Uncle Jim's Homebrews

Who is Uncle Jim you ask? Why my friend Ryan's uncle, of course! And apparently, Uncle Jim is a pretty good homebrewer! Ryan brought me a few of Uncle Jim's latest homebrews during his last visit, and I thoroughly enjoyed them all. I may have rated my homebrews a little higher than Uncle Jim's, but he is clearly the more advanced brewer. Well done, Uncle Jim!

Uncle Jim's Amber Ale
Bottle -- Massachusetts
amber in color too, with bitter start that fades to weak malts. ryan warned me that this was a really old beer, and it dies seem that the time to drink this beer had passed.
Score: 4

Uncle Jim's Cream Ale
Bottle -- Massachusetts
pours very clear with fresh, lightly bitter aroma. taste of grassy hops, grainy malts, lemon. somewhat buttery mouthfeel. interesting beer.
Score: 6

Uncle Jim's Oatmeal Stout
Bottle -- Massachusetts
very nice looking pour with sustained head... smell of malts and liquor after it warms... some coffee in taste, but largely bittersweet chocolate... pretty thin. enjoyed the beer what would have liked a little more depth to the taste.
Score: 6

Uncle Jim's Red
Bottle -- Massachusetts
very hoppy in aroma and taste both. drinks quite smooth. i find the irish red's to be too malty but this kind of hoppy red is more my speed.
Score: 8

Uncle Jim's "SB"
Bottle -- Massachusetts
i am slightly embarrassed to say that i couldn't spot what style of beer this was (the only marking was an "SB" on the label...) malty aroma made me think superbock, while the bitter aroma makes me think special bitter is more likely. uncle jim, are you out there? can you settle this one for us? either way, solid beer and thanks for the bunch!
Score: 6

Welcome this is a farmhouse

I'd like to introduce to you all my new favorite style of beer: farmhouse ale, or saison. It is a Belgian style of beer, with all of the complexity and characteristics that have made Belgian beers famous. Fruity, yeasty, spiced -- these beers are both flavorful and easy drinking. Ommegang Hennepin, Smuttynose Farmhouse Ale, and Boston Beer Works Saison Nouveau are all good examples of the style... as are these two most recent additions. And if you haven't tried a farmhouse yet, the Jack D'or is highly reccomended.

Avery Anniversary Ale - Fifteen
750 ml -- Washington, D.C.
it is worth noting that i saw this listed both as a farmhouse ale and an american wild ale. pours a beautiful gold with thick lacing. yeasty, spiced aroma of a real belgian beer. taste is of grapes, but white wine grapes, not the dark fruit of figs. spicy and very dry. not avery's best, but big thanks to my little sis for picking this up for me.
Score: 5

Pretty Things Jack D'or
22 oz -- Gordon's, Waltham
the brewer is something called the pretty things beer and ale project, so that caught my attention. it sounds like some guy has an agreement with paper city brewery in holyoke, mass and this is his first beer. and for his first beer he went with a saison... impressive. pours a hazy, golden orange with some really cool snowflake lacing. herbal citrus hops and lemons dominate aroma, while more spices emerge in flavor. a elite session beer.
Score: 9

Foreign Beers

I still haven't gotten into foreign beers yet, but I find myself ordering them more and more often when I am out as I encounter beer lists without anything new and exciting. The first two on this list are definitely worth a mention, while the latter beers are pretty forgettable...

Coniston Bluebird Bitter
Tap -- Deep Ellum, Allston
nice lingering lace... fruity citrus overtones... light biscuit malt flavor... very smooth going down. the bar listed it as a mild at 3.6% while beer advocate has it at 4.2%... either way, a nice english bitter.
Score: 8

Kronenbourg 1664
Bottle -- Brighton
brought to my attention by one jonathan pomerleau -- thanks jon! a mass-brewed french lager... i think my first french beer. a little skunky grain in both the smell and taste (maybe from the green bottle...) very light hops and strawberry taste save the flavor though. this is a very easy drink, but there certainly are other worthwhile qualities to the brew (something i don't say for many mass-brewed lagers... so high praise!)
Score: 7

Pacifico
Bottle -- El Serape, Weymouth
light in color and quite fizzy. taste is grainy corn and some very light bitterness. crisp and smooth going down... which after all, is really why you buy mexican beer.
Score: 3

San Miguel Dark Lager
Bottle -- Solea Tapas Restaurant, Waltham
brewed in the philippines, a first for me. pours light brown with little head retention. light malty flavor, with little to no hop presence. pretty watery. went well enough with the meal, but i wouldn't rush back to it.
Score: 4

Tecate
Can -- El Serape, Weymouth
watery and taste is only of corn. bad even for a mexican beer.
Score: 1

What I've Been Drinking -- January

Some of my very favorite brewers are on this list, so check them out. And several of these were Christmas gifts, so a big thank you to my parents, Hilary, and Kelly. You knew just what I wanted... beer!

Abita Restoration Pale Ale
Bottle -- Gordon's, Waltham
brewed to help rebuild new orleans. light gold and so translucent that you can see every suspended particle... sweet aroma of caramel malts and white grapes... flavor is spicy, but mostly skunked malts. as much as i wanted to, i did not enjoy this beer.
Score: 2

Allagash Dubbel Reserve
750 ml -- Gordon's, Waltham
i can't believe that i haven't reviewed this beer yet! shocking. pours mahogany into my snifter with long oily legs. aroma is yeasty and fruity while flavor is cherries and some soft toffee malts. mouthfeel is kind of chalky, but still a great beer.
Score: 8

Allagash Interlude
750 ml -- Maine
a belgian strong pale ale. copper-orange in color with a lot of carbonation. aroma is very interesting: grapes, candy sugar, vinegar, dog (yes, i said, dog), and more than anything else, red wine. yeast, tart apples, some hops and alcohol registered on my taste buds. i actually found the taste to be pretty disappointing after such a good start. like i said, this is a lively beer, to the point that it has champagne like qualities. this has been up near the top of my list for a while so thanks to my parents and kelly for two bottles of this delicious beer!
Score: 7

Dogfish Head Chicory Stout
Bottle -- Maine
chicory registered in the aroma (alongside coffee and chocolate), but nowhere else by my count. some smoke and pepper in flavor, but otherwise a pretty standard coffee stout. mouthfeel is a little thin and very astringent. i was expecting something a little more interesting.
Score: 7

Dogfish Head Raison D'Extra
Bottle -- Luke's, Rockland
muddled, ruby-maroon... aroma is sweet raisins and alcohol... taste is dark fruit of cough syrup... abrassive, acidic mouthfeel. i can only recommend this beer if you are looking for a beer that is far too strong...
Score: 5

Ipswich Winter Ale
Bottle -- Gordon's, Waltham
most of you are aware by now, but one-dimensional, heavy malt beers are not my favorite. so while i try not to let styles dominate scores too much, i find it hard to give a high score to a beer that is so bland, even if it is a solid example of the style. anyways, this beer is a 3 in my book but it isn't an especially badly brewed winter. malts are a little skunky, but otherwise it is what you would expect.
Score: 3

North Coast Old Stock Ale
Bottle -- Maine
reddish-brown... raisins and booze on nose... big malt flavor, candy sugar, some tingling hops, and sherry, which is a new sensation for me... already smooth, so aging will only only mellow some of these big flavors. a great beer, but not cheap.
Score: 9

Oak Pond Dooryard AleTap -- The Grainery, Farmington, ME

the grainery is a very nice restaurant in little farmington, maine, so i was very impressed to see they had 8 interesting beers on tap. the unfortunate part was that this was mislabeled as a pilsner when it is actually a pale ale. i had a feeling from the start it was mislabeled since the color is a dark golden. the taste is mostly sweet malts but nothing really stands out otherwise.

Score: 5

Sam Adams Chocolate Bock

750 ml -- Gordon's, Waltham

fancy bottle and slickly marketed by sam, so i had a feeling it would be expensive, but i was still shocked to see $25 ring up on the register. simply outrageous. i opened it on new years as a special occassion, but it was far too heavy and really slowed us down. some chocolate does come through in aroma, but not the taste. some unusual tastes do come through, like vanilla and sweet figs, rather than the traditional layers of malts. absolutely not worth the money.

Score: 3

Sierra Nevada Brown Ale
Tap -- Stoneforge Grille, Easton
now i don't like to get too nit-picky about serving temperatures, but i think my tongue became frostbitten by this one -- just absurd. an hour later though i really enjoyed it. toasty, nutty malts... i find brown's to be rather uninspiring, but this is as tasty a version of the style as you will find.
Score: 8

My favorite:
Allagash Curieux
750 ml -- Maine
an abbey tripel. first impression: what a head on this one! thick, white head with heavy lacing on my oversized-wine glass. analyzing the aroma took me a minute, but it really is brandy, oak, vanilla, and fresh malts... just as advertised! you do taste the alcohol, but it is worked in pretty well considering its 11% abv. sweet dry finish with oily texture. very nice.
Score: 9

One Year Anniversary!

Wow, I can't believe this blog lasted a full year... and is still going strong! 2,000 visitors, 80 posts, 600 beers rated. And I am still just focusing on domestic beers! At this rate, its going to take me at least a couple more months before I have tried every beer out there. As means of celebrating the one year anniversary of this blog, I thought I would put together a couple of special rankings. Please do weigh in with your own opinions in the comments section below... and keep reading in year two!

Coolest Beer Names

1) Founders Breakfast Stout
2) Avery Collaboration Not Litigation Ale
3) Olde Burnside Dirty Penny Ale
4) Hoppin' Frog B.O.R.I.S. (Bodacious Oatmeal Russian Imperial Stout) The Crusher
5) The Tap Leatherlips IPA

Best Beer States
1) California
2) Oregon
3) Colorado
4) Maine
5) Pennsylvania

Beers People Don't Realize Are Owned by Macrobrewers
1) Blue Moon Belgian White Ale
2) Pilsner Urquell
3) Widmer Hefeweizen
4) Leinenkugels Sunset Wheat
5) Killian's Irish Red

Favorite Beer Styles:

1) Porter

2) India Pale Ale

3) Belgian Strong Pale Ale

4) English Bitter

5) Milk Stout

If I could only drink 5 beers for the rest of my life they would be:
1) Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA
2) Bar Harbor Cadillac Mountain Stout
3) Allagash White
4) Deschutes Mirror Pond Ale
5) Smuttynose Robust Porter

Publick House

Publick House and Monk's Cell

1648 Beacon Street, Brookline, MA
as a place that was once voted the #1 beer bar in america, the publick house was at the top of my to do list. located on a nice pocket of beacon street, when you walk in you are immediately impressed with the hominess of the place. my group of 8 found a nice large table with wooden stools in the dining room down off the bar. decent sized place but i can see how it would get really crowded on a weekend night. first off, beer menu was very well put together (grouped by style)... something that is very important to me. there must have been at least 15 beers on tap, (including quality stuff like allagash, founders, and smuttynose) as well as countless bottles. proper glassware, knowledgeable waitresses, fancy food menu -- this place has it all. alright, its beer was served too cold, but i am a realist. not cheap (mostly $6 pints) but quality makes this the best beer bar i have found in boston.
Atmosphere: 4/5, Selection: 10/10, Quality: 9/10, Service: 5/5, Overall: 17/20, Total: 45/50

Total rating: A

Founders Dirty Bastard
Tap -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
i stole a taste of this scotch ale from my friend matt. very dark in appearance. strong smell of raisins and other dark fruit. taste makes you think of bourbon at 8.3% abv. very good.
Score: 9

Great Divide Denver Pale Ale
Bottle -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
sweet hop aroma... smooth and well balanced... strong hop presence with nice finish... good drinkability.
Score: 7

Oskar Blues Ten FIDY
Can -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
russian imperial stout in a can! jet black with minor head... chocolate and alcohol on nose, black patent malt and creamy chocolate in taste. rich, heavy, yet drinkable. a good imperial stout and i had to give an extra point for it being in a can.
Score: 8

Sixpoint Sweet Action
Tap -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
an american blonde. hazy and golden... spicy hop aroma... full, flavorful hop taste that matches well with fruity, peach malts. a perfect session beer.
Score: 10

The Tap Dopplebock
Tap -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
dan had to get this being from haverhill. and i, not knowing the tap even had a dopplebock had to steal a sip. muddled aroma, sweet malt taste with distinctive sour mash of dopplebock's not emerging until very end. this didn't work for either of us, and i think dan would consider my score generous.
Score: 4

Victory Bags Packed Porter
Tap -- Publick House & Monk's Cell
victory is as traditional a brewer as you will find, and this porter is no exception. deep brown with reddish tint, emphasis on roastiness all around, smooth with moderate body. a solid, if unadventurous porter.
Score: 7

IPA's

I've been on a bit of an IPA kick lately as I was preparing to brew my first beer in the style. Some definite inspirations here. The review of my IPA won't be too far behind...

Anderson Valley Hop Ottin' IPA
Bottle -- Luke's, Rockland
this is a very good brewer that i have only had a couple of beers from and am making a effort to seek out a few more. golden and cloudy... smell of a barleywine: rich malts, big hops, and alcohol... very flavorful with solid malt profile and fruity hops... smooth. most excellent.
Score: 9

Ballast Point Big Eye IPA
Bottle -- Luke's, Rockland
a san diego beer. big, floral, grapefruit aroma... aggressive hops, fruity in nature... dries out mouth a little too much. well crafted ipa for sure.
Score: 8

Pennichuck Halligan IPA
750 ml -- Cork's, Mansfield
amber, quickly subsiding head... mildly concerning. bitter hop aroma and taste is of earthy hay-like hops, but rye dulls sharp edge of most ipa's. crisp and smooth going down. techincally i would rate this a 7, but i really like the direction they took this beer. i would buy this again.
Score: 7

Shipyard Chamberlain IPA
Tap -- The Grainery, Farmington, ME
a fruity ipa with pretty mild hops. drinks very easy, to the point of being pretty weak.
Score: 4

Shipyard Tremont IPA
Bottle -- Gordon's, Waltham
silly white head on top (and it wasn't my pour either...) characterized by piney hops. buttery with diacetyl presence, just as it was in the tremont ale... while i liked these english characteristics in the ale, they didn't fit as well for me in the ipa.
Score: 4

Sierra Nevada 12th Release Havest
750 ml -- Cork's, Mansfield
this concept of rushing "wet hops" across three states into a brew kettle intrigued me enough to pick this one up. yes, as billed, the aroma is of pine, citrusy hops, but they struck me more than anything as sweet and grassy in nature. hops are spicy and sweet in flavor. no surprise this beer is all about showcasing the hops. didn't quite meet my expectations, but still recommended.
Score: 6

Southampton IPA
Bottle -- Luke's, Rockland
aroma dominated by bready malts... slightly unusual for an ipa. taste is certainly bitter, but a fairly sessionable ipa.
Score: 7

Salem Beer Works

Salem Beer Works
278 Derby Street, Salem, MA

shockingly, this was my first trip to a beer works. i have a feeling the salem site was more my speed since i have heard from many people that the boston locations tend to take on more of a clubbing atmosphere... but on a snowy new years eve up in salem, my friends and i nearly had this place to ourselves. a nice brick building that is going for that "trendy industrial" look, if you know what i mean. big bar, pool table, window into the brewery. twelve plus beers on tap by my count -- awesome! looks like they come out with five or so new seasonals at a time too. beers themselves were good, not great. i had a couple of flights, and really liked the paper they provided with a color spectrum and space for tasting notes (although they did write the beer names over the notes section...) the real flaw though was that our server switched the strong ale and pumpkin beer (at least a mistake i could catch...) that and their food was pretty bad. overall though, a definite thumbs up!
Atmosphere: 4/5, Selection: 9/10, Quality: 6/10, Service: 4/5, Overall: 10/20, Total: 33/50
Total rating: B+

Beer Works Black Bat Stout
Sample -- Beer Works, Salem
sweet coffee aroma and taste... mouthfeel is too lively for a stout and quite watery... if there was a weakness in their beer menu it was in their dark beers.
Score: 5

Beer Works Bunker Hill Blueberry
Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

with half a pint of blueberries floating inside, this obviously was not a beer i ordered but tasted from my fiance. very spiced for a blueberry beer, with lots of nutmeg... good angle. some body too it, but light and smooth enough to be sessionable. i think one of the highest ratings i have given a blueberry beer.
Score: 7

Beer Works North Shore Light
Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

again, a beer a borrowed from my friend rebecca. she was going for closest beer to bud light, and i thought it was pretty close with that corn adjunct taste. didn't meet bud light's standards for her though...

Score: 3

Beer Works Pumpkinhead Ale
Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

just what you would expect. spice comes through at finish. nothing memorable here.

Score: 5

Beer Works Saison Nouveau

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

maybe my favorite beer of the night. served a little too cold, so aroma is minimal. taste however is both tangy and spicy taste with some nice flavorful hops. light, crispness makes this very sessionable. i think having a farmhouse ale is a great idea for a winter seasonal.

Score: 8

Beer Works Salem American Pale Ale

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

my other top pick. sweet aroma and hops know role in taste... a perfect balance. very nice beer. i would have bought a growler had it been available.

Score: 8

Beer Works Tell Tale Lager

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

malts are light and flavorful, something you don't get bogged down in. an excellent darker session beer. my guess would be that they were trying to copy sam adam's boston lager...

Score: 7

Beer Works The Grinch

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

an english strong ale. all spice on nose... distinctive yeast and alcohol characterize taste. i might have enjoyed this more if i wasn't tasting it expecting a pumpkin beer...

Score: 6

Beer Works Winter Works

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

spicy, yeasty, citrusy. again, i like the direction they went with their winter seasonals as tastefully spiced, sessionable beers, rather than heavy, muddled malty beers.

Score: 7

Beer Works Witch City Red

Sample -- Beer Works, Salem

strawberry blonde in color, with an earthy malt flavor. hops are relegated to the background here, when i would have liked them to step forward a little more. that said, this was my friend george's favorite beer of the night.

Score: 5