TWIB – Dead Presidents, Wedding Drinks and Delicious Beer

This Week in Beer (TWIB) is a feature where I’ll highlight some craft beers I had during this past week mixed with some related (and unrelated) thoughts. Yes, it’s a play on the name of the show This Week in Baseball which I grew up on and loved.

It is wedding season. Still. I attended my second wedding in less than a month (Here’s a recap of the first wedding). This time I went north to Philadelphia. Traveling, especially out of state, gives you a chance to really branch out when it comes to beer choices.

I wandered the streets of Philly and ended up where?

What do I love most about weddings? People from all around gather to celebrate the love of a common family member or friend. Meaning that if you don’t know someone attending the wedding, you have a better chance of getting along with him or her than a random person. I met another bridemaid’s significant other and hit it off with him. We had the whole day to ourselves while our ladies were doing whatever bridemaids do the day of the wedding so we hit the streets of Philly in search of cheesesteaks and beer.

April Dirty Thirty Day 7 – Butternuts Heinnieweisse Weissebier Farmhouse Ale

We’ve made it a week! We’ve had some great beers so far. I guess it was time for that to change. Today’s April Dirty Thirty review is on…

Butternuts Heinnieweisse Weissebier Farmhouse Ale

Butternuts Heinnieweisse Weissebier Farmhouse Ale

Critical Information:

• 4.9% ABV
• Year-round
• Canned

My Experience:

– POUR

The first can beer for AD30. It has an opaque yellow-orange color with an airy-white head. Bubbles continue to rise for several minutes.

– SMELL

It smells sweet, like honey and citrus. There’s also some nectarine and grapefruit. I cannot smell any maltiness.

– TASTE

It’s tart and sour. It tastes fairly dry as well. I get some of the grapefruit coming through but not much of the sweetness I smelled earlier. There’s a lot of carbonation still working.

– MOUTHFEEL

It feels more like sparking juice than beer. Almost like seltzer water. I guess that’s a characteristic of the farmhouse ale style though.

– FOOD PAIRING

This beer feels very delicate. A summer salad with an oil-based dressing would pair well or mozzarella or similar cheese.

– OVERALL THOUGHTS

Beer comes in many styles. This trait is very beneficial because there is usually a style that someone can grasp onto and learn to tolerate even if they don’t like beer at all. This beer might be for them. Maybe it is technically a hefeweizen but it does not feel like it. I sometimes tease and call out ladies for liking hefeweizens (even though I really like them too, I actually homebrewed one today) but I’m not recommending this “not beer, beer” for them. I’m recommending this to the people who don’t care to like beer and never want to like beer. Hefeweizens are gateway beers for people, getting them to branch out little by little. This is for a beer hater who wants to drink a beer to be fashionable and continue on hating beer. This beer is not bad it’s just not for me. Maybe I’ll appreciate it more as my palate grows but for now pass me another Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout and let me enjoy my night.

Score: 2/10

Congratulations for being a part of the April Dirty Thirty project. Keep the tweets and comments coming, you’re doing fantastic! Remember to use #AprilDirty30. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this beer, what you had tonight, what you’ve tried recently, anything.

Try something new, grow your palate and share it with us.

April Dirty Thirty Day 6 – Atwater Brewery Vanilla Java Porter

Atwater Brewery Vanilla Java Porter – Taken by Mitch Witte

Today has been a little crazy. Went out to four wineries for a friend’s birthday and am just getting to today’s review which is…

Atwater Brewery Vanilla Java Porter

Critical Information:

• 6.0% ABV
• Year-round

My Experience:

– POUR

Poured from bottle into mug. Off-white head that lasted for a few moments. Very minimal carbonation. It is a deep brown-black color that’s completely opaque.

– SMELL

It has a very chocolatey with some maltiness aroma. I also get the vanilla coming through a lot too.

– TASTE

Wow, it’s just like the name of the beer – vanilla and java are the dominate flavors. I don’t really get much else. No hops, minimal maltiness, lots of, you know it, vanilla and coffee flavors.

– MOUTHFEEL

It has a thick, dense texture that barely lasts more than a minute.

– FOOD PAIRING

I’m thinking s’mores  from Cosi. This is definitely a dessert beer.

– OVERALL THOUGHTS

It reminds me of Butternuts Moo Thunder Stout. It has a good taste to it but it’s not very beer-y.

Score: 5/10

Sorry for keeping it so brief tonight. Lots of conflicts happening at the moment — been to multiple wineries, sitting on a friend’s computer, being bugged to hurry up, etc. Thanks for being a part of the April Dirty Thirty project. Keep the tweets and comments coming, you’re doing outstanding! Remember to use #AprilDirty30. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this beer, what you had tonight, what you’ve tried recently, anything.

Try something new. Share it with the world. Grow your palate and beer knowledge.

My Big Debut – Beer Club #1

Hosting beer club at the Buffalo Wing Factory – Photo taken by Mitch Witte

Last Friday, February 22^nd, was my big debut as a craft beer professional. Well, almost professional. Getting paid in beer is close enough. My buddy got me a gig hosting a craft beer tasting at a local restaurant, the Buffalo Wing Factory. I represented five beers all from different breweries.

1. Lost Rhino Rhino Chasers Bohemian Pilsner
2. Williamsburg Alewerks Washington’s Porter
3. Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye IPA
4. Boulevard Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale
5. Butternuts Moo Thunder Stout

The Rhino Chasers Bohemian Pilsner by Lost Rhino in Ashburn, Virginia was our first beer. I explained a bit about the history of the Pilsner and cold-fermented lagers. This was paired with an avocado salad with bell peppers, tomatoes, cilantro, sweet onions and lime juice.