Beers and Bears

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.

Kells Irish Style Lager

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.