the excuse I was looking for to get started in the world of growler refills. Over the past few years I have become increasingly dependent and trusting on bottled beer. Getting excited about beers on draft seemed amateurish to me; there were just too many variables with draft that I did not want to deal with. Buying draft was something you did because the bar had a special on it.

I knew that growlers were popular to collect and refill. Someone, in my mind, who was religious about getting a growler filled probably was more into growler culture than they were beer culture. Novelty and inconvenience came together and I decided I was not interested. Given the choice between Sierra Nevada Pale on draft and in a bottle, I would always choose the bottle for taking home.

Since a couple of years ago in Nashville the local beer scene has exploded and growlers have become a convenient medium to support local business. Many young breweries cannot afford to bottle which limits their availability to bars and consumption at the brewery. With a strong undercurrent of growler buyers and a renewed interest in buying local smalltime breweries can distribute to a wider audience.

I have been to Craft Brewed and Woody's in Franklin so far to get my new growler refilled. I have gotten the beer to last a couple of days and I have not found myself rushed to finish the beer before it expires. The average size of a growler is $10 and Craft Brewed offers a wide selection and a free growler with the first fill. Woody's has a better price on refills 8$ and allows you to drink the beer on their porch--they also keep at least two local beers on tap at a time. Craft Brewed cannot by law allow customers to drink out of growlers on premise in their beautiful new beer-garden and deck. They can sell you a pint and you can drink that on premise.

I had mine filled at Craft Brewed with Jackalope Rompo Red (pictured above) and am currently very pleased.

In Tennessee you can get fined for an open container in your car. I err on the side of caution and have the business wrap my growler in tape or with a sign and a receipt and just take it home in the back-seat or in the trunk.

A full growler is a great house warming gift and a good size for parties or a casual get-together. I look forward to more refills and taking more local beers home to be enjoyed with a book or with friends.

--AS

Wine and Beer Hybrids: How Blue Moon is Saving Us Trips to the Kitchen One Vintage at a Time

     Beer/Wine hybrids, I know, sounds like a bad X-file but this is the latest project by Blue Moon and the results are surprising. The big-time craft brewer responsible introducing a wide audience to Belgium style beers on a pop level is now going after the high-gravity drinkers. Blue Moon is also negatively associated with purists who insist that fruit does not belong in beer. I had this mind set for a brief period but now I think a lot of things belong in beer like espresso, cherries, Cascara, peppers, lime wedges and now grape juice.  

     

     The "Vintage Ale Collection," which debuted with "Proximity," is a line of beers crossed with juice from common wine grapes.  The concept is odd and highly suspicious but not entirely out of the question. Here in Nashville we have to buy our high-gravity beer at wine shops so it seems more like two friends we see all the time who, when no one was looking, were slipping off together and later we find out they are in a relationship. The "Proximity" is a beer which was allowed to ferment with the juice from Sauvignon Blanc grapes and has been available since late last year. I imagine during all this fermenting the grape juice turns into something wine-like and the flavors marry—marriage is the right metaphor for the "Vintage Collection."

     
      The first is the Golden Knot which is a beer and Chardonnay crossbreed. I do not consider myself a Chardonnay guy but I could make an exception for this beer. The "Golden Knot" is a dry and refreshing experience with some distinct pear notes on the pallet. The carbonation is just right and somehow makes regular old Chardonnay taste flat and lacking.

     
The second release is Crimson Crossing which is fermented with Merlot juice. When I first tried the "Proximity" and heard about the Vintage series I dreamed of a red hybrid* and this one is not a disappointment. First of all the beer is a beautiful medium dark red and has a light fruit nose. The Merlot flavor comes across nice and clear with a dry tannic finish. This is a beer for fans of beer and good red wines. The carbonation is nice for the summer and perhaps you can put a couple of bottles away for fall or just later this summer.

If you are still suspicious you should try them for yourself, don’t take my word for it. The "Vintage Collection" is a lot of fun and may also serve to attract wine shoppers over to the beer isle. Your usual beer nerd may have a hard time reconciling the "Vintage Ale Collection" in their hearts but I am looking forward to seeing and tasting future Beer/Wine crossbreeds.   

--AS

*a brief look into my rich dream life.