September 29, 2005 - #82 of 365

Brewer: Richbrau Brewing Company (Virginia, USA)
Beer: Big Nasty Porter
Style: Porter
abv: 6.4%

Background: Bottle with a comical dog from Kroger on Broad.

Appearance: Pours black with a perfect-size off-white head.

Aroma: Roasted malts and sweet chocolate.

Flavor: Very subtle, but delicious. Pretty sweet up front, with a roasted malt bitterness at the end. There’s a very light metallic aftertaste that gets in the way.

Notes: Surprisingly good. I needed a break from all those damned Belgians.

Rating: 3.6 out of 5

September 28, 2005 - #81 of 365

Brewer: Brasserie d’Achouffe (Achouffe, Belgium)
Beer: Mc Chouffe
Style: Scotch Ale
abv: 8.5%

Background: Bottle with a cute little gnome on it from the Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours murky brown with a tan head that recedes quickly.

Aroma: Huge aroma of spices, yeast, plum, toffee, and brown sugar.

Flavor: Pretty intense. Matches the aroma, for the most part, though it is a little sweeter than the smell suggested. Some phenols toward the end. Very good woody aftertaste.

Notes: Not bad.

Rating: 3.6 out of 5

September 27, 2005 - #80 of 365

Brewer: Gale’s (Hampshire, England)
Beer: Millennium Brew
Style: English Strong Ale
abv: 10%

Background: Bottle from Mike’s. Brewed in 1997 to be ready for the millennium.

Appearance: Amber with no head.

Aroma: Very vinous, with some sweet toffee.

Flavor: Tastes like a 2000 Chateauneuf-du-Papes (fairly highly-rated wine) I had recently, with a little vinegar in the background (on account of the age).

Notes: As far as beer goes, it’s fourth, even fifth, rate. But it’s an excellent wine. Definitely a very unique beer.

Rating: 3.2 out of 5

September 26, 2005 - #79 of 365

Brewer: De Dolle Brouwers (Diksmuide, Belgium)
Beer: Boskeun
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
abv: 8.9%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar. An Easter beer.

Appearance: Pours cloudy orange-gold with a large, creamy, white head. There’s a lot of stuff suspended in this one.

Aroma: Smells like a caramel apple with a splash of lemon juice and two or three slices of fresh-baked bread.

Flavor: Jesus, that’s intense. Very sweet at the beginning, then a huge spiciness comes through. The finish is long-lasting and slightly hoppy, with a hint of honey at the very end.

Notes: A little overpowering up front, but the aftertaste is incredible. It gets much better after a few sips.

Rating: 3.9 out of 5

September 25, 2005 - #78 of 365

Brewer: Brasserie de l’Abbaye des Rocs (Montignies-sur-Roc, Belgium)
Beer: Triple Imperiale
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
abv: 10%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours dark brown with a one and a half-finger light head. There are none of the floaties of the Brune and Grand Cru.

Aroma: Coriander, plum, cola, and alcohol.

Flavor: Very sweet, with a plum and candy sugar beginning, nutty middle, and sweet, long-lasting finish.

Notes: Good. Thinner than other Abbaye des Rocs offerings, but very spritzy. Excellent autumn beer.

Rating: 4 out of 5

September 24, 2005 - #77 of 365

Brewer: Stone Brewing Company (California, USA)
Beer: 8th Anniversary Ale
Style: American Strong Ale
abv: 7.8%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar. Brewed in August 2004.

Appearance: Pours very dark brownish-red with a small dark head.

Aroma: Has the caramel and toffee of an Oktoberfest, the smokiness of a Scotch Ale, and the subtle hop qualities of an American Amber. Very bready, with some alcohol.

Flavor: Very sweet—the caramel and toffee take over in the flavor. There is some roasted malt flavor and hop bitterness, but it mostly tastes like a caramel candy. Slightly smoky finish.

Notes: Smooth and delicious.

Rating: 4.1 out of 5

September 23, 2005 - #76 of 365

Brewer: Smuttynose Brewing Company (New Hampshire, USA)
Beer: Shoals Pale Ale
Style: Pale Ale
abv: 5%

Background: Bottle from Vintage Wines. It’s an English-style Pale Ale, which means it’s has more maltiness to balance the hops. The hops are generally English varieties.

Appearance: Pours orangish-amber with a half-finger off-white head. Slow effervescence.

Aroma: Soapy hops and bready malts.

Flavor: Very nice malt character up front, with a good amount of hop bitterness at the end. Not over the top with either flavor.

Notes: Good. My bottle’s a little old for a Pale Ale (my fault—I hadn’t gotten around to drinking it), so I’ll be generous.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

September 22, 2005 - #75 of 365

Brewer: Orkney (Highlands and Islands Breweries--Quoyloo, Scotland)
Beer: Skullsplitter
Style: Scotch Ale
abv: 8.5%

Background: Viking-labeled bottle from Vintage Wines.

Appearance: Pours clear deep red with a one-finger tan head. There is some effervescence, but that may just be because I have a dusty glass.

Aroma: Like a Doppelbock with some added smokiness—dark fruit, toffee, and an underlying peaty smell.

Flavor: Very smooth up front, with the slightest fruit (plum, banana, and grape) taste. It finishes with some alcohol and a nice subtle smoky/peaty flavor.

Notes: Pretty darn good.

Rating: 3.7 out of 5

September 21, 2005 - #74 of 365

Brewer: De Dolle Brouwers (Diksmuide, Belgium)
Beer: Arabier
Style: Belgian Ale
abv: 7%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours orange-gold with a very Belgian head—large and rocky—and a lot of stuff floating around. Swirling effervescence.

Aroma: Candy sugar, citrus, Belgian yeast notes, spices (I’m gonna say cardamom and coriander and pepper). The smell becomes almost floral as it warms.

Flavor: Starts phenolic and spicy, with leathery notes. Toward the end, a floral hop flavor comes through and the finish is a dose of surprising hop bitterness and peppery spiciness.

Notes: I’d almost call it a Belgian Pale Ale. These De Dolle guys are good.

Rating: 3.8 out of 5

September 20, 2005 - #73 of 365

Brewer: Russian River Brewing (California, USA)
Beer: Temptation
Style: Belgian Ale
abv: 7.25%

Background: Cool-looking 12.7 ounce bottle from the Vintage Cellar. This beer is made like a normal Belgian Ale, then aged in oak for a year with Brettanomyces yeast. Brettanomyces is the yeast responsible for the sourness of Lambics and Flemish Sours.

Appearance: Pours hazy gold with a huge white head, some effervescence, and a whole lot of lacing.

Aroma: Interesting. Smells like a good Gueuze mixed with an Orval. The main aroma is a funky sourness, but there’s also some citrus and oak. Some phenols come out with a swirl.

Flavor: Tastes a lot like a toned-down Gueuze. There’s a lot of sourness up front and some standard Belgian Ale flavors (cross between an Orval and an Ommegang Rare Vos) backing it up. Nice, subtle oak flavor, too.

Notes: Very unique. A fuller body would make this one incredible.

Rating: 4 out of 5

September 19, 2005 - #72 of 365

Brewer: De Dolle Brouwers (Diksmuide, Belgium)
Beer: Dulle Teve
Style: Abbey Tripel
abv: 10%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar. The name means “Mad Bitch,” and the label depicts just that.

Appearance: Pours a lovely hazy gold with a gigantic white head and lots of effervescence. As the head recedes (slowly, leaving lots of lacing), the middle remains—a pockmarked ziggurat of foam.

Aroma: Very spicy. I don’t know my spices very well, so that’s about all I can tell you. I can pick out some pepper. Apart from the spices, it’s bready, yeasty, and a little salty.

Flavor: The spiciness is in the flavor (especially the pepper, which comes through clearly in the finish). There’s a little bit of funk, some wood, a lambic-like sourness, and a surprising dose of hops at the end. The alcohol is imperceptible.

Notes: Unlike any Tripel I’ve tried before. With a little tweaking, it could contend with Allagash’s.

Rating: 4.2 out of 5

September 18, 2005 - #71 of 365

Brewer: Brasserie Rochefort (Rochefort, Belgium)
Beer: 10
Style: Abt
abv: 11.3%

Background: Bottle courtesy of my Dad.

Appearance: Pours deep brown—nearly black—with a large, rocky, tan head that stays there.

Aroma: Leather and plum/prune hit me first, then raisins, chocolate, candy sugar, and some brandy-like alcohol.

Flavor: Huge. The alcohol lets you know it’s there, but also lets the other flavors through unimpeded. Dark fruits and sweet chocolate are the most noticeable, but there is also some vanilla, oak, and lighter fruit. Incredible dry, raisiny finish. The alcohol is less noticeable as it warms, allowing everything else to come forward and mix perfectly.

Notes: Dances on the tongue like alliteration, in smooth and satisfying steps.

Rating: 4.6 out of 5

September 17, 2005 - #70 of 365

Brewer: Victory Brewing Company (Pennsylvania, USA)
Beer: Old Horizontal
Style: Barley Wine
abv: 11%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours deep red with a small off-white head.

Aroma: Raisiny, bready malts and light floral hops.

Flavor: Very smooth—malty beginning, hop bitterness in the finish. No sign of alcohol.

Notes: I think I prefer English Barley Wines.

Rating: 3.8 out of 5

September 16, 2005 - #69 of 365

Brewer: Lagunitas Brewing Company (California, USA)
Beer: Maximus
Style: Double India Pale Ale
abv: 7.5%

Background: Bottle from the Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours amber-orange with a large pearl head. Decent lacing.

Aroma: A hop and bread sandwich.

Flavor: Very citrusy flavor, with a piney finish. Not as extreme as the Legend Double IPA, but creamy in the mouth and fairly delicious.

Notes: I’m on a roll.

Rating: 3.9 out of 5

September 15, 2005 - #68 of 365

Brewer: J.W. Lees (Manchester, England)
Beer: Harvest Ale (1998)
Style: Barley Wine
abv: 11.5%

Background: 9.6 ounce bottle from the Vintage Cellar. Let’s see how the past seven years have treated this one.

Appearance: Pours deep reddish-brown with a small off-white head. There are floating bits in there, so that from the side it looks like a time-lapse video of a brown night sky.

Aroma: Molasses, butter, banana, raisins, and I swear I smell a hint of bleach.

Flavor: Intensely sweet. Figs, brown sugar, maple syrup, and anise are the star players, with bready malts, alcohol, tobacco, and firearms sitting the bench. I’m kidding about the firearms. (Actually, there is a slight cordite taste.) It has that dry tobacco finish of the Lagavulin-aged sample, but it’s not as pronounced.

Notes: Drink slowly, and you shall reap the flowers of a thousand meadows. That’s what happens when you let Li Po write your notes.

Rating: 4 out of 5

September 14, 2005 - #67 of 365

Brewer: Cantillon (Brussels, Belgium)
Beer: Rosé de Gambrinus
Style: Frambroise Lambic
abv: 5%

Background: Bottle from Once Upon a Vine. The label depicts a man fondling a naked woman. That’s pretty much why I bought the beer.

Appearance: Pours orange-amber with a slight red tint and a half-finger head.

Aroma: Funky, tart, and fruity—in that order.

Flavor: Ever eat a Sourpatch Kid? Well, it tastes like that, only with a funky background, like if you ate a strong cheese and then a Sourpatch Kid. The raspberry comes through slightly with a pleasant tartness. This one’ll pucker your lips.

Notes: That’s nice.

Rating: 3.9 out of 5

September 13, 2005 - #66 of 365

Brewer: Brouwerij Oud Beersel (Beersel, Belgium)
Beer: Oude Geuze Vieille
Style: Gueuze
abv: 6%

Background: Bottle from Vintage Cellar.

Appearance: Pours slightly hazy gold with a large head that quickly settles down to a dense half-finger layer of foam. Champagne-like effervescence.

Aroma: Feet and strong cheese—just like a Gueuze should smell like. There are also light fruit and brine notes.

Flavor: Very subtle funkiness and sparkling grape juice on the front of the tongue, but on the back corners it hits you like a Category 5 hurricane (too soon?) with a mélange of leather, strong funk, pear, and the riding pants of a horse enthusiast. One of the driest finishes I’ve found in a beer.

Notes: Wow. I dare you to find a champagne better than this stuff. I think I know what I’ll be serving at my wedding.

Rating: 4.3 out of 5



Not the best background, I know.

September 12, 2005 - #65 of 365

Brewer: Magic Hat Brewing Company (Vermont, USA)
Beer: #9
Style: Fruit Beer
abv: 5.1%

Background: “3/4 pint” bottle. Also known as a 12 ounce bottle. These guys have already pissed me off.

Appearance: Pours dark gold with a small head that goes away quickly.

Aroma: Musty and fruity, like an attic full of apricots.

Flavor: Apricots, biscuity malts, and caramel.

Notes: If you like apricots, go for it. If you like beer, go for something else.

Rating: 2.7 out of 5


The batteries in my camera are dead.

September 11, 2005 - #64 of 365

Brewer: Steve’s friend, Pete—his friend.
Beer: Untitled
Style: “Wood Alcohol” (“Jesus, you can’t get alcohol from wood—no fermentable sugars!”
abv: supposedly 10%

Background: Drunk from a one-gallon plastic jug at an apartment in Salem.

Appearance: Didn’t pour, but was murky brown in the bottle—like that Food Lion brand sweet tea.

Aroma: I didn’t stick my nose in the jug, but I couldn’t smell anything when I was near it.

Flavor: When cold, it tasted like sweet tea, Gatorade, and a six year old amber ale. No hops, no maltiness, no beer flavors, really. As it warmed it became harsher, with notes of bad green tea and the James River (the James River part being Steve’s observation, which I wholeheartedly agree with). The alcohol, however, was well-masked.

Notes: Made me sick. Possibly the worst thing I’ve ever put into my mouth. The germs of the other three guys who were drinking it didn’t sweeten the deal. Everything liquid shouldn't be, and more.

Rating: 0.6 out of 5

September 10, 2005 - #63 of 365

Brewer: Augustiner-Bräu
Beer: Maximator
Style: Doppelbock
abv: 7.5%

Background: Bottle from Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg.

Appearance: Pours brown with a one-finger tan head.

Aroma: Toffee, plum, and sweet, sweet sugar.

Flavor: Caramel, roasted malts, toffee, and brown sugar.

Notes: Very sweet. Good.

Rating: 3.6 out of 5

September 9, 2005 - #62 of 365

Brewer: Legend Brewing Company (Virginia, USA)
Beer: Hefeweizen
Style: Hefeweizen
abv: 5.1%

Background: Bottle from Kroger on Broad Street. Let’s hope these guys can redeem themselves.

Appearance: Pours amberish-yellow with a too-small head (albeit not as small as the Smuttynose’s).

Aroma: Very clovey. Also something that smells like nutmeg mixed with donkey pee. But that’s faint.

Flavor: Good bready and citrusy start, but the finish is just a little rubbery and medicinal.

Notes: I’d blame the off flavors on a bad bottle, but I’ve had Legend before.

Rating: 2.8 out of 5

(not worth a picture)

September 8, 2005 - #61 of 365

Brewer: Brasserie de l’Abbaye des Rocs (Montignies-sur-Roc, Belgium)
Beer: Grand Cru
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
abv: 9.5%

Background: Bottle from the store.

Appearance: Pours brown and chunky, though less so than their Brune in both departments. A large pearl head leaves some lacing. When looking for effervescence (impossible in so murky a beer), I noticed that the chunks move about in some seemingly choreographed dance of deliciousness.

Aroma: Raisins, chocolate, leather, honey, fruits both dark and light, licorice.

Flavor: In a word, elegant. The commercial description says something about cherries dipped in caramel, and I sort of agree. I’m also getting that chocolate, honey, and a bit of the leather. Some nutty notes, as well. The finish is dry, but a sweetness creeps back in a couple seconds after the swallow.

Notes: I’d venture to say that it’s better than the Brune, which I thought was the final word on Belgian Strongs. This one is a bit sweeter up front and a bit longer-lasting on the finish.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

September 7, 2005 - #60 of 365

Brewer: Lancaster Brewing Company (Pennsylvania, USA)
Beer: Milk Stout
Style: Sweet Stout
abv: 5.3%

Background: Bottle from the store.

Appearance: Pours black with absolutely no head. I even poured extra vigorously.

Aroma: Roasted malts and sweet chocolate.

Flavor: The sweet chocolate becomes semi-sweet and then bitter by the end of the sip. Roasted malts back the transition nicely. There is a little of the sourness found in dry stouts, and it finishes quite dry.

Notes: Pretty good.

Rating: 3.4 out of 5

September 6, 2005 - #59 of 365

Brewer: Brouwerij Het Anker (Mechelen, Belgium)
Beer: Gouden Carolus Triple
Style: Abbey Tripel
abv: 9%

Background: 11.2 ounce bottle from Once Upon a Vine.

Appearance: Pours hazy orangish-amber with a large rocky head that sticks around for a while. When it finally recedes it leaves a frothy mesa in the middle of the glass and near-solid lacing on the sides.

Aroma: Very spicy and citrusy—oranges, fresh bread, and coriander dominate. And I swear there’s some brine in there somewhere.

Flavor: Bread and phenols. Mediciney, acidic, and lip-puckering. There’s a slight hop finish, but that’s somehow pre-overpowered by the first flavors.

Notes: It had a wonderful appearance and aroma, but the flavor fell quite a bit short of my thusly formed expectations.

Rating: 3.6 out of 5

September 5, 2005 - #58 of 365

Brewer: Brouwerij Oud Beersel (Beersel, Belgium)
Beer: Oude Kriek Vieille
Style: Kriek Lambic
abv: 6.5%

Background: Bottle from the store.

Appearance: Pours deep red with a gigantic pink head. Not one for gentlemen to drink in public. Very slow effervescence.

Aroma: I was expecting a blast of cherries, but got a noseful of Gueuze funkiness backed by a raspberry-like tartness and a slight hint of cherry.

Flavor: The Gueuze really shows through in the taste, as well. Very funky and barnyardy, with, again, just a hint of cherry in the back of the mouth.

Notes: Very good. If you want to taste a true fruit Lambic, drop the Lindemans and pick up the Oud Beersel.

Rating: 3.9 out of 5



These pictures will get better; this'll do for now.

September 4, 2005 - #57 of 365

Brewer: Smuttynose Brewing Company (New Hampshire, USA)
Beer: Weizenheimer
Style: Hefeweizen
abv: ratebeer.com doesn’t know

Background: Bottle from Vintage Wines.

Appearance: Pours hazy mustard yellow with a head that’s entirely too small. The top three inches of my wheat beer glass are lonely.

Aroma: Light aroma of cloves and bread.

Flavor: Kind of odd—a mix between an American Wheat and a Hefeweizen. There are light banana and clove flavors, but there’s also a small hop bite at the end. Dry, with a very bready finish.

Notes: They should have gone full-out German with it.

Rating: 3 out of 5

September 3, 2005 - #56 of 365

Brewer: Hacker-Pschorr Brau (Munich, Germany)
Beer: Oktoberfest-Märzen
Style: Oktoberfest/ Märzen
abv: 5.8 %

Background: Bottle from the store. It’s about that time of year.

Appearance: Pours red-amber with a small tan head.

Aroma: Very malty, with hints of caramel and toffee.

Flavor: Very malty, with hints of caramel and toffee.

Notes: Only a decent example of an Oktoberfest, and too expensive to megasession.

Rating: 3.1 out of 5

September 2, 2005 - #55 of 365

Brewer: J.W. Lees (Manchester, England)
Beer: Harvest Ale (Lagavulin)
Style: Barley Wine
abv: 11.5%

Background: Bottle from Once Upon a Vine. J.W. Lees Harvest Ale is the classic Old World Barley Wine. This one is aged in Lagavulin whisky casks and was bottled in 2004.

Appearance: Pours reddish-amber with a single layer of bubbles on top.

Aroma: Smoke, oak, dark fruit, light hops. Faint but complex.

Flavor: Very sweet. Unfortunately reminds me of the Utopias, just not as sickening. Alcohol is well-masked. There’s a very nice dry oak, peat, and tobacco finish that leaves me feeling like I just smoked a cigar. Seriously. That’s awesome.

Notes: The sweetness is somewhat overpowering, but that aftertaste completely makes up for it.

Rating: 3.9 out of 5

September 1, 2005 - #54 of 365

Brewer: Dogfish Head Brewing Company (Delaware, USA)
Beer: 60 Minute IPA
Style: India Pale Ale
abv: 6%

Background: Bottle from Vintage Wines. Continuously hopped for 60 minutes (they have a 90 minute and a 120 minute, too—the 120 is over 20% alcohol).

Appearance: Pours orange with a one finger white head.

Aroma: Relatively weak grassy hops.

Flavor: Great malt profile, but could stand to be a little more hoppy.

Notes: Good session IPA.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5