The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 6th

This will be the last blog I'll be writing for a few days, I'm off to Newcastle with friends - to visit a friend - and celebrate the upcoming anniversary of my birth on Monday.  I'll be catching up with Friday's and Saturday's beers on Sunday - then drinking Sundays.  I kind of hope they aren't all monsters so I can get through 3 without too much trouble.

It seems the word of beer advent is spreading, aside from my flatmate (who was in the same car as me when the idea was conceived) at least two other people I know are doing one.  It's nice that they're trying new things and broadening their beer horizons, maybe only just a little - but broadening none-the-less.

On to today's beer.

Brooklyn - East India Pale Ale (EIPA)
Brooklyn are an American brewer (duh!) from New York (duh!).  If you don't know where New York is then I suppose I should be glad you can read.  Thanks for stopping by, please continue reading.
I suppose I could explain what an IPA is.  The story goes that during colonial times people wanted beer, and ales brewed in the UK travelled extremely poorly - often spoiling during their transport.  IPA's were loaded with extra malt and extra hops and when they arrived at their destination (India) they were extremely tasty.

There are all British malts in this beer, and some English hops too.  It is extremely tasty.  I'd only even had it in the City Arms before seeing it in The Bottle Shop and choosing to pick it for this years calendar.
Looks - Pretty nice amber colour, no head to speak of really with some nice lacing as it makes it's way down the glass.
Smells - Sweet malt, fresh citrussy hops.
Taste - This beer is exceptionally well rounded.  It ticks all the boxes for flavours - malty, hoppy, fruity, bitter, it's a little creamy feeling too.

I can't actually fault this beer, it's quite strong (6.9%) but you'd never get that from the taste.  I could actually sit here all evening and drink it until I get angry with the world.

10/10

I wrote this blog whilst listening to Santana, before I got to around the time Santana got awful then I started listening to Thin Lizzy.  You know, I heard Phil Lynott singing in Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds before I heard him in Thin Lizzy - then I learnt he was dead. How awesome is the War of the Worlds though!?

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 5th

Today was my last day in work until Monday, good thing too because it was difficult trying to get a mountain of work done with Uncle Buck on the TV near my desk.

Today's beer is just awesome.

Tiny Rebel - Urban IPA
I've mentioned Brewdog in a few posts, and those who know me know I have shares in the brewery.  Tiny Rebel are like Brewdog in many ways, colourful (perhaps aggressive) styling for their bottles and all out attack for their flavours.  And they're from Newport.
My flatmate and I went to the Beer and Cider Festival this year in anticipation as we'd heard they were in there.  They were one of the three main brewers there on the main stand next to Brains and Otley, which is impressive as they only started brewing in the spring of 2012 and I'd never had one of their beers - clearly got money behind them.
We spent our time sampling all their beers and only had about two non-Tiny Rebel beers all day.  It was a tour de force of tastiness, they were even dry hopping (pulling a beer through dry hops) an already insanely tasty beer using something they called a hop-rocket.

Urban IPA is similar to Brewdogs 'standard' Punk IPA - which is a great beer to be compared to.
Looks - Poured well, nice slightly cloudy golden colour.  Had a thick white head.
Smells - Quite complex, it's sharp and fruity whilst still coming over as rich and warming.
Taste - Dry, sharp and fruity.  Lovely bitter hoppy finish that lasts for ages.

Now I know what you're thinking..."this beer's getting a high score"

Yeah.

It is.  But not as high as you'd think.

8/10

I wrote this blog whilst listening to The Music.  I was at their farewell gig in the Brixton Academy, you know, it was the shit.

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 4th

Hmmm. Tuesday.

Todays beer is going straight to my head - I haven't eaten since about 3pm and all I really ate today was bread, soup, and a doughnut.

Morland - Old Crafty Hen
I never drink Old Crafty Hen, I see it in the shops and remember how much I enjoy drinking it - and then I leave it thinking 'I'll keep it for the calendar'.  I wish I wouldn't.  Actually last year I didn't even bother reviewing it because I like it so much.

I'm sure the fact I don't drink it often makes this beer quite special, it is a thoroughly enjoyable drink in every aspect.  It's a shame I just don't find myself 'wowed' as much anymore - I'm used to it, and the types of beer I drink regularly are more on a par with it.
Looks - Lovely deep copper colour.  Almost perfect, there's another beer somewhere in the calendar with 'the' colour.
Smells - Rich, malty and sweet.  Bit of coffee and caramel.
Taste - Just lovely.  Smooth and sweet at first, then malty with a little bitterness in the aftertaste.

I still rate this beer highly, and the fact that I still enjoy it after so long speaks to it's quality.  I was going to score it quite low (by Crafty Hen standards), but after thinking about it, and drinking it, I've changed my mind.
This is just what a good ale tastes like.  Scrumdiddlyumptious.

10/10

I wrote this blog whilst listeneing to The War of the Worlds. I'll talk about it a little, because I love it. Synth, strings and 70's style guitar & bass all wrapped up in classic science fiction.  I've been to see it 3 times - twice with my mum because no one else was cool enough...

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 3rd

Ahhh - Monday.  I've had a pretty good Monday, occasionally whilst working my mind wandered to the treat concealed in a festive bag in my fridge.  No disappointment here today!

Flying Dog Brewery - Raging Bitch
Thanks to the City Arms, Flying Dog were one of the first 'new' American brewers I heard about.  They had an American beer festival featuring all sorts of wonder I'd never tasted before, Goose Island, Flying Dog, Anchor amongst others.
Flying Dog do have an interesting art style, I have to say it's very similar to the sorts of things Matt the drummer (you know who you are) used to draw.  Anyhoo...

Raging Bitch is (as it says) a belgian style IPA - Honestly I'm not exactly sure what they mean by that, unless it's just that it's top fermented and bottle conditioned.  It's 8.3% ABV so that's definitely Belgian style.  I've actually just learned that the El Diablo yeast they used gives a Belgian flavour, so...yeah.
Looks - Lovely orange colour to it, it's a little cloudy with a tiny bit of carbonation.  Pillowy head (heh!)
Smells - T'riffic. Fruity and hoppy, there's a hint of malt but this is all hops at the business end.
Taste - Like it smells.  Strong, hoppy, fruity and bitter.  This is how I like my beer.

Gets an identical score to yesterday's beer, I can't quite give it a 10 because my socks are still on.

9/10

I wrote this blog whilst listening to The White Stripes I often wonder if I'd like to be Jack White. I think I would, the fella' knows his way around a tune.

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 2nd

Today's beer is nice, and I've got nothing else of note to say - so I'll just get straight to it.

Brouwerij Huyghe - Delirium Tremens
I've been meaning to try this beer for a long time now, a friend told me about Delirium Nocturnum a few years ago and I've been keeping an eye out for it since.
This isn't Delirium Nocturnum (as the more astute of you would have noticed) but who cares? It's got a pink elephant on it.  There are four varieties of Delirium - Tremens, Nocturnum, Christmas and Red.

It comes in a fancy ceramic-look bottle and weighs in with an 8.5% ABV
Looks - Pale golden colour, formed a foamy head upon pouring but that cleared fairly quickly.
Smells - Fruity, with a little spice and a little malt.  I've a cold at the moment which has diminished my sense of smell but the smell of this made me want to just pour it down my throat.
Taste - This beer tastes nommy-nommy-nom.  Crisp and fruity at first, then finishes with a familiar dry and yeasty flavour you often get with Beligian beers.  Deceptively easy to drink.

Very nice, highly recommended.

9/10 

I wrote this blog whilst listening to Alice Cooper

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012 - December 1st

Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! (this is how to pen excitement)

I feel I should add that since last year my preferences and tastes for beer have changed a little, with the popularity of small local brewers the punchier hoppy flavours of American inspired IPA's definitely being preferred to a standard British ale.
In short, ale needs to be very special to compete with the barrage on the senses I now favour.

I'll also try and be structured with my review, noting on appearance, smell, and taste.  Let's see how long I can keep that up for.

Now, on to the beer.  The first beer in the 2012 Beer Advent Calendar is...

Oxfordshire Ales - Uncle Scrooge
I'm not sure if Uncle Scrooge is trying to be ironic, because there really isn't anything Christmassy (I'm sure I used that word last year) about it.  I often wonder what the point of all the traditional breweries putting out Christmas beer is, I assume it's just because old men get drunk at Christmas and it has nothing to do with actually creating a beer inspired by Christmas.  Last year Brewdog released a Christmas beer made with ginger and cloves - t'was fantastic, but I digress.

Looks - I'm not really a fan of the colour, it's halfway between a nice golden/amber and a richer darker ale.  Looks almost muddy.
Smells - Smells OK, little malty, little hoppy - but on the whole, fairly average.
Taste - I'm trying not to be negative, but this beer tastes like 'the norm'.  There's nothing popping out, I could probably pick out at least half a dozen other beers that are almost identical - and they're available year-round.  I could probably brew something that tasted like this (no, not in my bladder...)

I'm not disappointed to get this one out of the way first, quite the opposite - this distinctly average drink shall provide a middle-of-the-road mark for the rest of the month.

5/10


I wrote this blog whilst listening to The Bibelots

The Beer Advent Calendar 2012

It's that time of year again, where everyone likes to make out that I have a drinking problem.  It's not a drinking problem, it's a boredom problem.

Besides, one beer a day and only one month of the year.  Talk to me about it next year when I'm contemplating making it the beer & whisky advent calendar - a beer and a miniature for each day.

So here we have this years beers, there are a few repeats in there but I have tried to put lots of new beers in as always.
There are also quite a few 330ml bottles (usually they're all 500ml), but it's OK because some of them are bound to be mighty tasty.

That's all for now, roll on December 1st!

I wrote this blog whilst listening to Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by M83.