After yesterday’s beer news I was pleasantly surprised to get the opportunity to enjoy a few Sam Adams Noble Pils drafts last night at the Celebration Town Tavern.  I really didn’t think I would get an opportunity to try it that soon.  It may be a bit strange to have enjoyed a spring seasonal in January, but it was good enough that I will have to reconsider my personal ranking of the Sam Adams seasonal lineup.  Combining that with meeting some extremely nice people, getting a tour of the beer cooler, and having some of the best clam chowder and onion rings in Florida (or anywhere for that matter), it was a really excellent evening.  A big thank you to Bill and Susan for your hospitality!

Oh yeah, I have a beer review for Friday to get to.  I am not sure if I would have picked this one for myself, but I am glad The Wife brought it home for me to try.  It is one of those different, but in a good way beers.

Brewery: Kerkom Brewery (Belgium)

Name: Bink Bloesem (Belgian Ale with pear syrup and honey)

Style: Fruit Beer

ABV: 7.1%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the wine fridge and served in a mug.  $4.99 for 11.2 oz.

Aroma: Mild malt aroma with some sweetness (honey?) and fruitiness, but no specific fruit nose.  Slight yeastiness and some alcohol in back.

Appearance: Brown with strong garnet highlights.  Two plus finger, beige head with moderate retention that does not leave a trail.  Seems clear (very dark and unable to see through).

Flavor: Malty with some sweetness.  A hint of honey is there, but I would not be able to blindly identify which fruit without the label.  Good balance with a finish that lingers a bit with the slightest hint of bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Medium body and a good amount of carbonation that gives some bite.  Slight warmth toward finish.

Overall Impressions: Very enjoyable and I might not immediately pin it as a fruit beer in a blind tasting (no overwhelming fruit flavors).  The bit of warmth balances well with everything else.  Good beer, but small amount for the price.

Grade: B+

Kerkom Brewery - Bink Bloesem

If I had known that in getting through my backlog I would be doing such a concentration of Ommegang reviews lately I might have just dedicated the entire month of January to them.  I would have needed to grab a few others to fill out the lineup of evaluations, but that would certainly not have been a bad thing.  With that thought, I think February may just have to be dedicated to a brewery or kick off something different for the site.  Stay tuned!

Brewery: Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY)

Name: Rare Vos

Style: Belgian Pale Ale

ABV: 6.5%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the wine fridge and served in my Ommegang glass (tulip-like).  $5.99 for 1pt. 9.4oz.

Aroma: Slightly sweet malty aroma with a bit of citrus present.  Some spiciness in the background.

Appearance: Light copper to amber in color.  Four finger, cream color head with large, quickly dissipating bubbles that leave some trail. Very clear with visible rising bubbles.

Flavor: Smooth malty flavor with light spiciness.  Some (orange zest-like) fruit flavor.  Slightly dry finish with a hint of hoppy bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Medium to light body with very noticeable carbonation that gives some early bite.  Smooth and very drinkable with the slightest hint of warmth.

Overall Impressions: Very easy drinking and perhaps a bit lighter in body than some other Belgians tried recently.  A bit higher in alcohol than typical for style (4.8-5.5% via BJCP).  Quite good and probably is only graded this low because my palate favors other Ommegang brews.

Grade: B to B+ range

Brewery Ommegang - Rare Vos

Even before starting my written beer evaluations I knew that this one was one of my favorites.  When asked about which beers I enjoyed most, this was the one that I generally responded with.  The strange part is that I couldn’t explain exactly why I like it so much and even after my official review I cannot put my finger on it.  I can only say that you should try it for yourself if you haven’t had a chance to already and if for some reason you don’t like it, send the leftovers to me!

Brewery: Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY)

Name: Three Philosophers

Style: Belgian Specialty Ale (Quadrupel – 98% Ale & 2% Ale with cherries)

ABV: 9.8%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in my Ommegang glass.

Aroma: Medium malt aroma with a good amount of hops.  Dark fruit nose with low alcohol noticeable.

Appearance: Medium brown color with a slight red hue.  Solid beige/reddish head with excellent retention and a good trail.  Clear with tiny bubbles visible rising in center of glass.

Flavor: Excellent (pretty complex) malty flavor with low hop notes. Slight dark fruit (cherry) flavors and a low to medium alcohol warmth at the finish.

Mouthfeel: Extremely smooth with a good amount of carbonation.  Excellent hold at finish with the slightest sourness.

Overall Impressions: Generally one of my favorites and it only gets better as it warms.  Fantastic for relaxation as it drinks like a wine (in a way).  Would be excellent paired with food.

Grade: A (or better)

Brewery Ommegang - Three Philosophers

If you missed out on the reasoning behind all of the Dogfish reviews to come and what “The Orbbies” are (see logo at right), check out yesterday’s post!

As I recently mentioned to The Brother-in-law, this was the first Dogfish beer that I remember having some years ago after just moving to Florida.  My memory is of this beer really opening my eyes to a whole new world of craft brews.  At the time, I was somewhat blown away by the flavor, but as I tried more and more Dogfish beers I found out that it was pretty tame by comparison.  My overall grade for the beer back then would have likely been slightly higher than today, but I still regard it as a very good beer that you should get if you are looking to try something new.

Brewery: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton, Delaware)

Name: Raison D’Etre

Style: Belgian Dark Strong Ale

ABV: 8.0%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a goblet.  $1.99 for 12oz.

Aroma: Malty, sweet aroma that is brown sugar or molasses-like.  Strong dark fruit notes (raisins in this case)

Appearance: Deep copper to brown color.  One finger, light tan head that quickly dissipates with some trail.  Very clear with some visible rising bubbles.

Flavor: Malty with a slight sweetness underneath.  No noticeable hops, tipping the overall balance to the malt side.  Somewhat dry at finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with pretty high carbonation having a slight bite.  Some noticeable warmth.  Slightly smooth on the palate.

Overall Impressions: Flavor is similar to aroma, though not as full.  Better as it warms closer to room temperature.  Nice slow-drinking beer.

Grade: B+(ish)

The cap (sorry about the shadow)

Dogfish Head - Raison D'Etre

It seems that I try fewer Belgian style beers lately as I concentrate (at least somewhat) on American breweries, but this one made it on the roster in the early stages of reviews.  Even though I would prefer beers from Ommegang or Allagash to Leffe Blond, it is a decent Belgian Ale.  I suppose it is somewhat comparable to a Blue Moon (I said somewhat).  What I do know is that it tastes much better when enjoyed on the Champs-Elysees in Paris that out of the bottle at home in Florida.

When in France . . .

Brewery: Abbaye de Leffe S.A. (Belgium)

Name: Leffe Blond

Style: Belgian Blond Ale

ABV: 6.6%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in my Ommegang (tulip-like) glass.

Aroma: Light, spicy hop aroma with a subtle yeast nose.  Somewhat like the aroma of a pilsner or other lighter styles of beer.

Appearance: Deep gold color.  Three finger (plus), off-white head with excellent retention leaving some trail.  Crystal clear with many visible bubbles rising.

Flavor: Smooth with some sweetness and light, spicy notes.  Medium hop flavor with some alcohol toward the finish.  Well balanced overall.

Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation with some warmth in the background.  Medium to light body and somewhat creamy.

Overall Impressions: Subtle (in flavor) Belgian ale.  Very easy drinking and is a good Belgian style beer if the intent is to drink more than a few.  Not my favorite Belgian, but OK.

Grade: B (towards a B+)

Abbaye de Leffe S.A. - Leffe Blond

The time left to enter the giveaway announced on Monday is running out quickly.  If new entries trickle in before midnight I will throw them in the lottery, but that will be the cut off.  My dogs (or at least one of them) will be picking the two winners tomorrow morning, which should make for a very interesting video addition to the post announcing the lucky two.

The second of The Wife’s randomly selected reviews for this week is another from Shmaltz Brewing Co.  I was certainly not disappointed that I would be able to revisit another of their very good brews.  This one is from their HE’BREW line of beers that are, perhaps, slightly more traditional than their Coney Island counterparts.  As I have said before the labels and the names will get you to try the first one, but the product inside the bottle will keep you coming back.

Brewery: Shmaltz Brewing Co. (Saratoga Springs, NY – based in San Francisco, CA)

Name: Rejewvenator Harvest to Harvest Ale – Year of the Date (uses date concentrate)

Style: Half Doppelbock and half Belgian Dubbel

ABV: 7.8%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in a pilsner glass.  $4.99 for 1pt. 6oz.

Aroma: Deep maltiness with no real hop aroma.  Dark fruit noticeable (I would have guessed fig or something similar).  Somewhat brown sugar-like character.

Appearance: Dark (deep) amber color with some ruby.  Four plus finger, light caramel color head that is very creamy and persistent.  Legs and trail are left on glass.  Clear with bubble visible along glass.

Flavor: Rich maltiness with some toasty/roasted flavor.  Fruit flavor (date concentrate) is not really noticeable.  Finishes somewhat dry.  Balance is heavy to malt with a hint of estery hop flavor in back.

Mouthfeel: Medium-full body.  Very smooth and somewhat creamy.  Some warmth noticeable.  Medium carbonation (providing a very slight sharpness) that lessens as it sits.

Overall Impressions: Quite enjoyable overall.  Strong flavors, but they seems to work well together.  Warmth is well balanced into the mix.

Grade: A-

Rejewvenator - Year of the Date

This is one of my favorite breweries.  I suppose it is in part that the brewery’s location is close to where I grew up, but it’s mostly because they specialize in really good Belgian-style ales.  As it says on my Ommegang glass, it is “Where brewing is an art and partaking is a passion.”

Brewery: Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY)

Name: Hennepin

Style: Belgian Ale (Saison)

ABV: 7.7%

Tasting Notes: Stored in the fridge and served in my Ommegang glass (almost a tulip)

Aroma: Not a huge aroma overall.  Low hop nose with some citrus (orange) and a hint of spice (coriander?).  Maybe even a faint floral note?

Appearance: Golden in color with a yellowish-orange tint.  Very tall, white head with good retention (slow dissipation) that leaves some trail on the glass.  Somewhat cloudy, but rising bubbles are still visible.

Flavor: Crisp citrusy hop flavor with some spice notes (seems to be ginger).  Maybe a bit of light maltiness and yeast flavor present?  Very slight bit of alcohol in background.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with a very enjoyable, smooth finish that doesn’t linger too long.  Enough carbonation to feel it on your tongue.

Overall Impressions: There is quite a bit going on here that I cannot quite put into words (this was one of my early reviews).  Very refreshing Belgian that is not too heavy.  Gets better as it warms a bit.  I could and would drink this beer everyday.

Grade: A to A+

Brewery Ommegang - Hennepin