Beer review thread

Quote from antsmarchn : I unfortunately don't remember the style, but it became over-carbonated and had a strange taste. I assume I didn't sterilize enough. It was nearly impossible to pour into a glass, no matter how small an amount, without it foaming over. It was almost as bad as mixing diet coke with mentos. Of course this didn't stop my friends and I from drinking it to maintain our buzz, but we were all in our early 20s still.

I suspect similar dissapointment is in my future as well. I'll make sure not to go overboard on the priming sugar for sure!

Quote from square_one : looks good... what are you making?

The recipe is for a sweet stout. We'll see how it turns out ( I took a hydrometer reading the other day and it was sort of in the ballpark taste-wise, but it has a way to go) It's still in the primary.

I have very low expectations for batch #1. Still really fun for me.

Quote from Monkfish : I suspect similar dissapointment is in my future as well. I'll make sure not to go overboard on the priming sugar for sure!

I will admit that I strayed from the recipe the first time around. I knew that more sugar = more alcohol. Guess I was trying to make something on par with Brewdog's End of History (minus the rodent). Oh well, live and learn.

Quote from antsmarchn : I will admit that I strayed from the recipe the first time around. I knew that more sugar = more alcohol. Guess I was trying to make something on par with Brewdog's End of History (minus the rodent). Oh well, live and learn.

I had thought about doing the same (adding some boozed up vanilla beans) but decided to not go off roading just yet.

Unrelated:

I picked up a sixer of Nugget Nectar yesterday (never had it before). It's good, but nothing I'd be selling my first born for.

Quote from Monkfish : The recipe is for a sweet stout. We'll see how it turns out ( I took a hydrometer reading the other day and it was sort of in the ballpark taste-wise, but it has a way to go) It's still in the primary. I have very low expectations for batch #1. Still really fun for me.

your temps look good... keeping fermentation temps under control are critical. i just did a sweet stout myself and it turned out really well.

Quote from square_one : your temps look good... keeping fermentation temps under control are critical. i just did a sweet stout myself and it turned out really well.

The temps are the one thing I was stressing about. I'm getting to know my basement microclimate a lot better recently.

Quote from Monkfish : I suspect similar dissapointment is in my future as well. I'll make sure not to go overboard on the priming sugar for sure!

Measuring the priming sugar incorrectly in my first batch caused me to wake up in the middle of the night to bottles popping in the guest bathroom. It was a mess. I'm glad to never have to mess with bottle carbonating again. Force carbing in the keg is so much easier and safer.

Quote from Mavtech : Measuring the priming sugar incorrectly in my first batch caused me to wake up in the middle of the night to bottles popping in the guest bathroom. It was a mess. I'm glad to never have to mess with bottle carbonating again. Force carbing in the keg is so much easier and safer.

I am keggin my next batch.

Was out in Vegas for a few days. A few things have changed since the last time I was out there. Good to see craft beer showing up in a lot more places, but like everything on the strip it was crazy overpriced unless you hit it up for happy hour. One of the best beer selections on the strip was surprisingly Walgreens. Around here you can't get booze at Walgreens, so I was impressed by the selection of beers that they had.

There is relatively new brewery in town, Tenaya Creek. I did not make it out to the actual brewery, but I did try their Hop Ride IPA which was very solid. The Triple 7 brewpub and the Ellis Island brewpub were still respectable and a great value at $2.00-$2.50 for a 24oz draft.

Stopped by the Yardhouse while I was there and had a Stone Sublimely Self Righteous for the first time. Some Black IPAs I like a lot and some I don't, but as usual Stone is putting out a good product. I really enjoyed it.

Sox

Quote from Sox.at.six : Was out in Vegas for a few days. A few things have changed since the last time I was out there. Good to see craft beer showing up in a lot more places, but like everything on the strip it was crazy overpriced unless you hit it up for happy hour. One of the best beer selections on the strip was surprisingly Walgreens. Around here you can't get booze at Walgreens, so I was impressed by the selection of beers that they had.

Wow - yeah WG beers around here are pretty much only canned blue, red and silver stuff. That's pretty cool.

I just tried DFH - Aprihop (interesting and admirable, but I wouldn't buy it again) and Alesmith X (a big dissappointment - I had high hopes given the brewery.) Salvaged up the night with a bottle of Double Trouble.

In other news, the paint doesn't seem to come off of Alesmith bottles.

Quote from Monkfish : Wow - yeah WG beers around here are pretty much only canned blue, red and silver stuff. That's pretty cool. I just tried DFH - Aprihop (interesting and admirable, but I wouldn't buy it again) and Alesmith X (a big dissappointment - I had high hopes given the brewery.) Salvaged up the night with a bottle of Double Trouble. In other news, the paint doesn't seem to come off of Alesmith bottles.

Aprihop is probably one of the better apricot beers out there. Way better than Magic Hat #9 and Ithaca Apricot Wheat, which are probably the 3 most common apricot flavored beers around by me. I have of course pretty much stopped drinking apricot beers, unless its the only option at the bar that isn't bud or coors.

I have never had Alesmith X, but love a lot of their big beers. At one point I had between 18-24 bottles of Speedway stout in my cellar. I also have a few bottles of the Old Numbskull, Wee Heavy, YuleSmith (winter and summer), Grand Cru, Horny Devil, and Decadence. All which are worth trying.

Its good the paint doesn't come off the Alesmith bottles. The worst brewery ever was Southern Tier before they switched to stickers. I got tattooed with letters from the bottles more than once.

Quote from antsmarchn : Its good the paint doesn't come off the Alesmith bottles. The worst brewery ever was Southern Tier before they switched to stickers. I got tattooed with letters from the bottles more than once.

Quote from Monkfish :

It was pretty funny when it happened since I was drunk. I looked at my hand and had all these white specks and random letters stuck to my it. I think it was either a bottle of Gemini or Jah-va, but I don't recall. Although there are still marks on the Duvel glass I was using at the time.

Irish beers for SPD [cnn.com]

1. The Porterhouse Brewing Co.
2. O’Hara’s
3. Brooklyn Brewery
4. Left Hand Brewery
5. Sly Fox Brewery