The more I drink Imperial stouts, I have found in the weeks that I have been reviewing stored and aged bottles from my cellar, that I'm not as big a fan of Imperial stouts as I am of regular stouts and porters.
They're serious ales, and I'm not a serious guy.
An Imperial stout is something that should be enjoyed once in a while: I don't think it's something that you should drink on a regular basis, unless you enjoy having your taste buds blown away and like a lot of alcohol. For myself, it takes at least an hour to drink one of these bad boys, more, if the bottle is a big one.
But as I go through my cellar, I'm depleting my collection, all in the interest of seeing what it's like to age some heavy ales. This week, I opened two bottles: one, that I purchased late last fall; the other, that my wife brought home for me in the autumn of 2013. Let's see how they drank.
Dragonslayer Imperial Stout (9.5% ABV)
Middle Ages Brewing Company
Syracuse, NY
Appearance: cavernous black with a deep-taupe head that quickly forms to a full lace.
Nose: espresso and chocolate malt that is as rich as a dragon's lair; bits of cedar.
Palate: dark chocolate and rich, full-bodied coffee. The alcohol comes through in the finish and leaves you with a fire-breathing dragon's breath.
Overall impression: this is a classic Imperial stout—neither dull nor spell-binding. I enjoyed drinking it but wouldn't want it all the time. After all, a dragon is fascinating to see, but you wouldn't want one roaming your neighbourhood. I bought this bottle last fall, directly from the brewery. I tried a couple of their brews once I got them home: I'm glad I hung onto this one.
Beer O'Clock rating: 3
The next beer is something that I almost forgot I had. When my wife went to Toronto, to enjoy a ladies' weekend with her closest friends, I asked her to visit one of the city's newest breweries (at the time). I had never been, and only knew of their beer by reputation, from the opinions of other Ottawa beer bloggers. I didn't know what would be available, but I asked my wife to grab a sample.
When she included an Imperial stout in the awesome mix, I thought I would lay it down for a year or so and see how it would fare. And over that year, as I enjoyed all of the other brews she had given me, I had great expectations.
I had a devil of a time with it.
Hellwoods Imperial Stout 2013 (10% ABV)
Bellwoods Brewery
Toronto, ON
Appearance: black as Hell with toffee-like sediment that sank to the bottom of the glass. A dark-taupe head quickly settled to a thin cap.
Nose: alcohol, chocolate, and a sinfully sweet caramel.
Palate: burnt wood, espresso beans (the beans, not the coffee), alcohol. The initial sipping experience had me feeling like I was being tormented, punished for the life I had lived so far. Perhaps, I had resisted the temptation of drinking it right away, and now I was paying for that sin. It went down as though I had swallowed a pitchfork: over time, however, the ale opened up and was more drinkable.
Overall impression: it's hard to tell if I was drinking this Imperial stout too early, too late, or during some awkward transitional phase. At one point, I was tempted to dump the remaining contents down the drain. But, because I was sipping it over several hours, I became accustomed to it's flavours. They lulled me—one sip called for another. I even swallowed the dregs.
This was the ale that made me think that perhaps an Imperial stout should be taken less regularly. Like, once a month. To be savoured for what it is, and then to move on to a pale ale, or a session ale.
Beer O'Clock rating: 1.5 (at first); 2.5 (overall)
I have two more of these beers to sample, and then I think I'll declare Imperial-stout season over.
For me, at least.
Cheers!
I had just finished taking notes for my fifth gluten-free beer, ready to condemn most of them, when I had a epiphany of sorts.
I was going about my approach to these beer-like, alcoholic beverages the wrong way.
I'm a beer snob. I turn my nose up at far more beers than I embrace. I look at the major producers as corporations who have more passion for making money than making beer. I look at clear, pale-yellow beer with much disdain.
I love craft beer that has body, flavour, and character. And if your beer tastes anywhere near the mainstream piss that they try to sell you at Swiss Chalet or Denny's, I won't touch you with a 20-foot cattle prod.
But that's just me and my snobby opinion: life's too short to drink mediocre beer.
I realize that there are many people who like that generic-tasting style. Many more, though the number of craft-beer drinkers is growing (but is still a fraction of the population).
I think that the brewers of gluten-free beer are trying to appeal to that wider audience. And so, I am rethinking my comments on the Nickel Brook beer I tried earlier this week. I owe an apology to the brewers. It must be hard to create a beer without gluten, and then to target an audience that will appreciate it. I'm thinking that you went for the beer drinkers who are used to Labatt or Molson. And, I think, to that end, you succeeded. I'm sure that that audience will enjoy that beer and appreciate that you had their interests in mind.
To the Glutenberg folks, you also made a blonde ale that would appeal to a wide audience of mainstream beer drinkers, but you also made a couple of styles that would be targeted towards the craft-beer fans. And for that, I tip my hat.
Last night, I tried another beer that I also think targets the mainstream beer drinkers.
Bard's Gold (4.7% ABV)
Bard's Tale Beer Company
Utica, NY
Beer O'Clock rating: 1.5
Appearance: a clear, deep gold with a foamy, white head that dissipates immediately to a thin cap, and then to nothing.
Nose: soap and grass.
Palate: lemon and petrol, that fade to a watery finish.
Overall impression: the first taste wasn't bad for a mainstream beer. I felt that in successive sips, it fell short on flavour. I didn't get much off the nose or in the mouth, and what I got I didn't care for.
When I sipped at my first glass, I noticed that the bubbles fell off to a tiny, faint stream of pearls, and then stopped altogether. By the time I was halfway through my glass, my beverage was flat.
I thought this might have been a fault with the bottle, so I opened a second. Again, halfway into my glass, my drink was flat.
Granted, when I review a beer, I drink slowly. Often, as with this review, I write the post while I'm still drinking. As I write this paragraph, I'm about three ounces from the bottom of my glass and Bard's is flat, lifeless, and tasteless.
If you want to drink this beer, drink up. Don't write, don't download photos. Hell, don't talk. Just pour it back.
If you're a fan of the major breweries Bard's Gold may be okay for you, especially if you can't have wheat or other glutenous grains in your beer (this ale is made with sorghum).
On the other hand, if you're a craft-beer lover, this beer may disappoint: it lacks body and character.
This week, I tried five different gluten-free beers. My favourite? The APA from Glutenberg (Brasseurs Sans Gluten). It had the flavour that I look for in a beer. And while it wasn't outstanding as an APA, it was pretty good. It didn't taste like a generic beer and had character of its own.
There are still other gluten-free beers out there that I didn't try and won't try. You'll just have to experiment for yourself.
In Ontario, Nickel Brook and Bard's is available at the LCBO. The Glutenberg beers can be found in Québec, at Bières du Monde and Broue Ha Ha.
Cheers!
A few friends have asked me, why don't I review gluten-free beer? There are plenty of people who have gluten allergies and others who are trying to reduce gluten intake for dietary reasons. So perhaps I could find a beer that doesn't contain gluten but tastes good.
I first accepted the challenge to find a good, gluten-free beer almost a year ago, when a friend, who has allergies, said she couldn't find a gluten-free beer that had any flavour. I was able to find her a beer, in Québec, and she later told me it "wasn't bad."
I never tried the beer myself.
A few months ago, an acquaintance also asked me about gluten-free beer, and had I tried any. I hadn't. Hadn't brought myself to trying what, to me, is the beer equivalent to decaffeinated coffee. That's not coffee: that's a hot coffee-like beverage.
Last week, when yet another friend asked me about gluten-free beer, I decided to pony up. To put my prejudice aside and judge this specialty beer myself.
Yesterday, I did just that.
But I made the tasting interesting, having the brew back-to-back with a beer—a true beer—by the same brewery.
I say "true" do describe a beer because one of the key components in beer is, in fact, gluten. Gluten is a protein composite that is found in grains: for beer, primarily wheat, barley, and rye. As a protein, it helps bind the molecules and helps give beer its body.
As its name suggests, it's a food agent that acts as glue. Without gluten, a beer can be astringent, without body. It can have a lifeless taste.
In theory, anyway.
But, to be fair, over the next few days, I will try some gluten-free beer and give my honest opinion of them.
To start, I chose a Burlington, Ontario, brewery, and I compared it with one of its regular, gluten-laden, ales. The brewery is Better Bitters Brewing Company, which operates under the name Nickel Brook.
About a year ago, I tried a draft of theirs, Naughty Neighbour. At the time, I really liked it. So when I discovered that it was recently made available in bottles, I had to pick some up and give it proper attention. But, because my main focus was the gluten-free beer by this brewery, I put the Naughty Neighbour aside until afterwards because I didn't want the taste of it to interfere with the gluten-free brew.
Gluten Free Alcoholic Beverage (5.8% ABV)
Nickel Brook
Burlington, ON
Beer O'Clock rating: 1.5
Appearance: deep straw with a white head that quickly dissipates to almost nothing, but retains a good effervescence.
Nose: light grass and honey melon.
Palate: bitter grass and sour hops. It lacks body. As I took more sips, the flavour made me think of what it would taste like if I sucked on rubber bands. The alcohol comes out in a watery finish, which is lengthy, though I wished it would end.
Overall impression: Nickel Brook got one thing right: they called this drink an "alcoholic beverage" and not a beer. Although, after the first sip, it reminded me of one of the big-brewery ales: grassy and sharp, with very little flavour. In that first sip, I thought, "okay, I see what they are aiming for, but it's not my cup of tea." I was prepared to give Nickel Brook credit for their attempt. I also thought, "it's not bad, but it's not great, either."
But after a few more sips, I wanted the taste to leave my mouth. I looked at my glass, knowing I couldn't finish, and so I did what I rarely do: this.
It was time to move on to the beer that I chose to compare the Gluten Free with.
Naughty Neighbour American Pale Ale (4.9% ABV)
Beer O'Clock rating: 3
Appearance: an unfiltered, bright gold, with a foamy white head that held a dense cap.
Nose: intense citrus—a honeyed orange with rich hops.
Palate: sour grass, orange and grapefruit rind, mixed with a peppered, black tea, and hops, all of which end in a medium finish.
Overall impression: my memory of this draft version is different, which makes me wonder if Nickel Brook created two versions of the Naughty Neighbour. I remember the colour being more orange and the flavour also containing more orange in the mouth. I also remember bolder hops: my memory made this neighbour to be very, very naughty. And nice.
So either this is not the same beer or I don't have the beer imprint memory that I pride myself on.
Nevertheless, this Naughty Neighbour was enjoyable and helped me get rid of the taste of the gluten-free, alcoholic beverage.
My search for a good gluten-free beer continues.
Cheers!
