Avery 20th Anniversary

Just a short post today and it's honestly more of an excuse to post a fun picture than really talk about the beer. This is from a visit to Kite & Key Jo and I took quite a few weeks ago so I don't remember much about the Avery 20th Anniversary Double IPA other than that it was a fine beer. You won't be disappointed ordering it but it definitely didn't blow me away or anything. However, I like this picture and didn't want it to go to waste.

If you expand it, you can see Pax just chilling there on the right, all asleep and comfortable. So, yes, if you're wondering, this is just an excuse to post a picture of my child. Sue me! At least I'm not tweeting pictures of him, all day everyday like some people. Right?

Carton Boat Beer at Kite & Key

I've now made it to Kite & Key two weeks in a row. As I said, having Pax's daycare around the corner is very convenient. Actually, Jo and I stopped in on Sunday too so I've been there a bunch lately. I even ordered the same beer Sunday and Tuesday, Carton Boat Beer, a pale ale coming in just a bit above 4%.

Real clean grapefruit nose, very solid hop aroma. Bitter grapefruit started things off, followed by a little citrusy sweetness, and then clean bitterness in the finish. Very crisp and a real great showcase for whatever hops they use in it. Very minimal flavors from the malt just all hops basically. Honestly, this is what Founders All Day IPA wishes it was. Really solid pale, especially tasty, and low ABV. Great package.

The Bruery Rye Whiskey Smoking Wood

Let's start with how it's always interesting trying to talk about the brewery named The Bruery. I get that it is partially based on the owner's name, Patrick Rue, but really all it does is cause a Laurel and Hardy Who's on First reaction. Maybe that's the point, I don't know, but it does get confusing at times. With that off my chest, Smoking Wood is a smoked imperial porter aged in Rye Whiskey barrels. I think there are some variants of this which is why the specific type of spirit barrel is named.

I split the bottle with a friend of mine and I'm pretty happy I did. Super smoky nose with some whiskey sweetness in the back. First sip was also ridiculously smoky, more campfire like than bacony. Some nice vanilla and light whiskey tones come out following the smoke but they never overcome it. The smoke is a bit overpowering actually. It was a tasty enough 12 ounces but I think it would have been a bit too much if I drank the whole 750. Honestly, you could say that about a lot of The Bruery beers, but that's because they probably expect you to share them. Considering the ABV, it makes sense to share them. In the end, if you like smoke, this is a good one to try though it's a bit pricey just so you all know.

The Return to Kite & Key with Founders Rubaeus

With Pax in daycare now, my days have smoothed out a bit and my schedule is a bit more like it used to be, at least until the evening. This means the triumphant return of Kite & Key Tuesdays! It works out really well that his daycare is right around the corner from there. For this week's beer, I went with Founders Rubaeus, a raspberry beer that replaced Cerise this year.

Jo and I have had bottles of this, but draft was actually a bit different. Sweet, jammy raspberry nose, lots of sweetness. Body followed with very sweet raspberries and sugar with not much else. If you like jam and sweeter beers, this would be right up your alley. I thought the bottles were a little more complex possibly because they had a bit more carbonation than the draft. Beers like this can be divisive given the sweetness, but I liked it.

Pretty Old Bell's Expedition Stout

I had this bottle of Bell's Expedition in my beer fridge for quite a while but kept looking at it and thinking it wasn't time yet. However, I've been working through my cellar quite a bit since Pax was born so I decided it was finally ready to be opened. I mean, why not open it on a random week day? Ya know? This bottle was from batch 9512, before they started using real dates on the bottle, but was told that it was brewed around December 18th, 2009. So pretty old at this point for a random stout.

Big earthiness from the aged hops, some roasty sweetness, and a little soy sauce and saltiness in the back. Body was sugary caramel, some more earthy bitterness, and then again soy sauce in the finish. Even after 3 and a half years, still bitter but that was all the contribution from the hops and it was probably toned down a bit from a fresh bottle. Apparently, the soy sauce flavor is common in older stouts. I thought it was a compound put off by the roasted malt used in their brewing, but two minutes of research found nothing so I may be making that up. Maybe someone more knowledgeable than me can chime in on this point. Regardless, this was tasty and that's what matters especially since I really love soy sauce.

Some Tired Hands Catch Up

I've been remiss again at making posts more often but I at least warned everyone I'm a slacker. Today, we'll do a little Tired Hands catch up on some of their bottles. While I do have some tasting notes, I think I'm going to skip the overly long stuff and mostly just post some nice pictures. Seems easier.

To start we have Handfarm, a wine barrel fermented saison.

Schlafly 2007 Oak Aged Barleywine

I picked up this bottle a couple years ago (possibly 2011?) when I was in St. Louis for a cousin's wedding. I saw this and a bottle of 2008 barrel aged Imperial Stout and thought to myself, how can I pass this up? Even more so since I'm pretty sure they were like $10 or something crazy. The stout I drank a couple years ago over Thanksgiving but this bottle has been sitting around getting lonely and older for a few more years now. When I realized it was nearly pushing 6 years old, I figured it was time to open it.

I'll be the first to admit that I expected an oxidized, cardboard-like mess. However, shockingly, it held up remarkably well! Sweet caramel, apples, and a hint of vanilla and cherry in the nose. Poured pretty thick though the mouthfeel was thinner feeling. Body followed with caramel, vanilla, and a sugary sweetness in the finish. No real signs of oxidation except maybe the cherry in the nose. The age was probably the cause for the thinner mouthfeel, but it wasn't a big deal. Pretty impressive. I should search out a fresh bottle at some point just to try it out but I don't know if they are available in NJ. Guess I'll just have to stumble across one at some point.

Kevin Mudrick's Tomato Lambic

Yes, you read that title right, a beer made with tomatoes. At this point, though, this sour is a couple years old so the fruit (or vegetable?) would have faded quite a bit. Not sure how old exactly, but I'm sure Kevin will chime in when I post this to twitter. He's very helpful like that. I'm not really sure on the base style of this either other than calling it an American Wild Ale even though he called it a lambic. I don't think he blended different years together as a homebrewer though. Maybe I'm wrong! Regardless, I've been super intrigued to try this ever since he gave it to me so I finally opened it the other night.

I thought it had a light vinegar nose with a hint of acidity while my wife thought it was super strong. Her nose is more sensitive than mine so it probably was stronger than I'm saying. Body followed the nose with a ton of vinegar and a bit of a bite in the finish. Unfortunately, there really wasn't any hint of tomato except maybe the slight acidity most likely as result of the age. Not sure if it was stronger fresh. It was also super flat and Kevin said that is why he prefers kegging his sours since you are carbing them on the spot. Honestly, it almost reminded me of a barrel sample which was kind of fun. Anyway, for a homebrew, it was pretty cool and a really neat idea. One note, but a delicious note for someone who likes acetic sours. Side comment, if you want to try a beer made with tomatoes after reading this, it seems that Tired Hands just brewed an heirloom tomato berliner weiss so that should be available soon.

On the actual blog front, I'm clearly not keeping up with it right now. I'm hoping things will settle back into routine once Pax goes into daycare but we'll see. In the mean time, bear with me and my sporadic posting and hopefully I can get things back on track in the future.