The Beer Thread: 2007 – 2008

[fstorm1]

Can't go wrong with Alt (nor Dancing Man, though you'll have to wait until July for it). There's a bunch of good seasonals out right now, depending on what you like: Capital's Winter Skal and Berghoff's Red Bock Winter Ale both are good but not great, as is Sand Creek's Badger Porter. Lakefront (Milwaukee) Holiday Spice is pretty good too. Lotsa spicy yumminess. I s'pose the best thing you could do is to find a grocery or liquor store that features a "build-your-own-sixer". Grab a bunch, and see which are tasty.

 

BTW-Where you moving to?

[Ando Calrissian]

Can't go wrong with Alt (nor Dancing Man, though you'll have to wait until July for it). There's a bunch of good seasonals out right now, depending on what you like: Capital's Winter Skal and Berghoff's Red Bock Winter Ale both are good but not great, as is Sand Creek's Badger Porter. Lakefront (Milwaukee) Holiday Spice is pretty good too. Lotsa spicy yumminess. I s'pose the best thing you could do is to find a grocery or liquor store that features a "build-your-own-sixer". Grab a bunch, and see which are tasty.

 

BTW-Where you moving to?

OK, there's a lot to respond to from the last couple of posts.

 

I'll be moving to Milwaukee. I was really fishing for good suggestions on local (WI) product. It's been about 7 years since I've last lived in the area and assume the beer landscape has changed a bit. Perhaps more than anything, my tastes have changed significantly in the last 7 years - when I last lived there I simply wasn't into the stuff I'm into now.

 

I'm quite familiar with Ommegang and have a serious love for their Hennepin as well as Samuel Smith's (their Winter Warmer in particular). The suggestion of the Alt sounds nice - I've not sampled that variety before.

 

If you were going to rate the locally brewed non-seasonals, how would it shake out? Who brews the best pilsner, stout, lager, IPA, etc.?

[fstorm1]

Well, you're headed for Milwaukee, so Lakefront seems the logical first choice. To this point, I've had 7 of their offerings: Big Easy (maibock), Cherry Lager (fruit), Kilsch (pilsner), New Grist Sorghum (fruit), Pumpkin (listed as Am. Amber), Riverwest Stein (Am. Amber), and Holiday Spice (winter warmer). The Kilsch, the Pumpkin, and the Holiday are all pretty good, and so is the Big Easy. As mentioned, Sand Creek's Porter is good, but their Groovy Brew is not. Really, the three best breweries that I've found are New Glarus, Capital and Berghoff. All have many styles available, although I'd say New Glarus takes the biggest risks with some of their "limiteds", like Alt, and consequently, some of those limiteds can be iffy. Capital and Berghoff stay a bit more traditional with their releases.

 

Again, best thing to do is find a place with the build your own feature. But I'd whole-heartedley grab (just about) anything from those three breweries. Just my opinion.

[datrain711]

If you were going to rate the locally brewed non-seasonals, how would it shake out? Who brews the best pilsner, stout, lager, IPA, etc.?

these are all my opinions so take them with a grain of salt http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

Wheat- new glarus dancing man hefeweizen is just unbelievable. It will be hard for me to drink any other hefes this summer http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

Lager- Lakefront Riverwest Stein or sprecher Special Amber would be really solid choices here

IPA- Tyranena Bitter Woman or New Glarus Hop Hearty are both very well made

Porter- Tyranena consistently puts out a fantastic porter through their Brewers gone wild series. Devil made me do it and Devil over a Barrel are both very very good

Stout-New Glarus Road Slush is really well done. Central Waters has a variety of stouts that are all very good. Satin Solstice, Bourbon Stout, etc..

 

 

I hope that this a pretty good starting point for you. Welcome back to the great city http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Ando Calrissian]

I appreciate the suggestions. I've been fortunate to have access to some great local brew here in PA but am thrilled to be returning to WI.

 

Sprecher Amber and Black Bavarian will always be the beers that started to teach me that what real beer ought to taste like. A few days ago I had Rogue's Schwarzbier (sp?) and I couldn't stop comparing it to Black Bavarian.

 

Well, it's only a matter of hours now before I'll be able to begin putting all of these suggestions to the test!

[fstorm1]

Well, it's only a matter of hours now before I'll be able to begin putting all of these suggestions to the test!

And we welcome you back. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

This is evening I popped the top on Goose Islands' Mild Winter, their rye beer. Absolutely fantastic, all the way around. I've had a few other ryes and they don't come close to this. Really great. The rye is there, but it's blended beautifully with the malts. Actually, now that I think about it, it comes across as less a rye and more of a malty, brown winter brew. Go get some.

[logan82]

Just had the 1888 Bock by Leinenkugel's. My wife and I thought it tasted watered down and lacked flavor. A lot like other Leinenugel beers. It looked good poured in a glass though.

 

Another link to pouring beer. I like the last line.

 

I don't really care what you do with Coors Light, but good beer deserves a proper pour. You deserve it, too! Link

 

I have started pouring my beer straight into the glass without tilting the glass. You have to pour it then let the head settle then pour in the rest. I may be getting to much head on the beer. It is good to get some though as mixing the beer with air brings out the flavor.

 

Edit: Also ran across this line when reading up on types of glasses on Beer Advocate.

 

Never chill your glassware, and decline if served a frosted glass. Why? As the beer hits the frosted glass condensation will occur and dilute your beer, while at the same time alter the serving temperature.

[EdgarDiazRocks]

enjoyed one of my favorite winters yesterday, the Elysian BiFrost.

 

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/3112552791_fafb764bb4.jpg

[datrain711]

man edgar that looks tasty. that picture is so bright it seems as if the beer is right in front of me.

 

One of my best friends is flying back into town on the 22nd, so I'm really looking forward to checking out the Fat Abbey biercafe, Sugar Maple, and the Palm Tavern, as it seems like they have tremendous beer lists

[ManOfTheBeer]

Had to check back in on this thread and happily found winter beer talk. Three fine winter brews I've had recently are Bell's White Winter (almost a spiced wheat/Belgian cross), Point's St Benedict (nice brown color, good maltiness), and New Holland's Cabin Fever (a caramelly brown ale). All three were quite enjoyable to use as a fortifying agent vs. the cold Wisconsin winter.

 

My favorite winter beer far and away is Avery's Old Jubilation. I don't see much of it around here, as it's a Colorado brewery. But the stuff is heaven in a bottle. I haven't had it in a few years, but here's my take on it back when I had it:

 

"Solid medium brown pour with yellow/brown head. Head held at about 3/4 inch until dissolving to a thin lacing on surface of beer and around glass. Smells barleywine-sweetish, notes of fruit (strawberry?) and some generic licorice. First sip impressions: bitter! strong, full mouthfeel. Toffee flavor, more berry. Wow, is this stuff good. Very rich, amazing feel on the palate. I just got some old school bubblegum, you know the rock hard sticks of bubblegum that came in Topps baseball card packs in the late 80s? That is the prevailing aftertaste right now. A nice, almost spicy bitter cocoa comes through quite soon in the pint. This is a fantastic English Strong Ale."

 

Yup, that was good.

[Beerambassador]

I had the New Glarus Alt yesterday as well as the Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale. The Alt was the best New Glarus I've had in a long while. A great winter beer, but I think the whole wood aging thing is being overdone by New Glarus.

 

The Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale was a pretty good IPA, but I'm not sure why they make an IPA for their winter seasonal.

 

I also bought the Bells Christmas Ale, which is a scotch ale. Haven't had a chance to try it yet.

[Gobias Industries]

I made the mistake of picking up a beer called Lazy Mutt Alebecause of its cheap 8 pack price. I tend to like Ales, but this was some watered down garbage. Avoid at all costs.

[Ando Calrissian]

Well, my update after my move is that the first two six-packs I bought were New Glarus's "Alt" and Lakefront's "Riverwest Stein". I really enjoyed both very much. To me, the Stein was really easy drinking, the kind of stuff you could knock back a few of without thinking about it too much. The "Alt" has a lot of things going on. Great color and smell and complex flavors.

[JumpinMacFlash]

In preparation for the storm, I went to the store in search of some beer so I would be adequately prepared. I wanted to try something new, so I settled on a 12-bottle variety pack from Dundee. I've tried the IPA and the pale bock. Both were decent, but nothing extraordinary. Solid, but unspectacular.

 

A week or so ago, I also tried New Glarus Alt after reading the recommendations of everyone else. Add another to the list of people who enjoyed its complex taste.

[ManOfTheBeer]

Beerambassador, my cousin has raved about Bell's Christmas Ale...I think you're in a for a good one.

 

Lazy Mutt isn't awful on a hot summer day at the bottom of a cooler outside MP, but I definitely don't go for it year-round.

 

New Glarus Alt, as everyone else has said, is fantastic. Complex is really the best word for it.

 

Ando, I love Riverwest Stein but for me, their Eastside Dark is my staple. Try it if you hadn't had it yet. Welcome back to the Brew City.

 

 

 

 

I have a couple questions for the winter beer lovers here...

 

1) Has anyone tried Pyramid's Snowcap? It's their winter beer, but I know nothing about it. (Thinking some of the NW brewerfan members are pretty familiar)

 

2) I purchased a sixer of Great Lakes Christmas Ale since I generally love every single drop of Great Lakes beer I've ever come across. Unfortunately, I'm bringing it to a family Christmas/impromptu beer tasting tomorrow afternoon, so I have to spend this snow day reaching for beer PAST that sixer in my fridge. Has anyone tried this one?

[TooLiveBrew]

Pyramid's Snowcap is a solid winter brew. I haven't had it in a while, but I know I like it.

 

Beeradvocate.com's users give it a B. That's probably not too far from where I'd rate it.

[NeedMoreFans]

I don't drink a ton of winter brews, but by far and away my favorite one is Capital's Winter Skal. It was probably the first winter brew I had (other than Leinie's Bock), and I can drink that stuff all night. Fantastic beer.

[fstorm1]

Yep, agree on many of the brews mentioned lately (Yay: Alt, Bell's White Winter , Lakefront Riverwest, Capital Winter Skal; Nay: Lazy Mutt, Sierra Nevada Celebration (just too much hopiness for me). My best picks for the Winter thus far are Beghoff Dark, Sam Adams Winter Lager and Old Fezziwig, Goose Island Christmas, Lakefront Holiday, and my threee favorites, Alt, Breckenridge Christmas, and Goose Island Mild Winter. Those three were very, very good, with the Mild Winter the best of the lot. Still think it tastes alot like The Great Dane's Scottish.

 

I finally had a chance to give Leinie's 1880 Bock a try. Whatta ya know, watered down averageness. Fits right in with all the rest of their "very good average beers".

 

Had an early Christmas with my nice lady friends' father. He hadn't stopped telling me how happy he was that I had turned him on to Franziskaner. 'Course, upon his arrival, I showed him the glory that is DaMan, and I swear he almost messed his pants. He just kept sipping and saying "oh, man". Later in the evening, I opend the present he had gotten for me: 3 bottles each of H.P and Franziskaner (tucked into a load of peanuts), and then proceded to apologize because they weren't anywhere near as good as DaMan. But, as I told him, good beer is good beer. A fine way to start the holiday.

[fstorm1]

Well, it's been a fine year thus far for brews. Here's hoping your Holidays are filled with hop happiness and wheat wonderfulness (I'da used malt instead of wheat, but I couldn't think of an appropriate adjective that started with m).

 

And whilest enjoying your beverage of choice, why not see if you really are a beer snob (I take no responsibility for the remainder of the site and content therein).

 

Happy Holidays.

 

Edit: And Malt merriment!

[TooLiveBrew]

Malt majesty?

[datrain711]

for those of you in the milwaukee area:

 

I went on a little bay view "pub crawl" on Saturday night. Went to 3 bars that were fantastic.

 

1. Sugar Maple-this would be the "trendiest" of the 3 bars. A real nice quiet atmosphere. Its a beautiful interior, dimly lit with a really cool setup. Over 60 beers on tap. They had New Glarus Rasperry Tart on tap which was nice for the 2 girls we were with. Fantastic selection. Bartender poured me an 12oz Goose island bourbon county stout and only charged me $7. (which if you follow beeradvocate you know is really cheap) I asked her about it after I had paid and she said she wasn't supposed to give me such a big glass http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

2. Cafe Centraal-Right next to Sugar Maple. This is supposed to be a french/belgian style cafe from what I gather. Had some awesome beers on tap, Golden Draak, Kwak, etc. I really like the belgian beer signage and stuff they have. Their food is also really good.

3. Roman's. This is more of your typical wisconsin tavern, but with a very well-rounded beer selection. It was a bit smoky in there, but you could tell that the people in there really appreciated great beer. I had a Hacker Pschoor Altbier and a french witbier.

 

I would recommend all 3 of these places depending on your mood. Happy holidays

 

by the way, that bourbon county stout is as good as advertised. Quite possibly the most complex beer i've ever had. However, you will not be able to drink more than 2. One was fine for me, as it was a beer that slapped me in the face.

[logan82]

So Thanksgiving and Christmas have come and gone. We tried 8 new beers over the holidays.

 

Fat Tire - Not a bad beer. I would definitely drink it again. Unfortunately New Belgium Brewery does not distribute in Wisconsin. Those close to the border can probably find this pretty easily in Illinois or Minnesota.

Franziskaner Hefe Weisse - Good weiss. I really liked it, but not enough to drink it over Hacker Pschorr. It is not Da Man either, then again what is.

Left Hand Milk Stout - My wife liked this. She thought it was very good. Porters and Stouts are just not my bag.

Mud Puppy Porter - See above.

Orange Blossum Cream Ale - Wasn't a horrible beer, but I would not reccomend. I could just as easily buy a case of Miller Lite and Sunkist then mix them together.

New Schlitz - Not bad, but again not a beer I will seek out.

Shock Top Belgium White - Very strong citrus taste. A little to strong. My wife's review was, "I really liked it until I realized it was made by Budweiser."

Sunshine Wheat Beer - Good beer. I would drink it again if I could get my hands on some. Like the Fat Tire it is from New Belgium Brewery and not available in Wisconsin.

[Principessa21]

So some wonderful member sent TooLiveBrew some beer. I don't know your screen name, so to whoever you are, thanks! 3 Cheers for you! (Also A+ on the packing.) Now he's on his route home today (after another long traveling day-11 hour layover), so when he gets in I'd like to have the beer ready for him. But the thing is, he's told me that some beer you should have warm.(I think he mentioned this in regards to the winter brews.) So I don't know which beers to put in the fridge: Capital Brewery Oktoberfest, New Glarus Dancing Man wheat (which I can't wait to try!) and New Glarus Staghorn Octoberfest. Help me out beer thread peeps!

[datrain711]

i like my dancing man cold.

 

the oktoberfests i like served cool.

 

any dark/heavy stuff you probably want a little cooler than room temperature

[fstorm1]

So some wonderful member sent TooLiveBrew some beer. I don't know your screen name, so to whoever you are, thanks! 3 Cheers for you! (Also A+ on the packing.) Now he's on his route home today (after another long traveling day-11 hour layover), so when he gets in I'd like to have the beer ready for him. But the thing is, he's told me that some beer you should have warm.(I think he mentioned this in regards to the winter brews.) So I don't know which beers to put in the fridge: Capital Brewery Oktoberfest, New Glarus Dancing Man wheat (which I can't wait to try!) and New Glarus Staghorn Octoberfest. Help me out beer thread peeps!

You and yours are very welcome. I'm just glad that you guys got to them...my timing on sending them out couldn't have been worse. Very glad the packaging held up. I prefer all my beers cold at the start, but, of course, find that most undergo a change as they warm. As datrain mentioned, darker beers are better warmer (hence them frequently being labeled "winter warmers"). Both DaMan and the Oktober should and will be delicious throughout, regardless of temp. The key with DaMan is to get all the sediment off the bottom of the bottle. I think your nice man knows the "Hacker Pschorr Swirl". Or you can shorten the time needed to get all the sediment and have the head (which will be very large) go down by setting the beer upside down on a flat surface for about 5-10 min.

 

Coolness you guys get to enjoy them. Little late, but Merry Christmas. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

Over the long weekend at the future in-laws, I had the opportunity (and the absolute need) to drink...alot. Hit several of my favorite places in the Chippewa Valley (The Joynt and Mogie's in Eau Claire., the Sheeley House in Chip. Falls, and, of course, my regular yearly pilgramage to Leinie's HQ), and enjoyed a number of favorite beers, but mainly spent my time with Leinie's Fireside (which was available in E.C. for $9.95 a 12 pack of bottles). Also had time to enjoy Berghoff's Dark on tap at the Joynt, and tried South Shores' Nut Brown at Mogie's, both of which I enjoyed. I'd had the Berghoff before, but the South Shore was a nice surprise.

 

I'll be heading out of town again in a few days, but I'll be taking along my new winter favorite (as I've mentioned), Goose Island's Mild Winter, which, BTW, I couldn't find at any of the 5 liqour perveyors I went to in the Chippewa Valley.