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Re: beer thread
#14126 12/07/04 07:21 AM
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Here's a tip... he's not talking about White Zin. He's talking about the real deal. Zinfandel--it's not just for yuppie sissies any more.


I am the Doctor, and THIS... is my SPOON!
Re: beer thread
#14127 12/07/04 03:33 PM
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*UPDATE*
i was telling my buddy about how good the corsendonk and chimay red were, and he insisted that we try some while watching the football game last night. he really liked them both, but was blown away by the corsendonk. he liked the fruity, boldness of it. he said he would definitely go get some more before christmas.

and while i was at the liquor store, i picked up a sixer of a winter brew called, Pyramid Snow Cap Ale. it is made by a micro brewery in seattle. this beer was simply unpleasant to me, and my buddy. maybe it was becuase we drank the 'good stuff' first, but neither of us cared for this pyramid winter brew. it was the darkest beer i think i have ever drank. and it was thick and syrupy, but in a bad way. the alcohol smell was VERY overpowering, and the flavors seemed liked they were tripping over themselves in your mouth. it was too spicy, with overlaping hints of chocolate, nuts, licorice, and pepper. its almost like the brewers tried to throw too much into this beer, and it just tasted confused and complicated. it kinda reminded me of a very bad cough syrup. too thick, too busy, and bitter going down. i will be generous, and give this a 4 outta 10.

needless to say, i wont be trying the pyramid snow cap again.. but, i did find the suggestion box at the liquor store, and told them to carry some chimay blue, and the corsendonk winter ale. lets hope they do.

bigjohn


EXCUSE ME, ARE YOU THE SINGING BUSH??
Re: beer thread
#14128 12/07/04 07:00 PM
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John,

You'll find that most winter ales have a fairly complex spicy quality to them. I would describe them generally as a having a strong malt backbone, no hop aroma, a slight hop bite, and some peppery/chocolate spiceyness. With as much as they try to put into these beers, balance becomes the most important factor. Some of them turn out really nicely, and others can only be explained as you did with your "tripping over themselves" comment. If I see a winter seasonal in a bar I haven't had before I'll get a pint, and if it's good then I'll pick up 6 or 12 when I go to the store. As for Pyramid, I'm not a huge fan in general. I drank a lot of their brews when I was living in Seattle one summer working for the evil empire. They make a pretty good hefe-weizen though.

My thoughts...
-A


[black]-"The further we go and older we grow, the more we know, the less we show."[/black]
Re: beer thread
#14129 12/07/04 07:20 PM
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I don't like the Snowcap anymore, either. I think the alcohol dominates the profile. Furthermore, Pyramid is no longer anything like a "microbrewery". Their corporate story is pretty interesting, and shows how overexpansion ruined the products. They started out at a small place in downtown Kalama, Washington. Then, they moved to a bigger place. Then, they abandoned their roots and moved operations to Seattle (where they still have a cash-cow uber pub across from Safeco Field and Seahawks Stadium). Then they bought out the brands and soul of Poulsbo's Thomas Kemper brewery. They fired head brewer Rande Reed a few years ago, and he found his bliss at Snoqualmie Falls Brewery, which still makes some fabulous beers on a much more limited scale. I think all the Pyramid bottled beers are undrinkable; they must pasteurize or filter the life out of them. On draught, they are somewhat better. Snowcap used to be sublime, when the west coast winter warmer style was in its infancy. Now, it's just a strong beer with a big marketing budget.

Not that I'm bitter or anything.

I had a Fish Tail Winterfish the other night on draught. Much sweeter than I remember, and not roasty at all. Kind of like barleywine lite. Not unpleasant, but there are other seasonals I prefer.


bibere usque ad hilaritatem
Re: beer thread
#14130 12/07/04 07:51 PM
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I've got a case of the Stoudt's winter at home that I'm nursing. It's pretty good, I wouldn't rave about it, but I really like it.


[black]-"The further we go and older we grow, the more we know, the less we show."[/black]
Re: beer thread
#14131 12/08/04 08:11 PM
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I'll join in on the Pyramid bashing - not good beers at all. In particular, I do not like the hefe weizen - coarse, grainy, tannic, bitter, etc... Not what I want in a wheat beer.
I much prefer the delicate, estery German-style hefes to the "California" style.
Had 2 more cans of Old Milwaukee last night. Cans opened with a pleasing "whush". Nice head, fine carbonation, faint hop nose, clean malt profile with little cereal grain noticeable. Not bad for $4/12.

Re: beer thread
#14132 12/08/04 08:42 PM
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local
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Well I suppose I'll chime in for a good brew. I broke out the St. Bernardus 12 last night. I enjoyed it in a Duvel sniffer. Anyway onto the review. It poured a nice dark brown color and a really nice thick and creamy head. Nice sweet aroma that reminds me a bit of brown sugar. From the first few sips I could tell that it had not quite warmed up enough even though I let it sit for several minutes. Then when it warmed the flavor was tremendous. It had the usual Belgian spicy taste, but with a faint smokey or roasted flavor. This "smokey" flavor is not something I've tasted in any other Trippels and gave it a very original character. I'll definately say that this one ranks up there with the Trappistes.

Re: beer thread
#14133 12/08/04 11:30 PM
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spock- what a coinkydink, i was drinking the abt 12 last night too! i definitely agree with your review. ive actually gone through about 4 bottles of it in the past week! ive got chimay red,white, and blue waiting for me at home too, so i've got that going for me...which is nice.


Who's the more foolish, the fool or the fool who follows him?
Re: beer thread
#14134 12/11/04 01:41 AM
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Don't ever let me tell you I don't like my job. Around 3:30 today my boss started getting antsy, so he asked "What time does happy hour start?" I did a little web research on the two closest spots and came to the conclusion that 4:00 was it.

So at 3:50, we left shut down the office (my office consists of 3 whole people) and walked to Jupiter in downtown Berkeley. They always have a nice selection of beers on tap. I had a pint of Drake's Jolly Rodger, a scotch ale/barleywine style beer. Quite tasty, and potent. And the boss paid, too.

I love my job.

Re: beer thread
#14135 12/11/04 05:12 AM
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I. Hate. You.

or your boss. or whoever's making me not get the job. Oh well...

Um.... beer. Yeah, that's it.


I am the Doctor, and THIS... is my SPOON!
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