Samuel Smith, The Old Brewery at Tadcaster - 2011-vintage "Winter Welcome" ale

Today's beer is leftover from 2011 - I bought it way back then and never got around to trying it. It's Sam Smith's Winter Welcome ale, which is a 6% ABV ale released in the wintertime by English brewery Samuel Smith.

The Samuel Smith Old Brewery, better known as "Sam Smith," is an old English brewery in Tadcaster, Yorkshire, UK. This brewery has a rather storied history and is very popular in England, with over 200 Sam Smith-branded pubs dotting the country. They've also been using the same strain of yeast since the eighteenth century! Interestingly enough, the brewery uses big slate vats - called "stone Yorkshire squares" - to ferment the beer:

So  I've had a couple of Sam Smith ales, specifically their Taddy Porter and the Nut Brown ale. All have been pretty good, bu I've never had the Winter Warmer, so I'm not even sure what it's like normally! Let's take a look.

It poured nicely, and had a golden copper color. Some good white foam is produced.

The beer threw aroma of sugar, apples, and fresh juice, which is kinda neat and totally unexpected. It's supposed to be an ale, so I was imaging something a little different. The taste as well is a surprise! It has a sour yeasty flavors, not unlike a hard apple cider. It was sugary, carbonated, and had a pleasant crisp finish, followed by a thin aftertaste with some eventual choppy notes a few minutes down the line.

This was another interesting experiment. Since I don't know what it used to taste like, I can't compare, but the cellaring probably didn't do it any favors. I seem to be having bad luck with cellaring lately. But, it was drinkable with interesting flavors and was closer to cider than a traditional ale. It was a neat experiment for sure!

Pabst Brewing Co. - "Rainier Beer" lager

Today's review is of a Seattle cult favorite, Rainier Beer. Known as "Vitamin R" to some Seattleites, Rainier is a local lager made with Yakima Valley hops. I've had it both in DC (thanks to the Marshall Aid shipment from my brother) and also in Seattle itself, when I've been there to visit. I also brought it to my friends Michael and Joe on the 4th of July and they loved having a taste of home.

You may notice by the title that Pabst makes it. That's because Pabst Brewing Co. acquired the rights to Rainier. Having had Pabst Blue Ribbon - "PBR" - it pains me to append such a label to Rainier, but, that's life.

Rainier has a long and storied history. First marketed in 1878, before Washington was a state, Rainier has been in the public consciousness for quite some time.  Take these advertisements from 1898 and 1907. respectively:

But despite various fits and starts, name changes, ownership changes, and that nasty Prohibition business, Rainier persevered until 1999, when it was totally acquired first by Stroh's and then, finally, by Pabst, which shuttered the brewery. The beer is now brewed under contract in California.

Unlike many of the beers I try, Rainier Beer also comes in several sizes - a regular 12 oz can, a Winter Jubilee half quart can, and my favorite, the One Pounder.That's my iPhone for scale.

So let's talk beer. Rainier is actually what's called an "adjunct lager," which means that the mash is supplemented by "adjuncts," or various kinds of unmalted grains like rice, corn, rye or barley. 

Rainier pours super fast, with a straw-colored eye and a very foamy head. Lots of white bubbles in there! It's not a high-gravity craft beer, that's for sure.

The taste is very wheaty, and very thin, with an oddly-refreshing bright malt taste. There's not a heck of a lot more to say - it's a very unassuming, light, straighforward lager that satisfies my thirst. This isn't not something I'd drink by my usual standards, but... there's something about it. All conventional wisdom says this is a basic, no-frills lager that doesn't deliver a hell of a lot of taste.  The thing is, the taste isn't bad. The (fortunately limited) times I've had Budweiser and Coors, I've been really repulsed by the taste. I felt it was sour and stale. However, Rainier doesn't have any of those nasty elements I don't like.  It's not sour, not sweet, and does not have crappy elements that make other crappy beers crappy. But most of all it doesn't have that stale malt taste that comes with a lot of cheap, thin beers. I find this beer to be refreshing, delicious, and very light.

Essentially, Rainier is one of those cult-favorite, light session ales that you can drink all day and not feel the effects. It's cheap, widely available in Seattle, and is something I would drink. It's not fancy, not a craft beer, but it gets the job done.

Wine Flash: 2010 Rutherford Vintners Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon (California)

Today's post is just a quick Wine Flash covering California-based Rutherford Vintners' 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley.

Poured nice and red, with some aroma of fruit in the glass. As you can see below, the wine is a solid red when candled.


Good usual cabernet tastes - thin on taste and low on oak and acid. Some ripe fruit flavors, which was nice, but such tastes die away quickly. Definitely not my favorite vintage - not a huge Cab fan to begin with - so I'm disappointed that this bottle didn't knock it out of the park. It wasn't cheap, and came to me on a recommendation, so I'm doubly disappointed. Still, though, you can't always judge a vintage by one bottle - I'd try it again, to see if perhaps I got a bad year or something.

Romeo y Julieta - 1875 Riserva Real (Dominican Republic)

Today's cigar is from cigar manufacturer Romeo y Julieta, one of the most recognizable and famous cigar brands in the world. Produced for many years in Cuba, Romeo y Julieta's tabacleria moved and set up shop in the Dominican Republic in 1954. But Habanos S.A., the state-owned tobacco company in Cuba, kept manufacturing Romeo y Julietas. Like Cohiba, to this day there are two brands in existence - the Cuban one and the Dominican one. Today's smoke is the Dominican one. 

This particular cigar, first introduced in 1875, is a Dominican blend with Nicaraguan longfillers inside, topped with an Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut Shade wrapper. It was given to me as a thank-you gift from Congressman Joe Garcia (D-FL).

It smoked up pretty nice; it was a bit dry since I've only had it for a week or so, but in despite of that fact it lit nicely and maintained an even burn throughout the length. Unfortunately the draw was a bit hard and could have been Drawpoker'd if I had one. I liked the woody (but medium-bodied) smoke that came with it. It wasn't as creamy as I usually prefer my medium smokes to be, but I still enjoyed the flavor and construction and I'd be interested in buying a few more to have on hand. So thanks again, Congressman!

Stone Brewing Co. - "Lijkcy Basartd" American strong ale

Check out what I found at Whole Foods! It's a dry-hopped, special-release blend of Stone's popular Arrogant Bastard, Double Bastard and Oak Arrogant Bastard beers, weighing in at 8.5% ABV.

The whole label is riddled with intentional typos - the letters are transposed using the phenomenon of "transposed letter effects in prefixed words" - essentially, the human mind sees familiar words as a whole, and so even though some of the letters are jumbled, you can still read the words easily.

This beer is meant to be fresh - it has a use-by date on the bottle of January 1st, 2015. Reminds me of that other Stone brew, the Drink by 7/4/14, that I had in July. Some beers, as noted previously, are made with certain ingredients that are best enjoyed fresh. This is one of them, so let's get drinkin'!

Pours nicely, holds a deep caramel color that lights up nicely when candled. The beer has no head whatsoever, and throws a bright and tasty hop aroma.

There's a little bit of lacing on the glass after the pour. It has a strong, slightly-sour hop flavors with a nice strong malt and alcohol flavors. The dry bitterness from hops is subtle but definitely appreciable, and the finish is of muted caramel which is rather nice.

It's hard to critique a beer that's a combination of other beers that I haven't tried all along - I'm sure this beer has some special significance for those who are ardent fans of the series. I think this is my first experience with the Bastard series in recent memory - I had the Oak-Aged Arrogant Bastard years ago and don't recall really caring for it that much. But I'm definitely interested in seeking it out again, as well as other entries in this line (Arrogant Bastard, Double Bastard, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, etc.) I also had this on draft at Plan B burger bar on Pennsylvania Avenue (Plan B being also originally from my hometown in Connecticut) and it tastes great on draft, as well. I think they've probably finished their run of this beer so if you see it, grab it! It's got a short shelf-life for sure and having this has definitely re-energized my interest in this line of beer.

Drew Estate: MUWAT "Kentucky Fire Cured" cigar (Nicaragua)

Here's what I've been smoking lately - a unique blend of fire-cured Virginia, Kentucky, and Brazilian mata fina tobaccos. It's a 5.5" x 34 ring gauge cigar, in the "Kyoto" format, released by Drew Estate.

By the way - "MUWAT" stands for "My Uzi Weighs a Ton" and is a cigar line that Jonathan Drew, patriarch of the Drew Estate brand, invented in collaboration with the Joya de Nicaragua cigar manufactory.

There's a unique aspect to this cigar that I want to discuss. Unlike today's cigar, most tobacco is air-cured, which means that it's hung in barns to dry for months at a time. Various processes go into the preparation of that tobacco, and there is some room for experimentation. For this tobacco, the Drew Estate tabacleristas actually fired the tobacco over flames. This, of course, will change the texture and the consistency of the smoke. After all - the chemical changes that go on in tobacco as it dries imparts flavor. Altering that process, as Drew Estate has done, will naturally change what comes out in the end.

The cigar lit up nicely, and took a few seconds to really get going. And after a few puffs, it wasn't much to write home about. Then it hit me! There's strong flavors of hickory and mesquite in there that I really enjoy. Once it gets going, it produces a lot of woody, light smoke that's really fantastic. The fire-cured tobacco really adds that extra edge of tastiness here. The cigar burnt well, a little unevenly, and petered out about half-pinky length.

Another thing I like about it is the size - it's just the right width and length for a solid 30-minute smoke, Sure, I'd be interested in trying a larger format, but these particular dimensions are great for a shorter smoke. I'm definitely going to try more in the future!

Evil Twin Brewing - "Even More Jesus" imperial stout

Spending the Thanksgiving holiday back in Connecticut with my folks has been great, but after several straight days of shoveling slushy, rainy snow, it was time to depart from my frequent fare of Pumking and Merrymaker in favor of something strong and dark.

Enter the beer - "Even More Jesus." It's a rather-strong 12% ABV imperial stout made by Danish brewing company Evil Twin.

Evil Twin Brewing Company is what's known as a "gypsy brewing company" - they have no physical space of their own, but instead are itinerant brewers who go from brewery to brewery and create one-off beers and special releases. In fact, the owner of Evil Twin, Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergso, is the brother of Mikkel Jarnit-Bjergso, the owner of Mikkeler, another "gypsy brewing company" (and a beer of theirs, the "Breakfast" oatmeal stout, I reviewed in June.)

Let's get to the beer. The pour is jet-black with a dark brown, foamy head. Light can't even penetrate the glass when I hold it up to the lamp, so I didn't even take a photo of that.

Kinda looks like motor oil! It has the usual aromatic notes of cocoa, which is a little disappointing, since I was hoping for a departure from the usual. But, no bother, since I was actually surprised by the taste. It was much creamier than I expected, and much darker. Almost brown-sugar sweet. It's super-rich and very strong, and has an oily finish of dark plums and fudge followed by an aftertaste that reminds me of coffee grounds.

I like it, because it breaks the mold somewhat in terms of taste. It loses the typical chocolate flavors (in taste if not in aroma) and masks the high alcohol content well with the very sweet flavors. It's smooth, which is another point in its category since some of the usual chocolate / coffee stouts have that burnt / espresso tastes to them. It's always fun to explore small, one-off creations such as this, and I'm looking forward to seeing what else Evil Twin has to offer.

Beer Flash: Oakshire Brewing Co.'s "Overcast" espresso stout

Just a quick beer flash before I fly out to Connecticut for the holidays. It's a 5.8% ABV espresso stout by Eugene, OR-based Oakshire Brewing Co.

Sort of usual for an espresso stout - rich, smooth, low-key, and not very hoppy. Good smoky cocoa flavors in there. Another plus is that it's in can format, so you can have just one if you like (unlike a bomber-format, which makes it hard to have just one serving.) Anyways, it's a rather delicious, mellow beer that really hits the spot.

Peak Brewing Co. - "King Crimson" imperial red ale, 2013 vintage

Today's beer is Peak Organic's imperial red ale, the King Crimson. I've had this beer a number of times, and reviewed it fresh back in April of 2013. It's very enjoyable - and surprisingly cheap!

Today's beer was purchased almost two years ago, as you can see.

It's been in my cellar since then, as an aging experiment. But, since time marches on and I have a lot of beer to try, I figured it's time to see once and for all how the King Crimson cellars. I have high hopes. Cracked the bottle open to a quiet gurgle. One lone bubble rose out of the neck of the bottle. The oxygen-fixing cap was a dark brown - not a good sign. I poured it out anyways...

...and the beer maintained its usual deep red color. Held up to the light, it throws a (very pretty) cloudy red color. A gorgeous color for beer.

No sediment in the bottom of the glass. The head died down slowly and settled to some token bubbles rimming the beer. There's no lacing on the glass. All of the things are in direct opposition to what I experienced last April when I reviewed it fresh.

"I've got a bad feeling about this..."

But - no sense in holding off. Time to dive in.

The flavor at first is very faint, and a little off. I'm also getting a slight sour note, which is something I don't want to get. I wasn't detecting much of anything in there. A glass or two in, I'm getting the flavors a little more. Some fruit and some pine, with malt. Perhaps this is due to the beer warming up.

And while the flavor did open up a little bit, it didn't have that real fresh strength I was hoping for. Like my aged Pumking, the flavors are muted and duller than usual and that really takes a lot out of the beer. Some beers are made to be enjoyed immediately, for example, the Enjoy by 7/4/14 ale.  And some are meant to be cellared for a long time (like the Dogfish Head 120 minute IPA. ) Usually, if they're made super fresh and without any natural preservatives, it says so right on the bottle. And while I don't think King Crimson is one of such beers, it still doesn't taste quite right. Two years is a long time to stick around in a cellar for any beer, and so this beer was more of an experiment than a true effort at aging.

I've got one in the fridge now, a 2014, and will drink it soon. It's a good beer, but this just goes to show that not all beers age well. Even with a high alcohol content, it still doesn't appreciate in flavor. At least I tried!

Beer Flash: Deschutes Brewery's "Black Butte" porter

Today's beer is one Dan has been urging me to try for some time now. I'd never come across it until recently, when D'Vines started selling it on draft for growler fill. I had them fill up Rex the Growler so I could try it out.

It's a 5.2% ABV American-style porter which is very smooth and milky. As you can see, it's pretty much black (as the name might suggest) and has a very mellow flavor all the way through. It almost could use a little more flavor, but that's a minor complaint.

The lowdown is that this beer is tasty, smooth, and delicious with a nice aroma of chocolate and nuts. I can compare it to Fremont's "Bonfire" one perhaps one of Southern Tier's Blackwater series of beers. It's definitely something to try if you see it; it's mellow enough that you can drink it as a session ale.

DC Brau - "On The Wings of Armageddon" American double imperial IPA

Today's beer is a powerful American double imperial IPA from local brewer DC Brau. It's their "On The Wings of Armageddon," a badass name if I ever heard one.

It clocks in at a respectable 9.2% ABV. Out in the world, it's only sold on draft - which is how I'm enjoying for the purposes of this review - but it's available on a very limited basis in canned form at the DC Brau brewery on the Maryland border in far Northeast DC. That canning run is infrequent and often sells out easily, but luckily, some acquaintances of mine we able to score me a 6-pack. Otherwise, it's available occasionally at D'Vines in Columbia Heights for growler fill. 

Just pouring it out into my glass yields crazy fruit and hops aromas even from a couple of feet away. There's a thick, white, foamy head that is persistent, with nice lacing in the glass. The color of the beer is a pleasing amber, and turns a cloudy orange when candled.

I let it sit for a few moments then dove right in.Whoa!

It's got waves of delicious tastes riding on a perfect current of hoppiness. There's lots of deep, mellow hop flavors, some citrus, and a slight edge of citrus bitterness that gives it a nice little nip. Dry bread tastes throughout. The real clincher is that the beer is so smooth. There's tons of hops but no aggravating bitterness or objectionable burning - just full flavor and surprisingly heady. Finish is warm and crisp, and aftertaste is very faint, with a pleasant flavor of hops.

I'm very happy with this beer. It reminds me of Great Divide's "Hercules" double IPA in terms of texture and taste. I'm really a fan of these juggernaut IPAs that hit you with a sledgehammer of flavor and hops, and I'm definitely going to make it a staple of my growler fills whenever I can, or perhaps finally make a day trip to the brewery to grab some more of their limited-edition cans.

Fort George Brewery + Public House - "Quick Wit" witbier

Every so often, my Seattle-based brother Daniel will send me a box packed with some of the finest in West Coast beers. Since these beers are often available only in the Pacific Northwest, I particularly enjoy reviewing them because I so rarely get a chance to try them.

One of the ones he sent was a 5.2% ABV Belgian-style ale made by Fort George Brewery + Public House, located in Astoria, Oregon.

It looks like OJ - opaque, dark orange, coupled with a faint aroma of spices.

Taste-wise, I really enjoyed it. It has a very mellow tartness to it that balances nicely with the typical Belgian spice flavors. I like the smooth wheat and tasty spice flavors. Warm and smooth overall, with a refreshing citrus levity. I like Belgian beers , and the sessionability of this one really adds to my enjoyment. It's a beer I wouldn't mind drinking all night.

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp, #3

Asheville Brewer's Alliance - "Tater Ridge" Scottish ale (7% ABV)

This beer is a deep Scottish ale made with sweet potatoes! Never had a sweet potato beer before...but that's because I think sweet potatoes are awful. Just ask my family at Thanksgiving, I won't eat them.

But I didn't say I didn't drink them. Anyways...pour is strong and thick, nice deep red color (my favorite for beer) and a brownish-bronze when candled. Beautiful. Nose is airy, a little aroma, but not much. Lots of carbonation.

Taste is interesting. A little sweet, but delicious. Smooth and full of flavor, nice warming feeling that turns into a smooth, sweet finish. Not bad at all! Color me surprised. I'd drink this all day long.

Oskar Blues Brewery - "CANfusion" rye bock (7.2% ABV)

Another brown pour, clearer this time. The beer has no nose. However, it is nice and tasty. Lots of rye tastes here, straightforward and hearty. I don't really detect anything super unusual about it, just a delicious and straightforward rye ale. 

3 Floyds Brewing Co. - "Chico King" pale ale (6.5% ABV)

As you can see, it's got a nice caramel color. One of the pleasures of drinking beer is seeing all the different colors. With this beer, there's a clean, crisp aroma with no strong smells. The taste is sort of a standard pale ale, done well. Interesting texture. Nice hops (the bottle says "resinous" which is a good word to describe the texture.)

Cigar City Brewing Co. - "Yonder Bock" tropical maibock (7.7% ABV)

This one intrigued me - never had a maibock before, and didn't know what it is. According to the German Beer Institute, a maibock is a strong golden lager meant to be enjoyed in between German beer drinking seasons of deep winter and summer. Hence the "Mai" in the word. It's also known as a "helles bock," "helles lager" or, and I'm really just taking their word for it, "Frühlingsstarkier."

Pours nicely, some interesting aromas that I couldn't quite recognize. Same went for the taste - it was delicious, very malty, with some interesting fruit flavors that were new to me in a beer. I spent a good few minutes trying to figure out what was going on up in here. 

It reminds me a lot of a fruity version of "Old Speckled Hen." There's definite fruit tastes in there, which is pretty cool, and ends up being a very refreshing and smooth beer. 

Turned out to be a great 12-pack. I'll definitely be buying this again next year!