The vast majority of people are perfectly happy with lagers and, to a lesser extent, ales, and consequently never bother tasting anything else. I find this somewhat sad, as sour beers can be much more complex than your typical lager, and I enjoy them immensely. This week I grabbed a Gueuze, which is a blended [...]
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St. Bernardus beer has dark coloring, malt taste
Although most people have been rejoicing at the early arrival of the summer weather, I have been in denial. While, like most graduate students, I rarely see natural sunlight, I also happen to like the darker months and the rich beer styles that are typically served in cool weather. This week I decided to have [...]
Hard cider offers a unique combo of apples and pears
Cider is often overlooked as an alcoholic drink, but it is deeply rooted in American history. The most famous example of this is John Chapman, known colloquially as Johnny Appleseed, who traveled the country planting apple trees. The part of this story elementary school teachers leave out is that these trees where not planted randomly [...]
Chilling and grilling with Saison Dupont beverage
The warm weather of the past few weeks has finally hammered through my thick head that winter can’t last forever. I personally love winter, but I also try to make the most of each season, so I just busted out the grill for the first barbecue of the season. Now, the classic beers to have [...]
End of History-style brew bottles taxidermy rodents
The beer that I picked up this week is from a brewery that has a reputation for brewing odd and extreme beers. The American champion in this category is Dogfish Head Brewery, but over in Scotland the reigning champ is BrewDog. This brewery is best known for making the world’s second-most alcoholic beer, End of [...]
Abbey-style ale offers a smooth, honeylike taste
Inthe smallvillageof Buggenhout, Belgium,thereis a brewery called Bosteels Brewery. This brewery has beeninthe hands of the Bosteels family for seven generations andover200 years. The brewery was established by Evarist Bosteelsin1791, and it has beenpasseddown fromfatherto son eversince. It is currently under the management of Ivo Bosteels and his son Antoine, the 6th and 7th generations, [...]
Quad caps the winter with a sweet, heightened ABV
While this year has not yet brought cold and wintry weather to Philadelphia, this week I sampled a brew that longs to be consumed in a log cabin in front of a crackling fireplace after trudging home through the falling snow on a cold winter’s day. The Belgian Quadrupel is a strong, dark Trappist style [...]
Palo Santo Marron offers a woodsy taste
Dogfish Head Brewery is one of the most famous East Coast breweries largely because of its founder, Sam Calagione, and his obsession with strange beers. Dogfish Head opened as a brewpub named Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats in 1995 in Rehoboth, Del. This was the first brewery to open in the state since Prohibition was [...]
Blithering Idiot complex and surprisingly strong
One of the classic beer styles for this time of year is the barleywine. I have an appreciation for this style, even though it’s not my favorite, largely for its complexity. Most local breweries turn out a version of this beer at one time or another, so for this week I procured a bottle of [...]
Flavor is a toss up from world’s oldest brewery
Last week I tried a decent beer, Ayinger’s Weizen-bock, and I wanted to try a similar example as a comparison. The Foodery actually stocks a number of beers of this style, which is unusual for beer stores in this area, and I picked out Vitus from Weihenstephaner. I previously reviewed Weihenstephaner’s Dark Hefeweissbier, which was [...]
Weizen-Bock sweet, tangy
One of my favorite beer styles is the Weizenbock, and I keep my eye open for different examples as it’s pretty hard to come by here in the U.S. Victory Brewing Company produces one named Moonglow, but it’s only on tap for about three weeks each year. I know several other breweries have made the [...]
Rodenbach’s Grand Cru has distinct, think taste
The new year generally brings lots of parties and celebrations, and this year was no exception. While others sip on champagne, however, I prefer to grab a bunch of complex beers and enlighten people to the wide world of brewing. This year, however, led me to discover a new favorite, the Rodenbach Grand Cru. Rodenbach [...]
Imperial beer offers up a sweet but bitter taste
The fall season is blockbuster time for seasonal beers. Late summer is when fresh fruit beers come out, which segues right into the harvest when Saisons, Marzens and all the pumpkin spice beers come into season. I dearly love these and all the other seasonal beers, but with the warm weather this week I decided [...]
Mad Elf in time for holidays
Recently I have been mulling over a very serious issue, specifically which beer to have with Thanksgiving dinner. Now, this is a nontrivial question. I think a heavy lager like a bock would go great, but these beers are somewhat difficult to drink in quantity, and certain people just don’t like them at all. Wheat [...]
Straub’s historic brewery creates light, sweet taste
A few weeks ago I reviewed Yuengling Traditional Lager, which got me wondering what other historic brews are available from Pennsylvania. The answer that quickly came to my mind is Straub, so I grabbed a case of their beer to try. Straub Brewery was founded by Peter Straub in 1872 when he bought the Benzinger [...]
Victory’s Weizenbock both sweet and spicy
The harvest season has brought to mind my favorite beer style, the Weizenbock. I personally love wheat beers and this is the biggest, baddest wheat beer of them all, with a much bolder, maltier taste compared to the lighter German wheat beers. The beer in question this week is Moonglow Weizenbock from Victory Brewing Company. [...]
Philadelphia’s Bluecoat Gin offers a classy taste
Many college students stick to vodka and spiced rum for their mixed drinks, which unfortunately prevents them from experiencing a huge variety of different cocktails and the flavors that make them interesting. One of the liquors that many overlook is gin, although their reticence is understandable. Gin is clear liquor that is flavored with juniper [...]
Hoptimus Prime great despite high price tag
Hello, fellow beer enthusiasts! Mr. Hartshorne is out for the time being, so I, your humble servant, shall do my best to bring you the best from the world of brewing. I bow my head to his superior knowledge of the brewed, hopped and malted world, but when it comes to voicing a strongly held [...]
Yuengling Lager is saving bars across Pennsylvania
The beer this week is one familiar to the vast majority of my audience: Yuengling Traditional Lager. This beer fills a special place in Philadelphia, as well as American brewing history, and is one of the best bargain beers on the market. The Yuengling Brewery was founded by David G. Yuengling in 1829 in Pottsville, [...]
New Oktoberfest beers encompass the season
Oktoberfest, the world’s largest beer festival, closed last Monday, Oct. 3, which was also German Unity Day. This festival was first held in 1810 as a celebration of King Ludwig I’s marriage to Princess Therese, but it has since been moved to September so that the weather is more favorable, and an agricultural show has [...]
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