New Zealand has Beer?

This one is for all you Kiwis that read the blog (I have no idea if you exist, but if you do, this is for you). 

About 5 years ago, my brother did a semester abroad in New Zealand. Somehow, my girlfriend, Lindsey, and I both managed to con our parents into sending us to go visit him. Since we were under 21, this provided us with two weeks of legally being able to drink. This also allowed us to try some of the local beer. Apart from all of the "export" beers which is apparently kiwi for "terrible", there were actually some very tasty beers. In the end, I would say that two different brands stuck out above the rest. The first was Monteith's. You could find this brand everywhere, and they actually made some great beers. My favorite was their black lager, shown below.   

It didn't hurt that those pitcher were something like 3 Kiwi dollars.

Where Monteith's was good and easy to find, Moa was better and very difficult to find. I came to really enjoy the brand, so whenever I see a new one, I snatch it up. Here are two that I recently found: Moa 5 Hop Ale, and Moa Breakfast Ale.

The 5 Hop Ale is brewed as an English IPA, but where the Americans overhop their IPAs, it appears the Kiwis like to over malt theirs. Not that it was bad. It was a very pleasant beer and very easy to drink. I also couldn't taste a bit of the alcohol in it (6.2% ABV). It was subtle and nice, but not something that will really impress you. The Breakfast Ale is a wheat beer that has a distinct fruitiness that complements the malt very well. In fact, it was a little too well. I felt like I was eating one of those cereals that has the freeze dried fruit in it. I preferred the 5 hop ale, but the breakfast beer was good for what it is intended, a light, refreshing, afternoon/morning beer.   

If you want me to look at a particular beer, drink, place, or have anything to say to me, email me at monksandmalts@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook and Twitter (@ofmonksandmalts). You can also buy my pictures here: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/robert-rizzolo.html.

Fermentation Without Representation

While it is starting to feel more like winter, it is still technically fall. Therefore, pumpkin beers are still free game! Not that this really has any impact on the way I drink beer, as pumpkin beer are generally very low on my list. I do pride myself on being a well-rounded drinker, however, so I will sample virtually any beer, provided it is new to me. This particular beer is an Imperial Pumpkin Porter made in collaboration by DC Brau and Epic Brewing. It is called Fermentation without Representation. Get it? No? Me neither. 

I have to be honest, on paper, this sounds like a beer that I would hate. I'm generally not an "imperial" kind of guy, particularly with darks. Also, pumpkin is a finicky ingredient to work with. Apparently, these guys know what they are doing. The beer drank like a porter. That's all I ever want from a flavored beer. I want it to taste like the style, but with a hint of the special ingredient. At 8% ABV, it isn't overwhelmingly strong, which is nice. This way, the beer doesn't have to fight with the alcohol for flavor. I was really impressed with how good this beer was, especially because I went in with negative thoughts. Well done DC Brau/Epic. I'm convinced. Looks like I will be trying more stuff from these two breweries. 

Glassware: Tulip Pint

Synonym Beer: Saranac Pumpkin (Similar subtle pumpkin flavors)

If you want me to look at a particular beer, drink, place, or have anything to say to me, email me at monksandmalts@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook and Twitter (@ofmonksandmalts). You can also buy my pictures here: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/robert-rizzolo.html.

This one goes to 11 Ale

Here is an interesting one for the day. This one was brewed by Bell's Brewery to commemorate their 11,000th batch. They appropriately called it: "This one goes to 11 Ale". Shockingly, it has 11% ABV. I am pretty sure this one will be somewhat hard to find, so if you do, it would be worth picking up a bottle (expensive though). Also, if you have never seen This is Spinal Tap, the name is a reference to This is Spinal Tap.

It is defined as a Red/Amber Ale, but I think that it is easily blurring the lines into becoming an Imperial Red/Amber Ale. It was immensely hoppy, but actually rounded out really well. At first whiff, I was convinced that I would hate it, but Bell's is probably my No.1 brewery choice for being able to produce a balanced, yet hop forward beer. It is strong, but drinkable and actually I really enjoyed it. It is definitely too expensive for my everyday tastes, but it was worth a try. 

P.S. I find it a little funny that I have consumed a few different beers and gone to a beer festival that reference Spinal Tap, yet I still haven't seen the movie. 

Glassware: Tulip, Snifter, Pint

Synonym Beer: Ithaca Cascazilla

If you want me to look at a particular beer, drink, place, or have anything to say to me, email me at monksandmalts@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook and Twitter (@ofmonksandmalts). You can also buy my pictures here: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/robert-rizzolo.html.

Rogue Voodoo Doughnut

If you are from the Pacific Northwest, specifically Portland, or if you have ever left the food network/travel channel on for more than an hour at a time, you have probably heard of Voodoo Doughnuts. They are a small chain of doughnut shops that make what I will call "premium" doughnuts. They are known for making big, delicious, interesting doughnuts. One of the flavors that they are most well known for is the Bacon Maple Doughnut. The minds at Rogue Ales (a well known Oregon brewery) decided to pay homage to Voodoo Doughnuts by immortalizing the Bacon Maple doughnut in a beer. The result: See below.

First of all, brilliant marketing. My initial reaction was somewhere along the lines of, "What? Well I guess I have to try it." I shrugged my shoulders somewhere in there. My brother actually cracked this one open while I was visiting. At the very least it would be interesting, right? Well, that turned out to be very accurate. Maybe some people like this. I don't know. Between my brothers and myself, the most favorable reaction was, "I think it is kind of growing on me." My personal opinion is that there is way too much going on. The first thing that you will notice is the potent, smokey nose. There is a hint of bacon, but overall, I was just getting smoke. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing. I love rauchbiers (German smoke beers). The flavor is what really got me. At first take, it was as if my beer had been used as an ashtray for the entire night. It really reminded me of cigarettes and I found it hard to drink. At second take, I noticed that there was also an overt sweetness that was not counteracted by the smoke. Instead, the two flavors did battle inside my mouth to see who would be dominant.

Even though this was split among three people. I barley even finished half of my portion. This was certainly a really interesting beer, but I also found that it had zero redeeming qualities. It would probably have been better in a little sample size. With that said, try it if you think it sounds interesting. Just because I didn't like it doesn't mean that you won't either.

Glassware: Pint, Tumbler

Synonym Beer: Nope

If you want me to look at a particular beer, drink, place, or have anything to say to me, email me at monksandmalts@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook and Twitter (@ofmonksandmalts). You can also buy my pictures here: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/robert-rizzolo.html.

Boulevard Saison-Brett

Boulevard Brewing keeps on impressing me. I had no idea that there were even a handful of breweries that could make a decent saison in the States. I knew Boulevard made some good tart beers, so I decided to give the Saison Brett a shot. 

If you are confused by the name, Brett refers to Brettanomyces, a genus of yeast that is often used in brewing tart beers and wines. Sometimes Brett can be inadvertently allowed to contact the beer, infecting it and ruining the batch (or making it better, depending on what you like). However, if a bit of sour is desired, adding Brett to your batch can be exactly what you need. Since I like the sour, I'm at the point where if I see a beer label mention Brett, it is purchased. 

With the Saison Brett, Boulevard avoided all of the pitfalls that I generally see with American Saisons. They didn't get exotic with the ingredients. They let the yeast do the talking. It isn't extreme, it is just delicious. It is a little bit of a bigger beer than most Belgian Saisons and stronger, too, sitting at 8.5% ABV. This isn't necessarily a good thing, as one of my favorite saisons is 3.5% ABV, but the Saison Brett makes it work. It is maybe a tad less funky than I would have liked, but it is very tasty.

Boulevard is doing what it can to make Kansas City known for beer more so than that other city in Missouri. 

Glassware: Saison, Tulip

Synonym Beer: Mystic Saison Reynaud 

If you want me to look at a particular beer, drink, place, or have anything to say to me, email me at monksandmalts@gmail.com. Find me on Facebook and Twitter (@ofmonksandmalts). You can also buy my pictures here: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/robert-rizzolo.html.