I first encountered Brooklyn Brewery in Panama City Beach, thanks to Chan’s Wine World, but that was in a collaborative effort with Franziskaner. It wasn’t until later, back here in Tennessee, that I experienced Brooklyn’s brews on their own, and I am a fan thus far. I was hoping they would someday send me samples to review, and I am happy to report that this year they contacted me, offering review samples. I was sent their Summer Ale and their Sorachi Ace, which I will review later. More: Beer review: Brooklyn Summer Ale
Archive for the ‘Beer Reviews’ Category

Beer review: Brooklyn Summer Ale
August 16, 2011
Beer Review: JW Lee’s Harvest Ale
May 10, 2011This beer, JW Lee’s Harvest Ale 2007, a fully fermented old ale, was provided to me by Aleksey’s Imports for reviewing purposes. I’ve already previously reviewed a version of this that had been aged in Lagavulin Whisky casks. I’ve seen this called a barleywine on some websites, but I think it’s more appropriately referred to as an old ale, as was mentioned on the bottle.
The Pour
There was less than a finger of head to speak of on the pour, which did not surprise me, given the nature of the beer. The very light tan head dissipated somewhat quickly. This old ale pours to an orange-tinged brown color with a great deal of sediment floating around in the bottle. I know some people leave a little of the beer in the bottle, hoping to hold back that sediment, but if it’s there, I like to see it and experience it. More: Beer Review: JW Lee’s Harvest Ale

Beer Review: J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale aged in Lagavulin Casks
April 23, 2011
I know, it’s been a while since my last review. I’ve been so busy working and trying to find a civil engineering job in the Nashville area that I’ve neglected my poor blog. This beer review (J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale aged in Lagavulin Casks) comes courtesy of Aleksey’s Imports, who have provided me beer for quite a few reviews in the past, and to whom I am very grateful.
More: Beer Review: J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale aged in Lagavulin Casks

Beer Review: Brauereu Heller Bamberg’s Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock
November 29, 2010Today’s beer review is another brought to you by Aleksey’s Imports. I knew going into this that it was a smoke beer, but tried it anyway.
The only other smoke beer I’ve really had was Rogue’s Smoke Ale, and I hated it. I’m talking drain-pouringly awful. I thought it was like drinking smoked pork…bacon in a glass, perhaps? So I approached this beer with some trepidation, to say the least. More: Beer Review: Brauereu Heller Bamberg’s Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock

Beer Review: Birra Moretti’s La Rossa Doppelbock
November 17, 2010
I had seen Birra Moretti in stores before, but I honestly couldn’t remember if I had ever tried their beer before. Fortunately the good folks there arranged for me to try some, and I chose La Rossa, their doppelbock. I definitely enjoyed it! Here is what they have to say about the beer:
Birra Moretti La Rossa is a double malt beer produced using 100% high quality barley malt. This gives it a full, caramelised malt flavour and an intense aroma of roasted malt. Its distinctive amber colour originates from the type of malt used when brewing, a special malt which is dried and roasted. More: Beer Review: Birra Moretti’s La Rossa Doppelbock

Beer Review: Great Northern Brewing’s Minott’s Black Star Lager
November 11, 2010
Today’s beer review comes to you courtesy of the Great Northern Brewing Company. One of their brand ambassadors for Black Star Lager contacted me and wanted to send me a press kit and samples to review. Well, I recently finally got around to trying this golden lager, and thought more highly of it than I expected to, because I generally find lagers to be boring and lack disctinctive flavors. They often just taste like beer to me, instead of displaying interesting distinct flavors. This one turned out to be just the opposite. Anyway, here it goes… More: Beer Review: Great Northern Brewing’s Minott’s Black Star Lager

Beer review: Schneider-Weisse’s Aventinus
October 22, 2010Today’s beer review, Schneider-Weisse‘s Aventinus, is another brought to you by Alekseys Imports. I believe I had this beer once before but never reviewed it, so I was anxious to give it another go. I enjoyed this one my first night at the beach during my recent visit to Panama City Beach and Splash Resort Condominiums, where we usually stay when we visit PCB.
The Pour
The pour resulted in a quite active, not overly dense beige head. Two fingers thick, the head rested atop a hazy, quite active light cola colored ale.

Beer Review: Schneider-Weisse Brewery and Brooklyn Brewery: Hopfen Weisse
October 9, 2010
Today’s beer review is another one courtesy of Aleksey’s Imports: Schneider-Weisse and Brooklyn Brewery‘s Hopfenweisse. I had this beer in Panama City Beach a couple of years ago (bought it at my favorite PCB beer destination, Chan’s Wine World) but lost the tasting notes and never got a chance to review it. I’m now glad I did, because I feel like I can appreciate this beer so much more now, although I did think it was mighty tasty when I last tried it.
The Pour
This beer showed off a dense one-finger-thick, very light beige head, resting atop an orange medium amber brew. It was so hazy it was almost completely opaque. I just know I’ll be finding some tasty sediment at the bottom of the bottle!
The Nose
This has a good wheaty nose, but with floral (and very slightly grassy) and citrusy hop notes. There’s a faint spiciness to it as well, but overall, this is a really good nose.
The Taste
This is an extremely smooth hefeweizen with a very good hop flavor, but without excessive hop bitterness. The bitterness of the hops really only comes out on the finish, but it’s still subtle. The beer has hints of apricot and banana and is actually sweeter than you expect, but the hops make themselves known, showing off subtly floral and citrus flavors. I was picking up lemon and tangerine there. There also seems to be a slightly musty woodiness to it. The hops and the higher ABV really bloom on the finish. This beer is medium bodied and with a silky mouthfeel, and I enjoyed how the apricot and banana really seemed to linger on the finish. The alcohol definitely catches up to you though.
Scoring Breakdown
Appearance: I like the orangey-amber color and the haziness promises good things to come.
8 points out of 10.
Nose: The nose definitely tells of things to come, and smells wonderful.
13 points out of 15.
Taste: The mouthfeel and flavors all work together very nicely here. The flavor also has a very good complexity and depth to enjoy.
50 points out of 55.
Style: A great example of a hefeweizen. The hops just add an extra dimension and character to this ale.
20 points out of 20.
Total rating: 91 points
In a nutshell: This is an exceptionally tasty and unique hefeweizen from two great breweries.

Beer review: Brauerei Hofstetten’s Granitbock
October 5, 2010
Today’s beer review, Brauerei Hofstetten’s Granitbock, comes to you courtesy of Aleksey’s Imports. This is the first of the beers I am reviewing at their request. I actually sampled this at the Oktoberfest tasting at W.O. Smith Music School this past weekend, but I had wanted to take full tasting notes for this beer and review it using my new rating system. So here it goes…
The Pour
I poured this into the Reidel glass that Jason at Grand Cru was kind enough to purchase for me, because it concentrates aromas a little better than a regular pint glass. It poured to a two-finger-thick, light caramel colored head. The head is somewhat loose and pillowy and leaves decent lacing on the glass. The beer itself is a dark cola brown color with very slight ruby undertones.
The Nose
You definitely get plenty of granite from the nose, as well as brown sugar, mocha and caramel, with a slightly smoky edge.
The Taste
The taste at first is not as sweet as the nose, though this changes somewhat as the beer warms. On the palate you get smoke and mineral notes punctuated by the sweetness of mocha, caramel and brown sugar. There seemed to be a very very slight metallic twinge at first, though that doesn’t stand up to all the other flavors. This medium-bodied beer has a mouthfeel that alternates between carbonated and crisp and smooth and slightly syrupy. On the finish, this beer shows a bit of the slightly higher ABV and smokey coffee flavors linger for some time. There is also a very slightly astringent quality to the finish as well.
Scoring Breakdown
Appearance: Decent lacing, color and head are as you’d expect.
8 points out of 10
Nose: Good depth of aromas, nose helps accentuate flavors on palate.
12 points out of 15
Taste: A lot of flavors merge here. You can taste the granite it as brewed in, as well as some pretty good flavors mingling throughout, with good depth.
46 points out of 55
Style: This is pretty much consistent with the dopplebock style.
18 points out of 20
Total rating: 84 points
In a nutshell: This is an interesting beer, and a tasty one too. Watch out for the higher ABV though…it sneaks up on you

Beer Review: Trumer Pils
August 27, 2010
I was lucky enough to score a six pack of Trumer Pils lately, thanks to Debbie Rizzo of DrinkPR!
According to Wikipedia:
Trumer Pils is an Austrian pilsner previously sold almost exclusively in the Austrian federal state of Salzburg. It is characterized by hoppy bitterness, high carbonation, and a light body.
In 2004, Trumer Brauerei opened a brewery in Berkeley, California, to reproduce for the American market the Trumer Pils it has brewed for 400 years in Austria.
The Pour
This pours to a pale straw color. A one finger thick bubbly white head floats atop this very effervescent brew. A very vigorous pour resulted in an almost three finger thick head. It sure made for one beautiful beer in the pilsner glass.
The Nose
The nose contains some citrus and a slight sweetness, with a toastiness also making an appearance.
The Taste
This light bodied beer is very effervescent on the palate. Crisp and light, this beer shows lightly grassy hoppy flavors after an initial faint sweetness. The bitter hop flavor becomes more noticeable on the finish. This beer almost has a slight crispy cracker flavor and character to it as well.
Overall
A pilsner is essentially a pale lager, and I am not much of a lager fan. But there is something I like about this beer regardless. Whatever my personal opinion about lagers and pilsners, this pilsner is a good example of the style, and has a good hop flavor. This beer really reminds me of beers I’ve had on trips to Europe.
Recommended
If you’re a pilsner or lager fan, this is a good one to enjoy, with a good hop profile.
Price: Unknown, review samples
ABV: 4.9%

Beer Review: Sweetwater Motor Boat Ale
August 24, 2010I first noticed Sweetwater Brewery because of the rainbow trout on the bottle. (I’m a sucker for trout….brook trout mostly, but I think rainbow trout are beautiful as well). I tried their 420 Extra Pale Ale first, and I found it to be a tasty but subtle brew. That was back in 2007 and I haven’t picked up any Sweetwater since then, for some reason. I recently found myself at Publix looking for beer, so I went with the subject of today’s beer review, Sweetwater’s Motor Boat Ale. As the bottle puts it, this is their “titillating version of an ESBBBBBBBBB!
The Pour
This unfiltered ESB pours to a sediment-rich orange/coppery color. My first bottle I overpoured, resulting in a very large 2 1/2 finger thick head that crested the mouth of the glass like a nice, light tan pillowy dome. When you take a look at the beer in the glass you can see the yeasty sediment slowly sinking through the beer. It’s funny, I noticed that when you raise the glass to your lips, the action of raising and then lowering the glass swirls the beer around, and the sediment swirling around the glass resembles some sort of awesome snow globe made up of yeast and golden nectar! There is a decent amount of lacing left on the glass as you drink the beer.
The Nose
This has a nicely hoppy nose that features citrus mixed with floral scents. There’s also a slightly powdery hint to the nose. It smells interesting!
The Taste
The taste of this beer nicely matches the nose. The hop in the taste, however, is more floral than citrusy, with a powdery dryness as well. The hop doesn’t linger on the finish as long as I expected it to, which makes it finish pretty clean. There’s a good malt backbone as well, giving it a well rounded body and a slight sweetness. The beer tastes of yeast and a slight dustiness as well. All of the beer’s flavors really take turns in the spotlight.
Overall
This light-medium brew has more character and depth of flavor than I expected it to. I thought I’d come out of this review thinking this beer wasn’t half bad, but I found it quite enjoyable.
Recommended
Definitely. This beer has good, simple flavors that intermingle well. No one flavor really overpowers or hogs the spotlight. They all well up on the palate on their own but also act as a well organized team.
Price: $8.69/6 12 oz bottles
ABV: 5.6%

Beer Review: Caldera IPA
August 21, 2010Today’s beer review, Caldera IPA, is another review brought to you courtesy of my buddy Elmer. He recommended this beer to me, and I recently (finally) took his sage advice and tried what turned out to be a surprisingly tasty IPA. (Photo “borrowed” from http://www.thefullpint.com, so please visit their site!)
About the brewery
(Direct from Caldera Brewing Company’s Website) Caldera Brewing Company, located in Ashland, Oregon, was established in 1997. Caldera is dedicated and determined to produce uncompromised quality craft beers. Balancing premium malted barley, fresh whole flower hops, and natural carbonation, each beer is brewed for optimum sensory pleasures. Caldera is the first craft brewery in Oregon to brew and can its own beer.
About the beer
This beer is made with Simcoe, Centennial and Amarillo hops. According to Caldera, this beer is an American-style India Pale Ale brewed with plenty of body and an assertive hop profile.
The Pour
This slightly hazy, coppery orange colored beer pours slightly hazy and with a 2 and a half finger thick, somewhat pillowy head. The head quickly settles into a 1 finger thick, denser head that leaves great lacing clinging to the glass for dear life.
The Nose
Oh heavenly hops! The nose simply overflows with good clean floral hops and juicy grapefruit. This smells like it will be a great IPA. My mouth waters just inhaling it’s heavenly hoppy bounty!
The Taste
Smooth and extremely clean, the flavor of this beer is mildly citrusy/fruity upfront with a floral, slightly bitter hop flavor on the finish. The hops really come in on the finish, make you forget about the beer’s fruity aspects, and make you want another taste, just to experience the fruitiness again. There is a slightly thick, clinging mouthfeel to this light-medium bodied brew.
Overall
I love love love a good, complex beer, with endless depth of flavor and great character. This is not one of those beers. But I also appreciate a simple, very well crafted and flavorful beer, and this definitely fits the bill. This is an excellent example if what an IPA can be. Juicy grapefruit and floral hops can’t be done any better than they are here.
Recommended
Absolutely. I can recommend this without a doubt. If you like a good IPA, you’ll definitely enjoy this one. A template for what a great IPA could taste like.
Price: $2.29/12 oz. can
ABV: 6.1%

Beer Review: Yazoo Brewing Company’s Summer Ale
August 9, 2010
Today’s beer review, Yazoo Brewing‘s Summer Ale, comes with an added bonus: 20% of the proceeds from the sale of this beer are donated to the Community Fund to help rebuild Nashville after our May floods. (The artwork on the bottle, by the way, was donated by a Nashville graphic designer, Derrick Castle.)
I first learned Yazoo’s Summer Ale was coming back in April, when I guest blogged a post about local springtime beers for OnNashville.com. According to Yazoo, this was going to be an organic English mild made with just one particular hop and one particular malt. I have since found out that the beer is made using “pilsner malt and lots of Saaz hops.”
The Pour
This pours a completely clear golden straw color, with a one finger thick, decently pillowy off-white head. It doesn’t seem to be an overly effervescent beer.
The Nose
The nose develops greater personality after the first couple of short sniffs. At first, it smells mildly hoppy and fruity, and quite clean. As the nose develops, though, a deeper fruit profile develops. I definitely picked up peaches in the nose, along with some other varieties of fruits…possibly hints of cherry and citrus?
The Taste
This starts dry and fruity and finishes dry and fruity. There is definitely a unique hoppiness to it, distinctive from other hoppy profiles I’ve experienced before. It’s not an obviously fruity or floral hop flavor to me, but more a spicy, bitter hop. It’s not a mouth puckering hoppiness but a distinctive hoppiness., that starts small at the front of the palate and quickly grows and spreads at the back of the throat. It almost has a powdery character to it as well. This beer is light-bodied and has flavors that linger well after the beer is gone.
Overall
I like the fruitiness the beer has…it’s a deep fruitiness that really keeps you drinking and smelling as you try to deconstruct the flavors. This is my first experience with a Saaz hops that I am aware of (and probably safe to say it’s my first all Sazz hops beer) and I can’t say I’m a big fan. When I read about Saaz hops I see it described as earthy and spicy. I get the spicy, but not at all the earthy.
Recommended
You’d be hard pressed to find a bad Yazoo beer, so I definitely recommend them, but if asked to recommend specific Yazoo beers, this would probably be last on my list. But 20% goes to a good cause….so at least give it a shot. You may like it more than I do, plus you’ll be drinking for a good cause.
Price: $1.99/12 oz. bottle
ABV: ???
Now I love beer, obviously, but I love coffee as well. This is probably why I so greatly enjoy stouts and porters. So when a coffee stout comes along, I am doubly excited! I came home one day to an unexpected package, always a great day, and it was 





