Baltika #9 Extra

Smells coppery; lagery, pretty light on the nose. Tastes sweet, with a fair bit of thickness. Not too crisp of a finish, and you can taste the alcohol a bit.

Honestly, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but this is a little more like malt liquor than I'm usually interested in. I wouldn't get it again, and I can't think of anyone I'd recommend it to.

Moylan's Kilt Lifter Scotch-Style Ale

Smells sweet and grainy. Not syrup sweet, though. Taste is a little big, but seems simple at first. Develops some sweetness, a hint of fruit, and maybe smoke?

Not quite as thick and assertive as I expect, so maybe not style accurate, but pretty good.

Sierra Nevada Extra Special Bitters

While visiting al3x this weekend in San Francisco he and I ended up doing one of the things we do best, helping a local beer seller deal with an overcrowded stock by drinking a few bottles of them and relieving them of their blight. Altruism at it's finest, though in spite of our good intentions they seem insistent we pay them as we provide this assistance. Must be a West Coast thing.

Anyway in the course of our mid consumption musings we both voiced our shared love of ESBs. They tend to appeal to my enjoyment of hops laden IPAs and Imperial Stouts, but in a much milder, easier to drink way. In that way I ended up finding myself wanting a late afternoon beverage and passed over the always enjoyable Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA that Mayorga in Columbia Heights has on tap for Sierra Nevada's ESB. 

Easy to drink with a nice mild hoppy flavor yet no major standout traits, it's really a very appealing, middle of the road ESB, as good for being enjoyed on it's own as I imagine it would be as a session beer. While served a bit over chilled (it is a British style beer after all) it's pleasingly crisp taste. A small hit of citrus rounds out this crisp amber brew. Overall a great beer, definitely worth a repeat.

Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron

A rarity: a Dogfish beer that I saw on the shelf without having heard about it beforehand. Clearly I am slipping.

Nose: some wood, subdued fruit (almost tropical, but not quite). Tastes like an amped up brown - slightly sweet malt backbone, roasted notes, wood (not oak). Well carbonated, which balances out the thickness. Pleasantly sweet aftertaste.

This might age interestingly - it's not bad now. Didn't blow me away, though, so I doubt I'll bother aging it (as the "cellar" is already quite full). Not a Dogfish I'm compelled to immediately get more of, but there's two more bottles that could change my mind.

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen, and Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier

In case readers haven't noticed, I've been going back through my notes and posting some older ones. In going through them, I saw notes for the Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen, which I'd tried after getting intensely curious about. Next thing I know, I'm out at Rustico, and they've got the Schlenkerla Fastenbier on tap, so I figured it was a sign.

First up, the marzen:
Smells smoky, almost meaty - like this smoked mozzerella I had the other night. Slightly sweet, though. Taste starts and ends smoky. Slight malty sweetness in the middle - clearly a fine beer underneath the smoking. This would be great with the right kind of food. By the end of the bottle, the pork/bacon tones of the smoke get to be a bit much, and being a pretty thick beer, it's a little hard to finish.

So, that experience, while sounding pretty positive in my notes, was not entirely - the bacon flavors were pretty intense, and I wasn't left with an overwhelming desire to have another rauchbier anytime soon. But I ordered the fastenbier anyway, and when the bartender said it was less intense, I was greatly encouraged.

Smells coppery, only a hint of smoke. Definitely smoke in the flavor, but not super porky. Lagery, crisp and clean otherwise. More enjoyable than the marzen, as the balance is a lot more even. Easy to drink the whole pour, and I could imagine having more than one - definitely the better beer for a cookout.

Brauerei Heller-Trum makes three other beers, one of which isn't smoked. The other two are a pretty widely available urbock, and a weizen I don't recall having seen anywhere before. The urbock I remain a little dubious of, as I'd expect the thickness would soak up a lot more smoke, but I'm now very curious as to how the smoke interacts with the weizen. Definitely one to keep an eye out for.

Bell's Batch 8000

This was really an imperial wit, which was very intriguing to me - you don't see that every day.

Smells tart and wit like. Hint of alcohol under orange-citrus. Taste is simply imperial wit - sweet and bold, fruity yeastiness, dry finish - a lot of what you expect from a wit, but with the volume turned up, and a bit thicker. You can feel the gravity: this is a summer beer, but for the end of the evening.

Unibroue Blanche de Chambly

Big yeasty nose. Highly carbonated, lemony tart, crisp and refreshing. A little pepper in the finish. Nothing mind blowing, but faithful to style and made with quality. A not-infrequent purchase for me.

Oskar Blues Old Chub - Scottish Style Ale

Smells sweet, like chocolate cake. Big syrupy mouthfeel; reasonable carbonation, though. Sweet caramel, touches of chocolate, slight fruit in the finish. Heavy, but alcohol is well hidden, and it's still quite drinkable (though as it warms, the thickness can get a little cloying).

I've repurchased this a number of times, and have found that while I enjoy it, not every beer geek I meet does, and it goes over terribly with non-geeks, probably due to the thickness. Recommended, but don't bring it to a party.

Weihenstephaner Vitus

Just after I'm talking about how I rarely see weizenbocks, I'm in my favorite beer store and see this one, from a brand I have faith in, usually.

Smell is wheat-beery, without yeast character, sort of like an American hefeweizen. Slightly sweet, wheat beer flavor. A little thick, chewy. Tart finish.

Less sweet and dessert-like than I expected - a lot like a heavier American wheat. Good though, but I wouldn't go out of my way to get it again - I like my weizenbocks to be more syrupy, basically, and with more yeastiness.

Victory Baltic Thunder

Big nose of fruit, but slightly sour. There's an odd grain note I can't quite place - that note stays in the back of the taste, with a little fruit and cocoa. Finishes a little metallic, sort of sour.

Kind of weird; not quite what I'd expected. Good? Not sure I'd go out of my way to get it again, but if it were on tap...

As it warms, a sweeter malt shines through. Still some odd flavors, but better at cellar temperature.

And on later reflection, my bad impressions have something to do with my expectations: I'd forgotten I was drinking a lager. That explains the finish, and the "odd flavors". Not wholeheartedly recommended, but pretty decent for what it is.