Stone Thirteenth Anniversary Ale

My coworker Ben asked if I wanted in on a case of Stone Thirteenth Anniversary Ale and I agreed. The beer pours a dark brown with reddish hint. The Ale is very opaque with a thick head after the pour. The aroma is floral and strong, warning of the hop content in the beer. This beer has hops all around on many levels. There is the minor hop bite at first, then a strong and powerful hop accent, and finally a hop finish, all complete with a slight chocolate under tone (it is very subtle and easier to pick up the warmer the beer is). The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. I had last year's anniversary ale, the Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, and was a huge fan. This year is a little more difficult to fall in love with, as the beer has a bitter taste, plenty of hops, and finishes with an alcohol kick. The beer attacks your taste buds and leaves them unable to taste anything for a couple of hours. I did find the overall experience enjoyable, but the beer is a little too high for my hop liking.

Troegs Java Head Oatmeal Stout

My 200th post!

Yesterday I picked up a couple of 22-ounce bottles of Troegs Java Head Oatmeal Stout. This product was released for the first time on August 25 (yesterday). It was an awesome experience, as they workers were literally pulling bottles off of the line and putting them into the refrigerator. I waited 10 minutes until they started to bottle, but it was well worth the wait. The beer is dark black with a chocolate aroma with a hint of coffee. The taste is smooth, milky, and slightly bitter. The coffee taste is not overpowering, but provides a nice accent. The alcohol content is 7.5% ABV. I think Troegs hit a home run with their new coffee stout. The taste is bitter, but not in a bad way. There is a complimentary hop accent and the coffee rounds out the experience. The only thing Troegs has left to do is create a pint glass with the Java Head Oatmeal Stout logo, which I will immediately buy. Your move Troegs!

Bell's Oktoberfest

To my surprise, McGrath's in Harrisburg added Bell's Oktoberfest to their draft line-up. I had not previously been aware that Bell's had an Oktoberfest beer, but I was not reluctant to give it a try. The beer is copper in color with minimal aroma. I was not able to pick up any scent. The taste is smooth and malty with a subtle bite. It is very clean and smooth. The alcohol content is 5.5% ABV. I thought that Bell's delivers a very solid and enjoyable Oktoberfest. The quality that is put into their other beers has carried over to this one and leaves the drinker satisfied.

Troegs Breaking News

I stopped by Troegs today and picked up 22-ounce bottles of Nuggest Nectar (special release for this time of the year) and Java Head Oatmeal Stout (new seasonal release). They are available starting today, August 25. Be sure to stop by and pick up a bottle for yourself. Stay tuned for a review.

Weyerbacher Merry Monks

McGrath's in Harrisburg just added Weyerbacher Merry Monks to their draft list. The beer is gold in color with a sweet and spicy aroma. The taste is sweet at first with a spicy and dry after taste. The finish hints at bananas, which was very enjoyable. The alcohol content is 9.3% ABV. I thought this was a very enjoyable Belgian Triple, as it is multi-dimensional and the beer changes character as it gets acclimated to room temperature. The beer is light enough to drink in summer and has enough spice and alcohol content to warm you in the winter months. I feel it is a year round beer.

Southern Tier Crème Brulee Imperial Milk Stout

Furthering my love for McGrath's in downtown Harrisburg, they recently added Southern Tier Crème Brulee Imperial Milk Stout to their draft lineup. The beer is black in color and smells very sweet, mostly consisting of vanilla. The taste is very similar to the dessert (if you've had it, that's a good reference). The taste consists of vanilla and carmelized sugar with a light spice after taste. The finish is creamy and tasty. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. I was very impressed with the Crème Brulee Imperial Milk Stout. It is difficult to drink several of them, as the beer is very sweet, but this is the perfect dessert beer. I will order this again!

Sea Dog Apricot Wheat Ale

The final beer I tried out of the Sea Dog sampler pack was the Apricot Wheat Ale. The beer is pale yellow in color and itt has a sweet apricot aroma. This beer tastes immediately like apricot, but the taste falls off quickly with a water-like after taste. The beer is very smooth, but flavorless on the end. The alcohol content is 3.5% ABV. My opinion on the Sea Dog beers (at least the fruit ones) is that they concentrate too hard on the fruit additions and not enough on the beer ingredients. For fruit beers, their alcohol content is extremely low, even lower than Miller Lite. I feel like they substituted beer ingredients with fruit. While the beers are fresh, smooth, and clean, I am not a big fan of this brewery.

Sea Dog Blue Paw Wheat Ale

The second beer I tried out of the Sea Dog sample pack was the Blue Paw Wheat Ale. The beer is light yellow in color with a sweet blueberry aroma. The Blue Paw Wheat Ale has a good initial blueberry taste with a bitter taste in the middle. On the finish, the taste sours and disappears on the end. The alcohol content is 3.5% ABV. I wasn't overly impressed with this beer, as the blueberry taste is the only flavor included in the beer and it is fairly light and tastless overall. There is no finish to the beer; it seems like I was drinking water instead of beer.

Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat Ale

My sister and I decided to split a case of Sea Dog sampler pack. The first beer I tried out of the bunch was the Raspberry Wheat Ale. The beer is golden in color with a hint of redness. It has a sweet aroma consisting of fruit and sugar. I got an immediate raspberry taste, with a clean refreshing after taste. The Raspberry Wheat Ale was dry with slight bitterness on the end. The alcohol content is 4.5% ABV. I thought the beer wasn't terrible, but tasted a little too much like water for me. It was very light in the beer flavorings (malt, hops, yeast) and focused too much on the fruit, which was not multi-dimensional or satisfying.

Bear Republic Hop Rod Ale

The other night I ordered a Bear Republic Hop Rod Ale at The Brewhouse Gille. The beer is dark brown in color, which surprised me for an IPA (I realize that I have been reviewing a lot of IPAs lately, which is not usually my favorite style of beer). The beer has a light floral aroma. The taste has a minimal sweetness with a hop overtone. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. Despite the amount of hops included in this beer, I thought the overall taste was enjoyable. It is slightly too hoppy for my liking, but I would order it again.

Beckham vs. His Duty

So here is my latest problem with David Beckham. Shaq has recently called out Beckham to shoot free kicks on him for Shaq's new show "Shaq vs." David has declined, saying that "Kobe could score against him." I don't have a problem with his words, but I have a major problem with his action of declining. Here is a man who was brought into America and was quoted as wanting to be the Ambassador of Soccer for America. Following that logic, why is Beckham declining to go on a show with one of the most popular basketball players? If he were to go on the show, he has one more opportunity to expose the country to soccer, and the basketball market is a large one. What the gaLAxy and MLS are paying Beckham for is exposure, and he cerainly has not been helping them as of late with fighting with fans and wanting to go back to Milan. The least he could do is go one Shaq's show, which will take a day of his life, get paid for it, and help expose America to soccer, especially Beckham's notable free kicks. What does he have to lose? It is clear to me that he does not want to be in this country anymore and is finished trying to expose America to soccer.

Great Divide Titan IPA

At a local joint that has a great selection of beer, The Brewhouse Grille, I ordered a Great Divide Titan IPA. In the Cental Pennsylvania area, it can be difficult to find any Great Divide beers. The Titan IPA is dark amber in color and has a light pine-like aroma. The beer has a a malty front taste to it, and a spicy hop finish. The after taste is slightly hoppy, but the malts in the beer balance the beer delicately. The alcohol content is 7.1% ABV. I thought this was a solid IPA and wasn't overpowering with the hop content. Great Divide makes some decent beers, and I would add this to the list of regular beers that I would try again.

Poperings Hommel Ale

A new draft popped up McGrath's in Harrisburg: Poperings Hommel Ale. I had not previously heard of this brewer or this beer. The beer has has a gold color with a fresh wheat aroma. The taste is very clean and smooth, with a spicy after taste. There is a bit of a hop bite in this beer, which separates it from other Belgian beers. The alcohol content is 7.5% ABV. The word hommel means hop in the local dialect where the beer is brewed, and a having a hop finish is distinct and enjoyable for a Belgian beer. I was very surprised about this beer, and will make a return trip to get another draft.

Southern Tier Jah*va

At a local bar McGrath's, they picked up Souther Tier Jah*va on draft. Having previously enjoyed the Mokah, I was excited to try the Jah*va. The beer is dark black in color, with a strong coffee aroma. It has a rich coffee taste with an undertone of coffee. There is a slight nutty after taste. The alcohol content is 12.0% ABV. I wouldn't say I like this beer better than the Mokah, but it is a great beer and it provides a great pick-me-up, so drink it early in the evening or it may keep you up.

Appalachian Brewing Company- August 2009

Since it is August, Appalachian Brewing Company just released Kipona Fest and a group of my friends decided it was time for a visit. The Kipona Fest is an Octoberfest style Marzen, which is becoming one of my favorite styles of beer. The beer is a dark amber with a sweet and malty aroma. The taste is also sweet and it has a fresh hop finish. The after taste consists of a mild hop taste with a sweet malty undertone. The alcohol content is 5.2% ABV. I like this beer and the style and I think that ABC has nailed this style.

Appalachian Brewing Company supposedly retired the Major Hops Olde Ale, but it was available on draft when I was there. They also had a cask conditioned version of the beer, which is what I ordered. The beer is opaque and amber in color with a floral aroma. The beer is very smooth with a light taste. The after taste is where the hops kick in, but not too overpowering. There was a taste of grass hops that warmed the throat. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I felt that this beer was best described as a roller coaster ride of beer. At first, the hops are minimal and calm. Then they pick up speed, but don't ruin the experience. Then at the end, they linger to let you down gently. If you have the chance to check out this beer, I highly suggest that you do.