Day 44 (9/6/2011) Newcastle Winter IPA by The Caledonian Brewery Company

Disclosure: This beer was provided to me to sample and review by a public relation representing the Newcastle brands.

It looks like I've finally made it big time I kid, I kid. In all seriousness, though, I was ecstatic when a PR firm representing the Newcastle brand of beer reached out to me to sample and review both their Werewolf brown ale and a yet to be released Winter IPA. As a beer drinker I cut my teeth on Newcastle Nut Brown ale. For the longest time, before I moved onto more "challenging" beers, it was the only beer I would order. Since I've moved on, I haven't tried it once. With the line expanding into different varieties and someone offering me free beer to drink, what other reason would I need to come back to the beers that put me where I am today?

This Winter IPA pours a transparent light amber with a pretty good sized eggshell head. The smell is primarily caramel malt with a bit of English-style hops and a slight spiciness. It smells like a lighter, less "offensive" version of Great Lakes' Commodore Perry.

The taste is much the same: caramel sweetness with a faint nuttiness and the lightest hop bite. This is most definitely an English IPA; the maltiness and light, spicy hops would throw anyone for a loop who is expecting a big West Coast IPA. I would hope no one would be expecting that from a Newcastle brand, though. The taste manages to fit in the style's characteristic, but keeps them light enough that macro drinkers could probably get a pint down without puckering or spitting it out. The body is medium-light and the carbonation is just about medium.

So what is the verdict? Honestly, I expected this to be terrible and was actually a little surprise. They gave a solid try at an English IPA and though it falls a bit short by trying to hit the mass market appeal, it's not terrible by any means. I'm not the primary market for this beer. I realize that. I think the best indicator of this beer is that my father in law, a fledgling craft beer (Goose Island 312, etc) drinker enjoyed this a bit more than I did. I think that is the market they're going for. Despite this, it still had enough flavor to keep my attention until it was finished. I probably wouldn't seek this out again for myself, but I wouldn't feel terrible buying it for non-craft beer drinking friends or family. I give Newcastle Winter IPA by The Caledonian Brewery Company a C+.

Day 43 (9/5/2011): Parabola by Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

43 days into this "A Beer a Day" experiment and I've had some really good beers. I've awarded a fair number of A's and an even larger number of A-'s and B+'s, all of which were very enjoyable beers. The A's were great beers, but lacked that extra "oomph" to absolutely blow me away. Some were on the verge, but none did it until now.

I got a bottle of Firestone Walker's Parabola through a friend a couple months back and was saving it for a special occasion. While in DC last week, I found a whole shelf full of them at Connecticut Avenue Wine and Liquor Deli and picked one up to bring back home. I could have my cake and eat (or drink) it, too. I had a bottle to try whenever I wanted and still had one put away to share on a special day. And thank goodness for that.

Parabola is a big beer. You don't even need to taste or smell it to find that out. At 12.5%, it's not even eligible to be sold in Ohio even if FW decided to distribute here. It spends twelve months barrel aging, which gives it an amazing, balanced complexity.

It is a pitch black beer with a very small mocha head that is gone almost immediately after the pouring stops. There's not much lacing; only small marks where carbonation flung small bubbles onto the side of the glass. The barrel aging is immediately evident on the nose, lending bourbon and vanilla notes. You also get a lot of bittersweet chocolate and figs/raisins. Alot of times a barrel aged beer can be overwhelmed by what was in the barrel before the beer, but in this case the bourbon melds perfectly with the other aspects of the smell. Amazingly, there is very little booziness to the scent. Strangely enough, it almost smells meaty. I'm not sure how to describe it in a way that's not disgusting, but it wasn't at all.

The taste is sweet, creamy milk chocolate balanced against a significant, but not overdone roastiness. The bourbon and oak is here again, adding vanilla and caramel, but like the nose it is masterfully blended with the other tastes. There is a bit of hops on the finish, but nothing that distracts from the pure awesomeness of the rest of the flavors. This is an absolutely terrific tasting beer.

The mouthfeel is thick and almost syrupy, which is to be expected with this large of a beer. It is most certainly a sipper and you would probably be wiser than I to split a bottle with a good friend. The carbonation is low, but present and suits it perfectly.

This is easily the best stout I have ever had the pleasure to drink before and I'm not certain that it's not the best beer overall that I've tried. This is a big, bold beer, but everything manages to remain balanced in it. This is definitely a beer to savor and think about while you're drinking. There is so much going on with it that you'll want to drink it slowly and let it warm up a bit to get a full appreciation of its smell and flavor. I can not even begin to explain how happy I am to have another bottle of this stashed away. I'll be in DC again next week and just might have to go grab another if they're still stocked. It's just that good. I give Parabola by Firestone Walker Brewing Co. an A+ and my highest recommendations.

Style: Russian imperial stout
ABV: 12.5%
IBU: 82
Beer Advocate: A
Ratebeer: 100/98

Purchased at Connecticut Avenue Wine and Liquor Deli (Washington, DC) for $16.99 a bomber.

Day 42 (9/4/2011): Nemesis (2010) by Founders Brewing Company

The 2010 Nemesis is a black barleywine and the looks of it reflected this clearly. It pours a brown about one tint away from black with a creamy, bubbly off-white head. The smell is a complex sweetness coupled with some floral hops, which can be expected from a beer with 100 IBUs. You also get some spiciness from the alcohol, along with vanilla and some dark fruit.

The taste starts roasty which leads into a complex dark fruit taste with molasses, brown sugar, and chocolate. There is a pretty good hop bitterness on the finish. Perhaps a bit much for my tastes in a barleywine. It is definitely a sipper, not necessarily because of the alcohol taste, but because of the complex taste and the slightly syrupy body (Not to mention the 12%).

This is a good barleywine that just happens to be a bit too hoppy for my likings. I would like to sit on some of these bottles for a few years, though, to see if the hops take a back seat a bit. I recommend this to pretty much everyone if you can still find it anywhere. I give Nemesis (2010) by Founders Brewing Company an A-.

Style: American barleywine
ABV: 12%
IBU: 100
Beer Advocate: A-/A-
Ratebeer: 99/96

Day 41 (9/3/2011): Zoetzuur Flemish Ale by De Proef Brouwerij

 (Sorry folks; no picture for this one. I can't seem to find my camera at the moment and it contains all of the pictures for this review.)


As you may be able to tell from the blog, I've been on a sour kick ever since I was sent a set of Russian River wild ales. I had never heard of this one, but it was a Flanders red and I figured it would be tart enough to hit the spot.

It pours a hazy red-brown with a good sized off-white head. It has nice lacing as splotches of the head stick to the side of the glass. There is a lot going on with the smell. There is a ton of funk from the Brett, a great deal of cherries, some sweetness and spices, and an odd mustiness. It doesn't smell particularly sour at all. This is probably the "funkiest" beer I've ever smelled before. Almost overwhelming.

The taste is a little tart, but not sour at all. The tartness seems like it's from the cherries and not a wild yeast strain. The spiciness in the nose shows up here as well. There is also a strange aftertaste that I can't put my finger on, possibly Brett-related. I can't say this one tasted like I expected; not particularly sour and barely tart. It's not really my thing at all. It has a medium body with medium-low carbonation.

I am definitely disappointed in the lack of sourness. It is super funky and musty, which doesn't go well with the sweetness, in my opinion. I wish I could put my finger on the aftertaste; I definitely did not care for it, but I have no idea what it was.This one wasn't terrible, but was weird. I probably won't return to it in the future. I give Zoetzuur Flemish Ale by De Proef Brouwerij a B-.

Style: Flanders red ale
ABV: 7%
IBU: ?
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 98/82

Picked up at Market Wines at Findlay Market for $10 or so for a 750ml bottle.

Day 40 (9/2/2011): Galactic Double Daisy Cutter by Half Acre Beer Company

Galactic Double Daisy Cutter was a special release by the Chicago-based Half Acre Beer Company which spun off their normal Double Daisy Cutter. The difference was that this beer utilizes the Galactic hop variety, a hop grown in Australia which just happens to be the latest craze in IPAs.

It poured a very hazy orange with at most one finger of white head formed of tiny little bubbles. It dissipates onto a thin film on the surface of the beer. This has to be one of, if not the, best smelling IPAs I've ever had the pleasure of drinking. There are very dank, resiny hops, more on the fruity side of the spectrum than floral. You also get a good deal of citrus (orange and grapefruit) with a slight caramel sweetness in the background.

The taste starts with citrus hops, leading into tropical fruit with a touch of honey sweetness. It finishes slightly bitter. The taste is great, but it doesn't quite live up to the smell. The carbonation is creamy and slightly under medium with a medium-heavy body. Somehow despite all of the dank hops, this manages to finish a little dry. Pretty unexpected.

This is a great smelling, great tasting DIPA. It's not the best Ive ever had before, but I am very glad I got the chance to try it. I will most certainly be looking for any other varieties of Double Daisy Cutter that Half Acre decides to put out. I give Galactic Double Daisy Cutter by Half Acre Beer Company an A-.


Style: Double/imperial IPA
ABV: 8%
IBU: ?
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 97/79

A buddy picked me up a bottle at the brewery release for $11. If you didn't get a bottle then, you're probably not going to be able to get one.

Day 39 (9/1/2011): Arnold's Ziffel by Listermann (Super secret special tasting!)

A little detour today. Check out my post over on CincyVoices for what beer I had the pleasure of drinking last night. I was definitely honored to have the opportunity to take part in such a cool event! See you back here tonight or tomorrow with our regularly scheduled content.

Day 38 (8/31/2011): The Oracle by Bell's Brewery

I was amazed to find some singles of these about a week after they were bottles up at Bell's earlier in August. Not only does it have an extremely limited distribution, but I found them for $2.99 a bottle! I only picked up a couple of them - one for myself and one for a trading partner - leaving the rest for whoever was lucky to find them. It was very, very difficult not to buy all of them that were there.

This is the much less talked about double IPA brother (or sister) to Hopslam. While everyone clamors for the latter, many don't even know the former exists. It seems far more of a limited release, so that might have something to do with it. What I found was that The Oracle is just as impressive (if nor more so, depending on your tastes) as Hopsmal, though it is an entirely different offering of the same style.

The Oracle pours a beautiful clear orange with a short, maybe one finger tall effervescent white head. It recedes quickly, leaving a slight bubbly layer on top of the body. The smell is hops, hops, hops. I get a ton of pine with a slight whiff of citrus-grapefruit. More pine - leff citrus and fruit than Hopslam. There is some sweetness, but this doesn't smell like a balanced beer, which here smells wonderful.

In a pleasant surprise, this beer ends up tasting magically balanced, despite the smell. There is a lot of grapefruit hoppiness up front, balanced with a strong malt backbone which never lets the hops get out of control. The only bitterness in this beer is in a pine finish. Usually I can't stand bitter finishes, but the sweetness stays on your tongue through it, tempering the bite a bit. Even though this is a 10% beer, there is hardyly any booze in the taste or on the tongue/throat They did a great job hiding the high ABV. If anything, it adds a nice spiciness to the flavor, reminiscent of a rye addition. This is certainly a big beer, but it drinks well with medium carbonation and body.

Boy, do I wish this was more readily available. I think I might actually like it more than Hopslam, though admittedly it's been since early this year since I've had a bottle of it. I would love it if they were released more closely together so I could do a side by side comparison without one of them being significantly older than the other. Which you will like is largely dependent on your tastes: this is definitely a more of a West Coast IPA with a lot of pine and resiny hops. Hopslam is more malt forward, with grapefruit and sweetness dominating the taste. You owe it to yourself to try both, though, if at all posible. I give The Oracle by Bell's Brewery an A.

(P.S. Keystone in Covington tapped a keg of this last night. If you're lucky and it hasn't kicked yet, you can go grab yourself a pint of it)

Style: American double/imperial IPA
ABV: 10%
IBU: ?
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 100/99

Picked up from the Root Cellar in Kenwood for $2.99 a bargain. It is obviously distributed in Cincinnati, but if you're trying to find a bottle now, you're probably looking too late.