Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Beer of the Week: Mayflower IPA



Happy Thanksgiving!

This IPA is an under appreciated one. It's combination of just enough bitterness to get your attention and sweet caramel body makes it a wonderful balanced offering. I may be a bit biased because this is one of my favorite local breweries ,Mayflower Brewing of historic Plymouth, Massachusetts. They use Nugget, Simcoe,  Glacier and Amarillo hops blended with Two Row Pale, Munich and Caramel Munich 40 malt to make a wonderful balanced IPA. All of that is combined using the same local fresh water that the Pilgrims survived on when they landed here in 1620. Combine all of this makes a west coast style pine citrus aroma with a subtly sweet caramel malt taste and finish.

Mayflower Brewing
12 Resnick Road
Plymouth Massachusetts 02360

They have a retail store plus tours and tastings. Check website for details.

Friday, November 21, 2014

Beer for Thought: Drink what you like


Drink whatever you like. It does not matter to me. Admittedly when I started exploring the craft beer scene I fell into criticizing or picking on those macro-pale lager drinkers wondering what was wrong with them. I didn't understand them. Don't they want more than your typical big beer pale lager full of adjuncts. Yuck!


I also saw the documentary "Beer Wars" which fed into this mania of big beer verses the noble small business brewers. The big beer companies painted as the evil empire with Anheuser-Busch (as the Emperor) and MillerCoors (as Darth Vader) against the rebels scum played by the craft brewers. We see the battles and dirty tricks the evil empire pulls trying to squeeze on our valiant heroes(Led by Luke Skywalker). I don't say that they don't. If you read up on the early history of these companies is that they've been aggressive and been pulling shenanigans for over a century in this country.It's always been there and always will.

 The poor adjunct pale lager perhaps doesn't deserve all the hate it gets. How did it get so popular? People drank it and a lot of it. Early brewers noticed that people(mainly American's) would drink massive quantities of this stuff. Let's face most companies, whatever they produce or provide, will follow the cash flow. So what did they make? Pale  Lager. The trend actually started in Europe and even squashed many other types of beer that were made. When they immigrated to America it came along with them and it exploded in the new country.


I'll respect whatever your choice of beer make. Sometimes I even drink a brew from the evil empire too. More often than not I'm drinking something else besides that. More than likely I'll be drinking something brewed by those rebellious craft brewers. I try to be open about what try and not judge by who makes it. I judge beer by my own taste and no one else. I'd encourage you to have an open mind about beer. Maybe suggest a starter brew at most. I find it fun to explore different beers. I think your missing out on some pretty good beers if you restrict yourself otherwise.

So whether it be Bud Light, Coors Light, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, DogFish Head 60 Minute, Duvel or a Heady Topper drink up and enjoy. Your in good company because your enjoying the best beverage in the world.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

The Right Glass


I admit most of my beer glass collection is of the utilitarian "American Shaker Pint" with various logos. I'm not too picky what I put my suds in, I know that's blasphemous to some. I do have a hefeweizen glass and Guinness glass for those occasions. I also have the classic Samuel Adams glass too.  How do you drink your brew?

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Harpoon Leviathan IPA

Usually when people think of craft beer in Boston they immediately think of Samuel Adam's which is brewed by Boston Beer Company. Little do people know that Harpoon Brewing is actually Massachusetts largest brewer and even has a second brewery in Vermont to keep up with demand.They are well known for the Harpoon IPA and UFO offerings.


Today's offering is Harpoon's Leviathan IPA which is an Imperial/Double IPA. I've seen this around in store quite a bit but for whatever reason never chose it. I finally did and I wasn't disappointed. Here is my review from RateBeer.com:

Hazy caramel body with a tinge of orange. Half inch foam off-white head that fades to thin film with a smattering of moderate bubbles. Aroma is a citrus with an apple-like crispness in the background. Some earthy pine can be detected. Initial blast of bitterness is noticeable but not overwhelming.Malt sweetness reminds me of apple with some sourness in the finish. Has a nice wet and sweet finish. Feels on the heavy side but still drinkable. It’s seems to say I’m friendly drink with a serious side. I look forward to more of these and I’ll recommend them too.

Fast Beer Facts:

First Brewed in 2008
Style: Imperial IPA
ABV - 10.0%
IBU (Bitterness) - 90
 
I gave it a 4.1 out 5.Worth a try!

That's No Moon!

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Newburyport Fall Beer Fest

As soon as the wife comes back from the gym I'm headed to to historic Newburyport, Massachusetts for the Newburyport Fall Beer Fest. It'll be a long drive so I hope to be off soon. 

I'm also checking out some sights too as it's where my ancestors first settled the town of Newbury in 1635. My ancestor in fact was tasked with the first "Ordinary" which     is another term for tavern. It'll be interesting. Cheers!