I know, it's been a while. It has been like 2 weeks since I last made a post. I have no excuses. Actually, I do. It is called "laziness". Pure Laziness. I caught a bad case of it. The good thing is, I am finally over it. And all it took was a good beer to get me back on the mood.
What was that beer?
Let me take you back a few weeks. Back then, I received a package in the mail. It was a couple bottles of home brew from a friend of mine. I promised him I would drink it, and talk about it.
Well, that day is today.
The beer is a Belgium Ale. Normally, I am not a huge fan of Belgium Ales. They are usually a little too sweet for my palate. But I am really enjoying this one (I am drinking it as I type).
My review:
The first thing I noticed is that it smells SOOOOOOO GOOOOOOD! I love the smell of beer. I wish I could lather myself with Beer scented cologne, but the constant accusations of being an alcoholic would be unjustified. I have looked into making a beer scented air freshener for my car. Bit I'm not so sure the cops would understand.
Anyways, the smell from the bottle and then the glass made me happy deep down inside. I think the first sign of a good beer is the smell. Think of a Heineken. It smells. And the taste isn't much better, except to those guys who order one because they think it sets them apart from their Coors swilling counterparts. (News fellas, it doesn't!)
Next, the color. It was a nice cloudy shade of copper. All that sweet goodness floating around in there was so appealing. I'm not a fan of Heffes (you know, the sweetness), but this was different. I'm not calling the cloudyness "sedement" because it isn't. This beer has a quality characteristic which sets it apart from other mass produced beers.
Head. I love head! It was perfect. Enough said.
The best part of this beer is the taste. It is such a good flavor. It has a good hit of hops at the front, but finishes clean with no after taste. A slight tint of sweetness but not to the point wear I would not finish it. But that is the point of the Belgium Ale.
Dammit, I just finished it.
It is a very flavorful beer. With every sip, I expected to get that hit of alcohol. But the taste stayed true and constant. Instead, I was surprised by the smooth tastes of malt, hops, and citrus. It had a good mouth feel.
To brew with such accuracy is impressive. I know from past experience, to hit your goal is a difficult task. But it goes to show you that when you do, the end result is Nirvana.
It is gone. BUt the good news is that I have another one. (Right On!) I plan on letting this one age a while. 2 or 3 months I would guess. I'm sure it is only going to get better with the age.
Did I like it? Yes
Would I buy this beer? Yes.
Would I recommend it? Yes. But you can't get it. Sorry bout' your luck.
-SANTE'
3 comments:
Glad you liked it! Thanks for the kind words too. I think a beer with a 7.8% abv could definitely benefit from a few more months. It was brewed July 4th '08, so it's had a little time mellow out. I should really think about doing another batch. I never thought I would say it, but I'm getting kind of sick of brewing 5 gallon batches. After we get settled in our new house (if they accept our offer), I would love to start brewing 10 gallon batches.
If you would like the recipe, I'd be happy to help.
I would love the recipe. My brew buddies want to make a Mirror Pond clone. Not a fan.
And you are welcome!
Man, I love Mirror Pond! That's a great example of an American Pale Ale.
I just brewed a hoppy American Amber, with emphasis on malt, hop flavor, and hop aroma, not too bitter. It's being dry hopped with some 2008 Simcoe whole hops. It smells amazing.
I'll get the recipe to you soon.
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