Sunday, July 19, 2015

Beer Journal #74: Pilgrim's Dole, Star Baby IPA, Skinny Dip, Devil Dancer, pseudoSue, Twilight, Fallen Apple, Puck & More


Pilgrim's Dole
Wheatwine Ale
Ale Aged in Bourbon
The High Gravity Series From
New Holland Brewing
Holland, MI

Label disclosures:
Alc. 12% by Vol.
24.8 degrees Plato
Vintage 2014
Rich, malty body with unique caramelized character and hints of raisins, nuts and figs.
Pairings: fruit crisps, creme brulee, salted caramels, slow-roasted meats.
Star Baby IPA
Brenner Brewing Company
Milwaukee, WI

Label info:
ALC. 6.3%
We start with a Munich malt base, lightly roasted specialty malts, and throw in some wheat to round out the mouthfeel. Star Baby is hopped with Citra and dry-hopped with a bland of our favorite American hops. Higher temperatures and reduced yeast cell counts in an open fermentation tank produce the fruity esters in this complex and easy drinking masterpiece. Everything we do starts with art.
Brewed and bottled in the beer capital of the world.
Skinny Dip
Beer Brewed with Peach Juice
New Belgium Brewing
Fort Collins, CO

Label descriptions:
ALC 4.2% BY VOL
Take the plunge with SKINNY DIP, our brewed tribute to the lightly-attired summer months. Cascade hops frolic with bready malts for a crisp sip as refreshing as a freshwater dip.
Enjoy by: 02Aug15


Devil Dancer
Triple IPA
India Pale Ale
Founders Brewing Company
Grand Rapids, MI

Label revelations:
12% ALC. BY VOL.
112 IBUs
Brewed for us.

pseudoSue
Pale Ale
Toppling Goliath Brewing Company
Decorah, IA
under special agreement with Lakeland, FL

Label statistics:
5.8% ABV (actually, I had to go to the brewery website to get this)
50 IBUs
This single hop pale ale showcases the Citra hop for a well balanced beer that is delicate in body with a mild bitterness in the finish. Ferocious aromas of citrus and mango give way to pseudoSue's unique and refreshing taste that is clean and bright with just enough bite!
Twilight
Summer Ale
Seasonal
Deschutes Brewery
Bend, Oregon

Label info:
5% ALC. BY VOL.
Best by: 09/12/15
Bottle conditioned to keep your beer fresh and enhance the flavors our brewers intended. This may leave a fine layer of yeast in the bottom of the bottle.
Down goes another brewing dogma. Select malts and a heady dose of bold Amarillo hops deliver full-on flavor and crafted nuance in a spry summer style. Enjoy chilled as the days linger.
Crafted for explorers.
Everywhere since 1988.
Fallen Apple
Cream Ale Brewed With Apple Cider
Furthermore Brewing, LLC.
Black River Falls, WI

This beer label was short on words. 
Puck
The Beer
Petite Saison
Dry-Hopped
North Coast Brewing Company
Fort Bragg, CA


Label info:
A weeja-beeba!
Gold
Golden Ale
Brewed for North America under the strict supervision of Exmoor Ales, Wiveliscombe, England
by Eurobevs
Monroe, WI


Label info:
5.0% ALC./VOL.
Pantheon
Imperial Brown Ale
Ale Asylum
Madison, WI

Label stuff:
ALC. 8.2% BY VOL.
An obscene amount of malt gives our Imperial Brown Ale an earthiness reminiscent of caramel and brown sugar. It boasts a rich mouthfeel and a medium-dry finish.
Apple Ginger
Hard Cider
Angry Orchard Cider Company, LLC.
Cincinnati, OH & Breinigsville, PA

Label facts:
5% ALC BY VOL
Naturally gluten free
Our Apple Ginger cider is unlike any cider you've had before. The fresh ginger and apple flavors blend together for a sweet, yet slightly tart taste with a distinct ginger aroma. The result is a smooth, refreshing cider that goes down easy.
Ingredients: Hard cider, natural flavors, carbon dioxide, malic acid and sulfites to preserve freshness.
Nutrition facts:
Calories 190 Total Fat 0g, Sodium 10mg, Total Carbohydrate 26g, Sugars 19g, Protein 0g

Monday, July 13, 2015

Beer Journal #73: Double Trouble, Block Party, City Fox, Bacon Bomb Rauchbier, Introvert IPA & More

Double Trouble
Imperial IPA
Founders Brewing Company
Grand Rapids, MI

Label words:
9.4% ALC. BY VOL.
86 IBUs
 e
Block Party
Amber Ale
Karben4 Brewing, LLC.
Madison, WI
Label info:
5.6% ALC BY VOL
City Fox
Pale Ale
Brenner Brewing Company
Milwaukee, WI

Label offerings:
5.3% ABC
This session ale has a simple grist of just 2-Row and Caramel 20 malts so we can showcase the fruit and citrus that come naturally from the Mosaic hops and fermenting this beer at elevated temperatures in an open fermentation tank. We hope you love it as much as we do. Everything we do starts with art.
Bottled and brewed in the beer capital of the world
brennerbrewing.com: Tour times and t-shirts, artist information and beer soundtrack MP3S 

Bacon Bomb
 Rauchbier
Brenner Brewing Company
Milwaukee, WI

Label statistics:
ALC. 5.3% ABV
The bacon flavor comes from a blend of German beechwood and Wisconsin cherrywood smoked malts. German hops, chocolate wheat, and black pepper add a subtle bite. The yeast strain keeps the body light to balance the huge flavors and nose, making it perfect for pairing with Burgers, BBQ, or a Bloody Mary. Everything we do starts with art.brennerbrewing.com: Tour times and t-shirts, artist information and beer soundtrack MP#S
Alpha King
Pale Ale
Three Floyds Brewing LLC
Munster, IN

Label talk:
Alpha King is a bold, yet balanced American Pale Ale with slight sweetness and aggressive citrus hoppiness.
Label: Zimmer-Design.Com

Tarte Nouveau
Session Sour
Weyerbacher Brewing Company, Inc.
Easton, PA

Label info:
Ale 3.9% ALC. BY VOL.
Yin
Imperial Taiji Stout
Evil Twin Brewing
Stratford, CT

Label stats:
10% ALC BY VOL
This is one half of a Black and Tan. Not just any Black and Tan but the one where a toasted smug and a hoppy fella get together to make a sublime Taiji balance. Mix the Yin & Yang together (or enjoy this profoundly evil Imperial Stout solo).
Distributed by Twelve Percent LLC, Brooklyn, NY.
Introvert
Session India Pale Ale
Left Hand Brewing Company
Longmont, CO

Label info:
ALC. 4.8% BY VOL.
Brewed on the banks of the mighty St. Vrain
An ale with hop aromas of tropical papaya and kiwi with woodsy pine, balanced by honey malt and a clean bitter finish.
Enjoy at: 45-50 degrees F in a pub glass.
Ingredients: Rocky Mountain water, malted barley, hops and yeast.
Colorado Brewers Guild
Please keep refrigerated.
Please recycle this bottle.

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Beer Journal #72: Ophelia, DirtWolf, Agave Wheat, Really Old Brown Dog Ale, Blithering Idiot, Chick, Summer Shandy & More


Spiced Ale
New Glarus Brewing Company
New Glarus, WI

Gleaned from the label:
Drink Indigenous
Some people paint, some sing, others write...I brew. --Daniel Carey
A few times a year we cut Dan loose to brew whatever he chooses.  Always handcrafted, the bottle you  hold is brewed for the adventurous soul. This is a very limited edition and we make no promise to ever brew this style again.
Our heady Spiced Ale summons escape from the ordinary. Lavish English and Wisconsin Malts slow brewed caramel goodness into this beefy bronze Strong Ale registering 20 degrees Plato O.G. Aged on Oak in the Open Top Cellar so that Cassia Cinnamon, Ginger and Allspice could be carefully hand stirred into the velvety Toffee notes of this aromatic Spiced Ale. 100% Naturally Bottle fermented to warm the chill from your soul.
Celebrate the Arts,
Daniel & Deborah Carey
Summer Shandy
Weiss beer brewed with honey with natural lemonade flavor added
Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company
Chippewa Falls, WI * Milwaukee, WI

Label findings:
Brewed with pride by the Leinenkugel family since 1867.
Highest Quality
The Pride of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin Since 1867.
To join the Leinie Lodge or to order official wearables call toll-free 1-888-LEINIES. Visit the Leinie Lodge at leinie.com.
Black Lager
Cold brewed with roasted barley
Guinness and Company
St. James's Gate
Dublin 8, Ireland
Imported by Diageo-Guinness USA INC.
Norwalk, CT
Product of Ireland

Label revelations:
Genuine Quality
Est. 1759
St. James's Gate Dublin
Guinness Black Lager is cold-brewed with roasted barley to deliver the refreshing taste of lager with the unique character of Guinness. Enjoy ice cold straight from the bottle. --Arth Guinness
The Guinness word, Harp device and Arthur Guinness signature are trade marks.
Drink Responsibly.
Blithering Idiot
Barleywine Ale
Weyerbacher Brewing Co., Inc.
Easton, PA

Label stuff:
11.1% ALC. BY VOL
Really Old Brown Dog Ale
Smuttynose Brewing Company
Hampton, NH

Label info:
Come visit our brewery and restaurant at Towle Farm in Hampton, New Hampshire. And check us out online at smuttynose.com for events, releases and great Smerchandise in our e-store. As always, thanks for saying:
Make mine a Smutty!
Radler
Beer with Fruit Soda
Malt Beverage Specialty
Stiegl Brewery
Austria
Imported by Louis Glunz Beer, Inc.
Lincolnwood, IL

Off the label:
Contains not more than 3.2% ALC BY WEIGHT.
40% Stiegl-Goldbrau and 60% fruit soda from purely natural ingredients for an outstanding malt beverage speciality. Cloudy appearance.
Bitburger
Premium Beer
Bitburger Privatbrauerei
Th. Simon Bitburg/Eifel

Label stuff:
Imported by: Bitburger Intl., College Station, TX
Seit 1817

Agave Wheat
Unfiltered wheat ale brewed with agave nectar
Breckenridge Brewery of Colorado, LLC
Denver, CO


Label disclosures:
ALC. 4.2% BY VOL.
Fine Colorado Ales
Breckenridge Brewery
471 Kalamath St.
Denver, CO
Breckbrew.com
DirtWolf
Double IPA
Victory Brewing Company
Downingtown, PA

Label speak:
8.7% Alc./Vol.
Darkly heroic, Humulus Lupulus (hops) have empowered brews with bit and character since the 11th century. DirtWolf is a tribute to these untamed vines which rise from the earth with the voracity of a wolf among sheep. Hops have made an assertive comeback in American craft brewing. Revel in the best US varieties of hops, in their natural, whole flower form, as they bring a vital, pungent reality to the soul of a wild element in our dangerously satisfying DirtWolf. Cheers,
Bill   *   Ron
The Brewmasters of Victory
www.victorybeer.com
Ophelia
Hoppy Wheat Ale
Breckenridge Brewery of Colorado
Denver, CO

Label expressions:
Hoppy Bouquet
Wheat Flavor
Lager
Rhinelander Brewing Company
Monroe, WI

Label findings:
5% alc./vol.
Refreshing as Wisconsin's Northwoods
Consumer Affairs Toll Free 1-855-845-BEER * 1-855-845-2337 or E Mail at CA@MINHASBREWERY.COM
chick
Premium Light Beer
Chick Brewing Company
Monroe, WI

Label info:
witness the chickness!
Average analysis (12 fl oz) Calories 97. Carbohydrates 3.5g. Protein 0.73g. Fat 0g.
Visit www.chickbeer.com

Friday, July 3, 2015

Challenge #11: Mentally Strong People Don't Fear Alone Time



In her book, 13 THINGS MENTALLY STRONG PEOPLE DON'T DO, Amy teaches us not to fear alone time.

Amy writes:

"Mentally strong enjoy and even treasure the time they spend alone. They use their downtime to reflect, to plan, and to be productive. Most importantly, they don't depend on others to shore up their happiness and moods. They can be happy with others, and they can also he happy alone."

I highly recommend Amy's book.