Beer

MOA Brewing Breakfast Ale

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MOA Brewing Breakfast Ale, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

Appearance: A Hazy light-golden yellow with a strong fizz and a thin layer of white foam. Both of the MOA beers I tried seemed over carbed.

Smell: Sweet, floral, fruity aroma with a hint of tartness. Cherry flavor is there, candy like.

Taste: Slight malt backbone with a sweet, aspartame-like flavor. Cherry flavor present. Unfortunately, there’s quite a bit of artificial-ness here, not a good thing here.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light body with a huge carbonation.

Overall: Interesting beer with some qualities I don’t like. As with most flavored beers, not a winner.

21st Amendment Sneak Attack Saison

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Its been a while so I guess its time to get back on the hog, I have quite a queue of beers to go. Onward…

A -A bright hazy straw yellow with a 1/2 inch of fizzy white head.

S – Smells of subdued spices and some cardamom, light bittering hops, and some wheat.

T – Not a traditional saison but pretty damn good. Needs more wild characteristics and maybe some brett flavor.

M – Light and bubbly, went down quicker than a Saison should.

Will definitely pick this one up again.

Maui Brewing Liquid Breadfruit

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Maui Brewing Liquid Breadfruit, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A: Pours a hazy golden orange color with a small white head, rather foamy that reduces to a nice cap on top with some pretty nice lacing all around the glass.

S: Some light tropical fruit on the aroma, mostly passion fruit with a bit of lemon/lime citrus and some bready malt.

T: Not as fruity as the aroma, definitely a bit breadier. There is again a bit of passion fruit/papaya, but the citrus isn’t really there. A heavy dose of fresh bread comes through in the middle.

M: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Pretty clean.

O: Pretty good beer, a little fruitier on the flavor profile would have done it for me. was expecting something great here…

St. Arnold Brewing Icon Red

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St. Arnold Brewing Icon Red, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A: Pours pale golden/orange color with a bit of haze. A two finger white head forms with good retention. Plenty of lace is left behind.

S: Definitely crystal malts. A cereal grain aroma with a light sweetness. A light bitterness that fades to a grassy/floral aroma. Finishes with a dry yeast character. Some light peppery phenols.

T: Pretty much follows the nose. Some cereal, bread and biscuit. Even some dry cracker flavors up front. A light sweetness after that. Grassy and floral hops. Then phenolic and peppery yeast in the finish.

M/D: A medium body and good carbonation. This finishes dry and crisp. Smooth at the same time. Easy to drink.

Twisted Pine Hoppy Boy

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Twisted Pine Hoppy Boy, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A – The beer pours with one and a half fingers of off white head on top of a copper colored body with good clarity. The head settles fairly quickly and leaves little lace.

S – Musty/fruity hop aromas of pineapple, mango, and onion. Some caramel malt in the background.

T – Pine hops up front with some bready malt. More pine hops in the middle with a hint of mango and some toffee. Finishes with moderate bitterness and sweet caramel malt as well as spicy pine hops.

M – Medium body, moderate carbonation, and a slightly sweet finish.

D – Pretty nice, certainly drinkable enough. The hop aroma is enjoyable but a bit subdued while the flavor is kind of one dimensional.

New Belgium Brewing Co. Frambozen

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A – Poured out a somewhat opaque, reddish, brown color with a foamy, one-finger, off-white head. It left some trails of lace.

S – It smelled of raspberries, caramel and some vanilla.

T – Tasted very sweet with raspberry dominating the roasted caramel maltiness. Almost too sweet at times.

M – It was soft and smooth. A medium-bodied beer.

D – This is pretty good. I found it to be more enjoyable with a meal (a good steak) compared to drinking it alone, but I continue to buy it in the season.

Brewery Ommegang Duvel Rustica

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Brewery Ommegang Duvel Rustica, originally uploaded by adambarhan.

A – Poured a cloudy, golden-yellow color with a one-finger, white head of foam. It left sticky rings of lace on the glass.

S – Fruity and yeasty with a bit of funkiness.

T – Nice spicy bite up front with a sweet caramel backbone. Good fruity sweetness, too.

M – Crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied ale with a dry finish.

O – This is a very tasty Belgian-style ale. I forget how good Ommegang can be.

New Belgium Lips Of Faith – Biere De Garde

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A – Poured out a clear, pale gold color with a one and a half finger of off-white foam. It left thin trails of lace on the glass.

S – Smelled of orange, grains and floral notes.

T – It tasted of lots of orange flavor with a fruity bite. Nice sweet caramel with a subtle bitter bite of grasses and pine.

M – It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied ale with a dry finish and sneaky potency.

O – This is a very tasty Belgian style ale. It really doesn’t seem to fit any style but it is tasty.

Serving type: bottle

Stone Brewing Enjoy By: 12.21.2012

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Appearance: Pours a clear amber-infused golden color capped by an inch or foam that leaves some nice lacing behind

Smell: Grapefruit, pith and a hint of onion

Taste: Strong grapefruit and citrusy hop flavors, up front, with just a hint of a malt base underneath; a bit of onion creeps into the mid-palate, but it adds an angle rather than dominates; citrusy finish

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation

Overall: Glad to have snagged 3 bottles from the release. Rare something like this makes it to SA. Very good, will be buying future releases.

Serving type: bottle

Woodchuck Farmhouse Select Hard Cider-Original ’91

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A: Pours a light straw in color with minimal head or lacing

S: A little bit of wood and faint apple aroma. Smells more like a white wine than cider.

T: Tastes kinda like it smells, not too much apple and a lot of white wine.

M: Very dry, lightly carbonated

O: Cant say I would buy this one again. I was expecting great things in a Reserve like this especially with the story it had on the label but it didn’t live up.