Today's beer adventure: Lagunitas Maximus IPA (California, USA). 355ml bottle. 8.2% ABV. Served in a pint glass. Purchased at Willow Park Wine and Spirits in Regina, SK.The pour is clear yellow amber with a good amount of foamy white head with some lacing on the glass as well. Aroma is of HUGE pine and citrus hops. Slight amount of sweet malt is detected as well.The flavour is huge American hop as suspected - grapefruit, pine needles, lemon, THEN the creaminess and sweet malt kick in. Outstanding mouthfeel. This is described as a double/imperial IPA and it definitely delivers this in spades.Rating is 8.5 dogs. I really like this, but couldn't drink too many as the hop bitterness would get to be a bit much for me I think. Find one and drink one!What other people think: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/lagunitas-maximus/7859/Brewer's website: http://lagunitas.com/beers/maximus/
Today's beer adventure: Entry #5264 Dopplebock (Unknown). 330ml bottle. ?.?% ABV. Served in a pint glass. Acquired from the random box of beer entries 2 weeks ago at my BJCP class.
Style: 5C - Doppelbock
Aroma: Sweet maltiness with an initially overwhelming acetaldehyde character that does fade over time. Some caramel and melanoidins. Some roastiness shows up after some time. No hop aromas detected. No diacetyl, no DMS. Low fruit esters. 4/12
Appearance: Clear dark brown with amber hues. Negligible head, even under agitation. 2/3
Flavour: Very rich. Big caramel and some toasty notes. Some fruit esters are present - plums, raisins, etc. Acetaldehyde is present in flavour as well. Finish is biting and not to character. 7/20
Mouthfeel: Medium full bodied brew, moderate carbonation. There is some astringent harshness about this that I can't fully put my finger on to describe. 3/5
Overall Impression: Colour and initial flavour are indicative of style, but other items are not as representative. The bottle was overfilled and one wonders if there may have been some ill effect from that. 3/10
DDogg rating is 3.8 out of 10 dogs (19/50 BJCP scale). A fair beer, but there were too many off flavour faults and items not to style.
ALES Website: http://www.alesclub.com/
Today's beer adventure: Delirium Tremens Belgian Golden Ale (Belgium). 330ml bottle. 8.7% ABV. Served in a tulip glass. Purchased at Willow Park Wine and Spirits in Regina, SK.Style: 18D - Belgian Golden Strong Ale
Aroma: Belgian yeasts giving typical bready aromas. Appropriate clove and coriander spiciness. Low fruit esters. Floral, perfumed hop character. Alcohol is present, but not overpowering. No solvent character, No diacetyl. 9/12
Appearance: Clear golden colour with an huge rocky white head. Medium high carbonation. Heavy lacing typical to style. 3/3Flavour: Fruity esters of pear, banana are right out front fading into floral hop character. Very crisp and dry. Medium low peppery spiciness along with clove character. Tasty brew. No alcohol hotness or burn. Carbonation remains high and contributes to the dryness on the finish. Low to no astringency. No diacetyl. 15/20
Mouthfeel: Crisp and dry with a warming alcohol finish that is not hot nor solvent like. Light, refreshing character belies the high alcohol content. 4/5
Overall Impression: Overall a strong representative of the style - a light, effervescent, drinkable Belgian Golden Ale. Blind tasting might have led me to believe it was a Tripel. 7/10DDogg rating is 7.6 out of 10 dogs (38/50 BJCP scale). The beer certainly scored high, but for me it was a bit meh. It's only an OK beer. Not really a repeat for me.
Brewer's Website: http://www.delirium.be/What other people think: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/delirium-tremens/1039/
Today's beer adventure: Phillips Brewing Longboat Chocolate Porter (Victoria, BC). 650ml bottle. 5.2% ABV. Served in a stemmed porter glass. Purchased at Willow Park Wine and Spirits in Regina, SK.Style: 12B - Robust Porter
Aroma: Roasted malts. Bread. Rich dark chocolate. Some liquorice. Some dark fruit character. Small amount of diacetyl (artificial butterscotch/toffee). Some DMS (corn character) is present. No hop aromas. Agitiation brings forward a bit of a metallic aroma. 5/12
Appearance: Very dark brown with ruby highlights. Good clarity. Small amount of light tan head. Good retention. 3/3Flavour: Bitter coffee roastiness, Some DMS character is present and shouldn't be. Only a small amount of chocolate on the tongue - was expecting more. No hop presence. A bit too artificially sweet on the back end. 9/20
Mouthfeel: Medium light to medium mouthfeel. Medium-high carbonation. Sweet, slightly astringent finish. No slickness from the diacetyl. Very little roastiness, which would have given a higher score. 3/5
Overall Impression: The DMS and diacetyl are an issue and take away from a the beer. Tastes of artificial flavourings. Perhaps the use of adjuncts is too high? 5/10DDogg rating is 5 out of 10 dogs (25/50 BJCP scale). Again, I tried to use the BJCP style guide for this. The beer isn't really that good...it tastes fake. To be fair, I see that the label indicated Chocolate flavoured Porter..so I guess the artificial flavourings are to be expected. I don't have to like them though. Might have been better cold. I tasted it at about 10c-12c approximately.
Also there is a strong possibility I might be talking out of my ass.
Brewer's Website: http://phillipsbeer.com/Beers/longboat-chocolate-porter
What other people think: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/phillips-longboat-double-chocolate-porter/42093/
Today's beer adventure: Chimay Grande Réserve (Blue) (Belgium). 750ml bottle. 9% ABV. Served in a tulip glass. Purchased at Willow Park Wine and Spirits in Regina, SK.
Style: 18E - Belgian Strong Ale
Aroma: Dark fruit esters - big raisin, plums, fig, dates. Caramel. Banana. Slight spicy pheneols. Walnuts. Alcohol is way out front - not outside style. No diacetyl. Negligible hop aromas. 10/12
Appearance: Dark amber. Slightly hazy, but not inappropriate for style. Large tan head. Great retention. Medium lacing. 3/3
Flavour: Huge dark fruit esters as per the aroma. Alcohol. Caramel, but not overpowering. Bread. Dry finish, likely from hops. No diacetyl. No astringency. No sour or acidic qualities. Finish lingers for just the right period of time. 15/20
Mouthfeel: Lively on the tongue. Medium mouthfeel but seems lighter due to the fairly high carbonation. No slickness/oiliness. Lots of warming alcohol without being boozy. No acidic bite. 5/5
Overall Impression: Smooth an medium bodied, fruity, a bit of spice. Wonderful Belgian yeast character. Complex, rich beer. 8/10
DDogg rating is 8 out of 10 dogs. I strived in the above to judge the beer against the style guide...not against whether I "liked" it or not...hint though..I liked it. A lot.
What other people think: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/215/2512
Brewer's website: http://www.chimay.com/en/chimay-bleue.html?IDD=130&IDC=287
So the first BJCP class was last night. I might be a little scared. :) I think it will be alright, but the amount of information that needs to be absorbed prior to writing the first test - 200 questions in ONE HOUR - and the second practical exam, is very high. I am going to try and follow the BJCP guidelines a bit during the next while while doing my reviews.
Anyways, if you happen to care about the program I am taking - here is the info: http://www.bjcp.org/sitemap.php
Sooo...this coming Monday, September 24th, is my first step towards becoming a certified beer judge. I am taking the BJCP training course with my buddy Derek. At worst we will drink a lot of neat beers between now and January. At best, we will learn a ton and maybe even get a whole bunch better at identifying what it is that we are tasting and smelling.
I am hoping to blog that experience as well. We are very excited. SQUEEEEE!!!!
