Homebrew - Amber Alert

So Mike and I brewed up a new 5 gallon batch. This was our first attempt to keg a beer. It turned out better than expected.

Our goal was to make a typical amber ale. Something kind of close to Alaska's. Going by the age old adage that you need to drink beer while making beer the recipe quickly went out the door once the hop additions started. In my mind the more often you added hos the more balanced it would be. This was also about 3 hours into our session drinking.

When everything was said and done we had at least doubled the necessary hops for the beer by the time we were done. Not like we cared. We love hops. We both agree that at a certain point its overkill, but based on the total volume vs ounces of hops we added it wasn't outrageous. All in all I think we hit around 4 oz or so.

Carbing was interesting. First time kegging tried the force CO2 then roll method. Quickly gave this up when Mikes arms tired. I had a beer in my hand and was unwilling to put it down to help.

After about 3 weeks in keg we couldn't wait any longer. We had an Amber Alert release party. Even my wife liked the beer. That's when you know its good. She's super picky about alcohol. The beer was clear, little to no sediment, and probably came in between 8 and 10%. I drank 4 liters and called it a night.

We will definitely be brewing this one again. We paired it with burgers. In my excitement for everything hoppy I added hop pellets into the meat before making patties. I liked them. The girls however tasted it immediately and commented. I ate two. More for me.

Ballast Point Bourbon Barrel aged Sea Monster Imperial Stout

So Home Brewmart here in San Diego is owned and operated by Ballast PINT Brewing. Mike and I needed to pick up a couple last minute supplies before our next batch of home brew and decided to take advantage of the tasting room in the back. Turns out a 4 oz taster is $1. Not a bad deal.

I decided to try the Bourbon Barrel Aged Sea Monster Stout. This 10% stout tastes ore like bourbon that beer. Never a bad thing, but in this case could be a little over powering. This is definitely not a beer that you would want to drink a bomber of by yourself. The 4 oz taster was enough for me.

Very chocolaty with little to no head from the pour. It may be that the taster glass prevented that. A 4 oz taster, paired with a rich dessert, would be the perfect end to a meal. Something like a cheesecake.

Once you have this don't bother drinking anything after as you will not be able to taste it. The flavor coats your mouth and lingers. I tried a scotch ale after and it tasted like a mild lager.

Dogfish Head - Indian Brown Ale

Dogfish is one of my favorite breweries and rarely misses the mark. The Indian Brown was another example of that.

Getting 99 style points and 98 points overall on Rate Beer is an adequate review of this ale. lately I've been drinking darker beers so this fit the bill exactly for me. A nice brown ale with a kick of hops. Coming in at 50 IBU this wasn't on the hoppy side, but gave it something that turned the super mild brown ale into something a little more interesting.

I often ask the death row question of what would your last beer be? Almost everyday mine changes depending on the weather and what I'm in the mood for. For two weeks I have been wondering how I get more of this beer. Unfortunately it is no distributed to any stores in San Diego. To get this one bottle I had to pack it in my luggage all the way from DC.

It says the appropriate glassware is a dimpled mug. I'm not really sure what a dimple in the mug will add to the flavor, but this was the closest thing we had at the time.

All in all a really good beer. A solid 8.5 or higher. If you can get this year round consider yourself lucky and if your feeling generous send me one.

Port Brewing A.B.L.E.

Pizza Port is one of my favorite places to eat and drink. The lunch special can't be beat. A slice of really good pizza, salad, and a drink for $4.99. For a dollar more you can add a beer. I added their A.B.L.E IPA.

This was a pretty strong IPA. I think it was around 8%. This was definitely a West Coast version of an IPA. It had a huge hop profile. Almost too hoppy. The hops hit in different spots at different degrees. About half way through this beer I wasn't able to taste much. My mouth was coated with tingling citrus notes that overcame all other taste sensations.

With a medium color and the price at a dollar this was a pretty good beer. Definitely not a beer that I would sit down and drink a case of, but if you were gonna have one beer and the pizza you chose had a creamy cheese like the Port OB with Gorgonzola then this would be a perfect pairing to cut the creaminess.

Each Port location brews this infrequently. Please check their website for current tap listings.

Sweetwater Brewing Company

Whenever I'm in Atlanta I try to take a pin off of the jumping rout handle. Sweetwater Brewing located in a suburb of the ATL does a pretty good pint. I really enjoy their Brown. It's mid in the color spectrum with a ton of flavor. This is an easy beer to pair food with as it crosses several lines. Extremely versatile.

I realized as I was flying out that I had missed my opportunity to sample Sweetwater. Don't worry I had been trying loads of other new beers. Not to be superstitious or anything, but felt like even though I didn't feel well I still needed a pint before I took off.

I tried their IPA. It's clean and refreshing. A sessionable beer. Balanced the whole way through with a little hop kicker on the backside. Lighter in color than a lot of other IPA's, but that isn't a bad thing. The hops really helped with the terrible burrito I had at the airport.

I'd give it a 8. For what it was it was really good. I looked at their website and they aren't promising hop crushing flavor. Lately I have noticed that a lot of breweries throw in a ton of hops. I love hops don't get me wrong, but at a certain point I fell like they do it to cover up the fact that they can't develop good enough recipes to let the grain bill shine through. Good to see some people just make tasty beer that doesn't over power the pallate.

Smuttynose IPA

I was back east in January and bought a suitcase full of beer I can't get in CA. While sitting at the Dogfish brew pub the people next to me started discussing West Coast IPA's, several of which came from San Diego. I chimed in. Most of the discussion was related to recent price increases and Green Flash's new 4 pack of bottles for the same price as their 6 pack.

The topic then turned to affordable hoppy beers. Smuttynose came up pretty quick. I had never even heard of it. When the group realized I had never tasted this brew it was like the DJ stopped playing music instantly. They all froze. Upon leaving the pub I figured I had to stop and grab a bottle. At the local liquor store a 22 oz bomber was $1.99. I figured it was mis-labelled but it wasn't. Could a truly good beer be available for $2?

This beer is good. Well balanced. Good hop flavor. It's very reminiscent of a West Coast, kick you in the face, hoppy IPA. Yes, it is a tremendous value. No, they do not filter very well. The beer had sediment chunks. I don't care. When I home brew this happens. Just the way it goes. I didn't expect it with a commercial outfit, but it was a solid beer none the less. Very well balanced. A lot of times with beers of this style you get a punch somewhere in the taste, but this was clean and finished with a citrus tingle in your mouth. It had the right amount of malts to hops to balance the beer out nicely. A very drinkable IPA. Almost a session beer.

Based on price, flavor, etc this is a solid 7. If I find myself back east soon I will definitely try their other beers.

Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast

The name says it all. You would imagine that the Gods finally saw fit to grace us with a beverage that isn't sweet and bubbly to consume when you first wake up in the morning. I mean, is it too much to ask for a drink I can have first thing that doesn't come in ridiculous glassware and holds enough volume to feel like my 5+ dollars was worth it.

Well the boys over at Mikkeller did just that. I've been on a dark beer kick lately. Stouts, porters, black lagers, black IPA's, whatever... This was clearly one of the best I have ever had. Super rick notes of chocolate and coffee. Hot summer day camping and you don't want a coffee, this is your beer. This would also go with almost any decadent dessert.

It is a little pricey. Mikkeller typically doesn't make cheap beers, but at $13 for the bottle it's definitely worth a try. Not a beer your going to sit down and drink all day, but splitting it with someone would be a good start to the day.