173 down, ? to go

Although the Vancouver closing ceremonies are still on, I am breaking for the evening. I have a long "to do" list for tomorrow and I need my rest. I have blogged / logged 173 ales and lagers so far. I think I am about half way through my current collection. I am keeping this blog to track the numerous ales and lagers I have tried, but also in the hope that you may add comments about some of the ales and lagers that you liked or did not like. Thanks for reading.

Still More Belgians

I think this is the last in this series of Belgian ales. I really like the Blanche De Bruxelles; it goes down smoothly, is not too strong and has a fun label. I also really like the Saison DuPont. I think this was the farmhouse that got me started on my farmhouse phase. I left briefly (for the sour ales), but recently have revisited the farmhouse ales. Again, the labels are fun, especially the holiday labels.

More Belgians

The Monk's Cafe Flemish Sour Ale was in a previous post of my current favorites, but I will repeat it here - I like this sour ale. In fact, this kicked off a brief phase of sour ales for me. I also like the Amadeus. I was a little disappointed with the DuPont Avril table beer, but then I think I am disappointed by the concept of a table beer in general. I'm not sure why, because I tend to like a few session ales. That is just plain inconsistent. So be it. I have a thing for pirates, so I really like these two pirate labels and the bottles are nice and short, just like me. Flattery is the sincerest compliment.

Some Belgians

I went through a long Belgian tripel phase during which I drank almost exclusively Belgian-style tripels. It was a good time. Like most, I started with the slightly pedestrian (or at least common) Delirium Tremens. A server at my local eatery / watering hole (the Aspen Bar and Grill, in Philadelphia), helped me branch out to other tripels and I am forever in his debt. A few good things about the Belgians -- the labels are usually fun and easy to remove. Oh yeah, and they are usually pretty tasty. I enjoy the poperings hommel ale and the bruge zot.

Cool Labels, good beer

I just read about the Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales brewery in the Beer Advocate and a New York Times brewery. I had tried these ales a while ago because the labels were totally cool. I am getting ready to tour or visit the brewery at the end of my vacation next week and I am very excited. My memory is that the farmhouse was a little bland, but I'm going to reserve judgment until I try it again.

Down Under - part 2

I did not know this until I went to Australia, but there are more slot
machines than inhabitants. That's true. There might also be more
breweries. That part is speculation. I tried not to have the same beer
twice during the trip. My favorite label - the Blue Tongue Ginger
beer. It was not, however, my favorite beer. The most important thing
I learned is that Fosters is not Australian for beer, despite what the
ad says. The Beez Neez was good, but a little sweet to have more than
one. The Ironbar was a fun brew pub in Port Douglas. The night's
entertainment was a man who conducted a series of cane toad races -
where the frogs wore little colored tutus. It was a good time. And
the beer was pretty good, too.

Down Under - part 1

I think this is where the collection started -- on a trip to Australia. Most of the labels made it into a scrapbook, but these are duplicates or leftovers. I dragged my mother to the James Squire brewery and had a sampler -- I remember liking most, if not all, of the samples. Also, I really like the James Boag's Lager. I think it is fresh and crisp.

The closing ceremonies are dragging on

I'm sure that if I'm thinking that, every athlete is thinking the same
thing. Just let me get out to a bar wearing my medal so people can buy
me drinks all night! Enough of the inflatable Mounties!

I decided to try the last of the last of my beer of the month ales -
the Ipswich Nut Brown Ale. I like this brown ale. It starts a little
bitter and finishes very smoothly.

Flying Pigs!

There was sort of a theme to this collection - Mexican beer, plus Kalik. And then I found out that the Aiko was from Lithuania, despite the "cerveza" on the label. I think my favorite Mexican beer is Pacifico. Actually, it is tequila, but that's not a beer, is it? I really like the label for the Red Pig Mexican Ale. The beer, however, I don't remember.

Saratoga is better known for horse racing

As I watch the closing ceremonies for the Vancouver Olympics, I am
trying a Black Hawk Stout from Mendocino Brewing Co. This was my final
shipment from the beer of the month club that I received as a parting
gift from some co-workers in Philadelphia. I am sad that both things
have come to an end.

Perhaps the Most Random Collection

The Ephemere is made by Unibroue in Montreal. I shared an Ephemere with my mother one night and she actually liked it! I have also had Fin du Monde and Maudite, both of which I like, but, again, I don't have any labels. It's a good thing I like them if I have to re-drink them. My neighbor likes to bring Tyskie, a Polish lager, when I invite him over to visit. He is the coolest; he also brings some good snacks. And the Tyskie is a nice lager. The owl is just plain cute.

From Sea to Shining Sea

From Maine to California, with stops in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. I have a friend of a friend connection to Allagash. I find the White to be an easy drinking beer. I have enjoyed some of the limited batch ales and look forward to trying more in the future. I was disappointed to learn that Miller purchased Leinenkugel's, but I will reserve judgment for now. I have also had Sunset Wheat, Summer Shandy, Honey Weiss and Berry Weiss, but I don't seem to have any of these labels. Hmm . . . The Scarlet Lady Ale, well, I tried that because (a) I read about Stoudts and (b) I liked the label. There is a theme. Do you know what it is?

Grand Rapids, Munster and Denver

I have toured the Three Floyd's brewery and enjoyed their tap room. I bought 2 bottles of Popskull, a collaboration with DogfishHead, that was only available at the brewery. I really enjoyed the paolo santo aged Popskull. Gumballhead is an enjoyable wheat beer and a fun label. Robert the Bruce should be respected; he kicked my butt once and I learned to respect him. I like tequila, so, naturally, I enjoy the Agave Wheat. I also really enjoyed the Oatmeal Stout and Vanilla Porter. I tried these after a trip to Denver on which I tried the chipotle ale from the Wynkoop Brewery. I'm not a fan of chipotle, but I really enjoyed that ale. So much so, that I tried the Rogue Chipotle Ale, which I also enjoyed, but which has a painted label.

I am off next week to visit New Holland Brewing. I like the Kolsch and pumpkin ale, but the Dragon's Milk knocked me out. I don't do well with high octane stouts.

Widmer, Magic Hat and Founders

Although I'm not a fan of the Widmer Hefeweizen, I really liked the Snow Plow Milk Stout. The Magic Hat Wacko was very, uh, interesting. I think I like it better as a tattoo than a beer. I had a Founder's breakfast stout in the "alternate fridge" (aka the garage, at least in the winter), so I broke it out this afternoon and drank it so I could add the label to this picture. It is an imperial stout, but only 8%. I could taste the bitter chocolate and malt, but I did not get a lot of oatmeal. Nevertheless, I liked it. I am planning a trip to Founders in about a week, so I will have some additions . . .

Brooklyn, Harpoon and Victory

One of my friends encouraged me to give Brooklyn another try after I was relatively unimpressed by my first sampling. He and I shared a Brooklyn Local 1 (label MIA) and I enjoyed it, so I tried a number of their other ales. Overall, I have enjoyed them. Victory is located outside Philadelphia and they brew a wide variety of ales and lagers, but I have only tried a few. You won't forget, I mean remember, your first Monkey. I picked up some Harpoon on the recommendation of a friend from Boston and really enjoyed the Raspberry Hefeweizen.

No method to my madness

The next series of posts don't really have any organization to them. Basically, I tried to group the labels by brewery (yes, I accidentally missed a Bell's so it is included here) and then placed them in envelopes according to what fit in the envelope. I was too lazy and overwhelmed to try to alphabetize them by brewery or group them by geographic region. I am also preparing a spreadsheet, however, that is sortable by brewery and/or beer. Once I catch up, I hope to make the posts more organized. For now, this is my best effort.

This picture contains labels from Shmaltz, Bell's, Great Lakes, Yazoo, Abita and Philadelphia Brewing. I have been to Bell's and Yazoo, but did not tour either. I have also had the Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald, but do not have a label. Every once in a while, I buy a beer simply because of the label. The Sword Swallower falls in that category. I liked the Row House Red, especially because it reminds me of my old house in Philadelphia. To Philly, cheers!

German Lagers and Ales

This photo contains a collection of random German lagers and ales that I have tried. I don't remember all of them, but a few stand out. DAB - a friend suggested this and I was not disappointed. I remember it being a really smooth lager. Paulaner Oktoberfest Marzen - probably my favorite marzen. I also like the Paulaner wheat beer, but I'm not sure why I don't have the label. Finally, I like both of the Ayingers. I have also had Franziskaner Weissbier, but the label is inexplicably MIA.

Bell's

This January, I took a trip to meet some good Philadelphia friends at Bell's Eccentric Cafe in Kalamazoo, MI. The menu was a little limited, but they had most or all of their ales on tap. They did not offer a brewery tour, but they had a cute little store that carried home brew supplies. I first had Oberon at a little neighborhood place in Philadelphia about four years ago and have used it as the "go to" beer for a number of summer parties. I also enjoy the Winter White quite a bit. The expedition Stout is an imperial stout and it kicks my butt.

G. Schneider & Sohn

I first tried an Aventinus at the recommendation of a server at one of my old stomping grounds, the Aspen Bar and Grill in Philadelphia. I really enjoyed this wheat doppelbock. This should not be a surprise because Aventinus has appeared on the Beer Advocate's list of top 25 beers. Because I enjoyed the Aventinus, I then tried the Schneider Weisse, which I think is their flagship beer, and has been rated higher than Aventinus. I did not like it as much as the Wiesen Edel-Weisse or Aventinus. Overall, I enjoyed each of these and highly recommend them.

New Glarus

I took the self-guided tour of the New Glarus brewery in Wisconsin about a year ago. As you can see from the collection of labels, I have tried a number of their offerings. Although I enjoy some more than others, I think they are all pretty good. In addition to the Dancing Man Wheat and Black Wheat, I also enjoy the Totally Naked (obviously), the Crack'd Wheat and the Stone Soup. Two of their more common ales, Fat Squirrel and Spotted Cow, are not represented here. I'm not sure why because I have brought six-packs of both back from various trips to Wisconsin. FYI, I also enjoy a combination of a Fat Squirrel and a Guinness, which I call a Black Squirrel. If you get the chance, check out some New Glarus beer.

Some of My Current Favorites - 1 of 3

About six years ago, I started collecting labels from the ales and lagers that I drank. I had an idea that I would collect a few labels and then build a bar for my house and decorate it with the labels (and caps) that I saved. Well, I never had a good place to put a bar, but I kept collecting labels and caps anyway. Sometimes the labels are difficult to remove or are painted on the bottle, so this collection will not be a complete representation of everything I have tried. Nevertheless, the collection took on a life of its own. Six years later, I have hundreds of labels and caps and I decided that it was time to sort through them.

This morning I finished sorting all of the labels from the last six years. I'm proud and embarrassed to say that I believe I have at least sampled each of these ales and lagers. Some were memorable because I liked them, others because I did not like them, but many were unremarkable. I have selected a handful of my current favorites because I am a little overwhelmed by the scope of this project and I wanted to get this blog off the ground. In no particular order, here are some of my favorites.

In this picture:
Three Floyd's & DogfishHead Popskull - I bought this after a tour of the Three Floyd's brewery and it was only available at the taphouse. I really liked this collaboration. It is aged in paolo santo wood casks. If you can get your hands on some, I recommend it.
SlyFox Raspberry Reserve - I liked this and did not think it was too fruity.
Ommegang Hennepin - This is perhaps my favorite farmhouse.
Avery Karma - I can always use some good karma, and this is very good Karma.

Notably absent from this series of three photos is a label for Trappist Rochefort 10 - another of my all-time top five. I don't know why I do not have a label for this beer because I once bought myself a case for my birthday. I will have to see about fixing this as soon as possible.

Some of My Current Favorites - 2 of 3

This is the second of three posts with some of my current favorites.

In this picture:
New Glarus Brewing Co. Black Wheat - This is a small brewery in New Glarus, WI. Unfortunately, they only distribute in Wisconsin. This brewery will be the subject of a future post, but Black Wheat is included here because I really like it. It looks like a stout when you pour it, but tastes like a wheat. It was quite a nice surprise.
New Glarus Brewing Co. Dancing Man Wheat - I went through a wheat phase and enjoyed a few of these.
Yards Thomas Jefferson's Tavern Ale - this is one of the Yards "Ales of the Revolution" series. This is brewed using Jefferson's recipe. It is 10% abv, but I really enjoy it.
Cooperstown Brewing Co. Pride of Milford - The story behind the beer is just about as good as the beer itself.

Some of My Current Favorites - 3 of 3

This is the third of three posts that show some of my current favorites.

In this picture:
G. Schneider & Sohn Aventinus - probably one of my all-time top 5. It is a wheat doppelbock ale.
G. Schneider & Sohn - Wiesen Edel-Weisse - this is an organic wheat beer. Probably my favorite wheat beer.
Samuel Smith's - Organically Produced Lager Beer - also an organic beer. One of my favorite lagers.
Clipper City Holy Sheet - I brought this back from Philadelphia on a friend's suggestion. I enjoyed it a lot.
Monk's Cafe Flemish Sour Ale - the first sour ale I ever tried. Still my favorite.
Two Brothers & Urthel Brewery Moaten - a cool collaboration and also an enjoyable sour ale.

In honor of the Olympics

About six years ago, I was in Vancouver. The city had recently been
awarded the winter games for 2010. Now, here I am, watching the
Vancouver Olympics! While in Vancouver, I tried these selections from
Granville Island. I was surprised by how much I liked the maple cream
ale; it was sweet, but not too sweet. I wonder if the Olympic athletes
are enjoying any of these?

We all start somewhere

I confess, I have had a few of these as well as some other macro
brews. I try to stay away from them whenever possible.