Since some people in the lounge have expressed a non-hatred for discussing beer, I will attempt to compile the tasting notes from the beers I sample.

Reviews will be formatted as follows.

Name
Style
Brewery
City
Country
ABV
IBU
Serving Type
Tasting Notes
Rating

I will rate beers on a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 is one of my all-time favorites, and 1 is a beer I would never drink again. A 3 is a beer I could, but would prefer not to drink again, and a 5 is a beer I would gladly drink again.

I appreciate any feedback, as I attempt to refine my palate and tasting process with an eye towards becoming a certified judge.

Beer Sampling Report for Feb 2/1 - 2/15 Part 1 of 2

32 unique beers, from 6 countries. The US is the most represented country with 23 beers. And I actually realized I’m missing one that I sampled on 2/14 (Brooklyn Chocolate Stout).

Hennepin Farmhouse Saison
Saison
Ommegang
Cooperstown, NY
USA
7.7
—
Draft
Pours gold, with white head. Floral hops, herby, peppery aroma. Belgian funk, medium malts, grassy, fruit, and yeast.
6/10

Tocobaga
Red Ale
Cigar City
Tampa, FL
USA
7.4
—
Bottle
Amber pour, with thin head.  Citrus, and pepper aroma. Caramel flavor, peppery, citrus, grapefruit. Bitter finish.
6/10

Hillsborough River Dry Stout (Patio Tools)
Dry Stout
Cigar City
Tampa, FL
USA
5.5
—
Growler
Pitch black pour, with dark brown head. Coffee and cocoa aroma. Bitter chocolate, and bitter coffee tast. Dry finish.
6/10

Hopslam
DIPA
Bell’s
Comstock, MI
USA
10.0
70
Bottle
Pours a cloudy honey color. Big white head that fades, good lacing. Citrus and pine scents. Pine, citrus, floral, and honey flavors, finishes dry.
8/10

Raftman
Smoked Ale
Unibroue
Chambly
Canada
5.5
16
Draft
Amber pour, with medium lacy head. Caramel aromas. Whiskey malts in taste, little to no smoke flavor. Very thin mmouthfeel.
5/10

Biere du Soleil
Belgian Ale
Achouffe
Achouffe
Belgium
4.5
—
Draft
1 oz sample. Cloudy orange pour. Grass and citrus hop aroma. Belgian funkiness, slight malts, and citurs hops.
5/10

Scotch Silly
Scotch Ale
Silly
Silly
Belgium
8.0
—
Draft
1 oz sample. Dark brown pour, with almost no head. Caramel malt, wood, and leather aroma. Coffee, roasted chocolate, and toffee malt flavors, acerbic alcohol bitterness.
7/10

White Hoplosion
Wheat Ale
Weihenstephaner
Freising
Germany
5.3
32
Draft
Hazy straw yellow pour. Large white lacy head. Aroma of bananas, wheat, hops, lemon. Same flavors, creamy mouthfeel.
6/10

Baltic Porter
Baltic Porter
Smuttynose
Portsmouth, NH
USA
8.7
—
Draft
Black pour, with large creamy head. Chocolate and coffee aroma. Coffee, vanilla, and slight roasty chocolate flavors, slight smokiness. Low carbonation, bitter coffee finish.
5/10

Hop Rod Rye
DIPA
Bear Republic
Healdsburg, CA
USA
8.0
90
Bottle
Cloudy amber pour, lacy tan head. Citrus hop aroma. Dry malt flavors, bitter rye, floral hops. Dry finish.
6/10

Ta Henket
Ancient Ale
Dogfish Head
Milton, DE
USA
4.5
7
Bottle
Deep gold, with large white head.  Grapes, dried fruit smell, and bread yeast smell. Herbal with slight malts on the front, very funky at the end with chamomille dominating.
1/10

420
Pale Ale
Sweetwater
Atlanta, GA
USA
5.2
—
Draft
Golden pour, with small white head. Caramel malt, and citrus hop smell. Grapefruit hops, and sweet malts. Dry finish.
7/10

Belgian IPA
IPA
Intuition
Jacksonville, FL
USA
6.2
45
Draft
Cloudy straw-colored pour. Citrus hop, spicy. Spicy citrus, ginger, and acetone flavors.
7/10

Riverside Red Ale
Amber Ale
Intuition
Jacksonville, FL
USA
7.0
—
Draft
Ruby pour, w/ medium tan head. Bitter citrus and caramel smell.  Bready malts, and bitter hops, slight citrus finish.
6/10

Truckstop
Sweet Stout
Intuition
Jacksonville, FL
USA
8.2
—
Draft
Very, very sweet. Malt and sugars very evident on the nose from pour. Dark brown, almost black with thin head. Oatmeal, coffee, maple, caramel flavors with bitter hop backbone. Finishes very sweet and syrupy.
10/10

Boucanee
Smoked Wheat
Bayou Teche
Arnaudville, LA
USA
5.1
—
Bottle
Pours clear amber, thing white head, that quickly dissipated. Smells of salt, smoke, and yeast. Malt and smoke dominate up front, very one dimensional.
3/10

Single Hop East Kent Golding IPA
IPA
Mikkeller
Copenhagen
Denmark
6.9
—
Bottle
Cloudy yellow-orange pour.  Floral, and grass smell. Tastes of grass,  flowers, and bitter hops. Dry, crisp finish.
4/10

Single Hop Nelson Sauvin
IPA
Mikkeller
Copenhagen
Denmark
6.9
—
Bottle
Cloudy yellow-orange pour.  Floral, and citrus smell. Tastes of honey, ginger and spicy citrus hops. Dry, crisp finish.
5/10

Single Hop Simcoe IPA
IPA
Mikkeller
Copenhagen
Denmark
6.9
—
Bottle
Cloudy yellow-orange pour.  Floral, and citrus smell. Tastes of honey, grapefruit, and spicy citrus hops. Dry, crisp finish.
7/10

Beer Sampling Report for Feb 2/1 - 2/15 Part 2 of 2

Ode To Mercy
Brown Ale
Wild Heaven
Decatur, GA
USA
8.2
—
Bottle
Pours brown, with tan head. Very malty. Toffee, caramel, and fig flavors. Sweet finish.
9/10

Wee Heavy
Scotch Ale
Alesmith
San Diego, CA
USA
10.0
—
Bottle
Consumed at the end of a session, w/ taste fatigue. Very big, malty, nice balance of hops, hints of oak.
8/10

Ten FIDY
Imperial Stout
Oskar Blues
Lyons, CO
USA
10.5
—
Can
Canned in ‘09. Dark black pour, with big creamy brown head, and heavy lacing. Chocolate and alcohol on the nose. Chocolate malts, molasses, and burnt toffee. Slightly bitter. Very alcoholic finish.
9/10

Midnight Oil
Stout
Swamp Head
Gainesville, FL
USA
5.0
38
Draft
Pours like it says, very black with a scant tan head. Dark chocolates, oatmeal, caramel. Thick creamy mouthfeel. Coffee flavors, w/o coffee bitterness.
7/10

Idiot
DIPA
Coronado
Coronado, CA
USA
8.5
—
Draft
1 oz sample. Muddy yellow pour, off-white head. Very hoppy. Sour fruit and grass flavors dominated.
2/10

Bitter & Twisted
Blond Ale
Harviestoun
Alva
Scotland
3.8
—
Draft
Blonde with very faint, quickly dissapearing head, good lacing. Grassy smell on the nose. Resinous hop flavors on the front, finishes flowery with slight astringency.
5/10

Maduro Vanilla
Brown Ale
Cigar City
Tampa, FL
USA
5.5
—
Draft
1 oz pour sampled at the brewery. Clear dark brown color, light head. Malty, almost like an oatmeal cookie. Very distinctive vanilla and toffee flavors.
6/10

Ruthless Rye
IPA
Sierra Nevada
Chico, CA
USA
6.6
58
Bottle
Pours a clear copper color, with a think head. Hops, and peppery rye on the nose. Bitter hopes, peppery rye up front, caramel in the middle, finishes dry.
5/10

Bourbon Barrel Aged 1901
Red Ale
Bold City
Jacksonville, FL
USA
9.0
—
Draft
Aged in Jack Daniels barrels. Pours a dark rust brown. Roasted malts on the nose, thin dark head. Very malty, with very little hops. Bourbon smell very evident on the nose. Deep roasted malt flavors, with slight sweetness from the oak. Finishes malty sweet with little hop flavors. Alcohol flavors and mouthfeel linger.
6/10

Two Hearted
IPA
Bell’s
Comstock, MI
USA
7.0
—
Bottle
The IPA. If anyone wants to know what an IPA is, just have them drink a Two Hearted. This generally gets lost in the shuffle due to the extremes other IPA’s go to, but this is what I judge all other IPAs against. Pours copper with a head that quickly dissipates. Resinous pine hops on the nose along with caramel malts.  Hops and malt up front, well balanced with citrus, caramel, honey, and pine flavors. Finise is still well balanced, but hoppier, good astringency.
10/10

2X Stout
Sweet Stout
Southern Tier
Lakewood, NY
USA
7.5
—
Draft
Pours as dark as Karl Rove’s heart. Thick creamy head. Sweet malts very evident on the nose before first sip. Chocolate, and roasted sugars up front. Creamy mouthfeel. Starts sweet and finishes sweet, with a bitter coffee backbone.
4/10

Corne du Diable
IPA
Dieu Du Ciel
Montreal
Canada
6.5
—
Draft
Hazy amber color, medium off white head. Dark and murky for an IPA. Caramel, and sweet fruit taste (raisins). Piney dry hop taste to finish. Astringent hop flavors linger, lots of carbonation. Very good lacing. Thinner mouthfeel than expected.
5/10

Gaelic Ale
Amber Ale
Highland
Asheville, NC
USA
5.8
32
Draft
Dark amber colored, with thin off-white head. Malty caramel flavors up front, light hops on the back end.  Too heavy to be a lawnmower beer, not good enough to be a session beer.
4/10

This is good.  I will cross-post my monthly summaries between here and the day’s Lounge.

BWV 1129 - 16 February 2012 02:01 PM

This is good.  I will cross-post my monthly summaries between here and the day’s Lounge.

I’m actually really looking forward to input from others.

JGLB, Future King of a Future State - 16 February 2012 12:10 PM

Two Hearted

The IPA. If anyone wants to know what an IPA is, just have them drink a Two Hearted.

I could not possibly concur any stronger.

Tonight I had some Big Boss Brewing Company (Raleigh, NC) Aces and Ates Coffee Stout.
From a tap. Black as coal, thin tan head. Coffee, toffee, and molasses. Nice malty flavor too.
I am a sucker for stouts, so I loved it.

tribefan - 16 February 2012 07:15 PM

JGLB, Future King of a Future State - 16 February 2012 12:10 PM

Two Hearted

The IPA. If anyone wants to know what an IPA is, just have them drink a Two Hearted.

I could not possibly concur any stronger.

Thirded.

I still don’t really have the stomach to participate in this lounge yet, as I’ve had the flu all week.  But I am going to a nice restaurant tonight that has a Missouri brewery only beer list, and it’s going to kill me if I can’t have something.

Urban Bovine Knievel - 18 February 2012 11:40 AM

I still don’t really have the stomach to participate in this lounge yet, as I’ve had the flu all week.  But I am going to a nice restaurant tonight that has a Missouri brewery only beer list, and it’s going to kill me if I can’t have something.

We have restaurants down here where they have a Missouri* only beer list. They’re called shitty bars.

I was at Public House (eight pages of beer on the menu!)  the other night, and Bell’s was there giving out free samples of their oatmeal stout, it was very good.  I also had a Golden Rye Ale, which was friggin’ outstanding.

tribefan - 23 February 2012 08:14 AM

I was at Public House (eight pages of beer on the menu!)  the other night, and Bell’s was there giving out free samples of their oatmeal stout, it was very good.  I also had a Golden Rye Ale, which was friggin’ outstanding.

How’d you like the stout? Was it sweet or dry?

Too, I’m so spoiled. I look at it and think, “Eight pages, that’s it?”

Not too sweet, nice balance, more coffee than chocolate taste to it.  I only had a small cup though, and it didn’t get to warm up as much as I like stout to be.

JGLB, Future King of a Future State - 21 February 2012 07:34 AM

Urban Bovine Knievel - 18 February 2012 11:40 AM

I still don’t really have the stomach to participate in this lounge yet, as I’ve had the flu all week.  But I am going to a nice restaurant tonight that has a Missouri brewery only beer list, and it’s going to kill me if I can’t have something.

We have restaurants down here where they have a Missouri* only beer list. They’re called shitty bars.

Ha. 

St. Louis is really rolling with craft breweries at the moment.  There are four or five that have opened in the last year.

Ruthless Rye
IPA
Sierra Nevada
Chico, CA

This is the first rye-heavy beer I can recall not liking.  I love the smell of it, but the bitterness is reminiscent of crap coffee to me. 

Urban Bovine Knievel - 27 February 2012 10:26 PM

Ruthless Rye
IPA
Sierra Nevada
Chico, CA

This is the first rye-heavy beer I can recall not liking.  I love the smell of it, but the bitterness is reminiscent of crap coffee to me.

I’m usually not a fan of Rye beers, and this one was alright. What are some of the Rye beers you enjoy?

JGLB, Future King of a Future State - 28 February 2012 09:38 AM

Urban Bovine Knievel - 27 February 2012 10:26 PM

Ruthless Rye
IPA
Sierra Nevada
Chico, CA

This is the first rye-heavy beer I can recall not liking.  I love the smell of it, but the bitterness is reminiscent of crap coffee to me.

I’m usually not a fan of Rye beers, and this one was alright. What are some of the Rye beers you enjoy?

I like the Hop Rod rye that you reviewed, and Schlafly makes an ESB that is rye heavy.  Plus Terrapin’s rye pale.  There are two really small places here that make rye ipa as well.

Urban Bovine Knievel - 28 February 2012 01:22 PM

JGLB, Future King of a Future State - 28 February 2012 09:38 AM

Urban Bovine Knievel - 27 February 2012 10:26 PM

Ruthless Rye
IPA
Sierra Nevada
Chico, CA

This is the first rye-heavy beer I can recall not liking.  I love the smell of it, but the bitterness is reminiscent of crap coffee to me.

I’m usually not a fan of Rye beers, and this one was alright. What are some of the Rye beers you enjoy?

I like the Hop Rod rye that you reviewed, and Schlafly makes an ESB that is rye heavy.  Plus Terrapin’s rye pale.  There are two really small places here that make rye ipa as well.

Also Founder’s Brewing’s Red’s Rye (that’s a lot of apostrophes).

Deschutes Inversion IPA
(Portland, OR)
Alc. 6.8% | IBUs 80

Not what I was expecting.  Unlike a typical West Coast IPA, this had plenty of malt to balance the hops.  Still plenty of hops, however, more of the bittering variety than the pine resin/grapefruit type. 

Two Hearted, to me, is the archetype IPA, and I bought this because the store was out.  Not a bad substitute.

February

Omegaang Three Philosophers—Outstanding.

Left Hand Milk Stout—No head. Smoky, chocolate, delicious w/ fish and chips.

Bass Ale—Dependable.

Moretti Dark—Pleasing enough.

Peroni—Fine.

Boddington’s Cans—Nostalgia for my time in London; always a wonderful head.

Dogfish Head 60 Minute—Meh.

Bell’s Two Hearted Ale
(Kalamazoo, MI)
IPA

What Juglub said.  I’ve never encountered a more balanced beer.  There’s plenty of hop, but it’s balanced by the malts and sweetness perfectly. 

This past weekend

Dogfish Head Noble Rot

This was surprisingly good, was not looking forward to it.  had a champagne like feeling to it.

Dogfish Head Black and Blue

This is a beer brewed with Blackberries and Blueberries.  It was very good for a fruity light summer beer.

Does anyone use the andriod beer+ app?  I keep a record on there, sometimes.  we could be friends!

BEERS OF FEBRUARY

*****
Delirium Tremens (3 consumed)
One of my absolute favorite beers.  I love the sharpness, I like that it has the slight fruity taste without being an all-out fruity beer or cider.  It has a balance that works very well, and goes down lightly despite its strength.

****1/2
Newcastle (14 consumed)
You know Newcastle.

Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar Brown Ale (3 consumed)
I really dug this and I might be underrating it.  It’s a nice brown with charming honey taste to it.  I don’t know if I’ve ever come across a Rogue brew that I haven’t enjoyed, which may be another argument for Oregon being superior to Washington.

Delirium Nocturnum (2 consumed)
A darker brew from the wonderful Delirium team.  This doesn’t quite stand up to, say, the Ovila Quad, but I’d gladly have it several times in the future.

Guinness (2 consumed)
You know Guinness.

****
Dale’s Pale Ale (6 consumed)
I might just be thrilled to have a pale ale that’s not an IPA.  It’s really a quite typical pale ale, nothing fancy, but it works perfectly.

North Coast Pranqster Belgian Golden Ale (5 consumed)
I kind of go back and forth on how much I like this one.  I’m not sure why.  Maybe it’s because I go awhile between having it, and then get surprised by how citrusy it is, and then I have to re-acclimate myself.  I’m more up on it now than I have been in the past.

Lost Coast Downtown Brown (2 consumed)
A most solid brown.

Firestone DBA (1 consumed)
Finishing off the six-pack from last month, where I said:  “An oaky pale ale that goes down easy.  Doesn’t strike me as overly hoppy as so many pales out there do, but ymmv.”

Leffe Brown Ale (1 consumed)
From last month:  “I have long enjoyed the Leffe Blonde, so I was excited to see the Brown available at my local store.  It really worked for me.  It does have a similar taste to the Blonde, in a weird way, but adds some nuttiness to the smoothness.”

Ommegang Three Philosophers Quad (1 consumed)
I don’t know that this is one of the best quads out there, but it’s still recommended.  Maybe the Ovila Quad has just ruined me for other quads.  My detailed notes from my app are “Fruity and malty, crisp”, so there you go.

Alesmith Speedway Stout (1/3 consumed [sample])
A chocolatey stout, which I tend to really like.  This is a heaver, richer sort of beer that a lot of people won’t go for, even people who like other stouts that don’t taste like dessert.

***1/2
Dos Equis Amber Ale (4 consumed)
This is one of my go-to easy drinkers, perfect for two-for-one drink specials and to accompany tacos.

Spaten Optimizer (3 consumed)
Forgettable but pleasurable.

Stella Artois (2 consumed)
You know Stella.

Lagunitas IPA (2 consumed)
A perfectly reasonable middle-of-the road IPA.

Moretti La Rossa (2 consumed)
About as dark a beer as you can get out of Italy.  Substandard amongst darker beers, but better than the easy-drinking lagers they more commonly produce.

Heineken (1 consumed)
You know Heineken.

Stone IPA (1 consumed)
Another typical IPA.

Lost Abbey Serpent Stout (1/3 consumed [sample])
I didn’t take notes, and don’t really remember much about this one.  Leads me to believe it’s an undistinguished stout, which means it’s solid but nothing to go out of your way for.

***
Sapporo (11 consumed)
Detective believe Japanese barbeque and karaoke were involved.

Abita Andygator Dobbelback (2 consumed)
Adequate.  I was thoroughly exhausted at the time, and don’t remember any details beyond that.  Detectives believe Mardi Gras was involved.

Dos Equis Lager (1 consumed)
Whatever.

Blue Moon (1 consumed)
The way I rate things, three stars is “drinkable but unexceptional”.  Once you get below three, you might reconsider even having beer.  Anyway, Blue Moon gets three stars.

Indian Wells Lobotomy Bock (1 consumed)
Dark with an orangey taste, a combo that didn’t knock my socks off, as you can see.

Mad River Brewing Serious Madness Black Ale (1/3 consumed [sample])
My notes say it was hoppy, like a “mild IPA”.  Mixing that with the darkness didn’t quite hit it for me, though if it were the only darker beer on a menu it would still do the job nicely.

TOTAL BEERS CONSUMED IN FEBRUARY:  72
TOTAL BEERS CONSUMED IN 2012 THROUGH FEBRUARY:  122

Urban Bovine Knievel - 02 March 2012 10:14 AM

Deschutes Inversion IPA
(Portland, OR)
Alc. 6.8% | IBUs 80

Not what I was expecting.  Unlike a typical West Coast IPA, this had plenty of malt to balance the hops.  Still plenty of hops, however, more of the bittering variety than the pine resin/grapefruit type. 

Two Hearted, to me, is the archetype IPA, and I bought this because the store was out.  Not a bad substitute.

I’ve liked everything I’ve had from Deschutes, but I’m not sure if I’ve tried this one, due to my trying to put some space between my IPA consumptions.

Big Train - 05 March 2012 12:58 PM

This past weekend

Dogfish Head Noble Rot

This was surprisingly good, was not looking forward to it.  had a champagne like feeling to it.

Dogfish Head Black and Blue

This is a beer brewed with Blackberries and Blueberries.  It was very good for a fruity light summer beer.

Does anyone use the andriod beer+ app?  I keep a record on there, sometimes.  we could be friends!

I use the free Android Beer app.

Moretti La Rossa (2 consumed)
About as dark a beer as you can get out of Italy.  Substandard amongst darker beers, but better than the easy-drinking lagers they more commonly produce.

Agree. So many fine Italian restaurants have poor beer selection, which is too bad. Yes, most Italian cuisine pairs best with wine, but a good beer or two is occasionally perfect.