After hearing about the last Celebration Town Tavern Tweetup from Bill, I was very glad to hear that it again went well and again there is another “Micro of the Month” winner. Palm will soon take its place in the draft lineup and since I missed out on attending and being part of the vote, I am looking forward to giving it a try when it does.
With all of the numbers I received from Twitter before heading out via @GRPasswater, @vshade, @willspot, and @word_czar I figured I had a pretty good chance at landing on one of the new beers that were recently added to the list. It did not matter in the end since we ended up with a good run of beers even without having any of the recent arrivals. Of course we did not get to all of the numbers I was given, but I will keep them for the next visits so everyone will get to see what beer their numbers corresponded with.
As I sat down near the end of the inside bar Danielle let me know that on top of the new additions to the beer list, there was also Thomas Hooker’s (More Than A Mouthful) Watermelon Ale and Anderson Valley’s Summer Solstice to choose from. It is always good to know what your options are before making a decision and this information would immediately come in handy.
Watch out for thses bears when in CA!
Since both @GRPasswater and @word_czar gave me the number fifteen that seemed the way to start the day. I was in no mood to start with the Bud Light Lime as it directed me to, so I took the opportunity to replace that with a Summer Solstice. Of course I could have gone with the Watermelon Ale, but since lime was not appealing I did not view watermelon as much of an improvement. The Summer Solstice poured a really deep amber color, which was a bit surprising from a cream ale. There was some white head to it though that was gone pretty quickly with the iced glass. The overall aroma was faint with some light sweetness and something slightly odd (not in a bad way) that I could not identify. It was lightly malty in flavor with faint bitterness and without any hoppy flavors. It tasted somewhat like a cream soda with caramel and vanilla notes to it.
With all of that said, the overall flavor actually was not very strong. I started to enjoy it slightly less as the glass emptied, but that may have something to do with not being a big fan of cream soda to start with. All in all though it was a pretty good ($5) beer that I was glad to have finally tried and a grade of 3 seemed to be spot on. With the sweetness and the caramel flavors that it had, I think maybe some red meat or something a bit spicy would be a good pairing suggestion.
I could have given extra points just for being in a can.
Next up was a Sam Adams Imperial Double Bock via the number 79 from @word_czar. Bill and I split the bottle and the 9.5% alcohol punch that came with it. It pours a nice dark amber color and has a very malty aroma with some molasses-like notes and a bit of noticeable alcohol. The mouthfeel is very smooth and somewhat creamy with a medium (to full) body. The flavors are heavily malty with dark caramelly and port-like with some good warmth at the finish that lingers a bit.
This one is certainly a very solid beer and you definitely get some alcoholic bang for your $6. It is a beer that did seem a bit strange to be sitting at a bar with, though if I was at a table maybe all would seem right. I say that since it is not a beer that you belly up to the bar and plan on drinking over and over for the afternoon, but is a beer that you can sit back and relax with (which I have done at home). All of that taken into consideration, I gave it a 4 and Bill settled in on a 3.5. I would not necessarily suggest a food pairing, but it certainly would work well with a chocolatey dessert or after dinner in the role of a nice glass of port.
Sam Adams Imperial Double Bock
Next up was number 73 and a ($4) Sam Adams Black Lager (another from @GRPasswater). Again we split the bottle that poured black (of course) with a frothy light tan head that had good retention. There is some sharpness in the aroma with light roasted malt notes in back. To me it drinks like a nice porter with good roasted malt flavors, though crisp and clean with the body of a lighter lager. Not a bad combination at all.
Bill is not typically a dark beer drinker, but somewhat surprisingly really enjoyed this one enough to give it a solid 4. Though I could not remember at the time what grade was assigned when I reviewed this one at home quite a long time ago, I agreed with giving it a 4. I enjoy this style of beer as one with good flavor, but also easy drinking and somewhat refreshing. With the lighter body and roasted flavors I think this one would pair really well with and sort of grilled or smoked meat, including BBQ.
A good style to try if you haven't yet.
Last up for the day was yet another one from @word_czar, being a Full Sail IPA (number 26). It poured an amber color with a bit of honey, almost orange tint to it. It was definitely crystal clear though the head was quickly gone with the iced glass. The aroma was fairly mild overall, but with a bit of light maltiness and some spicy hop notes. The flavor had some good toasted malt character to it with some nice bitterness, though not much in the way of hop character beyond that. The finish had some dryness/tartness to it.
Though there are definitely other IPAs on the list that I would prefer to drink this one was still pretty good and worthy of a 3 (maybe toward a 3.5). Bill’s feeling was much the same and he felt comfortable giving it a 3 as well. I think with the nice bitterness and crispness it has it should hold up well with dishes that bring some fat to the equation, like fried items or dishes that incorporate some fairly strong flavored cheese.
Full Sail IPA
My closing remarks are much the same as they have been in the past. A big thank you again goes to Danielle for being good company and for chatting about beer with us (and definitely for giving me an option beyond Bud Light Lime). It was also nice as usual to see Bill Bona and I look forward to him joining us for a beer tasting sometime in the near future. Lastly a big thank you goes to the Twitter folks for again helping me choose the brews. All in all another very successful and enjoyable visit to Celebration Town Tavern
For those keeping track, that is now 33 down and 66 to go!
Stay tuned . . .
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