Somehow, I’m still finishing up my beer exchange beers. This brew is not your typical winter beer. Which is timely, since last week’s weather was so mild. New Belgium’s Citradelic has a unique sweetness to it without losing the bitter hop flavors throughout. This brew is good for any season – pick up a six pack and try it out!
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I’m behind. Apparently I’m so well known for enjoying beer and booze that everyone decided to get me just that for Christmas. Not that I’m complaining – I have at least two cases of beer that are still waiting to be cracked open. I finally got to opening my winter exchange box and I’m starting to pick my favorites. Off to our first brew – the Shiner Winter Cheers. Shiner Winter Cheers is known as a class winter brew with powerful fruity notes. Here we go…cheers!
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Alright kids; number two from my beer trade is a black IPA. Black IPA sounds odd to many people. What it means is that it is a beer that keeps the “integrity” of an IPA, but also has the malty profile of a dark beer. Black IPAs come in many different shapes, sizes, and flavors. For me, the key to a quality black IPA is having the hop-forward flavor without losing the dark color of the beer and the sweet malt flavor of a dark beer. Some will go too many hops or too little hops. The key is balance (kind of ironic in an IPA). Imperial Oak Brewing Company offers us a black IPA weighing in at 90 IBUs (pretty average for an IPA). Anyway, here’s the flavors!
ABV:9%
Tasting Notes:
Appearance: Black, nearly opaque with tan head
Aroma: Hops and biscuity
Taste: Roasted malts in the front – mixture of coffee and bitter chocolate, followed by strong hop flavor. Hop bitterness holds throughout, balanced by the roasted malt flavor. Slight notes of caramel in the back end.
Mouthfeel: Smooth and creamy mouthfeel.
Overall: Definitely an above average black IPA. The flavors are well thought-out and keep me wanting more after each sip. Has the definite profile of an IPA with the roasted malty flavor typically coming from such a dark beer.
Endless Rating: 4.25/5 Suds
Endless Pairings:
Cheese: Buttermilk Blue with crustini, grapes, and dried apricot
Appetizer: Buffalo Wings
Entree: Grilled pork chop with spinach and acorn squash
Dessert: Chocolate cake
Cigar: CAO Sol
Cocktails, beer, wine, does it really get any better? The holiday season brought us several additional pounds, great food, and obviously tons of booze. BUT, you may have missed out on one of the best parts of the holidays: the Coquito. Coined as “Puerto Rican Egg Nog,” the Coquito brings Christmas flavors to the palate in addition to sweet flavors of coconut and rum. Sounds awful, I know.
I jealously overheard a co-worker saying, “they should fill Nalgene bottles of that shit” and was instantly intrigued. Turns out it was some kind of amazing concoction of coconut, rum, cream and spices. Some use egg, others do not. I spent the rest of my day dreaming of booze and Christmas. When I come home to the wife, she has a small bottle of “some kind of Puerto Rican drink.” BOOM. Santa WAS good to me! Unfortunately, the bottle went quickly and I now need a recipe. Not the kind of recipe you find online. I want a genuine Puerto Rican recipe with all the secrets in it. Anyway, you may still be wondering what it tastes like.
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Anchor Brewing Company continues their 42 year-old tradition every Christmas season by releasing their seasonal Christmas ale. While the name does not change, the recipe and illustration does. The recipe is kept secret, so maybe their fooling all of us, but from what I can tell, there is a change in recipes throughout the years. I’ve been saving one every year for the past four years. Next year, I’ll taste each year and let you know. Until then…
ABV: 6.5%
Tasting Notes
Appearance: Black in color, but is not opaque. When held up to the light, you can barely see through it. Head is tan.
Aroma: Sweet smells of maple, fig, and cherry in addition to the scents of bread.
Taste: SWEET. Tastes of maple and roasted malts come first, followed by a chocolate flavor. Fruity flavor of years past is there, but not as strong. Winter spices are very subtle in this one – clove, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Mouthfeel: Creamy and smooth throughout – goes down easy.
Overall: Bought a case for my exchange, then bought a 12 pack for myself. This is a great dessert beer without going too heavy. This year’s is very balanced and has a great flavor that does remind you of Christmas.
Endless Rating: 4.3333/5 Candy Canes
Endless Pairings:
Cheese: Fig goat cheese with rusted nuts, dried fruit, and crustini
Appetizer: Roasted Garlic Chicken Satay
Entree: Roasted pork loin over apples and sweet potatoes with sauteed broccolini
Dessert: Chocolate pear panettone
Cigar: Nat Sherman Timeless Dominican
YOWZA! Apparently the folks at Flying dog take all of their series very seriously. The heat series seeks to provide a brew with serious heat to it without destroying the taste of the beer. Some “hot” or spicy beers provide the heat that is promised, but the flavor of actual beer is gone. These beers typically end up in our chili. However, this particular brew provides the heat that is promised while also giving the sweet and refreshing taste of a peach IPA. You will break a sweat while drinking this refreshing brew – weird…right? Good sipping beer and makes for great conversation at a party.
Tasting Notes
Appearance: Light golden with good carbonation. Light head with off-white color.
Aroma: Sweet, sweet peaches with a hint of vanilla and very subtle hop aroma.
Mouthfeel: Crisp and light – typical feel of an IPA.
Taste: First, a sweet taste of straight-up peach juice with just enough of a hoppy taste to let you know that it is an IPA. Immediately following the first sip as the suds go down, heat hits the back of your throat. The heat lingers throughout the entire drink, but the sweet peach flavor continues with every sip.
Overall: The heat of the beer is not as overwhelming as a typical spicy beer – it is much more balanced and does not burn your tongue as some hot sauces do. The heat stays with you throughout the drink, but it does not take away from the peach flavor of the overall brew. You’l break a sweat, but the other flavors keep you wanting more!
ES Rating: 4/5 suds
Endless Pairings:
Cheese: Sweet Honey Goat Cheese with Blueberry Preserves
Appetizer: Bavarian Pretzel with Cheese Sauce
Entree: Grilled Sirloin with Green Beans and Twice Baked Potato
Dessert: Blueberry & Peach Cobbler served with Vanilla Ice Cream
Cigar: Nat Sherman Timeless
ABV: 4.4 %
The brewery that brings us the Curious Traveler has unearthed new shandy ground with their Forbidden Traveler Apple Ale. Traveler aims to create a crisp wheat ale brewed with real apple. Contrary to its hard cider counterparts, the Forbidden Traveler looks to bring beer back into apple cider. The suds bring about mixed reviews. But no worries, we’re here to set it straight.
Flavor Profile:
Appearance: Hazy yellow with a bit of an orange hue.
Aroma: Sweet apple cider with wheat malt scents and even a little bit of lemon and spice.
Taste: Apple flavor up front and throughout. A mix between apple cider and apple juice. Wheat malts come through from beginning to end, but are more subtle than the apple. While the apple stands out, the beer flavors are there.
Mouthfeel: Crisp and clean with a smooth finish. Lingering sweet aftertaste.
Overall: If you drink this expecting the flavor of a hard cider, you are going to be disappointed. If you drink it expecting the flavor of a wheat beer, you won’t get it. This is not for the faint-hearted, but for the adventurists out there. While the brew has a low ABV, the sweet apple flavor is in your face with a challenge to open up your mind to a new kind of beer – apple beer!
Endless Rating: 3 out of 5 suds
Endless Pairings:
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