Barley Blog - Commentary on Quality Beer

I’ve been working from home on Wednesdays the past couple of weeks. It’s a new telecommuting initiative that I was allowed to be a part of at work — since my daily commute is on the lengthy side. Now that I have no hour and a half drive home, I’ve started mowing the yard after I call it a day on Wednesdays. It’s nice having the weekend for play instead of yard work.

Any ways, after mowing the yard this past Wednesday I think I may have had the perfect beer, or at least the most perfectly timed beer. I’ve had the Maximus on several occasions in the past, but never thought to write about it. That is until I cracked open that cool bottle after pushing the old mower around the house the other day.

Appearance

The Imperial IPA pours a nice, rich copper and amber with a large fluffy off-white head. The head lasted a good while and faded to pretty decent lacing.

Aroma

I’m sure that it was a byproduct of having just finished mowing, but there certainly was a freshly cut grass presence to the glass. I got right into the foam that capped the glass in an attempt to focus the nose, but still got that wonderful smell. There’s also that floral hoppy aroma, as well as, a little citrus and lemon.

Taste

Perfect. The bottle had been chilled briefly from cellar temperature while I mowed so it was nice and cool. The hops are obviously very present in the mouth. It wasn’t as bitter as I was expecting and was quite well balanced between the hop presence and fruitiness. The bitterness did come up in the finish though and lingered nicely.

Overall

Like I said, this was one perfectly timed brew. It’s not nearly as hoppy as other Imperial IPAs that I’ve had recently and incorporates a lovely fruitiness into the mix making for a well balanced brew. I’ve enjoyed this one many times in the past, but it just seemed to have that little something extra this time around. Of course, I’ll be getting more of this as the summer wears on.

Rating: 3.5/5

Honoring the memory Michael Jackson, LiquidSolutions.biz will be holding an auction of rare and vintage beers from May 9 to May 11. Some of the items in various lots up for auction include:

• 1994 Hair of the Dog Dave
• Full Sail Old Boardhead 1998-2007
• 1999 Rochefort 10
• 1997 Westvleteren 12

It looks like I’m going to have to dip into the kid’s college fund this weekend.

I’m a big fan of North Coast Brewing (Old Rasputin is easily one of my favorite brews) and am always on the lookout for their products. Brother Thelonious, an abbey styled Belgian ale, had been on my list of beers to purchase for some time now. I finally happened across a large bottle of it a few months back, but was determined not to open it too quickly so it was packed away in the cellar.

That is, until this past weekend. I hadn’t completely forgotten about it over the last 4 months as it sat down there with a few of its closest friends, but I was pleasantly surprised to “rediscover” it over the weekend.

Appearance

Brother Thelonious pours a dark brown with a dark ruby edge around the glass. The small off-white head faded quickly to a thin lacing.

Aroma

Once poured, the beer has a yeasty aroma with hints of dark fruits, as well as a rich malty characteristic. This one certainly smells good.

Taste

There’s a very rich and smooth malt sweetness upfront that shifts to a dark fruit and bready finish. The carbonation is light, but active enough to push the flavors around well enough. As the beer warms in the glass a few more flavors come out including subtle chocolates and caramels making for a nicely complex brew.

Overall

Was it worth the hunt and then the wait? Yes and no. Brother Thelonious is certainly a fine example of the Belgian abbey style and it’s a fine tasting brew to be sure. I’m sure that if I happened to see this one again, I would pick it up immediately, but I don’t think that I would go out of my way to find it.

Rating: 3.5/5

I tried to get my article wrapped up for this past Friday’s Session, but I was just having too much fun with the kid while my wife escaped for a girl’s weekend to the beach. Funny thing is, I think I got more sun than she did.

At any rate to keep a long story brief, my roommate in college (about 11-12 years ago) and I found a small deli in downtown Fredericksburg called the Savvy Gourmet. The place no longer exists and I’m not sure that it was open for more than a year, but the owner/operator had a small cooler that was full of big bottles of Rogue, Celebrator and a several others that I can’t remember.

Since my buddy at the time had a little more knowledge than myself about brews other than the mass produced swill I was enjoying at the time, he was able to talk the talk and walk the walk when it came to craft beers. In fact, we both ended up knowing plenty more than the owner regarding the beers he carried — I suppose that allowed us to buy while still not quite 21.

Of the beers we bought from the Savvy Gourmet, I distinctly remember having a bottle of Rogue’s HazelNut Brown Nectar and having the feeling of excitement and confusion that a beer could even taste like that. I also remember not liking it that much, but I finished the bottle and became a craft brew fan from that point on, that is, when my meager earnings as a waiter allowed me the opportunity to explore other micro-brews.

It’s Time for a Beer Revolution

I’m not entirely sure where that quote came from, but I think I overheard a couple of folks at a festival a couple of years ago and it sort of stuck with me for some odd reason. So, while working on some graphics for a different project, that line of text seeped back into my brain and as a result we have the below image:

I’m not even sure what the quote means or if it’s really relevant to today’s craft environment, but I like how the design turned out. It’s available at Cafepress on several shirt types.

It’s that time of year. The weather is getting warmer. Kegs are venturing out onto open decks, patios and in open garages.

And much like the red swimsuit clad guards at the local pool keep watch over dozens of families, so too the Beerguard watches over the drinking crowd — eyes peeled for the slightest sign of struggle. These brave souls are always at the ready to sacrifice life and limb, diving head long into the churning fray around the beer fridge to keep that unwary patron from spilling even the smallest drop of sweet beer.

We’ve all got a bit of a protector in our genetic makeup. Whether to save a stout or rescue a pilsner, that inherit urge to protect beer is in all of us. We are all Beerguards.

Get your Beerguard shirt now and be vigilant in your mission to save all beer from peril.

Besides stouts, I have a weakness for Belgian beers, particularly those of the Strong Dark variety. I have actually had a couple of these in storage last year, but never wrote a review for them. I can tell you confidently that they were wonderful.

Well, it just so happens that I got lucky and found an older bottle of Nostradomus in one of the local shops this past weekend. I wasn’t expecting to find it since the shop hadn’t carried it in almost a year, but there it was tucked behind a dusty six pack of the 2007 Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale (which I also greedily grabbed).

Appearance

This Belgian pours nearly black, but reveals its true colors when held up to light. It’s got a rich, reddish brown color and retained a creamy head for a good while.

Aroma

Lively fruits and that Belgian candy sweetness dominate the nose. There is also a dark fruit (raisin/plum) presence, as well as a hint of spice.

Taste

Oh man. This is a slightly different take on the traditional Strong Dark Ale, but is it ever so tasty. There’s a good bit of raisin/plum and sweetness. The spices that I noticed in the aroma stand out a bit more as clove with a woodsy characteristic. The higher 9.5% ABV definitely gives it a warming, boozy feel.

Overall

Nostradomus is a slightly different variety of Strong Dark Ale, and it has certainly earned a place in my list of favorite brews. The dark fruit, spices and oaky finish really make this a stand out brew that’s highly drinkable. You just wouldn’t want to have too many as the alcohol will most likely catch up with you.

Rating: 4.5/5

Having just opened a rather not so fresh beer last week, this video more than aptly describes how I felt upon opening it. Sadly, said beer was an Ommegang Hennepin purchased at Harris Teeter. I’m not entirely sure what happened to it while in their position, but I can certainly commiserate with the pooch in this old Bud commercial.

Man, it’s been quite some time since I’ve posted an actual beer review. What’s surprising is that I’ve had plenty of quality brews that are completely worthy of reviews, but apparently I’d rather post videos of crazy Korean beer commercials. Well, let’s get back into the review groove with what can only be the first canned beer I’ve had (aside from many Guinness Pub Draughts) in more years than I care to count. I honestly cannot remember the last time I had a brew from the can since graduating from college.

And it looks like Oskar Blues’ Old Chub could very well be the one that changes my opinion on canned beers. I’ve known of the recent trend in canning the past couple of years, but have never really found myself intrigued enough to divert my attention from a bottle of tasty goodness to take a chance on a can. That is until I decided to pick up an Old Chub during a foray into Total Wine this past weekend

Appearance

The Old Chub pours a murky and muddy brown. There didn’t appear to be much carbonations activity, but what little was there built a small, light tan head (which left nice lacing on the glass).

Aroma

Perhaps the beer was served a little too chilled, but I didn’t get too much from this one initially. There was an earthy malt and slight nut characteristics in the nose as well as a very subtle smoke.

Taste

The nuttiness and maltiness from the nose are certainly present as is a wonderful sweetness that’s a nice compliment to the earthy tones. The carbonation is light, but lively enough to leave a crisp finish that brought out the more chocolate and smoke characteristics of the beer.

Overall

I can definitely see myself going through several cans of the Old Chub. It’s an enjoyable brew and well crafted. I might just have to check out some more canned beers— at the very least, the rest of the Oskar Blues line.

Rating: 3/5

I’ve been pretty quiet on the BrewerySearch front lately. I had to take a brief hiatus from inputing data — my brain can only take so much and it reached its capacity rather quickly. But that’s not to say that I haven’t been working on it. I’ve been tweaking the sidebar widget, working on a rebranding and website redesign as well as a few other surprises.

The first such surprise is a newly developed plugin for Firefox and Internet Explorer 7+ that allows you to search BrewerySearch right from your browser’s toolbar. There’s no reason to worry about typing in the URL correctly again or finding it in your pile of bookmarks.

Install BrewerySearch Plugin Now

Installing the plugin is pretty painless. Just click the button above and select “ok” when prompted. Now, in your browser’s search bar you’ll see BrewerySearch name and icon. Select that and start searching away.

How to Uninstall

Should you want to remove the BrewerySearch plugin from your browser, it’s also relatively painless — that is, until I find out you removed it and hunt you down like the dog you are. Ahem. Sorry. Won’t happen again. Like I was saying, uninstalling is easy.

Internet Explorer: Click on the arrow in the search bar and then “Change search defaults”.

Firefox Click on the arrow in the search bar and then “manage search engines”. Next, select the “Brewery Search” and press the “remove”.

So there you have it. Hopefully I will be able to rollout the rebranding and new web site as quickly as I did this.