Ballast Point Brewing Co. -- Yellowtail Pale Ale

Ballast Point's Yellowtail Pale Ale is "skillfully crafted in the style of the Kolsch beers of Cologne, Germany." 

5% ABV and 23 IBU's

Review:

Appearance: Golden color, 1/8 inch head that disapites quickly. Somewhat opaque.

Aroma: Slight grain aroma... munich malts?

Taste: Grainy in the same way that Maui's big swell and Bikini blonde are grainy. Probably has Munich malts in it. There is also a slight tang to it. This sometimes occurs in lower alcohol beers. There are also some earth notes in this ale. Altogether, it is a mix of sweet and tart. 

Finish: The sweet tanginess of this ale transitions into a nice dry hop finish. 

(Side note: Ballast point also makes Sculpin, one of the best IPA's on the market.)

Overall:

The American craft and micro brewing landscape is one of amazing diversity and excitement. One could certainly argue that America is the best place in the world to drink beer, based on the available styles and number of breweries. It truly is a wonderful industry... but sometimes the ugly world of marketing and sales invades my beautiful beer world and pisses me off. This beer is a good example. 

Ballast point Yellowtail Pale Ale IS NOT A PALE ALE! This beer is a Kolsch! There are defined categories in beer, and two of them are Pale Ale (BJCP 10a and 8c) and Kolsch (BJCP 6c). This beer is clearly a Kolsch, and as you can see from the quote at the top of the page, even the brewery says it is a Kolsch. (And a tasty Kolsch too.) So why then, are they marketing this beer as a Pale Ale? Simple economics-- Pale Ales sell better in the US and especially San Diego. Somebody in their marketing department, with no love for the honesty and integrity that has been a part of the micro-brew industry for the past 3 decades, decided that they could sell a couple more cases of beer if they put a different label on the beer and misled the public. That's not cool! If I want a Kolsch, I'll buy a Kolsch. If I want a Pale Ale, I want to be able to buy a beer labeled a Pale Ale and have it be a Pale Ale. Pushing the boundaries of brewing, and making hybrid styles is great, but  that's not what Ballast Point is doing. Yellowtail is not a Pale Ale that tastes like a Kolsch. Yellowtail is not a Kolsch that tastes like a Pale Ale. Yellowtail is a KOLSCH!

I love a good Kolsch, but I won't support false advertising.

Hey Ballast Point! Listen up! Get some integrity!

To use your own quote, "Get the point?"

Barrel Man says,

"B.P. can go 

F##K themselves."

Nogne O / Dugges-- Sahti

 

Nogne O  / Dugges Sahti is a beer that was a collaboration between these Norwegian and Swedish breweries, respectively, and was their take on the traditional Finnish style ale.

11% ABV and 24 IBU's

Review:

Aroma: Odd... phenolic smells are in your face. Strangely, the smell of walnut shells is very apparent. Notes of wildflower honey.

Appearance: This Sahti is a hazy amber color and has a white, soda-like head. 

Taste: There is a wheatyness, a rye bite, juniper in the throat... it is fruity and flowery with honey notes... this is a very layered and very complex beer. 

Mouthfeel: A bit syrupy. Quite thick and chewy. You can actually see the viscosity if you watch how slowly the bubbles rise!

Finish: A little bit of everything lingers on the tongue. 

(Side Note: I knew that I was in for an adventure when I saw that it was a Finnish style brewed by Norwegians and Swedes using honey, rye, sea wormwood, wheat, malt,  juniper twigs, hops, and three types of yeast from  from Belgium, Germany and Britain.)

Overall:

This beer is very difficult to grade because it is like nothing else. It is not a true Sahti although it has the key ingredients. It is an amalgam of so many things that it really is unique unto itself. Therefore I have to grade it simply by the satisfaction it gave to me.

Grade: B- for flavor, B+ for effort. This was a gutsy beer to brew and market. 

Barrel Man says, 

"Aye, a gutsy brew!"

(This Bottle Purchased at Ewa Pantry.)

Free tasting at Liquor Collection

 FREE BEER!!!

This Friday, June 24, there will be a free beer tasting at The Liquor Collection in the ward warehouse.
Reports say that a representative of Samuel Adams Brewing Co will be pouring their Imperial line (Imperial Stout, Imperial White, Doublebock)

It is a free event and will be held from 5:30 to 8: 30.

Coronado Brewing Co. -- Orange Avenue Wit

Coronado Brewing Co.'s Orange Avenue Wit is an ale, "brewed with wheat, coriander, California orange peel and local [CA] orange blossom honey."

5.2% ABV and 10ish IBU's

Review:

Appearance: This light ale pours a nice straw color with a pure white head. It is slightly hazy, but in amounts appropriate for a wheat based beer.

Aroma: Orange and wheat, orange peel, sweetness from honey or malts or both.

Taste: Slightly sour orange flavor. Orange peel with earthiness that is well balanced and has a tart finish. Hints of coriander spice at the very end. 

Mouthfeel: Soft and creamy, with citrus rind (not the pith) oiliness, and a slightly waxy feel on the palate. 

(Side Note: Other witbiers I've reviewed can be seen here, here, and here.)

Overall:

This is a pretty good fruit beer. If I was a fruit beer lover I'd buy this beer regularly. North Coast makes a Tangerine Wheat beer that is somewhat similar to this beer but sweeter, and it too is a good beer. However, I'm going to deduct a couple of points because the label says that this is a "Wit" and the flavors of spice should be more pronounced in a Wit. They should probably just call it a wheat beer. 

Grade: A-

Barrel Man says,

"SD beer w/o hop flavor?

What's next?!"

(Bottle Purchased at Liquor Collection.)

Rogue Brewing Co. -- Dad's Little Helper Black IPA

Rogue Brewing Co.'s Dad's Little Helper is an annual Father's day release that changes in style each year. Last year it was a Malt Liquor. This year it is a Black IPA (also sometimes called a Cascadian Dark Ale or CDA)

6ish% ABV and 70 IBU

Review:

Appearance: This beer pours very dark-- similar to a porter or an extremely dark brown ale. The head is light tan and is quite thick.

Aroma: Roasty, citrus and earthy hops, chocolate.

Taste: ROAST! Some grain astringency, a bit of a sour hop character and what I think is Chinook hop bittering.

Mouthfeel: wheaty, earthy, gritty. Slightly chalky... like walking down a dirt road and a car speeds past you kicking up a dust storm. 

(Side Note: Another Black IPA / CDA that I rated can be found here)

Overall:

This style is still being defined. As such, it is a little tough to grade it on what it should be. Still, I'll just write what my taste buds are telling me: Too wheaty, too much astringency from the roasted grains, too porter/stout like to call it an IPA. 

Grade: B-

Barrel Man says,

"Sorry, Dad."

(Bottle Purchased at Liquor Collection)

Maui Brewing Co. tasting

What do you get when you mix Maui Brewing, a free tasting, and the Liquor Collection? A good time!

AND you also get Maui founder Garrett Marrero!

(...the only way to sell beer is to have a beer with the folks you're selling to!)

Garrett, who is obviously in his element when talking about Maui's delicious lineup, is a pleasure to talk to and a font of beer knowledge. While hanging around, I heard a few surprising things that I will now list below:

1.) BREAKING NEWS!!!!  Maui Brewing Co and Port Brewing Co in San Diego are getting together to do a collaboration in the fall! According to Garrett, it will be available in Maui cans and will combine the best of what San Diego and Hawaii have to offer-- just as soon as they figure out exactly what that is. (Port Brewing Co is not available in HI, so this will be a great way for Kama'aina to get an idea of how great Port's award-winning beers are!) VERY EXCITING!

2.) Possibly on the horizon: Maui Brewing is hoping to find a way to work with Roselani ice cream company to make a Coconut Porter ice cream. Obviously, they first have to figure out how to get the alcohol out of the beer in order to get it through the approval process, but this would be an instant classic!

3.) Interesting fact: The pineapple juice used in Maui's Mana Wheat is the same juice used in the making of Pau Vodka, and Tedeschi Vineyard's Pineapple Wine. Imagine that! One juice, three local products! Garret also explained that Maui Brewing Co does not modify the juice, nor do they add extracts in their brewing process. This explains the variation between batches, as both the terroir and the relative sweetness of each pineapple harvest are both expressed in the beer. 

Many mahalos to Liquor Collection, Maui Brewing Co, and Garrett Marrero.

Deschutes Brewery's -- Hop in the Dark C.D.A. (Cascadian Dark Ale)

Deschutes Brewery's Hop in the Dark was the second best beer reviewed by Wine Enthusiast magazine in 2010. Some beer writers are saying that this year, Hop in the Dark is even better!

6.5% ABV and 70 IBU's

Review:

Appearance: This beer looks just like a stout as it sits in the glass. It is seriously black with a dark tan head. The head retention is great and leaves lacing down the entire glass. My guess is that there are wheat and oats in this beer.

Aroma: Strong cascade/citrusy hop aromas. Behind that, there is just a hint of sweet malt. 

Taste: 

First sip-- hops, then rye bread, then roasted coffee notes.

Second sip-- hops and then roasty notes.

Third sip -- hops and then more hops.

Every other sip-- hops and hops and hops. 

The hop character is citrusy and grapefruity up front, with an earthy middle and a gritty Chinook-like feel late.

(Side Note: Cascadian Dark Ales are an emerging style that is new to the commercial market. It is my humble opinion that this trend was pushed by home brewers who were concerned with making something tasty to drink -- and unconcerned with how to market or make money on a beer that doesn't fit in the style guidelines. Commercial brewers who make their money by marketing beer took a while to come around to this innovative style. If you enjoy this beer, and how different it is from most other beers on the market, you may enjoy making your own beer.)

Overall: 

This is a great dark IPA or CDA or whatever you want to call it. It is very hoppy but not so much that you laugh at how ridiculous it is. Kanaka who like malty beers will be disappointed, as this beer is not balanced between hops and malts. This beer is balanced by setting a roasty mouthfeel against hops, and balancing the aggressive hops with earthy hops. 

On Deschutes website it states that it took the brewery 22 experimental batches to get the right combination. I believe this is probably true. Overall this is a well crafted IPA-like CDA.

Grade: A

Barrel Man says,

"As dark as a 

well-digger's hole

on a moonless

winter solstice."

(Bottle purchased at Liquor Collection)