Beverages and Blades - Traditional of Course

Pàdruig said:
Dec. 14th brings us an old and well trod favorite - Samuel Smith's Organic Chocolate Stout, made in Yorkshire and is the first import to show up in my 2021 Advent. I have not had this one in quite a long while and I am finding it to be quite sweet, sweeter than I recall. I have largely shunned sugary beverages though and if I sip a Coke or something these days, I find it infernally sweet and not at all like I remember it to be when I drank it more regularly. Still, this makes for an excellent dessert beverage and pairs nicely with a decadent smoke.

Lots of sensible British things in this picture ;).

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I think that’s the first beer from your calendar (or mine) that I’ve not only heard of, but also had before! 😁 It is quite sweet, isn’t it? I also remember being surprised by how much it actually tasted like chocolate, certainly more so than most other chocolate beers I’ve ever tried. Not something I’d reach for on a regular basis, but as you say, a nice dessert beer to be enjoyed occasionally.

For Day 15, the German Brewer’s Advent Calendar has completely changed things up. Today’s beer is an… IPA? Am I saying that right? I don’t know, never heard of it. 😁 Ok, seriously though, I know I’ve talked/joked about how this advent calendar could use more variety, but being a German beer advent calendar, I’m not sure this was the way to go. Give me another Doppelbock, or a Dunkel, or a Maibock or something. I don’t know that I’ve ever had an American-style IPA from a German brewery, but this one isn’t exactly getting me excited about the idea. It’s fine, it’s not a bad IPA, but there a lot of IPAs I’d rather drink than this one.

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I guess I should add the name of the beer and the brewery. 🙃 It’s Perlenzauber IPA from Privatbrauerei H. Egerer. The knife is a 2018 annual Limited Edition Alox Pioneer in Berry Red, and, being Swiss, is arguably more German than the beer. 😉
 
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btb01 said:
I think that’s the first beer from your calendar (or mine) that I’ve not only heard of, but also had before! 😁 It is quite sweet, isn’t it? I also remember being surprised by how much it actually tasted like chocolate, certainly more so than most other chocolate beers I’ve ever tried. Not something I’d reach for on a regular basis, but as you say, a nice dessert beer to be enjoyed occasionally.

For Day 15, the German Brewer’s Advent Calendar has completely changed things up. Today’s beer is an… IPA? Am I saying that right? I don’t know, never heard of it. 😁 Ok, seriously though, I know I’ve talked/joked about how this advent calendar could use more variety, but being a German beer advent calendar, I’m not sure this was the way to go. Give me another Doppelbock, or a Dunkel, or a Maibock or something. I don’t know that I’ve ever had an American-style IPA from a German brewery, but this one isn’t exactly getting me excited about the idea. It’s fine, it’s not a bad IPA, but there a lot of IPAs I’d rather drink than this one.

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I guess I should add the name of the beer and the brewery. 🙃 It’s Perlenzauber IPA from Privatbrauerei H. Egerer. The knife is a 2018 annual Limited Edition Alox Pioneer in Berry Red, and, being Swiss, is arguably more German than the beer. 😉
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I remember being a bit thrown off by the couple of IPAs that I had from that Advent. None of them were anything to write home about, including the one you tried here (I recognize the can). That Advent needs far more Doppelbocks and Dunkels, it would make for a far richer experience.
 
Today is the day that I get all caught up (until the next time that I fall behind 😁).

December 15th: An Irish Style Red Ale, brewed by Ancestry Brewing, out of Tualatin, OR. I've already expressed my fondness for Red Ales but Irish Style Red Ale is a different animal and one that I unabashedly LOVE. When I go to an Irish pub, I skip right on past the Guinness and I get myself a Smithwick's. Despite now being owned by the same outfit that owns the Guinness label, Smithwick's was originally founded in 1710 and their red ale is claimed to be even more popular and consumed in greater quantities in Ireland than the stout that Guinness is famous for. This one from Ancestry is an excellent example - smooth, light and caramelly, and very drinkable.

Like many Irish ales, you can drink an abundance and not feel a darned thing due to the traditionally low ABV ;).

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Today's ale (Dec. 16th) is from arguably one of the most well-known breweries in Oregon - Rogue Ales, out of Newport, OR. This Shakespeare Stout is one of the original brews they made when they started in 1988 and it is joined by an incredible array of stellar ales that have been made since. In stark contrast to the Samuel Smith's Chocolate Stout that I enjoyed the other day, this one is far less sweet and more in keeping with a rich, black coffee. Smooth and creamy, due to the nitro treatment, and notes of roasted coffee and dark chocolate demonstrate why this remains a classic staple of Rogue's extensive catalog of crafted ales.

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For December 16th I’ve got this Blau Weisse from Schlossbrauerei. Having stated previously that I don’t particularly like wheat beers, this one isn’t too bad. The banana and clove thing is subdued (a definite plus for me) and overall the beer is refreshing and enjoy enjoyable.

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Here's a bit of an interesting one for you :)

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Picked it up today at the recommendation of the salesman at the liquor store. He called it a rum for a whiskey drinker. Rum infused with chaga mushrooms and honey... Sounded different enough that I had to buy a bottle to try out. Not super sweet, but has an earthy flavour. Definitely unique, and not in a bad way. Blurb from distiller:

"Our Chaga Rum is a premium spirit made using 5 year old Demerara rum from Guyana which is finely infused in Clarke’s Beach with chaga harvested from central Newfoundland and honey from Grand Falls Windsor. The flavours capture the deep earthy notes of the chaga which bring out rich hints of truffle, chocolate and coffee balanced by the classic deep notes of the rum, held together by a touch of honey - perfect for savouring and warming up with!"

Here's what chaga looks like. Crazy Newfoundlanders... ;)

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Day 17: I found an interesting one waiting for me - a Dark Hefeweizen. Now, I think I have had a dark wheat beer before (maybe even in last year's Advent) but it is still an odd combination for me. This one is called Dragon's Breath and is made by Bayern Brewery out of Missoula, MT. Wheat Beers are generally not my favorite but if they were all like this one, I would drink a lot more. The typical banana like funk is notably diminished, if not altogether absent, and the body of the beer is just superb.

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Just opened a new one tonight, Woodford Reserve Malt Whiskey @ 90.4% proof. I poured a neat two fingers in a Glencairn glass, and swirling to aerify it every few minutes I let it sit for about a half hour. I took about a third of it at the first drink, did the "Kentucky Chew" for a few seconds, then swallowed slowly . . . what a dram! Sweet, but not Bourbon sweet, it has a drier taste and feel, quite nutty with a hint of raisins, almost fruit cake like. No age statement, but definitely mature, probably at least 6 years old. ABC had it for $29.99, but I'd pay half again as much when this one runs out, really really good.

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I’ll have to double up on the advent calendar for the next four days, because we’ll be traveling for Christmas starting on the 21st. I wasn’t sure if I should just keep going in order (17 & 18 tonight, 19 & 20 tomorrow and so on) or stick to the correct days through the 20th and add one of the later beers each day (so 17 & 21, 18 & 22, etc.), but I decided on the former, sticking to the order.

Unfortunately my first night of double advent beers wasn’t an inspiring start. Day 17 is Turbo Prop Imperial Pils brewed by Propeller Getränke. I had seen this one on the side of the box and was intrigued — Imperial Pilsner, 6.5% ABV — I thought it had potential to really stand out from the rest of the beers here. Unfortunately, it’s another that I would describe as just ok. The flavor is heavy on floral hops, but there isn’t much else going on. The finish is fairly bitter and sticks around a while.

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That said, I’d much rather drink two or three Turbo Props than one of Day 18’s beer, Erl Hell. I’ve been surprisingly pleased by some of the earlier Helles lagers in this advent calendar, but this one? Yeah, not so much. I think it’s safe to say this is my least favorite beer so far. There’s this sort of funky straw barnyard thing going on (in both the aroma and flavor) that overwhelms anything else this beer might have to offer. It smells like the zoo. Not like the worst of the possible zoo smells, but just like a general zoo smell, which is not really something I look for in a beer.

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btb01 said:
Day 13 in my advent calendar is Landgang Pils from Landgang Brauerei in Hamburg. One thing I’ve noticed about a lot (most) of the beers in this calendar is that they tend towards the sweet, malty side of things, but that’s not the case with this pilsner. It’s hop forward, a bit spicy with some nice bitterness and a crisp, dry finish. I like it. Prost! 🍺

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That cans a bit village people 😂
 
Crazy Canuck said:
Here's a bit of an interesting one for you :)

o9kbulJ.jpg


Picked it up today at the recommendation of the salesman at the liquor store. He called it a rum for a whiskey drinker. Rum infused with chaga mushrooms and honey... Sounded different enough that I had to buy a bottle to try out. Not super sweet, but has an earthy flavour. Definitely unique, and not in a bad way. Blurb from distiller:

"Our Chaga Rum is a premium spirit made using 5 year old Demerara rum from Guyana which is finely infused in Clarke’s Beach with chaga harvested from central Newfoundland and honey from Grand Falls Windsor. The flavours capture the deep earthy notes of the chaga which bring out rich hints of truffle, chocolate and coffee balanced by the classic deep notes of the rum, held together by a touch of honey - perfect for savouring and warming up with!"

Here's what chaga looks like. Crazy Newfoundlanders... ;)

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No idea what it tastes like but it sounds delicious.🥰
 
JohnDF said:
I'm mostly a coffee drinker...
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For the sake of convenience we’ve gone to the Keurig and the K-cups. Surprisingly good actually but I’m not a coffee connoisseur. At any rate, what I miss is waking up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. May have to go back to grinding beans and brewing coffee after I retire.
☕️👍
 
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