Thursday, February 5th, 2009 Sean and I are back at Rock Bottom again. Tonight was the release of their third Anniversary IPA in the series. This series consists of a monthly version of a single hop IPA. This month the hop is one of my favorites… Simcoe! We’d have to wait until 6pm for this one so we started with a couple other beers. The first one we tried was another new beer, the Irish Red. Sean is Irish and I am a red head so it only made sense for us. The color was true to the name, a rich light ruby red with just a touch of copper. The floral spicy hops hit you first but the malt certainly comes through in the finish. Certainly a refreshing beer and went well with our happy hour nachos. Fire trucks are red and so is this beer, but I was certainly glad to have the latter to put out the jalapeno fire in my mouth. And speaking of fire trucks, later this month is the much anticipated Fire Chief Ale. I’ll be back on the 19th to check that out. After the Irish Red we both had one last (possibly) pint of the Curmudgeon Winter Warmer. It always amazes me how quickly the winter beers disappear and the spring seasonals show up. We were drinking this year’s Summit Maibock on January 21st. I thought May beers were supposed to be brewed in January and aged until May? Whatever, best not dwell. It was finally time for the Simcoe IPA release toast. Brewer Bryon Tonnis got up on the bar like he always does and gave the kickoff toast. His feet had barely hit the ground and we were already holding our complimentary pint. A beautiful hazy orange copper color with a rich frothy head. I stuck my nose in and gave a good whiff. MMmmmm, lots and lots of awesome grapefruity Simcoe hops. The flavor was more of the same; mucho citrus flavor and high bittering slides down your throat with a generous mouthfeel. I REALLY liked this beer. Not a whole lot of malt, very dry and the hops definitely dominate. I hope this lasts a while, however I’m already looking forward to the 4th beer in the series. That beer is an IPA with all three hops from the anniversary series. Don’t quote me, but I believe it is Centennial, Amarillo and of course the Simcoe. That should be a treat.
Sunday, February 8th, 2009 After a couple of days at my part time kitchen gig I figured Sunday night would be my Friday night. My wife and I decided tonight was as good a night as any to get our keesters back to the Herkimer Brew Pub. It had been a while and although I am an Ale fan, I always seem to enjoy the lagers at Herkimer. I decided I was going to start out dark and dig my way to the top. I started with the High Point Dunkel (see picture) a dark, nearly opaque lager with a nice brown head. The head disappointed quickly and left a little lacing, but the flavor lingered on forever. Rich and malty, appropriate for style, a very enjoyable start to the evening. Next, I ordered the mini burgers and washed them down with their Bock (see picture). This deep amber beer was just what I was expecting. A pretty color and lots of Munich malt contribute to this easy drinking caramel sweet gem. This was listed as the brewer’s favorite and I’m
not surprised. I get this beer each time I am here so I guess that qualifies it as my go-to beer. One last beer before I head home to slumber in preparation for the week ahead. Sticking to my dark to light commitment, I finish off the evening with a Sky Pilot Kellerbier. This unfiltered cellar beer was a nice hazy golden color. A little biscuit malt present on the nose, but the noble hops really come through. Taste was very similar, you could really feel the hops on the back of the tongue whilst tasting the spicyness throughout. It was definitely Pilsner-like, but then again the brewer calls it a continental Pilsner. Too bad I had to work in the morning, these beers were really tasting good and they were about to start Trivia. Maybe next time.
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