It’s Officially Fall!!

I don’t know about you, but to me – one of the signs of Fall is Paulaner Oktoberfest!  I know I’ve posted about this beer before  – but it’s such a classic, it deserves many posts and many cap pictures!

A malty smoothness that many have tried to duplicate, but few (if any) have cloned, Paulner is the Oktoberfest to top all Oktoberfests.  I mean, the Germans had to be doing something right when they created a beer with flavor that you can actually stand drinking liters of!

Zicke, zacke, zicke, zacke, hoi, hoi, hoi!

Devilish…

I love supporting local beer brewers… and they’ve really been popping up everywhere here in Virginia lately!

Okay… so I realize that Devil’s Backbone has been around for a few years, but I swear it seems like they just came out of nowhere!  I see a Virginia Beer display in almost every grocery store these days, and Devil’s Backbone always has a couple of different styles to choose from.

I tried their “Belgian Congo Pale Ale” and found it rather tasty!  No only do I love Pale Ales, I adore Belgian Yeast – as it makes things a little more “fruity” and “bubbly”.  The combination of hops along with the distinctive Belgian taste makes this a yummy brew – put it on your “must try” list.

Make sure to keep supporting your local beer brewers; They make some amazing stuff!
Cheers!

The Caps Know All…

 

Playing cards the other night, I found this cap from someone else’s beer.  Somehow it knew that I didn’t have a good hand.  😉
I love it when brewers have a sense of humor and add fun things to the insides of the caps.  I’m not positive, but I believe this was a Magic Hat Cap – as they’re notorious for doing this.

 

 

Barrel Trolley – eh…

 

There was this beer, on the shelf, that I hadn’t tried – so I tried it.  Anything that says “Nut Brown Ale” gets my attention, as I am a “Brown Ale Girl”.

This beer was a little malty, but more for the amateur drinker and a little watered down for my taste.  When I’m drinking a Brown Ale, I want it to be bold and have a malty kick in the pants – much like my beloved Legend Brown Ale.  I didn’t get the nuttiness either… just some malt with some water.   Did I dump it out??  No, of course not – I’m not that harsh… I just think my expectations were a little high for this one.

Sure, this is a good beer for the average drinker, but if you love your Brown Ales – you may want to look elsewhere; Just saying.

 

Holy Sorghum

Do you have a gluten allergy and can’t drink regular beer?? Never fear – sorghum beer is here! New Grist, by Lakefront Brewery, is made with out barley!! I’m sure the thought makes you shutter, as it did me – until I actually tasted this concoction!

When it was poured into my glass, I thought… Who is this watered down beer supposed to satisfy?? It actually has lots of flavor though! It starts out a little grainy and it had a wonderful fruity finish- impressive.

I love that breweries are embracing different types of ingredients and brewing styles, as the traditional beer doesn’t always work for everyone.

So give something different a try, you just might like it! Cheers!!

Lips of Faith

Ever tried a “bier de garde”? Here’s a great example of the style brewed by New Belgium Brewing. Full of spicy flavor, it really leaves a bite. The yeast creates a “horse blanket” quality called brettanomyces- giving the beer an earthy and hay-like flavor.

It sounds strange, but it’s really pretty delicious. Kudos to New Belgium! Cheers!

That’s a Big Monkey!

Ever heard of the 400 Pound Monkey? If not, you’re missing out; this English IPA from Left Hand Brewing is delicious!

This fine brew starts out malty and ends with a bitter, but not overpowering, hops flavor. It totally has that “English Bitter” taste to it as well.

Try one.. or two! Cheers!

Killer Penguin

This weekend I had a barley wine from Boulder Beer Company called Killer Penguin. It was a bit hoppier than I expected, at first taste, but by the time I swallowed this malty beer – I taste the smooth caramel finish.

Killer Penguin is totally worth picking up… just don’t expect it to taste like your everyday smooth barley wine. I imagine this would be an awesome beer to age, as it would mellow out that initial hop bite.  So stock up – age… and share one with me in a year or so!

Cheers!!

Cigar Beer?

Brown ales are one of my favorite styles of beer, so when I saw this Brown I hadn’t tried, by Cigar City- I had to order it!

It did mention in the description that it went well with cigars, what it didn’t mention is that it actually tasted like a glass of cigars. I’ve been know to smoke a good cigar in my days, but when I drink a yummy ale, I don’t find the cigar taste very appealing.

I’m sure some people may enjoy the complexity of this “cigar” beer… but I will stick with a brown ale that tastes of rich, caramel malts!

Gingerbread love

I’ve been horrible about keeping up with posting my beer pics… But I have been drinking and shooting over the holidays- so I will post more soon!

This Gingerbread Stout was brewed by Richmond’s newest brewery- Hardywood! I haven’t had the pleasure to visit them yet, but our friends shared this bottle with us recently.

The thought of gingerbread flavor in a stout was exciting to me, and with the first sip, I knew this new brewery hadn’t let me down. This stout is full of rich chocolate flavor with the spicy ginger bite at the end. I had my glass for desert and was completely satisfied!

I’m looking forward to visiting this brewery soon to sample more, as I was really impressed!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!!