beer

San Diego's Coronado Brewing Company makes some tasty West Coast-style IPAs, but their Black Perle was something a little different - a schwarzbier from the other coast.   It's evident from many online reviews of this beer that even many beer geeks don't come across schwarzbiers terribly often, so perhaps a brief introduction to the style is in order.  Yes, it's a dark  beer, but (as with many darker beers), it's not heavy by any means - it's a lager, and it should have a clean lager finish, without the heavier mouthfeel of something like a Baltic Porter (which, despite the name, is also a lager, and is much heavier/more alcoholic than a schwarzbier) .  In relatively normal English, a schwarzbier should have dark, toasty malts, but it features a light body and is usually under 5% ABV.  It's a versatile style - eminently sessionable, but also quite satisfying.  Germany's Köstritzer tends to be the most easily-found example (and that typically involves locating your friendly neighborhood German beer hall), so it's nice to see American craft brewers taking it on.

While it's something of a wild overgeneralization, the truism that the East Coast makes the best lagers and the West Coast returns the favor with IPAs does have some validity; Coronado does, indeed, make some fabulous IPAs (notably Idiot) - but I'm happy to report they can doing things German-style equally well.  The beer is, as the name of the style suggests, black as a Spinal Tap album cover (note that TJ's pleasing exposed brick wall isn't visible through the beer in the photo); there's a thin tan head and a pleasant bready/toasty aroma.  The toastiness (and even a bit of smoke) carries on in the flavor, along with a good amount of hoppy bitterness.  One presumes that the beer's oddly-spelled name comes from the hop variety employed - Perle hops are a German-bred variety that is now widely grown in the Pacific Northwest - and they are used to good effect here.

On the whole, Black Perle is a very solid beer, quite worth sampling.

Brewster's Brewery is a small, independent brewery in the UK, founded by Sara Barton (who is also the head brewer - or, more correctly, brewster); they are one of a growing number of woman-powered microbreweries around the world.  From their base in Grantham, Linconshire, their reputation for high-quality beers has continued to spread - it's not just for CAMRA anymore.  Shelton Brothers distributes Brewster's beers in the US, although they can still be somewhat difficult to come by - but based on a taste of their Mata Hari - part of their 'Wicked Women' series - they are well worth seeking out.

Before getting on to the actual tasting notes, it is worth noting that Brewster's regular beers tend to be considerably lower in alcohol than those of most American craft brewers; while there is much to appreciate in many a high-gravity  beer (there's absolutely nothing wrong with Pliny the Elder - thank you, Russian River!) it's nice to be able to have more than one or two in one sitting, especially if (like me) you tend to the smaller side of the height/weight scale - or if your city lacks decent public transit and you need to drive home from your favorite watering hole.  Lew Bryson's Session Beer Project is helping to encourage US brewers to make a few more lower-alcohol-but-still-great beers, and we're lucky here in the Philadelphia area to have easy access to Yards Brawler (a Mild) and Philadelphia Brewing Company's Kenzinger (a Kölsch).  Both are great go-to beers; beyond their lower alcohol, they are also useful recruitment tools - perfect for introducing a friend to craft beer.

But back to the Mata Hari (and apologies for the terrible photo - ChurchKey is many things, but well-lit is not one of them, although it's quite pleasant in that regard); it pours a coppery color, with a thinly-foaming head - both perfectly good things for a bitter.  It has more of an earthy hop aroma than you tend to find in mass-produced bitters, and the taste is perfect - malty goodness without going overboard into some other style, and still a nice, subtle hop kick.  I should point anyway that the hops used are Fuggles (which are growing better in our garden than in previous years, oddly, despite the extreme heat this summer), Northdown and Progress, but really, who needs an excuse to work the word 'Fuggles' into a sentence?

It's a great beer for just about any occasion - it was perfect with my meal on a hot day, but would be equally at home as a warm-up after a chilly day.  It's a response in a bottle to those who might believe that a beer must be extremely hoppy and/or high in alcohol and/or brewed with coffee  (or another nonstandard ingredient) to be worthy of special pursuit - it can just be really, really good.  And supporting female brewers is also a very cool thing – it’s another reason you should go Like Brewster’s Brewery on Facebook now.

Let me start off by saying I'm a big fan of the 21^st Amendment (both the brewpub and the amendment, of course); we go way back.  They're one of my two favorite brewpubs in San Francisco (the other being Magnolia) - heck, there's even video evidence of my past hanging out there at a F*ckedCompany.com party during the dot-com crash (skip to minute 1.03 if you have a burning desire to see the much-younger me speak).  I love that they've been pioneers in canning craft beer, and they are never afraid to experiment.  With that in mind, I had high hopes for Back in Black - I love the style, especially Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale, Victory Yakima Twilight and Deschutes Hop in the Dark - and whether you wish to call it a Black IPA, Cascadian Dark Ale or something entirely different is a point I'll leave up to you.

With that somewhat rambling prologue out of the way, I'll get right to the review - I'm disappointed to say it was only OK.  It looked great when poured - deep brown, tan head, nice (if somewhat unexpectedly subtle) hop aroma, but when it came to the actual taste, that's where things weren't exactly right.  I've sampled some homebrewed beers in this style that don't quite get the hops and roastiness working together as they should, imparting a somewhat ashy taste, and I'm sorry to say I noticed a very similar taste with Back in Black.  While that flavor was at the forefront, it also lacked a certain depth beyond that; one of the great things about this style is that there are usually a number of different complementary (granted, some would say competing) tastes, while this was very one-note.

Was it terrible? No - it just wasn't up to the usual very high standard set by the brewery.  Sublimely Self-Righteous is still the standard in this category - but it's great to see more brewers jumping on board.  A willingness to experiment, even when it's not always 100% successful, is a fine thing - and something that sets the craft beer industry apart.

While Ninkasi’s Spring Reign and Black Raven’s Tamerlame were both fabulous, this entry from Colorado’s Tommyknocker Brewery is now also a serious contender for my favorite new (or at least ‘new to me’) beer this year.  I won’t go through the entire BJCP checklist (aroma, appearance, etc.), I will say that it’s got a particularly pleasing grassy hop aroma – yes, the official description says ‘citrusy’ and there’s a bit of that there, but it’s not a full-on west-coast-style hoppiness.  Perhaps the most surprising element of the beer is the deep chocolate flavor contrasted with the hops; it lends an oatmeal-stout-like silkiness, yet the mouthfeel (yes, I just said ‘mouthfeel’) is completely different – it’s still clearly an IPA.

While not sweet (beyond the general maltiness), it lacks the roasty bitterness one might expect when first examining the beer – there’s a pleasing hop bitterness, to be sure, but it’s balanced well with the malt to offer a unique character.  The history of this one-time beer is worth noting: it was brewed to honor Free the Hops, an Alabama organization that successfully lobbied their state legislature to lift the 6% ABV limit imposed on locally-available beers.

So, is this beer worth a little extra effort to seek out?  Most assuredly.

Why, you may ask, have you added yet another domain?  Why not just update your Philadelphia Beer Bars Examiner blog more often, as you used to?  The answer is twofold: first, I want to write about beer from beyond Philadelphia (even if I’ve most likely consumed it in a great Philly-area bar or restaurant), and, perhaps more importantly, while I have time to dash off a quick review, keeping abreast of everything that’s happening locally takes more free time than I have at present.

So, what will you find here? Beer reviews, plugs for bars and restaurants I like and general craft beer evangelism; if I can add to the ranks of Ladies of Craft Beer, I’m doing my job!

And if you’re a first-time visitor (welcome!) who wants to know whether the ‘weird’ modifies the beer or the girl, you wouldn’t be wrong to assume it’s a bit of both – I’m a BJCP-certified beer geek (and beer runner) who enjoys seeking out new and hard-to-find beers, but without the slavish devotion to Westy 12 – I like it, sure, but I like many other things much more.

In addition to the Examiner link above, there are a few year-end beer roundups to get you started; and so, without further ado, the first quick review under the new system – read on!

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Allagash Fluxus 2008
This year’s Fluxus was a ginger-spiced witbier. It was rather tasty.

Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel Rosée d’Hibiscus
Another wit – but this one is flavored hibiscus. This is possibly the only ‘girly’ beer I’ve ever enjoyed.

Brooklyn Brewery Flemish Gold
A saison from Garrett Oliver’s arsenal – lots of flavor.

Brouwerij de Molen 1914 London Porter
All beer-geek archivists read Shut Up About Barclay Perkins, yes? If you do not already, you should begin, since the blog and, hence, the beer are the fruits of researcher/author/blogger Ronald Pattinson’s hard work in various European beer archives. And it’s great.

Brouwerij de Molen SSS 1914 Triple Stout
Like the beer above, this is a fantastic recreation of a historic recipe – one I’d be happy to drink every day.

Dogfish Head Sah’tea
Also something of a historic recreation (this time of a Finnish sahti), but as this is Dogfish Head, it had a modern twist – actual tea in the brew, and a weizen yeast. More refreshing than it is possible to convey.

Dogfish Head Theobroma
It sometimes seemed that every new beer I tried this year featured chocolate in some way, but nothing could compare to the latest archaeological beer from Dogfish Head. Unique, and a very different brew in tap and in the bottle.

Earth Bread + Brewery The Bradley Effect
A winner from the much-anticipated brewpub (see below, and try the flatbreads – they are amazing) with a very unusual style – it was a black gruit (and was on tap just in time for the election).

Earth Bread + Brewery Here’s Brucker
I seemed to have enjoyed many alts this year – this was one of the best, despite the terrible pun.

Earth Bread + Brewery Love Your Mother
After much wrangling over a liquor license, Earth Bread + Brewery finally opened; this mild was in their starting lineup. Really a nice beer, especially for someone who is stuck driving later.

HaandBryggeriet Norwegian Wood
It was too smoky for me, but I could appreciate the work that had gone into it – the juniper was a nice touch, and I look forward to their other offerings.

Harviestoun Ola Dubh 16
I am generally not a fan of anything wood-aged, but perhaps there’s something about whisky casks that makes it OK. Harviestoun took their reliable Old Engine Oil and deposited it in some Highland Park casks for a while (I also tried the 12 and 30 varieties), with a very tasty (and, for completists, individually-numbered) result. This one was just right.

Moa Noir
I am often suspicious of a beer that has made a long journey in a bottle, but this dark lager from New Zealand was great – more, please!

Nils Oscar Kalasöl
A märzen from Sweden, and a good one, too – not to mention an excuse to use two umlauts in rapid succession.

Otter Creek Sea Otter
My favorite from the Otter Creek World Tour series – a Baltic porter with a ton of flavor.

Port Brewing/De Proefbrouwerij Signature Ale
Possibly the oddest beer I’ve had this year, and one I thought I would dislike since I am not the world’s biggest fan of Brettanomyces. This works perfectly for me, though.

Ridgeway Bad King John
A dark, bitter stout, but in a very good way.

Rogue Double Dead Guy
As per usual, Rogue can get away with front-loading the hops – there’s still plenty of malt to make this a perfect Halloween brew.

Rogue John Locker Stock #10, Oktoberfest
This was something of a departure for Rogue – the malt finally got a chance to shine.

Russian River Blind Pig IPA
West coast brewers truly understand how to do the über-hoppy thing while maintaining great flavor.

Southern Tier Choklat
Rather like its sibling below – I wish these came in airline-sized bottles.

Southern Tier Crème Brulee
Definitely a ‘dessert only’ beer – very, very sweet and lives up to its namesake.

Southern Tier Oat
It’s an imperial oatmeal stout. It’s very tasty. It needs to come in a smaller bottle.

Stone XII Anniversary
Another chocolate beer, this one a bitter chocolate oatmeal stout. Really nice, but it was hard to match the memory of the XI Anniversary, which remains my current favorite beer. Can it please become a year-round offering? Pretty please?
Update: Thank you, Stone Gods!

Struise Black Albert
I know every other beer geek loves it. I see how it’s well-crafted, really I do – but it’s too wine-y for me; the grape flavor and I are not friends. Nice maltiness, though.

Struise Mikeller
Belgium and Denmark came together to make a strong golden ale (or something along those lines). It was tremendous.

Struise Tsjeeses
It was blond tastiness.

Troegs Scratch #6
The Troegs Scratch series has been great fun; I am not normally a huge fan of the Dortmunder Export style, but this won me over.

Troegs Scratch #7
Who doesn’t like a weizenbock?

Victory Yakima Twilight
It’s something like a dark double IPA (not quite a Stone XI Anniversary, but perhaps a distant relation) and quite hoppy for Victory, whose stable of lagers made me realize lagers could be Good Things. I hope to have more.

So, there you have it – a partial sampling of Things I’ve Really Liked this year; if I had to pick a favorite, it’s going to be a narrow victory for the 1914 London Porter, just edging out the SSS 1914 Triple Stout. I wish you good luck in obtaining a bottle in time for New Year’s Eve.