Quick Riffs: Three Western Beers and Some British Dude

How’s ‘bout some Quick Riffs to keep my hand in the game, eh?

Sonoran Brewing
Victorian India Pale Ale
Sampled at the Mellow Mushroom on Happy Valley Road and I-17
(Bar sampling – sorry no photo.)

Even before making the ridiculous commitment to concentrate on only western beers, I’ve been eager to try local beers but I don’t believe I’ve sampled any of their products before. Here’s the dope straight from the notebook:

A bit dark for an IPA – I like the look of it. Steady beading with small bubbles. Sturdy looking off white head, heavy, heavy lacing. No smell of pineapple or citrus or sawdust. There’s definitely a nutty roasted component but if I were to do a blind tasting on this I would not peg it as an IPA. This is good but to me it misses the mark stylistically – more like an amber ale I think.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t probably going to have at least one more glass of this, since it may be part of the Mellow Mushroom’s Beer Club 75 required beers. Yeah, I’ll get around to joining that at some point.

Sierra Nevada
Glissade Golden Bock

I know “bock” is somehow related to the German word for “goat” and I’ve often associated “bock” beers with the prospect of getting head-butted in the nads by a goat (is it “nads” or “knads” or maybe “nards”?). But my perceptions are frequently wrong. This one weighs in at a simple 6.4% abv so there’s no nad-, knad- or nard head butting to speak of. Here’s the scoop on this goat:
Clear, light gold color with a thin white head. Smells nice; sweet vaguely grainy. Thicker mouth feel than I expected. Grainy but robust taste. Somewhat dry at the finish. Puts me in mind of what our dad’s beers probably tasted like back in the good old days.

I’d heard some negative comments about this one and for sure it’s not what you’d expect from Sierra Nevada in terms of taste and style, however in the area of quality and taste, it’s the typical top notch product most of us have come to expect from the Sierra Nevada crew. I’ll try it again.

Darwin Brewery (Durham, England)
Original Flag Porter

Sure, not a “Western Beer” but a unique thing to sample. Picked up a single at Total Wine back in early January and sampled it on January 9th. The notes for that date read: Brown like coffee, not opaque. Fair head, quickly gone. No beading visible. Malty smelling, thin mouth feel. Definitely comes across as a porter but the actual taste is weak – faintly roasted but not much else. I can quickly name 5 or six that are better. (Deschutes, Alaskan, Flying Dog, Stone…that’s four right off the top of my noggin.)

This beer’s claim to fame is some old yeast that was apparently dredged up from a sunken ship in the English Channel or Thames River. I love a cool story and that’s a cool story, so this one passes in my book, but I’m wondering why the porter isn’t listed on Darwin’s website.

What the heck was I drinking a year ago?

Alaskan Smoked Porter 2008
From the beer notebook entry for February 25, 2009:
Alaskan Smoked Porter 2008. Pours dark with a tan head. Smells like cigarette smoke, maybe fish. Smokiness is immediately obvious. Medium thick mouth feel. Roasted, sooty finish. Woody and rich.

As an endorsement of this terrific beer, I’ll simply say that I’ve already had some of the 2009 vintage. Plan to get some more, too.

My first instinct is to be pissed off….

Just got wind of the fact that Deschutes has chosen to discontinue their Cinder Cone Red and replace it with the Red Chair NWPA. I’ll be in therapy if you need me.

Wait, before I hit the therapist’s couch, I’m off to anyplace that stocks six-packs of this terrific endangered species! Know a place that stocks it in the greater Phoenix area, let me know…PLEASE.

Meanwhile. A picture from happier times…..ahhh.