The Czar - Avery Brewing Company

Hello Comrades!

You're probably wondering why I called you "comrades". Well, that's easy. I'm drinking The Czar from Avery Brewing Company out of Boulder Colorado. What's the Czar? The Czar is an 10.57% abv Imperial Stout, part of their Dictator Series. This particular bottle is from batch no. 10, November 2011. I've had this beer years ago and honestly, don't remember much about it. So I don't know about you, but I'm ready to do some Friday night drinking. Let me get this poured and I'll give you my thoughts on The Czar.

Comrades! The Czar pours out pretty dark but surprisingly not pitch black for a stout. There's about a finger of a beige head that really doesn't stick around very long. The retention time is pretty minimal and the lacing left behind is almost non-existent. Sort of surprising. There are some mahogany hues around the bottom of the glass but that's about it. This looks like a fairly standard stout, albeit not pitch black as night. Let's get the nose on the Czar.

Wow, first thing I get is a really sugary, dark fruit. Like some raisins that have been candied. The label says this is brewed with some candied currants and frankly, that's got to be where this is coming from. Really nice to get that immediately. There's a really nice caramel sweetness that follows behind this dark fruit that really makes things pop. I get some brown sugar sweetness. Again, playing perfectly off the currants and the caramel. Not a lot of roast up front which is fine. I'm really digging this initial blast of dark fruits, berries and sweetness. There's a rum-like alcohol presence here that really lends itself to what's going on. It's not overpowering which I'm guessing it might be fresh, but it's definitely letting you know it's lurking. Really just a nice smelling Imperial Stout. I'm ready. Let's drink!

Right up front, that caramel sweetness hits you. Some vanilla, a bit of what I'd maybe classify as a milk chocolate is present. The alcohol I was getting on the nose definitely shows up in the middle of this one. Kind of pushing the sweetness through the entire palate. Back end of this beer you get those currants, lots of them. That's paired up nicely with the roast that I was expecting but didn't pick up on the smell. Really roasty on the back end and in the back of the throat. You get a little bit of an alcohol prickle on the back end as well. For being about 2 years old, this beer still packs a bit of a punch with that alcohol. It's enjoyable though, not overpowering whatsoever. It definitely warms a bit as it makes it's way down the chest.

As I let it warm a bit more, the sweetness comes out even more. The alcohol definitely gets a little more noticeable as well. The currants are still present and definitely come out more as the beer warms. This one just gets better and better. No complaints here.

So overall, The Czar is just fantastic. Kind of reminds me a little bit of Black Butte XXV but on a lesser level. Everything in this beer co-exists in perfect harmony. Two years on the shelf definitely made this beer better. I may go buy more of these if they have any left. I paid just over $7 for the bomber and I'd say this is easily worth $12 or so. Do yourself a favor, pick up The Czar if you can get it. Stash it away for a bit. If you can find one like I did with age on it, grab it immediately and get drinking. You'll definitely be glad you did.

Rating: A

Here is a video of my wife trying The Czar.

Deschutes Brewery - The Abyss (2012 Reserve)

Happy New Year! Been a few weeks since my last review. December is always a busy month here. Lots of work, important dates, holidays, etc. Just chaos!

I'm back now though, back tonight with my final 2013 Beer of the Month beer. It's a big one too. The beer is a big one... get your minds out of the gutters!

Tonight I'm drinking The Abyss from Deschutes Brewery. This isn't the new Abyss, oh no. This is the 2012 edition! I've had this stashed away for a year, just waiting for the chance to crack it open and get my mind blown by such an epic beer. I had The Abyss a couple years ago and was completely blown away by this, fresh. But now, with a year of age in our pockets, I think this is going to be amazing.

For those that don't know The Abyss, it's an absolute beast. The 2012 reserve is 11% abv with a best AFTER date of 11/1/13. Brewed with black strap molasses, licorice, with cherry bark and vanilla added, that wasn't enough. 6% of this is aged in Oak bourbon barrels. 11% is aged in Oak barrels. And lastly, 11% is aged in oak wine barrels. So yeah, barrel aged and blended... not much better than that. So now that you've been properly introduced to the Abyss, let's get it poured and I'll give you my thoughts.

The Abyss pours out completely pitch black. No light shines through the Abyss. In fact, I think this devours the light. I'm pretty sure it's getting darker in here just with this beer poured sitting on my desk. There's about a finger of a fluffy mocha colored head. Very rocky and thick. Dissipates pretty quickly and leaves behind a very sticky lacing. An awesome looking beer and honestly, anything less doesn't deserve to be called The Abyss. Let's get the nose.

HUGE chocolate covered raisins. HUGE molasses. The black strap molasses cannot be missed in this beer. HUGE oak. A slight hint of that cherry bark. Very woody smelling. Big vanilla sweetness. Lots of dark fruits that play so well with the dark chocolate notes in this beer. There's a really nice sweet bourbon coming through that gives off the slightest hint of alcohol. For being aged a year now, the alcohol that you'd get fresh is almost gone. This is easily one of the best smelling beers I've ever had put in front of me. I'm almost drooling here so if you'll excuse me, I'm going to do some drinking.... and clean up a little.

HO-LEE-SHIT! Absolutely incredible. Right away you get those chocolate covered raisins. Lots of them. That is immediately pushed aside by incredibly bitter dark chocolate, espresso like bitterness runs wild here. Running wild like fucking Hulkamania right now! Along the sides you get the barrel characters. Lots of woody, oak flavors. Earthy like the cherry bark would be expected to be. Back end of this you get more of the oak barrel, along with some subtle vanilla sweetness, a hint of a good tobacco, maybe even some leather. Just an absolute beast of a beer. The 11% is no where to be found here. The year of aging has done this beer wonders! As I let it warm up a bit more I get more of the cherry and even notice a bit more of that Oak Wine barrel. It definitely gives off more of a sweeter fruit, maybe even a slight berry character without the tartness. Really awesome.

So overall, The Abyss from Deschutes is nothing short of incredible, probably perfect. This is an absolute must have for any beer geek, especially one who likes stouts and what barrel aging can do for a beer, or how blending the beer can set everything off to a whole new level of awesome. Honestly, I can't do this beer justice. Do yourself a favor, pick up the 2013 reserve and stash it until after the date on the bottle. You'll be glad you did.

Rating: A+

Ninkasi Brewing Company - Maiden The Shade

Welcome back everyone! Been a couple weeks since I blogged about beer so I figured tonight I'd change that. I'm drinking a beer tonight that I only bought because the font on the label is that of Iron Maiden, one of my favorite bands. Nothing wrong with that, right? I didn't think so.

So what am I drinking? Well, if you skipped the blog title, I'm drinking a special release from Ninkasi. I'm drinking their Maiden The Shade. This is a 6.8% abv "Specialty Ale" which from what I can gather, is really just an American IPA. I'm cool with that. Who doesn't love a good IPA? So without further distractions, let's get this one poured and I'll try to make sense and give you my thoughts on Maiden The Shade.

Maiden pours out a really striking golden color. Very radiant gold. This one is pretty hazy, can't really see through the glass. There's about a half finger of a bright white head with a lot of tiny white bubbles. The head doesn't stick around very long but leaves behind a fairly decent lacing. There's a bit of sediment in the glass which is no doubt adding to the haze factor we've got going on. Overall, this is a really nice looking beer. Let's get the nose.

First thing I get is some ripe peach, ripe mango like fruits. There's a sweetness here that I wouldn't normally expect from an IPA. Reminds me a lot of honey actually. It definitely cuts the bitter hope aroma you'd usually pick up from an American IPA. There's a little bit of a floral bitterness coming through but this beer is dominated by those peaches, the mango and definitely what I can only describe as honey. Very sweet smelling, not very bitter on the nose. This has me intrigued. Let's see how the Maiden tastes.

Right away, you get the IPA bitterness that's pretty much a guarantee in an American IPA. That carries across the palate from start to finish paving the way for that sweetness I got on the nose. Honey sweetness and some very trace amounts of peach. Sides of the palate you get some subtle sweetness, more of the peach. I get zero citrus on this beer. They used 7 different hops in this but nothing stands out in the way of hops. Just a big blast of bitterness. Maybe Cascade, sorta reminiscent of Sierra Nevada. Maiden finishes really dry leaving a lot of that hop bitterness lingering in it's wake. Sort of destroying anything else that I'd hope was going on.

So overall, Maiden The Shade isn't bad but I don't think it's anything incredible. I would have liked to get something else besides just hop bitterness here. While the beer smells pretty nice and looks amazing, the flavors on this just do nothing for me because really, they're not there for the most part. I think this could be good, maybe more fresh than what I"m drinking. Not sure on the age of this one. It's worth a shot to check out. I know a lot of hop heads would genuinely enjoy this. I'm just left wanting more.

Rating: C+

Ninkasi Brewing Company - Sleigh'r

Hey everyone! Been a long time since I posted a beer blog. Hell, it's been over a month! Quite a bit has gone on. Been real sick for all of November. Still not out of the woods. Also, just haven't been in the mood to blog. Kind of how things go I guess. The "need" to post a blog... sort of kills things sometimes.

But fear not, I'm back tonight with my November BOTM. That's right, I haven't forgotten about this. Tonight I'm drinking the winter seasonal from Ninkasi Brewing Company. Yep, I'm drinking Sleigh'r! Clearly a take on the band SLAYER (one of my personal favorites) and Santa's Sleigh.

This is a 7.2% Dark Double Alt Ale which I think pretty much means, winter warmer. I've been into these quite a bit this winter so I'm looking forward to this one. Hell, I've had it for a month now and just haven't had a chance to crack it open. So without any further delay, let's pop the top and I'll give you my thoughts on SLEIGH'R!!!

The Sleigh'r pours out a really dark mahogany to ruby red when held up to the light. Really nice color on this one. There's about a half finger of a frothy white head, probably not really white but it's not brown or even beige. The head doesn't stick around long, much like Santa... eating his cookies and vanishing. Son of a bitch... oh, sorry. Got side-tracked. This beer looks pretty nice. Let's get the nose.

I'm immediately hit with some winter spices. Nutmeg, a little bit of cinnamon, a little clove, maybe even a hint of coriander. Some sweet caramel and maybe the slightest touch of molasses.  There's some dark fruits here, namely some cherry, even a bit of an apple character. Those are playing off the nutmeg and clove pretty nicely. I'm picking up a bit of banana as well. Maybe a subtle hint of banana bread. This definitely has some hints of sugar cookie. Again, something Santa would definitely enjoy... if he wasn't skipping over my house... ugh, I did it again. Sorry. Sleigh'r smells pretty good, maybe a little more subtle than some of the other winter warmers I've had recently.

Interesting flavors up front on this one. I'm picking up a lot of the cherry and dark fruits, the hint of apple right up front. Sides of the mouth you get the sweetness from the caramel and the richness of the molasses. Middle of the mouth and back end of this beer you get the spices but they are very subtle. You get a nice smack of pine/spruce that I wasn't really getting on the nose. This beer finishes pretty dry and the pine lingers for a while. There's some of the nutmeg and coriander dancing around in the back as well. I'm picking up some alcohol as well, a bit of a rum perhaps. It's not overpowering but I'm definitely picking it up.

So overall, this is pretty good. For a winter type of beer I think it hits all the right notes that one would expect from a winter ale but nothing really jumps out and grabs you. I'd say it's a bit more balanced than a lot of the winter warmers that end up being pine bombs. I like those a lot too. I think this could use a little more malt sweetness, maybe some caramel to sort of cut the back end of this to cut the bitterness. But besides that, I like this and I'd say it's worth checking out, if only for the name along. Come on, SLEIGH'R!!!

Rating: B+

Firestone Walker - Velvet Merkin

Hello everyone! It's that time again. Not necessarily time to take over the world, but time to get another beer review up. This one also happens to be my October Beer of the Month. Yep, right on time with my monthly beer, I know! 

I'd have had this up earlier but I've been ill the last few days. So without further delay, tonight's beer is none other than the latest release from Firestone Walker. That's right, we're drinking Velvet Merkin, and 8.5% abv Bourbon Barrel-Aged Oatmeal Stout. I'm pretty stoked to get this one and I'm really looking forward to trying it. So let's get this thing poured and I'll give you my thoughts on the Velvet Merkin.

This one pours out a pitch black. No light coming through at all. There's about a finger and a half of a beige head that's very foamy. Not a ton of retention time on this and honestly not a lot of lacing left behind. Sort of surprising on the lacing at least. This looks like a pretty standard stout. Nothing too crazy. Let's get the nose.

First thing I get is a lot of vanilla, lots and lots of it. Maybe more than any other beer I can recall in recent memory. Vanilla boozy notes. There's a lot of caramel sweetness. Lots of woody, oak qualities. You can definitely smell that this is a big bourbon barrel beer. Some nice toasty notes from those oats. There's some big milk chocolate and cocoa notes too. Big time vanilla and oak bomb here. I'm ready to see how this one tastes. Let's drink! 

Interesting. First thing I'm hit with is a big blast of vanilla and bourbon goodness. That immediately is erased by a tidal wave of oak. It's almost like I'm drinking the barrel itself. That sensation, flavor, note, basically plows through the entire palate. Sides of the mouth there's more oak, almost a charred wood flavor. A little bit of vanilla and a lot of a bourbon quality. Back end of this thing almost tastes like I just took a shot of bourbon. Lots of caramel and vanilla with a bit of an alcohol burn. This one definitely warms as it makes it's way down the chest. I don't get any of that chocolate/cocoa I caught a whiff of before we started drinking. 

This beer is also a little thin in the body. I know a lot of oatmeal stouts tend to be a little thinner than their imperial counterparts. However, this one is thinner than even some of the local oatmeal stouts. I'm kind of surprised in that regard. I was hoping a little bit for more body and I'm left wanting a little bit more in that department.

So overall, Velvet Merkin is good... but maybe not what I'd call great. The nose is awesome but those characters fall a little short while drinking. I sort of wish I'd given this a little more time to develop or mellow just to see what happens. I may pick up another just for that reason alone. Give this one a shot if you want. For $20 a bottle I'd consider this a touch pricey. Your call.

Rating: B+

Clown Shoes - Genghis Pecan

I don't know about you but I had a really rough work week. There's nothing I want more than to forget everything I did work wise this week and just zone out. Of course I'm going to help myself with some good beer and some good tunes. 

So tonight I'm drinking another Clown Shoes beer. I've really enjoyed what I've had so far from them and I'm hoping this one is no different. Tonight we've got Genghis Pecan which is a 7% abv Pecan Pie Porter. And yes, the label on this one is awesome just like all the others. But enough rambling and stalling, let's get this one poured and I'll give you my thoughts on the Genghis Pecan! 

Genghis pours out very dark almost pitch black. Maybe the slightest bit of mahogany/chocolate color around the bottom of the glass. There's about a finger of beige head, very fluffy. The head dissipates pretty quickly and leaves behind a very weak lacing. Almost none to speak of which is a bit surprising. Looks like a pretty standard porter honestly. Nothing new to report here. Let's get the nose.

Big pecan flavor on the nose. That's mixed in nicely with an almost cinnamon like spice note. A bit of brown sugar lingering in the background too.There's a nice graham cracker character here too. This is a pecan pie porter and honestly I think it gets the smell of a pecan pie pretty nicely. There's maybe the slightest hint of alcohol in the background. Honestly, pecan pie with a little bourbon is one of the best things ever so this has me very much intrigued. A really nice smelling porter, one that definitely smells like the style/name it's been given. I'm ready to do some drinking so let's do this! 

Surprisingly at first impression I'm not getting a lot of pecans. It's more of a buttery, pie crust like character. There's a little bit of a caramel sweetness, some brown sugar. None of that cinnamon spice I was getting on the nose. Sides of the mouth you do get the pecans but they are very subdued and muted. I was hoping for a little more in that regard. I'm going to let this warm a little and see how it's developed, if at all.

I've let this warm a bit and I'm still not getting a lot of the pecan, mostly just a buttery crust. This does remind me of a pie but maybe not a pecan pie. There's some boozy stickiness lingering in the back of the palate. Slightly nutty so I guess that's where the pecans went. It's not that they're not here I just think they've taken a back seat to everything else.

So overall, Genghis Pecan is just OK. It's a good porter but for what is dubbed as a pecan pie porter I'm left wanting more, a lot more. If this was just a porter from Clown Shoes I'd be stoked and happy. Unfortunately, I think they've left a lot to be desired which is surprising. I've genuinely liked everything I've had from them, a lot. This just sort of falls short of the mark. It's probably a mark I'e set WAY too high but I'm accepting of that. I'd drink this again but I don't know I'd want to pay the $8 or $9 I did. So, good porter, so-so execution.

Rating: C+

New Belgium Brewing - Cascara Quad

Hey guys! It’s time for another beer review. Did you think I’d forgotten about the blog? Eh, maybe just a little. Kind of trying to figure out what I want to do with the blog going forward. But that’s a discussion for another post down the road.

Tonight I’m drinking a new beer. Yeah, surprising I know! I’ve had this one stashed away for a little bit, maybe 6 months or so. I think I bought it back in late March or even early April. Tonight’s beer is part of the Lips of Faith series from New Belgium, this is their Cascara Quad, a 10% abv Quad brewed with date with coffee cherries added. Honestly not sure what a coffee cherry is but I’m a little intrigued. Not a huge fan of Belgian style beers but I’ve been kind of dabbling a little with Quads this year. Had some good ones and I have high hopes for this one. Let’s get this poured out and I’ll give you my thoughts.

The Cascara pours out incredibly murky. It’s a mix of a brown with some slight reddish-brown hues. Reminds me a bit of some dirty watered down coffee to be completely honest. It’s definitely a nasty looking beer. There’s about a finger of a bright white foamy head that doesn’t linger for very long and leaves behind a pretty thick lacing. Let’s get the nose.

First thing I pick up is a massive amount of dates. Very nutty and sweet. Lots of dark fruits. Lots of cherry, fig, some plums as well. There’s a slight sourness I’m picking up that reminds me a lot of a plum skin. Tons of sweet caramel, lots of sugars too. There’s some sweet breads here, definitely getting those Belgian quad characteristics. There’s a slight alcohol note on the nose that’s not over powering but it’s there, lingering and creeping up on everything good this beer has offered so far. Yeah, I’d say this smells pretty good. Definitely not what I was expecting just simply based on looking at this thing. I’m ready to see how it tastes so let’s do this!

Right away I pick up a bit of that nutty character I was getting on the nose. That’s immediately washed away by those very ripe, dark fruits. The plums, figs, and even some cherry. I’ve never had a coffee cherry but I’m guessing these are what I’m getting a lot of. You get those Belgian bready notes on the sides of the palate along with some big caramel sweetness. This beer is surprisingly bitter and you pick up a bit of that bitterness throughout the mouth. This quad finishes pretty dry, not like an IPA but almost like a wine. There’s almost a syrupy after taste as I let everything kind of linger. Very different than what I’d expect from a Quad.

 

So overall, I don’t hate this but I’m not sure I really like it. I’ve had far better Quads both locally and from breweries across the country. This doesn’t really have a lot going on that catches my attention. If I had to describe it in a single word I’d probably use the word underwhelming. I want to get more from this and I want to really like this a lot. But unfortunately, I think it falls short of being “good” and it falls way short of being a beer I pay another visit to down the line. I’d say if you were thinking of picking this up you may want to skip it and get a good Quad rather than something that’s just OK at best.

Rating: C-