Top 25 Beers

Russian River Beatification
Blended Gueze 100% Spontaneously Fermented in very old Oak. Batch #2
Wow. This is as sour and bubbly as they come. Almost no brett flavor, very dry, grapefruit, tart and hints of wood, pear, apple. This is an incredibly one dimensional ale, and I mean that in a very good way! If you like sour, dry and bubbly, this is the way to go.

Green Flash Grand Cru
Belgian Dark Strong Ale. Decadent and rich for a beer on tap, and considering it is a new beer to 2008, pretty amazing at the balance. Cloves, chocolate, smoke and charred wood flavors complement the slightly ester yeast character, with a strong dark fruit, raisin and fig character. Rich, thick, dark and warm. This is what heaven tastes like.

Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA
Really a refreshing, sessionable offering from Firestone Walker that at the same time is over the top in hop aroma and flavor, quite a feat indeed. Light bodied, full aroma of grapefruit and orange, with resinous flavors that are even stronger, lemon,orange and pine, with a lingering but pleasant bitterness. A note of toast and caramel, but the hops dominate this! Great for Speakeasy Big Daddy fans, a light bodied, low ABV and highly hopped IPA.

Deschutes Abyss
Wow. I didn't know you could make a beer this intense and delicious. A jet black imperial stout with one third of it barrel aged in french oak and bourbon barrel oak. Chocolate, roast, coffee, licorice, molasses, this is a velvety warm beer to be sipped and cherished. There is no overt bourbon barrel presence, you find more of the trace elements (vanilla, tobacco, toffee, smoke) from it in the highlights. At 11% ABV, its is amazing how good this beer is young.

Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron
Brown ale brewed to imperial strength and then aged in 10,000 gallon vessels made of Palo Santo wood from Paraguay! Supposedly the largest of such vessels since prohibition. Needless to say a very warm beer, with hints of chocolate, licorice, molasses, toffee, hazelnut and vanilla. This has big barrel written all over it. Port like, slightly sweet, slightly vinous, with a dry finish.

Achel Extra Bruin
Wow. Very full, highly carbonated and quite dry in the finish, the esters in this beer dominate the profile: figs, plums, raisins, vanilla, clove, you name it. Lots of chocolate, toffee, tobacco and even slight roast flavors. Only detracts being slightly sweet-syrupy, but this is balanced by the warmth and rather dry finish. Best trappist version of the style I've had, hands down.

Unibroue 16th Anniversary
Wonderfully complex dark strong ale. Raisins, plum and caramel dominate the flavor, with a slight woody hop accent present. Thick, but well carbonated, ale, with a richness throughout that doesn't reach creaminess. Allspice, grapes, , nutmeg, vanilla, cherries. It is hard to describe all the flavors in this beer. Who needs wine.

Jolly Pumpkin Luciernaga
Belgian Pale Ale fermented in Oak (and spiked with Brett?) Complex, well rounded, lightly sour ale. Light and spicy, with notes of coriander, clove, vanilla and some malt depth and complexity, slight toffee. A little musty, and flowery from hops. Has that indescribable "brett" flavor, often called barnyard. A definite farmhouse character to this one.

Malheur Brut Reserve
This may have been the most I paid retail for a beer in 2008 ... was it worth it? A champagne style Saison, brut, bubbly and very dry. Slight earthy,noble hops and biscuit notes in the nose. Biscuit and slight hoppy earthiness up front, then with pear, apple and slight bubblegum esters throughout the middle. The finish ends dry, bitter, and delicious.

Boulevard Saison Brett
A beer more in balance than overpowered by sourness, this Saison has a nice hop and ester spiciness, is slightly creamy, and sour with a bitter finish. Hints of pears, apples, banana, with notes of wheat, grass and a very citrus, noticeably orange, character to it. Very smooth and refreshing.

Russian River Consecration
Pale ale aged in Oak with Pluots. Sour, cherries, figs, raisins, toffee. It has a dry, vinous character, should age superbly, and the barrel character is quite apparent, slight notes of vanilla, oak, earth. Quite acidic and a lingering sour finish. This one sticks with you.

Stone 12th Anniversary
A very warm ale, with incredibly powerful coffee, roast and chocolate notes. Burnt character, incredibly bitter, with slight toffee, oatmeal, vanilla, molasses and bark-earth. This is a much dryer and bitter beer than their usual imperial stout, and has a greater hop presence and bitterness in the finish.

Schnieder Edel-Weisse
This is an organic hefeweizen from Schnieder, and possibly my favorite of their offerings. A rather dry wizen with a hoppier presence than most, and much more restrained phenolic character (clove-bannana). Smells of wheat, toast and slight peppers and bubblegum. The mouthfeel is slightly acidic, dry and tastes of grains, biscuit and grass, with slight clove. Finish is slightly citrus-lemony. Delicious.

Alaskan Smoked Porter 2008
Rich, smoky, robust porter. Nose of wood, earth, smoke, coffee and slight toast. Mouthfeel is slightly acidic, burnt on the toungue. Additional chocolate, espresso, carmel, smokeand slight pepper in the flavor. Finish is lingeringly smoky and bitter.

Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza
Golden Strong ale fermented in Oak (and spiked with Brett?) Another spicy, sour and hoppy offering from JP. This offering is quite sour, gold colored and hazy, and has esters to boot: pear, apple, slight banana. Doesn't have the quite the barnyard-farmhouse going, possibly due to other organisms besides Brett? Need to find out more.

Zoetzuur Flemish Reserve
A very sharp, acidic red with a delicious malt backbone. Smells like sour cherries, once again, but has a less musty and muddled aroma, much more tart, and the flavor is cleaner, not musty, but definitely bretty. Hints of oak, raisins, plums and sour fruit. Very dry, almost astringent.

Schwelmer "Bernstien" Vienna
A very alt-like Vienna style lager. Very malty and slightly sweet in the nose, hints of toast and toffee, and slight earthy hops. Light on the palate, biscuits, caramel, chocolate, hazelnuts, with slight esters and a dry, hoppy finish featuring spicy, earthy noble hops.

de Dolle Export Stout
Fruity, rich and slightly sour stout. Nose of chocolate, prunes, toffee, roast and caramel. The mouthfeel is quite full, slightly thick, and carbonation is medium. Additional smoke, coffee, raisin and licorice in the flavor. Ends rather smooth and slightly bitter, but mostly roasty and slightly warm. Not your traditional stout, really more of a farmhouse Belgian Black Ale.

Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA
This is a powerhouse, with amazing floral, resiny and sweet. The aromatics are perfume like in their pungence, with pine and citrus assaulting the nose. The flavor begins malty-sweet, slight caramel and toast, then switches to lemon, orange, pine and earth. The impression is very mouth filling (at 9%), sweet but not cloying, resiny, and very bitter through the finish.

Brugge Diamond Kings
Quadrupel barrel aged in french oak and spiked with Brett and pickled plums.
This beer is a powerhouse. Much more malt complexity and even some residual sweetness than most Brett ales. Figs, raisins, cherries, toffee, vanilla, plums, this beer has much more of the barrel flavor to it left than just the beasties. The sourness is gentle, just a slight tartness, mustiness, and funkiness, maybe because it is just such a big beer at 12%.

Kulmbacher Eisbock
Amazingly chocolately smooth Eisbock, apparently the original. Nose of dried fruits, roast, chocolate and slight smoke. The mouthfeel is faintly slick but thick, a slight warming but well blended for a beer of this strength. Dark chocolate, cherries, raisins, figs, molasses, cloves, banana, toffee, caramel. It is all in there. Finish is warm but rather dry.

Allagash Interlude
A dual fermented beer golden strong ale (a farmhouse ale yeast and Brett for the secondary), the beer is taken from the stainless and aged in French Merlot and Sirah barrels, a very bold move. A very tannic, plum like character is added to an otherwise light and refreshing ale. Nose is of oak, red wine, brett, apples, with additional earthy, pear, toast, grape and berries in the flavor. Mouthfeel is medium, with a very tannic and slight acidic and tart aspect. Very unique ale.

Firestone Walker Velvet Mirkin
This is an Oatmeal Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels. Deep licorice, dried fruit, smoke and chocolate flavors. This whole beer has a slight vinous quality, but is well rounded and smooth around the edges.

St. Bernardus Trippel
Hoppy, sweet and slightly fruity, a delicious Trappist Ale. All is in balance, it is rich, yet dry and lingering in the finish. The hops are prominent up front, yet it is not too bitter in the finish. This beer is a conundrum of sorts, has little complexity in any one aspect, but is an enjoyable ale.

The Bruery Saison Rue
A saison amped up to %8 with Bret and Rye, a real cornacopia of styles and ingredients.
Refreshing, bitter and slightly sour and spicy ale. Nose of spices, coriander, apples, pears, slight sour and farmhouse quality. Medium mouthfeel, large carbonation with a slight lactic quality. Additional wheat, biscut, caramel, rye, pepper and bannana in the flavor. Lengthy, slightly tart and bitter finish.