..this is attempt number 3 to post this blog and I have yet to figure out to copy it before I hit “publish” so its also going to be time number 3 writing it! *shakes fist at computer*
For anyone familiar with Dogfish Head brewery you know they don’t mess around when it comes to their beer. The Palo Santo (holy tree) Marron Brown Ale is no exception. It is aged in Paraguayan Palo Santo barrels that are typically used by wine makers. This Friggin’ beer is 12% ABV but you would never know it! You definitely get some caramel and vanilla flavors but the most interesting flavor comes from the wood its aged in. There are also some familiar flavors that you would recognize from a traditional brown ale. The $13.99 a four pack these guys cost is totally worth it, I don’t know how long I’ll be carrying it though so if you want it hurry down!
Tweet This Post
I typically order a good variety of seasonal beers but this one definitely peaked my curiosity being brewed with beet extract and all. I actually sold through the first case in less then a week and didn’t even get to try one making it even more intriguing to me. So since I haven’t written a blog in a while I figured this would be a good pick!
The first thing you notice is the slight pinkish color, not quite as deep as a berry weis, but certainly noticeable. Nothing too crazy on the nose, but I’m also just getting over a cold so I’m sure that doesn’t help. I gave it a good swig, thankfully the beet isn’t over powering. In fact, the beet barley comes through except for a little bit on the finish. I was a little surprised considering Magic Hat’s #9 and H.IPA and others I have had, it makes sense though. Most summer seasonal are light easy drinking beers that you can put quite a few back in one sitting. I would say that is a pretty accurate description of the Wacko, but If you want to try it, stop in!
Tweet This Post
…Yes I’m bad at keeping this up to date. I know this! I’m SORRY! Since the last time I did get a bunch of new beer in that I will go over quickly before I get into my “Turbodog” review.
New last week: Abita; Turbodog, Purple haze. Bear Republic; Racer 5, Red Rocket. Horny Goat; Exposed, Belgium Wheat, Hopped and Horny. Also Goose Island Matilda. Now onto my review of “Turbodog”
The label for “Turbodog” is pretty plain, the front doesn’t give you much of an indication of what your getting, those boys in Louisiana must all think we’ve all had it before! Upon some further investigation (turning the bottle around) I learned its a dark brown ale…. kinda. Its brewed with several different malts and fermented using an German ALT yeast.
This hodgepodge of brewing brings out the characteristics of a dark ale and some of the flavors of a stout with out the bitter finish. I’d have another, but I wouldn’t have named it “Turbodog” unfortunately they didn’t ask me!
Tweet This Post
So today I got a few new beers in however a few I was expecting didn’t make it in this week. But thats OK.
Its apparently the return of Summer Shandy already but you wouldn’t know it from the weather.
New Glarus has a new one, “Black Wheat” that I haven’t tried yet so I couldn’t tell you much about it.
I got “Gordon” by Oskar Blues which I am looking forward to trying. Its a mix of a double IPA and an Imperial red.. and it comes in a can!
I got the last case that my distributor had of Tyranena’s “Dirty Old Man” which is one from their Brewers Gone Wild collection. Its an Imperial Rye Porter aged in rye whiskey barrels.
…and on the uninteresting but convenient page we have re-sealable 16oz aluminum bottles of Miller Lite in 9 packs. Thrilling, I know!
Beer tasting tomorrow! 5-7!!
Tweet This Post
Ale Asylum Hopalicious Available at the Blatz Market & Liquor
Ale Asylum is “Bottled in Madison – Brewed in Sanity”… which sounds questionable, at best. With eleven separate additions of hops in the recipe, Hopalicious may not typically appeal to those who consider themselves “adverse” to “hoppy” beers. But Ale Asylum keeps it on the straight and narrow with this local favorite.
Hopalicious is sweet and smooth, which are characteristics rarely associated with such a huge dose of hops. Ofcourse, if you’re desperately in search for the hoppiest of hops flavored beers out there, Ale Asylum won’t let you down either. The flavor of hops stays true, without giving you a smack in the back of the mouth like many hopped up variety.
Stocked regularly in the Blatz Market and Liquor, you can find this beer both in our Blatz Cave and in our Build Your Own 6 Pack Cooler tonight!
Tweet This Post
Just in today at the Blatz is Hook & Ladder Brewing Company! Hook & Ladder is out of the Washington, DC area and was started by a volunteer firefighter in his kitchen. Now it’s become one of the fastest growing craft breweries in the country, and has just taken Milwaukee by storm.
Hook & Ladder Beers available at the Blatz Market & Liquor
Hook & Ladder supports local burn centers all over the country with their “Penny a Pint, a Quarter a Case” philosophy. This means that every time you come into the Blatz and pick up this beer, you’ll be supporting Milwaukee area firefighters… hopefully there aren’t any firefighters in the local burn center but I suppose it’s inevitable in their line of work.
Since 2005, Hook & Ladder has donated over $60,000 to burn centers around the country.
Much in the tradition of firefighters, they’ve named their different brews with great dry humor: Backdraft Brown, Lighter, and my personal favorite, Ember Ale. Unfortunately the Ember Ale is only available in their new Variety Pack, but that’s still no reason to avoid trying out all of their great brews!
We’ve strategically placed Backdraft Brown and Golden Ale in our Build-Your-Own-Sixpack cooler.
The Backdraft Brown (which I most recently enjoyed) is a full bodied, yet very smooth concoction, which when poured into a glass and held up to the light, I daresay resembles the color Fire Engine Red…
Tweet This Post
Free Beer Tasting at the Blatz
Last night, for those of you unfortunate enough to be working or unable to make it in, we hosted a hugely successful beer tasting right here in the store. We sampled the Sierra Nevada Torpedo IPA and the Lakefront Brewery’s Big Easy. What a great combination of beers — of course, you know just as well as I do that beer always tastes better when it’s Free!
Our next tasting is next Thursday — it won’t be beer… but it will be Scotch! And it’s still free! Stop in from 5-7 on the 28th to take part!
Tweet This Post
We’ve just received a few new arrivals into the Blatz Cave! Come down tonight and check out these great new beers:
> Sierra Nevada Torpedo
> Lakefront Bridge Burner
> Bell’s Hopslam
Also we still have 2 Sam Adams Winter Classic variety packs available, as well as just 3 Lakefront Variety packs… for some reason we even have 3 more Belgian Variety packs left. Come snatch these up before someone else does!
Tweet This Post
On January 29th, we are excited to announce that we will be hosting the Furthermore Fatty Boombalatty Re- Release Party! Come on down to the Blatz to taste Furthermore’s latest creation:
Fatty Boombalatty release party at the Blatz, February 27, 2009!
The conception and naming of this beer happened in one fell swoop. Unsure whether to offer a light session beer or a fun ball-buster as our warm weather seasonal, we decided on a beer that would be “a big, fatty boombalatty” version of a Belgian white. And away we went, taking a recipe for a white beer and ramping up the grain bill by 50%; we dropped the amount of wheat by 75% to keep the beer rough around the edges. We bucked tradition by steering the bitterness in the direction of a pale ale, and coupling hops with coriander in the fermenter. The resulting beer gives you all the bubblegum goodness of a big Belgian, with enough crispness to cut through the sweet profile, thus making you want to sip it again and again. Dangerous, indeed!
Stop by February 27 at 5-7PM to taste Furthermore’s latest creation!
Ofcourse, if you’re as impatient as I am, you’ll be pleased to hear that there will be a beer tasing THIS Thursday, January 22 at 5PM. For more upcoming events check the Calendar
Tweet This Post
Mmmm... Oatmeal
Due to the overwhelming (as opposed to underwhelming or just regular old “whelming”) response of the Vanilla porter, coupled with the fact that I got a new Breckenridge beer I have decided to review their “Oatmeal Stout”. Of course, the fact that I happen to have a six pack of it sitting on the counter encouraged me to write another beer blog. Its a pretty cool package, with an image of a “man in the moon” with a night cap on and a kind of creepy smile. Billed as “tall dark and dreamy” and “a stout worthy of the title”.
A fair warning: Stouts are not for the beginner beer drinker, the training wheels will have to have come off before you want to give this guy a shot.
For everyone else, the basics of a good stout are pretty simple: creamy and smooth with flavors of chocolate and a hint of roast coffee. I popped the top off and poured it into my extra special tasting glass (found a clean pint glass!), and after the head ALMOST poured over the top I stopped looking for the paper towels and paid more attention to the beer. The head has a great chocolaty color, while the beer itself looked like black coffee. So far so good! The first sip was creamy, smooth… well everything I already mentioned that you should look for in a stout. The chocolate and coffee flavors were well balanced and complimented each other well. The tastes were consistent from beginning to the end of the beer. Definitely a must try for the stout lover.
One more thing about this beer is the mildly hidden recipe for a Oatmeal Stout Milkshake, it looks like something I’ll have to try for New Years! You’ll have to get your own to find it.
Tweet This Post