Founders Imperial Stout

When someone offers me a beer, if they happen to say "Founders" I say, "Hell yes!" So when I saw Founders Imperial Stout, I had no choice but to pick up a pack. Founders, out of Grand rapids, MI, has never brewed anything sub par, as far as I'm concerned, and is probably in my top five favorite breweries.

An Imperial stout is my favorite style of stout. Always bold, rich, and smooth, and almost always a high alcohol content, which makes it a perfect beer for just one. Founders Imperial is brewed with ten different malted barlys, which should give a multitude of complexity.

So on to this particular beer, when you first pour it into a glass it runs thick and dark like molasses, leaving a rich caramel head. Now I have been fooled before, but I always respect a beer I can hold up to a light and its still black, and this definitely fits that description. It's aroma is almost that of a caramel machiatto, which will mature as it warms. Coming in with a 10.5% alcohol, this beer is making my taste buds grow impatient. As usual I like to take a sip of my beer right from the fridge even though with an imperial I should wait until almost 50 degrees.

Cool it has a very espresso like taste and a smoky aftertaste, leaving an almost gritty texture in your mouth, but very smooth and thick. As it warms you begin to taste the different barlys, as well as getting a slightly more smokey flavor. As you savor each sip if has a different flavor and texture. From chocolate to caramel and coffee, each sip different, but amazing. This beer is definitely to heavy to go with a meal, however I do recommend pairing this with a light savory snack, almost as a moment off reflection on each sip as well as a mild palate cleanser, the savory aspect will give way to the mills sweetness of the beer. This is a must try, I highly recommend going out and buying a pack immediately.

-Chas

Schell's firebrick

After a long dull day at work I decided I need to go get a beer.  So my friend David and I head across the street to Tavern on France. After looking at the beer menu I decide to go with a firebrick by Schells, not really knowing what it is. But I chose it for two reasons, it's by August Schell's brewery, a local brewery, which I'm sure many of us have a mild weakness for something done locally, and it was the closest thing to a micro brew they had.

Turns out to be a red ale, with a rather auburn color. Very little aroma, nice mellow flavor. A good beer to have a few with some food. However now that it begins to warm up, more flavor starts to come out. More of the hoppiness, a bit of a nutty flavor, and maybe a hint of orange. If I were at the bar and wanted to have a few, not just one, this may be one of my new go to choices. Definitely recommend to try if you come across it, not something to go out of your way for however.

-Chas

Westmalle trappist tripel

As I have been through my own discovery of all the beer out there I, as you have our will, have gone through phases of what I can't get enough of. From hefeweisen to IPA to stouts and porters, but when I first had a true trappist that was the end of my search.

A true trappist has remarkable flavors and each unique to its monastery. There are only eight breweries in the world that can brew authentic trappist beer, and to be authentic it can only be touched by the trappist monks of the monastery.

All of that being said tonight I am trying one I never have before, by westmalle, their ale tripel. At 9.5% alcohol, it has a suggested serving temp of 45-50°F With an amazing, rich, orange-amber color, and highly citrus with a little bit of spice in the aroma, I decide its time to dig in.

As with most beer I like to take my first sip cool from the fridge and let it warm up, I find that you get different flavors and more appreciation for those subtle notes as it warms. The main flavor I get when it's cold is a tangerine like citrus with an earthy bite and after taste. As it warms the citrus becomes more subtle and the spicy and earthy flavors really start to come out. The thing I love about trappists is that as it flows across your tongue and hits the different taste buds it has different flavors, and has complexity beyond my understanding,  And I love that I can't quite ever put my finger on what every flavor is. And the after taste is amazing.

This is a beer I would definitely recommend to others, but not as something to be paired with and meal or dessert. This, along with most trappist style ales, is a beer to be enjoyed all on its own.

-Chas

Gonzo Imperial Porter - Flying Dog Brewery

Review number one time for me. What better way to christen my marginal writing skills than to review a beer which is an homage to a literary powerhouse, Hunter S. Thomspon. I first had this beer in about 2005-2006, and for some odd reason my local store stopped carrying it for about 4 years so it was quite delightful to see it again.


Appearance: Very dark, this time I pored a smidgen in a snifter and sadly poured slowly enough to not create much of a head, though it generally gets a thick 2 finger or so head. Very nice and lasting lacing.

Aroma: Hops, malt, a bit of a sweet fruit, a bit of coffee mixed with chocolate.

Taste: I am getting a strong malt with a touch of fruit sweetness which immediately changes to a hops bite and then mellows to a dark chocolate coffee flavor.

Mouth feel: Very rich, thick and creamy like a good stout, a bit of an alcohol feel but not at the forefront, very easy to drink.

Overall: A top notch porter with a bit of hops and the complexity of upper tier stouts, likely my favorite porter. It is a very complex, challenging, yet drinkable beer. I think it is seasonal and I would suggest to grab a six pack before it is gone for the year. This is one of my ten or so seasonal beers that I look forward to every year.

Stephen