Friday Beer O'clock Selections

Troegs Nugget Nectar Imperial Amber Ale - Friday Beer O'Clock Selections 2-25-2011

This week's selection is one that came with high praise and recommendation. Troeg's Nugget Nectar seasonal Imperial Amber Ale.

ABV: 7.5%

Apparance: Poured with golden amber with orange hughs forming a small head that dissipated quick leaving behind a decent collar and spotty lacing. Turbidity is high and cloudy.

Aroma: Right away is a punch of super fresh pine and citrus. Nice lemon with earth and grassy scents. There is an aroma of sticky hops, but with slight sweetness. Most notable is the big pine citrus.

Taste: Wow! Lots of citrus, with nutmeg and spices. Uncertain sweetness up front and I can't nail it down, but it's there - Tropical fruits? I expected much more bitterness, but it reminds me more of sweet ripe citrus (bitter sweet). Citrus pine tops the finish with a pleasant bitter aftertaste and rounds out across the tongue and back of mouth. Nicely balanced.

Feel: On the lighter side with good refreshing character. Clean and wet with nice carbonation.

Drinkability: Overall great drinkability. Crisp clean and refreshing character with a fantastic balanced hop bitterness and sweet citrus. There are a handful of brews that have made me reconsider my opinion of hoppy bitter beers. This is definately one of them.

If you consider yourself a hophead, you have to try this!

Thanks to @jimstorer and @m70 for convincing me not to wait on this one.

Clown Shoes Eagle Claw Fist Imperial Amber Ale - Friday Beer O'Clock Selection 12-10-2010

Alright! Enough clowning around! It's time to get serious about this Beer O'Clock Selection stuff. Really.. I mean it. Forget about what the label on this week's selection says.. this is serious beer.

You still doubt me? Then prepare to feel the Shaolin Master's Clown Shoes Eagle Claw Fist assault. Don't say I didn't warn you!

From the bottle:

At Clown Shoes we do Kung Fu, junior high playground style. One morning a move was busted and a beer was born. This intensely flavored Imperial Amber Ale has a mix of sweet malts balanced by over 100 IBUs of Simcoe, Centinnial, and Citra hops, as well as the grace and power of a Shaolin Monk.

ABV: 8%

Appearance:

This poured with a clear dark amber/brown color forming a thick 3 finger beige colored head with great retention and nice lacing.

Aroma:

A fantastic bouquet of aroma here! Prominent scent of fresh hops, sticky wet pine and citrus fruits with under tones of sweet floral malts and ... wet grass?.  I can't put into words what this is like, But it is GOOD!

Taste:

Right up front is the sweet malts, caramel, tropical fruits and something "earthy", like grass freshly pulled from the ground. Then a REALLY nice transition to the bitter hops and piney citrus flavors finishing with dry bitter hops in the end. There is really a nice balance happening here - a shaolin showdown between sweet and bitter. Impressive!

Feel:

Surprisingly smooth across the tongue with a bit of carbonation and bitter bite at the back of the mouth. I expected a little more from the carbonation, but the hops smack down makes up for it. Light to low medium body with a dry, pasty finish.

Drinkability:

A very drinkable brew. One of the better balancing acts I had with great flavor and aromas. Not heavy, and smooth going down.

Overall:

I think this is a pretty impressive beer. I love the HUGE flavors and aroma and the foamy head makes you want to jump right in.. I'd even be tempted to give this a perfect 10 score... BUT.. The finish is very bitter, leaving a lingering dry bitter feel across the lips and tongue, leaving you licking bitter lips for a while after drinking this brew.

However, if super powered hops is your thing.. this is for you..!!

That's my opinion. What do you think?

Southern Tier Pumking Imperial Ale - Friday Beer O'Clock Selection 9-24-2010

This week's Friday Beer O'Clock Selection continues with the seasonal pumpkin selections and was chosen based on a lot of buzz and recommendations from others based on their experience with last year's release. So without further delay, this week's selection is ... Souther Tier Imperial Pumking Ale! 

From the Bottle:

Pumking is an ode to Púca, a creature of Celtic folklore, who is both feared and respected by those who believe in it. Púca is said to waylay travelers throughout the night, tossing them on its back, and providing them the ride of their lives, from whichthey return forever changed! Brewed in the spirit of All Hallows Eve, a time of year when spirits can make contact with the physical world and when magic is most potent. Pour Pumking into a goblet and allow it’s alluring spirit to overflow. As spicy aromas present themselves, let its deep copper color entrance you as your journey into this mystical brew has just begun. As the first drops touch your tongue a magical spell will bewitch your taste buds making it difficult to escape. This beer is brewed with pagan spirit yet should be enjoyed responsibly. 

ABV: 8.8%

Appearance:

Poured with a golden brown color, a bit lighter than other pumpkin ales I've had, and formed a generous creamy head at about 3 fingers.

Aroma:

Another Brew pushing my olfactory senses into hyper-drive. A lot of sweet bready/crusty aromas dominating the nose with spices and pumpkin coming in underneath. I'm also reminded of toasted almonds, amaretto and sweet yams smothered in caramel. (hungry yet?)

Taste:

Sweet in front as expected, with genuine toasted pumpkin spice flavors coming out in the middle mingling with crusty bread. Toasted pumpkin spice finally submits to the dominating crusty bread on the back. Finish lingers with bitter, breadiness with hints of sweet caramel spicy pumpkin goodness. 8.8% alcohol bites a bit, but does not overpower the overall flavors, however, it does become more pronounced as the beer warms.

Feel:

It's certainly got some weight behind it but not a heavy beer. Also has a pretty smooth texture and comes across on the dryer side.

Drinkability:

At 8.8% ABV, this one might leave a dent after the first round or two so pace yourself. 

Conclusion:

This is a treat. When I think of pumpkin, I imagine the full spectrum of flavors that come out in the autumn harvest spread across a Thanksgiving table - squash, yams, pumpkin, breads, and the assortment of flavors they bring. This beer comes about as close as you'd imagine to bringing all that together ( even the burps are pretty good ). If I had to take points away, it would be because of the dry bitterness that comes out in the back and lingers in the finish. It just seems out of place here and throws the balance off just a bit for me. But in the end, after getting past the expectations, I do like it - maybe not as much as the Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale, overall - but still, I like it.

This is a complex brew for sure!! If you've tried this one, we'd love to hear what you thought.