Year Old Dogfish Head Festina Peche

Bottled 05/31/07. I've not had many Berliner Weissebiers, but I've always wanted to try more. When this was released last year I was freaking amped. One of the top 5 new brews I tried in 2007, hands down. The acidity was pleasant, the fruitiness was just right, and the finish was perfectly dry and sour. Beautiful. I wound up buying at least 8 4-packs (stupid, I know) and cherished every last one of them - except 3 which wound up in the cellar.

In the glass it is a sparkling gold with lots of fast moving carbonation and a bubbly white head. In the nose it's incredibly funky. Moldy cheese, earthy mushrooms, fruitiness, barnyard notes, and a host of other complexities I can't begin to describe. In the mouth, it's bubbly and effervescent, with clean, lemony acidity and tart citric undertones. The funkiness is intense!! The peach is all but gone, and I'm glad. Intensely dry and mouth-puckering sour finish. After a year, this has done what I hoped - became more acidic. Another year or two, and I'll be able to convince you that you're drinking Gueuze! Funky, funky, funky. I love wild yeast.

Side note: Tonight was productive. First, I racked the Orion Saison to secondary after over a month in primary. FG 1.011. Secondly, I bottled the St. Defibaugh Special Ale, which is tasting delicious. FG 1.018. Third, I cracked a St. Defibaugh Tripel, and while it taste good and all the flavors came through beautifully, it was just barely carbonated. I rolled the bottles around and moved them to a warmer area - hopefully that helps. That is all.

2004 Cantillon Lou Pepe Gueuze

Bottled in 2006, so I'm guessing it was blended in 2004. Clear, bubbly gold body with a very active white head. Looks like champagne!! Funky aroma - apple, spice, brett, oak, grape, honey, lemon and jasmine notes. Sweet and sour taste, with hints of lemon, orange, funky cheese, brett, and loads of acidity, with some honey and caramel notes balancing it out. Long lingering sour finish. Dry and still in the mouth. What a damn good Gueuze!!

Pints for Pets Brewfest

So I finally broke my beerfest cherry, and I had a damn good time doing it. Well organized, no real assholes (except Dave and Justin), and loads of good beer.

PA was well represented. East End was a standout for me. The Gose, while not yet carbonated, was great to try and a really unique drinking experience. The Monkey Boy Hefe was delicious, which is saying alot, since I normally hate wheat beers, and the Big Hop is always great. It was nice to see Voodoo there, and it seems their brews have improved since I first tried them. In particular, the Voodoo Love Child was outstanding. Elk Creek was one I'd never heard of, and not bad at all. I wasn't wowed by the IPA or stout, but the porter was AMAZING! Bullfrog's Single was a trip to try - funky and sweet and quite refreshing. Their Red Star Belgian Ale was also delicious. They seem to know what they're doing when it comes to the Belgians. Johnstown showed up with their new brewmaster, and while I didn't like the porter, the IPA was tasty tasty. It was great to try Abbey Wright's brews again, and the Scottish was the standout. Red Star's Coffee Porter was a bit of a dissapointment. And, as always, Church Brew Millennium Tripel is a treat. On top of that, Unibroue had a hell of a line up. Seigneuriale was really fun to drink, and the 17 wasn't too bad either. Dogfish Head's Fort is always great, but not more than a little bit.

The ride back is a bit of a blur.. I may have made a fool of myself, who knows. But, at least I don't look like these guys..

2004 Dogfish Head Immort Ale

Beautiful clear fire tones with a thin, bubbly off white head. Still lots of carbonation after 4 years. Strong scotch nose, with wood, vanilla, chocolate, fruity, caramel, tobacco, hazelnut, butterscotch and musty notes. The taste is very complex and intriguing. At first, the alcohol is very strong, with bourbon, oak, and tobacco notes. The next thing you notice is a powerful astringent like sweetness, with hints of caramel and chocolate. It finishes long and hot, with a fantastic fruity brightness that is similar do an oak-y Noir. Very interesting to see how this one aged. Fresh I thought it was a mess, and after 4 years, I still think it needs a little more time. I'll post on this one same time next year.

New Movie Quickie Review

Here's what I though of some new movies, like you care.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall - Loved it. One of the funniest films I've seen in a really long time. If you liked 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, see this one.

Awake - Waste of time. Good idea, terrible, terrible plot.

The Golden Compass - Expected a Narnia wannabe, got a Harry Potter wannabe. Skip it!

The Mist - Pure, total crap. Again, good idea, terrible, terrible plot.

Cloverfield - Fucking intense for sure. I thought it was really well done, and fun as hell to watch.

Dewey Cox - An all around hilarious slap stick comedy that is one great joke after another.

Things We Lost in the Fire - Fantastic. Benicio Del Toro is spellbinding, and the plot is rather touching.

One Missed Call - I thought this one was going to be awful. It was worse than expected.

P2 - Actually not too horrible. Some really boring parts, but definitely some good moments as well. Worth a try.

2005 Golden Monkey

Bottled May 5th, 2005. Looks a little lighter in color with a soapy, thin white head. Lots of slow moving carbonation. Crystal clear. Incredibly citric in the nose, with a beautiful peppery/floral background. Sweet, bubblegum, funky yeast notes. The taste is indescribable. It tastes like an authentic Abbey Tripel. Cloves, pepper, orange, lemon, bread, caramel, candi sugar, strawberries, and more. Amazingly complex, amazingly balanced, and amazingly delicious. This is one of my favorite brews to age. 3 years and I think it still could have gone for at least another 3 years. Further proof that with some beers, patience is a virtue.


Side note: I bottled my Tripel tonight. FG: 1.017. I'll be tasting one in 3 weeks to make sure it's carbing up nicely, then off to the cellar they go for 3 months. I'm looking forward to August..

Stouts

Loads of stouts piled up at my house. Here's the skinny on what's in town..

Eel River Raven's Eye Imperial Stout - See below. Available at Ironwood.

Great Lakes Blackout Stout - Deep mahogany. Rich and syrupy. Strong espresso and molasses flavors. Fun to drink, but very young and hot, with a strong bitter aftertaste. Of course, it needs some time in the cellar. Available at Uncle Sudsies.

Bell's Cherry Stout - Black as night with a dark brown head. At first his beer rubbed me wrong, but just recently I've been able to admit that I love it. The tart cherries remind of a distant lambic. They are balanced wonderfully by the sweet, roasty, and coffee malt flavors. Here's what I dig about this brew, and it took me a while to realize - it's aged. The base stout is obviously mellowed, and dark fruit/caramel flavors are developing. Add to that the tart cherries, and you have yourself a damn tasty brew. Available at Uncle Sudsies.

Weyerbacher Old Heathen - Amazingly dark with a huge, frothy chocolate head. While this is not an over the top imperial stout, I like it because it's incredibly beefy. Rich, full, creamy, oily, slick, and velvety in the mouth. The flavors and aromas are straightforward stout, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. And damn is it tasty. I'm glad it's only 8.2% ABV. You can have a few without becoming an absolute fucking retard. Woo! Available at Uncle Sudsies.

Weyerbacher Heresy - One of my personal favorite oak aged stouts. Beautiful looking beer, with dark bourbon, alcohol, chocolate, and espresso aroma. As I mentioned in my review on ratebeer, what I really like about this is the way the oak is used. It's not overpowering at all. It blends and melds perfectly with the dark fruit and vinous flavors of the aged stout. A great brew, for sure.

Stone Imperial Russian Stout - Now this is a beefy stout. Incredibly heavy smell with strong espresso, chocolate, and, unfortunately, rubbing alcohol notes. The taste is surprisingly sweet. Chocolate, roasted malt, coffee, and anise with a great vinous background. It's very hot, and definitely could use some cellaring time. As a matter of fact, I have a bottle of every vintage back through 2005. I'm thinking 2010 is gonna be the year to try them all.

And, no, I didn't drink those all in one night. Peace.

Eel River

2 high grav brews from Eel River just recently became available in town, so I figured I'd post my thoughts.

Raven's Eye Imperial Stout - This one was really interesting to try. The focus was strongly on the roasted malts, which made it very different. No crazy American hopping. No dark fruit or oxidized flavors. All malts - roasted, toasted, burnt and blackened. Balanced for what it is, and very unoffensive. It tasted like some coffee from the clover. Wouldn't want more than one in a sitting, and not one to age.

Triple Exultation - Old Ale! Old Ale! The words themselves make my heart leap with joy. Just utter those two, simple, three letter words and you'll see a giant smile on my face. This one does not disappoint. Oftentimes you'll run into beers labeled as Old Ales that are really just Barelywines. Not this bad boy. This one is pure beef, malt and balls. Balance! Just the right amount of hops! Strong spicy sweet flavors with a full, creamy body. The alcohol warms your chest long after the beer is gone, and makes you want to curl up and sleep for hours. Age it - I'm going to.

Both are available at Ironwood and worth a try!

Fermentation Updates

I checked the gravity and tasted my 3 homebrews currently fermenting. Here's a breakdown.

St. Defibaugh Tripel

O.G. 1.096. Now it's at 1.017. Not bad. It's been sitting on oak chips for a little over a month now. Super spicy orange taste, with the oak only coming through in the mouthfeel. Fruity as all get out, with big caramel and bready notes.

St. Defibaugh Special Ale

O.G. 1.078. Now it's at 1.018. Again, not bad. Super sweet honey and clove taste, with strong ginger and spice notes. Creamy mouthfeel, with a long sweet and spicy finish. Crazy.

Orion Saison

O.G. 1.065. Now 1.044. One of my best friends Dan, who lives in Portland right now, had a kid the night this was brewed. His name, Robert Orion - hence Orion Saison. How about that color? The taste is very heavy on the tea/floral aspect. The yeast hasn't had time work it's magic yet, although the smell is definitely getting funky. I moved it to a warmer area in hopes of speeding up fermentation.

Summer Saison

Fuck it. I'm brewing a saison. Why not? It's the perfect beer for summer, and a style I love. I kinda came up with this crazy recipe on the fly..

Specialty Grains:
1/2 # Acid Malt
3/4 # Caravienne Malt
1/4# Crystal 10 Malt

Boil:
5 # Extra Light DME
1 # Wheat DME
1 # Crystal Candi Sugar
1 oz. Spalt Pellets

@ 45 mins:
1/2 oz. Spalt pellets
1/2 oz. Challenger pellets

@ 50 mins:
1/4 tsp Grains of Paradise
1/2 tsp crushed Rosemary
Heather tips (undetermined amout)
1/8 tsp fresh Lemon Zest

@ 55 mins:
1/2 oz Spalt pellets
1 1/2 oz. Challenger pellets

Yeast:
WYeast #3724

Whatcha think? Any suggestions on using rosemary or heather?