Beer: Harp Lager

Brewery: Diageo (Great Northern Brewery) Dundalk, Ireland

Overview: Harp Lager is a bit of an anomaly in ale-rich Ireland, but was developed in the 1960s as a response to a market trend towards lager-style beers.  As such, it does not particularly fit in a classic category, but its brewery location in Ireland makes it surge in popularity for celebrations aside its big brother, Guinness.

Aroma: Light malt smell along with a meadow breeze rising off of wet grass.  Some lime and lemon in the background.  Fresh and clean.

Appearance: Crystal clear very pale yellow.  Giant frothy head that sticks around the center of the surface and leaves some lacing on the glass.

Flavor: Malty sweet, but very light in overwhelming tones, with some of the light citrus notes carrying over.  Very little hop bitterness at all, perhaps a slight freshness, like cut grass or a Spring garden sprouting in your mouth.

Overall Impression: Highly drinkable and pleasant.  Not a complete standout in the history of beers by any standard, but a good stock party beer to work your way through, particularly towards St. Patrick's Day in an attempt to get something "authentic."  More like a generic light pilsener than anything else.  Good, and fun to drink, but I think I'll stick to the stouts on March 17.

Vitals:
Style Irish Lager (no classic defined style)
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Grocery Store Beer Aisle
Alcohol Content 3.5% by volume
Availability Year-round


Rating: 91

Beer: Belhaven Wee Heavy

Photograph by
Cameron Mathews

Brewery: Belhaven Brewery Dunbar, Scotland

Overview: Belhaven Wee Heavy is the strongest offering from Belhaven Brewery, and carries with it the classic Strong Scotch category.

Aroma: Heavy aroma of dark fruits with raisins.  Malty sweetness with a hint of brown sugar.  Some light smoke underneath.

Appearance: Clear brown with amber highlights looking slightly orange around the edges of the glass.  Thin greyish-tan head with superfine bubbles.

Flavor: Malty sweetness up front with some evergreen hoppy notes on the sides of the tongue.  Figs and other fruits hanging out.  Somewhat of a dry finish with a hint of smoky ash, and a tonic-like end in the throat.  Some cocoa bitterness throughout.

Overall Impression: One of my all-time favorite Strong Scotch Ales, the Wee Heavy is appropriately named.  Not strong enough to punch you straight in the teeth, but with enough alcohol hiding in there that this may cut your drinking session in half.  Overall the sweetness is delicious and blends well with the smoky and peaty characteristics that are typical of the Scotch ales.

Vitals:
Style Strong Scotch Ale
Price $3.99/20 oz. bottle
Found In Local Liquor Store
Alcohol Content 6.5% by volume
Availability Year-round


Rating: 96

Beer: Lindemans Kriek

Brewery: Lindemans Vlezenbeek , Belgium

Overview: Lindemans brews the most widely distributed variety of lambics that I am aware of.  I have heard anecdotally that they are not the prime examples of lambic beers, which is a style of fermenting beers with naturally occurring wild yeasts and resulting in a souring effect on the beer.  The Kriek is a cherry-infused fruit lambic, and my first choice to see how Lindemans stands up to my own palate.  I scheduled this review for Valentine's Day, because a delicious cherry pink beer seems to perfectly fit the occasion.

Aroma: Ludens Cherry cough drops with a mild hint of the tart sour undertones.  Like cherry sours from an old time candy store.  Get more of the sour malt flavor when nose tires of the cherries.

Appearance: Pours red like cranberry juice with an enormous frothy pink head like the top of a thick strawberry milkshake.

Flavor: Smooth cherries, like a juice.  Carbonation understated, and lends to an easy drink and soft mouthfeel.  Tartness there, but not overwhelming, and sour notes very understated, unlike a gueuze.  Tart cherry leaves some drying on the tongue.

Overall Impression: Absolutely delicious as an after-dinner beer.  Sweet and smooth with a delicious cherry flavor that would easily complement any chocolate desserts or other sweets.  This is a beer for non-beer lovers, who want a sweet and yet refreshing beverage that still packs some kick.  Clearly more reminiscent of a cherry wine or champagne than a heavy beer flavor, and one of the best tasting beverages I've reviewed.

Vitals:
Style Fruit Lambic
Price $10.99/750 ML bottle
Found In Regional Liquor Store
Alcohol Content ...
Availability Year-round

Rating: 98

Beer: St. Arnold's Christmas Ale

Used with permission
St. Arnold Brewing Company

Brewery: St. Arnold Brewing Company Houston, Texas

Overview: St. Arnold Brewing released the Christmas beer early in their brewing history, and this is the result, a traditional malty old ale that persists year after year. 

Aroma: Fresh malty aroma, with a hint of spice underneath floral aromas. 

Appearance: Pours a clear copper amber color with a white head that quickly dissipates.

Flavor: Malty up front with an almost caramel sweetness and has a very nice spice profile all around with balanced spicy hop flavors that may hide some hints of cinnamon-like spice.  Some carbonation evident, with late bitterness in the finish.

Overall Impression: Not the most "Christmas-like" of Christmas beers, but definitely a good winter spiced beer.  I enjoy the good balance of hops versus malt.  While I generally expect this sort of flavor out of a beer marketed as a "winter" beer, with more fruitcake, evergreen, and spices associated with a "Christmas" beer, this is still quite an enjoyable seasonal.  I suppose that St. Arnold's really just planned on brewing an old ale as a seasonal, and this is the result, a pleasing strong ale with a good balance of taste, and some spiciness in the hops.  Not what I generally look for in my December beverages, but good for holding on to until March for drinking during a Spring shower.

Vitals:
Style Old Ale
Price $9.99/six-pack
Found In Regional Liquor Store
Alcohol Content 7.0% by volume
Availability Winter Seasonal (November until sellout)
Bitterness 35 IBU

Rating: 93

Beer: Rogue Santa's Private Reserve Ale (2009)

Brewery: Rogue Brewery  Newport, Oregon

Overview: Santa's Private Reserve Ale is, as Rogue describes it, a special over-hopped version of a red ale, with 10 ingredients: Malts: Great Western Harrington, Klages, Munich & Hugh Baird Carastan 30-37 & 13-17, Crystal 70-80. Hops: Chinook & Centennial.Yeast & Water: Rogue's Pacman Yeast and Free Range Coastal Water.  Offered annually, I managed to score a bomber of last year's 2009 batch.

Aroma: Hops oh sweet hops.  Grapefruit and some evergreen forest elements mixed in.  Fresh.

Appearance: Amber with some orange and light red highlights.  Large frothy tan head that sticks around and leaves substantial lace on glass.

Flavor: Big hop bitterness up front, with heavy roasted malt flavors adding to the bitter profile.  Oddly enough, the malt cuts the bitterness if you hold in your mouth then it reappears as a clean hop bitterness in the finish.  Frothy mouthfeel.  No slickness.  Some caramel undertones in there.

Overall Impression: This is most definitely the hophead's Christmas beer.  With flavor purely resembling a hop-o-matic IPA, Santa's got a whole lot of Chinook and Centennial hops growing at the North Pole.  This is an excellent beer, but it doesn't really fit the bill for me with regards to "Winter" beers, so I'd move it more into the specialty category.  And if you happen to pick some up, you might consider saving a few bottles for summer, or toss it down with some spicy foods.

Vitals:
Style Specialty Beer
Price $5.99/22 oz. bottle
Found In Regional Liquor Store
Alcohol Content Not published
Availability Christmas season 2009
Bitterness 44 IBU

Rating: 90

Beer: Anchor Christmas Ale 2007

Brewery: Anchor Brewing San Francisco, California

Overview: Anchor brews a unique and different Christmas beer recipe every year, with some better than others.  I have occasionally (like this year) been able to stumble across someone who has prior year's blends stored in the back and procured some extras for the holiday season.  Other than that, you're lucky if you have a bar like the Flying Saucer who might be able to procure some prior years' vintages and stored them.

Aroma: Smells like a Christmas candle shop.  Cinnamon is predominant with some nutmeg and allspice floating underneath. Some brown sugar and chocolate as a last hint of sweetness.

Appearance: Pours an extremely dark garnet with shiny red highlights around the edge.  Head is thick and tan.

Flavor: The malt reminds slightly of roasted almonds (or maybe chestnuts on an open fire?).  Cinnamon settles around the edge but does not overwhelm the balance of the malt and hop bitterness.  Some malty sweetness and roasted flavors persist into the finish.

Overall Impression: The 2007 is one of my favorite Anchor batches.  I lucked out in finding a store by my office with a cache of them in the back and even scored a little deal on them to help them move the old product.  From start to finish, the Anchor 2007 "Special Ale" is extremely well balanced, with a good blend of spices and sweetness to counteract the hop bitterness.  Overall leaves me with a nutty, roasted beer with cinnamon liberally applied throughout.  I will most definitely enjoy my remaining stash.  Good luck finding yours (and tell me in the comments if you find some!)

Vitals:
Style Christmas/Winter Specialty Spiced Beer
Price $10.99/six-pack
Found In Regional Liquor Store, Occasional Large-Selection Bar
Alcohol Content 5.5% by volume
Availability November 2007 until January 2008 (or wherever else you can find it)


Rating: 94

Beer: Bad Elf

Brewery: Ridgeway Brewery, Oxford, England - Imported by Shelton Brothers


Overview: I have no idea what this is.  It is marketed as a hoppy, golden ale.  We shall see.  The Shelton Brothers site calls it an IPA, so that's how I'll judge it.

Aroma: Malt, Malt, Malt.  In fact, it smells like wort (unfermented beer).  There is a tiny bit of fresh hop aroma, but it is a totally unbalanced smell.

Appearance: Orange gold with a frothy thick white head.

Flavor: Malty with just a tiny hint of bitterness in the finish.  Ultimately, there's very little that's unique about this beer.

Overall Impression: I'd pass on this one.  I guess it is a strong blonde ale, but I just can't find much about this beer that is worthwhile, other than the marketing.  They had it front and center at World Market with a really good label.  It's drinkable, but wholly unremarkable.  They call it an IPA, and if that's how I judge it, it fails miserably.  It is extremely weak on the hops, the alcohol is not noticeable, there's no clean bite to the flavor...etc. etc.

Vitals:
Style English IPA
Price $1.99/1 pt 0.9 oz single
Found In National Import Chain
Alcohol Content 6.0% by volume
Availability Seasonal

Rating: 77

Beer: Lump of Coal

Brewery: Ridgeway Brewery, Oxford, England - Imported by Shelton Brothers

Overview: Billed as a dark chocolate stout consolation prize for those too naughty to get anything else in their stocking.

Aroma: Dark fruit sweetness, some alcohol bite.  Slight cocoa or caramel notes.

Appearance: Ultra-thin head on top of a dark brown beer with translucent edges.

Flavor: Roasted nuts, some fruity sweetness with a very light mouthfeel.  Light alcohol warming in the throat with with a bitterness in the finish.

Overall Impression: Overall, a bit light in color and body for a stout, so this drinks more like a really strong Porter.  Still an enjoyable beverage, but not so rewarding to offset the coal and switches in my stocking.

Vitals:
Style Russian Imperial Stout
Price $1.99/Single 22 ounce bottle
Found In National Import Chain
Alcohol Content 8% by volume
Availability Seasonal




Rating: 85

Beer: Shiner Cheer

Brewery: Spoetzl Brewery Shiner, Texas

Overview: Shiner Cheer is Spoetzl's offering to the holiday brew montage.  With a peach and pecan focus, it is not as wintery focused as some others, but targeted towards the Texas holiday drinker.

Aroma:Peaches are dominant, but a little super sweet undertones almost like a peach jelly instead of fresh peaches.

Appearance: Clear brown with a quickly falling tan head that poured about an inch to two before collapsing in large bubbles.

Flavor: The sweet peach is noticeable on the first sip, but is quickly balanced out by a strong malt profile, even hinting at some roasted flavors in there, perhaps from the pecans.  Some of the acidity of the pecans is evident, and it leaves some of the sweet syrupy flavor in the finish.

Overall Impression: I like this beer from a drinkability standpoint, but I would much rather drink this as a September beverage than December.  Still, it is an easily available go to beer for an alternative to my highly spiced favorites.  I'm confused why Shiner felt compelled to add caramel coloring to this beer (which makes me wonder the original color).  I do find it has a nice balance for a beer and is not overly fruity like a Pyramid Apricot or other fruit beers, but at the same time, other than aroma, that really costs it in bringing through a distinct flavor from the peaches and pecans.  Another drinkable offering from the folks at Shiner.

Vitals:
Style Fruit Beer
Price $7.49/six-pack
Found In Grocery Store Beer Aisle
Alcohol Content 5.4% by volume
Availability Winter Seasonal
Bitterness 22 IBU

Rating:  90

Beer: Sierra Nevada Celebration

Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Chico, California

Overview: Sierra Nevada Celebration is not particularly a Christmas beer, but a hop-laden spicy winter warmup.  A perennial staple, it has made many an appearance around my house and in front of my barstool.

Aroma: Fresh evergreen, clean hop smell. Some spicy notes.

Appearance: Translucent amber with orange highlights.  Generous frothy white head that persists.

Flavor: Hop dominated, the citrus and grapefruit flavors reminiscent of a potent IPA.  The bitterness lingers on the sides of the tongue.  Some hit of sweet in the back of the throat.

Overall Impression: Good beer overall, not sure why this is a winter beer and not a summer seasonal, but it is still one that I drink nevertheless.  Always enjoyable.

Vitals:
Style India Pale Ale
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Grocery Store Beer Aisle
Alcohol Content 6.8% by volume
Availability Year-round
Bitterness 65 IBU

Overall Rating: 91

Beer: Magic Hat Howl

Used with permission
Magic Hat Brewery

Brewery:  Magic Hat Brewery South Burlington, Vermont

Overview: "I am beer, hear me roar" - well at least that's what it said under my cap.  Magic Hat's continued set of unique creations continues with the winter seasonal, Howl. 

Aroma: Honestly, it's a clean beer, with not much in the aroma department as far as I can tell.  A little hint of malt in there, and perhaps some syrup.

Appearance: Black.  Yup.  Black.  Light tan head, and if you hold it to the light just right, you might find a ruby.

Flavor: Smooth and creamy, some roast and drying at the edges.  Light and easy drinking body.  Leaves a slight bitterness in the finish.

Overall Impression: I am impressed with Howl as a beer, and it is one of my favorite Magic Hat seasonals to try so far.  It is also the only Magic Hat brew I have tried so far that fits within a category relatively easily.  It is a Dark Black Lager aka Schwarzbier.  It ranks well up there with the other Black Lagers that I have had.

Vitals:
Style Schwarzbier
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Local Liquor Store
Alcohol Content 4.6% by volume
Availability Winter Seasonal
Bitterness 32 IBU


Rating: 92

Christmas and Winter Beer

So let's start with a fact: I am a sucker for winter beers (particularly of the Christmas beer variety).  So I had this grand idea to get 25 Christmas beers and do a big countdown throughout December and all that.  Unfortunately, I have not had time to do that, nor have I found (yet) 25 beers available in the area to try.

So, armed with a secret stash of last year's Christmas beer (and those for this year that HAVE been released), I have still decided to bombard you over the next month with as many winter seasonal and Christmas beer reviews as I can do, given beer supply and available time.

Enjoy!

Beer: Sierra Nevada Tumbler

Photo by
Cameron Mathews

Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Chico, California

Overview: Adorned with leaves and general autumn themes, the Tumbler is Sierra Nevada's answer to shortening days and foliage on the trees.  It aims for a malty profile for a relaxing session brown.

Aroma: Fall leaves, nuts, fresh bread baking in another room, with hints of green apple and sweetness.

Appearance: Clear brown, with a thick, light tan head that falls in mountainous peaks.

Flavor: Roasted walnuts, some roast flavor into the finish ending with a light sweetness in the back.

Overall Impression: Overall the bitterness is a little high to call this beer one with a malty profile, and the flavor in my opinion does not live up to what the aroma indicates might be hiding in there.  But, in a very nutty way, this is still a good beer, and I would definitely finish the six pack (or buy another).

Vitals:
Style American Brown Ale
Price $7.49/six-pack
Found In Grocery Store Beer Aisle
Alcohol Content 5.5% by volume
Availability Fall Seasonal
Bitterness 37 IBU


Rating: 91

Still here

Just not reviewing at the moment - however, I do have a plan to try to get quite a few Winter Seasonals and Christmas beers reviewed for the month of December.  I have a fall seasonal reviewed that needs to get out soon, too - perhaps next Monday?

Cheers!

Beer: Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Spice Ale

Brewery: Buffalo Bill's Brewery Hayward, California

Overview: Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale is perhaps their most famous seasonal brew, and certainly the one that introduced me to the California brewery.  Armed with the trademark solid orange cap and telltale twisty vines on the label, the Pumpkin Ale reminds me that Autumn is upon us.

Aroma: What you might expect at Thanksgiving.  Strong roasted pumpkin, with some nutmeg and clove hints, like the pumpkin pie baking in your mom's kitchen.  The sweet pumpkin is dominant in the mix of malty sweetness and spice, tending towards what you'd imagine from a a heavy baked puree.

Appearance: Pale amber, low evident carbonation, with a quarter inch white head that dissipates.

Flavor: Creamy smooth, whip cream to go along with the pie.  Good hop bite without bitterness.  You can't hide the pumpkin, though.  The jack-o-lantern comes through in the flavor with more cinnamon.  A bit of toasted notes in the finish, completing the illusion as you take down the crust.

Overall Impression: It's obvious.  There is not much to say about this beer.  Other than it tastes and smells and even kind of looks like a big slice of pumpkin pie.  Oh, and the recommendation is about the same.  You need at least one of these beers annually, along with one slice of pumpkin pie.  But don't try these at the same time, you might be overwhelmed.  Still, as far as seasonals go, Buffalo Bill's is the best pumpkin ale I have tried so far, and you need to grab one as well.

Vitals:
Style Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer
Price $8.99/six-pack
Found In Grocery Store Beer Aisle
Alcohol Content 5.2% by volume
Availability Autumn
Bitterness 11-12 IBU

Rating:  92

Week Off

Taking this week off, but we'll be back next week!

Beer: Long Hammer IPA

Photo by Cameron Mathews

Brewery: Redhook Brewery Seattle, Washington

Overview: Long Hammer IPA is Redhook's contribution to the hoppy beer market and is a relatively well-distributed one at that, appearing in my favorite local pubs as well as liquor stores and the occasional grocery.  It is marketed as having a wonderful hop aroma, but not overly bitter taste.

Aroma: Fresh cut grass and citrus.  Hops definitely evident.

Appearance: Hazy pale gold.  Orange highlights beneath a frothy white head.

Flavor: Bites hard with strong tart grapefruit on steroids upfront but then extremely sweet in the back with a crisp finish.  Low malt sweetness in the mouth and kind of a weird balance.

Overall Impression: This is a good IPA, but not necessarily remarkable.  I could drink several of these, but I don' find that there is any overwhelming hops or brilliance to the balance.  Still, a highly approachable IPA, particularly for those that may not be total hop-heads, and one that does a good job of pushing the grapefruit flavors.

Vitals:
Style India Pale Ale
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Local Liquor Store
Alcohol Content 6.5% by volume
Availability Year-round
Bitterness 44 IBU


Rating: 92

Beer: Shiner Oktoberfest

Brewery: Spoetzl Brewery Shiner, Texas

Overview: Shiner's Texan offering to the Oktoberfest bier selection (yes, I spelled it bier), this beer is a relatively new one for me to find in the lineup from Spoetzl. 

Aroma: Crisp hops, a little light on the malt aroma, but very clean.

Appearance: Pours a light coppery gold with a giant frothy white head that dissipates, condensing and leaving behind lace on the top of the glass.

Flavor: There's a roasted quality in there from some caramel malt, but it does have some bready notes.  A little hop bitterness in the finish and aftertaste.  Some astringency.

Overall Impression: I have to say, I love the folks down at Shiner for creating good, drinkable, and even mass-marketable beers.  However, very few of their delicious beers really hit the mark of a given style.  This beer is good, hits appropriate alcohol numbers, and has some of the maltiness I would expect from an Oktoberfest.  However, I'd still say stick to the German beers if you are looking for authenticity.  The Shiner offering is a good bit lower on the malt profile and higher on the bittering hops than I was really looking for.  Still it is a very good, very approachable Oktoberfest beer for your friends, and it's a good session beer for you.

Vitals:
Style Oktoberfest
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Chain Import Store
Alcohol Content 5.7% by volume
Availability Fall Seasonal


Rating: 88

Last day of Oktoberfest!

Going to review one last Oktoberfest tomorrow, from our friends down here in Shiner, Texas, albeit a little late as Oktoberfest ends today!  So rush out and grab a stein of Spaten and enjoy!

Beer: Paulaner Oktoberfest

Brewery: Paulaner Brewery Munich, Germany

Overview: Paulaner is a traditional German brewery, but it is known more in America for its Hefeweizen than the bulk of its brews.  Still, the traditional beers are very good, and the Oktoberfest is no exception.

Aroma: Heavy malt sweetness, some light toasty notes.  Clean smell with very pure malt. Resembles smell of wort before fermentation.  No noticeable hops.

Appearance: Beautiful clear copper with thick white head that persists.  Does not leave any lace on the glass, but head continues in a ring as the beer dies down.  Orange highlights when held up to light, may look darker brown in pub lighting.

Flavor:Very complex malt flavors, light to no bitterness.  Bread notes in the body, like a fresh loaf from the oven.  Mild notes in the finish like a slightly overcooked piece of wheat toast.  No off flavors.  Light malt syrupy mouthfeel on the tongue, not slick.  Dry and slight bitterness comes in the aftertaste.

Overall Impression: Paulaner has made a very stock version of an Oktoberfest which will stand up to many of the others.  The robust malt flavor and the gorgeous amber color are impressive, and I like the toasty notes that go along with it.  Much better on the maltiness than some of the other Maerzens, but lacking a little of the alcohol punch.  Still, a great way to celebrate the fall.

Vitals:
Style Maerzen/Oktoberfest
Price $3.99/1 pt. 0.9 oz. bottle
Found In Local Liquor Store
Alcohol Content 5.8% by volume
Availability Year-round, though produced seasonally

Rating: 95