The April/May edition of Yankee Brew News is now available online. Unless you live in a cave, you know that I wrote the cover article. 
http://ybnonline.brewingnews.com/publication/?i=107658
Happy reading!
-Lost
T-minus 4 days until the LIBABeerUp. T-minus 6 days to Mexico. Beautiful 80 degree weather here in New England. A MASSIVE tax return coming my way. A short week at work. It really doesn’t get much better than this!!
After a killer workout and some delicious dinner I have just enough time for a beer review before a meeting I have to go to tonight….and no smart asses, not an AA meeting. I’m pouring the very last review beer in my fridge: Jack’s Abby Smoke and Dagger.
Based on my last experience with the style, had I realized this was a rauchbier I would have never bought it. Lucky for me, I wasn’t paying attention; this beer is NOTHING like others I’ve had of the style. In other words, it’s good!
The beer is a dark reddish color with an ample head. It doesn’t have much of an aroma. In the taste department it packs chocolatey roasted malts. It finishes with the slightest hint of smokiness. Unlike other rauchbiers, the smoke flavor is subdued and doesn’t dominate. A tasty brew and a must try!!!
In one week I will be on the beach in Mexico. Hells. Yes. I can’t wait. Just one more (short) week of work to get through. I worked from home today and this Friday I’m working a half day. Tonight I’m chilling out and watching the Bruins. Playoff hockey is so stressful. The Bruins are playing the Capitals and the match-up is very even…anyone could win.
The weather today was nearly 90 degrees…crazy for mid-April! Tonight’s review is sticking with the summery theme – Jack’s Abby Jabby Brau. This session lager is 4.5% ABV and super drinkable. It starts with a little bitter hop action, but quickly turns sweet with a lemony finish. At first I was really digging the beer. About half way through the glass I started to get bored by the aftertaste. By the time I was done, my taste buds were beat into submission and I was back to really enjoying the beer.
Well worth trying if you haven’t already.
Hey all,
I need to take a raincheck on this week’s review. I’m in Philly for a friend’s bachelor party, and I won’t be able to post a proper beer review today.
However, one highlight of today’s festivities is a private tour of the Yards Brewery. These are tasty and unique beers, and I’m looking forward to hearing from their brewmasters. I promise plenty of pictures and a full rundown this week!
If you’re still feeling like you need some beer recommendations this weekend, here’s a rundown of my previously reviewed Yards beers:
I’ve got absolutely nothing witty to say tonight. Nothing interesting going on either. Boooorrriiinnng. Let’s just talk about tonight’s beer – Berkshire Coffeehouse Porter.
This beer is SERIOUSLY coffee flavored. It’s still more beer than coffee, but not by a lot! The organic coffee beans they add during the brewing process really come through. Other than the thick (almost chunky) head, the beer looks like jet black coffee as well. You might think that so much roasted flavor would make the beer quite bitter, but that’s not the case. The brew is well balanced and in fact there is an ever-so-slight sweetness in the aftertaste.
This beer isn’t a wow-er, but it’s solid. Delicious. A must try for coffee lovers.
Right now we have 106 official RSVPs. That’s amazing, but I won’t be happy until all 200 RSVPs are filled! Tell everyone you know. Invite your friends. Tell them to invite their friends. Get your car detailed with a LIBABeerUp advertisement. Put a sandwich board on your dog and walk him around town. Whatever it takes!
Please help me make this event re-fricking-diculously awesome!!!
For weeks I’ve been teasing a secret side project I was working on. Truth of the matter is, I finished the project back in mid-February! The project, as I had alluded to a few times, involved me getting published in print for the first time. Well, the finished piece finally hit news stands, so I am letting the cat out of the bag.
In February I was asked to write the cover article for the April/May edition of Yankee Brew News and I gladly accepted. The piece is about the Worcester beer scene – the history, the emergence of the craft beer scene and details of the beer-tropolis that Worcester is becoming. In preparing for the article, I got to interview some of the most influential “beer people” in Worcester; feeling like a member of the press was a great feeling. I had an excellent time writing the piece, although I will admit I was incredibly nervous that I would screw it up! I love how the article came out and I hope you do too!
You can pick up Yankee Brew News at many local craft beer establishments. If you are in the Metrowest area, you can find copies at the following locations:
They also have an online version here. Unfortunately the April/May edition is not yet posted to the web, although I expect it to land there any day now.
-Lost
Tonight I’m finding out how difficult it is to type with a finger-splint on. Thank God it’s my left hand, and not my right. If you’ve been keeping up with me, you know that I absolutely crushed my fingers on Saturday while goofing off with the dog. I went to the doctor today and they confirmed that I broke my ring finger. I see an orthopedist later this week.
The doctor says that I should have the splint off before we go to Cancun in 2 weeks….she better be right! It’s bad enough that I no longer can double-fist beers. What a nightmare!
Tonight I’m single-fisting this Blatant IPA. Last night’s Blatant Session was great, so I’m looking forward to the IPA. Plus, it’s always nice to support the local breweries.
The Blatant IPA is 6.5% ABV – fairly standard for IPAs methinks. Color and head are also typical of the style. There’s a lot going on in the taste department. I honestly have gone back and fourth trying to decide what I’m tasting! One thing is for sure – there is citrus hop action kicking. At first I thought “grapefruit”, but I’ve changed my mind and have decided it’s much more orange-ish. At first I thought I was picking up floral hops as well, but now I’m resigned to believe it’s more piney. Right through the middle you get some malt sweetness, which is a nice touch.
Long story short, if you’re looking for:
1. A solid American IPA that…
2. Packs a bunch of “the bitter” and…
3. Has some complex flavors and…
4. Comes from a small local MA brewer then…
Blatant IPA is a good choice!
Good evening LIBA readers! How was your Easter weekend? Mine was all too short. Saturday was jam-packed with church activities, shopping, and things of the like. Today we went to my wife’s grandparent’s house for Easter. We’re winding down from the weekend this evening, watching A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas.
Tomorrow is going to suck extra hard. I’ve got meetings basically all day. On top of that, my boss hired someone who starts tomorrow. My boss is out of town, so I’ll be taking point in bringing this person up to speed. As usual, I have Monday night class as well!
Now if that wasn’t enough, on Saturday I absolutely smashed my hand while playing with the dog and I’m pretty sure my ring finger is broken on my left hand. I was running with the dog when he darted to the opposite side of a fence, resulting in my leash-hand slamming into a fence post at terrific velocity. The finger was relatively fine on Saturday, but this morning I woke up and it was purple, swollen, and throbbing.
A broken finger didn’t slow me down this weekend and it won’t stop me from doing a beer review! Tonight I’m plowing through this Blatant Session Ale. Blatant Brewery is a new Massachusetts brewery.
The session ale lives up to it’s namesake. The brew registers at 3.9%. It packs some mild hop action up front and then mellows out with caramel sweetness and some grainy flavor. For 3.9%, it packs a lot of flavor. You could drink this stuff all day and night.
If you’re from the Massachusetts area, I recommend you give the Blatant Session a go.
Today, after six weeks of lessons, I finally took the training wheels off and played my first nine holes of golf. Needless to say, I set a course record…in number of drives sliced to the right into the rough. Regardless, it was a lot of fun, and I’m totally looking forward to hitting the links again sometime soon.
Wifey and I are headed out to a party at our friends’ house tonight, but I’m doing a little pregaming with New Belgium’s Biere De Mars. This 22-ounce bottle is a part of their “Lips of Faith” series, and definitely sounds like a unique brew. It’s a special spring seasonal, advertised as a “collision” of orange, lemon, and brettanomyces (which I thought was a joke, but is a type of wild yeast).
The pour is incredible – massive fluffy three-finger foam head, and a golden cloudy color. It lives up to its billing on the aroma, with lots of indistinct citrus notes and a sweet spicy background.
Tastewise, it’s pretty much identical to the aroma. Lots of sweet but faint orange to start, a transition to a bitter and slightly metallic flavor through the middle, and it ends on a zesty lemon note. There’s not too much aftertaste, but it’s flat and bitter.
Overall, this is a tasty beer and is very drinkable, but I probably wouldn’t want more than one 22-bottle at a time. The citrus is a bit too sweet and constant for my tastes, but it’s definitely worth trying.
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