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Lagunitas Aunt Sally

I didn't really think I would like this one. It's a sour mash beer. That means they do the mash (mix grain with water at about 146F-156F with about 1lb of grain per qt of water) then let it sit for an extended period of time. All grain has the bacteria lactobacillus on it. The mashing process doesn't kill it all. By letting the mash sit after it starts to cool the lactobacillus takes off and causes the mash to go sour. Then the liquid is collected and boiled like normal. Berliner Weisse is also made using a sour mash. I guess some whiskey is made this way, too. Makes sense since if all you did was heat up the mash and then leave it alone until it cooled by itself you'd have a sour mash.

Okay, so cool story about sour mash aside, it was an easier to drink beer than I feared it might be. Lagunitas is a pretty big "craft" brewery. I'd bet people who really like sour mash beers find this one lacking. I bet people who don't like sour mash beers still don't really like this beer. So I think only people who want to seem like they like sour mash beers, even though they don't actually like them, will be able to down this guy.

I just don't see who else would want it.

I'm having some negative reviews tonight. I don't know. I'm being honest.
 
.50 Caliber IPA

Now it has a somewhat confusing label. It says it's an IPA. That means something sort of specific sometimes. But it also does say it's ".50 Cal" IPA. That leads me to believe it's a little "bigger" than average. Something I confirmed right there at the liquor store because it says 8.5%abv right on the can. A peculiarity about the can is that is has a sticker on it. The can is not printed like every other can I've ever seen in my entire life, this can has a sticker on it.

So this is what I would consider your standard issue DIPA or IIPA (Double IPA or Imperial IPA). The malt profile is up there. The hop flavors are very present. The alcohol level is noticeable. All of it is very much like the majority of DIPAs I've had. If you like Hop Rising from Squatters and you want 0.5% less alcohol and a more expensive beer, give .50 Caliber a try.
 
Bulletproof said:
.50 Caliber IPA

Now it has a somewhat confusing label. It says it's an IPA. That means something sort of specific sometimes. But it also does say it's ".50 Cal" IPA. That leads me to believe it's a little "bigger" than average. Something I confirmed right there at the liquor store because it says 8.5%abv right on the can. A peculiarity about the can is that is has a sticker on it. The can is not printed like every other can I've ever seen in my entire life, this can has a sticker on it.

So this is what I would consider your standard issue DIPA or IIPA (Double IPA or Imperial IPA). The malt profile is up there. The hop flavors are very present. The alcohol level is noticeable. All of it is very much like the majority of DIPAs I've had. If you like Hop Rising from Squatters and you want 0.5% less alcohol and a more expensive beer, give .50 Caliber a try.
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All of Vernal brewing beers have the sticker on them. I didnt really like the .50 caliber beer much. It reminded me of a lot of Epic beers. Trying to be high point but not good beers. I do really like a couple beer from them, mostly their directional smoked porter. Which is really good for a 4% beer.

I am shocked you didnt like the Hop Nosh more. I thought that would be up your alley. A pretty bitter IPA and really has the strong tangerine smell but only the bitter tangerine flavor. This might be one of my top 10 favorite IPAs.

Slick City is also pretty good. I keep meaning to try more of their beers but never get around to it. Their brewery is a pretty cool spot with nice employees.

Los Locos is fine for what it is. I would rather just get a Tecate and add lime and salt though... Or even better add Tajin and salt to the rim.

Lagunitas is a decent beer. I think you might be right about the sour mash thing. I obviously love Sour anything beer and this one is just okay to me. Its very drinkable but also very overrated.

Also I hate buying beers from the state run liquor store. I will only buy from local brewers and distillers direct now. I know the taxes are the same but I want to discourage the liquor stores. At least until the get better hours, locations, parking and employees. My favorite is to buy local booze from out of the state and bring them back.
 
Ron Mexico said:
All of Vernal brewing beers have the sticker on them. I didnt really like the .50 caliber beer much. It reminded me of a lot of Epic beers. Trying to be high point but not good beers. I do really like a couple beer from them, mostly their directional smoked porter. Which is really good for a 4% beer.

I am shocked you didnt like the Hop Nosh more. I thought that would be up your alley. A pretty bitter IPA and really has the strong tangerine smell but only the bitter tangerine flavor. This might be one of my top 10 favorite IPAs.

Slick City is also pretty good. I keep meaning to try more of their beers but never get around to it. Their brewery is a pretty cool spot with nice employees.

Los Locos is fine for what it is. I would rather just get a Tecate and add lime and salt though... Or even better add Tajin and salt to the rim.

Lagunitas is a decent beer. I think you might be right about the sour mash thing. I obviously love Sour anything beer and this one is just okay to me. Its very drinkable but also very overrated.

Also I hate buying beers from the state run liquor store. I will only buy from local brewers and distillers direct now. I know the taxes are the same but I want to discourage the liquor stores. At least until the get better hours, locations, parking and employees. My favorite is to buy local booze from out of the state and bring them back.
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I really might have just been in a bad tasting mood tonight. I drank my drinks but when tasting them to evaluate I didn't really find anything good. Out of 4 beers produced by commercial breweries I should have been able to find more positives. I've had Hop Nosh Tangerine before and liked it a lot. Tonight all I could think was "pith flavor."

Taste is really like that. I've learned a lot making my own beer and trying to taste it objectively, especially when it is something brewed for competition. I drink it at certain times of the day and I pick up something I hate. I drink it at other times and I think it's the best beer ever made (exaggerating). But I have started to really notice how other factors influence how I tastes things. It's why when I share beer I don't take the feedback personally. Taste is not only subjective, individual by individual, by subjective by each person moment by moment.
 
Elysian Superfuzz Blood Orange Ale.

Pretty tasty. I'd call it a citrus IPA. I'm a little put off though because either it is a bottle conditioned beer and I got tons of yeast in my glass floating around in big chunks, or that's part of the blood orange thing or I got a weird bottle full of flaoties. No indication on the bottle that it is bottle conditioned, and reading reviews online no one is mentioning the floaties. I let it sit for a while so the floaties would settle then drank gently until I got to the bottom 3oz or so and tossed it. I don't like drinking yeast, gives me bad gas.

Next up is the Space Dust. That is the one I've been most looking forward to trying.
 
So Space Dust was pretty good. A standard IPA, really.

Wish there had been more to get excited about with my selection of beers but they all just tasted more or less like a dozen other beers of the same style. I wish there was more to get excited about with craft beer but it is so dominated by IPAs. Citrus IPAs are the latest thing along with North East IPAs (NEIPA).

I started an essay last year titled "There's no such thing as Great Beer." and I'm feeling like picking it back up. I love beer. I like good beer. I try really hard to make good beer. But ultimately beer is beer and the idea that there is this ultimate top level of beer that is just unquestionably better is false. The technology, the process, the ingredients, they are all out there. All these craft breweries have access to the same info, the same tools, a healthy pool of experienced brewers who know how to not **** up beer. Most beer these days is pretty ****ing good. None if it is "great" in a way that truly sets it apart.
 
Bulletproof said:
So Space Dust was pretty good. A standard IPA, really.

Wish there had been more to get excited about with my selection of beers but they all just tasted more or less like a dozen other beers of the same style. I wish there was more to get excited about with craft beer but it is so dominated by IPAs. Citrus IPAs are the latest thing along with North East IPAs (NEIPA).

I started an essay last year titled "There's no such thing as Great Beer." and I'm feeling like picking it back up. I love beer. I like good beer. I try really hard to make good beer. But ultimately beer is beer and the idea that there is this ultimate top level of beer that is just unquestionably better is false. The technology, the process, the ingredients, they are all out there. All these craft breweries have access to the same info, the same tools, a healthy pool of experienced brewers who know how to not **** up beer. Most beer these days is pretty ****ing good. None if it is "great" in a way that truly sets it apart.
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I see what you are saying but I would say most beers these days are great and I like a lot of them. But I also know which beers I will like based on the brewery and the label. I almost never go to certain places and wait in line at other places for a first taste. Not good with no greats. I guess distinguishing great is the difference. Most new beers I try from breweries these days locally I am blown away first taste and love them. Have you tried RoHa brewing yet? I would like to see your reviews of their beers.
 
Bulletproof said:
Elysian Superfuzz Blood Orange Ale.

Pretty tasty. I'd call it a citrus IPA. I'm a little put off though because either it is a bottle conditioned beer and I got tons of yeast in my glass floating around in big chunks, or that's part of the blood orange thing or I got a weird bottle full of flaoties. No indication on the bottle that it is bottle conditioned, and reading reviews online no one is mentioning the floaties. I let it sit for a while so the floaties would settle then drank gently until I got to the bottom 3oz or so and tossed it. I don't like drinking yeast, gives me bad gas.

Next up is the Space Dust. That is the one I've been most looking forward to trying.
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So I sent them an email asking if what I had was normal. Turns out it was not.

I sent the email Sunday night had a response early Monday asking me to give them a call. I didn't call them right away and they called me on Wednesday but I didn't answer. They sent another email asking me to call them. I called them on Friday and they took all the info I had and said they would be shipping me some "murch." They were really on top of it.

So even though most of my tasting reviews were ho-hum I've got to say dealing with a company that has good customer service and appears to really care about quality control puts them a solid notch higher in my book.
 
Okay, now I'm just flat out confused. After my positive experience with the customer service at Elysian Brewing I decided I'd pick up another bottle of Superfuzz and give it another shot. Plus I haven't been to the new LQ on 6200S 5600W, so I headed over there.

I find the Superfuzz and pick up a bottle, there is a "fuzz" at the bottom of the bottle. I pick up another one, same. I looked at more than a dozen, all had the same amount of fuzz.

So all I did was ask the question if that was normal (aka intentional). They never said it was. They are sending me free "murch" to make up for my experience.

WTF? This is a feature of this beer. It now makes perfect sense in relation to the name. I suppose the best way to enjoy is to rouse the "fuzz," pour into a glass and drink promptly before the fuzz falls back out of suspension.

I'll take pictures tonight and report back.
 
Okay, another weekend, another assortment of beers from the LQ.

DSC_0226.jpg


also, this is the best pic I could take of the stuff in Superfuzz

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First up Perrin Brewing Company's "Black"

5.8%abv

beer_361413.jpg


The can says: "A light bodied, crisp flavorful ale with hints of semi-sweet chocolate and soft nuances of fresh coffee. This beer is counterintuitive in the way that it pours dark as night but tastes like a lighter beer encompassing a range of full flavors."

So as far as their description, they pretty much nail it. If you drank this beer with a blindfold on you'd not be likely to say that it was a dark beer. I really like what this beer is doing and that it's saying what it's doing right on the can. I have had people say "I don't like dark beers." It's one of my biggest beer related pet peeves. "Dark" is not a flavor in beer. All dark beers DO NOT share a common taste, at all.

Anyway, this is a pretty delicious beer. Light, somewhat sweet, rich flavors, exceptionally clean tasting.

I highly recommend giving it a try.
 
Ninkasi "Maiden the Shade" Summer IPA

6.8%abv

image_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png


This is a seasonal release from Ninkasi Brewing. I really like this brewery, they have an awesome lineup of very well made IPAs. Others I've tried and really liked are "Tricerahops" and "Total Domination." Ninkasi is the Sumerian Goddess of beer.

So anyway, the aroma is very piney indicating the use of late addition American hops such as Simcoe, Warrior or Chinook (it could be a dozen other hops, but those are common ones). A little past the aroma and the beer actually tastes a little watery although does have a firm bitterness to it. As light as the color is and the absence of malt, caramel, or toasted flavors I'd bet this is either a SMaSH (Single malt and single hop) beer or pretty close. Very light and clean.

As a summer IPA they really did a good job in my opinion. They laid down a very basic malt backbone to let the hops stand out and didn't go overboard with the bitterness. I'm not the biggest fan of piney hops, generally. I also prefer malty beers, even in IPAs (a bit of a contradiction) so I can't say this is a beer I'd gravitate towards. But I think they made the beer they wanted to make and did it well.
 
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Bulletproof said:
Ninkasi "Maiden the Shade" Summer IPA

6.8%abv

image_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png


This is a season release from Ninkasi Brewing. I really like this brewery, they have an awesome lineup of very well made IPAs. Others I've tried and really liked are "Tricerahops" and "Total Domination." Ninkasi is the Sumerian Goddess of beer.

So anyway, the aroma is very piney indicating the use of late addition American hops such as Simcoe, Warrior or Chinook (it could be a dozen other hops, but those are common ones). A little past the aroma and the beer actually tastes a little watery although does have a firm bitterness to it. As light as the color is and the absence of malt, caramel, or toasted flavors I'd bet this is either a SMaSH (Single malt and single hop) beer or pretty close. Very light and clean.

As a summer IPA they really did a good job in my opinion. They laid down a very basic malt backbone to let the hops stand out and didn't go overboard with the bitterness. I'm not the biggest fan of piney hops, generally. I also prefer malty beers, even in IPAs (a bit of a contradiction) so I can't say this is a beer I'd gravitate towards. But I think they made the beer they wanted to make and did it well.
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So after writing this I looked it up. Ninkasi actually lists the malts and hops used for their beers. Big plus to them for doing that for us beer nerds.

So it is NOT a SMaSH. They used 2-row, flaked barley and vienna malts. I'm surprised by the vienna most of all, I'd guess they don't use much. But then they list 8 different hops! Summit, Centennial, Simcoe, Columbus, Crystal, Palisade, Amarillo and Magnum. I'm surprised I don't get more citrus and or soft earthiness, but maybe pine just overpowers those other flavors a bit, and/or they use significantly more of the pine hops than the citrus ones.
 
12 Miller Lites (maybe more?), a half handle of Captain. One shot of something. Don't even remember what. All yesterday.

Never drinking again.
Ever.
 
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