Barleywine Review #8 - Avery Hog Heaven Barley Wine

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

Apr. 5, 2012

The Avery Hog Heaven Barley Wine is a particularly interesting beer for us here at 20 Beers in 20 Nights.  To begin with, it is the only beer that potentially belongs to both projects we’re currently working on, The Barleywine Project and The Avery Project.  So, I had to decide whether or not to be lazy and just count it as a review for each project or just for one.  I went with the latter. 

In order to complete The Barleywine Project, Hog Heaven is necessary.  For The Avery Project, though, it is optional.  I would rather give another of Avery’s beers a chance to shine, particularly since I have such great access to them.  This is the same reason that I will not re-review The Maharaja from Avery as I already reviewed it for the DIPA Project.    

Anyhow, the second reason The Hog is interesting is because it is one of only two offerings on our Barleywine list that is available year-round.  The other is Uinta Brewing Company’s Anniversary Barley Wine Ale.  The Uinta is brewed in Utah and just recently snuck onto the list in the number 20 spot.  Whether or not it remains on the list until I get to it is another question. The DIPA Project list changed occasionally, but the Top 20 always remained intact, with a few beers simply switching positions a few times.  The Barleywine list has proven to be much more volatile so far.   

Finally, one last point about the Hog Heaven before the review, in terms of a Barleywine it is somewhat controversial.  Many people claim that it is more of a Double or Triple IPA.  In fact, I have heard some people who sell it claim that they believe it would sell better if it were renamed Hog Heaven Imperial or Double IPA.  This is one of Avery’s oldest recipes, though, and from what I hear it is one that is close to Adam Avery’s heart, so the likelihood of it changing anytime soon is slim.

In all honesty, I have found myself on both sides of this controversy at times.  It is a beer I am familiar with and have tried many times and in many different forms.  I have tasted it in the Taproom at Avery, I have had it in the bottle, I have tried it fresh and I have been lucky enough to sample two, three and four-year old Hog Heaven.  With that said, I have never reviewed it, nor was I ever in a position to seriously focus on it for the sake of determining what style it should be called.  I just wanted a big, flavorful beer.  So, I suppose we should just call this post the Myth Buster’s edition of 20 Beers in 20 Nights.  Is Hog Heaven really a Barleywine?  Let’s find out.

Location: Boulder Liquor Mart

Cost: $2.39 for 12oz. bottle

Glassware: Funkwerks Tulip Glass

ABV: 9.2%

IBUs: 104

Brewery Location: Boulder, Colorado

Style: American Barleywine

Average Beer Advocate Rating: B+/3.97 – Very Good

My Beer Advocate Rating: A-/4.23 – Excellent

Current Number of Reviews on Beer Advocate/Current Rank:

Brewery Description: Avery Hog Heaven Barley Wine

Bottled On: NA

APPEARANCE:  (4.5 out of 5) The Hog Heaven pours a penny copper color with a half-inch thick cap with some staying power.  Others who have reviewed this beer have reported a haziness to it, but that has never been my experience and even after pouring the entire contents of the bomber into my glass, the beer underneath is crystal clear with hundreds of bubbles drifting northwards towards that cap.  As for the lacing, I would call it superb – look at that!

SMELL:  (4.5 out of 5) The nose on this one is delicious.  A big dose of pine blends with banana, clove and maybe a little brown sugar.  For a Barleywine that has been dismissed as a mislabeled Double or Triple IPA, this smells an awful lot like a Barleywine.  The only difference is that those Barleywine aromas are just accented with some strong hop aromas.

TASTE:  (4 out of 5) The first sip confirms that the Hog Heaven is most certainly a Barleywine; a hopped up Barleywine, yes, but still a Barleywine.  OK, now that that argument is settled, what else is going on in this one? 

To begin with, there is plenty of hop flavor packed into this beer, but despite the 104 IBUs, the typical bitterness associated with the hop is muted.  Instead, a big, sweet wave of caramel and bananas crashes into the palate right off the bat and any bitterness comes in later in the form of grapefruit and lemon which are riding a second wave of floral and piney hoppiness.  The finish leaves an interesting medley of slightly puckering bitterness along with a sweeter taste from the flowers, pine, caramel and banana.  The Hog Heaven really stays with the palate.

MOUTHFEEL:  (4 out of 5) Big, sticky, rich, smooth and creamy.  This Barleywine goes down incredibly smooth and leaves a nice bittersweet finish on the palate. 

OVERALL:  (4.5 out of 5) Again, for all the talk about this beer being more of a Double IPA, it sure seems like a nicely hopped Barleywine to me.  After tasting this beer with purpose and without distraction, it is hard to see how I ever believed it was more of an IPA, but at the same time, it is pretty damn hoppy.  Given that intense hop flavor, this is one of the better Barleywines to taste fresh.  With the complexity, intense malt flavor and high ABV, though, it also makes an excellent candidate for aging.  I’ll be putting a couple bottles in the cellar soon.

By the way, Opening Day at Wrigley Field is today - in the words of the late, great Steve Goodman "Hey Chicago Whatd'ya say the Cubs are gonna win today.  Go Cubs Go!"



 

Avery Review #6 - Avery The Czar Imperial Stout

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

Dec. 5, 2011

Picture courtesy of Brewkettletimes.com

In last week’s review of Avery’s DuganA Double IPA I promised to review a few of the more easily obtainable Avery brews, so today, here are my thoughts on The Czar Russian Imperial Stout.  It is currently on tap in the Avery Tap Room and bombers are fairly easy to track down at any bottle shop that the brewery distributes to.

Here’s my take on this 2^nd beer from Avery’s “The Dictator Series”:

Location: Avery Tap Room

Cost: $3 – 10 oz. pour

ABV: 11.03%

IBUs: 60

Brewery Location: Boulder, Colorado

Style: Russian Imperial Stout

Average Beer Advocate Rating: B+/3.88 – Very Good

My Beer Advocate Rating: B+/4 – Very Good

Current Number of Reviews on Beer Advocate: 771 (16^th most popular RIS on Beer Advocate)

Brewery Description: Avery The Czar

Tapped: November 2011

APPEARANCE:  (4 out of 5) This is a deep black beer, but some ruby red light does show through the very bottom of the glass and near the surface of the beer when held to the light.  A thick, healthy, light brown head rests on top and it is not going anywhere for a while.  The Czar has excellent head retention with a few big bubbles scattered throughout the top of the foam.  As the glass empties a nice, cathedral-like lacing forms as well.

SMELL:  (4 out of 5) Coffee overwhelms the fairly intense nose.  Roasted malts warm the nostrils with each sniff – this beer smells comforting, but at the same time it warns of some of the intense flavors to come, including a touch of hops.

TASTE:  (4 out of 5) There is a lot going on in this beer.  The coffee from the nose is there, and it is strong.  A small dose of chocolate lies just beneath the heavy coffee surface and almost entirely masks the slight alcoholic burn that the 11% ABV produces.  Even deeper down lurks a slightly sour lemon flavor and all of this is rounded out with a nice, hoppy finish.

MOUTHFEEL:  (4 out of 5) The Czar is smooth and dry making it an excellent beer to pair with food.  All that is left on the palate at the end of each sip is a very subtle coffee flavor.  There is no residue left over as there is with some other beers, particularly Russian Imperial Stouts.

OVERALL:  (4 out of 5) The Czar is an excellent early winter stout and a great way to warm up from a cold and snowy Colorado evening.  The complexity of The Czar when fresh is outstanding, but before the season is over, I plan to sock away two or three bottles for a future vertical tasting.  I can only imagine how delicious this beer will be three to five years from now. 

DRAWBACKS:  The Czar suffers from exactly the same problem that the DuganA does – it has a very successful and tasty big brother.  Like the DuganA has the Maharaja, The Czar has The Mephistopheles – a gigantic Imperial Stout that clocks in at over 16% with an incredible amount of flavor.  In its own right, the Czar really is a terrific beer, and it does have some advantages over The “Meph”, like the fact that one of these will not knock you out…it might take two.  The fact is, though, this November stout offering from Avery is still an appetizer for the early December Mephistopheles release. 

Barleywine Review #5 - Great Divide Old Ruffian

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

Nov. 10, 2011

There wasn’t a whole lot of excitement in obtaining the bottle of Great Divide Old Ruffian.  I just went to the liquor store, paid $8 and brought home the bottle.  So here’s the review: 

Location: Williams Village Liquor

Cost: $8 (22oz. bomber)

Glassware: Pint Glass

ABV: 10.2%

IBUs: 90

Brewery Location: Denver, Colorado

Style: American Barleywine

Average Beer Advocate Rating: A-/423 – Excellent

My Beer Advocate Rating: B/3.55 – Good

Current Number of Reviews on Beer Advocate/Current Rank in Top 20: 926/3^rd

Brewery Description: Great Divide Old Ruffian

Bottled On: Nov. 23, 2010

APPEARANCE:  (4.5 out of 5) If there is one thing I have learned about Great Divide since moving to Colorado it is that they have a knack for creating some great looking beers.  The Old Ruffian is no exception, when this beer is poured a gorgeous, stark-white, inch-thick head rests on top of a pretty Mahogany colored, opaque beer.

SMELL:  (3.5 out of 5) Giant, sweet malt in the nose.  The aroma is moderately strong, but it could be a little stronger.  Brown sugar and molasses dominate the malt aromas, but hints of yeast and a touch of wood comes through as well.

TASTE:  (3.5 out of 5) The taste follows the nose with big malty flavors.  Sweet molasses, nutmeg and a touch of honey fill out the malt bill.  A big dose of hops lurks just beneath the surface up front and slowly makes its self known as the sip finishes.  By the end of the sip, this Barleywine tastes a lot more like a big, double IPA with some notes of pine, citrus and some floral flavor as well. 

MOUTHFEEL:  (3.5 out of 5) Silky and smooth with just a hint of sparkle.  A small amount of sweetness hits the palate up front before a dryer than average and hoppy finish washes it away. 

OVERALL:  (3.5 out of 5) I like the Old Ruffian, but it isn’t the best Barleywine I’ve had.  There is something just a little bit off.  The body of the beer is a little thin for me.  I expect bigger, bolder and richer flavors from the style. 

Review #5 - From Nashville - Oskar Blues Gordon Ale (a.k.a. G'Knight)

Posted by: Stonecipher

Feb. 11, 2011

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the girlfriend and I are in Nashville, Tennessee this weekend.  So far, I have to say, I am fairly impressed with the beer culture down here.  That said, we are primarily hanging out around the Vanderbilt campus and it is fairly reasonable to assume that a more educated crowd is more likely to be into craft beer.

The highlight up to this point has been our stop at the 12 South Taproom which we found on Beer Advocate on the drive down.  I had a good feeling about it after reading just a few reviews and I am so glad we went.  We had an excellent time, were treated like regulars, had some delicious food, listened to some very funky, live blues and most important to the blog…I found Oskar Blues Gordon Ale!  And no, I didn’t just find G’Knight, I found the old Gordon Ale can, which may be pretty tough to find from here on out (more on that in a future post).

The G’Knight/Gordon Ale was previously one of the four that I thought I would for sure have to trade for.  So when I saw it sitting in the cooler at 12 South I was pumped. 

I have to say, I was impressed, and I enjoyed it, but I was not quite as impressed as I thought I would be.  I actually ended up liking the Oskar’s Gubna Double IPA more.  Before the review though, here are some facts about Oskar Blues Gordon Ale:

ABV: 8.7%

IBUs: 60

Brewery Location: Lyons, Colorado

Style: American Double IPA

Average Beer Advocate Rating: A-/4.12 – Excellent

My Beer Advocate Rating: B+/3.95 – Very Good

Current Number of Reviews/Rank in the Top 20 on Beer Advocate: 941/14^th

Brewery Description: Oskar Blues Gordon Ale

Bottled On: NA

APPEARANCE:  (4.5 out of 5) - The picture I took won’t do it much justice, despite being in a fairly well-lit bar, I just couldn’t get that super-premium, quality camera on the iPhone to take a decent picture.  So, if I pick up a sixer or something on the way out of Tennessee, I’ll try to post one.  For now, you can just use your imagination. 

OK, back to the task at hand – the appearance of the Gordon Ale.  As you can see, it did not completely fill up the stemless snifter I was given to pour it into and that gave me the freedom to pour a little more aggressively than normal.  The pour created a gorgeous, clean white head, which rested on top of a deep reddish brown colored beer.  The only problem with the head (and the only reason I did not give OBGA a 5 out of 5 in appearance) was that it did not lead to very much lacing.  Gordon Ale is a very pretty beer.

SMELL: (3.0 out of 5) – The nose was the only category in which the Oskar Blues Gordon Ale did not impress me.  What was detectable was appetizing, but the sweet and malty aromas just did not come through without a lot of effort.  At one point I had my nose so far in the glass that the tip of it got wet. 

TASTE: (4.0 out of 5) – Wow!  The first sip of the Gordon Ale is a malt bomb.  The flavor is certainly what sets this beer apart and makes it one of the most unique that I have tried on The List so far.  I imagine none of the other DIPAs I try for the blog will taste anything like this.  While the malt is the star of the show, and its sweetness remains throughout the entire sip, a little bite of bitterness creeps in towards the end just as the malt is beginning to fade.  The malty flavor sticks around for the aftertaste, but a touch of hoppiness joins it.

MOUTHFEEL: (4.5 out of 5) – I loved the mouthfeel of the Gordon Ale.  It was intensely sparkling and palate scraping, but the sweetness allowed it to be enjoyed throughout the whole can.  In fact, I’m sure I could have had another one and would have been fine.  It was almost as if the sparkle simulated the ripping away of my taste buds, while a contrasting sweet, stickiness worked to keep them all intact.  Overall, it had an amazing mouthfeel.

OVERALL: (4.0 out of 5) – I have had the pleasure of tasting Oskar Blues before, but only once or twice and neither time was it the Gordon Ale.  I have heard a lot about it, but was never able to track it down.  I am very happy I found it at the 12 South Taproom though.  It was a pleasant, unique and very good beer.  Although the beer is not supposed to change at all, I am still really glad I got to try a can before the name changes to G’Knight.  I do have to say though, as much as this beer has been hyped, I was slightly disappointed.  It is good, it is served in a can (maybe the only can on The List), but its brother, Gubna DIPA, also from Oskar Blues, edged it out in almost every category. 

SOUND: Whatever the funky, jazzy blues being played in the 12 South Taproom, that’s what this beer sounded like.  The blues seemed to be the perfect match for drinking Oskar Blues.

DRAWBACKS: The lack of much nose was a turn off to me.  From my experience strong, red ales usually have a very hoppy smell, and since the Gordon Ale highlighted the malt more than the hops, maybe that had something to do with the lack of aroma.  Otherwise, it was a well crafted beer that deserves to be recognized for its uniqueness within the style, but again, it was overhyped.  I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I wasn’t expecting the best beer ever before I tried it.

Review #3 - Great Divide Hercules Double IPA

Posted by: Stonecipher

Jan. 31, 2011

Last night I was very happy to be sitting down with a large glass of beer after racking my brain all day with class and work.  Like the Dreadnaught, I have tried Great Divide’s Hercules Double IPA in the past, but I did not review it.  I remember enjoying it, but I was also eating at one of my very favorite restaurants in Chicago, Bad Apple on Lincoln, just kitty corner from the Half Acre Beer Company – home of Daisy Cutter Pale Ale.  It’s always tough to tell if the burgers or the beer is better there, the selection of both is phenomenal, but I digress. 

Here are some basics for the Great Divide Hercules Double IPA –

ABV: 10%

IBUs: 85

Brewery Location: Denver, Colorado

Style: American Double IPA

Average Beer Advocate Rating: A-/4.2 – Excellent

My Beer Advocate Rating: B+/3.9 – Very Good

Current Number of Reviews/Rank in the Top 20 on Beer Advocate: 1,184/10^th

Brewery Description: Great Divide Brewing Company

Bottled On: July 1, 2011

By the way, you’ll notice the Avery Brewing Company glass, a Colorado glass for a Colorado beer.  Haven’t been to the Great Divide Brewery yet, but may be making the trip when I’m in Denver and Boulder in March.  That also may have to be the time I review Avery’s Maharaja – One of my all-time favorites that just so happens to be in the Top 20.

So, with the weather getting increasingly worse here in the Chicago Area, I sat down last night to sample the Great Divide Hercules Double IPA and here’s what I found:

APPEARANCE:  Poured a hazy, medium copper into the Avery pint glass.  A decent looking, fluffy white head dissipated rather quickly.  The Hercules is a good looking beer, but there is nothing particularly notable about the appearance.  One thing that was interesting is that this beer did break the streak of my Double IPAs only lacing on the left and right sides of the glass.  The Hercules had a more typical lacing pattern, with big thin rings lining the opposite side of the glass from top to bottom. 

SMELL:  The first word that came to mind when I sniffed the Hercules was intense.  And that’s just the way I like my beers.  The strong, piney hop smell steals the show, but there are also hints of grassy and citrus aromas.  Great Divide certainly knows how to create an appetite and excitement for a hop head.

TASTE:  The first sip was a little bit of a letdown.  I was expecting a bitter hop bomb, but instead tasted more sweet malt flavors.  That wasn’t a terrible thing, just unexpected.  As the beer began to warm, however, the bitter hoppy flavor became more apparent and the sweetness was relegated to the background as a balancing agent.  Hints of citrus, mostly lemon, came through at the tail end of the sip as the bitterness emerged for the aftertaste.

MOUTHFEEL:  If I remember correctly it was Barq’s whose motto was “Barq’s has Bite”.  Well, Hercules has bite, particularly if you hold it on the tongue for a couple of seconds.  The carbonations digs into the tongue, but strangely the rest of the palate seems to get more of a pleasant mouth coating sensation at the same time.  This combination seems to be responsible for making the aftertaste exceptionally strong, an unusual, but excellent feel. 

OVERALL:  This is a somewhat erratic and funky beer.  In my last review I described the Three Floyds Dreadnaught as a roller coaster ride, and the Hercules is the same in some ways, except that the roller coaster is old, rattling and extremely shaky.  For the roller coaster connoisseur, my guess is that the rattle and shake might add to the excitement, but for a rookie, it might be terrifying.  I thoroughly enjoyed this beer, but I can see how it would frighten some light beer drinkers away in a hurry. 

DRAWBACKS:  Once again, the roller coast ride was both a plus and a minus.  The Hercules is a very complex beer and with complexity comes a variety of tastes, smells and feels.  The likelihood that one beer drinker will love all of these is fairly low, so as the odds would have it, there were a few characteristics that didn’t quite do it for me.  One was the appearance.  I do believe appearance is the toughest category to screw up (I mean how often do you look at a beer and say to yourself “Well, I just don’t want to drink that”?), but the Hercules did leave something to be desired as far as its appearance went.  Additionally, the early sips were too sweet for me.  I understand the need to balance the hops out with some malt, but it took longer than I wanted for the correct balance to appear. 

SOUND:  This was a tough one, but I have to go with Miles Davis’s “Bitches Brew”.  What can be grating and, well, downright scary to the untrained ear can also be a thing of beauty to a jazz aficionado.  The Hercules is going to be a classic that must be respected, but may not be fully enjoyed or appreciated by everyone, just like Miles in 1970.

A Plea for Pliny

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

Jan. 31, 2011

My efforts on Beer Advocate to reach a trade agreement with someone in posession of some of Russian River's "Pliny the Elder" (and "Pliny the Younger" for that matter) have come up short.  So, while I will be looking to r/beertrade as well, I thought I would put out a plea for it here on the site as well.  I would prefer to do the trade via BA or Reddit, but I am open to other arrangements as well.  Get in touch if you can help me out on this one.  I have a feeling it is going to be the most difficult of the Top 20 for me to track down, so I'm trying to get on this early in the process.

On a seperate note, even though I have only just begun the process of working through the Top 20 Double IPAs on Beer Advocate, I have some ideas about what the next 20 beers will be, but I want to hear your suggestions as well.  They do not necessarily have to be from Beer Advocate, nor do they necessarily have to have a theme.  The theme could simply be 20 beers that YOU want to see reviewed.  If you have any thoughts or ideas, leave a comment below and we'll go from there.

Finally, be on the look out tonight for my review of Great Divide's "Hercules" Double IPA.  It is currently ranked 10th on the list with 1,183 reviews averaging out to an A-.  So we'll see where I land on the issue.  The beer is currently chilling in the fridge and I'm excited!

The Ska Rainbow

Posted by: Stonecipher

Jan. 27, 2011

This is slightly off-topic, but still beer related and I thought it was a great looking picture.  For those of you who don't know Ska Brewing Company out of Durango, Colorado, you really need to check them out.  They currently only distribute to five states: Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina and Illinois, but I am more than happy to make a trade via Beer Advocate, so send me some Beer Mail and we'll talk.

 EDIT: Apparently it is now available in eight states, Missouri is one of the others, but I do not know the other two.  If anyone can help me out on this, I'd appreciate it.  Couldn't find the others on their website.

EDIT 2: Looks like we've got Kansas and Texas as well, that's the eight.  Don't think there are any more.

EDIT 3: We have State #9 - My former home of Nebraska.  Thanks Nate B.!

Anyhow, more about the picture here: the four cans are the only four that Ska is currently canning, from left to right: Euphoria (A hoppy, winter IPA), Modus Hoperandi (Probably their most well-known brew), True Blonde (A delicious and light blond ale) and ESB (Might be their flagship beer).

In addition to their canned line-up Ska also has some excellent bottles and even better specialty beers available in 22oz. bombers, my favorite of which, of course, is the Decadent Imperial India Pale Ale.  Sadly, it has not cracked the Top 20 of most reviewed DIPAs on BA yet, but I might just do a review of it sometime soon anyway.  It is certainly worthy of being there, just not quite distributed enough to get there at this point.  Although, Ska was recently upgraded from the status of microbrewery to regional craft brewery. 

Here's a link to Ska's BA Profile - link.  So I guess this is now just going to turn into a full-blown post about the brewery, here's some pictures from my visit:

First up, the canning line cranking out some ESB:

And this is what came straight off the line and into my hand.  The people there were so friendly and so excited about their beer:

 In the tap room:

Both times I have been in the tap room the sun has been shining outside and it feels like it is shining inside too.  The room is bright, open, airy and a very comfortable place to be.  And that brings me to one of the best parts about traveling to Ska, Zia Taqueria, located right outside on the patio:

So there you have it.  What began as my desire to simply post a picture of some pretty cans of beer I had a few weeks ago turned into a big, long post about my favorite brewery.  Enjoy and leave a comment.  Tell me what your favorite Ska beer is, or let me know about your experience at the Brewery.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.