So today is the first post about the beers that I am drinking on the way to my Beer Club membership at Celebration Town Tavern (which will often be referred to as CTT).
The format of the evaluations will definitely be different from those that I typically do on this site, though how they will exactly work is still a bit of a moving target. Reviewing in a restaurant environment throws in many variables that change my methods versus what I can do at home. For today and for at least the near future, the primary goal of these reviews will be to help identify which beers I would return to again after I am through the entire list of 99 bottles. Ultimately that will result in a scale of 1 to 5, with the 5’s being those that I would definitely come back to. We will see how that works for now and go from there.
It just so happened to work out that on my first visit two Abita Brewing Company beers were in the number 1 and 2 slots on the beer list. Though I had not planned on going with the first two on the list, with the big game coming up it made the decision much easier to go with the beers from Louisiana. Looking back, I would also like to take some credit now for the Saints winning after my little homage to them. You are welcome Joe!
We had a great seat.
Since my visit was on a beautiful day around noon, the outdoor seating was quite full and we decided to sit inside in the bar area to ease into my first time stopping by for review purposes. With it being a bit quieter inside I was able to brainstorm ideas while having a few beers with Bill and also meet Danielle (whose picture will be up on the page in the very near future). She set me straight on how the Beer Club card works and I will certainly be seeing her again many times during this process.
Very good spicy tuna dip.
The first beer was an Abita Purple Haze (#1 on the list), which I have had many times before since it is one of The Wife’s beers of choice. The beer pours a light copper to orange color with a good amount of haze (who would have guessed). There is a light fruit nose with some sweetness underneath. It has a light body and very low carbonation (iced glass could have contributed to that) with a short length of finish. Really light flavor profiles overall (including fruit).
Abita Purple Haze
The beer is certainly very drinkable and I would settle on about a 3 overall (probably toward 2.5). I will say that generally fruit beers have not been my favorite in the past, but I continue to try them and they are growing on me a bit. The fruit flavors in this one are pretty subtle and not too sweet, which works well for me. I would prefer to drink this beer outside on a warm, sunny day versus sitting with it inside. Lastly, since the flavors are pretty understated, I would suggest pairing this with a food that isn’t too strong with flavor since it would just overpower the beer. A salad with a lighter dressing (bleu cheese would be too dominant) would be a good match for it.
Abita Amber (#2 on the list) was my second beer that afternoon and something that I have not had for quite a long time. It pours with a medium amber color (of course) and has good clarity. Even with the good aromas of food surrounding us, I could detect a light malty nose as well. The beer had a lightly roasted/toasted flavor with a hint of caramel character and really has a very smooth, clean flavor overall.
Abita Amber
The Amber is probably a solid 3 on my scale as well. The reason that I suggested that the Purple Haze was probably on the low side of 3 is because I did favor the Amber if having to choose between the two. The beer was again very drinkable, but was more to my palate than the fruitiness of the Purple Haze. Since the Amber does have a good malty profile, I think that it would hold up well paired with fried fish or even something spicier like chicken wings.
Well, there we go, 2 down and 97 to go. Be sure to let me know if you agree with me or don’t agree with me on the beers and if you approve of the method that I am using to evaluate them.
Until next time . . .
amazing, last weekend i tried a six of purple haze for the first time. funny, while drinking i actually thought, heh, here’s a beer that i’ll probably never see on nighthops. i’d have to say that your review is spot on, 100%! it is a nice change up from my usual strong dark belgian ale and a perfect fit for when you want a beer that goes down like a wheat soda! i’m sure i’ll have another before my time is up.
I generally don’t discriminate when it comes to beer . . . though you will see predominantly American breweries on this site really only because I have to start somewhere before expanding out. Glad that someone agrees with me . . . I often wonder about that. Eventually I will have a “formal” Purple Haze review as well!