Flyer’s Pacemaker Porter

Another Post from Brother Jim:

Continuing the happily emerging trend of porters in the Church …

After gaming with some friends last night, we stopped off at the Copper Hog for a beer. The 9lb Porter was gone from the tap menu, replaced by Flyer’s Pacemaker Porter. Always happy to try something new, I decided to give it a shot.

The beer poured an opaque black, with barely any head at all. There was minimal carbonation – enough to know that you were drinking beer, but not much beyond that. Perhaps as a result, the aromas put off weren’t that strong, though what was there was rich and inviting. I expect flavors of chocolate and coffee in a porter, and the Pacemaker leaned so heavily towards the chocolate side of things that I had to check their website when I got home to see if they were adding baker’s chocolate to the brew (they weren’t). It was tasty, but didn’t have enough of that dry, hoppy finish that I cherish in a good porter. A good beer, and worth trying, but not my favorite porter of the season.

http://www.eatatflyers.com

Jim

Big Boss Porter

Brothers and Sisters,

I write to you a fine beer, a unique beer, a polish porter has graced the halls of the Church of Beer. Sister Mars brought home a bottle on Friday. I asked for another bottle on Saturday to share with Brother B. It's a good beer. It's dark and slick with little foam. It's sour cream on the front and sweetness in the end. It hints of chocolate and reminds one of smoke from a fire. It's not heavy. It's creamy and warms your insides well and not unlike it Ukrainian cousins.

Cheers,

RD

Shastafarian Porter

I took a chance tired of the local beers in the kegarator. Being a fan of the porter I called and asked if they sold kegs. I asked if there was any extra paper because of the cross state transport. No such rules.
"I'll be there in a hour"
I get there have a pint and brawt
I get the keg of porter and drive the our home. I get it home, tap it, bam, and out comes a nice light amber ale...
I call and it is was marked porter, but was an amber and i am not driving back.
They will have some one come over in the next day to change out the keg. They say drink as much of the amber as I can.
I call friends and pass out growlers. I get at least 2 gallons gone of the amber.
The amber is okay at best and awaited the porter, which was deliver and a lighter keg was returned.
I poured the porter into a glass. It is great, dark and rich. One o my top porters.
Now if I can only can get it regularly.

Brother Chris

On Saturday, Brother B stopped by bearing a growler of Bother Chris's Wet Hop Ale #1. Brother Chris is a home brewer. Shifting from extracts, this ale is his first attempt at making beer from whole grains using the hops from Bother B's backyard.

Opening the growler, the ale smelled of hops, flowery and fresh. After tasting Sierra Nevada's Anniversary Ale, I concur at the description. This is a wet hopped ale. It's a cloudy and tart. It's not clean, the tartness lingers.

When Brother Tom stopped by the Church later in the afternoon, we foisted on him a pint. He liked it. He said, "It tastes like a beer I'd buy at store."

Brother B and I agree, it's a successful first batch.

Cheers,

RD

Smoked Porter

Dear Brethern,

I must tell you of a good beer, a beer with the Church's blessing. Bottled in Juneau, the 2008 Alaskan Smoked Porter is a beer worthy a big state. The "alder-smoking to the malts" create a flavor of smokey bacon greatness. It is creamy and smooth with a touch of bitterness on the front, and comfort on the back.

It's a beer for dark days and red meat. I wish I had some venison. It's one of my favorite beers this year.

Cheers,

RD

9 Pound Porter

Another Post from Brother Jim:

With my in-laws still in town, Sister Erin and I got to head out for a date while her parents watched the kids. We tried a new (to us) restaurant: The Copper Hog in Bellingham. The atmosphere was quiet and dark, with a good selection of on-tap brews (the only non-craft brew which I saw was Guinness). We passed on the Snow Cap and selected Georgetown Brewery’s 9 Pound Porter, poured from the tap.

http://www.georgetownbeer.com/products/index.html

The beer was pitch black in the glass. Only by holding it up to the light and looking at an angle at the bottom of the glass (where the light passes through only about a ½ inch of the beer) could we see a glimmer of light. The finger-high head dropped fairly quickly. The carbonation was nice – effervescent at first, then shifting subtly to silky and creamy in the mouth a beat later. It was a good, nourishing porter. The hops were noticeable and pleasant. The coffee characteristics were predominate over the hints of chocolate. A good, tasty porter.

When asked to free associate about the beer, Sister Erin said “dirty sneakers” and “ground up rubber tires on a playground“. The accompanying smile seemed incongruous, so I asked if this was a good thing. She assured me it was; you get dirty on the playground, but you have fun doing it.

On a side note, the Copper Hog served us, by far, the best colcannon either of us could recall having, inside or outside of Ireland. Warm and garlicky, a true comfort food. Definitely worth a visit for those in the area, with a good selection of beers on tap and in bottles:

http://thecopperhog.com/

Harvest Ale

On a Beer Monger's recommendation, I picked up a bottle of Sierra Nevada's Anniversary Ale and brought it back to the Church to pair it with the Ritual of Saturday Football. Brethern, its a good beer. Despite being the 13th Release, this wet hop ale is a blessing. It's has a nutty-pine aroma with a full complex taste. It's not overwhelming or extreme hopped. As the glass warmed to room temperature, the flavor and aroma increased. I like this beer very much. I recommend it to you.

Cheers,

RD

Creamery

I have sad duty to name an offender to the Church of Beer. The Creamery. Homebrewers who started out of their garage and made good beers. A heffy, a brown and a stout worthy of supporting. That was almost two years ago. They upgraded and got too ambitious. They renovated a huge space for brewing, kitchen and a pub. It is a lovely space with great potential, but goes largely unused.

But over the two years of trying to work the kinks out, they still haven't worked it out. The service has gotten better, but the flaws have not been corrected, the worst offense.
The food is overpriced and not good even for pub food. The flaws in the space have not been addressed. The worst is the continuing stench of fish. Not cooking fish, but stank of fish.There are six or seven employees wondering around and only one working.

The worst part is the beer has gone down hill. The heffy that introduced me to spice and a good slice of orange in it, is sad and funky. The stout has gone from rich and dark, to sugary and weak. When asked if something was wrong with the beer the waitress replies "that is what they want it to taste like"

In something I RARELY do I stopped drinking it and asked for something else.

The mrs has humored me in going back, giving them a chance, but I will not waste my tastebuds and return my keg for the deposit.

Snow Cap

Sisters and Brethern,

I have gathered you here today to talk about Pyramid Brewing' s Snow Cap Ale. Snow Cap is there annual winter offering. The recipe changes from year to year as does it's cool and taste. Some times it is outstanding. Other times, it is less than ordinary. I saw the beer sitting on the shelf of the local grocery and thought it would make a great a pairing with the ritual of football.

I opened the beer. It smelled nutty. It had a prodigious a foamy head and for the first time I can remember, it has a red color. I was curious and hoping for a hit.

On first taste, had a hint of hazel nuts, crisp, a bit bitter, and then... soap. I thought my palette might be off, so after drinking a glass of water and chip or two, I tried again. It became more bitter and the subtle hint of soapiness stayed in my mouth. I like like the beer less with each sip. I was sadly disappointed.

I am hoping Brother B will give Snow Cap a taste, so he can explain to me what created the odd flavor.

Until next time,

Cheers,

RD

Lucky 13 Mondo Red Ale

Another fine submission from Brother Jim:

My in-laws are visiting, so I figured we’d start things off by sharing a beer with my father-in-law. After poking around, I decided on Lagunitas Brewing Company’s Lucky 13 Mondo Red Ale, an ale brewed to celebrate the brewery’s 13th anniversary.

It poured a deep reddish orange into the glass, but didn’t want to put off too much head. The first sip was unsatisfactory – a mishmash of flavors where nothing has space to develop. A big mouthful did the trick. Full bodied and silky. The experience is almost like drinking two beers. The sweet malt hits first, with hints of caramel and an unidentifiable fruit. It’s nourishing and thick. The caramel sweetness diminishes, and the beer finishes on the back of the tounge with the floral bitterness of the hops remaining long after everything else has faded. Absolutely delicious, and a nice presentation of flavors. Warning: it packs a bit of a punch. It tops in at a hair over 8%, so this isn’t one to down in quantity (unless, of course, you’re celebrating your 13th anniversary). As it’s a seasonal, I’ll be buying more and packing away a bomber or two for future services.

While the first taste saw my father-in-law extolling the virtues of Pabst Blue Ribbon, his final thoughts were “Wow, a guy could really get used to a beer like this”.

Stouts

San Quentin's Breakout Stout- Marin Brewing. I enjoyed this most of the two. It was dark and roasty. The flavor lasted the whole beer, which the other beer didn't. It had a great flavor, which reminded me a little of barbecuing a hamburger. Why I don't know, but it had a great smell and flavor that triggers the brain to remember other taste. I am not sure if I had this beer before, but I would recommended it and buy it again. It went great with football.


Black Bear XX Stout - Alemeda Brewing. I opened this and had my customary two swigs. I thought it was one of the better beers I had in a while. It was dark, rich and smooth. It was warm and inviting. The problem was the farther I got into the bottle the less it tasted like those two swigs. I don't know if the alcohol or the temperature of the beer changed, but I was a little disappointed it didn't last the whole beer. I am going to have to try it again.

Monster Mash

Saturday, while preparing for the Ritual Of Football, I stopped at the local grocer to stock my pantry. Siting on the shelf next to Southern Oregon Brewing's Porter, was Monster Mash made by Lompoc . It's seemed a perfect pairing for the ritual.

Monster Mash is an Imperial Porter. It has a rich and robust taste. It is smokey and swarthy, a beer to be consumed on a dark and stormy day next to a crackling fire. It's a big beer without being overwhelming, a beer to compliment burgers or beef stew.

Bring a Monster home today,

RD

Sierra Nevada's Anniversary Ale

Today's Post is from the Canadian Border and our good friend, Brother Jim:

I was in the grocery store yesterday, picking up some produce for an upcoming dinner party and lamenting the fact that Bellingham, WA, for all of it’s progressive nature, doesn’t have a store with a good craft brew selection. I picked up a sixer of Pike Kilt Lifter (a perfectly acceptable scotch ale), and something I hadn’t seen before: Sierra Nevada’s Anniversery Ale.

http://www.sierranevada.com/beers/anniversary.html

My wife was initially dubious about the beer, as she’s generally not fond of IPAs. I poured a bottle into a pint glass for myself. The ale was a nice hazy copper color, and put off a big lacy head. The initial smell was pine needles, though the cold I’ve been nursing deadened it a bit. The taste cut right through that cold, though. It had a good hop flavor without bashing your head in – the Anniversary Ale is definitely not a typical NW IPA; it has much more complexity than just hop Hop HOP! The prevailing taste was fresh orange peel, with an underlying hint of spicy cloves. Crisp and tasty – a good session beer.

My wife had a small taste of my beer, then a larger one, then I had to go pour another one for myself because she wouldn’t give it back. We decided it tasted like Christmas. It was light and drinkable, with hints of summer, yet all of the flavors of the winter holidays. Like us, the beer has one foot in summer, the other in winter. It’s a nice place to be.

Freaktoberfest

I had already bought the Freaktoberfest before Brudha reviewed it and Zak from Shmaltz Brewing granted an interview, so it seems like we are on Shmaltz kick.

I like this beer. The color itself is unusual. It takes the Octoberfest season and has fun with it. The flavor was smooth and pleasant. I was surprised it didn't taste ciderary, due to the color. It had a great smell and was good drink. The mrs had two taster glasses (which is unusually for stouts/porters).

This beer also cleared the taste of a bad Imperial Stout from Great Divide brewing which was all alcohol and no flavor. I opened it gave it two attempts and then left it to rot.