Blue Point Spring Fling Copper Ale

I held on to this post for way too long since there are Autumn brews all over the shelves. Picking up this brew was a no brainer, Blue Point is one of my favorite locals and I would not hesitate to try anything they come out with. This beer is definitely on the bitter side with an acidic pucker. I would not say I would buy these again after finishing a six pack because of how acidic it comes off to me.

It's now October, I tried a few seasonals and so far I haven't bought anything I disliked. Posts should follow soon with freshly updated beer labels of Fall seasonals.

Ba M'Ba Lager

This is the last lager for a while, I promise. Lagers are a summer beer to me since they are so refreshing for some of my favorite spicy foods and heavy meals like burgers and fries. It seems as though Asia has no shortage of lagers and they are all pretty much the same. This one is a bit different, though, it has a bit of a sweetness I would attribute to fruit. I'm a big fan of Asian island foods and once a month I will drag myself to the nearest Thai or Vietnamese restaurant I enjoy and eat a full meal including an appetizer. I have never see Ba M'Ba served in the restaurants locally, it's usually Singha, but I would order this if it were on the menu. This is not a light beer, so I would classify it with the same weight as a regular Heineken. Sad to say, Heineken seems to be my default lager when I am uncertain of beer freshness at restaurants and I can measure lagers based on my default.

This summer has been eventful to say the least, a major heatwave, an earthquake felt upwards in the East coast, and a hurricane. I am glad when a season ends because another beer season begins. I look forward to the art of new Fall labels and trying new seasonals.

Asahi Super Dry Draft

Whenever I go out for sushi randomly, I'm always thinking about the refreshing Japanese lagers to drink with the food. I'm not in love with sushi since it is pretty easy to get sick of compared to eating pizza or pasta. However, I do enjoy the beers since they always seem to go down smoothly between pieces of sushi. I think Sapporo is a lighter beer and a bit easier to drink compared to the dry taste of Asahi. I would say Sapporo is a beer for those who prefer just to drink beer, as much as they drink Budweiser whereas Asahi is a little more distinct in flavor. I'm always excited when a restaurant has Japanese beers on tap, especially this one.

Long Trail Pollenator Spring Ale

My favorite beer seasons are Spring and Fall because those brews usually have the perfect combinations of flavor and carbonation. This Spring was definitely hard earned in the East coast this year, it was frigid all the way until early April. When the weather warmed up just enough, I was on a mission to gather the Spring brews. I am happy to write that I have sampled a handful of seasonals and none of them disappointed me.

Long Trail's Spring ale is very light with a sweet hoppy aftertaste and would pair great with a salad or burger. One of the nice things about this beer was the sweet factor did not overpower the beer. This is something I would pick up again but since it is seasonal and something I have already tried, I would choose a new seasonal to try when having to choose how much to buy.

Wolaver's Pale Ale

Wolaver's is from Vermont and a small brewery specializing in organic brews. I see the organic label and I have to try it to see if there is a major difference. As crazy as it sounds and I have written this before, organic does make a difference in the taste. It's crisper and cleaner than non-organic like they've washed some of the starch away. I'm also a huge fan of pale ales, this one did not disappoint when it came to balance of flavors without too much of a bitter aftertaste.

Magic Hat Winter Seasonal Howl

Technically, Winter just ended about two weeks ago and I have kept this in my archive for a few months and wanted to put this up before Summer begins. Whenever I think of Magic Hat, I'm always going to think of lighter beers since this is the first Winter seasonal I have seen. The first thing I noticed was the the label. I thought I saw this combination somewhere once in my life before and I probably had thoughts about that moment of time in my life. This book was once required reading in my high school class:

Back to the beer, Winter seasonal brews are usually darker and higher in alcohol content and this Magic Hat brew fits that description. It's definitely more bitter and heavier than its usual brews like #9. I found it pretty easy to drink and despite being a heavier brew the balance was good with the alcohol content. When these come around again next year, I will pick it up again.

Dale's Pale Ale

I read some random reviews and knowing that I am a fan of the American pale ale, I had to pick these cans up to see what the fuss is about. I am shocked I was able to stomach down five of these over time and only had one remain in the fridge. With a lot of beers, if I have more than one, I really give it a curve on taste, slowly drinking them to ensure I'm not dismissing a great beer because of the food I'm eating. This beer stared at me every time I thought about pulling a beer out of the fridge and the thoughts of foul, bitter, aromatic crap bubbled in my gut. I must not be trained for the major hops league, but this beer is disgusting and acidic. I have not seen this served in restaurants or bars or on tap, it's no wonder, this stuff ranks high in beer that only a select few could appreciate.

Flying Dog Hefeweizen

This is the first Flying Dog brew that I drank where I couldn't even bear to take another sip after the first. This was straight battery acid mixed in with sour funk. I'm not sure how this even passed a taste test. This is not something I can imagine drinking with any type of cuisine to stifle the taste. The only thing this beer has going for it was the label art, other than that, this is nothing more than a paperweight when filled and recyclable bottle when empty.

Harp Lager

Some folks would say any time is a great time for a lager, but I think lagers are beers designed for hot weather. They're usually refreshing and easy to drink a few at once without getting wiped out from it while eating. Harp lager is not much different than the other imported lagers, a lot of carbonation, not a light beer, and easy to drink. I wouldn't consider this a special beer but for what it's worth, it's part of the Guinness brewing clan which could make any beer pretty special.

I know I missed posting any St. Patrick's day related beer but this is it, a green bottle from last year sitting dormant in my archives.

Sam Adams Octoberfest

I figured I would get these posts going before the next beer season rolls around. Samuel Adams is local along the New England area and I'm able to find most of the seasonal brews down in NY. Since there is no issue with variety, it's a brand I can't ignore when they have such great limited edition runs and specialty brews. I did enjoy this beer, it's a bit heavier than the regular Boston lager but not by much, and the bitter bite is pretty mild. This is a beer I wish they had all year round, it has all the qualities I look for in a brew, mid-weight, not too carbonated and on the darker side.

Magic Hat Hex Ourtoberfest

I held on to this post for a bit and an entire season managed to pass before getting around to it. October and November are usually busy months for people in general, those months seem to revolve around preparing for holidays and doing strange things like looking for things on sale that we don't really need but really can't pass up the opportunity to buy at a reduced price. Fortunately, I have managed to buy very little this shopping season in terms of random items, though it was tempting. Since the holidays passed, a handful of larger snowstorms hit the East cost and buried most of everything in snow. It seems as though layers and layers of snow piles on the same half melted or unmelted piles every other week making for ugly monuments and to no surprise, the loss of parking spaces. When it snows around here, it makes for pretty messy commutes and extends the day because public transportation will have some delays. At the end of the day, I feel less motivated to update despite still collecting and trying new brews.

One of the things about Magic Hat is the variety and quality of brews that keeps me buying almost anything with its label on it. This year's Octoberfest brew is no different, it's got a bit of a bitter bite since it's a Fall beer and it's not too heavy. Fall is the time for darker brews, so everything that comes around this time tends to run along those lines of deep amber colors, heavier in alcohol, and a bit of a bitter kick to it. This one is very drinkable, it's lighter on a lot of the other brews in this category but it may be because that is the Magic Hat style.