End of Session Oppression

For the last couple of weeks I haven't had more than a beer or two on any given day. Whereas its good for your liver to drink in moderation (blah, blah, blah), its always nice to get together with family and/or friends and drain the stockpiles from time to time. This past Fourth of July weekends was one of those times. The wife and I headed out to Columbus, OH for the long weekend to see her folks. One of the great things about going to see the in-laws is that my father-in-law shares the same passion that I do for things fermented. He managed to save up a nice selection of beers for our visit. Well here goes a few notes on some of things we sampled:


Three Floyds "Dreadnaught IPA"

Anytime you get the opportunity to drink anything from Three Floyds take it. This is one serious double IPA. As I was once told many many years ago from an old man I worked with at a moving company "Richard's don't play" when he was describing to me his favorite types of malt liquors, well "Dreadnaught don't play." This beer is the epitome of an American Hop-Bomb, the beer literally finishes with a wall of bitterness. To some that might not sound good, but I absolutely loved it.


Avery/Russian River "Collaboration Not Lititgation"

The back story on this beer is kind of interesting. Adam Avery (of Avery Brewing) and Vinnie Cilurzo (of Russian River) both realized that they offered a belgian beer called Salvation. Instead of suing one another to decide who could keep the rights to the name of those delicious brews, they got together and created a beer by mixing those two beers together and realsing it under the above stated name. This beer is viscous with a spicy clove and banana flavor upfront which is followed up by some floral hop flavor that really helps balance out the maltiness. The viscousity of the beer and its maltiness reminded somewhat of molasses. Anyone who likes belgian beers needs to try this one.


Brasserie de Rochefort "Trapisstes Rochefort 10"

All in all I think I had great expectations for this beer. Not bad, but definitely not earth-shattering. It had a very smooth creamy flavor and it hinted at a banana smoothie. Deceptively smooth so much so that its hard to believe that it is in excess of 11% ABV, scary.


Unibroue "La Fin Du Monde"

Loved it. A fantastic tripel with a peppery and clove spiciness and a nice dry finish. Buy some of this!

Unibroue "Trois Pistoles"

I remember liking this, but I can't recall any specifics about it. I think I had already had a couple of beers at that point.

De Proefbrouwerij "Saison Imperiale"

I did not enjoy this one. Enough said.

Elevator "Doppelbock"

Really good, but I think it is miscategorized. It tasted a lot like a porter or maybe a stout. It lacked that german smoothness that you usually expect from a doppelbock.


Until next time,

HolzBrew