Beer

Brasserie Dupont Foret

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Brasserie Dupont Foret, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A: Thick dense three finger white head leading to a clean, but slightly cloudy, golden straw nectar.

S: Lemon grass, funky, nice saison smell.

T: Pretty much like it smells…except a lot more yeast character, lemon and grass. Herbs…earthy…slight tang and some mild hop flavor coming through.

M: light to medium finish, quite refreshing, lots of carbonation but has been settling out since my initial pour.

A nice Saison pretty close to Saison Dupont from what I recall. Very refreshing and paired well with the pizza we were having.

Maui Brewing La Perouse White

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Maui Brewing La Perouse White, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A= Pours a hazy golden-hay color. About a half inch to an inch of a white head forms, and slowly fades

S=Great nose on this one, refreshing summer notes. Very clean and crisp. You definitely get the mandarin orange. Coriander, and a bit of clove seem to be the most dominant.

T= Clove and Coriander again are prominent. Mandarin gives way to balance it out, some sweet hay/grassy flavor comes through as well. I get a hint of banana on the back of the tounge as the beer warms.

M=Great summer beer, This would be a nice intro for people who have not been craft beer drinkers in the past.

O= A really, really good and refreshing witbeer. Stockup on this on before its gone. It will be great in the heat of the summer.

Odell Brewing Company Friek

/ ashleymyhre / Leave a comment

Odell Brewing Company Friek [ ale with cherries and raspberries added, aged in oak barrels]

Appearance: pours a medium brown/amber, slightly transparent with a slight head that dissipates immediately

Aroma/Smell: a light fruity, slightly sour yet noticeably sweet smell

Taste: tart fruit profile, raspberries and cherries highly detectable with an extremely high carbonation and dry finish

Mouthfeel: light bodied, dry finish. Aftertaste is slightly sweet.

Overall/Drinkability: An extremely drinkable beer to those that are a fan of sours. However, if skeptical of wild yeast flavors and the unpredictability that sours deliver; drink when embarking upon an adventure.  Highly recommend getting your hands on a bottle of this, even if it is outside of your comfort zone. As a fan of sours, I loved the characteristics of this beer and will drink it again without a doubt.

ESB Showdown

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


ESB Showdown, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Full Sail ESB

Appearance: pours a very cloudy orange / amber color with a short 1/2″ head that breaks down immediately.

Smell: caramel and a load of fruity sweetness is detectable.

Taste: grainy malt profile. Caramel, ripe fruits, and a hint of earthy tones arrive late. Decent bitterness here too.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied. Lightly crisp to start, smoother towards the finish. Aftertaste is very short.

Overall: an easy to drink beer that leans a bit on the sweeter side, but is brought a bit into check with the bitterness. Sessionable beer

Breckenridge/Stranahan’s Well Built ESB

Appearance: Pours a cloudy amber with a nice 2 finger head that dissipates fairly quick.

Smell: Well you could be drinking a whiskey if you didn’t know any better, not characteristic of an ESB but nice with notes of vanilla and oak.

Taste: Very sweet for an ESB and huge whiskey notes. Some malt comes though but hard to get past the whiskey thats overwhelming.

Mouthfeel: Light carbonation, alcohol taste is present.

Overall: A nice beer and cool collaboration between two colorado establishments. I would drink this again but it definitely does not fall into the ESB category by any means.

Exposure Brewing ESB

Appearance: The pour is amber/light copper with a creamy off-white head.

Smell: Some moderate caramel and toffee notes and a floral, earthy hoppiness. Not an overly intense nose, but appropriate for the style

Taste: Very bready on the palate with a light amount of hop bitterness. Not an overwhelming flavor profile, but sessionalable

Mouthfeel: The body is medium and so is the level of carbonation. The finish leaves a lingering bitterness.

Overall: Nice beer to have on a summer day, not huge in any department but a nice balanced beer. I guess I am a bit biased but I think it turned out nice.

Jolly Pumpkin Ore de Calabaza

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Jolly Pumpkin Ore de Calabaza, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Easter 2012 Beer
A: The beer pours a lightly hazed golden orange color with a tall white head.

S: A very nice tart aroma of apples, pears, and peaches. Light grass notes to it and some wet oak. A little bit of earthiness and some lemon zest. Still a little bit of malt and a touch of pepper.

T: Some light spice, particularly white pepper. Hints of bready malts in the background, but the tartness really takes hold. Lemon zest, lactobacillus, grapes, and apples provide a nice complexity and tartness.

M: Medium in body with a medium to high carbonation.

O: A winner from Jolly Pumpkin. This is a really nice somewhat sour Saison

Serving type: bottle, split a few ways

Adelbert’s Dancin’ Monks

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Adelbert’s Dancin’ Monks, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A: Pours a dark hazelnut brown color. A two finger white head forms and recedes to a ring that sticks throughout. Lots of sticky lace is left behind.

S: Toasted malts, toffee sweetness, some plums as well. Simple, but enjoyable.

T: Toasted malts with a nice sweetness.

M/D: A medium body and carbonation. Creamy and smooth. East to drink

Overall, very enjoyable and simple. Worth a try, and am looking forward to trying the other ones from them

Stone Double Bastard

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Stone Double Bastard, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A: Dark copper with a nice wheat head and a good deal of lacing.

S: Tropical hops and some roasted malts that bring on a good deal of sweetness.

T: Quite sweet with dark sugars and caramel in addition to the tropical and citrus hops. Slightly earthy with some wood notes.

M: Full body with good carbonation and a bready mouthfeel.

D: Pretty drinkable. The bottle I had was about a year old.

Lagunitas Imperial Red

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Lagunitas Imperial Red, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Appearance: Pours a clear copper body with a white, diminishing head. The lacing was thin.

Smell: Caramel malts in the nose with a nice bit of toastiness. The hops are piney with fruity undertones.

Taste: Light bready caramel malts joined by crisp, hoppy flavors of pine resins and grapefruit.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, with a pleasingly smooth mouthfeel.

Drinkability: Though the hops can be a little cutting at times its a rather likeable red ale.

Oskar Blues Deviant Dales

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Oskar Blues Deviant Dales, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Appearance: Bright orange. Head is off-white, massive, and sticky as can be. Drops to a thin cap very quickly. Very clear.

Smell: Grapefruit and biscuits layered over a damp hops. Faintly spicy with a touch of pine needles. Sweet without being sugary. Loads of biscuit. Some roasted notes along with some cooked grain. Green onions. Did I mention Hops!

Taste: Loads of malts. Biscuits and sweetness upfront. Lingering pine notes mix with pith and an oniony/vegetal flavor. Bitter, pithy, earthy hops. Hops assault at the beginning and the end of the sip with a nice malt backbone rounding out the middle. Hops

Mouthfeel: Medium body with a higher than expected carbonation. Dry and a touch crisp. Oily hops.

Overall: Unique to say the least. The hop profile is definitely an acquired taste, that I have drifted away from. Definitely pour this in a glass to smell what your re in for. The can hides the aroma and making it shocking on the first sip. Hop Bomb in my book.

Saint Arnold Endeavour IPA

/ Adam Barhan / Leave a comment


Saint Arnold Endeavour IPA, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Appearance: Bright amber gold glass shows excellent clarity. Holds a thin head that is a bit below expectation for a DIPA, but laces nicely.

Smell: Fresh, oily hop cones, all West Coast citric. Grapefruit with a touch of pine, the hops overwhelm any malt character.

Taste: Bitter almost tea like start fades into a sweet hard candy peach before the oily hops soak in for a long slow finish. Nice round profile. Loads of hops, cone, leaf, maybe a bit of vine, they went whole hog.

Mouthfeel: Medium heavy body with a mild chew, lively carbonation.

Overall: A nice IPA.