Beer Review: Red Hook Dunkel Weizen

Price: $2.29 for 22oz
Brewery: Red Hook, Woodinville, WA
Style: Dunkel Weizen
ABV: 6.0%
Color: Amber, to dark red.
Aroma: sweet, fruity, malty, wheat
Body: Medium
Stomach Aspect: Light, already had 22 ounces and I could drink another 22 ounces.
Head: Poured to a thick, off-white, tightly grouped head.
Head Retention: Very little. Doesn't leave much trace from previous pull.
Taste: Caramel, slight hint of pear or other fruit, strong wheat flavor, little hop flavor at the end of the brew. Malty finish that stays on the the tongue
Conclusion: When smelling the brew you're presented with a lovely bouquet of fruit, with hint of hops and spice. The beer has a wonderful deep Amber to dark red color, that is very clear. The head is a nice thick, creamy off-white with tightly dense bubbles. Taste the brew and the taste buds on the front of your tongue come alive! The beer immediately introduces itself. The sweet fruity flavors are very prominent in this beer. Moving the brew to the middle of the tongue and the flavor fades but push it to the back of your tongue and you get a nice spiciness, with some good light hop bitterness and flavor. Swallow the brew and the hop flavor is more prominent (even thought the hop profile is very weak), but the malty finish with the hint of caramel and or toffee flavors go wonderful with the wheat flavors, all of these just make the beer refreshing to drink. This is a wonderful, refreshing Dark Wheat (Dunkel Weizen) brew. I've already drank the brew and I'm wishing I had more. If you're a wheat beer lover, you really need to try this brew, it might just make you love beer that much more. I've had several Red Hook brews (one of my favorites from this brewery is Black Hook Porter), and they still continue to produce brews that are refreshing, great tasting, and Northwestern.
Public Aspect: I'm not sure how people would take this beer just by looking at the label. I mean,the main problem with beer drinkers is they find what they like and that's all they drink. The label isn't much to catch your eye, but once you pour the beer, the aroma and color will start to perk interest. Once friends and family get a drink of this brew you may have to fight off the hoards to drink it yourself. This is simply a good beer.

Beer Review: Hop in the Dark C.D.A.

Price: $4.98 for 22oz
Brewery: Deschutes, Bend Oregon
Style: Cascadian Dark Ale (Black IPA)
ABV: 6.9%
Color: Black, opaque
Aroma: Hoppy.
Body: Light-Medium
Stomach Aspect: Little.
Head: Poured to a quarter inch but only lasted a minute before fading. The head is a tan colored with tightly grouped bubbles. The head has a nice velvet aspect like Stouts.
Head Retention: OK, leaves a nice ring from the previous pull.
Taste: Front of the tongue there is no sweetness in the brew. Little roasted malt flavor mid-tongue. Back of the tongue strong hop bitterness, and flavor.
Conclusion: I am not sure where to start with this brew. I like the label on the bottle, the idea behind the label was nice. Pouring the beer into my pint glass and instantly you see a nice dark color, and your brain goes "oh, Porter or Stout", you sniff the brew and your brain goes "WTF?" I am looking a dark beer, I smell no Roasted malt. The brew has a simple aroma, it's nothing but Hops. Taking a sip and your nose gives you the idea you're drinking an IPA, or something close to it. However, seeing the dark color you think Stouts or Porter. Continue to take that sip and instantly your tongue goes on Hop alert. The Roasted Malt is so faint that it leaves your tongue as fast as it shows up. It doesn't linger enough to make make you want more Roasted Malt. Move the brew to the back of your tongue and viola! Hops are present and accounted for. The Hop flavor is very bitter, almost like sucking from a lemon bitter. Swallow and the hop presence is even more pronounced. The finish is a little malty, but the brew does leave a thick film on your tongue, and after a pint, it gave me "Cotton Mouth." The brew itself isn't bad, but it's just like the other Dark IPA's I've reviewed. They (Breweries) take an IPA recipe and add enough Roasted Malt to color it black. The bottle says ""welcome to the curious place where the Velvet Dark of Roasted Malt meets the Hop snap of IPA." I disagree, the Roasted Malt is so faint it's not even present. Curious yes, my brain is going what am I doing drinking this? The label should have read "we used just enough Roasted Malt to color an IPA, without imparting any Roasted flavor." As you may know I am a Stout drinker, the darker, heavier the beer the happier I am. I am not a fan of this style of brew. Mixing Roasted Malt with massive Hops to obtain a dark beer in color is just wrong in my opinion. I mean, it's like someone buying a Hybrid car and saying they're going green, meanwhile they still drive the 8 MPG SUV all the time. See my point? IPA's have their place in the beer world and in the Pacific Northwest, they should be hoppy, they (IPA's) should be Gold to a deep yellow in color. They (IPA's) should have an off white head. They shouldn't be black. They (IPA's) shouldn't have a tan colored, velvety head as Stouts do. If I was sitting at brew pub and saw a pint glass with this brew in it I would think Stout because of the deep black color. I've said it before and I'll say it again. If the IPA's are boring to brewers and drinkers, improve the beer by making it better within it's realm of IPA. If you want to step up to the big heavy Stouts then drink one, don't phone it in and puss out with a Dark IPA.
Public Aspect: I think at first hop heads are going to be put off by the color of the brew (if shown in a glass). The one thing most beer drinkers hate are the dark, deep heavy, full bodied beers. This brew (by looks) will fool some to believe it's a Stout. But yet, drink it and there is no mistaking this brew for anything other than an IPA. This brew is a "Faux-rrari." A Pontiac Fiero dress up on the outside to look like a Ferrari 308. Some people are going to like this style of brew, which is fine, I guess. But if you want a dark beer wouldn't you rather just have a dark beer? If you wanted an IPA, wouldn't you rather have an IPA? The price of the beer is tolerable for the size of the bottle. But in reality I think this brew won't grab and hold the attention of either the Stouts or IPA drinkers. So please, don't show up to a public event with this style of beer. Find your calling, listen to your taste buds, and be proud of the style of beer you drink.

Beer Review:Grand Imperial Porter

Price: $2.25 for 16.9 oz
Brewery: Browar Amber, Poland.
Style: Imperial Porter
ABV: 8%
Color: Dark Brown to Black, Opaque.
Aroma:Chocolate Malt, Slight fruity, hint of Apple, hint of Oatmeal.
Body: Medium
Stomach Aspect: Full. It's a Porter so it's going to have an impact on your stomach.
Head: Wonderful from the pour, tan color with tightly grouped bubbles. But quickly fades.
Head Retention: None. The head leaves no mark on the sides of the glass.
Taste front of the tongue picks up on the sweetness of the brew. Middle of the tongue has little bitterness. Back of the tongue has mild Hop bitterness. very faint Chocolate Malt Flavor. The brew is almost like drinking a Barley Wine due to the sweetness flavors it gives off.
Conclusion: The aroma of the beer immediately made itself present. The aroma was a sweet, Apple, Oatmeal, with Chocolate dashes. Pouring the beer the head forms to a great half-inch thick foam, but it quickly dissipates. Tasting the brew your tongue immediately is assaulted by the sweetness of the brew. Honestly I was thinking I was drinking an Imperial Porter because of the sweetness. Moving the brew to the middle of the tongue and you get the slightest hint of Malt bitterness (probably from the Chocolate Malt). Swallowing the brew you get a quick, but sharp hit of Hop bitterness, and finally it goes down the Gullet with a thick Malty finish. Okay, now let's talk about the beer's other aspects. Wait for it...Wait for it....Exactly...There isn't any. For being a Porter (and Imperial Porter) at that the brew doesn't resemble a Porter at all. The Chocolate and Roasted Barley flavors are not present (the two biggest features of a Porter), but yet it has Fruity undertones as if you were drinking a Marzen or Trappist Ale. I double checked the bottle, yep it said Imperial Porter, but there was no Porter to be found. Yes the brew has a nice fruity taste, yes the aroma is good and fruity, but where's the Roasted Barley or Chocolate Bitterness? I'm not sure what the brewers where trying to accomplish, but I think they fell short of reaching Imperial Porter status. Maybe this brew was suppose to be an Imperial Porter, but came out sweet, malty, and fruity and instead of classifying it under a different category, they slapped the Imperial Porter label on it and shipped it. One great note about this brew is that being 8% ABV you don't taste any alcohol which sneaks up on you halfway through the pint (maybe the brewers ploy to hide the flavor of the beer). I mean 8oz through a 16.9oz pint, and I'm a little warm due to the alcohol. To be honest, very rarely do I pour out a beer (and I have worked my way through some shitty beers), but I could only handle 8oz (half pint) of this brew. The fruity flavor, heavy malt finish, and fruit aroma have beaten me to submission. The label says "Grand Imperial Porter." I have to question this label. The label also says a "bittersweet aftertaste with a hint of Coffee." It would have been nice to have Coffee flavor to give the beer a little more edginess. I am really disappointed in this brew.
Public Aspect: The public aspect of this is simple. You're bringing a bottle labeled Imperial Porter to an event. First thing, the word Imperial (when seeing this on a beer, get ready for big, high alcohol beer), and second it's a Porter which means it's going to be on the darker side of beer. Once the flavor gets out, you won't have to fight anybody to keep your beer. Most people will be turned off the style of beer, the flavor of the beer, and finally the color of the beer.

Beer Review: Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier

Price: $2.75 for 16.9oz
Brewery: Bay.Staats-Brauerei, Weihenstephaner, Freising, Germany
Style: Bavarian Wheat
ABV: 5.4%
Color: Hazy, dark yellow to light gold.
Aroma:Malty, a hint of fruit,
Body: Light
Stomach Aspect: Little.
Head: Poured very nice and to a full 1 1/2" thick, white creamy dense feel.
Head Retention: Excellent. This brew leaves several rings on the side of the glass.
Taste: Very little wheat aspect, malt flavor is present, as is some fruit tones, a hint of banana I would say. The hop flavor does not exist, nor does hop aroma. There is a little spiciness to the brew when you swallow. The head is very smooth, creamy, tightly grouped bubbles.
Conclusion: Let's start with the first thing you notice about this brew which is the head. When you poor this brew the head is definitely present, and it does not go away which is nice. The aroma is a little weak, when profiling the aroma you get a little hint of Cloves, a little hint of Malt, but not much else. Taking your first pull you immediately notice the carbonation aspect of the beer. What a wonderful feeling on the tongue, the flavor on the front of the tongue wasn't much. Moving the beer to the middle of the tongue and you start to get flavor, good flavor. You're presented with a nice hint of banana, a touch of wheat, and some spiciness. Moving the brew to the back of the tongue and the banana flavor increases but not to the point where it becomes overly aggressive. You're waiting for the Hops to arrive, but then they don't. I must say, it's interesting to have a brew that does not have any Hop flavor or aroma present. The finish of the brew has a nice malty, creamy aspect with a last hint of spice. While this is not my style of beer, I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who wants a different style, or something they're not used to. This is an easy beer to drink, and with a ABV of 5.4% it could be easy to tie a few of these together. The stomach aspect is low, which makes it even easier to tie a couple together. The bottle has nice, vibrant label, with almost too much information listed on it.
Public Aspect: Bringing this brew to a pubic event may lead to some people switching from their current beer. This beer would be great to share because of it's easy drinking approach and nice color. I would recommend this brew to anybody who is looking to drink something other than a Widmer Hefeweizen, Blue Moon, Shocktop, or any other massive retail wheat beer wannabe.

Beer Review: Smoked Northporter

Price: $4.09 for 22oz
Brewery: Northern Ales, Northport, Washington
Style: Smoked Porter
ABV: 6%
Color: Black
Aroma: Roasted malt, smokey, pungent musky
Body: Medium
Stomach Aspect: Full, a couple pints of this and you are getting stuffed.
Head: Poured nice, one of the best pouring heads I've reviewed this year, but within a minute at rest quickly decipates to a small film. Sigh..
Head Retention: Not bad, leaves a little trace of where the beer line was before the last pull.
Taste: Roasted malt, some smokey flavor, little hop flavor.
Conclusion: I grew up where this brewery got it's start. That town is Northport, Washington. When I left that little town, it was a logging town through and through. I see Northport being a Bud/Coors/ American Lager type of town. But I have to tip my hat to Northern Ales for introducing such a unique, small market beer to Northport. But I ask myself where to start with this brew. The aroma is different than most of the smoked Porters I've had. You can definitely smell the Roasted Malt, the Smoke aroma is present but not overwhelming like most Smoked Porters (which is actually nice). However, there seems to a be an interesting pungent/musky hint at the end of the aroma. This isn't a bad thing, just gives the brew an interesting aroma which may throw some people off (but you know my motto "Don't brew a beer that doesn't offend anyone"). The flavor aspect of the beer is a little lacking in my opinion. When you take a pull you definitely taste the Roasted Malt, you can taste the slightest hint of smoke, and then swallow the brew and get very little to none hop flavor. Probably the most interesting aspect of this brew is that with the first 8 oz the brew really was lacking any impression aspect, other than the pungent taste from the smoke. But the more you taste/drink the brew the more you understand the flavor. Very few beers achieve this. The flavor isn't changing per say, but the taste is. Maybe it's the excess of the brew on taste buds, not sure, but the more you drink the brew, the better it gets. The Alcohol content is just right with 6%, however, you do not taste the Alcohol in the beer. Here in the Portland area most of the smoked Porters are over smoked, which leads to horrible aroma, with even worse flavor. It's nice to taste a Smoked Porter that almost got the smoke aspect right. I think the brew is lacking in the Chocolate Malt aspect (which I think would've complemented the smoke more). I'm a dark beer lover, and as most Smoked beers (especially Porters) they tend to be a let down. I know some people like the smoke flavor in their beer, and why not, that's what beer is all about. Find what you like and drink it. In the realm of Porters, I've had better, but in the realm of Smoked Porters, this is the best one I've had.
Public Aspect: Most people are afraid of Porters and Stouts, especially Smoked Porters. I don't think people will be asking for seconds of this brew if you bring it to a cook out or a BBQ because of the double negative. First, it's a dark beer, second, it's a smoked dark beer. So if you like the Smoked beers, pick up this little morsel, and enjoy. No one's gonna fight ya for it. This brew might be good to marinate a nice Brisket, or even some Chicken to BBQ.