Oi! Here Comes Chanukah... Beers

Disclaimer: No Jewish jokes. We promise. We are big fans of the Jews: The potato pancakes, the killing of Jesus, clay toys and Spaceballs. What is not to love? Let's celebrate! We know we are a little early but 'tis the season for holidays (and winter seasonals.)

This is the third of our holiday blind beer tastings. However, today we are doing things a little different. Rather than just a third of a beer, we are feeling a little saucy. Eight full beers. God jul us all. C'mon, on paper Judas f'ing ruled.

With us once again is our good friend Nick to keep us from cheating. The main rule for this tasting stated that there should be no Christmas ales considering this is Chanukah. However, since Christmas happens to fall on one of the days of Chanukah this year, we have just one Xmas brew. The choices of the day were: Abita Christmas Ale, Avery Old Jubulation Ale, Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout, Heavy Seas Winter Storm, Michelob Winter Cask Ale (Their first of our knowledge to not have a twist top,) Samual Adams Winter Lager, Stoudts Winter Ale and Weyerbacher Winter Ale.

First Candle: Unfiltered, possibly bottle fermented. Well balanced taste with slightly more hops than malt. Nice copper color, pours easily down the throat but finishes weak compared to the taste. Could work as a yearly IPA.

Oz Scale: 8.4
Mike Scale: 8.5
Nick Scale: 9.0

Second Candle: Dark in color, slightly tart in taste. Surprisingly chugable. An accessible brew. Nothing above average but not terrible.

Oz Scale: 5.8
Mike Scale: 5.4
Nick Scale: 5.3


Third Candle: This is a brew that promises but does not deliver. It is hoppy, sweet and has no balance. What are we supposed to be drinking? "It creates flustrations deep down inside of me." says Oz. This is a bisexual brew, it dabbles into the extremes but doesn't make any decision either way. "It is like a chick who says she is into bondage," Nick adds, "but only uses scarves."

Oz Scale: 5.7
Mike Scale: 5.6
Nick Scale: 5.0

Forth Candle: Rich and full bodied, similar to a porter without the full malty bite. More drinkable than most stouts with a complex, rich delectable taste.

Oz Scale: 8.5
Mike Scale: 8.1
Nick Scale: 8.3

Fifth Candle: See video post:

Oz Scale: 5.4
Mike Scale: 5.4
Nick Scale 5.7

Sixth Candle: Dark, robust, lavishes on your tongue. Satisfying finish that surprisingly lingers for more.

Oz Scale: 7.9
Mike Scale:8.1
Nick Scale: 8.4

Seventh Candle: This is a safe beer. Average color and taste. The drinkability is there but it was probably because of the gaps between brews. "Naps are great!" adds Mike. The other two puked in various places.

Oz Scale: 5.3
Mike Scale: 5.5
Nick Scale: 5.0

Eighth Candle: Slightly dark. Once again, a safe beer. Above average taste that gets mad props for its high drinkability. Afterall, this is our eighth beer.

Oz Scale: 5.5
Mike Scale: 5.6
Nick Scale: 6.7

The actual brews:
1: Heavy Seas Winter Storm (averaged 8.6)
2: Weyerbacher Winter Ale (averaged 5.5)
3: Avery Old Jubulation Ale (averaged 5.4)
4: Stoudts Winter Ale (averaged 8.3)
5: Michelob Winter Cask Ale (averaged 5.5)
6: Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout (averaged 8.1)
7: Abita Christmas Ale (averaged 5.3)
8: Sam Adams Winter Ale (averaged 5.9)

This brings our winter season ranking to this:

20: Breckenridge Christmas Ale (averaged 4.6)
19: Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser Winter Ale (averaged 5.0)
18: Abita Christmas Ale (averaged 5.27)
17: Thirsty Dog 12 Dogs of Christmas Ale (averaged 5.33)
16: Avery Old Jubulation Ale (averaged 5.4)
15: Michelob Winter Cask Ale (averaged 5.5)
14: Weyerbacher Winter Ale (averaged 5.53)
13: Sam Adams Winter Ale (averaged 5.9)
12: Blue Moon Full Moon (Average 6.3)
11: Summit Winter Ale (Averaged 6.7)
10: Corsendonk Christmas Ale (Averaged 7.2)
9: Magic Hat Roxy Rolles (Average 7.3)
8: Troegs Mad Elf Ale (Averaged 7.8)
7: Bell's Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.0)
6: Great Lakes Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.07)
5: Brooklyn Brewery Black Chocolate Stout (averaged 8.13)
4: Stoudts Winter Ale (averaged 8.3)
3: Rogue Santa's Private Reserve (Averaged 8.57)
2: Heavey Seas Winter Storm (averaged 8.63)

and the winner thus far:

1: Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale (Averaged 8.8)

It's the Most Wonderful Time For Beer: The 12 Beers Of Christmas (Part 2)

It's that time again: December has not yet hit and we decided to finish the Twelve Beers of Christmas. Snow is on the ground and did we mention that we like Christmas like beers? Well, anything is a decent excuse to drink the tasty beverages of the season. Once again we have our good friend Nick with us to help with the blind beer tasting and to make sure we wouldn't pass judgement on the brew because of the label on the bottle. Our choices of the night were: Magic Hat Roxy Rolles, Rogue Santa's Private Reserve, Thirsty Dog 12 Dogs of Christmas Ale, Troegs Mad Elf Ale and Breckenridge Christmas Ale.

The ratings and guesses:

Sample 1: Smells festive, starts well and finishes well but lacks body.
Oz Scale: 5.5 (Breckenridge)
Mike Scale: 5.5 (Breckenridge)
Nick Scale: 5.0

Sample 2: Strong smell, great head. Sweet but not overpowering. The light tingle to the tongue leads to a great finish.
Oz Scale: 7.2 (Corsendonk)
Mike Scale: 7.3 (Corsendonk)
Nick Scale: 7.2

Sample 3: Starts weak, finishes with a strong unsatisfactory aftertaste. Dark in color with hits of spices.
Oz Scale: 4.8 (Magic Hat)
Mike Scale: 5.1 (Thirsty Dog)
Nick Scale: 3.9

Sample 4: Strong smells, hint of pine in the taste. Strong hoppy flavor, finishes like an IPA but doesn't linger quite as long.
Oz Scale: 7.1 (Troegs)
Mike Scale: 6.7 (Troegs)

Sample 5: Well balanced beer: taste, smell and color come together well. Initially sweet, but when you get the actual flavor, it will appease most enthusiasts.
Oz Scale: 7.9 (Rogue)
Mike Scale: 7.4 (Corsendonk)
Nick Scale: 8.0

Sample 6: MMM hops, hop pa MMM hops dib it dat ta MMM hops. Whoah! Great smell, taste and finish. Would work well as a year round IPA.
Oz Scale: 8.2 (Rogue)
Mike Scale: 8.4 (Rogue)
Nick Scale: 9.11 ("There's an emergency in my mouth!-- Too soon?")

Actual Brews:
Sample 1: Thirsty Dog 12 Dogs of Christmas Ale (Averaged 5.3)
Sample 2: Corsendonk Christmas Ale (Averaged 7.2)
Sample 3: Breckenridge Christmas Ale (Averaged 4.6)
Sample 4: Magic Hat Roxy Rolles (Average 7.3)
Sample 5: Troegs Mad Elf Ale (Averaged 7.8)
Sample 6: Rogue Santa's Private Reserve (Averaged 8.6)

Oz and Mike did worse this round with only guessing correctly twice. Oh well, even the titans lose sometimes. Then again this is beer; you are always a winner when you drink good beer.

This finishes our Beers of Christmas blogs and leaves us with the final rankings:

12: Breckenridge Christmas Ale (Averaged 4.6)
11: Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser Winter Ale (Averaged 5.0)
10: Thirsty Dog 12 Dogs of Christmas Ale (Averaged 5.3)
9: Blue Moon Full Moon (Average 6.3)
8: Summit Winter Ale (Averaged 6.7)
7: Corsendonk Christmas Ale (Averaged 7.2)
6: Magic Hat Roxy Rolles (Average 7.3)
5: Troegs Mad Elf Ale (Averaged 7.8)
4: Bell's Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.0)
3: Great Lakes Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.1)
2: Rogue Santa's Private Reserve (Averaged 8.6)

and the best seasonal we have tried this year:

1: Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale (Averaged 8.8)

Here is another look at this blogs contestants:

Founders Centennial IPA

India Pale Ale (IPA:) A special type of pale ale originated in England. It is brewed with extra hops therefor it is more bitter than most styles of beers. Hops are a bittering agent as well as a preservative that the English used when exporting their beers to India beginning in the late 18th century. American craft breweries typically make their IPA's with higher alcohol content (7.0+) and IBU's (International Bitterness Unit) above 40 where Bud Light has an IBU of just 6.2.

When one drinks an India Pale Ale the first thing you would notice is the hops. With Founders Centennial IPA, the hops are well balanced for a good introductory IPA. Not that IPA's are an introductory beer at all, this is a good gateway beer to the ways of the hops. After all, several of our fellow beer connoisseur friends still fear the hops. With only 46 IBU's it seems weak to us hopheads (last night at the Willoughby Brewing Co., we drank two pitchers and brought home a growler of their Daisycutter IPA with a remarkable 115 IBU's.)

The unfiltered brew might scare away those not used to seeing yeast in their brew, but a 7.2% ABV might calm their nerves. Its flavor is above most IPAs in balance, where the finish does not cover up the aftertaste. This is a beer for everyday, any occasion and a six pack would not be that difficult to incinerate through.

Oz Scale: 7.1
Mike Scale: 7.3

It's the Most Wonderful Time For Beer: The 12 Beers Of Christmas (Part 1)

The first snow of the year and six
blind tasting beers sat before us. The colder it becomes outside, the better the seasonals seem to be. Ah, yes winter. Thicker, more robust ales come our way and we couldn't wait to share some with you. Being the label whores we are, we wanted to prove to our beer knowlege was up to snuff with a good old fashioned taste test- wine style. Our choices of the night were: Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser Ale, Blue Moon's Winter Ale, Great Lakes Brewing Co's Christmas Ale, Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale Summit Winter Ale and Bell's Christmas Ale. Our good friend and guest judge Nick helped us make sure we did not pass judgement because of the logo on the label.

The ratings and guesses:

Sample 1: Malty, Toffee flavor. Finishes average, taste does not linger.
Oz Scale: 6.0 (Summit)
Mike Scale: 6.7 (Summit)
Nick Scale: 7.5

Sample 2: Hints of ginger and cinnamon. Slight hops aftertaste. Swims down your throat.
Oz Scale: 7.9 (Great Lakes)
Mike Scale: 7.9 (Great Lakes)
Nick Scale: 8.4

Sample 3: It hits well but fails to finish close to expectations. It's a blue balls beer (you get all excited on the first sip but in the end you just find yourself holding yourself for comfort.) Could pass as a fall seasonal.
Oz Scale: 6.2 (Sierra Nevada)
Mike Scale: 5.4 (Blue Moon)
Nick Scale: 3.4

Sample 4: Sweet smell, average finish. Could pass as a spring seasonal or even a year long brew. Has a surprising slight kick. Slight malt finish.
Oz Scale: 6.8 (Blue Moon)
Mike Scale: 6.6 (Sierra Nevada)
Nick Scale: 5.4

Sample 5: Great kick, powerful finish. Sweet but sour. Malt and hops are balanced. Spices are subtle but welcomed.
Oz Scale: 7.7 (Flying Dog)
Mike Scale: 7.4 (Bell's)
Nick Scale: 9.0

Sample 6: Powerful taste in all the right ways. Hop aroma and taste. Slight sweetness.
Oz Scale: 8.2 (Flying Dog)
Mike Scale: 8.3 (Bell's)
Nick Scale: 10

Actual Brews:
Sample 1: Summit Winter Ale (Averaged 6.7)
Sample 2: Great Lakes Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.1)
Sample 3: Flying Dog K-9 Cruiser Winter Ale (Averaged 5)
Sample 4: Blue Moon Full Moon (Average 6.3)
Sample 5: Bell's Christmas Ale (Averaged 8.0)
Sample 6: Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale (Averaged 8.8)

Both Oz and Mike guess correctly on half the six beers. Surprisingly Flying Dog (being one of Oz and Mike's favorite brewing companies) did not live up the their standards.

Here is a look at the brews resting on the fresh snow:














And here is a look at them as the snow starts to melt (20 hours later, the next day and the following day)

Death By Beer: Bell's Expedition Stout

What will $16.99 get you? A trip to the seventh layer of hell thanks to Bell's. 10.5% of pure Beelzebub's ball sack. Or rather a hefty kick to Beelzebub's ball sack. Bell's Expedition Stout is (to quote Winking Lizard) "not for the faint of heart." Therefor those with a heart condition or pregnant women must consult a physician before attempting to drink.

Once you begin the pour, you know you are in for some serious business (check the video below.) The color and texture are reminiscent of motor oil that should have been changed 5,000 miles ago. The aroma foreshadows the 10.5 ABV kick. We both agree that this brew should be enjoyed out of a bottle so that you don't get the full on wind-knocking-out-of flavor. The taste isn't bad, just a bit much. Maybe a lot bit much.

If you are a six-pack drinker, godspeed. We wish you the best because we couldn't kill this monster between the two of us. This is the little rabbit that could. Expedition Stout is a brew to start a night or to finish a night. If you aren't careful enough, then this brew will finish you.

Considering this got us drunk,.....

Mike scale: 6.6
Oz Scale: 6.9