It’s been a busy 2009 so far, beer readers. I’ve had time to sample some new brews, but I haven’t been able to tell you folks about them. My humble whatevah. Anyway, here’s a review for you. Enjoy with a side of beer.

Mission Street’s beers are very good. You may recall earlier this month when I discussed their Pale Ale. Well, what’s the logical progression? Yeh… India Pale Ale. These beers run you$5.99 a 6-pack. Good recession brew.

This IPA is a good kind of “standard bearer” brau.* Nice amber body and a dissipating white head in top. It’s very hop heavy, as is to be expected. Pine and floral hops dominate the aroma and initial flavor. The body has enough malt to stand up to the hoppy invasion** but this beer is not for those who don’t like hops. In the finish the character grows slightly more citrus in taste and the sip ends rather dry. The 6.1% ABV is surely adding a bit of taste to the beer but it’s subtle enough to remain anonymous. The active carbonation keeps the flavor movin’—serve it cold when it’s hot. Awwwwww yeah.

But there are some good beers out there that are questionably American. Not that their provenance matters. At all, really. But hell, if you’re on a beer site, you’re likely interested in this kinda bizness. So, check out the article. It’s interesting dammit. (Like the venerable, German-sounding Yuengling? Awww yeah—American since 1829. Widmer Brothers… sounds pretty American… but are they a part of a shady, European brewing conglomerate bent on uh… well… profit? FIND OUT BELOW!)

IS YOUR BEER 100% AMERICAN!? (NOT THAT IT MATTERS, MUCH!)

So look… maybe it’s kind of an excuse for not sending out beernews to our millions of readers, but here are some ABV stats that I thought were interesting. Maybe you will too. So Amstel Light is… really light. Check it.

• • Guinness Draught: 4.0% (4.2% for bottled draught)
  • Beamish Stout: 3.8%
  • Dragon Stout: 6.8%
  • Amstel Light: 3.5%
  • Anchor Steam 4.9%
  • Blue Moon: 5.4%
  • Budweiser: 5.0%
  • Bud Light: 4.2%
  • Bud Light Lime: 4.2%
  • Busch: 4.6%
  • Coors: 5.0%
  • Coors Light: 4.2%
  • Coors Extra Gold: 5.0%
  • Corona Extra: 4.6%
  • Heineken: 5.4%
  • Heineken Light: 3.5%
  • Stone IPA: 6.9%
  • Stone Double Bastard: 10%
  • Icehouse: 5.0% and 5.5%
  • Labatt Blue: 5.0%
  • Michelob: 5.0%
  • Michelob Light: 4.3%
  • Michelob Ultra: 4.2%
  • MGD: 5.0%
  • Miller High Life: 5.5%
  • Miller Lite: 4.2%
  • Olde English 800: 5.9%
  • Olde English 800 Ice: 7.9%
  • Pyramid Pale Ale: 5.1%
  • Pyramid India Pale Ale: 6.7%
  • Pyramid Snow Cap: 7.0%
  • Red Dog: 5.0%
  • Redhook ESB: 5.8%
  • Sam Adams Boston Lager: 4.8%
  • Sam Adams Light: 4.0%
  • Sam Adams Double Bock: 8.5%
  • Shiner Bock: 4.4%
  • Shiner Light: 3.9%
  • Sapporo Reserve: 5.2%
  • Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 5.7%
  • Sierra Nevada Bigfoot: 10%
  • Widmer Hefeweizen: 4.7%
  • Widmer Drop Top Amber Ale: 4.9%

Take it away, Sam Adams On Tap Newsletter…

2008 Beer Lover’s Choice Winner – Available Now!

With 24 hour news coverage can anyone forget that 2008 was an election year?! We’re glad that over several months last summer & fall, tens of thousands of you got out the vote and participated in the 4th Annual Samuel Adams Beer Lover’s Choice program helping us choose the next Samuel Adams style. The victorious brew was Samuel Adams^® Blackberry Witbier, a traditional witbier with orange peel and coriander, complemented by the subtle sweetness of Marion blackberries. Grown on a family farm in the shadow of Mt. Hood, Oregon, our Marion blackberries add a distinct blackberry aroma that blends with the wheat malt for a smooth finish that is both subtly sweet and crisp.

Samuel Adams Blackberry Witbier is available all year round in its own 6-pack, in the Samuel Adams^® Brewmaster’s Variety 6-pack and it will be joining the Samuel Adams^® Summer Styles pack this summer.

A HOLIDAY BEER WITH A MALT BALL CENTER…
(READ ON, BEER VOLK!)
San Diego, CA – December 12, 2008 – It is tradition at Karl Strauss that each winter a different Karl Strauss brewer gets to try their hand at the Holiday Beer.  This year the opportunity fell to our very own Ian Young.  Ian knew he wanted to brew a Stout, but he had visions of malt balls dancing in his head.  Our friends at Briess Malting had kicked off the holiday season for us with a sack of Briess malt balls and that’s when inspiration hit – Ian wanted to use the malt balls in his holiday beer.  Some thought he was crazy, others were intrigued, but no one expected the end result to taste so good.

This beer is rich and full-bodied and based off of a recipe for a classic Russian Imperial Stout.  But we used large amounts of chocolate malt and dark caramel malt for a less roasty version of the classic style.  Rolled oats introduced during the four-step mash helped create a smooth and full mouthfeel.  A blend of Willamette and Chinook hops were added solely for balance, and then came the fun part.  The equivalent of 5,000 malt ball centers was tossed directly into the boil.  “I wanted the four-step mash to create a dryer taste from the barley and then have a lingering sweetness from the non-fermentable malt ball sugars added during the boil. I love malt balls, but now I think they taste even better in beer!” said Ian. 

Karl Strauss Imperial Malt Ball Stout is a rich, full-bodied stout with loads of chocolate flavor and a subtle sweetness imparted from the malt balls.  This is the perfect winter warmer on a cold night, and at 8.5% ABV, you won’t need a fire to warm you up.  The hint of chocolaty sweetness makes it an excellent match with heartier fare such as holiday roasts and of course chocolate desserts. 

You can enjoy the Imperial Malt Ball Stout at all six Karl Strauss Brewery Restaurant locations and select bars across Southern California during the month of December.

Karl Strauss Imperial Malt Ball Stout

8.5% ABV

85 SRM

30 IBU

About Karl Strauss Brewing Company

Two college grads, a 75-year-old master brewer, and a passion for beer… when Karl Strauss Brewing Company started brewing full-flavored, quality handcrafted beer in 1989, it was the first craft brewery to open in San Diego since Prohibition. Today, you can enjoy our flagship beers, special releases, and seasonals at any of our six brewery restaurants or other fine drinking establishments throughout Southern California. For more information visit karlstrauss.com or call the brewery at (858) 273-2739.

The Sarge brewed what I guess I’ll call a Holiday Ale if I must classify it. The beer is spicy, rich and bursting with a crisp tartness supplied by copius additions of fresh and dried cranberries. A lovely amber hue.

My beer is a Scotch Ale and, if I may be so bold, manages to both cleave faithfully to its style while boasting notes of honey, spice and a secret hobo twist I’ll never reveal. Oh… OK… the secret ingredient is… is… RIGHT BEHIND YOU! AAUUGH!!!!! GLAUAWAUGH!!!!!

*Except that “you” means “me.”

“The Boons of Beer” http://health.msn.com/nutrition/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100220712&GT1=31036

and this link to another, even better (older) article:

“Beer With Benefits” http://health.msn.com/nutrition/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100197361

The latter has a great guide to some top-notch brews, with most of which I heartily agree. Gotta try me some of that He’Brew Origin Pomegranate Ale, if I can find it.

Happy Thanksgiving to all, and happy drankin’–hey, it’s good for you! (I figure… if two beers confer so many health benefits, it stands to reason that ten times that number would mean ten times the benefits! Hell, it may even create some sort of synergistic effect! Maybe such a synergistic effect that I would be unable to get out of bed the next morning or even reach for a glass of water due to so much healthy synergy!!!)

THE ARTICLE!

Well, one would think summer might have drawn to a close by now… I suppose it has, everywhere except Vegas that is, where it continues to hit 85 degrees nearly every ‘effing day. One would think one was in the desert or something. Actually, 85 degrees isn’t all that bad, and the evenings are extremely pleasant in the mid-70′s, but come on… it’s almost friggin Halloween! In any case, the pleasant afternoons afford ample opportunity to wring out the last of the summer brews. So here’s a quick take on an American knock-off to the German classic that, while not a total home run, comes, meh, pretty close.

In all honesty this is more of a post-of-opportunity, since I am writing based on my hazy recollections from last night, when Mrs. Tripel and I got to enjoy the open bar at a friend’s wedding reception held at the local Gordon Biersch. Actually, it was the wife’s friend, which to the Kolonel meant: [Bunch of weird strangers + Open bar = Pound]. Things got a bit out of hand after a couple rounds of Patron shots and when I ordered the 14-year Oban (don’t you hate people that do that when you’re buying the bar?), but the initial salvo was a round of beers from the Biersch selection.

Now, I love Hefeweizen. I love it so much that I can safely call myself a snob when it comes to distinguishing the classic German brews, with their complex blend of clove, citrus, banana, bubble gum, and wheat, versus the typical American version, which is basically cloudy beer that someone jammed a slice of orange on. My favorites from the first category include Weihenstephaner, Hofbrau, and Ayinger. If you want an example of the latter try Pyramid or Widmer (Widmer’s isn’t too bad, it’s just… well, there).

Gordon Biersch endeavors valiantly to re-create the experience of a true Old World classic. The color and aroma are about spot-on; bright straw yellow, moderate head, and definite hints of clove spice, citrus and banana in the nose. The flavor is a bit incomplete–the banana/bubble gum thing really isn’t prevalent in the taste up-front but re-appears a little in the aftertaste, and the citrus and wheat seem to take over a bit in general. The finish is light enough to make polishing off a 0.5L glass a snap. So, while not a true replacement for a masterfully-crafted import, I put it a step up from most other hefeweizens in its class, and its availability and price (save a buck or so) make it a safe bet, just one step down from Trader Joe’s Bavarian Style Hefeweizen. Right then, carry on.