Beer - #203 - Epic and 8 Wired Brewing - I of the Zombie

A collaboration beer - I of the Zombie - a Black IPA,  with an ABV of 9%, or Epic Hop Zombie and the 8Wired iStout in one glass.

See : Beer – #38 – Epic – Hop Zombie  which I gave a 9 out of 10 score and  Beer – #42 – 8 Wired – iStout which I also gave a 9 out of 10 score .

Therefore result! At least in Pdubyah-world (which bears little in common with 'world')

I tried this at the Sky Sports Bar, and I thought gosh this is  unbelievably good.  Luck being what it is the Liquorland in Newmarket store had this "on tap" and also have a new 750ml 'growler' bottle that just shouted out "pick me - pick me!" Which is much more sensible than a 2 litre version, you'd have to agree.So to the store and I brought me some, to sit and savour.

750ml of a 9% ABV makes this something like 5.4 standard drinks. It's not a beer to take lightly.

As it's a Sunday, and there of course is sports on the teevee, I thought I'd take some time to enjoy this, because I don't think I'm going to enjoy watching my winless North Harbour team play the winless Manawatu team in the ITM Rugby. The 0 has to go, as they say. For one team. In Pdubyah-world this would be North Harbour of course. Of course.

The aroma is intensely hoppy, it pours a dark black, and has a fairly decent but receding head. Retains its hoppy aroma.

The taste, one of grassy hop bitterness, but balanced against a nice sweetness. Fairly decent carbonation. Decent length on the taste too, making a full on taste in the mouth.  I note too a decent lacing as I'm drinking this.- indicative of a lot of hops (he said with knowledge and certainty)

You would think then, if you were of the thinking kind that two 9 out of 10's would average a 9 for this, or better. the sum of the whole being bigger than the sum of the parts. I don't quite think it is though.

A delightful beer, bitter enough, different and of a character.  You have to go into this knowing though that a 9% ABV beer, at home, in front of the teevee is still a big ask. Lucky I have assistance from the lovely MrsPdubyah to provide me sustenance  and for those nice computer peeps to give me a spell checker, otherwise this could end badly.

To the arbitrary and random pdubyah-o-meter then, which says that this is a very good beer, although a little rough around the edges of bitterness. and it gets a lazy 8 making a very good beer.  I tip my hat to the Epic and 8Wired boffins who make this possible, and to North Harbour who at least went in at half-time leading.

Beer- #184 - Yeastie Boys - Golden Age of Bloodshed

Yeastie Boys - Golden Age of Bloodshed,  Which comes from Yeastie Boys and is brewed at Invercargill Brewery in the style of a  Spice/Herb/Vegetable beer. I've also seen this described as a Belgium Pale Ale.

It's a 6.5% ABV beer, and this time I got this in a "Growler" of 2 litres from the nice people at Liquorland in Newmarket, Auckland. 500mls of a 6.5% ABV beer should be about 2.8 Standard drinks, so a growler would be about 12-ish standard drink equivalents

This is a "heavily beeted Belgian blond"  beer, So what's in store is a beer that's likely to be very pink in colour and confused in taste.

There's nothing special on the aroma, a little spicy maybe.

It's a crazy pink colour, with a lively pink fluffy head that dies away to a film.

I wasn't expecting that colour to be honest. The Aroma doesn't change much either, remains vaguely spicy in a vague way.

So to the taste.

Which ends up being of not a lot of much. You'd expect something tart from the beetroot. And the Spicy aroma you'd think would be the base of a wheat type beer.

But there isn't anything definable.

This is a beer that isn't bitter, isn't sweet, does not have a sharp finish, or a tart beginning. It's a bit, well, boring.

As it warms a bit you get a bit of 'rough' in the middle but it's not heavy, harsh, or a note on it's own. And you might begin to pick up some background banana flavour (of all things)

It's also, being fair, thin. But it's not dull or insipid. It's sweet enough to be unobtrusive, but there isn't a personality.

Overall the pdubyah-o-meter says ----- 6 making it a bit average, but at the better end of average than the "meh" end. Yeastie Boys are a bit edgy at times and have a couple of spectacular hits, the His Majesty 2012 for instance, which is awesomsauce. This however is it's shadow, an absolute swing and a miss in terms of flavour profile, but again, it isn't unpleasant or undrinkable, and I'm easily going to finish this without wondering how I'll drink the last mouthful, and that's why it's a 6 not a 5 or less.

I've drunk much much worse beer than this in terms of a profile, or point taste. This doesn't have anything standout, and if you take out "where's the single taste point", or even "what's the point"  this isn't all that bad.

Beer - #80 - Yeastie Boys + Liberty Brewing - Yakima Raven

A few beers ago I tried the Yeastie Boys – Motueka Raven. This time I'm up for the Yakima Raven.

This one similarly brewed by the Yeastie Boys in their Invercargill Brewery in the style of a Black IPA.  Yeastie Boys are from Wellington, New Zealand, and Liberty Brewing, they're all over the internet.

"It’s a knee-trembling honour to face him in our annual Yakima/Motueka hop challenge. Try this US hopped Black IPA alongside our NZ version and experience the difference 11,500km makes."

And the thing is that it was a few beers since I had the Motueka Raven. So the challenge is with me.

There's a goodly fantastic beer bitterness smell as you open the tiny 330ml bottle of  6.5% ABV beer, Pours dark, with an off white head. The initial Hop aroma though fades quite quickly, as does the head, it's as if it all wanted to burst out at the one time. So we settle in for a low aroma beer.

The initial  taste isn't a disappointment either, lots of the bittery hop taste and a decent linger.  Underneath the hops you can taste the malts trying to do their thing, and they carry it off with some credit. This is a high burp beer.

All the time I'm thinking that I'm  not a fan, that I'm trying to like this in a really hard way, but there is the crash of the bitterness that is the thing. That's all the thing there is though. As it sits I do get a caramel on the aroma, that's somewhat pleasing. I liked this more as it warmed in the glass, but then it just finished and I had no more.

To the chase though, I'm not sure If I'm over thinking it, or that the bitterness is that's all Im going to get. I might not just get  the "Black IPA" thing, I might not get the IPA thing. Of the two beers though I think the first just shades it on it's overall balance. If it was a choice. I wish I'd had the foresight to try these side to side, back to back and then I'd be more sure of a winner.

I do think it's a terribly good idea to have a "similar but different" beer competition, even if it is amongst yourself.

The pudubyah-o-meter thinks that because this is just a shade bitter- all the time - that this is 6 from 10 arbitrary things from an equally arbitrary number. I'm worried that in my effort to like everything I'm being too kind.

The nice people at Liquorland stock these, and a goodly lot more beers besides, and as a bonus I found a gift card so this is a freebie!

Related articles

• Beer - #70 - Yeastie Boys - Motueka Raven (pdubyah.com)


• Yeastie Boys Digital IPA (coolmaterial.com)

 

Beer - #52 - Apache American Amber Ale

Apache American Amber Ale -  Brewed by Golden Eagle Brewery, in the style of an Amber Ale, and is brewed in Rolleston,  Just outside Christchurch, New Zealand.  It delivered in a convenient (pint) 500ml 5.6%ABV bottle.

Pure Canterbury water, barley & American hops are brought together with passion to create an amber ale with Zest!

Been around since 2002 or thereabouts. It's very hoppy and dark for an "amber ale"  which lead me to this discovery since I was really expecting 'amber' and not "dark'....

American Amber / Red Ale - Primarily a catch all for any beer less than a Dark Ale in color, ranging from amber (duh) to deep red hues. This style of beer tends to focus on the malts, but hop character can range from low to high. Expect a balanced beer, with toasted malt characters and a light fruitiness in most examples. The range can run from a basic ale, to American brewers who brew faux-Oktoberfest style beers that are actually ales instead of lagers.

An then I went "ahhh" I get it now. So turning the frown upside down your starter for 10 is "can I pour a beer with a head?" and you'd be right. Not this time.

Crikey that's hoppy. Very hoppy, a loud surprise hoppy- again crickey. That's somewhat pleasant. Wow, I'm totally at peace with the fact that mu ignorance leads to me a red ale, rather than something else. And having just had a "Leprechauns Belle" at the "Deep Creek Brewery" that won a bronze I can tell you the bar must be pretty low for that award. This is hands down a better beer by heaps.

Ok so else I get Hops, of course, and a pleasant malt that adds enough sweet to make this really somewhat a game of two halves. The hops makes you think of a bitterer mouthfeel the underlying malt taste balances that very well.

Lest I talk more nonsense I'll award some arbitrary points on the pdubyah-o-meter, and I can't lie this is 9 from 10. and it's a high 9 not a down-marked 9. If I could pour one with a head, and it had better lacing it's be 9.5 :). This is something of a pleasant and rewarding beer, and I'm really impressed, and for the jaded me that's something I look for.

In the adventure that is craft beer there are never many surprises, often you get too much carbonation, or mis-balance of hops, or malt, a thinness. Today I'm really quite impressed that I had to sit up and pay real attention to a fine beer. Seriously, try this, you'll be impressed.

The lovely people at Liquorland in Forest Hill for their selection deserve a mention.

Related articles

• CBAS 11: the beer list (therealcbas.wordpress.com)


• The Beer Nut: Making beer deep in the heart of the Bay State (milforddailynews.com)


• Two Bitter Beers (wine-by-benito.blogspot.com)


• Pale Ale (roaldsmeetsbeerinbelgium.wordpress.com)


• Sacketts Harbor War of 1812 Amber Ale (lenndevours.com)

Beer - #37 - Baird Beer - Baird Wabi Sabi IPA

Baird Brewing Company is a family-run craft brewery and pub business headquartered in Numazu, Japan.  The Baird Beer I have then is In the Style of an India Pale Ale (IPA), and it is from Numazu, Shizuoka, Japan.

Baird Wabi Sabi IPA. What's with that -  Baird Beer  is unfiltered and the addition of whole leaf green tea to Wabi-Sabi IPA has contributed a very strong particle sediment. Apparently.

It's a 6% ABV in a big 633ml bottle beer.

It's very pale, golden, hazy/cloudy and fizzy. it carries a small head, more of soda than beer. It's very hoppy/yeasty in aroma.

And it tastes like a traditional IPA, more in the american style or pale ale I'd suggest. And there is a bit of melange of flavor on the tongue. The taste carries long.

You can taste the tea!, unless I believe everything I read.

It's odd and yet not unwelcome. There is more of a smile than a frown in this. I'm sure the burp was natural and not because of the beer, honest. I'm quite chuffed with this selection, although I wish I'd taken heed of the sediment warning that I myself cut and paste in to this review. Still it won't harm me. And no, the burps seem to come as an undocumented feature. The head, you'll be pleased to know carries too. It looks like a beer, tastes like a beer, and by jolly it's a top effort!

Arbitrarily then this is about an 8.5 from 10 arbitrary things on the arbitrary pdubyah-o-meter. It wouldn't be out of place amongst some of the craft brews that are appearing in New Zealand and gives more than their fair share a decent run for the money, I like this beer.

「すごい！きれい！  as they say. And the Liquorland people in Forest Hill you rock too.

Related articles

• What Your Favorite Type Of Beer Says About You To A Date (howaboutwe.com)


• Bryan Baird's Newsletter (2012/04/30): May is Hop Madness Month; Two New Hoppy Seasonal Releases (shizuokagourmet.com)


• Review: Deviant Dales Pale Ale (boston.com)


• Beer Review: Threadless IPA [Finch's Beer Company] (twscritic.com)


• Who put that tea in my beer? (distaffsight.wordpress.com)

Beer – #25 in a series – "The Doctor" is in the house

Tonight for my delectation I have from The Sawmill Brewing company Leigh, procured me "the Doctor", a Dopplebock.

I looked it up, as I do, on the interwebtubes and they say

THE ‘DOCTOR’
A complex blend of four malts combined with a duo of traditional hop varieties. Rich, warm roasted caramel and toffee notes with a lasting finish and smooth mouth feel. For serious lovers of fine ales. ‘Strong, dark and handsome’. 6.5% alcohol by volume.

I love it when they talk it up. Stephen Bier Liked them and that's all I could find on the interwebtubes, I didn't really try that hard though, it has a name that'll pop up all sorts of weirdness, try it you'll see

So... It's 500ml of a 6.5% ABV beer and they present it in a swing top bottle, so it's looks fantastic, the white label, and the sticker over the swing, all little things that make you go mmm.

Before I even open it I'm worried now that I paid for design over substance, it's not often you'll get a small independent doing something a little odd.


Well Lordy! for dark beer this was dark!

It pours nice (technical term) and has a nice head. And it has a pleasing malt taste, with just enough edge to remind you that it's a beer from the strong end of the shelf. Very nice. And it sits well in the glass after a couple tastes. And (enthusiastic like) it's not a fizzy beer. You'll know what I mean if you know what I mean.

It is a beer that deserves to be with food however, but I'm not so sure it's a match for the prawn curry MrsPdubyah has in mind.

For me then this has then got some substance to back up it's style, and I'm glad I made a difficult choice today from the beer shelf at the Liquorland on Forrest Hill Rd.

And so onto the arbitrary Pdubyah-o-meter for some arbitrary points. This is a nice beer, with a nice taste and nice color, in a nice bottle with tiny writing that my old man eyes can't read, and it's a hit at 8 out of 10 arbitrary things out of 10. So there. Best beer for a while and I've had some corkers.

p.s. I lied about the old man eyes, I've got perfect fuzzy vision.
p.p.s. Didn't spill beer on the keyboard again, that's like 3 in a row now.