Beer Evangelists

I’ve had this bottle of Breckenridge 471 IPA waiting in the fridge since May and it sounded good tonight. I have tried this beer it once before when we had a beer tasting at my house. But quite honestly, I don’t really remember much about the beers we had that night. We started off with the Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA and that pretty much toasted me for the evening.

I don’t know if this beer meets the requirements of an imperial or double IPA, but it does come in at 9.2% ABV. The nose is much like other big IPA’s: a hint of citrus, some pine, almost sweet smelling. The head is tan and lingers quite a while, eventually diminishing to a thin layer of foam and lots of lacing on the glass.

The beer tastes great. Nice and hoppy, with a bite that mellows as it lingers. For a beer that is 9.2%, I’m not getting a strong alcohol taste at all, which I like. I do feel just a bit of warming as it goes down.

I really like this beer. The only thing that would keep this from being a session beer in my mind is the alcohol content.

For those of you that don’t check beeradvocate.com, Sanford just posted this:

Lips of Faith at Sycamore

We have added a 5th tap, and will be running the New Belgium Lips of Faith series. Right now we are pouring Le Fleur Misseur.

In bottle we have picked up Mikkeller Stateside IPA, and Southern Tier Creme Brulee; and I pulled 2007 Ommegang 3 Philosophers out of storage (I know I should/could leave it there longer…).

cheers, Sanford

Very good to hear. I wish I wouldn’t have gone home for lunch today!

I have about 3 other things I need to be doing, but I like to procrastinate, and besides, it has been a month since I actually reviewed a beer.

This is the first time I’ve had Rocky Mountain IPA. It pours a translucent reddish brown with lots of head. Head retention is average, but the beer leaves a lot of lacing on the glass. The nose is a strong and floral. I do notice some malty grain flavor. Mouthfeel is nice; not overly carbonated and a pleasant tingling on the tongue. The finish lingers with a hoppy bite. This isn’t a terribly complex beer, but it is good representation of an American IPA. I think I’ll give this beer a try at a slightly warmer temperature, as the one I’m having tonight came straight out of the refrigerator.

So the July tasting event is in the books! We had a great time again this month. The theme was lagers. Here is the list of what we tried. Again, reply to the post to let me know if I have anything wrong or I missed any beers.

Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock
Barons Lager
Berghoff Original Lager
Boulevard Saison Brett
Butte Creek Organic Pilsner
Cave Creek Chili Beer
Clipper City Balto MärzHon
Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager
Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold Lager
Great Lakes Eliot Ness
Griesedieck Golden Pilsener
Kona Brewing Longboard
Kronenbourg 1664
Ray Hills American Pilsner
Sam Smiths Organic Lager
Schell Firebrick
Shmaltz Coney Island Albino Python
Shmaltz Coney Island Sword Swallower
Specher Black Bavarian Lager
Steinlager Lager
Tennents Lager
Unibrew 9X Lager

The Coney Island Albino Python was probably my favorite beer of the night, but many of the beers were good. I was most surprised by the Cave Creek Chili Beer. It was the best chili beer I’ve ever had, and I would love to try it with some nachos.

Thanks again to Sanford and Sycamore for hosting!

And, now that lagers are out of the way, on to IPA’s and hefeweizens! Check out the Columbia Beer Enthusiasts site for more info.

From the Schlafly site:

India Brown Ale (May 17)
Our Tap Room Brewer Brennan has hand crafted this ale to celebrate his marriage to the beautiful Natasha. This unique brew has the color of a brown ale, but the aroma of an American style IPA. Dry Hopped with Cascade and Willamette, this beer will prove just how complex a brown ale can be. 5.2% abv, 40 IBU’s, O.G. 13P.

Currently Sycamore in Columbia, MO has this on tap. The nose is nice and citrusy, with a bit of maltiness. It really is a hoppy brown and reminds me of the Schlafly APA with a bit more malt. I would definitely recommend getting to Sycamore and giving it a try, as I think this is a limited production beer.

Unibroue Éphémère Apple Ale is currently on tap at Sycamore. It is a yellow straw color and cloudy. It has a strong apple nose and is sour and tart. I wasn’t sure if I would like it, but it is very tasty. It isn’t something I would want to have more than one of at a time, but it was good.

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5 Day IPA is another one of my Missouri favorites. It is an American style IPA that is dry-hopped in the finishing tank for 5 days.  It pours a nice dark amber with a creamy head that dissipates to a thin film leaving light lacing on the glass as consumed.

The nose is almost all citrusy hops. It isn’t overpowering, but it is definitely present from the time the bottle is opened.

The hops are present and the beer is bitter through the finish, but it doesn’t linger. It has a pleasant mouthfeel with a moderate amount of carbonation.

This beer pours a nice, dark, reddish brown. The head is light cream, and fads quickly leaving a thin ring around the glass. It was poured into a standard pint glass, and is about 50°.

It does not have a strong nose, but I did catch a hint of malt and almost a coffee smell. I’m not noticing some of the other more subtle scents others are.

The beer has a nice malty flavor. I’m also picking up the belgian sugars and just a hint of sourness. The finish is smooth. Mouthfeel may be a little weak, but I wouldn’t go so far as to call it watery.

I actually enjoyed this beer more than I thought I would, and would definitely drink it again if available.