Anchor Steam Christmas Ale 2009

I am a little late with this brief note on a great holiday beer, but there is still some of it floating around the market and it's worth picking up to drag out your festivities for a few more days! Anchor is a pioneer in the U.S. microbrew scene, making its first beer (Anchor Steam) in 1896. However, in my opinion it is Anchor's Christmas Ale that is their true paean to craft brewing. This is a special beer that sees a change in recipe every year and carries with it significant aging potential. They also change their label every year, but consistently keep the hand drawn tree as the basis. This year the tree was based on San Francisco's famous Monterey Cypress near where the Panhandle meets Golden Gate Park. The 2009 ale is the 35th edition of Anchor's Christmas Beer.

This year the recipe is a darker sweeter style (as opposed to last year's piney version), with a nose filled with spice, cloves, and a hint of forest nettles. The palate returns some pine, but also plenty of clove, cinnamon and nutmeg, rendering this a distinctly Christmas beer rather than simply a dark winter ale. I love the mouthfeel and balance of this beer even more, and it is very drinkable at a modest 5.5% ABV. In fact, I would say this is the best and most drinkable Christmas beer I've yet had (with Taylor Crossing's Christmas Cake Ale poured at Caskival this year in second place). The only thing better is some of the older renditions of this same beer.

Excellent
$17.50 / 6 pack at BCLDB and private liquor stores (Viti, Brewery Creek, etc.)

De Proef Signature Ale with Port Brewing

A beer from the brewmaster's collaboration series, this ale was a joint effort between Dirk Naudis of De Proef and Tomme Arthur from Lost Abbey/Port Brewing. Both of these guys are lauded in the craft beer community, and the idea of a collaboration between them on a crazy hybrid Belgian and American wild ale is pretty exciting. I've had and written up the second beer in this series made by De Proef and Jason Perkins of Allagash. It was awesome. This confirms the trend.

This is a one off brew, and a great hybrid style with a nose of banana, malts, and nice sugar and fruit esters. The palate was fantastic with banana, some floral notes, slight hops, and underlying herbs. This is very Belgian like in some ways, but has a fresh hops characteristic that is unlike most Belgians. This is totally different from the Allagash version, and had nice earthy funky notes underlying the palate that come from the wild brettanomyces yeast. But, don't let the hint of funk scare you off - this is very balanced and not as volatile as some of the crazier wild ales. Big and flavourful, and yet very unique. 8.5% ABV. This is a great brew, and I'm greatly looking forward to the next offering, a collaboration between De Proef and Bell's brewing.

Excellent
$15 USD at Healthy Spirits

Driftwood Sartori "Wet Hopped" Harvest I.P.A.

Today I stopped by the 100th cask rotation at the Alibi Room here in Vancouver for a special selection of BC microbrewed beers. The place was hopping and filled with both beer geeks and beer industry, including many of the brewers themselves. There were quite a few one off beers being poured, but the one that really stood out to me was this unique "wet hopped" India Pale Ale from BC's newest brewery Driftwood.

"Wet hops" refers to the fact that this beer is brewed with fresh hops transported (while in water) directly from the hop farm to the brewery. Typically hops are dried before they are shipped and then added to the liquid product of the mash. Using fresh hops is uncommon, and adds a unique aromatic quality to the beer.

This particular I.P.A. had tons of flowers, fresh citrus and subtle forest notes. The cask made it very smooth drinking, but did not dull the punch of the hops. The hops were perfectly in balance and the IBU's present but in check. I'm not sure how to describe this beer any better, but I can say that I think this is by far the best I.P.A. I've had from British Columbia and I think it can compete with some of the best examples from the U.S. This beer is a superb accomplishment for such a young microbrewing industry, and if it is a sign of things to come, then the B.C. beer scene is about to get a heck of a lot more exciting.

Excellent
$6/pint - bottles no longer available, but hopefully will appear again next year.

Brouwerji Fonteinen Doesjel Old Lambic in Oak 2006

This Gueze Lambic is from the legendary Fonteinen of Belgium, who have become even more legendary after a warehouse fire destroyed their entire stock about a year ago. As a result, their beer prices shot up and the beers themselves became rare specialty commodities that collectors now prize highly.

Lucky for me, the last time I was in San Francisco, I stopped by Healthy Spirits, an awesome beer store in the Castro district, and found a bottle of this taunting me with its simple beauty. So yes, like any faithful beer geek I picked up a bottle.

I opened this a few months later, and found it to be one of the best Geuze style lambics I have had the fortune to taste. The nose has the classic notes of must, funk, damp cellar, oak, wood, and some dried fruits. This is very expressive aromatically and has crazy nuances that newer Geuzes just don't reveal.

The palate had citrus, dried apricot, wood, forest, and pine needles all mashed together in a very robust, and yet low alcohol, potion of goodness. The beer was smooth, slightly off-dry and had great complexity. In the end, it confirmed the legend - a rare and singular offering. If you ever see one of these beers pick it up immediately, you will not be disappointed.

Excellent
$15 / 375ml at Healthy Spirits

Brooklyn Brewing Black Chocolate Stout 06-07

I'm not sure that I've ever written up what is perhaps not only my favourite go to stout, but also one of the best balanced and most ageable stouts out there. Brooklyn's Black Chocolate Stout is actually not brewed with chocolate, but rather with copious amounts of chocolate malts. One can certainly taste and smell all levels of dark chocolate in this wonderfully made beer. Further, as part of an ongoing debate on twitter about chocolate and wine, I want to come out on my blog to say that in my opinion no alcohol pairs better with chocolate than stouts. The huge range of stouts is versatile and able to pair with the huge range of chocolate styles, which is precisely what I did with this amazing stout that I aged for 3 years before consuming.

The nose on the stout has vanilla, caramel, loads of chocolate and heavy roasted coffee. The palate is ridiculously smooth after 3 years in the bottle, and tasted like cigar, caramel, sugar, wood, dark roasted coffee and bitter cacao. These high alcohol stouts really only show their full potential when stored away for at least a year, many improving well beyond that. For me, big imperial stouts are the perfect dessert drink, much more so than sweet wines. 10% ABV.

Excellent
$2.75/375ml at BCLDB (for the current release 08-09)

Brasserie d'Ecaussinnes La Penneffoise

British Columbia has recently begun to improve its selection of craft beers, which is nice to see. However, most of them are merely solid but not overly exciting examples of a particular style. Perhaps I was spoiled by spending 5 months embroiled in California's thriving micro-brew culture, but my exposure to fine beers in the U.S. changed my perception of what is truly great.

This is all the more reason why I think this Belgian 'prune' beer is super. It has a level of complexity and experimentation that you rarely find in the BC market, and, well, it's just really darn tasty. Being a fruit beer, some might expect this to be based on a weisse style or on the lambic style. It's not really either of those - instead being a hybrid between a belgian strong ale and a wild ale.The nose on this is fantastic: similar to a geueze lambic or a beer made with brettanomyces yeast, this also has a nice wet forest/cellar smell while pushing subtle belgian fruit esters forward. The prune aromas is subtle but present.

Best of all, this beer is not made with added sugar or in a sickly fruity sweet style. You can still taste the prune and the fruit, but the beer actually finishes dry and wonderful. There is a degree of complex malting going on here that is similar to what Allagash or Lost Abbey do with their beers and something you don't taste very much in BC. This is very full and robust while being light and creamy in the mouth. The 8% ABV is completely unnoticeable. I'm sipping on this right now and thinking "I love this beer". If you want to taste a real beer in Vancouver, do not pass this by.

Excellent and Highly Recommended Value
$15 / 750ml at Viti

Oud Beersel Oud Geuze

Lambic is a kind of belgian beer made in a style with which most people are likely to be unfamiliar. Sour and tart on the palate, and often with funky, even bready, flavours, lambics can be an acquired taste for beer drinkers. However, these days sour beers inspired by the traditional Belgian lambics are becoming all the rage in the US microbrewing scene and have precipitated a wave of impressive beers from the likes of Russian River, Lost Abbey, etc.

However, even with all the excellent sours being made in the US, it is nice to go back to the source and try a traditional blended unflavoured geuze lambic (made from aged and young lambic and no added fruit). Further, given BC's severe lack of microbrews and interesting beers, it is nice to see a properly made (i.e. sour) gueze lambic on the shelves in the province.

This particular lambic had a nose with bread, funk, green apple, dry lager yeast, lemon and spice. The palate is sour, but also balanced with funky earth, must, bread and a ton of yeast flavours (kind of like rising bread smell). While not for all, this is a beer that anyone with an adventurous palate should taste and it is certainly an excellent authentic version of the Belgian lambic. And, as an added bonus, it pairs brilliantly with stilton cheese.

Excellent
$9/375ml at Viti or Brewery Creek

Russian River Brew Pub

So after all the festivities of #WBC09 Graham, Sean and I decided to hit up Russian River Brewing before heading back to San Francisco. And, as the saying goes it takes a lot of good beer to make a good wine. If all beer were as good as Russian River, well we might never get to the wine. Here are two video reviews of two fantastic sour beers brewed right in Sonoma. Cheers!







P.S. Thanks to Sean of Vinifico for providing the video equipment and editing these videos.

Deschutes Mirror Mirror 2009

Here we have a highly anticipated beer from Deschutes (of Bend, Oregon) in the same series as The Abyss, an extremely well respected barrel aged Imperial Stout. This, on the other hand, is a barrel aged barley wine - a suped up version of the Mirror Pond ale.

There is almost a Belgian element to the nose with solid fruit esters, candy and cherry. Upon first tasting this I realized that Deschutes' recommendation to age the beer for at least one year was warranted - while carbonated it was clear the yeast had yet to fully activate. But, unlike the Angel's Share, I have no doubt that this will have perfect carbonation in a year.

The palate here is really fantastic with raisins, caramel, wood, white chocolate and some grain flavours. This is very smooth and balanced and has a wonderful creamy texture. Even with all its flavour, this does not go over the top nor is it boozy. This puts it well ahead of the Angel's Share, and I think it will end up being a better beer.

Excellent to Excellent+ (esp. with age)
$12/22oz

Russian River Beatification Batch 3

Another experimental beer from California - this time a cross between a lambic and a wild ale. This is one sour puppy with an apple heavy nose and a palate with pineapple, a touch of vanilla, lime and lemon. This is woody and very clean and has great layering - but man does it make you pucker. For me that's fantastic, others may be put off by the sourness, even though it is by no means out of balance. Another extremely drinkable beer with a reasonable ABV (around 6%), this is creamy with some obvious lactic notes. Love it.

Excellent
$23/750ml at City Beer

The Greatest Beer in the World?

Today was a momentous day - the day I say goodbye to 10 years of post-secondary education and hello to my new Juris Doctor degree: yes, law school is now complete. As with any such momentous occasion, celebration must be extended over many days. This, given I just finished an exam a few hours ago, is my amuse bouche.




Westvleteren is considered by many to be not only the greatest Trappist brewery in the world, but also the producer of two of the world's best beers: Westvleteren 8 and 12. For those not in the know, Trappist breweries were traditionally operated by monks who use the proceeds to support their ascetic existence. Many of the Trappist breweries are now contracted commercial operations. Westvleteren, however, remains true to its origins. As such, one can only obtain the beer at the monestary on select days. Furthermore, the monks brew a limited amount of beer with no plans to expand. They make enough money to meet their needs and that's that. Accordingly, Westvleteren beers are extremely hard to come by and are perhaps some of the rarest in the world. Lucky for me I got my hands on two bottles of glorious monk's brew.


Westvleteren 8

Made in a dubbel style, this is really unlike any dubbel I've ever tasted. With a small but persistent head, this pours a cloudy dark brown in the glass. The nose is really spicy with some subtle fruit ester notes like plum and fig. Tasting this is quite unlike any other beer really - it's as if my Belgian dubbel jumped into bed with a wet temperate forest and produced a love child. The palate is slightly medicinal, has lots of spice and herbs, and finishes with a decent but very unique hop kick of grass and earth. I also got bread notes here, likely from the yeast. This beer is not at all sweet like many other Belgian beers, instead treading the line between subtle malt sweetness and the bitter complexity of multiple hop profiles. The finish here is disturbing in its length, which I measured at around 2-3 minutes. But, that's what hops can do. The booze is also very nicely integrated. In the end this has a sense of balance, restraint and provides the drinker with a profoundly refreshing dryness unheard of in Belgian dubbels. Just as the monk's would like it.

Excellent


Westvleteren 12

The granddaddy of all Quadrupels and considered by many to be the best beer in the world. Unfortunately for me, my bottle had some carbonation issues which ensured less aromatics due to a dissipated head. Nonetheless, this was just as unique as its less alcoholic brethren. The beer poured a malty burnt caramel brown in the glass - almost like liquified caramelized sugar. The nose had dates, raisins and caramel and promised more depth and intensity than the 8. Accordingly, this beer is distinctly sweeter than the 8 but still a lot less sweet than many Quadrupels with its very full palate of raisins, dates, figs and caramel. This also had a moderate hop finish - less hoppy than the 8 - that added forest, mushroom, leaves and dirt. I am not sure why my bottle had so little carbonation, but overall this beer has a great fullness and completeness to the flavours, which is quite uncommon. There really is so much going on in this beer you can't grasp it all in only one bottle. Very good stuff, I only wish I got the fully carbonated experience.

Excellent


In conclusion, what is so great about the Westy beers is their balance and their incredibly unique flavour profile. I've never tasted hops like this in a Belgian style beer and everything is put together with perfection as no element overwhelms the other. Many Quads and Dubbels rely so much on sweet malts and fruity yeasts that they lose a little complexity and completeness. That is not the case with these beers, which have every feature of the brewing process in perfect harmony: malt, hops and yeast as a choir rather than a rambling crowd. Are they the best beers in the world? I don't know - at least not for my palate. Are they incredibly unique and worth trying? Absolutely. A great treat for this great occasion.

Stone Vertical Epic 07

Pouring with a moderate head, the colour on this beer is a cloudy molten yellow. Made in a belgian strong ale style. With a lot of spice, citrus, pineapple, banana and other tropical fruit on the nose, this smells fantastic and is amazingly layered. The palate was full bodied (I think about 9% abv), and yet smooth and creamy. I tasted the same flavours as on the nose, but think it is worth noting the very long lingering finish. Also, the flavour layering on the palate is really subtley integrated and the beer is exceptionally easy to drink. A fantastic effort.

Excellent
$7/22oz at Ledger's Liquors

De Proef Flemish Primitive Wild Ale Batch #1 "Pig Nun"

Adorned with some Hieronymus Bosch monstrosities, this ferral beer is made in a unique style of brewing created in Belgium where wild native yeasts are used to "spontaneously ferment" the beer, which here seems to have started out as a blonde strong ale. Each batch is nicknamed after one of the strange creatures on its label - in this case a pig wearing a nun's habit.

I think this particular bottle, which I acquired at a Toronado cellar sale, had lost a little integrity in the cork as it came out a little too easily and the carbonation wasn't quite what I had hoped, thus giving the beer a significantly smaller head than expected. Nevertheless, all the classic blonde ale character was in the nose with lemon, sweet malts, and licorice root. The palate was where all the wildness came out, which was lesser than I expected, but still fantastic: bread, grains, biscuits, and a touch of funk gave the citrus and root flavours a real kick. Amazingly, despite the high alcohol (9%) this was very drinkable and clearly could be a great session beer (other than getting you hammered quickly).

The finish was very dry, and as the beer warmed it developed and changed its flavour profile with some pretty interesting funky and farm-like elements that are hard to describe. This is a chameleon on the palate and should be experienced by anyone who takes beer seriously. An outstanding creation. I can't wait to try some of the more recent batches with (hopefully) better carbonation than my bottle.Note: De Proef also makes some great collaborative wild ales with American Brewers in its "signature series".

Excellent
$15 at Toronado Cellar Sale

Jolly Pumpkin Madrugada Obscura Dark Dawn Stout

One does not usually see a sour stout, so I was pretty excited to try this extremely dense brew. The first sip of this is very exciting - incredibly robust, deep and flavourful and yet unique. The sourness adds a simply wonderful edge to the otherwise dark roasty flavours of chocolate and coffee. The sourness cuts the heavyness that can weight down many stouts, and the much higher than average carbonation adds a great mouthfeel to this superbly crafted stout. A beer for the jaded palate.

Excellent
$15 USD

Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca

I think wheat ales and sour flavours go absolutely fantastic together, and this is no exception. Very wit-like on the nose with spice, pepper and yeast, this is light on the palate and extremely refreshing. Correander, orange and lemon give this a tart and yet alive feeling on the palate. Smooth and balanced, this is a superb sour wit.

Excellent
$12/22oz USD

Dogfish Head Raison D'Extra

This is an extreme version of Dogfish Head's Raisin D'etre, a beer brewed with, yes, raisins. I've had both versions and am happy to report this is the better of the two. Almost like a barley wine, this is malty and sweet on the nose. The palate is distinctly raisin-y, but that adds quite a nice layer to the barley wine style body, with its strong alcohol. Well balanced, the alcohol is not dominating, even as it adds body. On a really basic level I enjoy this beer tremendously.

Excellent
$9 USD

Rodenbach Grand Cru

Having had the Rodenbach red ale a couple weeks ago at City Beer, I had to try this very rare Grand Cru from them - same beer but aged in oak. And, wow was it good. Like the red ale, but with more complexity, roundness and balance. Aged in oak for 8 months, the palate was very smooth and full with apple, pomegranate, dragon fruit, and blueberry. Awesome!

Excellent to Excellent+
$12 a bottle

Port Brewing Older Viscocity Ale 2008

Old Viscosity is a super intense dark stout. Older viscosity is Old Viscosity aged in Bourbon barrells. mmmmm. Wow, what a great beer: vanilla, caramella, brown sugar/molasses on the palate - but less creamy and vanilla-intense than the Goose Island I reviewed earlier. There is also a very interesting herbaciousness on the thick and syrupy palate. At 12% abv, you've got to drink this slowly. But why would you want to do anything other than peacefully enjoy a sip here and there of this magnificently intense brew.

Excellent
$20/bottle at Toronados (San Francisco)

J. W. Lees Harvest Ale Lagavulin Casks 2005

This beer defies a few preconceptions about what beer should be. Firstly, it is bottle conditioned and aged. Secondly, it is aged in Scotch barrels from Lagavulin. This is unlike any beer that a non-aficionado will have ever tasted.

The nose is very rich, very malty and caramelly. But this belies what lies underneath the barley wine-like nose. That is, when you take a sip you are confronted with intense scotch smokyness, a bit of peat, and a smooth and incredibly complex brew. While malty, this is more like drinking a cross between beer and scotch than anything else. Perhaps a bit too sweet for some (who should then consider Ola Dubh beer), but undeniably unique, complex, and a paradigm-shifter.

Excellent to Excellent+
$14/375ml at City Beer

Mikkeller Black Hole

I suppose one should call this a stout, but Mikkeller does not do much by the books. Apparently this is their attempt at reproducing Alesmith's famed Speedway Stout, which I have not been fortunate enough to try yet (although there is some hope). Nonetheless, this is an awesome super flavourful chocolate and coffee bean mash up. The malts are deep and complex, and the palate is thick and viscous. A subtle tinge of caramel or toffee glides through the dessert like palate. This beer has an incredible robustness, depth and balance. And it is the best I've had from Mikkeller. Pair this with rich meats and you will be in heaven, or at least lost in a gravitational abyss.

Excellent to Excellent+
$13/375ml at City Beer (San Francisco)