Category Archives: Style

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgium, Czech Pilsner, En Stoemelings x Blind Enthusiasm Brewing Company

En Stoemelings x Blind Enthusiasm Papy Vandepils

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Brewery: En Stoemelings x Blind Enthusiasm Brewing Company
Country: Belgium
ABV: 5%
Style: Czech Pilsner

Brewer Description: (from Belgian Beer and Food facebook post) Papy Vandepils is a collaboration between Brussels brewery En Stoemelings, and Blind Enthusiasm from Edmonton Canada. It’s a simple and delicately balanced beer, with a grainy, cereal like flavor, followed by a long satisfying dryness. As you may have noticed from our editorial, some members of the Belgian Beer and Food team have an emotional attachment to it, since it represents a coming of age for our friends at En Stoemelings, and ranks as the best thing they’ve made so far. But, it’s a worthy choice in and of itself. According to Denys one of the brewers who made it, the trick is to have the right mix between Heidelberg and Pils malt, two weeks of lagering, and three weeks of maturation, plus clinically clean stainless-steel equipment and lots of love. As to what inspires this beer, the brewers mention Tipo Pils and Rulles Pils, but emphasise that the real reference is a classic Czech Pilsner.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.44
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.3

Intro: A 330ml bottle, with a best before date of July 2019. Poured into a De Struise glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden colour with a big three finger white head that had excellent retention and left lots of nice sticky lacing.
Aroma: Sweet, lemon zest, bready, yeast, grass, tea and light floral notes.
Taste: Light bitterness, lemon zest, citrus rind, grass, grains, pepper spice and hints of bread.
Mouthfeel: Dry, light bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Easy drinking Pilsner but at the same time not as crisp as others that I prefer.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgian Pale Ale, Belgium, Nanobrasserie de l'Ermitage

L’Ermitage Théorème de L’Empereur

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Brewery: Nanobrasserie de l’Ermitage
Country: Belgium
ABV: 6.4%
Style: Belgian Pale Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Pale ale thé jasmin.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.94
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 24th October 2019. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a big three finger white head that had good retention and left lots of sticky lacing.
Aroma: Lemon zest, pear, tea, floral, jasmine and a touch bready.
Taste: Lightly sweet, pear, tea, grass, floral, touch herbal and peppery, with a light bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate but prickly carbonation.
Overall: Aroma was nice, while taste was easy drinking.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Grimm Artisanal Ales, USA, Wild Ale

Grimm Psychokinesis

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Brewery: Grimm Artisanal Ales
Country: USA
ABV: 5%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Dry-hopped sour ale

Brewer Description: (from website) Hazy golden wild farmhouse ale, dry hopped with Mosaic, El Dorado, and Huell Melon. Beautifully balanced acidity, glowing hop aromas redolent of guava, watermelon candy, pineapple, and ripe mango. Conditioned on oak for light tannin structure. Don’t age this beer; drink ASAP.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.92
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 22 fl. oz. bomber, bottled in January 2018, and poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden colour with a big three finger white head that had good retention and some nice lacing.
Aroma: Tart, passionfruit, guava, lemon sherbet, with hints of orange.
Taste: Lightly tart and sour, tangy, unripe mango, passionfruit, lemon, guava, orange and orange rind with a touch of sweetness throughout.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: I enjoyed the aroma, but taste while having lots of fruit, were not of my favourite combination.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, IPA - New England / Hazy, The Alchemist, USA

The Alchemist Focal Banger

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Brewery: The Alchemist
Country: USA
ABV: 7%
Style: New England / Hazy IPA
Other Notes: Drink from the can! Drink from the can! Drink from the can!

Brewer Description: (from can) Focal Banger is an American India Pale Ale. We have a real love for IPAs here at The Alchemist, and we strive to offer you the best hop experience that we possibly can. This beer is brewed using Citra and Mosaic hops and our favorite British malts. Truly, an abundance of hoppy goodness… Freshness and control have always been my main concern when it comes to our beer. We are committed to providing you with an unfiltered and unpasteurized hop experience. Why do I recommend that you drink it from the can? Quite simply, to ensure a delightful hop experience. The act of pouring it in a glass smells nice, but it releases the essential hop aromas that we have worked so hard to retain. If you MUST pour it into a glass, you may find that some of the hop resins have settled to the bottom – leave them in the can when pouring. This beer is perishable and at its best when it is young, fresh and hazy. Keep it cold, but not ice cold. Drink this beer today, you could be dead tomorrow….

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.29
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 1 pint can, with no clear canned on or best before date (although my source says mid-March). Poured around half into a Lost Abbey teku glass and drank the other half from the can.
Appearance: A hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that had good retention and left some sticky lacing.
Aroma: Mango, pineapple, pine, grapefruit peel, mandarin zest, fruit tea.
Taste: Light bitterness, grapefruit zest, citrus peel, mango, pineapple, melon, grass, pine, and a light but lasting bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Nice, refreshing and enjoyable to drink.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Council Brewing Co., USA, Wild Ale

Council Broken Wand Boysenberry

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Brewery: Council Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 6.7%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: American Dark Sour Ale oak foeder aged with boysenberries. Brewery closed in December 2018

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The giant, wind up Owl, guardian of the Magic Factory and conjurer of darkness and truth, comes bearing the Broken Wand, which has turned this ominous beer into darkness. This foeder aged sour beer with scrumptious boysenberries is the result of carefully selected microbes from our Deadlock barrel program that worked their magic in this beer. This dark concoction has intense flavors and aromas of, dark berries, chocolate, vanilla, and soft oak tannins.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.31
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 375ml bottle with no clear bottled on or best before date. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A hazy dark dark purple red colour with a two finger pink head that had decent retention, and eventually settling to a nice replenishing thin layer, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Mixed berries, jammy, blueberry, blackberry, oak.
Taste: Sour, tart, blueberry, blackberry, lightly vinous, oak, and vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: I actually don’t know what boysenberry tastes like, but I’m getting a nice mix of blueberry and blackberry. The barrel aging also imparts some nice oak and vanilla notes.