Beer Me Wilk!

Barrel Aged Naked Evil BBW

2012-02-12T07:51:00.000-06:00

Brewer: Hoppin' Frog Brewery, Akron, Ohio
Alcohol Content: 11.3%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Aging in oak barrels added a memorable richness, that we seek to achieve with this barrel aged Belgian-style barley wine-style ale. Being the ideal celebration beer to release on our 5-year anniversary, Barrel Aged Naked Evil is fermented with both British and Belgian yeasts and aged in whiskey barrels for a lightly spicy twist on this old-world beer style. Sweet malt flavors will become smoother and rich dark fruit characters will build with time, to add a wonderful complexity and depth of flavor."

Wilk's Take:
I procured Naked Evil during WiseGuy's "Rare" beer sale. I am not particularly sure why I let the bottle fester in the depths of my refrigerator as long as it did, but last night I cracked it open. Naked Evil by far is unlike any other beer I have ever tried. This does not mean it's the best, nor does it mean it's the worst, just very unique.

The label is an unassuming black and white description of the beer itself and the impetus behind why it was even brewed in the first place. The abbreviation in the name stands for Belgian-style Barley Wine. A word of caution: if and when you decide to investigate this beer further, do not Google the word naked and BBW in the same line without being very specific.

Naked Evil poured a rusty orange color and the smell was reminiscent of the English style barleywine I previously encountered by Heavy Seas: sweet, richly sweet. The difference here is that Naked Evil was aged in whiskey barrels and much like with any bourbon beer brewed today the sweetness of the whiskey is pronounced in every way.

At 11.3% this beer knocked me around quickly. My last beer, Black Sun by Three Floyd's, was a stout with 50 IBU and reminded me of a black IPA. This beer labels 48 IBU and I wasn't able to tell if hops had been included at all. Any bitterness that was added in the process disappeared over time. I never found a beer that tasted nothing like beer until I met Naked Evil.

Suggestion: Not sure if you can find Naked Evil any more because it was a 5 year anniversary release. I was fortunate to snag a bottle and am thankful that I did. If you are lucky enough to find it, grab it and drink it near a fire, because that's what it feels like you should do.

Value: I purchased the bottle for $25 at the rare beer sale and if you read this blog regularly you might know that I have another two bottles in the beer cellar. Maybe they'll be worth more some day. But letting them age could also alter the taste, so maybe we'll run that experiment later.

Michelle Factor: Michelle is a little under the weather and is opting out of a lot of great beer. I even mentioned Naked Evil's lack of "beerness" and she still said no. Maybe next time.

Black Sun

2012-02-10T22:25:00.000-06:00

Brewer: Three Floyd's Brewing Company, Munster, Indiana
Alcohol Content: 6.5%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Black Sun has a nose of coffee, roasted malts and piney hops. This medium bodied stout has a broad depth of maltiness and a clean dry finish. "

Wilk's Take:
Here I am doing something I vowed never to do: write a full review of a Three Floyd's beer. Sure I dabbled in little paragraphs here or there, but to take the approach on a full bomber? The rationale behind never doing a full review came from the fact that there are far too many Three Floyd's apologists in the world. Believe it or not, these guys can make mistakes. Sure they have the best beer in America, but that doesn't mean all their beers are the best beers in America.

As is well documented on this blog I love stouts. I can't seem to get enough of them and would drink a bomber everyday if my liver would let me. Black Sun is no exception. When I pulled back the cap and heard the carbonation escaping the bottle, I could detect the coffee and roasted malts before the cap could clink on the counter. The undercurrent of hops was oh so subtle that upon first whiff you never would know they existed.

Black Sun did not pour thick. Three Floyd's labels it a medium bodied stout, but on shear liquidity alone you could almost use the word light instead. Curiously though, there was significant lacing on the glass as I drank so there is some staying power here. The aroma was in full effect in the glass and the hops were more noticeable. At 50 IBUs Black Sun is not the most bitter beer in the world, but the hops definitely kick you in the teeth. If I didn't know any better I would say that Black Sun resembled more of a black IPA than a stout, but no IPA has had the flavor as this.

Black Sun is a great stout in its own right and with its hop character can certainly over power any other stout you may consider drinking in the same night. Its uniqueness certainly requires admiration but no admiration reserved for Dark Lord or even current brewery favorite Zombie Dust. Although, if you were to line this bottle up next to an oatmeal, chocolate, or imperial stout I'm not sure which would be more intimidating.

Suggestion: In the end, if you are typical a hop head like my good friend Brett, and you are looking to stick a toe in the stout pool, Black Sun is the perfect entry. If you're a stout head and you want a change of pace, you could do much worse. This one certainly will be purchased again before the supply runs out (if it hasn't already).

Value: Three Floyd's is very easy to come by in my neck of the woods and for $8, I would say the value is there. Then again, I bought it a while ago so I'm not exactly sure it was $8, but since that seems to be average price, I'll risk it.

Michelle Factor: Although Michelle was a champ at B.I.G. Winterfest and downed more beers than I could have ever imagined, she didn't want to give this a go. She's sick, so her taste buds are skewed anyway

Jimmy Taps Another 1, or 2, or 3, or 4

2012-02-02T19:59:00.002-06:00

Is there really ever a thing that can truthfully be labeled a healthy obsession? Health food nuts, exercise gurus, and PETA would certainly advocate there is. Readers of this blog are probably more familiar with the habits that are deemed not so healthy. In the midst of it all, Jimmy Jones straddles the fine line between healthy and unhealthy with an obsession for brewing great beer.

Jimmy is a Hoosier native, transplanted into the western suburbs of Chicago, with an eye for living in the city proper prize. His love of brewing has made him invest in a two bedroom apartment when a one would do. That second room however, filled with nothing but brew paraphernalia, can only be described as Jimmy's very own fortress of solitude.

I was privileged enough to be invited to a party where Jimmy was showcasing a sampling of his latest creations. Yes, creations. Jimmy does not brew one batch at a time (ok, he might I wasn't able to get that specific), but he had a variety on hand that could rival a tasting room. He designed his very own kegerator complete with check valves on every line, a drip pan under the taps, and four taps with a great collection of handles.

For our tasting pleasure we were provided Alicia's Sweet Ass, a cream ale; Red Amerika, naturally a red ale; Hairy Werewolf, which described by Jimmy was an attempt at a Zombie Dust clone; and The Hef, which was an English bitter ale attempt that mystically transformed itself into a hefeweizen.

Alicia's Sweet Ass was a good cream ale. Jimmy admitted he rushed the production in an effort to put it on the line, but you wouldn't be able to tell. I wasn't able to tell. The more refined craft beer palates out there may have been caught off guard by it, but all I tasted was a rich brew with a buttery finish that was a great way to start my evening.

From there I transitioned to The Hef. Wheat style beers are generally not my thing but I did enjoy the brew. My first reaction was a bit of sour and I conveyed that to my host. I was wrong in that notion however, for when I went to get a second pull it wasn't sour as much as it was tart. The beer had great flavor and was more potent than most of the other hefeweizens I've had, but I was not quick to get another glass (my second pull was a quick drink at most).

At halftime, as a thank you for bringing a bottle of Three Floyd's Baller Stout, Jimmy poured me a glass of Jolly Pumpkin's Baudelaire IO Saison. Do you like funk? Mr. Jones certainly liked his funk. A word like funk though brings to mind old gym socks, armpits without deodorant, or flaming cheese at your favorite Greek establishment. Baudelaire IO was infused with rose and hibiscus and with the beer under your nose you get both. Oh yeah, you get the funk too. It's almost like you opened a pack of SweetTarts, but not really SweetTarts. Before I lose you, imagine fresh fruit but in tangy form. It's bold on the first sip and then mellows to a fruity, yeasty blend that makes drinking a bottle an exercise in ease.

From here, I grabbed a shot of the Zombie Dust clone. As an aside, Zombie Dust is flying out of the Three Floyd's warehouse. Once they offer cases for sale, they are gone in short order. My host even mentioned that Zombie Dust is, "the best beer on the face of the earth." I didn't exactly share his sentiment, but it is a damn good beer. The clone however, reminded me more of Three Floyd's Pride and Joy, an equally hoppy experience but loaded with the taste of sliced grapefruit.

The last pour of the night was Red Amerika. The pride in Red Amerika was that it was a 9% beer that didn't taste like a 9% beer. Oh boy was that an understatement. With a long drive home ahead of me, I was very careful as to my beer intake. When I met Red Amerika though, I indulged a little. It was an amber, and I'll even go so far as to compare it to an Imperial Red (because you can put Imperial in front of anything these days) and I like the reds. It was bold, but smooth and akin to Southern Tier's Big Red, minus the hops.

Home brewers take immense pride in their beer and Jimmy is no exception. Given the means he will make a great brewmaster one day. It's unfortunate he took his skills to Illinois because the Hoosier beer scene would welcome his talents. Passion and pride are always a better ingredient to beer over barley and hops. As evident also at the B.I.G. Winterfest, home brewers are just like the bigger boys but with less capital. Brew on Jimmy, brew on.

Inaugural Beer Me Wilk! NYE Beer and Wine Event

2012-01-08T12:53:00.000-06:00

So I decided in the beginning of December that I would send out an exclusive invite to a select group of friends for my attempt to host my very own beer festival. With the blessing of my wife Michelle (of "The Michelle Factor") I embarked upon my journey. Before I relay the outcome, I want to give a special thank you to Michelle for her continuing support of this adventure and for decorating the house in a style befitting of New Year's Eve. I would also like to thank Melanie Johnson (a frequent victim of my beer experimentation as well) for acting as our resident sommelier and making the wine selections for the evening as well as aiding with the decor. Without these women the night would not have been nearly as successful as it was.

My handy guide for the evening was provided by CraftBeer.com. If you ever have any question as to the proper food to serve with your craft beer, this guide is your best place to start. I thought my plan was a simple one. I picked out three cheeses I wanted to serve, the dish I wanted to make, and the dessert I wanted to eat. From there pair the beer and wine.

The first course of the evening was a Wisconsin butterkase paired with Hoosier Honey Wheat from Bee Creek Brewery in Brazil, Indiana and Columbia Crest Cabernet Sauvignon. The cheese is a very mild, soft cheese that is amazingly smooth. It paired perfectly with the Hoosier Honey Wheat. Made with Martinsville honey, the sweetness is very prevalent when drinking this brew and only on the tail end of the swallow do you know that it is a wheat beer. Although wheat beers tend to be perfect summertime treats, this honey infused version seemed to fit New Year's Eve wonderfully as a first pour of the night. This was by far the best paired beer and cheese of the evening.

Second course was cheddar cheese paired with Alpha King from Three Floyd's in Munster, Indiana and Bogle Zinfandel. The pairing here was an utter disaster. Unbeknownst to me, the cheddar was very sharp. Where was that on the packaging? As a pale ale, Alpha King should have matched well with a mild cheddar. Oops! No complaints about the beer however. I've had several Alpha Kings before and with this pale ale you get a hop explosion with every sip. There is nothing pale about this beer either as it is a rich amber color and the citrus content behind the hops makes this a great beer for any occasion.

Course three was Gruyere paired with Snake Pit Porter from Oaken Barrel Brewing Company in Greenwood, Indiana and Yalumba viognier. Gruyere is a very potent, nutty cheese and would have paired very well with a nutty porter. The taste combination here was what I would describe as merely ok. Snake Pit is not a bad beer, it just didn't go with the cheese. This porter is very sweet and certainly has the coffee and chocolate notes that you find in Baltic porters and imperial stouts. I would recommend grabbing the beer but leaving the cheese in the fridge.

Our main dish featured two pork tenderloins. The one on the left was marinaded in beer, the one on the right in wine. Although the recipe originally calls for venison, it went perfectly with pork tenderloin. The brown ale used was Crown Brown from Crown Brewing in Crown Point, Indiana and the wine is Kendall Jackson chardonnay. For the chardonnay recipe go here. What can I say about Crown Brown? I love it. It is certainly my favorite out of my hometown brewery. The roasted malts of Crown Brown are not over-powering and the smoothness of the mouthfeel make it so easy to drink. It's lighter on the alcohol than some of the other darker beers but I certainly appreciate it because I like drinking more than two at a time. The growler didn't make it passed the night because I went to it after all the tastings were done.

Not pictured: Brass Knuckles Oatmeal Stout from Barley Island Brewing Company in Noblesville, Indiana and Chateau St. Michelle Riesling paired with cream puffs and chocolate truffles.

The reason this picture doesn't exist is because no one was interested in dessert. Bellies full of beer, wine, cheese, and pork were not ready to accommodate dessert and the midnight champagne toast. But do not fret! Of course I had some Brass Knuckles! Oatmeal stout being one of my favorites I could not pass up the opportunity and decided to have a bottle. It was good. It would be rare for me to be disappointed by an oatmeal stout. The usual suspects of coffee and chocolate were very noticeable and the roasted malts made the beer thick enough to eat. Yes, there is some exaggeration there, but the smooth, thick brew is a perfect dessert companion.

If you want reviews of the wine, buy them and drink them. I don't drink wine so I have no idea how they went. I only have one bottle left so I'm guessing they were good. As far as suggestions for the beers, buy them all. Not only do they taste good, you would be supporting Indiana brewing.

Overall a very successful event and very much looking forward to the second annual on 12/31/12. Thanks for reading and drink craft beer!

Roebling Imperial Robust Porter

2011-12-30T21:19:00.000-06:00

Brewer: Rivertown Brewing Company, Lockland, Ohio
Alcohol Content: 7.8%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Brewed with imported sweet vanilla beans, cold pressed espresso/coffee & raw cane sugars. Like a big, chewy, vanilla, coffee infused brownie, Roebling Porter brings tons of chocolate aroma & a docile acidity."

Wilk's Take:
First and foremost, thank you to my sister-in-law Danette for feeding into my beer obsession with a variety pack for Christmas. Nothing warms my heart more than an endless supply of beer to opine about. The first one I grabbed was the Roebling due to its compact 12oz bottle that looked oh so cute in my fridge next to its big brothers.

Roebling pours like liquid red rocks. It settles in the glass a hearty brown, but held in the right light, the ruddy, reddish brown that originated in the pour can be caught. In direct contrast to the brewer's description, Roebling reeked of espresso right out of the gate; coffee heavy to the extreme. I really buried my nose in the glass to capture the vanilla and chocolate but kept coming up short.

I dove in for the first drink and the taste sensation that settled over my tongue defied what my nose just got done telling me. The bitter smell of espresso gave way to a taste of chocolate heaven. I actually said out loud "the taste defies the smell." The chocolate led the charge with the espresso in a close second trailed by the vanilla bean. Frankly the vanilla bean was only evident on the inside of my cheek after I swallowed.

Roebling surprises as you drink it. As I neared the bottom of my glass the aroma that lifted into my nose was that of chocolate and no longer espresso. The taste of coffee virtually disappears as well and all that is left is a full flavored porter and I wish I had another one in the fridge to grab. Alas, I'll have to track it down another day or forget about it when I have another beer.

Suggestion: This is my first time even seeing a beer by Rivertown Brewing Company. I'm sure Danette will tell me where she got it. Find this beer and try it. While you're at it, might want to invest in another Rivertown beer, as this one is a rare breed (as offered on their website).

Value: I can't really speak to the value of Roebling. As part of a variety pack I can only imagine that it ran anywhere between $2-3 for the bottle alone. That's better than any bottle you can buy at a bar.

Michelle Factor: Not only did Michelle give it a whirl, so did special guest Melanie. Both liked it and Michelle agreed the taste defied expectation.

Founder's CBS

2011-12-26T14:03:00.000-06:00

Brewer: Founder's Brewing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Alcohol Content: 10%

Official Description from Brewer:
None that I could find

Wilk's Take:
Founder's does it right. This beer came to me via eBay. I felt this strange desire to grab a hard to find brew because it seemed like getting one would be akin to finding the Holy Grail. I know that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I am seeking the best. When I say Founder's does it right, I am comparing them directly to Three Floyd's, our local champion. Although Founder's Brewing had a CBS release party, the beer was not limited to the brewery; it was distributed across the state of Michigan and even made its way to Indiana. Retail stores had the right to sell the beer on the shelf. After my experience at the Three Floyd's anniversary party and the stories I've been told of Dark Lord Day, I was glad to find out that Founder's doesn't take itself too seriously.

The bottle, not labeled for size, was probably 750mL. And let me tell you, it took me four hours to drink it over the course of Christmas Eve. It poured out of the bottle like used motor oil and even my guests "oohed" and "aahed" as it hit the bottom of my glass. I raised the glass to take in the aroma and every note Founder's wanted you to grab was there: coffee, chocolate, maple syrup, and bourbon. The most subtle of these was bourbon. From my previous encounters with bourbon stouts, most smell so sweetly of bourbon that it could be off putting for those who detest it. With CBS, the bourbon is just right.

I had CBS stored in my cold room downstairs and I put it in the fridge prior to serving. I tried it fresh out of the cold bottle and it was delicious. I let it warm up to room temperature and it was even better. I am constantly amazed at how different a beer can taste as your progress through the glass and even how it can change from the front of your mouth to the back. Of course, the tongue has different taste buds at different locations so this makes sense, but CBS defies the logic. The bitter coffee notes (and bitter might be too strong to describe it) resonated most clearly at the front of my mouth whereas the sweet maple chocolate taste was caught on the back end, which let the beer flow smoothly down the throat. I didn't want to rush through this beer, I wanted to drink it forever. Only one beer competes with that sensation and I'm sure you can imagine which one it is.

Suggestion: If you can find it, try it. If you know someone who has it, ask for a taste as I doubt anyone would want to part with a whole bottle.

Value: I wish I could tell you. My eBay purchase cost me some serious coin, but I'm glad I did it. I don't even know how much it retailed for, but I'm sure it was worth it too.

Michelle Factor: None. Michelle was relaxing with some egg nog. I wonder if CBS mixed with egg nog would be good.

World Wide Stout

2011-11-30T20:23:00.000-06:00

Brewer: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, Delaware
Alcohol Content: 15-20%

Official Description from Brewer:
"YES! This is the beer you've heard so much about. Dark, rich, roasty and complex, World Wide Stout has more in common with a fine port than a can of cheap, mass-marketed beer. Brewed with a ridiculous amount of barley. Have one with (or as!) dessert tonight!"

Wilk's Take:
Somewhere on a shelf, a lone bottle of Dogfish Head's World Wide Stout cried out to me, practically begging me to buy it. Honestly, I admit that I have not really had a Dogfish Head beer until this very moment. I know that seems odd because Sam Calagione has done as much for the craft beer movement as anyone. At least he has been well publicized. But when you have a reputation for brewing good beer you must be doing something right. Now I could have gone with the standard 60 minute IPA, but no, I go for a little rarer sighting, the World Wide Stout.

Between the realm of chocolate liqueur and rubbing alcohol lies the aroma of World Wide Stout. It is simultaneously inviting and repulsive. Granted, the repulsion is based on years of childhood illness where I inhaled rubbing alcohol as a method to clear chest congestion, so it might not be a fair comparison for this beer. There is something definitely pungent about the smell that makes you think you'll lose a few nose hairs in the process. I drink it anyway.

For a stout, the look of the beer is anything but. As I poured it out of the bottle into my trusty pint glass I couldn't help but notice a deep amber color reflected from my kitchen lights. This is not the used motor oil I love seeing, but it wasn't off putting either. There was also a distinct liquidity about it that betrays the normal heavy of stouts wallowing in snifter glasses at your run of the mill craft beer establishment.

The taste is definitely akin to port wine. It has to be. Something that sweet can only remind you of dessert. There is no bitter here, but Dogfish Head advertises World Wide Stout to be 70 IBU. Even when you let it sit on that back of your tongue you are not getting anything remotely close to 70. My fellow drinkers can confirm, but 70 is on the higher end for an IPA, which this is a far cry from.

Suggestion: I'm a sucker for stouts and World Wide is no exception. It's good. After a long day of work and a good meal, unwind with one, if you can find it. With the heavy alcohol content you won't be surprised to find that it comes in a stand alone 12 oz. bottle.

Value: Definitely not a value buy. For $8 you could get a couple bombers and even a six pack of good beer that could hold its ground to World Wide Stout. Of course, it's usually from a local brewer and straight from their tap room.

Michelle Factor: She took the picture, does that count? She passed on sampling. Just not in the mood I guess.

Three Floyd's XV Anniversary Party - Worst Episode Ever

2011-11-24T08:13:00.001-06:00

Maybe it's my fault. As a rookie coming off the bench, maybe I didn't prepare myself or establish the right expectations for the day. I was so excited to have access to this "exclusive" shindig that I failed to read any information about it posted just the day before. I have waited a week and half to even attempt to describe the day's activities because I needed to calm myself down. I wanted to approach it from the most objective perspective I could muster, but in the end I still hate, HATE, what I went through.

My wonderful sister-in-law Genny was kind enough to drop my brother Adrian and I off because I knew that parking was going to be ridiculous. That warning was well publicized by Three Floyd's from the outset, plus I read about previous Dark Lord Days. We arrived at 1:07pm, which was seven minutes after the premises was accessible to ticket holders and the line snaked down the street, around the corner, around a cul-de-sac, and back down the other side of the street. Now, I stood in line to get into a ballgame before with ticket in hand, so I was fine with that, but the line wasn't moving!

The picture above shows how much further we had to wait having already waited in the line for approximately one hour. Many of my taste buds were crying as I watched those around us drinking fine brews and feeling the saliva in my mouth ascending to levels reserved probably for dogs looking at a bacon treat. I had two bottles of CBS in my bag that I was looking to trade so the will power not to crack one of those open was battling my desire to drink a beer. I was hungry too. I skipped lunch because there were fine chefs inside and I love good brewpub food.

It took two and a half hours to get into a facility where we had tickets to attend the event inside. Egregious. When I get to the gate I present my ticket and my driver's license and the woman gave me two options, "To the right is the line to buy the bottled beers, to the left is the tent where they are serving the guest beers along with Three Floyd's beer." We went to the right.

Fortunately, my friend Dale met us near the front of the line. I let him cut the line. I didn't care at this point. I was tired, thirsty, hungry, and decidedly peeved about the whole situation. Not to mention the group behind us let about six people cut the line. Dale was our beer gopher. As my brother and I stood waiting to buy beer, Dale went to grab a couple of Alpha Kings. Yes, you read that right. Of all the selection of beers they were offering we decided to get the flagship formula. Why? Because it was the easiest brew to get. When Dale returned he handed us our Solo cups and graciously said, "First round is on me." I chuckled a little assuming that the beer had to come with the price of admission. Nope. $5. Damn, I'm at a beer garden at a lame state fair, right?

The picture above is the line to buy bottled beer along the side of the brewery's warehouse. Another hour and a half. Thankfully I was able to try "Baller Stout," the XV anniversary brew which is a combination of Dark Lord, Surly Darkness, Struise Black Albert, and Mikeller Beer Geek Brunch, before I decided if I wanted to buy it. Who am I kidding, I was going to buy it regardless. It was very tasty. Velvety smooth, but really hits you with coffee on the front end and cayenne notes on the back end. When I actually drink a bottle I could offer you a better opinion, but since I felt like a jilted lover drinking it, probably a good idea to leave the bias aside.

It took us another hour and a half standing in line before we bought our beer. I walked away with four bottles of Baller Stout, a bottle of Biggs' Stache (limited barrel aged brew), and a bottle of Alpha Klaus just because I wanted it. My time in line also yielded a bottle of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout which cost me a bottle of CBS. With beer securely in my bag, in was time to forage for sustenance.

At 5 o'clock, with five hours still ahead of the celebration, the food was gone. The celebrated chefs, nowhere to be found. The two food trucks that they brought in to supplement? One was closed and waiting for all the guests to enter the brewery (yes, still a line outside) and the other had a long, winding line since it was the only food on site. The bands that were lined up for entertainment? Inside the warehouse.

I left. I could not fathom spending another second of my time there. On a scale of one to worst episode ever you can imagine where I rated this event. Am I on a soapbox? You bet I am! $25 per ticket gets you into a party where you have to spend $5 on beer, an equal if not more amount on food that wasn't even there, and $30 per bottle of anniversary beer. I've never been to Dark Lord Day, but I'm guessing that I'm never going to go either. Having tried that beer (and it is by far the best beer I've had to date) I have no need to go back.

Alternatively, now that I'm a seasoned veteran, I can always approach the festivities from a different perspective. However, my favorite craft beer establishment threw a one year anniversary celebration for its patrons and provided Zombie Dust free of charge (along with another craft beer selection) and the food was free as well. In fifteen years, maybe Three Floyd's is slowly morphing into an entity whose mystique far outweighs its service. The product is outstanding, don't get me wrong, but if the precedent of Dark Lord is the new trend in craft beer (i.e. CBS, Darkness, etc.) then I may just pass and stick with the Alpha Kings.

Why did I do that?

2011-11-03T15:27:00.003-05:00

Leading up to the unique beer sale at Wise Guys (yes, I renamed it) I was trolling around craigslist and eBay looking at how much some of these beers were going for. And I revisited an old favorite: Dark Lord by Three Floyd's.

There it was, in my hometown nonetheless. It seemed like a reasonable price at the time and besides, I already convinced Brett to go in on half. The only thing I had to give up was the bottle. I had no problem with that as I am not in the habit of keeping the bottles. I was only interested in the prize within. So I arranged a meet with the buyer and ponied up $60 for the 2011 brew. Why did I do that?

Finally the day of the sale came and we lined up outside the store with a dedicated crowd more than likely chasing after the same beer: Founders CBS. We were ushered into the narrow first aisle of the store and told about the quantities available. They were selling 8 bottles of CBS that morning and there were roughly 60 or 70 people in line. Very interesting. I don't remember the specific counts of the other beers but we had six names in six beer drawings and the outlook seemed promising.

"You know," Melanie started, "we should have gotten back in line and come up with aliases to increase our odds." This was a brilliant idea! Unfortunately one that was shared after the name collecting stopped. If ever I find myself in that situation again, you better believe I'll remember that piece of advice.

First up was the CBS. They were selling it for approximately $18 a bottle. These bottles were fetching as much as $60 on eBay so the investment alone was worth the wait. Alas, we struck out. And the next round was lambic beers from Upland brewery in the form of raspberry, peach, or hell, I can't remember. We lost out on those too. Spirits were fading.

I was already holding a bottle of Hoppin' Frog's Frog's Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale which was a 2010 Great American Beer Festival Gold Medal winner. I was happy with that. I just wish that I could get some of these other beers. And then it happened. The total take away was at least doubling up on the last four beers sold:

4 bottles of Hoppin' Frog Naked Evil @ $25 each - $100 (Why did I do that? I sold one bottle right on the spot because I couldn't imagine what I would do with four, so we'll scale it back to $75)

2 bottles of Stone Vertical Epic, years 2006 and 2008 @ $42 each - $84 (Why did I do that? Turns out Stone has been brewing Vertical Epic since 2002 and they release the beers on the following dates: 2/2/02; 3/3/03; 4/4/04; etc. and they will stop on 12/12/12.)

2 bottles of Hoppin' Frog DORIS @ $13 each - $26 (Why did I do that? I had a bottle at Beer Geeks the week before and it was good and remember BORIS got this whole thing started)

2 bottles of Victory Otto @ $10 each - $20 (Why did I do that? To be honest with you, I have no frickin' idea. It was just a limited release)

$205 on 9 bottles of beer averaging $23 bottle which translates to about $1 an ounce. Ok, that softens the blow a little bit. Plus I walked away with the Pumpkin Ale which I think was $17 and a bottle of Abita's 25th Anniversary Double Dog for $6. All told Wise Guys got $228 from me that Saturday morning.

Here's the problem I have: It was a total scam! Ok, the beer is real and I have it, but my friend Brett calls me half an hour later and says, "So I was at Nick's Liquors and they have Hoppin' Frog DORIS and Naked Evil on the shelf."

"Son of a bitch."

Ok Wise Guys, great marketing scheme. You bring in foot traffic and hype up beer only to ensure it's sold in one day. However, good luck getting any more of my money. Apparently Nick's Liquors doesn't need bells and whistles to sell their beer. Might be better priced too.

Post Script: This spawned a nasty habit. I went on eBay and spent $20 on Vertical Epic year 2007 and $10 on Vertical Epic year 2010. $42 at Wise Guys for beer I could have got on eBay at half the cost. Granted, year 2002 is going for about $600+. And I spent $75 on CBS because I didn't think I'd actually win that auction. Why did I do that? I can't even drink it now and feel good about it.

Rare beer attack - Sneaky bastards

2011-11-02T13:15:00.000-05:00

So I follow a couple dozen people/breweries/beer bloggers on twitter. Sometimes they provide useful information, other times I gloss over it like a kid being begged by his mother to make the bed. However, one tweet rose above the others, even though it was so plain:

"Limited release beer sale coming soon....stay tuned for details!!!"

Thanks @wiseguysliquors, that made my day. What could it be? The intended effect worked and I was captivated. Ok, I'll admit, I really didn't care. Honestly, rare beers are all hype right? The value of the beer is related to the scarcity moreso than the actual taste. Or not. Dark Lord seems to be popular, but with a rabid fan base and loyalists touting it as the best beer ever could just be pulling my chain. I might think it tastes like crap! I stayed tune for the next tweet which came about 10 days after the first:

"Our limited release beer sale will be on Saturday 10/29 @ 9:15 a.m. at our Merrillville location."

Well no shit. You just opened your new store only two months earlier so picking your flagship location was not a stretch. Still not telling me anything useful.

"We will be using a lottery system to determine who will get the opportunity to purchase these special items to be as fair as possible"

That's good. The last thing you want is dedicated beer drinkers to start lining up outside your store before a beer release. You would end up with a tent city of people drinking the night away before you opened. That helps a lot. But is it worth my time?

"the beers involved will be announced on Monday 10/24!!! thanks for your patience!"

Damnit. Really? Three more days to find out what the hell you'll be selling? Does that mean the deal with the distributor fell through on some stuff? Does that mean your distributor won't tell you? Alright, until Monday...

"Saturday's limited release beer sale will include the following beers:"

140 characters, saves on advertising dollars I suppose

"victory otto, hoppin' frog DORIS, hoppin' frog naked evil, upland lambics, vintage stone vertical epics and founders CBS!"

And there it was. The hook that the sneaky bastards were using to drive foot traffic. It could be argued that only one of those beers was rare or highly sought after. Then again a trip through craigslist or eBay just tells you what the secondary market is offering for these brews. Craft beer has almost become an investment. The Founder's Canadian Breakfast Stout alone was a myth! You could triple your money!

I rounded up my team. Thanks to Adrian, Brett, Melanie, Michael, and of course Michelle for accompanying me to Wise Guys Liquors that morning.

The conclusion tomorrow...

"Get Him to the Geek"

2011-10-24T20:44:00.001-05:00

Jason Owens has spent four years trying to open the bar where he wanted to go have a drink. His efforts have paid off as Beer Geeks has just celebrated its first year in business proving that others in the region also want to go to his bar and have a drink. Of course striking the craft beer iron while it is hot didn't hurt either.

Not Your Typical Dive Bar

Well, from appearances, it is exactly your typical dive bar. Sandwiched between a pizza joint and a burrito place, the unassuming facade of Beer Geeks isn't inviting the masses from the outside with bright, flashy lights and a wall of picture windows letting you peer at the patrons inside. There is one iron gated porthole that lets in absolutely the bare minimum of natural light. At 3pm when the door opens you have to adjust your eyes to take in the darkness, tempered only by the glow of fluorescent.

"I wanted that dark bar, downtown Chicago feel: low ceilings, dark and intimate. I wanted a dive bar with a purpose," Jason explains to me. "I got some of my ideas from Bone Dry, the booths, tables and chairs. And I always had the idea for the leather couches. First thing I did when I got in here was get the carpet." The carpet, the exact color escapes me now, only contributes to the dark atmosphere. In contrast to all of it are the white ceiling tiles that even the whitest guy could jump and hit.

"This is the kind of bar I hung out in Chicago. I always wanted to open a place where I wanted to go drink." And that's the prevailing theme with Jason. He fell in love with the Chicago Blues scene and offers Tuesday Bluesday. Local bands and musicians come play on Saturday nights to add to that intimate bar setting. It's everything you might expect to find in downtown Chicago.

The Craft Beer Phenomenon

"Bone Dry had been rotating craft beers before the movement ever became huge. It was just something different than your Millers or Buds. You will never find those here."

My journey into craft beer started at Beer Geeks with a bottle of Hoppin' Frog's BORIS. As I was chatting with Jason I was slowly sipping on a snifter of Hoppin' Frog's DORIS, completing my circle so to speak. Recently, Wise Guys Liquors advertised a rare beer sale with one of those bottles being DORIS, which I had already had!

"It's all about the relationship with the distributors. I take care of them, they take care of me. If there is one barrel left in the state, they give me a call and say, 'Hey, there's one barrel left and we're bringing it to you.'"

That's a great position to be in. When you are tapping kegs from all over the states it pays to grab the barrels that might not be available anywhere else in Indiana. Now I'm sure the folks in Indianapolis get a large selection as well thanks to distributors down south. But the rotating selection up here separates Beer Geeks from even the breweries that can trade their own beer for another's.

"Every time you come to Beer Geeks it is like a brand new bar. Yesterday we had 'Old Blarney' but today it's gone. I'm about to go put on 'Zombie Dust.'"

And away he went, back into his labyrinth of kegs and lines and swapped out one for another. As he was cleaning the line of the 'Old Blarney' pouring it into a pitcher he offered a taste of an 'Old Blarney,' 'Zombie Dust' mix. I passed but the other patrons at the bar were more than happy to try.

That's how it has to go here. There is no set day and time for beer rotation. If a keg is empty, Jason wastes no tap space and grabs another brew. It makes Beer Geeks a year round brewfest.

And the clientele certainly helps lend that feel too. When I was there chatting with Jason there were maybe a dozen people in the place. Although I was the one pressing him for answers, every patron was waiting to hear the story behind the bar. At times, the topic changed from Beer Geeks simply to beer. There is no more enjoyable experience than drinking a great beer and talking about great beer with people who share the passion.

The Palate Requires There Be NO SMOKING

The town of Highland does not have a smoking ordinance.

"Totally my decision," Jason says.

"So this wasn't because you were serving craft beer?"

"No, but I know how much that means to craft beer drinkers."

It certainly is an added benefit to walk into Beer Geeks and not be engulfed in a haze of secondhand smoke. Most of us know that to truly enjoy a craft beer you have to invoke all five senses and that can be a little difficult when all you smell is nicotine addiction and all you taste is stale air. But it all goes back to Jason's concept of the bar he wants to drink in.

This is also a good thing for the beer selection. It all comes down to his palate. He alone selects the beer and sometimes, on a rare occasion, he may let a distributor talk him into a beer without actually tasting it. As far as I can tell, this has backfired only one time.

"One time I got a keg of Pink Killer Beer. It was grapefruit infused. Probably the worst beer I've had in my life. I went through the keg in three days. The girls really loved it."

Word of Mouth

"I advertised one time. I ran a weekly Friday ad in the Times for a blues event. Oh, and I sent some stickers or coasters to a brewfest and nobody had any idea the place existed."

I cheerfully retorted, "But you have about 3,000 friends on Facebook."

"Yeah, but half of them are from Brazil. You know how Facebook is, people see 'beer' and they just go crazy. One girl 'liked' one of my keg tapping's yesterday. I did that in September! I hope she wasn't expecting to come in here and order it."

Jason takes the time to announce every new beer on tap and he's pretty good about staying up to date. Between Facebook (Beer Geeks), Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/beergeekspub and his own website, http://www.beergeekspub.com/, you can always stay up to date on what's going on.

I asked him how much sleep he's lost in his first year of business.

"I haven't lost any sleep. Sure it keeps me busy, between [the three aforementioned media], bar tending, working another job (yes, he works another job), and running the business I certainly have been busy. But I have a lot of help."

The Future

Beer Geeks, with little to no publicity or fanfare, is slowly becoming a staple in the craft beer scene here in Northwest Indiana. Although the vast majority of the public may be unaware of its existence, the fans of craft beer flock quite frequently to enjoy a pint, tulip, or snifter of the newest ale to arrive on the scene. It even manages to attract a few hipsters thanks to the offering of PBR ($3 tall boys only).

When I asked Jason about the future of Beer Geeks he offered me a surprising response:

"I want to open a blues bar."

Craft Beer could lead the whole beer industry back

2011-10-19T16:01:00.002-05:00

http://money.msn.com/stock-broker-guided/article.aspx?post=597cf1c1-18a4-4f48-8632-f73a3dfe534c

Notice that even in a depressed economy, craft beer is a growing enterprise. The one year anniversary of Beer Geeks, the opening of Bulldog Brewing, the popularity of Three Floyd's show that craft beer in Northwest Indiana can be a major player in the Miller v. Bud debate, wherein these beers have more taste than the big media spenders. I think it shows that if you actually considered the quality of your beer over the quantity you can gain a loyal following not tied to how much money you spend on advertising.

The Michelle Factor

2011-10-18T07:41:00.001-05:00

This blog would not be complete without the help of Michelle. She puts up with all this silly drinking business and supports my passion with her own. We just celebrated five years of wedded bliss and she decides to show her love with a bounty of gifts that make a beer drinker just ooze with excitement.

The personalized hoodie sweatshirt now means that Beer Me Wilk is virally advertising. Don't be surprised if you see this at the next tailgate, pub, or brewfest event (like say the Three Floyd's anniversary party). And I hear it makes a great Christmas present too.

The other awesome gift were two glasses, yes glasses, recycled and produced out of 22 oz bombers. The company that manufactures these is based in San Diego, so naturally Stone is the brewer of choice. You better believe Beer Me Wilk is shopping the idea around to some glass manufacturers here locally so that his bottle collection can be turned into quite possibly the most ingenious beer vessels yet.

Next time you see or talk to Michelle, and you actually like the blog, thank her before you thank me.

Night Tripper Imperial Stout

2011-10-18T07:24:00.000-05:00

Brewer: New Holland Brewing, Holland, Michigan
Alcohol Content: 10.8%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Night Tripper is an Imperial Stout for a Fat Tuesday release. Dark, mysterious and poetic, Night Tripper’s abundance of roasted malts, combined with flaked barley create a rich, roasty beer with deeply intense and lush flavors. Night Tripper’s layered, nuanced tones invite intrigue and reward a curious palate. Beads and masks aren’t required, but are encouraged."

Wilk's Take:
I suppose there is always a possibility of grabbing a seasonal brew late in the year. I have passed Night Tripper on the shelf several times but never had the presence of mind to buy it, which is a little troublesome as it screams Imperial Stout right on the label. On top of that, it has been sitting in my fridge for weeks as circumstances have continually drawn me away from this brew.

Fate had a plan. You see, a beer like Night Tripper needed to be enjoyed in the perfect drinking vessel and this weekend, this vessel came to me. Introducing: Das Boot. Surely a 36 ounce boot glass can accommodate a 22 ounce bomber with ample room to spare. However, as I am here to talk about beer, the boot will have to wait.

When I popped the top off the beer and the warm air met the cool liquid the vapor that wafted from the bottle's contents to my nose was furious. Maybe robust would be a better word to use but how creative is that? It really was the first time that I felt floored by the smell of a beer without so much as spilling a drop. I emptied the contents into das boot and the aroma just grew more powerful. It reeked of bourbon of all things. Maybe not bourbon, maybe an Irish whiskey or a scotch because although sweet, not that sweet.

The roasted malts were delicious. Notice New Holland doesn't tell you chocolate or coffee but keeps the descriptors vague: rich, intense, lush, nuanced. That's probably because they couldn't label it! I can hardly describe it myself except to say it drank so smooth and when I finally made it to the end I was disappointed it was all gone, but thankful I was done because 10.8% can floor you (especially when your favorite football team is winning).

Suggestion: Go forth and procure, but only if you like stouts. If you're trying a stout for the first time, Night Tripper is not the answer unless you're that brave.

Value: I can't remember what I paid for Night Tripper, but if I had to guess it is a bit on the higher end because it is seasonal and I bought it out of season. It doesn't matter though, I'd buy it again.

Michelle Factor: Michelle could smell the beer before I ever brought it to her. The sour grapes expression on her face was all I needed to see.

Guest Factor: So we tried the "Melanie Factor" this week. Melanie drinks beer so this was a new little spin. She didn't like it either, but she detected something in the beer she couldn't quite label. I believe it was the whiskey smell I described above. She could tell me otherwise.

Bulldog Brewing Company

2011-10-07T11:28:00.000-05:00

Northwest Indiana has another microbrewery on its hands. Enter, Bulldog Brewing Company. The soon to be open brewpub in Whiting, Indiana is offering a variety of brews named after regional history. It is opening Saturday, October 8, and you better believe that I will be there to sample the brews first hand. Support your local beer makers and keep the culture growing in Northwest Indiana.

Bulldog Brewing Company
1409 119th Street
Whiting, IN
219-655-5284

Read more about the owners here: http://www.nwitimes.com/business/local/article_982f3b94-9ad8-5b2e-9974-e3a48e68fa98.html

Bourbon Barrel Stout

2011-10-06T11:47:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Bluegrass Brewing Company, Louisville, Kentucky

Alcohol Content: 8.5-9%

Official Description from Brewer:

"This complex stout has aromas of bourbon, oak and dark roasted malts. Full-bodied, silky stout aged in Bourbon Barrels for 60 to 90 days. The aging process produces a smoky richness from the deep char of the barrels. Roasted barley flavors of chocolate and coffee develop as the stout continues along. Finishing hints of vanilla and bourbon finds it way down the back of the pallet."

Wilk's Take:

After my encounter with Bourbon Barrel Stout at the Valpo Brewfest and how exceptional the BBC RIP was that I already sampled, I made the effort to buy myself a four pack of the stout for some sampling. After giving away three of the bottles I actually was able to enjoy the fourth prior to dinner last night. And with the rare, warm October weather it was while working the grill.

Forgiving BBC their spelling error in the description (insert "Kentucky intelligence" joke here; I won't because I've heard the same lobbed at me about Indiana while working in Chicago) I can honestly say that not one word of what they think of their beer is a lie. I, as evidenced by the blog, am never so succinct in my description of these beers. BBC must pay someone to come up with this stuff. (They do, he's called the brewer).

Bourbon Barrel Stout pours like a watered down beer. There is no thickness to it whatsoever and I poured it, like I do all my beers, to have minimum head. This isn't the used motor oil that stouts and porters can give, this is the fresh stuff right out of the quart! And the aroma! If you like bourbon, or any kind of whiskey, you will love the sweet air surrounding this beer. You would think that you just got a Maker's neat and not a beer. I really like that in these barrel beers. Two Brothers did it well with their offering at the Illiana Brewfest as well.

There's not much more I can say about this beer that hasn't already been said. If you consume it too quickly, you really miss out on the bourbon notes. The chocolate and coffee undertones are prevalent no matter how fast to take it in, but are a supporting cast at best to the star of the show. Low and slow my friends; that's the mantra you want to repeat to really get the best out of this beer and really appease your palate!

Suggestion: It's obvious right?

Value: About $7-$8 a four pack if memory serves me correctly. Not a steal by any stretch of the imagination, but good for a night of mellow consumption.

Michelle Factor: M:"I taste chocolate." W:"But did you like it?" M:"I wouldn't drink a whole bottle if that's what you're asking. Can we get some more of that pumpkin ale?" W:"ABSOLUTELY NOT! How about we try another pumpkin ale later." M:"Anheuser Busch, big deal. You love Michelob Golden Draft." W:"Touche my dear, touche."

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat Ale - Addendum

2011-10-03T14:04:00.000-05:00

Those bastards!

If you didn't think the craft beer movement was in jeopardy, look no further than Shock Top Brewing Company. This is what I got for posting too damn quickly. Getting content out there is no good if you don't do research.

My apologies to my fellow craft beer brethren out there. I led you astray by not divulging fully the following:

Shock Top Brewing is wholly owned by Anheuser-Busch.

It doesn't alter the taste of the beer by any stretch of the imagination, but no wonder the value is there. $6 for a six pack is because of the big machine behind it. I support smaller, local brewers. Had I not been duped by the packaging I never would have paid for this beer.

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat Ale

2011-10-03T13:57:00.001-05:00

Brewer: Shock Top Brewing Company, St. Louis, Missouri
Alcohol Content: 4.2%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat is the first seasonal ale from Shock Top. With a flavor that’s refreshingly fall and distinctly Shock Top, it’s guaranteed not to be the last.

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat is a traditional Belgian-style wheat ale brewed with ripe pumpkins and a variety of autumnal spices, including nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. This seasonal unfiltered wheat ale has a deep amber color and is crafted with a refreshingly distinct pumpkin spice that fully captures all the flavors of fall."

Wilk's Take:
Now, it normally would not be in my nature to start a beer critique by mentioning another beer, but my hand is almost forced to in this situation. I've never tried a pumpkin ale prior to this year. I suppose I've always stuck with any number of Oktoberfest brews and shied away from pumpkin varieties. At the Beer Geeks one year anniversary celebration (which, I know, I never wrote about), I had the pleasure of trying Southern Tier's Pumpking. I was amazed. The snifter held pumpkin pie in a glass, complete with whip cream. No, the beer wasn't topped with whip cream but it sure tasted like it was. This set the bar incredibly high for pumpkin ales to follow.

Enter Shock Top's Pumpkin Wheat Ale. If you inspect the neck of the bottle closely, nestled just below the cap, Shock Top has provided instructions on how to pour the beer. I'm paraphrasing here, but it goes something like this: "Pour down side of glass until there is about 1/2 inch of beer left in bottle. Swirl bottle around to release full flavor of spices, then pour remainder." I missed this the first time. Let me assure you however that swirling the remaining half inch really does nothing to alter the taste.

Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat is a beautiful autumn color. If you are opposed to drinking pumpkin ales, it is just worth pouring a glass just to see the colors blazing at you. Imagine driving through south western Michigan on a perfect October day and you will see unimaginable leaves being wrestled from trees. Blend all of those colors together and you get Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat. The combination yields a rusty orange look that is darker than 70s style carpeting but lighter than stained cherry wood.

The smell is what you would expect. The pumpkin is the primary aroma and you can certainly detect the autumnal spices that usually accompany pumpkin: cinnamon, nutmeg, clove. What is lacking is the wheat aspect of the beer. At least through the smell. When you drink Shock Top Pumpkin Wheat Ale, you can taste the pumpkin and spices and they taste good. Not nearly pumpkin pie in a glass, but damn tasty. The wheat is subtle and at the tail end of any pull, so at least the claim to Pumpkin Wheat Ale is a solid one.

Suggestion: Do it. 'Tis the season to try autumnal beers and Shock Top has a good one with Pumpkin Wheat Ale. It's their first seasonal and it's a damn good one.

Value: I bought a six pack for $6. That's a steal in my opinion. I drank three of them while watch the Bears game Sunday afternoon and could have finished the other three if I didn't try another beer that day. I found mine at Wise Guy's. Go out and get yourself some.

Michelle Factor: For the first time, Michelle finished a glass. She took the obligatory sip, told me she liked it and I told her to have at it. She did. Although she left some brew hanging. A picture is forthcoming.

Valpo BrewFest

2011-09-26T18:52:00.000-05:00

"If God wanted us to filter our beer, he wouldn't have given us livers" -Bumper Sticker from Bell's

No beer journals this time. Why bother? The staff of the Valpo Brewfest provided a "Beer Notes" section on the back of their program. You could scribble furiously away as you dissect the beer sample that was just poured for you. Of course, you'd have to put the beer down, and who has time to do that?

One thing noticeable right away, and something I also fell victim to, was that inevitably the crowd can be heard comparing one beer festival to another. So here I'll vent a little, in hopes that maybe a staff member will stumble across this critique and keep these ideas in mind for next year.

1. If your brewery is going to be attending an event, make sure someone with vast knowledge of your beer is pouring it. Too often we came across some young guy paid by the distributor to top off the three ounce sample. When I asked about the beer he would be reading a cheat sheet. Really? I can read a beer label too. What's the unique factor that's going to wow me? The local brewers certainly represented and were very passionate about their product, otherwise I felt like I was talking to a marketing undergrad with his first job out of college.

2. If you have VIPs, treat them like VIPs, don't tease. Sure, we were allowed to enter the premises and peruse the beer selection an hour before the general public. And yes we had access to rare beers and some great food samples to complement them. But when there are 200 VIPS and only four specialty beer stations something will be missed in that first hour. My friends and I decided to go around to the other beers and grab a taste before the masses came. We went back to the VIP tent about a half hour after the general admissions crowd came in and all the food and rare beers were gone. Blue Chip did this better when each booth at VIP brews throughout the whole day.

3. Don't run out of beer, especially the good stuff. Arguably a brewer would want to appeal to the farthest reaching audience to gain customers. However, at a brewfest where the attendees are expecting brilliance, bring massive amounts of your Oktoberfest or Pumpkin ale, because I don't need to try another pale ale or IPA. Bring enough bottles or kegs for 1,500. That's 500 ounces based on 3 ounce sample size. If you can't bring 42 bottles with you, why bother? And if you want to offer variety I can understand that, but why not master one trade instead of being the jack of all?

4. On a positive note, getting quality food vendors was the best idea ever. Although a hot dog, burger, or piece of pizza would have been good, Stout BBQ pork ribs, carne asada tacos, and bison chili was great.

The best in show: Rogue Ales Chocolate Stout. I had a bomber of it waiting in my fridge, so after we returned from the brewfest, the four of us shared it.

My personal favorite: Bluegrass Brewing Company's Bourbon Barrel Stout. Deliciously smooth and bourbon sweetness made this a great beer.

Honorable mentions:
Woodchuck Pumpkin Cider - This was offered with a food pairing of pumpkin carrot cupcakes. It was pretty damn tasty.

Rogue Ales - Every stout they had. Adrian enjoyed all three in one visit, starting with Oatmeal, then Chocolate, than the Russian Imperial. Escalating in intensity and thickness, you can imagine how the well balanced Chocolate could be the best at the fest.

The only beer to give the Chocolate stout a run for its money was North Coast Brewing's Brother Thelonious. Although I was not personally overwhelmed by it, Brett and Rob were raving about it.

Immediately following the Valpo Brewfest was Beer Geeks one year anniversary. I'll be talking about those beers tomorrow.

Valpo Brewfest - Delicious Irony

2011-09-26T08:11:00.000-05:00

"It's like rain on your wedding day,
it's a free ride when you've already paid,
it's the good advice that you just didn't take,
Who would've thought? It figures."

-Alanis Morissette, "Ironic"

Wilk: You know, there is an effort to redefine craft beer into "gourmet" beer.
Rob: It's funny, you say redefine, I say ruin. Beer is for the common man. People complain about the billion dollar breweries, but you know what, they make a billion dollars because people keep buying them. It's like wine tasting. Wine tasting is on the tail end of the bell curve. It's no longer this bourgeois thing that relates to the upper crust, it's for the common man. Now craft beer is coming up the bell curve and it's starting to be reserved for...
Wilk: The damn hipsters.

Aside: I only discovered later that when I looked up the word bourgeois to spell it correctly that it is a term to describe a member of the middle class, of which I believe Rob would include himself. Unless common usage has turned the definition of bourgeois into snobbery the word was used incorrectly in the context (sorry Rob). In any case, I understood his point perfectly when he was making it.

Rob: Exactly.
Wilk: Well, the hipsters drink PBR.
Adrian: Yeah, but they do that to be ironic. We drink PBR because we have no problem with how it tastes. They drink it because they feel they're being cool based on the irony. "Look, we're drinking crappy beer."

As this dialogue continued into ranging topics, a group of twenty-somethings rambled in. The most obvious offense was the gentleman wearing a tweed blazer over his t-shirt while a fedora rested on his head. His black rimmed spectacles and unshaven face complemented his whole look perfectly. He certainly tried to give the appearance of someone who didn't care how he looked, but the meticulous nature of his clothing selection was very apparent.

Wilk: If anyone ever needed a definition of the word "hipster," there he is.

Rob, Adrian, and Brett nod approvingly and laugh.

Rob: Who wants to go back to the VIP tent and grab one of the specialty beers? There is one in there that paired beautifully with the smoked gouda. Oh! and did you try that peppered salami?

Social Media

2011-09-23T07:51:00.000-05:00

To supplement the blog I've also been more active on Twitter. The handle is rather obvious: @BeerMeWilk. I'll be working on my own Facebook page (independent of my own Facebook page (confused yet?)) and showcase some of the craft brewers that I've had the pleasure of meeting, through their products only. Also, 2012 looks to be the year that the adventure of brewing beer may commence. Brett has been chomping at the bit ever since the Illiana Mayfest and I might actually dive head first with him into the foray. Stay tuned for those details. In the mean time, spread the love and the word and bring people into the craft beer fold. While you're at it, click on an ad or two, just so our beer brewing venture can be supplemented by ad income! FYI, I've made $10 since May. Exciting, isn't it?

Milestone in Local Craft Beer Movement

2011-09-22T15:19:00.000-05:00

A hearty congratulations goes out to Beer Geeks for their one year anniversary. From one fledgling business venture to another!

The craft beer movement seems to be alive and well in northwest Indiana thanks to the efforts of not only Three Floyd's, Figure 8, etc. but also of Beer Geeks for showcasing the finest the nation has to offer in the way of specialty brews. Beer Geeks offers the perfect alternative to your run-of-the-mill saloon giving the patron not only variety, but classic bar ambiance: dim lighting, real darts (not that cheap, plastic shit), knowledgeable bar staff, and really great live music. The venue may be small, but the intimacy makes the experience that much better.

You can find Beer Geeks on Facebook and join their over 2,800 friends www.facebook.com/beergeekspub and you can also follow them on Twitter @beergeekspub.

Beers and Bears

2011-09-18T21:54:00.000-05:00

Dubbel Cannon IPA from Heavy Seas Beer, the new brand from Clipper City Brewing Company in Baltimore, Maryland. Alcohol Content: 7.25%
No words from the brewer other than to say it is made with Belgian Dubbel yeast. "Tangy hops and spicy aroma" *Yawn* I'm sorry Clipper City, you didn't bother to critique your own beer? Well don't you worry, my thoughts are below.

Two Hearted Ale from Bell's Brewery in Galesburg, MI. Alcohol Content: 7%. From the brewer: "Two Hearted Ale is defined by its intense hop aroma and malt balance. Hopped exclusively with the Centennial hop varietal from the Pacific Northwest, massive additions in the kettle and again in the fermenter lend their characteristic grapefruit and pine resin aromas. A significant malt body balances this hop presence; together with the signature fruity aromas of Bell's house yeast, this leads to a remarkably drinkable American-style India Pale Ale."

Dead Guy Ale from Rogue Brewery in Newport, Oregon. Alcohol Content: 16 degrees Plato. From the brewer: "In the style of a German Maibock, using our proprietary Pacman ale yeast. Deep honey in color with a malty aroma and a rich hearty flavor."

In a world of possibilities, especially one in which a friend opens a refrigerator door and offers a world of different tasting beers, the last thing a person would ever think is to try the same beer three times. You would almost be a fool to grab the Miller Lite and drink nothing but that. I mean, the Bud Light Lime in the fridge was tempting, but instead I reached in and grabbed the Dubbel Cannon.

Absolutely nothing wrong with this beer. The "tangy hops and spicy aroma" were not there. I'm not saying this is a bad thing mind you. The aroma was grainy. This was no fruit laced hop scent, this was straight up hay bale-esque. At first whiff I thought I was at the county fair again feeding little pellets to sheep who wanted nothing more than to eat and not feel my paw on their head. But, what the hell, it's beer; let's go! Away I sipped, running over the taste combination in my mind. There really was nothing outstanding about this beer. It was good, but I wasn't tripping over myself to run out and grab a second one from the fridge.

No, instead I grabbed the Dead Guy Ale. Rogue let me down with the Irish Lager. Well, not sure if it let me down and I'm not about to read the review to confirm the thoughts in my own head (that's too much like work and I'd rather be compared to a flip-flopping politician than fact check). The Dead Guy Ale, even though it is a different style beer altogether, tasted surprisingly like the Dubbel Cannon. I said that aloud and Brett confirmed my suspicion. I was scared. I mentioned to my father not too long ago that I would have to abandon the blog because all this craft beer started to blend together into a deeper shade of gray. How could I ever brew and/or be a beer judge if I can't get a German Maibock and a Belgian IPA straight? Alas, maybe the brewers messed up. Yeah, let's go with that theory. Dead Guy Ale, Dubbel Cannon: discuss! Also nothing outstanding about this beer. It was good, but I wasn't tripping over myself to run out and grab a second one from the fridge.

No, instead I grabbed the Two Hearted Ale. Before I even lifted the glass to my thoroughly quenched lips my friend Brett said, "You know, that beer surprisingly tastes like the other two, maybe a little hoppier." Oh thank goodness he was right and wrong. Two Hearted Ale was definitely hoppier, but that made all the difference in the world to the taste. Finally a beer that wasn't like any of the others. However, after a couple roast beef sandwiches and two similar beers clogging my palate, I feel it would be a disservice to Two Hearted Ale to give it any further look tonight. It was delicious, but to fully describe the finer points of it would get me nothing but grief from those who actually trusted my opinion (of which there are few). Bell's doesn't really disappoint and just by grabbing this beer Brett decided we needed to drive to Michigan just to check out the brewery.

Well, this makes two blog posts in the weekend. Just to let you know, I have some pretty interesting bombers in my own refrigerator chilling for future consumption. Next weekend is the Valpo BrewFest of which my cadre and I have decided to be VIPs. The promise of sampling some rare brews was intriguing enough to show up an hour earlier.

Renewed vigor

2011-09-17T21:14:00.000-05:00

For those of you who have supported this fledgling endeavor from the beginning, you will be quick to remember that the impetus behind it all was the misfortune of being handed an involuntary vacation from what was otherwise a very nice full time employment position. As the quest for craft beer continued, the means to procuring some of the finest brews available for sale in Northwest Indiana diminished significantly. No longer was Michelle willing to part with cash towards an unhealthy habit (in reality it was my fiscal responsibility getting in the way of my taste buds). As summer progressed and activities continued, I found myself with more and more Miller Lites and less Left Hand Brewing Company Milk Stouts.

I have, I am happy to report, finagled my way into the position of someone contributing to society rather than solely depending on it. As such, the funds necessary to pick up where I left off have materialized in the bank account. So with that, Beer Me Wilk has come back with renewed vigor.

However, as proud as I am to report that the blog will return, it is not returning to its former glory. I will only be providing weekly reviews of beer, relegating my exploration to Saturday and Sunday. My commute is rather long and by the time I get home I would rather simply enjoy a cold one and not wrap my head around trying to categorize it in the relative spectrum of good or bad. Saturday and Sunday afford me the opportunity to truly sit back, relax, and take in all a beer has to offer. It doesn't hurt that football is back on TV.

So to those who have been reading from the beginning, thank you. I write not only for my own amusement but for the smile I can put on your face. For those stumbling upon this by mistake, I hope the writing has convinced you to stay.

Mokah

2011-08-15T22:19:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Southern Tier Brewing Company, Lakewood, New York
Alcohol Content: 11.2%

Official Description from Brewer:
"When empirical and creative impulses collide, the result is often timeless. The classic utility-art aesthetic of the coffee maker is an example of design and engineering working in concert.

It is through similar cooperation that the simple bitter cocoa bean is transformed into a sweet treat. As scientists, our brewers utilize their materials to exacting standards. As artists, they couldn’t resist the temptation to combine two of our highly acclaimed Blackwater Series Imperial Stouts: Jahva and Choklat. Alone each is perfect, but together as Mokah they are an inimitable expression of two of the world’s most sought after flavors. Enjoy Mokah stout with – or as – your favorite dessert!"

Wilk's Take:
I was sitting at Beer Geeks one night with my good friend Brett and I noticed Southern Tier's Mokah on the menu and decided that would be my last beer of a great evening. Alas, Beer Geeks was out and I immediately made it a point to ask my brother to pick up a bomber during his annual trek to Lake Chautauqua. After our trifecta on Father's Day and the Porter he handed me for free I figure I could ride the free beer train as far as he's willing to let me.

There are two things that I did for the first time while drinking this brew. Presently, a half full glass of Mokah still sits in front of me as I type this. Southern Tier recommends serving Mokah at 48 degrees in a snifter. I have no snifters in the house so I'm letting the brew ascend to ambient temperature in my trusty pint glass. There really is no difference in the taste. I'll mention the second experience later.

Mokah pours beautifully. There is a great caramel color tone to the liquid as it escapes the bottle. You can easily confuse Mokah for either cola, black coffee, or motor oil, all of which make a stout appetizing. The aroma of Mokah is a perfect blend of the malts and gems used to make this brew, chocolate and coffee. You could not escape the scent and the potency truly makes it a dessert beer.

When you bring the glass to your lips, the cold (yes, I drank it cold) beer shocks your system because the chocolate and coffee you were anticipating are lost to the bitterness of the four hops employed in the brewing process. Ok, not entirely lost but you know that it is beer and not mocha. Something beautiful occurs in the process however. As you lose beer to your stomach you gain an even stronger smell resting inside your favorite beer drinking vessel. If you've ever had the pleasure of smelling a chocolate factory (or if you live in Chicago catch the whiff of ever present chocolate in the air) you get that sensation over and over and over every time you take another drink.

Suggestion: Good stout, great beer, dessert watch out! Mokah is a mid-spring seasonal with an April release. I'm sure it comes and goes quickly, with the exception of the bomber my brother grabbed. Even if you don't like dark beers, grab Mokah at 10pm, turn on the news, and melt away into dream land (or Left Hand's Milk Stout, either one a winner).

Value: FREE!! Ok, I'll ask my brother how much he paid, but if it is like other Southern Tier bombers I've found at Wise Guy's or Nick's I'm going to guess around $8, maybe $9 because it is seasonal. At 11.2% and a great dessert beer, well worth it.

Michelle Factor: "I want to take a huge bite!" Michelle really loved the chocolate aroma and after taking a couple of pulls announced that she would definitely drink this beer. Her only complaint was the bitterness. Can't win 'em all.

Endnote:
I actually grabbed a dark chocolate truffle to see how well it paired with the beer. I thought that either the truffle would enhance the beer or the beer would enhance the truffle. I should have listened to Alton Brown (Food Network food guru). Taste buds have limited use and cannot handle sensory overload. The reason some sweet foods taste better with salt is because the contrast enhances the sweet receptors of the tongue. When I took a bite of the truffle, my sweet receptors were at capacity so that when I took a drink of Mokah all I could taste was the bitterness of the hops. The truffle certainly enhanced the flavor of the beer but in the wrong direction. Needless to say, I doubt I'll bring food back to a beer critique.

The Persistence of Memory

2011-08-13T09:09:00.000-05:00

In a discussion with my brother I discovered a friend of ours had a disagreement with a critique of a beer. I took offense immediately! How dare someone question my almighty judgment? Realistically, we are all beer judges in our own right so no offense was really taken. It has probably been stated several times over these posts that your own individual taste will dictate which direction you will steer your beer buying mechanism.

The reason this particular incident is being shared is because the beer in question is a porter. When it comes to a beer style I really enjoy and take my time admiring I have to wonder why a difference of opinion really exists. I made the claim that the brew was average and our friend really believes it is a damn fine beer. I cannot deny that, but I am wondering why I cannot recall the taste of the beer without referring to my own notes.

This is where my title comes in. I have to agree with myself (shocking I know!) that it is an average beer simply because I cannot recall how it tastes. The sense of smell has the strongest memory of our five and with its close association to taste I have to believe taste to be second in command when it comes to recall. I can review Miller Lite, Bud Light, Coors Light, Corona, Summer Shandy, Michelob Golden Draft, etc. without ever having to have a bottle or can in front of me because I've consumed it so many times that the smell, taste, and even look are programmed into my brain. Some beers that I've tried only once still tickle my taste buds by invoking their name because they were that damn good.

The title of Dali's painting really has nothing to do with the subject matter, his or mine. However, it is my favorite piece of art and by name alone I can picture the painter's subject matter and every detail behind it. The same should go with beer. Of course, when you name your beer "Porter" you almost are asking for it to be average.

Matilda

2011-08-11T11:38:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Goose Island Beer Company, Chicago, Illinois
Alcohol Content: 7%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Wild in character, with a slightly fruity aroma and a spicy yeast flavor that is as unique as it is satisfying – Matilda is an intriguing choice for beer and wine lovers alike. Dry and quenching, it’s the perfect accompaniment at the dining table or for casually socializing at the bar."

Wilk's Take:
I've been away from the game for a while and I forgot how to take a decent picture of a poured beer. Shame on me for not adjusting the lighting to capture the true essence of Matilda in all her glory. The fact is we had just finished a nice meal and I was pouring a little dessert beer for my brother and me, hence the two for one above, that I just decided on a whim to fly back to my creation and revive it.

Matilda is a wonderful beer. After the cap comes off the bottle and the beer goes in the glass you can smell a beer that reminds you of Blue Moon. Matilda is a Belgian Style Pale Ale so this scent is to be expected. The color on the other hand was a little surprising. Blue Moon is truly pale yellow and so cloudy you couldn't see your fingers on the other side of the glass. Matilda is deep and rich and looks like a drop of red food coloring was let in to emanate throughout the bottle to give Matilda character.

The taste is definitely spicy. Not overwhelming, but the coriander is evident from first sip and resonates throughout the glass. Matilda goes down smoothly and the brew can disappear as soon as it is poured. "Dry and quenching"? Maybe, but I don't really see it. As you move further down the glass there is a metallic after taste, almost as if you just put a penny in your mouth for five seconds. It disappears and doesn't make the beer unappealing, but it can be a little off putting.

Realistically, Matilda is a Blue Moon that tastes better. No need for the orange or lemon slice here as Matilda stands on its own. Now, I can neither confirm nor deny the rumor that Matilda is going the way of the dodo. Since ImBev took over Goose Island there is some suspicion that the whole of Goose's vintage ales are going to leave us. Let's hope not for the craft beer sake. Just because a brewery is big doesn't mean the beer has to suffer.

Suggestion: Find Matilda and drink it up. It's a great summer time brew and can easily be enjoyed in its Belgian style glory.

Value: I bought a four pack for $12. I certainly feel it was worth it, especially when you enjoy it in good company. If you want to splurge on beer, this is a good one to do it.

Michelle Factor: No Michelle factor to speak of here. Her and the sister-in-law were gabbing so the beer melted in the background. More for me I suppose.

Fourth of July

2011-07-05T09:24:00.000-05:00

Amidst the cacophony of booms, pops, whistles, and explosions I was being lulled to sleep by the gentle hum of my Off! Clip-On. Occasionally I would hear the jazz music escaping from my aging cell phone or the untimely death of an insect on my neighbor's bug zapper. I was sitting on my deck enjoying the best the people of Crown Point had to offer in terms of fireworks purchases. Watching thousands of dollars explode against the blackening night sky drowning out the stars I slowly sipped away at my Michelob Golden Draft.

This weekend, most of you probably threw and/or attended a wonderful summer cookout honoring the birth of our country. And I'm assuming that most of these events included this blog's favorite beverage of choice. I encountered a wide array during my weekend travels and found myself drinking the old standby more than anything else. As it is more readily available to quench the thirst of the masses it was hardly a surprise.

Along the way I got to sit down and enjoy Hoppin' Frog's Fresh Hop IPA. It was fantastic. The color, just a little south of orange, and the aroma of fresh citrus fruit made it inviting on the 93 degree day. The ale was smooth with only a slight hint of bitterness. I probably liked it so much because the hop flavor was very muted.

I ended the weekend with the aforementioned Michelob Golden Draft. My love affair with this beer cannot really be explained, mostly because I don't remember how it started. This brew is not available in my area and has almost become seasonal in nature. A very good friend of mine goes to Minnesota every June and picks me up a case every time. I know it is available in the western suburbs of Chicago, but it isn't exactly a beer worth traveling for. It is reminiscent of MGD or Budweiser but somehow just a little better. In the past the best part about this beer was the can. It was ribbed for his and her pleasure. Maybe that's where the love affair began.

I hope everyone had a great weekend and was safe and sound. If so inclined, please share your beer experience so I can be on the lookout for new brews to try.

Milk Stout

2011-06-30T21:55:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Left Hand Brewing Company, Longmont, Colorado
Alcohol Content: 6%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Dark and delicious, America's great milk stout will change your perception about what a stout can be. Preconceived notions are the blinders on the road to enlightenment. Udderly delightful."

Wilk's Take:
As I am a sucker for a good stout, I couldn't help but grab this bottle for my six pack variety pack. It has been sitting in my refrigerator for a good, long while as I've been busy getting the house in order from all things construction. The worst part is, I had been anxiously waiting for the right time to crack open this brew. Milk stouts have become more and more popular with the advance of craft beers and they make a great dessert. After a night of homemade pizza, I figured it would be perfect.

Left Hand did me wrong with TNT. I was expecting great things with this offering and I was not disappointed. The stout poured beautifully into my usual pint glass, which I discovered is not quite a pint. The black hue was inviting and the liquid was far from thick. As I drew in a deep breath my sense of smell detected an odor bordering on rubbing alcohol hidden beneath the milky bitterness of the beer. It was sickeningly sweet in a way.

My first draw of the Milk Stout was so smooth and creamy. A sweet undertone gave way to an intense coffee aftertaste that was further followed by the initial milkiness. The sensation was phenomenal and kept the glass tilted at a 45 degree angle near my lips.

Left Hand has won me back with the delicious Milk Stout. It indeed was the perfect dessert beer to cap off my night and I am looking forward to stocking my fridge with a couple bottles.

Suggestion: Add this to your stout collection without hesitation. Even if you aren't a fan of dark beers you will be pleasantly surprised by the rich, creaminess that Milk Stout has to offer. If you don't like coffee, avoid the black aftertaste.

Value: Part of my $2/bottle variety pack. Well worth it. Smooth, delicious, and 6%.

Michelle Factor: Michelle grimaced upon taking her sip of Milk Stout thanks to the intense coffee flavor on the back end. After a minute she discovered the milkiness underneath but was still not impressed.

Oberon Ale

2011-06-21T09:26:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Bell's Brewery, Galesburg, Michigan
Alcohol Content: 5.8%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Bell's Oberon is a wheat ale fermented with Bell's signature house ale yeast, mixing a spicy hop character with mildly fruity aromas. The addition of wheat malt lends a smooth mouthfeel, making it a classic summer beer."

Wilk's Take:
Bell's Brewery is one of the better known microbreweries in my neck of the woods. I have had pints of Bell's Oberon before and already knew it to be a summer seasonal brew. My encounters in the past in no way prepared me for this experience as my pints came straight from the bar. Pouring Oberon out of a bottle was new to me.

There was nothing overly dramatic about pouring the beer into the glass. Oberon is a darker shade of yellow than a pale ale or lager but equally transparent in appearance. The worrisome thing in the glass to me were little flakes that were dancing precariously amongst the little bubbles of carbonation. I have never seen anything like it before. I'm wondering again if I've encountered a bad beer. Maybe it's bottle conditioned and this is the result. Not quite sure.

Oberon smells a little like a wheat beer. The graininess that most wheats throw at you is very low-key with this brew. There is no hop aroma either. I was missing everything Bell's was telling me was there. Then again, I hadn't tasted the beer yet either. When I did I enjoyed it. The bubbly liquid played beautifully on the tongue and the taste was crisp and refreshing.

Bell's certainly does not "wow" you with anything flashy in Oberon but it delivers what it promises: "a classic summer beer." This can easily be in the cooler on the deck or on the table behind the grill and yield a clean, crisp "ahhhh" after consumption.

Suggestion: Bell's Oberon has always been a hit with the crowds I run with and I can't say I blame any of them. If you just finished mowing your lawn in 90 degree heat, grab a Bell's Oberon and you won't be disappointed.

Value: This was still part of my variety pack so the bottle went for $2. That's a great deal as the micro brew price tag would follow you into the bar. Grab a six pack and I'm sure the per bottle price drops even more. There is value to it because you don't want to stop at just one.

Michelle Factor: I asked Michelle to take a drink and she politely declined. If the past is any indication she would not have favored this beer.

Father's Day Southern Tier Trifecta

2011-06-20T19:58:00.000-05:00

Special thanks to my brother Adrian for providing the three above beers to complement the Father's Day meal I had prepared. He makes an annual trek to Western New York and always comes back with a full supply of Southern Tier brews. After the so-so Porter that Southern Tier provided he was determined to prove the quality of the Southern Tier brand. I'll play along. Who can turn down free beer?

The Big Red is a nice Imperial Red Ale. Certainly it poured like a red with a beautiful color that sit nicely in both of our glasses. The big hop aroma attacked my nose and I knew this was a beer not to be messed with. That really doesn't mean anything. The beer was smooth and had a nice array of bitterness. Southern Tier took great pride in the type of hop used for this beer. They add a dry hop step to their brewing process akin to Sam Adams and their lager. This beer was definitely better. At 9% it also packed a punch.

The Farmer's Tan is an Imperial Pale Lager. Now, I think it is silly to throw the word "Imperial" before any beer type, much like it's silly to throw the word "Senior" in front of a job title. Miller Lite is a pale lager; ok, technically a light lager. The only thing that Farmer's Tan has over Miller Lite is twice the alcohol and a heavier taste. Now, it may have been the burger I was eating that affected this beer, but it was not good.

Finally we ended the evening splitting the Back Burner, a nice barleywine style ale. It was good. One thing in this trifecta is that Southern Tier loves their hops. Back Burner had a subtle pineapple aroma and flavor that allowed the hops to be tempered so that the beer was palatable. Much like the other beers, the alcohol content was around 9-10%.

Overall a good showing by Southern Tier. 2 out of 3 is not bad. I'm hoping my brother can score the beer that they only offer the locals. Hopefully they bottle it or he can grab a bomber at the pub.

Four Horsemen

2011-06-18T09:05:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Mishawaka Brewing Company, Mishawaka, Indiana
Alcohol Content: Unknown

Official Description from Brewer:
None

Wilk's Take:
Sadly, in all my time at Notre Dame I never once made it to the Mishawaka Brewing Company's brewpub. That will stay that way forever as the pub closed in December 2008 with the owners mostly laying the blame on a smoking ban and the recessing economy. The brewery was to remain open with operations being moved to Elkhart. It seems however, that the company is defunct or soon will be. My research led me to discover that all the equipment was for sale. This may be my only encounter with a brewery that was virtually in the backyard.

When I took the cap off the bottle I heard absolutely nothing but the clinking of the cap on my counter top. I was nervous. The ever inviting "pfft" that comes from opening a capped bottle was missing in action and I thought I may have encountered a previously unsealed beer. I poured it however and discovered zero carbonation. My worries continued as I raised the liquid to my nose and whiffed nothing but sour, almost rusty scent. The copper brew in the glass was anything but my notion of an Irish Red.

My first sip of Four Horsemen was awful. I was reminded of the sour beer I had in Newport with a distinct sour cherry taste to it. Fear spread quickly, worried that my beer had spoiled somehow. I took to my guys at Beer Advocate to see if my taste buds were experiencing exactly what they should. I was missing a lot, but then as I read more reviews I decided the beer probably was intended to taste this way. That didn't bode well for the beer.

The beer was missing hops. I'm sure they were there, but there was no bitterness to speak of but that didn't make the brew any smoother. Four Horsemen tastes like it was made with well water out of decaying copper piping. The sour was a huge turn off to me and I barreled through the glass like a champion just so I can say I finished it. In the end I regretted grabbing the bottle off the shelf. Maybe it was good that I never went to the brewpub, it might have been a wasted trip.

Suggestion: Avoid it. No need to spend money on a beer that you might not even be able to find any more.

Value: The $2 I spent on this bottle would have served me better if I bought a bomber of Natural Ice.

Michelle Factor: Lack of bitterness and distinct beer flavor made Michelle actually enjoy this beer. "I could definitely drink this."

Flossmoor Station Restaurant and Brewery

2011-06-16T17:50:00.000-05:00

Ah the lunchtime beer. Away from the stressful work day, for most just not for me these days, you kick back with a cold pint and wash your worries away with a frosty lager or ale. Luckily, I was joined by some of the finest people on the planet and sat on the patio of Flossmoor Restaurant and Brewery and soaked in the best weather of the day discussing how great life was at the moment.

While dining with Brett at Three Floyd's some weeks back the bartender received a gift from his friends in Flossmoor. Naturally, it perked my interest and I determined that I must visit a local brew for the sake of the blog naturally. So I called up Brett and we dragged our wives to lunch to sample what Flossmoor had to offer.

The food was phenomenal. I'm hardly surprised. You have to assume that if someone takes the time to prepare a good beer they probably take the time to prepare good food. Of course, we are here to talk about the beer.

From their available menu I selected three beers and grabbed a seasonal rye. The rye was up first. It was bold and had a hint of hop to it and was generally refreshing. From there I really messed with my taste buds I ventured into their Panama Red Ale. My affinity for ambers led me to hop heaven here. Flossmoor describes Panama Red as "hoppy, robust yet smooth amber" and they are not lying. It was great and went well with my meal.

I asked the server what the Flossmoor flagship beer was and she mentioned their IPA, but then told me they sell more of their Zephyr Golden Ale. This is because it is the closest thing that resembles Miller Lite or Bud Light and apparently some less than adventurous patrons visit their brewpub than I would have thought. The Golden is not very tasty. The flavor is just a notch above those American lagers.

I finished with the Iron Horse Stout. It is an oat stout that looked like motor oil, as it should, and tasted like pure magic, as it should. I am certainly embellishing here. As I've mentioned before when you have the best company the beer tastes that much better.

Stone IPA

2011-06-15T14:57:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Stone Brewing Company, Escondido, California
Alcohol Content: 6.9%

Official Description from Brewer:
"To say that this gem of an IPA is "hoppy" would be putting it modestly --- and modesty is definitely not one of our strong suits. Big hop flavor and big hop aroma. What about hop bitterness you ask? You bet! We loaded glorious amounts of crisp and refreshing hop bitterness into this brew. First the aroma delights, then the flavor moves us to rejoice aloud! In fact it makes us feel downright poetic. We hope it does for you too!"

Wilk's Take:
First and foremost, my apologies for the bad picture. My photography skills are far from professional and I need some lesson in proper lighting. Secondly, my first experience with Stone IPA came in the trek west. It is the Todd's favorite beer and he keeps it in stock in his house. I drank his Tecate before I ventured into the bottle of the IPA. My memory of that encounter is a good one, but it could be the environment I was in and not so much the beer.

Stone has an issue with either hypocrisy or bipolar disorder, I'm not sure which yet. Their Sublimely Self-Righteous talks about humility leading up to the eventually braggadocio, whereas the IPA just thrusts the boastfulness front and center. I stress the importance of the description because it guides the drinker to a certain expectation. Stone isn't entirely wrong in how they describe the IPA. It certainly is crisp and has really intense hop aroma. Rejoicing aloud? Not so much.

Stone IPA pours invitingly. The ale resembles the memory foam under my bed sheets in color and consistency. It is cloudy, but it shouldn't put anyone off. Remember, the Todd commented on the difference of west coast and Midwest hops. The west coast hop tends to be grassy and grainy, whereas the Midwest hop flows more of citrus. The IPA is bitter and crisp, yet seems to lack in refreshment.

Suggestion: My IPA bias may be showing it's ugly head. It is hop heavy and bitter but because it doesn't feel refreshing, I won't be stocking my fridge with it soon. But, the Todd would tell you otherwise.

Value: My 12oz bottle came in a variety pack of craft beers and came out to about $2. I'll never turn down a $2 bottle of beer, so the value is right. With the alcohol content, it's better than drinking a light lager.

Michelle Factor: Michelle just finished four 12 hour shifts and clocked out before I could offer her a drink. I'm telling you though, she's a hop head so let's say she'd like it, well at least she won't hate it.

Fresh Hop

2011-06-12T08:42:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Great Divide Brewing Company, Denver, Colorado
Alcohol Content: 6.1%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Fresh Hop Pale Ale is brewed with fresh, whole cone hops from the Pacific Northwest. We ship these 'wet' hops to Denver overnight and brew shortly after harvest, imparting an intensely grassy hop aroma and citrus hop flavor in a medium-bodied ale."

Wilk's Take:
For any purist reading this blog I realize that I poured a pale ale into a Guinness glass. Behold, the world did not come to an end. Regardless of the vessel I choose the beer tastes the same. I do not worship at the beer glassware altar, at least not yet.

I love Great Divide. I am never hesitant to heap praise on their beers. Then I met Fresh Hop. Great Divide description of the beer is pretty spot on. I poured the ale specifically to avoid developing any head per Bamforth's suggestion. I inhaled the aroma deeply and could barely make out the citrus from the hops but the grassy scent was very prominent. The color was a beautiful dark orange but the liquid was cloudy.

Fresh Hop was smooth. You could probably take down a glass in less than three minutes and not even realize it. The taste was very blah, for lack of a description. I wasn't impressed, nor was I necessarily disappointed. I could not differentiate the taste of Fresh Hop from any other pale ale I've met in the past. At 55 IBUs I was surprised to find that the only bite to the beer came in the aftertaste. Then, only then did my taste buds take notice.

Suggestion: Eh, don't go out of your way to get Fresh Hop. If you're a hop head you'll be sorely disappointed. If you like a standard pale ale, feel free.

Value: Fresh Hop is brewed from October-December. As a seasonal beer the price was $9 for a 22oz bomber. I see no value as I can get Sierra Nevada Pale Ale any day of the week cheaper and I think it tastes better.

Michelle Factor: Michelle wasn't impressed either. She really did not care for the bitter aftertaste. In her words, "that makes it distinctly beer." To be honest, that means it wasn't hoppy enough. I think the extra hops in Double-Wide created the sweetness that she was fond of. Maybe Michelle is a hop head in disguise. No wonder she hates porters and stouts!

"Beer is Proof God Loves Us"

2011-06-11T16:55:00.001-05:00

Over 200 years of Chinese telephone has left many a historian crediting so-called famous words to some famous people. If you are like me, you love pulling this gem from Benjamin Franklin out at your local watering hole to describe your love of beer and the approval of your love of beer by the Almighty. If you are like me you will be disappointed to find out that Ben never said those words. The quote in its entirety from a letter to the French economist Andre Morellet:

"Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards, there it enters the roots of the vines, to be changed into wine, a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy."

The usage of the quote here is the title of a book by Charles Bamforth with a subtitle of "Reaching for the Soul of Beer and Brewing." Bamforth is a professor of beer. I am not kidding. He actually teaches classes related to beer brewing at UC Davis. For years he worked for Bass and Anheuser Busch as a brewer. The book is semi-autobiographical and also talks about the science of brewing.

I was excited when I first found this book because I was expecting a mutual desire for beer. He loves beer, but not in the way you might think. Bamforth contends that big brewers such as Busch and Miller are the excellence in beer brewing. To be consistent in the quality of the beer outweighs the actual beer itself. That's not to say Busch and Miller beers are bad, but they are distinctly mass produced. Bamforth finds fault in the nuances of beer whereas I find it endearing.

Bamforth compares the American craft beer movement to his days visiting English pubs and relishing in the variety offered in England prior to the destruction of the beer industry at the hands of Margaret Thatcher. He praises the likes of Charlie Papazian, father of the home brew movement, and especially lauds Ken Grossman and his creation of Sierra Nevada. Ken Grossman for his obsession with quality control and environmental soundness and Charlie Papazian for the love of beer. But he continues to relish in American lagers and the continuity of the big brew beers.

The book is a little disappointing. Bamforth sets out to find the soul of beer and brewing and in the end admits that he would prefer to drink whiskey over beer. His prowess at brewing beer and determining proper taste is simply a means to an end that he's built his career on. There are only two takeaways from this book that I will remember forever: 1.) Cascade hops create the grapefruit scent in the IPAs; 2.) Foam in a beer is created from the pour of the beer and nothing else. It is a byproduct only of consumption and does not occur naturally in beer; therefore why do we obsess over it?

Instead of trying to read someone else's search for the soul of beer, let's continue our journey together.

Double-Wide India Pale Ale

2011-06-09T21:35:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Boulevard Brewing Company, Kansas City, Missouri
Alcohol Content: 8.5%

Official Description from Brewer:
"The classic India Pale Ale is a traveler's beer, aggressively hopped to withstand the long, hot ocean voyage to the British East Indies. Our Double-Wide I.P.A. also travels well, and is right at home in the most exotic ports of call of the Midwest. While this modern-day prairie schooner may not resemble a graceful sailing sloop, our liberal hopping regimen does make her virtually 'twister-proof,' Keep some in the cellar to enjoy while waiting for the all clear to sound."

Wilk's Take:
I promised you IPA, so here is an IPA. I'm a perpetual fan of the corked beer. Boulevard lured me in with this 750 mL bottle and the special Smokestack Series moniker. You have to forgive my hesitation with hop beers. Even after the wonderful trip out west and my introduction to some wonderful bitterness, I still approach IPAs with trepidation.

Double-Wide poured miserably. It could be the fresh uncorking, it could be that I was rushed to enjoy a beer. I was patient. Titled my glass at a 45 and then straightened out at the half-way point. This must have been my critical error because as you can see from the picture above half the glass was head. The other half of the glass in the picture does not offer a true depiction of the liquid below. It was a cloudy, rusty liquid that one might expect to extract from a sponge after wiping down a brass bar. Not appealing to the eyes at all. The head after the pour never disappeared. From first sip to last gulp there was a continuous layer of foam residing at the top of my beer.

Hops are fickle in their taste. Without researching the IBUs on this brew, you can tell that it probably hovers above 50. For the sake of writing this I'm not going to look for the IBUs either. The worst mistake I made with this beer is to actually let it sit on my tongue for longer than a heartbeat. If you let Double-Wide linger and your breath warms the liquid you are left with the foulest, sourest taste you can imagine. To then swallow the drink is a mark of intestinal fortitude. When I walked away from that method however, it was a good beer to drink.

I was trying very hard to label the aroma I discovered when inhaling Double-Wide deeply after the pour. I came up with an odd mixture of grapefruit, as I do in all IPAs, and believe it or not, citronella. My first glass of Double-Wide was awful. As I took drink after drink I was reminded of awful summer nights as a kid when I sprayed so much insect repellent on myself that I could taste it well into the night. I feared that I might do the unthinkable and actually pour out the rest of the beer. I quickly came to my senses and poured another glass. Glasses two and three (remember 750mL) were a much more enjoyable experience. Maybe the beer had time to breathe. Either way, the bottle conditioned beer left some sediment at the bottom of glass number three. Not unbearable, but a little disconcerting.

Suggestion: If you are a hop head, drink with pleasure. I'm sure this beer is right up your alley. If you haven't ventured far from your safety beer, start smaller than this one.

Value: At $8 for a 750mL bottle and a nice 8.5% alcohol content you'll get your money's worth. If you don't like hoppy beer, don't spend the money.

Michelle Factor: For the first time ever, Michelle actually went for a second serving!!! Considering this is a dramatic difference from the beers I thrust upon her in the past I was expecting a distinct difference in taste for her. She indicated that the after taste lingers in the nose and mouth and you continue to taste the beer in the back of your throat long after you've swallowed it. The after taste sold it. Her first swallow led to the infamous Keystone Light bitter beer face of marketing campaigns long ago, but after a while she said that the taste was almost sweet and that the lingering beer on her palate made her crave more. Of course, knowing the effect of actually consuming the beer was bad, she passed on a full glass.

American Craft Beer Counter Culture?

2011-06-08T09:11:00.001-05:00

While enjoying tasters of beer at Great Divide Brewing Company, I leaned in to my companion and said, "Hey Dave, is it just me or are we surrounded by a bunch of hipsters?" Dave laughed cordially and seemed to nod his head in agreement, but I wasn't entirely sure. For a moment I had to take a step back and then analyze the two of us. Were we also hipsters, denying this label because we in no way felt like we belonged to this class of citizen?
The problem with reviewing a question like this is that the definition of hipster cannot be pinned down. It's been tried and there seems to be conflict wherever you look for a definitive answer. For my sake, the term hipster reflects anyone trying incredibly too hard to show that marketing has no effect on his or her purchase decision. It's a little broad I know, considering that someone with little or no money is essentially forced to shop either at Goodwill or Wal-mart (I don't equate the two).

I'll try to paint the picture of the scene: Unkempt hair, corduroy, big-rimmed glasses, cigarettes, thrift store shoes, loud colors that don't match anything, organic food, and of course craft beer.

It felt like there was an air of pretension surrounding me and I wanted to crawl out of my skin and slap my own face. I will allow Mark Greif to explain a little:

One hipster subgroup’s strategy is to disparage others as “liberal arts college grads with too much time on their hands”; the attack is leveled at the children of the upper middle class who move to cities after college with hopes of working in the “creative professions.” These hipsters are instantly declassed, reservoired in abject internships and ignored in the urban hierarchy — but able to use college-taught skills of classification, collection and appreciation to generate a superior body of cultural “cool.”

They, in turn, may malign the “trust fund hipsters.” This challenges the philistine wealthy who, possessed of money but not the nose for culture, convert real capital into “cultural capital” (Bourdieu’s most famous coinage), acquiring subculture as if it were ready-to-wear. (Think of Paris Hilton in her trucker hat.)

Both groups, meanwhile, look down on the couch-surfing, old-clothes-wearing hipsters who seem most authentic but are also often the most socially precarious — the lower-middle-class young, moving up through style, but with no backstop of parental culture or family capital. They are the bartenders and boutique clerks who wait on their well-to-do peers and wealthy tourists. Only on the basis of their cool clothes can they be “superior”: hipster knowledge compensates for economic immobility.

I don't fall into any of these categories!! What the hell was I doing there?

It took a conversation with my father to really open my eyes to the whole matter. When I thought about it, I've been spending most of my adult life in the pursuit of coin. I'm an accountant, working in the professional world but toiling away in a disappearing American middle class. I wasn't afforded the opportunity to get a liberal arts degree, don't have a trust fund, and don't have to tend bar to make a living. I never cared about fashion but I cared about appearance. To participate in "hipster" culture it seems to me you have to have money because "damning the man" is not cheap.

What does this have to do with beer? Quite a bit if you think about it. Just by embarking on this blog I open the door to the "hipster" label. Why can't I just stick with the Miller Lites I love and leave it at that? Home brewers decided they could build a better beer. And through my eyes, Jim Koch and Samuel Adams put the "microbrewery" on the map. He did it to get rich. As much as home brewers want to savor and share their beer with those who'll enjoy it, I bet they all want to get rich. I have no problem with that dream (why do you think I put ads on this blog?). But I refuse to be labeled a hipster because I drank a beer I really liked and decided to try other beers to see if I can find one better.

To defend myself, I'm in it to enjoy the beer and not to damn the man. As for the rest of the craft beer crowd, I'll let you know.

Porter

2011-06-07T08:01:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Southern Tier Brewing Company, Lakewood, New York

Alcohol Content: 5.8%

Official Description from Brewer:

"Porter is our darkest beer, but not necessarily our strongest. It is widely held that the darker the beer, the stronger the beer, but this is summarily false. The contribution of color comes directly from the color of malt that we use. Some malt is roasted to achieve dark color and coffee-like flavor which in turn get transferred to the beer. Our Porter is richly complex with overtones of chocolate and espresso beans followed by a subtle flavor of hops. It’s a nourishing beer without being too sweet or filling."

Wilk's Take:

I know I had promised a week's worth of hop heaven, but when a beer is given to you for free you do not turn it down. So after a visit with my brother I pilfered (with permission) a 12oz. bottle of Southern Tier's "Dark Robust Porter" out of the two six packs from his kitchen. I was told I would like this beer.

As always, we start with the pour. Not unusual, the porter flowed like motor oil and offered very little head. The motor oil in this case is used conventional and not synthetic. If you know your motor oil that does make a difference. For simplicity's sake, the beer is dark. Surprise! Southern Tier reminds us that the color comes from the roasting of the malts and for their porter they use 5 different malts. I couldn't tell you which ones, but then again I'm not an expert enough to know what the difference is.

Porter smells like stale coffee. I was searching for the chocolate overtone but I came up empty. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. A good porter doesn't need to remind you of sweets. The coffee aroma was a little strong but it did not affect the taste of the beer much, at least I don't think it did. Porter sits on your tongue with a little bit of a syrupy consistency. It's not as smooth as some of the other dark beers I've tried before.

Southern Tier is right when they tell us that the beer is not sweet or filling. You can easily go through a six pack in a night and not feel the heaviness of having consumed six porters. The hop balance prevents that overall sweet sensation some porters can give and the aftertaste isn't nearly as potent as YETI yields so you can enjoy the buffet after consumption. As far as nourishing? Well, don't think of it in terms of the nutritional content. I'm sure the folks of western New York cherish this porter as a local favorite.

Suggestion: If you don't like porters, this might be one to avoid sticking a toe in the water. If you like porters, you will be pleasantly surprised by how easy this one is to drink. It might disappoint you too. I was told I would like it and I did. But fortunately for me, it was free. Would I spend money on it? Not sure, depends on the price.

Value: See above. Free is always a good value. I might amend this post in the future if I can land a price tag for you.

Michelle Factor: Poor Michelle missed out on this one. She was out at the movies with friends and I had just come back from fishing and decided to have a cold one. I promise I'll get her in on the next one.

Beer, so much more than drinking

2011-06-05T08:09:00.000-05:00

As I progress down the path of beer enlightenment, I find myself inching steadily closer to the imaginary line where I cross over into beer snobbery. My seemingly innocuous attempt at introducing my little world to some pretty awesome brews apparently spits in the face of the new craft beer movement. Maybe.

Unbeknownst to me, my take on the beer I consume tends to factor in the the five critiques that most beer tasters will comment on when pouring a new beer: look, smell, taste, mouthfeel, and overall. Amazing that anyone would want to capture every human sense that goes into drinking a beer! My description also tend to walk the same line as others, but I'd like to think that my added dash of humor is what keeps my reading public so entertained.

There is a subculture out there that threatens this simplicity. One that, for a fee, allows you to get certified to be a beer god!!! Hyperbole aside, there are multiple sites out there threatening the joyful existence of a simple beer drinker like myself. Cicerone.org, BJCP.org, and others don't necessarily offer to train you, but will gladly administer a test that will make you become either a certified beer server or a certified beer judge.

So I ask my readers, and respond by comment if you would please, should I take the leap into beer snobbery and become a certified beer know-it-all? Or should I just keep doing what I'm doing and not ruin our future nights out by commenting on every beer I drink?

Newport Beach Chronicles Concluded

2011-06-03T10:27:00.000-05:00

Move over Wise Guys. You've got nothing on BevMo. It could be because of the availability of craft beer out west far outweighing that here in Northwest Indiana, but BevMo walking down the aisles of the BevMo beer section I could almost feel the wispy haze of fog you would get in a dream. It just does not end. Domestics down one aisle, imports down another, all the while brewers you'd maybe heard about in a past life lined the shelves. And the price! Seven 22 ounce bombers for under $40! RIDICULOUS!!! Seven, being a heavenly number, I finished my last night in Newport in style with Dave, the Todd, and Dennis.

Samuel Smith Taddy Porter

What? Another import? Wilk what are you doing? We're good ol' Americans and want good ol' American beer!!! I couldn't help it with this one for a couple of reasons: 1. I love porter; 2. The Todd swears by it. How could I argue with that logic? As I said yesterday he has been into the craft beer scene longer than I have so I trust his judgment. He wasn't wrong. The beautiful pour reminded me of dark Brazilian walnut wood and the roasted barley malt danced deliciously along my taste buds. If you can find Samuel Smith near you, buy it, you will not be disappointed.

Samuel Smith Nut Brown Ale

Two imports in the same sitting? You've got to be kidding me?!? If you recall, nut brown ale had already been sampled on this trip and you need a basis of comparison. It is a little unfair however to truly put this side-by-side with the Glenwood Canyon No Name Nut. You have to realize the growler was poured cold, warmed in transit, rechilled and then served. Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale was purchased from BevMo and refrigerated before consumption. And believe me, that was a good thing. The brew was so incredibly smooth and nutty that any other brown ale I had in the past week paled in comparison. Beautiful color and aroma and a clean finish that had me begging for more. Too bad I was sharing.

Firestone Walker
Double Jack IPA

You'll see as this series of beers progresses that I had to be out of my mind to weave in and out of dark, light, smooth, bitter, and a random beer selection that probably makes no sense to anybody. Remember, I had help with these and as good times go you lose your way in conversation. Firestone is brewed in California and the west coast hop difference the Todd kept alluding to was certainly prevalent in this beer. The amber color contradicts the pale ale moniker and the malts enhance the bitterness offered with the hops. The grapefruit undertone is here but it is tempered by a sweeter hop flavor that made me enjoy this IPA over any other I had tried to this point.

Grand Teton Brewing
Pursuit of Hoppiness

Went out of the California brewery scene for this gem. The 750 mL bottle beckoned me on the shelf and my new found desire to try as many hop-tastic beers as possible to train my palate made grabbing Pursuit an easy decision. It was damn good. The beer does not advertise itself as an IPA, rather an Imperial Red that tempts your bitter taste buds. The color was spot on after the pour and the finish was dazzlingly brilliant. With Pursuit, I feel I crossed the hop threshold that had been holding me back. The pineapple flavor of hop started to come through with this beer and I decided right then and there that next week's reviews would be nothing but IPAs (or something akin).

Stone Brewing Company
Sublimely Self Righteous

I had previously shown some disdain for Stone in the way in which they describe their beers. With Self-Righteous they attempt to err on the side of modesty which is a little oxymoronic given the name of the ale. Having said all of that, this beer is fantastic. Of the carousel of beers that evening this was Best-in-Show. What was more shocking than anything was that the Todd, a life-long southern California guy, never encountered this brew before and he was loving it. Self-Righteous is a wonderfully dark, hop heavy brew that pairs bitterness and smoothness in a way never before tasted in beer (at least in my short-lived craft beer life). Hop beers, Wilk. Wilk, hop beers. Nice to meet you.

Bear Republic
Big Bear Black Stout

To be fair, Bear Republic is more well known for an IPA called Racer 5 that has won more awards than I wish to label here. Since we were hop heavy already and I had my biases while still perusing beer upon beer, I opted for the stout here. Needless to say, I was not disappointed here either. The black stout had won some awards in its own style category and it surely tasted like it deserved it. The caramel undertone was tempered by the hoppiness of the brew. I was actually surprised by the bitterness that hit my tongue but it was a welcome surprise. At 55 IBUs this was probably the hoppiest stout I had encountered. Not available in Indiana, but available across the border in Illinois, I may make a few runs to try what else Bear Republic has to offer.

Anderson Valley Brewing
Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout

Save the best for last? Maybe, maybe not. I've already declared that the Self-Righteous was the best beer of the night. This was a very close second, especially for a stout lover like me. If you can end the night with any beer, I would still go with YETI or B.O.R.I.S. But your second to last beer of the night should be the Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout. If you can blend chocolate with beer you'd get this beer. The color, the pour, the flow, the taste, the finish, all perfectly blended in beer and chocolate notes. Deliciously smooth and only a hint of bitterness allows you to spend your last hour savoring a quality dessert beer. Not sure I'll be able to find this beer close to home but I will certainly search for it.

Newport Beach Chronicles - Volume 3

2011-06-02T20:03:00.000-05:00

Logo used with permission

We drove out along the Balboa Peninsula to Commonwealth Lounge & Grill and parked our behinds on the second floor balcony overlooking all the beautiful boats we couldn't afford but dreamed of owning. The restaurant had three boats docked out back and all of them had the square footage of my house. It's moments like that where you can feel luxurious rocking out in your Old Navy flip flops and Las Vegas t-shirt.

Commonwealth offers only craft beers on the menu. You cannot order Miller or Budweiser in this bar. The rotating stock of beers is a good mix of foreign and domestic craft beers offering a good selection with or without hops. The night before, I had the pleasure of meeting co-owner Dennis Gaughan and when he discovered my affinity for beer variety he recommended Liefman Cuvee Brut, a big seller at Commonwealth. Naturally that was the first beer I ordered. Much like the barrel aged beer from Newport Beach Brewing Company, this beer had a distinct sour start, however it was very sweet and reminiscent of cherry soda without too much carbonation. The red hue was overpowering and I am even hesitant to refer to this as beer. I hear "brut" and I think champagne. So maybe this was sparkling red wine!

After downing the Cuvee Brut I went to something more in my wheel house, the Stone Smoked Porter. Brewed by the Stone Brewing Company in San Diego, CA, the description of this beer has the same ostentatious aura as the description of all their other beers. They think they are the best. After tasting this porter, I can believe it. The beautiful, dark beer was teasing me all the way from the bar to my table and the smoky aroma that was present in the glass was very inviting. I must digress here for one second. The decor of Commonwealth could easily cause one to think they are in a downtown Chicago martini bar. It is a very classic design with some modern elements. To me, a smoked porter deserved to be served here, and not some hoppy IPA or anything with the word pale near it. The new quest is to find Stone brews closer to home.

At this point Dennis actually joined us on the balcony and I was treated to a nice history lesson of the restaurant and Newport itself. It was a wonderful experience, regardless of the fact that the Todd and Dennis determined to break my Hoosier spirit down and convince me to uproot myself and Michelle for the sweet, sweet life of southern California. After a few pints not much convincing is needed and you can well imagine the grandiose plans you devise with liquid encouragement.

My final beer of the afternoon was Dr. Tongue, a hop heavy brew from Bootlegger's Brewery in Fullerton, CA. Unfortunately they don't distribute beer outside of southern California so don't bother looking for it. As the Todd explained to me several times West Coast hops are unlike Midwest or East Coast hops. He's been into craft beers for much longer than me so I trust his judgment. The Dr. Tongue was so intensely bitter and it should have because it was advertised at over 100 IBUs. Now, the palate doesn't really distinguish anything above 50, so imagine biting into a head of arugula and you'll get the taste of Dr. Tongue. Ok, that's not entirely true. What I can tell you is there is a distinct hop difference in California. Hops locally remind me of grapefruit; hops in California remind me of pineapple.

For those of you who read this and find yourself around Newport Beach California I implore you to visit Commonwealth. I was heart broken to discover that I was going to miss the big beer dinner they were having in conjunction with Firestone Walker Brewing Company. Marvelous idea so I'm sure it was a smashing success.

Newport Beach Chronicles - Volume 2

2011-06-01T12:40:00.000-05:00

There is such a laid back atmosphere in southern California, especially on the weekends, that makes you want to spend every waking moment there. We were in no hurry at all to move anywhere, which is a little disturbing for me because I knew there was a microbrewery waiting to be explored. But, patiently I waited as we dined on some Poke salad, bbq oysters, and a Cajun Opah sandwich. After all, I wasn't just there to sample only west coast beer!

The Newport Beach Brewing Company was a brief saunter from lunch and the weather was perfect for the 2 minute walk. Due to the holiday weekend and the pilgrimage of inland Californians to the beach, we skillfully swooped into a table that had just been vacated and kept our elbows off until the server could sanitize it with her oft used dish rag. I perused the menu and landed on a special barrel aged brew that just happened to tap out. So I was left with a sour beer alternative.

Without a name I can't give any recommendations one way or the other. I can honestly say that I would venture back to Newport Beach Brewing Company on any return trips to the area based on the quality of this beer. It starts with a jolt of sour on your tongue. I can't compare this to a sour cherry, apple, or candy flavor, it was just sour. The finish of the beer was anything but. It was sweet, daringly sweet at that, but it was nice and cold and refreshing when the southern California sun is on your face.

We only stayed at the brewing company for one beer as the meter was about to expire and there was a different scene to take in on the peninsula. If you can get some Newport Beach beers, let me know what you think. As far as their one-off's this one was pretty damn good.

Newport Beach, a miniseries

2011-05-30T21:32:00.000-05:00

Having already critiqued the IPA from Upstream brewery, I opted to take the photo op with Glenwood Canyon Brewery's No Name Nut Brown Ale. We drank both growlers on our Friday evening in Newport Beach with some grilled lemon chicken and shrimp courtesy of the Baker family. Special thanks goes to Colin for the prep, the Todd for the final bake, Leslie and Jenny for the sides, and my ravenous hunger that led to a perfect meal.

Our growler of the Upstream IPA had seen better days. Having spent three gruesome days at the bottom of the car's passenger seat, the growler tipped over at one point and deposited some of its contents into the grooves of the vinyl floor mat. D'oh! (Is that trademarked?) This means the seal was not exactly the tightest and our precious liquid had grown flatter every second. Either way, we popped the bottle into the freezer to get up to optimal drinking temperature. We like cold beer!

The IPA still tasted pretty damn good. Up to this point I was still not sold on the hoppy goodness that some beers had to offer so I was definitely looking forward to moving on to the brown ale. And baby, it was oh so good.

The pour out of a growler is not as graceful out of the tap or a bomber. The caramel, honey color of the ale is inviting on a brisk Newport evening. With minimal head you can dive right in, and that's just what I did. The aroma was very nutty with a beautiful touch of hops. The description from the brewer is simple: "A classic brown ale with plenty of malt and a subtle touch of hops. Surprisingly smooth!" I don't know what caught the brewer off guard as I haven't met a brown ale that wasn't smooth. It didn't take me aback and I doubt it would take you for a ride either.

Unfortunately for us, it does not appear that the Glenwood Canyon Brewery distributes their beer anywhere outside of Glenwood Canyon. Fortunately for us, the trip to Glenwood Springs is incredibly gorgeous and with the Rockies as a backdrop how could you not want to go there. It took me to get to Newport Beach to appreciate the beer I obtained two days prior.

Points west

2011-05-28T14:20:00.000-05:00

Denver has more microbreweries than you can imagine visiting in one night there. This presents a problem for a man looking to critique beers. As I bid a fond farewell to Denver, I knew it is probably possible to find a microbrew wherever you may go. We ventured west along I-70 and found ourselves looking lunchtime right in the eye. Amid the Glenwood Canyon we land at Glenwood Springs and sit down at the Glenwood Canyon Brewery for what my father has dubbed, "The best damn beer cheese soup I've ever had in my life."

With about six hours of driving still ahead of us, Dave and I agreed that a lunchtime beer was not an option. We both ordered the beer cheese soup in a spectacular bread bowl. Now, I'm not entirely sure I ever had beer cheese soup before, but I can say confidently that the Glenwood Canyon Brewery has a damn fine concoction on their hands. This satisfied my beer requirement at the pub, even though it didn't come from the tap.

Without even bothering to taste any of their beers, we opted for a growler of No Name Nut Brown Ale. We now had our second growler of the trip on our way to Newport Beach, California.

West of Denver is the beautiful Rocky Mountains and west of that is Utah. Unfortunately we did not get to find the one microbrewery in Utah we could find on the Internet. We continued southwest until we stopped for the night at St. George, UT. After talking with the hotel front desk we discovered that there's really only one bar and it's called "The One and Only."

Don't go to "The One and Only." I had to settle with a Michelob Amber Bock. At least we made it to Newport.

Denver

2011-05-27T17:31:00.000-05:00

I wouldn't want to label my trip to Great Divide Brewery as a pilgrimage, but it certainly had that feel to it. After drinking the YETI for my first microbrew review I almost felt I owed them some loyalty. Luckily for me, Great Divide did not disappoint and my stay there was certainly memorable.

I sampled five of Great Divide's beers and Dave, my traveling companion (although in realty I'm his), sampled the other five. Of those ten beers, not a single one was disappointing. The only disappointing aspect was the fact that we were heading to a Rockies game and we could not take a growler to go. Since their beers are available where I live, I wasn't entirely heart broken.

Two beers that really got my attention at Great Divide were their seasonal fare: Chocolate Oak Aged YETI and the 17th anniversary wood aged Double IPA. The YETI, unlike the original, has an even more intense flavor and is even complemented with cayenne undertones. It makes for rich, roasty, spicy flavor. If you're are going to choose between the two, I'd recommend the original YETI. The cayenne flavor lingers on a bit too long. The Double IPA is lacking the usually bitterness you would expect to find. When I asked the bartender about the IBU content he told me around 50. The brew was smooth and flavorful with the perfect touch of hops.

Wilk sneaking a peek at Great Divide aging barrels

After Great Divide we walked up to Breckenridge Brewery directly across from Coors Field. I started out with the requisite flagship brew, Avalanche Amber Ale. The perfect amber color was a beautiful sight after the amber attempt from Upstream. The beer went well with the wings we grabbed. There is a reason this is Breckenridge's most popular beer, it's damn good. Afterwards I switched to their Scotch ale and was also pleased with the result. I regret that I can't give a thorough analysis of these beers because the visit was more about socializing with friends than critiquing beer. Both styles were great and if I come across any other Breckenridge beers I will pick them up willingly.

Home of 70 on tap microbrews from around the world and twice as many bottles

After the game we went to Falling Rock Tap House where I continued sampling the best Denver had to offer. I went with two more selections to round out the evening: Left Hand Brewing Company's Milk Stout and Bull and Bush's Man Beer. Left Hand redeemed itself completely after the TNT fiasco. The Milk Stout was so deliciously creamy, it was as if I was drinking a White Russian. Bull and Bush's Man Beer was a hoppy amber that was perfectly bitter and refreshing. I think after the spoil of Denver microbrews I may have found my hop desire.

Stay tuned for points west...

Upstream Brewery, Omaha, Nebraska

2011-05-24T23:27:00.000-05:00

I have to stand up and applaud microbreweries that really want you to enjoy your beer. Upstream Brewery in Omaha, NE has twelve taps behind the bar and their "Taster's Row" includes all 12 beers for $11.95 in convenient 2.3 ounce taster shot glasses. Most flights give you 5-8 beers of the best stuff, but Upstream has no problem throwing all 12 your way even if they are horrible beers. Granted the brewers of Upstream probably enjoy every beer they make.

Without further ado, from left to right in a clockwise fashion:

O! Gold Light - American style light lager with balls. Bold, smooth taste but surprisingly less alcohol than Miller Lite at 3.8%.

Honey Raspberry Ale - Ever have berry flavored vitamin water? I bet it tests better than this sorry excuse for a beer. Find Leinenkuegel's Berry Weiss and enjoy it more.

GramGram's Munich Helles - Upstream's seasonal lager is watered down and doesn't even pack the same umph as the light.

American Wheat - Upstream's seasonal wheat is watered down fruity wheat beer. The lighter beers were so effortless to drink I just tilted back the shooter and took down the rest of the beer with one gulp. Probably shouldn't judge these beers on the samples but if you aren't willing to order a pint after a taste, why bother?

Capitol Premium Pale Ale - Hoppy. This is a pale ale but Upstream classifies it as an amber beer. The amber hue is in the beer and the hops are really intense. Even my traveling companion found it to be unbelievably hop intensive.

Firehouse Red - Finally! A sample that was worth drinking. Not as deep a red as some other ambers and with a good hop balance, this red lends a smooth taste with a nice carmel undertone.

Flagship India Pale Ale - Hell Yeah! Upstream is not lying when they dole out this IPA. The hops are overwhelming. If you let this beer linger on your tastebuds for longer than a heartbeat you will get the Keystone Bitter Beer face. Of course, that's the real intent, right? Knowing my disdain for IPAs you will be surprised to find that the finish on this brew is much smoother than the hop content would suggest. Since this is Upstream's flagship brew, we bought a growler and I will provide a full breakdown later in the week.

Dundee Scotch Ale - Roasted malty goodness. This is the first dark beer in the sampling group and Upstream should stick to this spectrum because the darker beers were so much better than the lighter ones. This was the fan favorite.

Justa' Porter - By far the lightest porter I ever encountered. This beer was more crimson than the Firehouse Red. Coffee undertones and a smooth finish made this brew delicious.

LeeRoy Jenkins Imperial India Brown Ale - WOW. No, I don't wow the beer, but if you don't get the reference please Google. The hop content was so intensely aromatic but the brown ale tempers the bitterness. In the end, I didn't know whether the beer was bitter or smooth.

Giandwa Imperial Rye Brown Ale - This beer I will "wow." It was good. Great finish, nice dark color and aroma, my style of brew.

Cask Conditioned Ale - Darkest hop beer I ever had. Out of the 12 beer taster row, I had one beer too many and should have stopped with number 11.

If you find yourself in Omaha, venture downtown and stop by the Upstream brewpub and try yourself some beer. The seasonal selection obviously varies and the brewery standards are worth drinking. The pints went for $4.50 and the growler was $12 so the value is there. You can also get a taster of any beer for $1 so you don't have to blow money on a beer you won't like.

Nutritional Information

2011-05-23T18:15:00.000-05:00

When the major brewers decided it was time to battle for the love of the health conscious American, I scoffed at the idea. Michelob Ultra and the introduction of light beer as a diet concept was something that was laughable moreso than laudable. My first encounter with Michelob Ultra ironically occurred at about the same time I started on a rigorous workout regimen. The joke of course, was that my gym had a bar right above it and on Tuesdays it was $1 taco night and my friend and I would wash down our meal with some good old Michelob Ultra since we were dieting after all.

Diet friendly beers could have been big beers way to market the drink to ladies always concerned with figure. However, the lot of commercials that played on a loop were geared toward the men in the crowd. Ever fearful that spirits, like always diet friendly vodka, were starting to chip aware at market share, big beer needed to reel in the key demographic. So we get our favorite beers manipulated into MGD 64, Budweiser Select 55, etc.

I always joked, "Hey, if you are worried about how many calories are in your beer, you probably shouldn't be drinking beer." But how could I argue with the calorie minded folks who enjoy an ice cold lager or ale? With the major brands, it actually is easy to find calorie and carb content. As I've ventured into the world of craft beer brought out by microbrews, it's harder to track that information down. Mostly this is because the small brewers probably do not take the time to measure the information, even if they knew how.

Here are some quick tips to keep in mind when consuming beer:

Generally, the higher the alcohol content, the higher the calories. This is why Mich Ultra, Select 55, and MGD 64 taste an awful lot like water left to bake in the sun and then rechilled.

Darker beers have higher calories (alcohol content) and more carbs. This is based in part by the malts used to produce the beer. That chocolatey undertone comes with chocolatey carbs.

If your beer has an alcohol content between 4-5% you can probably expect anywhere from 100 - 150 calories depending on the style. For example, a pale ale with that alcohol content might be on the low end of that spectrum whereas a stout with the same alcohol content would be on the high end.

If your beer has an alcohol content between 8-10% you can probably expect anywhere from 250-400 calories depending once again on style.

As with any food or drink you enjoy while dieting it is best in moderation. 96 calorie Miller Lite adds up quickly when the company and conversation goes on for hours and you drink a steak's worth of beer. Don't let that get you down though. If you want to go for another brew just remember 3 miles on the treadmill and it will easily melt away.

Illiana Mayfest, or The Culmination of American Craft Beer Week

2011-05-22T21:58:00.000-05:00

You would think that a fledgling blogger would be prepared to do all the research necessary to write a comprehensive review of such an important event. Naturally, I witnessed attendees scribbling copious notes in, and I'm not kidding here, their beer journals. As I enjoyed sample after sample of what the microbrews of Indiana and Illinois offered me I couldn't help but wonder if the keepers of the journals were enjoying themselves as thoroughly as I was. Then again, I'm sure it was the company I was keeping that made Illiana Mayfest an event I'll plan on attending as long as they hold it.

I'm not going to run down a list of every brewery that made the trek to Crown Point. If you are interested please visit www.illianamayfest.com. I tried to sample at least one beer from each brewery but I know I missed a handful. Here are the highlights from a very worthwhile venture:

Two Brother's Brewing Company, Warrenville, IL - The Kentucky Bourbon Beer served by Two Brother's was deemed to be "Best in Show" by both my brother and I. In the past, the only style of beer that I've encountered aged in bourbon barrels tended to be stouts or porters. Kentucky Bourbon beer poured almost like an IPA with a darker, honey color. The aroma was sweetly bourbon and the taste was creamy goodness. This one didn't go down as quickly as the other samples, but it was darn tasty. Two Brother's also made a lasting impression on Brett with their White Beer. Much like Blue Moon, the White Beer was laced heavily with coriander and the only thing missing was the orange slice. The floral undertones were quite noticeable and Brett kept comparing it to "biting a bunch of rose petals." He did indicate however that it is the most unique beer he had encountered in a while.

Flat 12, Indianapolis, IN - One of the last beers I sampled was Blanco El Diablo. Now, I haven't taken a formal Spanish class in over ten years, but something tells me if Flat 12 intended this beer to be called "White Devil" they should have went with El Diablo Blanco. Either way, this beer is brewed and then ages in barrels over chili peppers. The spice flavor doesn't come rushing in with the drink, rather it stalks you quietly and zaps the back of your mouth when you swallow the brew. If you let it sit on your tongue too long, you'll get the same burning sensation in your nose. There is a distinct waxy taste to it almost as you finish. I kept hinting to my friends that this would be the perfect beer for your bratwurst.

Moylan's Brewery, Novato, CA - I don't know if this is the same Moylan's that was there, but this is where Google led me. That's okay, because they indicate a Moylan's Irish Red and I definitely sampled it while I was at Mayfest. I'm a huge fan of ambers and you usually get a lager feel when you order one up. This Irish Red was so smooth and I will once again use the word creamy to describe how well this beer flowed and tasted. It was by far the best red I've had in some time. It definitely outshone the other ambers at the festival.

Crown Brewing Company, Crown Point, IN - Of course I have to give a tip of the hat to the hometown hero. Only open since 2008, Crown Brewing has an award winning Imperial Porter. As you may well know, I definitely have an affinity for that style of beer. The Porter was good, but was definitely not the best I've ever enjoyed. There was nothing to distinguish it from the others even at their own sponsored festival. However, Crown Brewing hit it out of the park with their Weizenheimer Weiss. To be fair, I did not try this beer. Brett and Kim both agreed that this was their "Best in Show." Who am I to argue with them?

On a general note, I have to get over myself and jump on the IPA bandwagon. It appears that no brewery can be complete without offering some variation of these hoppy brews. It should be noted, as I was reminded by my brother, that Americans love cold beer. Even though it has been recommended that ales reach a warmer temperature there is no separating the mind from desiring icy cold refreshment.

I will probably never take a notebook with me on any journey involving beer. I have mentioned before that I believe beer should be enjoyed in the best way you know how. I will offer my best description of the beers I try, and hope to lead you in a generally good direction.

Michelle volunteered to be the designated driver so there is no Michelle factor. Remember, drink responsibly and respect beer.

Brett, Wilk, and Adrian

Michelle and Kim

Obovoid

2011-05-19T20:41:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Boulder Beer Company, Boulder, Colorado
Alcohol Content: 6.8%

Official Description from Brewer:

Obovoid - 1. An ovoid with the broad end toward the apex. 2. A fun word!

"Something tells us that you're going to love Obovoid Oak-Aged Oatmeal Stout. Perhaps it's the color - as dark as deep space. Or the aging on oak that adds an earthy character to its roasted notes. Maybe you crave the bittersweet chocolate finish derived from the abundance of black and chocolate malts. Or quite possibly the rich, smooth mouthfeel and creamy, off-white color head tickle your fancy. But most likely, it's the perfect blend of "all of the above" that makes Obovoid a stout lover's dream"

Wilk's Take:
As we already know, Hoppin' Frog's B.O.R.I.S. was the impetus behind this blog. Therefore, when I am searching the shelves at WiseGuys for beers to celebrate American Craft Beer Week how could I not stop and stare at another oatmeal stout. The one oddity about Obovoid is that Boulder Beer Company limits the release of this beer from October-December. The date stamped on the bottle is January 18, 2011. Lying can be oh so delicious sometimes.

Obovoid poured perfectly. The color, as I'm sure you've noticed in the last three posts, is nice and dark and oh so beautiful. I promise I'll move to IPAs next week. In the meantime I am totally in love with this week's selections. Obovoid had a bold yet smooth aroma that is very inviting and keeps it's scent from start to finish. The roasted malt yields a chocolate and toffee note.

Once you take in Obovoid you need to let it linger in your mouth. The aroma and the warmth of your own breath bring out this intense flavor that is very velvety. The finish is intensely coffee however, which could be the only drawback in this beer. Much like B.O.R.I.S., Boulder ages this ale with oak. The R.I.P. and the Silk Porter from earlier in the week were not aged near oak and you can clearly tell the difference. Now, the earlier beers were porters and this is a stout, but this should make no difference. Porters can easily be aged in oak barrels. I'm saying oak should be the way to go in the future, but for the sake of keeping this blog going I will diversify.

Suggestion: Run to the Internet, go to Boulder Beer Company and find where you can land this brew. Drink away and enjoy aplenty. It was very smooth and very easy to drink. With the lower alcohol content it is easy to drink.

Value: $7.50 for a 22oz bottle. Obviously I appreciate the beer. The value, that's a different story. At only 6.8% ABV I am shocked for a stout. I'd rather buy a more potent beer for that amount.

Michelle Factor: Not applicable. Michelle refused to take a swig of this brew, with it looking and smelling like all the rest she didn't want to walk down a path that she's already taken. Needless to say, she'd probably not enjoy it.

R.I.P. - Russian Imperial Porter

2011-05-19T09:48:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Bluegrass Brewing Company, Louisville, Kentucky
Alcohol Content: A mystery to me

Official Description from Brewer:
Another mystery to me

Wilk's Take:
I have become a slave to the Russian Imperial Porter. I am not sure if I can go back to drinking any other beers. That poses a problem of course because these porters tend to be quite heavy. BBC as they affectionately call themselves does not even list this particular beer on their website and there is nothing on the bottle that indicates how they wish to portray their beer. All of this is moot because it is one delicious beer.

RIP poured perfectly. The liquid in whole form in the glass gives the perfect coffee tone one expects in a porter. However, I had the wonderful fortune to catch a single drop in the light and it gave off an inviting caramel color that made me stop for a brief second. The aroma was beautiful. All the roasted malts were absolutely perfect. The coffee scent that is prevalent in other porters was not as distinct with RIP. The chocolatey undertone was definitely there.

I savored this beer. I couldn't get over how rich and full of flavor it was. The taste is not over powering. Roasted malts and bitterness gave way to a dark sweetness. The first drink is like making the mistake of eating baker's chocolate. It is so bitter, but it quickly melts away as you give the brew time to play with your taste buds.

Suggestion: Drink this beer. It is better than the Topless Wych from 3 Floyd's yesterday and trumps the YETI in terms of the mild draw. The flavor is magnificent.

Value: For $7.50 you get over 25 ounces. The alcohol content has to be over 7% and it's just an enjoyable beer. I think the value is there, but with BBC not really advertising this beer I couldn't tell you if it will be around any longer.

Michelle Factor: Michelle was going to skip trying this brew. In the end she acquiesced and put the glass under her nose. She detected a sweetness in the aroma but when she drank it I got the same facial expression. Maybe Michelle is more of a wheat beer kind of girl.

Beers of 3 Floyd's with Brett

2011-05-18T10:26:00.000-05:00

Alpha King - "3 Floyd’s flagship beer, Alpha King is a big American pale ale that pours a deep amber with a creamy head. This ale is brewed with Centennial, Cascade, and Warrior hops giving it an intense citrus aroma and a crisp hoppy finish."

Gumball Head - "An American Wheat Ale, Gumballhead is named in honor of the underground comic book cat created by Rob Syers. Initially a seasonal summer beer, now brewed year round due to demand. This beer helped redefine American Wheat Beers. Brewed with Amarillo Hops and a generous portion of American red wheat, Gumballhead has a complex hop aroma with notes of grapefruit, lemon zest, marmalade and peach. These flavors combined with low bitterness make Gumballhead a refreshing American Wheat Beer that doesn’t suck."

Topless Wych - "A strong, full-bodied Baltic Porter with coffee and chocolate notes."

I started the afternoon with the Alpha King. When you walk into a brewpub attached to the brewery you should probably start with the beer they identify as their flagship. So I willingly went with my gut and ordered one up and finally let a professional pour me a beer. As you can tell from the picture, it is very noticeable when you get a beer poured by someone who knows what he's doing. I'm not going to lie, 3 Floyd's hit the nail on the head when it comes to describing this brew. It is incredibly hoppy and does have that crisp citrus undertone. This was a much better experience than Pride and Joy. I gulped Alpha King down and, although I am not a big fan of hoppy beers, I could definitely see myself ordering it again and again.

My friend Brett has told me on more than one occasion that when push comes to shove he goes with Gumball Head. I put in my order and the pour was once again spot on. 3 Floyd's brewers or tasters can truly define a beer. The fruity and floral undertones to this wheat beer are as they describe. The only downfall with Gumball Head is that I could not differentiate it from other wheat beers I've tried. That's not to say Gumball isn't good, but to me, it's not special. Brett, if you read this, take no offense.

To cap off my experience I went to my favorite style of beer, a porter. I went with the Topless Wych because I was told it was better than the Hoppin' Frog Silk Porter I had the night before. The pour, again beautiful, was inviting to my eyes. The color was that of coffee and so was the aroma. The coffee smell was strong with this one, but the taste revealed nothing of it. Brett, who doesn't fancy porters, was really impressed with the taste of Topless Wych. There certainly is a rich, roasted malt flavor to this porter that is so easy on the palate. Unlike the YETI, you don't lose your taste buds with Topless Wych.

It certainly is an adventure dining with someone of opposite beer tastes. I avoid IPAs and wheat beers like the plague and shoot for stouts and porters. Brett goes the other way. We're going to Illiana Mayfest together. Should be a really great time and should lead to great beer discussion.

Silk Porter

2011-05-16T20:39:00.001-05:00

Brewer: Hoppin' Frog, Akron, Ohio
Alcohol Content: 6.2%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Dark, robust and silky-smooth, with many flavors of roasted, toasted and caramel malts. Porter is an old-world beer style, so popular that it helped start the industrial revolution. Taste the history."

Wilk's Take:
Hoppin' Frog won me over the first time with B.O.R.I.S. so in honor of American Craft Beer Week I went to them for a 22oz. bomber of their Silk Porter. I was hoping they could catch lightning in more than one bottle and took the opportunity to enjoy the next selection. Silk Porter poured beautifully and left little head. I'm starting to wonder if I'm leaving the glass tilted too long. On the pour into a second glass it left a perfect 1" head that dissipate as soon as it formed.

Silk Porter looks like weak coffee sitting lukewarm waiting for ice and cream. The liquid itself is not heavy even though the color is very dark. I found nothing out of the ordinary with the aroma of Silk Porter and can't really describe the smell outside of that of dark beer. When I tilted the glass to my lips the aroma remains prevalent. As the porter sat on my tongue the carbonation attacked my taste buds like a soda. This actually continues through the entire glass.

Silk Porter finishes with a very intense coffee undertone. The taste that lingers in your mouth after the beer is a fading coffee flavor and of course, beer. As far as flow goes, the beer is smooth and is a quick drink. For a dark beer you are not knocked out by any roasted malts and can finish a glass as quickly as you could a lighter lager.

Suggestion: Drink it. If you are a fan of porters you will not be disappointed with this one. Personally, it's going to take a considerable change of heart if I decide to buy another Silk Porter again.

Value: A 22oz bomber for around $8. You can probably get a porter that tastes as good for a better value if you look for it.

Michelle Factor: Not applicable. Regretfully I drank this beer away from Michelle, however, based on previous beers with a heavy coffee flavor I can only imagine she would dislike this one equally.

*****DISCLAIMER*****
I have been doing nothing but inhaling drywall dust all day and my sinuses are probably not in the right frame of mind to be critiquing beer. I poured this for my brother and he really enjoyed it. My attitude was mostly negative. I trust his judgment so have at it.

American Craft Beer Week

2011-05-16T20:39:00.000-05:00

I find it to be serendipitous that I started a beer blog in such close proximity to American Craft Beer Week. To think, this has been taking place for five years now and I am only becoming aware of the world of craft beer. For more about the event and to find events in your area celebrating this wonder please visit http://www.craftbeer.com/.

My schedule of events is as follows:

Monday - Hoppin' Frog's Silk Porter
Tuesday - The Beers of Three Floyd's with Brett
Wednesday - Bluegrass Brewing Company's Russian Imperial Porter
Thursday - Boulder Beer Company's Obovoid
Friday - Craft Beer Sampling at Wise Guy's. For more info http://www.wiseguysliquors.com/
Saturday - Illiana Mayfest at the Lake County Fairgrounds
Sunday - Recovery and preparation for my trip west

Heavy Seas Mutiny Fleet Below Decks

2011-05-15T21:53:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Clipper City Brewing Company, Baltimore, Maryland
Alcohol Content: 10%

Official Description from Brewer:
"The Mutiny Fleet was 'berthed' by Heavy Seas brewers who were discovered secretly brewing small batches of big beers to amuse the palates of their fellow crew. Since most secrets are best kept bottled up, we're bringing you these big flavor extrAARGHdinary brews in 22oz bombers. Embrace your inner pyrate and joining the Mutiny! An English style barleywine ale that can be enjoyed now or kept "Below Decks" as it becomes more complex as it ages."

Wilk's Take:
It has been said that your sense of smell has the best memory and that you can recall with complete accuracy the smells you experience. As I shoved my nose into Below Decks I was reminded of not only beer, but sweet, sweet Communion wine. To truly appreciate that, you have to understand that Serbian Orthodox Communion wine can be as sweet as it is bitter. The smell of Below Decks can be mistaken for a sweet red wine. Now, not knowing the process of brewing a barleywine beer I'm not sure if this effect is intended or not. All I can honestly say is that my beer smelled like Merlot. Does that even make sense? Is Merlot fruity?

Below Decks poured like your favorite cola out of a 2 liter bottle left for a week or so to get nice and flat after the party where you ran out of Jack Daniels. There was no head to be found anywhere and the "tiny bubbles, in the wine" showed very little carbonation. The sweet, sweet sensation was very appealing and I dove in. With an ABV of 10% I was expecting the best.

Below Decks is not heavy at all. It flows smoothly from the glass to your tongue and settles there almost like a Kool-Aid. To expand, when I drink Kool-Aid the sugar is very prominent and coats your tongue making each subsequent drink sweeter than the one before. The ale is very distinctly beer and the fruity notes are very conspicuous but enjoyable. You are not knocked around by the "wine" aspect of the brew.

It's hard to say what would happen to this beer if aged any longer than when I consumed it. The year on the bottle is 2010. I do not have the patience to store this beer and see what it would taste like in five years. Then again, if the bottle is available at my local liquor store for a reasonable price I'm doubting it's an ale that anyone would let settle in their beer collection for any length of time. I would probably reserve that honor for a bottle that cost roughly ten times as much.

Suggestion: For my first foray into barleywine style, I think Below Decks was a good choice. If you are an adventurous sort, pick it up for it will satisfy you and will not leave a lead weight in your gut.

Value: As with all the other beers this week, Below Decks went for roughly $6 for a 22oz bomber. For 10% ABV you'd be hard pressed for a better deal. Don't think it to be cheap tasting though. Below Decks certainly brings the quality you want in any ale.

Michelle Factor: If you have ever seen a kid's face after eating brussel sprouts you can imagine what Michelle looked like when she tried this beer. She lumped it with the YETI, a beer that she absolutely cannot stomach. I guess the sweet notes were not enough to save this one for her.

Super Cold

2011-05-14T11:43:00.000-05:00

Legally, I should not be downloading pictures from the Internet and using them here to promote my own self interest. I believe that's copyright infringement. I haven't consulted with my lawyers yet, but I'm playing it safe. Although, I am sure the reading public out there can satisfactorily picture a bottle or can of Coors Light.

The new brain child from MillerCoors introduced last week is the concept of "Super Cold." Now most of the press releases that have been posted on various websites fail to mention what temperature will allow the "Super Cold" bar to be activated. After about 2 minutes on Google it appears to be around 29 degrees.

Now, as an American style light lager, we know that Coors Light yeast ferments at the nifty temperature of 34 degrees. The mountains turn blue at this temperature. This is actually a myth. My refrigerator is set at 38 degrees and the mountains turn blue every time. The bottle is lying to me! It's telling me I'm enjoying the beer at the peak of freshness! BUT WAIT! If I put it in the freezer I can achieve the "Super Cold" status of 29 degrees!

In the press release, MillerCoors tells us that 70 percent of young beer drinkers put their beer in the freezer to enjoy it. What they fail to mention is that most young beer drinkers buy their beer warm because it is cheaper and then throw it in the freezer so that it gets colder faster. What about the beers we've forgotten in the freezer and they decide to get slushy?

Beware the marketing gimmick. Of course, I'm sure we're all smart enough to do that.

Pride and Joy - Mini Review

2011-05-13T18:18:00.000-05:00

Typically I would not spout off some nonsense, quick review but I'm opting to today. I had the pleasure of dining out for lunch today and enjoying a pint of Pride and Joy from 3 Floyd's. It was poured from the tap behind the bar. The beer smelled incredibly hoppy and finished with a taste of grapefruit. I'll be visiting 3 Floyd's next week and will probably learn more about this brew, but our initial introduction did not lead me to asking for this beer's number.

Kells Irish Style Lager

2011-05-13T18:15:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Rogue Brewery, Newport, Oregon
Alcohol Content: To be fair to the brewer, 12 degrees Plato

Official Description from Brewer:
"Irish Style Lager with a smooth mellow flavor and an apple crisp finish."

Wilk's Take:
I don't even know where to start with this beer. The bottle in front of me clearly reads "Kells Irish Style Lager" but when I go to the Rogue homepage I get a bottle labeled "Rogue Irish Style Lager" with the same picture of the withering Irish flutist wailing away on what looks to be a piccolo. What do I even call this? Where's the pithy name that defines the beer? For this exercise I suppose I'll just simply refer to it as lager.

The lager poured cleanly out of the bottle and the fresh scent of beer made it to my nose as soon as I popped the cap off. As you can tell from the picture the head on the pour was not very prominent. The color was a slightly darker shade of yellow and clearly we were heading down a path we've headed down before.

I'm going to veer off the topic here briefly. My apologies if we keep coming back to comparisons to Miller Lite. The reason I started the blog with that particular beer is that most of my adult life has been spent kicking back with it. I would venture to say that Miller Lite is the springboard from which all my knowledge of beer flows.

Back to the lager. It was a very smooth drink. I definitely went through the first glass much more quickly than I did some of my previously reviewed brews. The reason behind this is simple: the lager is not strong at all. 12 degrees Plato roughly translates to around 4.8% alcohol by volume. It is simply a notch above Miller Lite.

Rogue claims that the Irish Style Lager was brewed with the specific intent of floating Guinness on top of it. Now, I have no idea why they felt the need to improve upon Harp or Bass, but some people are full of themselves and think they can do it better. Now, no offense to the guys at Rogue, but a Black & Tan is already perfect the way it is and I would trust two beers from Ireland before I'd pour a Guinness over this.

When Rogue claims an apple crisp finish they are not blowing smoke. Do not expect a hint of apple flavor when you finish your first swallow. The drink is definitely crisp and can be enjoyed over and over.

Suggestion: If you're a fan of the American light style lagers, or even MGD, Budweiser, and Coors Banquet, you'll enjoy this lager (whatever the hell you want to call it). It drank very smooth and easy and 22 ounces disappeared pretty quickly.

Value: I paid about $6 for a 22 oz. bottle. The value isn't there. Knowing you can pay roughly that much for a 12 pack of Miller Lite and enjoy more beer over time, that's a better route. I wouldn't consider this so much a craft brew so to pay $6 seems silly to me.

Michelle Factor: "It tastes too bitter." Also understand that Miller Lite is Michelle's springboard and she goes to that well often as well. Don't believe her in her bitter analysis, the lager is smooth and crisp.

PranQster

2011-05-10T21:18:00.000-05:00

Brewer: North Coast Brewing Company, Fort Bragg, California
Alcohol Content: 7.6%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Belgian Ales represent the height of the brewers' art. Sophisticated brewing techniques, yeast blends and unique flavoring elements have elevated the beers of Belgium to the status enjoyed by wine in other countries.

PranQster follows in this tradition using a mixed culture of antique yeast strains that produce a floral nose, a full fruity flavor and a clean finish."

Wilk's Take:

I was first introduced to PranQster at the 2011 Blue Chip Brewfest in the pictured pint glass poured precariously to the blue 4 ounce line. To be perfectly frank, I do not remember the taste of the sample oh so many weeks ago. It took reviewing the pamphlet I received at the fest to even remember that I tried it there. The reason I picked it off the shelf was the 750 mL bottle and the cork stopper entwined in a steel cage a la champagne.

PranQster poured nicely, but next time I'll have to have the camera more ready when I pour. The picture above gives the ale more credit than it deserves. The original pour left a thick head that slowly faded away before I could snap the picture. When looking at the brew in the glass I was taken back to my youth. If you've ever been to a cider mill, you've probably encountered freshly produced apple cider. That's the look of PranQster. Do not confuse this with Mott's Apple Juice. There is no transparency in the glass. The beer is thick and almost cloudy.

If PranQster looks like cider, it smells and tastes like it too. The initial smell was really more of a sour apple Jolly Rancher. How could that be? I haven't had Zima in 10 years! I digress. The first sip yielded the taste of a sourer, less satisfying cider beer. Imagine Woodchuck without the sweet undertone. But, it was damn tasty. I almost confused the beer for a more potent American style light lager (more on this later) but the sour cider taste eventually gave way to a sweet finish. Not too sweet however, so don't think you're getting sugar water here.

With the cork as the main top of the beer, you really can't reseal the bottle for later consumption, unless you drink wine and have a cork handy. I am certainly glad I did not. While I was drinking the first glass I let the bottle sit on the counter and let the brew get warmer. The second glass poured as equally as the first, but the flavor was much more intense than in the first glass. I wasn't entirely sold while drinking the first pour, but the second definitely sold me on PranQster.

Suggestion: PranQster is a good drink. It isn't very heavy but it's not entirely light either. The brew is a great balance with intense flavor as the ambiance invades the bottle. As with ales, the closer to room temperature, the better the beer.

Value: $6 for a 750 mL bottle. You can get two bottles of Boone's Farm at that price but you couldn't enjoy drinking them as much. After drinking PranQster you are in a good place. Rumor is you can also get a four pack, just not sure of the price. For $6, pony up the greenbacks and enjoy.

Michelle factor: Michelle let this beer settle in her mouth before swallowing this time. In the end she likened PranQster to a stronger Miller Lite (see I told you I'd mention American light style lager).

How well do you know your beer?

2011-05-09T07:21:00.000-05:00

If you're like me, you enjoy a cold beer on a hot day. Whether on the golf course, at a ball game, or after you spent eight hours toiling away at your landscaping you want to open the fridge, grab a bottle and hear that familiar "pfft" after cracking the cap and taking in that refreshment.

Beer consumption really is that simple. I know that I defy this blog's very existence by returning to the fact that all most people want to do is enjoy a beverage. When I dove into this I really had no idea how vast the world of beer is, and if you humor me, we can explore this world together and hopefully enjoy these brews even moreso than before.

Having said all that, there are only two kinds of beer in the world: Ale and Lager. Basically you can compare the fermentation of yeast to sex, some like to be on top while others like to be on bottom. This applies to the position of the yeast in the vessel and the temperature at which the fermentation usually takes place.

Ales like to be on top. The yeast ferments near the top of the vessel and at high temperatures, anywhere from 60 - 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Lagers like to be on bottom. This results in fermentation occurring near the 35 degree mark.

Now, when you hear the commercial mention frost-brewed, you can believe it. Coors Light, Bud Light, and Miller Lite are all American style light lagers. With fermentation occurring at such a low temperature they can all lay claim to the frost-brewed fact. And the next time you hear people drinking Guinness warm, don't be in shock. As an Irish Dry Stout Ale, the fermentation occurred at a higher temperature and the beer is probably at its happiest closer to room temperature than you may think.

TNT

2011-05-07T23:38:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Left Hand Brewing Company, Longmont, Colorado
Alcohol Content: 7.9%

Official Description from Brewer:
"I’m from the Chinese era Qing. Big batch of bad-ass brew, I will make you sing. Women on the left, men on my right. Ain’t got no corn, ain’t got no rice. I’m just malty nice. ‘Cause I’m TNT. Sometimes you’re not in the mood for what everyone else is having."

Wilk's Take:
This limited release from Left Hand Brewing drew my attention on the shelf with the words, "With Lapsang Souchong Tea." According to Adagio.com, Lapsang Souchong is a black tea from China with a "famously smoky aroma and flavor." Well, my curiosity got the better of me and I was roped into buying a Weizen, which is actually a beer I tend to dislike.

The pour flowed like you would expect an ice tea to pour. As the liquid entered the glass, you are teased with a Guinness sensation as the head of the beer looks as if it is about to cascade down the glass. This is short lived as the head continues to grow and grow until you get nearly three inches of foam at the top of the glass. Not to worry, it dissipates in due time and you can ready yourself for consumption.

I held the beer under my nose for quite sometime, drawing the aroma over and over and trying to determine how to describe the scent. At first, I was reminded of every other wheat beer I've ever encountered. The wheat is almost sweet to the senses and as you explore further you can detect a hint of floral undertones, but surprisingly, the smokiness is not in the smell.

As the first sip entered my mouth all I could think of was smoked brisket. The smoke was so powerful and overwhelming that I thought I just finished a cigarette. Any indication that this was a wheat beer soon disappeared and all that your left with is the sensation of having spent a couple hours around a bonfire. I'm going to digress here and give credit to the bonfire reference to Michelle. She mentioned it and it made perfect sense.

Since this is my first foray into critiquing much of anything I will admit that I cheated a little bit with TNT. I visited Beer Advocate and decided to see what others were saying about the beer before I tasted it. On the advice of one of the posters I let the beer warm to room temperature. I was promised a different tasting brew if I were patient enough. This poster was right on the money and did not disappoint. The smoke lifted, in a manner of speaking, and the wheat beer actually was hidden underneath. However, the brewer makes specific mention on the bottle to keep the brew refrigerated, so it isn't Left Hand's intention to let that smokiness lift.

Suggestion: I would not venture down the black tea path with TNT. The sweetness you would almost expect to find in a wheat beer is totally removed here and all you are left with are charred embers somehow captured in liquid form. After the YETI yesterday and its roasted malt, TNT's promise of roasted malt is far short.

Value: The 22oz bomber went for about $9. The markup is mostly there because it is a limited release beer. As you can imagine, I do not see the value for the finished product. There may be a good reason Left Hand decides to release this beer on a limited basis but I can't really think of one.

Michelle Factor: No grimace this time, but definitely a look of interest. The smokiness was evident right away and Michelle could taste the tea before I could. Granted, the smokiness really is the taste of the tea based on the tea description so I suppose I tasted it right away as well. It's her favorite beer by far, but considering she said she wouldn't run out and buy it or ever really get a taste for it, that's not saying much.

YETI Imperial Stout

2011-05-06T21:32:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Great Divide Brewing Company, Denver, Colorado
Alcohol Content: 9.5%

Official Description from Brewer:
"YETI Imperial Stout is an onslaught of the senses. It starts with big, roasty malt flavor that gives way to rich caramel and toffee notes. YETI gets its bold hop character from an enormous quantity of American hops. It weighs in at a hefty 75 IBUs."

Wilk's Take:
As I tilted the bottle to fill my favorite pint glass I was reminded of synthetic motor oil spilling out of my car after 15,000 miles. After I filled the glass I snapped the picture just to capture the perfect 3/4" head that finished the pour. For a stout, you get the dark liquid you would expect. Unusually, when held to the light I caught a hint of an amber hue that I never noticed in a stout before. With that, I was ready to enjoy my dessert beer.

When you bring the glass to your lips you catch a whiff of the caramel and toffee notes the brewer insists is in the beer. The smell is distinct and worth mentioning because it resonates continuously from the first sip to the last gulp. This invites you to keep on keeping on and barrel through what you expect to be a rich beer. Surprisingly, YETI is a smoother drink than the alcohol content suggests. I tend to find that heavier beers are almost a meal and insist on smaller drinks than say (I'll go there) a Miller Lite. This beer flowed as well as a Guinness, in that the darkness of the beer is deceiving to its actual consistency.

The toffee notes are more prevalent than the caramel and the roasty malt flavor is so bold that it can at times drown out the notes the brewer intended to display. The rich flavor definitely leaves a finish in your mouth that you can't escape, not that you want to, but you'd be hard pressed to try and taste anything else after drinking it. Great Divide suggests pairing the beer with grilled steak, strong cheese, or chocolate. I think I'd skip the steak because as my favorite food I would hate to lose the flavor of the steak in the brew. I can see the strong cheese because the stout might not over power it. Chocolate, well, if you are that adventurous, I'd go with dark chocolate.

YETI was a recommendation from my brother so I gave it the old college try. I probably would go back to the well for this over and over as it did not disappoint. However, as mentioned above, my night would end with this beer.

Suggestion: If you have YETI available, go and get it. It is certainly on par with other stouts and Great Divide offers YETI in Espresso Oak Aged, Chocolate Oak Aged, and Oak Aged. Buyer beware though, if you don't like roasted anything, avoid at all costs.

Value: I purchased a 22 oz bottle for around $8. After finishing the bottle I feel I certainly got my money's worth. Based on the alcohol content a 22 oz bottle could certainly relax you after a long day of work without having to mix a cocktail to garner the same effect.

Michelle Factor: I joked with Michelle the other day that I should take pictures of her face after she tried every beer. For this particular picture imagine she just smelled a freshly run over skunk. I don't even know if that analogy truly captures the grimace that was on her face. "It tastes like coffee!" For a non beer drinker this is a no-no.

Cinco de Mayo = La Cerveza Mas Fina, Corona

2011-05-05T21:45:00.000-05:00

Brewer: Grupo Modelo
Alcohol Content: 4.6%

Official Description from Brewer:
"The unmistakable color. The one-of-a-kind taste. The unparalleled flavor of relaxation. All in one of the most recognizable bottles in the world."

This tells us nothing of the beer or the process in which it's brewed. Much like MillerCoors, the Grupo Modelo marketing team is earning their paychecks.

Wilk's Take:
Beer with a citrus-y fruit topping. The lime wedge in a bottle of Corona is as familiar as the label-less bottle itself. Of course, on this particular occasion I tried the beer without the flavor assist. It was, as I expected, really no different. Corona didn't provide that satisfaction with the first drink that I've discovered with other beers, there was definitively no "Aaaaaaah" afterwards.

The clear bottle is an anomaly in the world of beer. Most drinkers agree that light is a bad thing for a finished brew and brown is preferred, although green is disdainfully accepted. If you want to believe the Corona marketing department, the clear glass is because the quality of beer is so good, there is nothing to hide. Of course, the look of a Corona is that of any pilsner, yellow.

The taste of Corona entails that of North American pilsners, very light and very distinctly beer (that it tastes amazingly like Miller Lite). The lime flavor provided by the wedge is primarily contained in the lime fruit that maintains itself on the bottle opening after you stuff it down into the liquid itself. I even gave the bottle the traditional upside turn to get the lime to the bottom and back only to yield minimal results.

I must admit though, I do fancy Corona when the weather gets warmer. It does provide a feeling of the beach even if you are far from it. Of course, my brain could be conditioned to think that based on the successful marketing campaign they've been dishing out for years or my affinity for Miller Lite carries over to Corona because they taste eerily similar. We may never know for sure.

Suggestion: If it's fajita night and a margarita doesn't sound appetizing, go ahead and order a Corona and keep up with the Mexican theme. Today is Cinco de Mayo, that's really the only reason I ordered one up. Otherwise, feel free to skip America's largest imported beer, because you're paying a premium when it isn't necessary.

Value: I paid $5 for a bottle of Corona at a casual dining establishment tonight because it is an import. Don't ever do that. Definitely not worth $5 a bottle especially since it was $2.50 pint night for domestics. A case of 12 goes for around $10 at the grocery. Not bad, but only buy it if you're having Mexican food and you're too cheap to shell out the money for tequila.

Michelle Factor: "So Michelle, what do you think of Corona?" "It tastes like Miller Lite." "Does the lime help at all?" "No." Enough said.

Miller Lite, the old standby

2011-05-04T22:24:00.000-05:00

Brewer: MillerCoors
Alcohol Content: 4.2%

Official Description from Brewer:
"Our flagship brand, Miller Lite, is the great tasting, less filling beer that defined the American light beer category in 1975. Today, Miller Lite is the ultimate light beer, known for its inherent quality of great taste."

Wilk's Take:
Ah Miller Lite, the victim of many a Notre Dame tailgate, White Sox game, and various barbecues and parties around the Midwest, the beer that competes with Bud Light for the love and affection of the masses. This is the beer that reminds me of what I always envisioned beer drinking to be. It brings me back to the days of smelling a beer from the opening of a pull tabbed Lowenbrau or Stroh's that my uncles would let me sip from. This is a quintessential beer for me. This is the American light-style lager that my friends would drink while debating football, politics, or women. To me, this is the beer I think about when someone asks me if I want to grab a beer.

Crisp. That's the first word I think about when I take a sip of an ice cold Miller Lite. There is a certain crispness to it right before the bitterness hits your tongue. It's like the sensation of an under sweetened lemonade. The carbonation, a little heavy if you drink too quickly, tickles the throat as you take that first swallow. And the finish, well, for an average beer it's an average finish. You can't escape the fact that you just had a sip of beer and your breath will stink of it for several minutes.

Having said all the beautiful things about Miller Lite above, let's call it what it really is, water with alcohol content. I mean, I'll drink the stuff without hesitation but it really is the average Joe's beer. Couple it with Bud Light or Coors Light and you really won't know the difference. Sure, the die-hards will tell you out there that they know, but taste tests (at least the one I witnessed in a great documentary entitled "Beer Wars") beg to differ with you.

All American light style beers pour the same and look the same in the glass. The only variation is what hue of yellow emanates. Miller Lite, poured lovingly into a pint glass, still looks like urine. That's probably why a vast majority of people order Miller Lite in bottle or can form and rarely, if ever take it from the tap. No one wants to be reminded that what they are drinking vaguely resembles the sample they had to give for their drug test.

Suggestion: Drink it, don't drink it, it's entirely up to you. Beer drinkers know what to expect when it comes to drinking a Miller Lite. If you prefer much bigger brother Bud Light, avoid Miller or buy it when it's on sale and the company you keep enjoys it.

Value: Still sells for around $12 for a 24 pack of bottles when on sale. Most beer specials at your local bar include Miller Lite for $3.50 a 22 oz glass or even $2 a bottle. Good for a cheap night of drinking and when you have to buy beer in massive quantities.

Michelle factor: Michelle has been known to take down a Miller Lite on occasion. Of course, a Miller Lite means one and done. As a non-beer drinker, Michelle would agree that Miller Lite is one of the reasons why she doesn't like beer.

For Starters...

2011-05-04T21:45:00.000-05:00

For a little over two months now I have experienced unemployment. Not entirely bad. I get to sleep as long as the dogs will let me, keep the house in a perpetual state of cleanliness, and get to experiment with cooking dinner for my wife Michelle. The drawbacks include dogs that constantly require my attention because they've been spoiled by it, an unhealthy obsession with video card games, and boredom.

So I've embarked on an endeavor that millions have taken before me, I've started a blog. Not just any blog mind you, a blog that explores the world of water, yeast, hops, and grain. Yes, as you have surmised from the title of this blog, I will be talking about beer.

My brother Adrian introduced me to Beer Geeks not so long ago. If you live in Northwest Indiana and have not gone I suggest you try it. The atmosphere is great and the exposure to new beers is phenomenal. You can sample any of the rotating 20 beers on tap and decide where you want the night to take you.

On my most recent visit to Beer Geeks I had the pleasure of ordering a bottle of Hoppin' Frog's B.O.R.I.S., an oatmeal stout that is aged in oak whiskey barrels. It was by far the best beer I ever had in my life. It took me an hour and a half to drink a 22 oz. bottle and I had to lean on my brother to finish 10 oz. of it. This beer is what led me to the idea of this blog. If this is the best beer I ever had, what else have I been missing!

I am fortunate to live close to a liquor store that can accommodate the task of beer exploration. Wise Guys has the old standbys as well as the craft brews that have been slowly chipping away at the beer market share. The popularity of micro brews has created a new brand of beer drinkers in the 21st century and those with discerning palates are shelling out their hard earned cash to enjoy brands not called Miller or Busch. Of course, the old standbys still go great with wings, pizza, and brats. Craft brews will quickly spoil you though, so proceed with caution.

Do not come to my blog looking for the most thorough analysis of beer that it is no longer enjoyable to simply imbibe a pint. I am a rookie at this and simply offering my own views of some beers that may not be easy to find or even known to you. Just for kicks, I'll visit some of the beers that I've enjoyed over the years that are available at your favorite grocery store, convenience store, or gas station.

Feel free to offer suggestions on beer, stories of beer consumption, and your favorite pint!