Beer Broad

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Guide to Thanksgiving Beer Pairing

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Beer: Barking Squirrel Brewery: Hop City Brewing Location: Brampton, Ontario, Canada Type: Lager In Three Words: mild, bitter, different

Another beer from the brewery that I reviewed while in Canada. Had to grab some home crafted brews, right? Like I said before, I don't know a huge amount about Canadian craft brews, but this one is super well reviewed and in the town of 5000 where I was staying, it was one of the only choices. 

I reviewed a beer from this brewery previously that I really liked, and they delivered once again. Super yummy. It somehow is mild/smooth and easy to sip while also retaining this amazing bitter hop taste that is really different than anything I have ever had.

There are hints of citrus and molasses, mixed in with the hops taste to make a really unique flavor and style. It's delicious, and they manage to mix so many flavors yet not make it overly complicated. Perfect simplicity.

Fantastic beer. Well done, Canada. Well done, Hop City.

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Beer: Milk Stout Brewery: Left Handed Brewing Location: Longmont, CO Type: Stout In Three Words: smooth, heavy, delicious

If you have been reading this blog, you probably know I am not huge on dark beers. I definitely enjoy them but there are times I can't seem to distinguish them apart (preparing for angry comments). But I had heard so much about this beer (and randomly voted against it in a poll just to get a Magic Hat out of the running), so I knew I had to try it. I was not disappointed. It has the smooth wonderfulness of a nice ale combined with the dark bold flavor of a stout. 

It's definitely intense, like any good stout should be. But the amount of flavors they were able to cram in there without letting them be overpowered by the darkness of this beer is awesome. There is a smokiness to the flavor (almost like the aroma of charcoal!) and of course a milkiness. There is also hints of chocolate, and cream. All around so interesting and very yummy. I am anticipating it to be a regular in the upcoming dark cold months.

The other thing about this beer that gave me a profound "awww yeahhh" moment was when I poured it. Very nice. Very smooth (how many more times can I use that word?) and a great head. Not too much foam, just a thin precise beautiful layer. It also looked almost like syrup when poured in. Like a slow roll out. But when drinking it, nothing but perfect.

The hype over this beer is justified. Give it a shot. Or six. 

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Beer: Toasted Lager Brewery: Blue Point Brewing Company Location: Long Island, NY Type: Lager In Three Words: sweet, fizzy, light

I have been doing a lot of light beers recently, but nothing could keep me away from this gem. It won the Gold Award in the World Beer Cup in 2006. Okay, to be honest, I know nothing of those things, and I don't quite pay attention, but this beer sounded interesting and I tasted it at the Spring Seasonal Craft Beer Fest here in New York and adored it. So delicious. 

I've been drinking this beer all summer but didn't get around to reviewing it till now. So good. Did I say that? It's delicious. Granted if you don't like a sweet(ish) beer, this might not be for you. I personally don't find it to be that sweet at all; more full bodied and evened out with the lager portion of the beer. However, I bought my dad a six pack and he thought it was too sweet. He enjoys dark beers but he also loves Labatt Blue, so, who we gonna trust here, amirite?

Just kidding, Dad. Go Canada.

Anyway, I love this beer because it is interesting, delicious, and a great take on a flagship beer. A little bitter. A little toasty. A lot of good.

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Guys it is such a good night.

Now if only the weather would match my beer mood.

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Beer: Anchor Summer Beer Brewery: Anchor Brewing Co. Location: San Francisco, CA Type: Pale Wheat Ale In Three Words: delicious, amazing, summery

Okay to be fair my three words in this case were not super descriptive, I'll admit. And they were biased by the fact that this is my favorite summer beer, by far. I can't get enough of it. The cripsness is perfect for the hot sweaty summer months and the flavor is just interesting enough to keep you sipping till the very end.

It's not a super risky beer; not a lot of complicated flavors or surprises. But that doesn't mean this isn't just a really good beer for the sweltering days. I actually wish they carried it all year because I pretty much crave it all the time.

A little bit of floral, some hops, but not too hoppy. Even though it is technically a pale ale, it feels more like a wheat ale to me.

Delicious, all around.

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made my own six pack to bring to a bbq and share. oh ya.

Boys of summer? PFFT. More like…beers of summer.

But seriously, the loves of my life this summer have been these three geniuses. I know, getting pretty biased towards the Anchor beers these days, but can I help it? They make such delicious beer, and that California Lager really pleased my taste buds.

On top of that, we have Deschutes’ summer ale, Twilight. So delicious and perfect for summer evening. Aptly named.

This summer has been a scorcher, especially it being my first one in Brooklyn. I just want to take a moment and appreciate these guys for helping me through it.

Breakdown:

Deschutes Brewery’s Twilight Summer Ale Blonde ale

Anchor Brewery’s Summer Beer (review soon!) Pale Wheat Ale

Anchor Brewery’s California Lager Pale Lager

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Guess where I was this weekend?

After a delicious time at Smorgasburg (the state fair for hipsters), I headed over to the Brookyn Brewery just a few blocks away for a much anticipated visit. Yes, I admit, I have lived in New York for nearly a year now and I still hadn't visited. What is wrong with me?! But in all honesty, I have never been a huge fan of their beers. I like them, of course. They are delicious. But give me the choice between a Blue Point and a Brooklyn Brewery and I will go with the Blue Point. 

AND YET. There is no denying that Brooklyn Brewery is delicious. And a trip to the brewery is necessary, especially if you are a proclaimed "brooklyn based beer lover" (cough me).

The space is beautiful, with big windows and the giant tanks greeting right when you walk in. Old bottles displayed all over the place. You buy tokens and each token gets you beer. 5 tokens = $20, pretty amazing deal. 

In the tap room, you are welcome to snag a table and camp out for as long as you like. You can bring in your own food and games and even order pizza to your table. Which we did.

Of the beers on tap, I ended up trying:

Scorcher

Weisse

Sorachi Ace

Cuvée la boite

Halfling

All of them were very delicious, but pretty sweet and light. The only dark beer they had on tap really at the time was a rye beer that I did not end up trying. I found most of them to be a bit too sweet to my liking, similar in style to a Belgian ale in taste and smell. There were distinct qualities to each of them but in general I felt as though the variety on tap at the moment was pretty similar.

I did, however, adore the Sorachi Ace. So delicious and amazing. A bit sweet, a bit floral. Great to sip and a perfect alcohol content at 7.6%. 

The weirdest and most interesting beer would have to be the Halfling. So light it was barely there but enough flavor to keep you sipping. Also, extremely un-alcoholic at 3.2%, but still worth it. Tasty.

It would be an understatement to say I had difficulty walking a straight path upon leaving. And it was only 6pm. I passed a bride and told her she was beautiful before stumbling into the Radegest beer hall just around the corner and a couple blocks down. More beer. Giant pretzels. I am so predictable.

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Beer: Big Mouth Brewery: Hop City Brewing Location: Brampton, Ontario, Canada Type: Pale Ale In Three Words: bitter, floral, strong

A special edition Beer Broad here, as I am blogging to you from a beautiful deck overlooking a lake in Canada! In the spirit of this, I made a trip into town yesterday and picked up a few Canadian craft brews. This one caught my eye after I glanced at the back of the can and saw it won the Grand Gold Quality award in Brussels in 2011. Pretty crazy! 

Full disclosure: I am Canadian and proud of it, but I don't know much about Canadian beers. This brewery seems to be getting a lot of attention, and their beers are unique and interesting. Their Facebook about page lists numerous awards from Canadian beer organizations and international ones.

It makes sense that the brewery is called Hop City and that this is one of their flagship beers. It is incredibly hoppy. My first sip after I cracked open the can was pretty intense. In fact, it didn't even really taste like beer. Just very hoppy. But after the first few sips, it got better and better, and I noticed notes of flowers and citrus. It is also very refreshing. It's quite hot today, and I am sipping this with great pleasure.

Fun fact: there is already a beer in the US called Big Mouth, so if you are trying to find it across the border, look for 'Happy Hour". Guess they couldn't import it with it's original name. 

Would love to try more beers by this brewery, so expect at least one more review before I leave.

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Extremely exciting thing of the week: Anchor Brewery announced their new Fall seasonal and it sounds like heaven.

Anchor's autumn beer, a red ale, will be called "BigLeaf Maple" and is inspired by the California tree of the same name. And yes, the beer will feature a hint of maple syrup, on top of caramel and hops.

Get ready for a new favorite.

More info here.

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So, here is a way to stay cool when you don't have AC in New York City: a beer on the roof! Add to my list of things I have been enjoying a lot recently.

The other week I ventured up there (by way of a kind of scary ladder) with my roommate, equipped with beer and a bottle opener. My boyfriend had recently bought a twelve pack of Saranac beers for me because he is a big fan of the White IPA. To be honest, I never really find myself buying them for whatever reason, but after he left there were like, five or six left in the fridge so I helped myself. 

In my post about summer beers, I didn't really mention any dark beers because, well, summer beers tend to be lighter. But man oh man, did Saranac's Irish Stout do good for me. Honestly, on a hot day, a dark beer is surprisingly refreshing.

In agreeing with my boyfriend, the White IPA is also pretty amazing. Out of the four provided in the twelve pack, those two were my favorites. Glad to have discovered it! Brew on, Saranac. Brew on.

More roof posts to come.

And as nice as it is to sit on the roof, let's face it: I am getting an air conditioner soon. Some times I just want a beer in my own bed. 

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Very cool new thing discovered today: the New Yorker has put together a map featuring various visualized statistics about craft beer in the United States. You can filter the map to view findings such as total breweries, annual production and production group. You can also switch to see it either by state data or brewery data. 

Take a peek, play around with it. Nicely done and very informing. Looks like the South is catching up in terms of awesome brews. Maybe some day that whole map will be a dark brown? A girl can dream...

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Season(al)s In A Bottle

There is one thing that beer does for me that wine and cocktails don't. In fact, no other drink does.

Beers can make a time of year feel complete. Beers can capture the essence of any given season in one bottle. And when done right, those beers basically become my summer, winter or fall embodied in a liquid. One sip of Anchor Brewery's yearly Christmas beer and I am ready for some ice skating and holiday parties. A taste of Shipyard's Pumpkinhead and I can immediately envision my past Halloweens (well, most of them). 

With everything that goes into one bottle of beer, and with the rise of popularity in making a seasonal beer, breweries are well poised to become part of seasonal family traditions and happenings through these specialties. It also allows for small craft breweries to develop momentum and excitement in their fan base through the anticipation surrounding the yearly return of their seasonals.

While there is nothing like curling up next to the fire with a dark Porter or Stout in the winter months, there is something about summer beer that just makes the most sense. I'm thinking it has a lot to do with the natural state of a beer: cold. Chilled. Refreshing. All of the above make for an ideal summer beverage, and given that most summer beers are light, floral, and a bit fizzier, summer beers may very well be my favorite drink ever.

With summer just ahead of us, I am thinking about the summer beer releases in anticipation. Some have already begun to surface to my great excitement. Many are being held back till the actual summer solstice (just to torture me, I am sure). There are some that I am excited to see again, and some that I will miss dearly.

I am beyond psyched to keep sipping on:

Harpoon's Summer Beer

Peak Organic's Summer Ale

Anchor's Summer Beer

Deschutes' Twilight Summer

Pyramid's Apricot Ale

I am super pumped to give these new and old ones a try:

New Belgium's Rolle Bolle

Widmer Brothers Citra Blonde

Victory's Summer Love

Lazy Magnolia's Backwoods Belgian

I am ready to cry because I will miss this one:

Magic Hat's Wacko! Did not realize this one was a limited time only. I have tried their new summer seasonal, Elder Betty, but it does nothing for me compared to Wacko's crisp, light, flavorful goodness. Plus that color! Bright red and gorgeous. Hard to beat. You will be missed Wacko. Hope to see you again soon. Magic Hat, you been messin' up recently...

What summer beers do you enjoy?

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Beer: Apricot Wheat Brewery: Ithaca Beer Company Location: Ithaca, NY Type: Wheat In Three Words: sweet, light, fizzy

I was so tempted to put "sassy" as one of the adjectives above. Held myself back because this beer is already so sweet; it's what some jerks may call a "girly" beer, or what the people at Arrogant Bastard might say is a "fizzy yellow beer" (I mean, just look at the verify your age page of their website). But guess what? It is delicious. And with summer months, humidity and my general uncomfortableness approaching, I am all for this refreshing slice of apricot heaven.

I think any fruit beer than manages to taste like the fruit they are named after and not a soda is an achievement. I am a big fan of fruit beers, but some of them (cough Shock Top raspberry wheat) (sorry, caught something in my throat) just end up being saccharine and hard to swallow. For some people this may be a dream come true: get drunk and feel like all you're drinking is soda. For other people, this isn't quite the point of beer. I am of the latter. 

Ithaca's Apricot Wheat tastes like a beer. It has hints of bitterness and wheat. On top of that is a light apricot flavor that just grazes the palate. Enough to balance out the flavors and create a unique blend of all of them. It is fizzy without making me feel like I am drinking a glass of champagne.

It is a very light beer. If you are looking for strong, bold, intense beers that will make you feel like Gaston from Beauty and the Beast (minus the sexsist tendencies) this isn't the beer for you. But I was kind of hoping you might guess that from the name of the beer.

I like this beer. I like that it does what it sets out to do. It is delicious, refreshing and not too sweet. Grab me another six pack. Yum.

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Shout out to Deschutes Brewery for following me

Such good beer. Such a cool brewery. Clearly an awesome social media manager.

Thanks, guys! 

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Beer: Mission St. Hefeweizen Brewery: Steinhaus Brewing (aka Firestone Walker Brewing Co.) Location: Paso Robles, CA Type: Hefeweizen (wheat) In Three Words: smooth, easy, standard

Yes, I got this at Trader Joe's for a ridiculously low price. But I figured, hey. It's been staring me in the face while I am in this ridiculously long line for weeks now.* I might as well. I want beer and this looks pretty good, so. Boom.

For a while I thought it was actually from a brewery located on Mission Street in San Francisco, which convinced me it had reached ultimate hipster status. When I learned this wasn't true, and that the brewery "Steinhaus" was actually Firestone masquerading under a different name, I was confused but intrigued. You win, Firestone.

This beer is pretty good. For a cheap beer, it is above average compared to other cheap ones and has a bold flavor. It keeps you interested. Some compelling hints of random flavors appear, from banana to various spices. Overall very light. However it is pretty standard (as per my In Three Words above) and basically is just a good, textbook recipe for a wheat beer. Nothing surprising. Nothing to make you gasp or freak out. Just a gooooood smoooooth beer for next to nothing.

No one gets hurt via crazy experimental flavors, we get to drink beer, and we don't have to spend too much money. Thanks, Firestone.

*this sentence, when I first wrote it, made it sound like I had been in line at Trader Joe's for weeks. I was going to change it, but then I realized how hilarious and realistic that is, so I left it.

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top: the glass they gave you to try beers in ; bottom left: some of the booths and fest goers ; bottom right: when we ended up on the floor

NYC Craft Beer Fest: Spring Seasonal proved to be just as amazing as I thought it would be. With over 150 different craft beers, I certainly did not try them all, but my friend and I were impressed at how many out of my list we got through. As you may recall, I had quite a wish list going into it. Out of all sixteen, I was able to try thirteen and a few extra. Considering my size and build, that was a lot of beer to pack into two hours.

Winners of the night were as follows: Harpoon's White IPA, Bayou Teche's Boucanee, Blue Mountain's Local Species, Ithaca's Apricot Wheat, Founders' Kentucky Breakfast Stout, and Lagunitas' Wilco Tango Foxtrot.

Other favorites included: Cisco's Grey Lady, Sixpoint's Harbinger Saison, Brooklyn's Anniversary Ale, and Ommegang's Hennepin.

I have to point out specifically two beers. The first is Bayou Teche's Boucanee, which I knew I had to try because I can never find their beers up north here. It was stunning. A smoked beer! Who would have thought. It was dark and smooth and tasted like it had been barbecued with the only sauce being the beer itself. A smoky rich flavor. The other beer I could not get over was Harpoon's White IPA. Shocking, really. It was light but intense, flavorful yet subtle. Really fantastic work.

Overall, I consumed about four pints of beer in two hours. Probably sounds like nothing to you guys. Pft. Well, it was a lot for me. Which is why my friend and I ended up on the ground by the end and then went and bought a ridiculous amount of snacks to eat in bed while watching Law and Order and the Homes and Gardens channel.

Best lesson learned: train your bladder to not have to go. There's no time! And the lines are killer.