Stone Brewing Company - Stone Farking Wheaton W00tstout

WHEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATON!!!!!!!

Ok, now that I've got that out of the way I guess I should introduce tonight's beer or else that's just going to seem totally random. Tonight I'm drinking the 2nd most recent Stone collaboration beer. This is a beer brewed by Greg Koch (Stone), Drew Curtis (Fark.com) and Wil Wheaton (ST:TNG, Stand By Me, etc, etc Nerd, author... he does it all). This is an Imperial Stout brewed with pecans, wheat, rye and one quarter of this beer is aged in bourbon barrels.

Btw, this is my Beer of the Month for July. I know, it's a couple days late but oh well. Oh, this is also 13% abv and I believe is the strongest beer Stone Brewing has brewed up. So, it's a big fucking beer with a lot of interesting ingredients. I've had a bottle of this before but I wanted to revisit it again and really give a review. So, let's get into the w00tstout and see how it looks, smells, and tastes!

The w00tstout pours out a jet black. There's no light shining through. This is just a dark, black hole of an abyss. There was maybe a half a finger of beige/brown head which only formed because I did the most vigorous pour I've ever done. It dissipates very, very quickly and leaves behind very little lacing. A bit of a soapy film like texture to it but that's it. This is one big, intimidating looking beer. Let's get the nose on this one.

First thing is a quick waft of bourbon like booze and an immediate slap in the face of chocolate covered raisin. Dark fruits, figs, dates maybe even a slight plum character. I'm definitely picking up those pecans. This very much reminds me of a pecan pie, like bourbon soaked pecans baked into a pie. For only being a quarter aged in the bourbon barrels that character shines brightly. Lots of sweet vanilla, caramel. There's some subtle rye spice mixed in with the sweetness. I think the wheat is adding a bit of earthiness to the beer as well. But really, the stand out on the nose is the bourbon and pecans. As it warms there's a bit more alcohol shining through. 13% that shouldn't be a surprise. Alright, let's see how the w00tstout tastes!

Wow. This is such an excellent tasting beer. Right away there's that raisin character. Not as much chocolate as I picked up on the nose. Quite a bit of dates, fig adding a nice bit of chewiness. This beer just absolutely coats the entire mouth. Middle of the mouth and sides of the palate I get a lot of pecan and rye with that wheat. Seriously, it's like the aftertaste you get from eating a slice of pecan pie. Everything about this is awesome. Back end of the palate you get caramel sweetness. Lots of creaminess. The alcohol is only really noticeable for a brief moment as the beer hits the palate but then fades away quickly. Not much of a burn or heat as it goes down in the chest.

So overall, this is just a fantastic beer. For being 13% it's dangerously drinkable. The first bottle I had was a bit of a hot mess but this one is definitely bordering on perfection. I'd say pick up a couple and drink one fresh and age one for a bit to see how the flavors develop. I've got no complaints about this beer. Excellent collaboration from Stone, Drew and Wil.

Rating: A

Here's my wife giving the w00tstout a try! 

Clown Shoes - Chocolate Sombrero

Hey all! It's Wednesday night and I'm a little bored. So what better way to cure boredom and get a good buzz going, than crack open something new and review it?

Tonight I'm drinking another beer from Clown Shoes out of Ipswich, MA, this is their Chocolate Sombrero which is a 9% stout that they are dubbing a "Mexican Style Chocolate Stout". This sounds good just from the name and being from San Diego, I'm no stranger to Mexican chocolate. I'm a big fan. The kicker on this beer is they brewed it with ancho chile, cinnamon, and some vanilla extract. So on top of all the roasted malts and chocolate malts, we get some ancho and cinnamon with a touch of vanilla. Enough rambling, let's get Chocolate wasted!

Chocolate Sombrero pours out a very dark brown to black color with about a finger of a somewhat creamy head. Admittedly, I didn't pour very vigorously so I only ended up with about a fingers worth. It's pretty damn dark though maybe with the slightest bit of mahogany down around the bottom of the glass. Bad lighting though probably doesn't help much here. Overall, this looks like a standard stout. Let's get the nose.

So first thing I notice is a sweet vanilla smell from that extract. That's followed up immediately by a combination of cinnamon and ancho chile. There's some pepper skin in here too. I've had some chile/cinnamon stouts before and this one definitely smells the best so far. I'm getting some sweeter chocolates in here as well. Definitely reminds me of that mexican chocolate. Rich and a bit spicy. But really the pepper in this is the thing I'm getting more of as I go back for more. This is a very interesting smelling stout. Let's see if the Chocolate Sombrero delivers like it does in the nose.

First thing I get is some chocolate and vanilla. It's incredibly smooth and creamy. As the chocolate fades a bit the vanilla carries on into the middle of the mouth where I'm picking up that cinnamon and some ancho chiles. There's more of that mexican chocolate coming through here too. The spice of this beer is really bringing out the chocolate. Back of the tongue there's a slight bit of heat from the ancho. It's actually very nice. There's quite a bit of roast here too. A bit of roasted dark malts and chocolate really stand out on the back end.

As I let the flavors from Chocolate Sombrero linger in my mouth the chile and cinnamon spice really dance around the tongue. It's almost like I ate a red hot if anyone remembers those little candies. It's very nice. The pepper skin sort of linger along the sides of the mouth as well.

So overall, this beer is really solid. I'm not a big fan of beers that are brewed with Chiles, but this is fantastic. The way the ancho and cinnamon play off the chocolate and vanilla so seamlessly is great and really makes this beer worth it. If you can get this I'd recommend it. It's not mind blowing, but just incredibly good.

Rating: A (and seriously, these labels on the Clown Shoes beers are fucking awesome!)

Anderson Valley - Bourbon Barrel Stout

Thursday night. We're almost ready to party. I mean, almost ready to get some work done tomorrow.... Nah, who am I kidding? Tonight I'm drinking my April Beer of the Month.... in May.

 I know, I'm late again. But hey, it's only 2 days. No big deal. 

My April Beer of the Month is a new beer, or at least new to me, from Anderson Valley in Boonville, CA. This is their Bourbon Barrel Stout which comes in at 6.9% abv. According to the label this is a Malt beverage aged in Wild Turkey Bourbon barrels. So of course, it's aged in bourbon barrels meaning, we're incredibly interested in this beer. Let's get into it and see if this beer is worth checking out.

The Bourbon Barrel Stout poured out pretty damn dark. I don't really see any color coming through or any colors around the bottom of the glass. This looks pitch black. There was a fluffy two finger head that was light brown/tan in color. The head didn't stick around very long and once it dissipated it didn't leave behind much lacing. Maybe a little but it's minimal at best. Let's get the nose.

First thing I pick up is a sweet vanilla. It's very nice. I'm getting some milk chocolate and some sweet caramel/toffee. According to the website they only aged this for 3 months in the barrels. So the complexity of the barrel characters might not be as pronounced as say a beer that's been aged for a year (Dark Days by Iron Fist). I'm not picking up a lot of roasted notes or espresso. Maybe they will show up in the taste. Overall, this is pretty sweet smelling and very inviting. No alcohol on the nose whatsoever (6.9% would be shocking really). Let's see how the BBS tastes.

Wow. So right away I'm getting a nice hit of Wild Turkey. Very bourbon-like even with a subtle burn. Lots of vanilla and sweetness. There's a slight breadiness, almost like a fresh baked bread. More vanilla, more of that Wild Turkey. I'm picking up a little bit of a coconut character most likely from the barrel. There's a slight roastiness on the back end. Not quite like an espresso but maybe a medium roast coffee. It's subtle and definitely lingers a bit. I'm getting more of that milk chocolate as well. This is a creamy beer and the oats definitely play off the Wild Turkey nicely. The Wild Turkey really shines in this beer. As I let it warm a bit more I'm getting more roasted coffee throughout the back end. It's definitely a bit better as it warms up.

So overall, this is pretty good. When I first tasted it I wasn't overly impressed. I didn't get a lot of flavors. As I let it warm a little bit the beer definitely came to life. I definitely get a lot of the Wild Turkey bourbon which is nice. If you're going to advertise that, make it shine. For 6.9% this is very easy to drink. It's medium to light bodied probably closer to light but not Rogue ales light. I'd say give this a try if you can find it. It's not bad. I wouldn't go out of my way to find it and for the price ($11) I'd say it's a little pricey.

On a side note, Anderson Valley is an awesome brewery, completely solar powered. Any brewery that runs entirely off solar or wind gets a thumbs up in my book. And to be honest, the other AVBC beers are good too. Check those out if you get them in your area.

Rating: B

Iron Fist Brewing Co - Dark Days

Oh blog, how I've missed you so much! It's not my fault I woke up on Saturday with an absolutely dreadful cold. One that I'm still slightly being bothered by. I don't know what happened. Honest!

So my wife is doing this beer of the month thing for me as I've mentioned a few times anyway. So since I was really miserable at the end of March, I couldn't really get into my March beer. I was really bummed about it. Not because it was time to drink beer, but because I could FINALLY get into a bottle of a beer I've been waiting to open for the last couple of months.

The March beer of the month is by a local (and by local I mean it's 2 blocks from my home) Vista brewery, Iron Fist Brewing Co. Tonight I'm drinking their Dark Days which is a 11.9% abv stout aged in bourbon barrels. So yeah, as you can tell just by the description, being bummed was warranted. But enough blabbering. I want to get to the point where I get to drink, so let's get this beast poured!

Dark Days pours out a completely pitch black. The name really fits the beer for sure. There was almost zero head on this thing. Maybe the absolute slightest dark brown head, but it was more of some bubbles than anything else. This thing looks like motor oil. Just absolutely viscus. I think it's safe to say that your average beer drinker is going to be terrified of this beer. And really, they should be.

The nose on the Dark Days is fantastic. HUGE bourbon right away. Several kinds of chocolate here too. Big dark chocolate, some sweeter milk chocolate, just more chocolate than I can really describe. There's a really nice raisin character too, I'd even say chocolate covered raisins. I'm picking up some more dark fruits but they're more subtle than the raisin. I'm getting a good bit of the barrel in the nose as well. I'm definitely getting a little alcohol on the nose here. It's blended in fairly nicely with the bourbon and chocolate characters, but it's definitely there. So enough smelling, let's embrace Dark Days!

Wow. This is a very good BBL stout. Right away there's big chocolate. Definitely more on the sweet side. There's the slightest hint of alcohol up front but it's quickly washed away by the chocolate. There is a HUGE, absolutely fucking MASSIVE amount of chocolate covered raisin in this beer. And you know what?It's delicious! The chocolate covered raisin coats the mouth. This is a thick beer. One thing I will say about Dark Days, it's incredibly smooth. Back end there's a nice sweetness, vanilla, oak, bourbon. It's really good BBL stout.

Overall, this is a very good BBL stout. Big chocolate, big raisin, big barrel characters.

Raiting: A-

I'd have liked to see a little carbonation in this beer. This bottle is entirely flat. It doesn't take away from the beer but I like just a slight bit of carbonation in my stouts. Reading a few things online it sounds like some have a little carbonation and others are in the same boat as me. I have another bottle that I plan on opening sometime in the future. Maybe next year. Maybe this year. Not sure.

Clown Shoes - Blaecorn Unidragon

What's up everyone?! Did you miss me? That's ok, I didn't miss you much either. I spent my weekend drinking some good beers and watching quite a bit of hockey.

With that said, I almost forgot I had this incredibly named beer in my fridge. I figured, why not crack it open and get a review up. I don't want anyone to think I'd died or something!

So tonight I'm drinking the wonderfully named Blaecorn Unidragon by Clown Shoes (Mercury Brewing Co) out of Ipswich, MA. I'd heard things about their beers but had never seen one in the store. Much to my delight I came across this rare Unic...Unico... shit, Unidragon, and had to pick it up. I didn't know much about it but with a label that looks like something off a heavy metal album cover I just didn't care. I had to get this and drink it in the name of all things METAAAAAAAAL!!!!

Ok, so the first thing I noticed when actually reading up on this thing is the abv. 12.5%! This tells me a couple of things. One, this is going to be one strong ass beer! Two, I probably should have aged this for a bit. I thought this had a bottle on date but I guess I'm wrong. If it's there I'm looking right at it, but I'm fucking blind soo... pretty sure this is fairly fresh, maybe January.

Anyway, let's pour this beast out and get into it.

Unidragon pours out a pitch black. There's no light shining through this beer at all. It looks evil. Like a black Unidragon should. Honestly, I want to blast some Ronnie James Dio (RIP!) while I'm drinking this. There was about a finger of beige, bordering on mocha. The head didn't stick around very long and receded back into the beer leaving behind a spotted-like lacing. It looks pretty good. Lets get the nose on this one.

First thing I get on the Unidragon is a nice earthy hop note. It's pretty strong too. Nothing like an IPA but you definitely get some hop character. That's followed immediately by a chocolate character. Some roasted malts shining through right now as well. There's a bit of dark chocolate, maybe even some roasted espresso beans here. I'm getting a lot of a raisin character as well. It smells a lot like a bag of Raisinets. There some fig and date characteristics also. A nice sugary note as well. You do get a little bit of alcohol on the nose as well. 12.5% that's pretty much a guarantee though. I'm tired of waiting. Let's drink up!

Right away I get a milk chocolate sweetness. That's immediately followed up by that chocolate covered raisin character I got on the nose. It's nice and sweet and really pleasing. Middle of the tongue there's a nice hop bitterness and some roasted notes. Definitely from the malts that were used. I'm getting quite a bit of an espresso character here as well. There's a bit of alcohol coming through on the middle of the tongue. You definitely know this is a big beer. Back of the mouth you get a subtle tobacco character maybe even the slightest bit of leather. There's more chocolate sweetness and some date/fig action going on as well. This beer tastes really nice.

Overall, I'm really enjoying this beer. Blaecorn Unidragon is a solid Russian Imperial Stout. I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you can get it. I'd also recommend letting this age for a bit. I think with a year of age on this it'd be phenomenal. There's a bit more alcohol than I like on my stouts. It's not barrel aged so it's not a bourbon character unfortunately. The alcohol in no way ruins this beer. It's still really good, bordering on great in all honesty.

Rating: B+

Wife said it tastes like beer. Big fucking surprise.