4 Beers vs. 1 Connoisseur

I was house-sitting for some friends with my wife, and we found ourselves wondering what to do in the afternoon.  I looked in the fridge, and I saw four different beers looking back at me.  “Hello beers,” I said, and soon after my greeting, I had an idea.  I can drink beers pretty well, and Liz is an excellent scribe.  What followed was an impromptu beer tasting basically made up of me drinking and describing, while Liz frantically wrote notes and entertained Ignatius the cat.  Here are those notes, in no particular order.

Samuel Adams Noble Pils

In examining the bottle of Noble Pils, I noticed that it did not have alcohol content listed on it.  It must have been on the box, which had long since been discarded.  I also noted that it is classified as a lager, but in Texas it is an ale.  I don’t know why Texas would be different, but regardless, I popped the top.  The lager/Texas ale/self-proclaimed pilsner poured a golden straw color, producing a big foamy head that was thick enough o hold the bottle cap, but that degraded to foam made of big, loose bubbles after a minute.  On the approach, the beer was quite malty on the nose and mouth.  Cereal flavors of oats and wheat were very present.  There was also the presence of slight lemony citrus notes.  I could see putting a lemon in this beer to make that flavor pop, but I think that if a beer needs a lemon to shine, there is a problem, so I would say that the lemon is optional.  This noble was hoppier than your average pilsner, due to the fact that I could actually taste the hops, but compared to pale ale, the malty body takes precedence over the hops flavors.  This beer was smooth and delicious, and I feel I could drink a lot of them.  I recommend this beer highly.  It was quite nice.

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

First, let me say that I am shocked that we have never talked about Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in any detail before.  This is a classic for many people, and it deserves discussion.  This contender weighs in at 5.6% ABV, which would denote that you can drink several of these, but don’t get carried away.  It can sneak up on you at this level.  The color of the beverage was cloudy amber, with a soda pop head that fizzled pretty quickly, but created a nice lacing on the glass.  The cloudiness and the dissipation are a result of bottle conditioning, as noted on the bottle’s label.  This beer fermented in the bottle, and this creates little floaties that are harmless, but that create cloudiness and pop bubbles.  This ale had a satisfying bready smell, while the ever-present hoppy undertones gave a sight flowery bouquet to the beverage.  This ale was very smooth and malty for pale ale, but make no mistake, the hops are there!  They were bitter but not overpowering in the finish, actually giving some nice sweet notes to this beer.  I can definitely see why people have made this beer so popular.  It is well-balanced and gives the drinker a lot to think about.

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA

After tasting the original Sierra Nevada, I moved on to the Torpedo.  The head on this beer was big and fluffy, much more resilient than its predecessor.  It also carried a nice light tan color.  The liquid was dark amber in color, almost like maple syrup.  It was also a bit cloudy with floaties due to bottle conditioning.  The nose on this beer was almost solely a piney hop smell.  There was much less character that the original.  When I tasted the beer, I noted immediately that the beer was sweeter than its predecessor.  Its initial attack was syrupy sweet and hoppy, switching tunes to a long, bitter finish.  The long finish is characteristic of a beer hopped multiple times.  Note to Sierra Nevada – Yes, I get it, this is a hoppy beer.  The body of the beer was pretty smooth, but it gets sharper as the finish progresses.  I found myself going back for quicker drinks to enjoy the smooth body and escape its sharp, bitter finish.  Compared to other double IPAs, Hop Monsters, and the like, this was a better balanced beer, but I couldn’t drink too many due to the heavy handed hops.  I prefer Sierra Nevada’s standard Pale Ale, as it is balanced better and does not focus on hops as does this one trick pony.  I guess it is a good thing that I have a low tolerance of this beer, as the 7.2% ABV is steep for any sort of session.

Old Chub Scottish-Style Ale

This beer might as well sing the song “One of these things is not like the other” from Sesame Street.  It is not a similar style to the other three, and it comes in a can.  Yes, that’s right.  This is a craft micro-brewed beer that is canned, not bottled.  Thank you, Oskar Blues.  This is the Colorado brewery that has begun the can revolution.  A can has many benefits when making beer including portability and a built-in anti-skunking system.  I am down with the can, but how will the beer be?  Upon pouring the beer, the head built quickly and densely.  This was the best constructed head of the four beers, boasting tight foam and a matte finish.  I read the can for more insight, and found that the beverage was a hefty 8% ABV.  I also love the name Old Chub, as it will always lead to inappropriate conversations.  There was also a quote at the top of the can that read, “High Altitude/High Attitude/Highland/High Ya/No Rice!”  The altitude denotes its Colorado heritage, and the attitude is surely an image thing.  The highland refers to the Scottish style.  However, the “High Ya/No Rice!” is a bit of a mystery.  Perhaps it is just bragging that it uses proper grains instead of rice, and it knows kung fu?  Anyway, back to the beer.  The aroma was much different than its three predecessors.  It smelled deeply of molasses and sugars, with the standard phenol nose of Scottish-style ales.  The light brown head was big, leaving thick trails on the glass, and revealing a root beer colored liquid beneath.  The ale had a thick mouth feel and revealed a sweet brown sugar flavor.  There were also fruity juniper notes and phenols that reminded me of gin.  True to style, the alcohol flavors were persistent and welcome.  For such a beer to come from a can, I was truly impressed.  May all canned beers follow the lead of Oskar Blues Brewery!

- Connoisseur Jon