Beer of the Month Club (April 2007) - a Weissbier, a Porter and a couple of Ales
Last month’s four selections from the Beer of the Month Club were Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier, Flag Porter, American Pale Ale and Loon Golden Ale. Each month I receive four different beer styles, three bottles of each style from the Microbewed Beer of the Month Club - a tremendous 40th Birthday gift from my wife. Here’s a quick review of each beer:
A new American classic from the Bluegrass Brewing Co. Expect pine and grapefruit notes on the nose, with plenty of caramel malt tones that also carry through to the flavor profile, along with a sturdy bitterness that’s masterfully balanced by the sweeter malt elements. Brimming with refinement, this big pale ale, with its lovely hop aromatics and big malt backbone, works impeccably well with spicy Buffalo wings or pizza, or anything spicy like Mexican, Thai or Vietnamese.
According to the Woodstock Inn Brewery, this is a Canadian-style golden ale. It’s an extremely easy to drink brew, with a spritzy, creamy nose and herbal, tangy hop notes. The flavor presents notes of freshly cracked pale malt grains, a breaddy backbone, and a creamy full-bodied mouthfeel with the perfect dosing of bitter, zesty hops to balance out the malty core, leaving a sustained bitter hop character on the tongue. This is the perfect compliment to a cob salad, grilled chicken Caesar salads or sliced green apples (seriously, give the apples a try!)
Salvaging 163-year-old yeast that has been sitting at the bottom of a bottle—sitting at the bottom of the English Channel—now that’s quite a chore. Thankfully, the makers of this fine brew did their homework in order to come up with this authentic ale. Flag Porter was modeled on the brown Porter style prevalent at the turn of the nineteenth century rather than the richly roasted Victorian Porters that developed later. This would have been more typical of the Porter likely to have been aboard a ship on the waters of the English Channel in 1825. Look for a nice malt nose, with notes of roasted barley and a slight hint of fruitiness from their infamous yeast. Expect the rich malty qualities to persist in the flavor, with a subtle roastiness and light spiciness from the yeast. The finish is quite dry, appropriately bitter, and rather complex—with notes of bitter chocolate, figs, and hints of wood and leather. The feel in the mouth is velvety smooth as this complex brew rolls across the tongue. This unique Porter has impressed many folks the world over—winning the World Beer Championship Gold in 1998, among other accolades. It is excellent with red meat or oysters, and due to its inherent roasted character, this is a great drink to pair with an earthy, leathery cigar.
The same recipe enjoyed by royals for hundreds of years, this magnificent Hefe Weissbier has a hazy appearance, due to the fact that this wheat beer is unfiltered. It pours a pale yellow color and has a beautifully full head. Look for a malted wheat sweetness, mild spicy hops, and elements of earthy yeast as well as light lemon highlights in this complex and inviting nose. Upon the first sip, you should pick up hints of banana and cloves, balanced nicely with a chewy wheat character and a lingering citrus finish. The body is medium, the taste refreshing, and the character impeccable. It’s easy to comprehend how this brewery can produce such a fine beer with nearly a millennium of experience to tout, but it’s even easier to understand how this brewery has been in business for hundreds of years when you sample a beer like this distinctive Hefe Weissbier. Go traditional Bavarian and enjoy with Weisswurst (white sausage). Enjoy!
Beer Review Source: http://www.beermonthclub.com/newsletters/vol13no10.htm
Let me know if you’re interested in saving 50% off your first month of membership. The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club run a Refer-a-Friend program, but you’ll need me to submit their E-Referral form to get the discount.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a beer!If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
